Arrival in Dijon

I made it!

Starting off in Concord, driving to Boston, flying to Iceland, flying to Paris, then driving Dijon – I have finally settled in into my place.

I must say, even though I was only in Iceland for one hour, I was really impressed. The airport was immaculate and the design was incredibly eco-friendly with huge windows everywhere and a sleek modern feel without being too cold, or icy (no pun intended). Turns out Iceland uses 99% sustainable energy to run the country -- no wonder why I was immediately impressed. 

We had a 4 hour bus ride from Paris to Dijon, and it was nice because I was able to catch a little shut eye -- because, true to form, I didn't get a wink of sleep on the plane ride. However, the few moments I was able to keep my eyes open, I got a peek of the beautiful and rustic French landscape.

I regret not capturing a couple shots of the idyllic houses on the way to Dijon. They were so sweet and straight out of a Jane Austen book. 

In other news, my room is much bigger than I was expecting, and it’s really nice having my own room. I have a boatload of storage space and all my clothes are able to hang up in my closet.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a sink in my room, and I never realized how wonderful it is to have one. I’m able to wash my face, brush my teeth, put on makeup, and do my hair all from the comfort of my own room.

After not eating for what I calculated to be a full 24 hours, some other girls in my program and myself ventured out to find a restaurant to grab a bite to eat on the night we arrived. I ordered this wonderful salad with 3 small circular slices of bread that were toasted with warm goat cheese on top. It was so simple yet so delicious. We then went back to our place and at 9pm I finally was able to sleep.

I woke up this morning at 8 am, to the beautiful view from my very large window, as I’m on the fourth floor of my building. I woke up to snow, which I was not expecting at all; as it normally doesn’t snow in Dijon…I just can’t escape it! But I must admit, the city looks stunning with a feathery light dusting of snow all over it.

The eight of us in the UNH program then all met up at took the tram a few stops to Carrefour, which is the French equivalent of a Target or Wal-Mart. We all needed to get cooking supplies and bedding, as the “blanket” my residence provided us really wasn’t going to cut it for the next four months.

I’m still very tired, and am looking forward to a good nights sleep tonight. I’m feeling slightly overwhelmed, but I know everything will be fine. We’re trying to organize a trip to Amsterdam or Switzerland this weekend, so I will definitely keep you posted about that.

Unfortunately the Internet access is even more limited than I thought it would be. So I’ll try my best to post as frequently as I can! But in the mean time, here are some more pictures of my room!

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