The first few days.....

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The first day in Rennes was very rough for me, but after that, luckily I met another American who lived on the floor above me. Her name is Amanda and she is from Michigan. One day we went to the market down the street.They don't have plastic sacks because it isn't considered economical so you have to buy one to use permanetly, they are around a Euro each. In the market there are entire aisles dedicated to Cheese, Bread and of course Wine. The wine selection is amazing, and it is incredible for how little the wines actually cost. There are wines that are cheaper that 1 Euro and bottles that go up to 30 Euro. Also there is a selection of hard ciders, a local beverage. I bought a bottle of Jean Geiler Riesling and Loic Raison Cidre. And no, I haven't drank them yet.

Another day we went into the Centre Ville, the oldest part of the city. The streets are cobblestone and the buildings are built on top of each other. Some the of the buildings are timbered and look very celtic, some are more Renaissance looking. There are many cafes, pubs ands and little shops. Right now in France are les soldes, which are the sales, and they only happen a few times per year so eveyone gets very excited about them. So the day we went, the centre ville was jammed with people. Afterwards Amanda and I met a few other Americans who have been in Rennes since September. It was great, we went to dinner and then got a lot of things we needed that international students from the first semester had left behind.

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Today I had my orientation and met all of the other International Students for this semester. Afterwards a few of us decided to run some errands in the Centre Ville. It is great because you can take the metro that stops at the University to the Centre Ville in four minutes and it only costs 1.10E. I got a cell phone and was suprised by how easy it was for me considering the saleswoman spoke no English. Tonight many of us English speakers are thinking of going out. There is a street in Rennes called the Rue de Soif, thirst street, and we are thinking of checking it out! Will let you know how it goes!

A tout de l'heure!