Week 18: Christmas in Lille!

Finishing a semester in France, getting to travel to more than a few new places, and making some amazing friends along the way has made this first semester in Europe such an unforgettable experience. Now that the first semester is over (already!), I’m moving into a new phase: transition. I have moved all my clothes, suitcases, and decorations out of my room in Vieux Lille, and I have moved in with Amandine and her family, who have so graciously accepted to let me stay with them over this Christmas break. It has definitely been a great one so far, what with experiencing an authentic French Christmas celebration and getting to hang out with Amandine and her friends!

Monday was a pretty eventful day, what with me saying goodbye to my residence where my friends and I had made such good memories. (FRL, you’ll be forever in my heart!) Since I hadn’t gotten much packing done before I went to Slovakia, I ended up staying up all night making sure everything was neatly folded and organized… or at least that everything fit in my suitcase. In the morning I went to AEU (the housing agency through which I rented my room) and signed off on the final documents saying that I was leaving, and got a nice surprise with all my deposit money back. Then I stopped off nearby at Fatima’s apartment to drop off her small suitcase that I had borrowed to go to Slovakia, and we chatted for a bit. After that, I returned to the AEU office to pick up Alex’s card to enter her building and key for her room. That certainly made her imminent arrival all the more real!

After that, I trekked all the way back to my residence, grabbed all my bags, met up with Amandine, and she and I lugged all my bags from my room to her dad’s car. We zoomed down the street to where Alex would be staying, and we once again lugged everything up to Alex’s room (thankfully, unlike my residence, Alex’s has an elevator). After we set everything down and made some kind of sense of everything, I took my pillows and blankets (and some that my friend from Norbs, Grace, had left) and made up Alex’s bed, and then off we went to Amandine’s house with my small suitcase and backpack (after a few errands). I breathed a sigh of relief once I got everything all set up, and settled in to start what would become one of the best Christmases I have ever had. We settled into bed, shared a little girl talk and talked with enthusiasm of our plans for the break, and then we settled in for the night.

Another morning of sleep was due on Tuesday, and so Amandine and I slowly rolled out of bed later in the morning, and then wandered downstairs to get some breakfast. (One upside of living in Europe - I’ve had some kind of breakfast almost every day!) It was entertaining to see the TV on and showing a variety of American cartoons dubbed in French. Eventually we snuggled in in front of the TV to watch some American Christmas movies again dubbed in French, and I realized that no matter how cheesy those ABC Family movies are, there will always be a soft spot in my heart for them.

Later in the afternoon, we headed to the Christmas market in the nearby town of Arras, and I experienced my third Christmas market of the season (preceded by many visits to the one in Lille proper and a couple to the one in Bratislava). It had much the same merchandise as the Christmas Markets I had already seen, but still, the Christmas lights everywhere and the general atmosphere of Christmas spirit made it a wonderful experience - and especially since I was with Amandine and her family. They all explained to me even more in depth about French culture and history - such as Amandine’s dad showing me a building where Maximilen de Robespierre, an influential figure in the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution (apparently right in Arras!). When we made it back to Amandine’s town, called Fournes-en-Weppes, we stopped at a place called Les 3 Brasseurs (“The 3 Brewers”), which reminded me a lot of Water Street Brewery back in the States, and had some nice flemmekueche for dinner as well as more wonderful conversation. We finally got home after dinner with full stomachs, and we slowly made our way to bed. What a great way to spend the day before Christmas eve!

A giant ornament made of lights at the Arras Christmas Market.

I had been anticipating Christmas Eve for a while, and on Wednesday it was finally upon us! Amandine and I had another luxurious morning of sleeping in (since I had been up until the wee hours of the morning chatting with my family), and then we watched some more cartoons along with breakfast (Totally Spies, anyone? :)). Amandine told me that I had to watch the second Narnia movie (Prince Caspian), since the third one would be on TV later that day, and so I more than happily agreed, and we watched Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy return to Narnia once again.

Soon enough, it was time to get ready for Christmas Eve Mass at 6pm, and then we walked down the street and around the corner to get to the town church. It was wonderful to participate in mass with Amandine and her family, and it was especially nice to see the relationships the people of the town have with each other - everybody seemed to have close friends all over town, and it warmed my heart to see all the catching-up and chatting going on seemingly between everyone. We then made our short way back home, had some dinner, and watched some more French-dubbed movies (Shark Tale and Toy Story 2), and I thoroughly enjoyed hearing the French instead of English.

Christmas Eve mass.

Throughout the evening, I got Snapchats from my mom and sisters of our house back home with all its Christmas decorations, and especially the Christmas tree, which made me more than a little homesick, because as I’ve told my family numerous times, my absolute favorite thing to do at Christmas is when night falls, to sit in the living room with the tree all decorated with ornaments, garlands, and lights, and just bask in the Christmas glow. (Side note: my family got a real tree this year for the first time in a while, and I missed it! Oh well… I can’t really do much complaining, as I chose to spend Christmas in Europe - and oh how wonderful it has been!) Just before I went to sleep, I worked on my blog for a little bit (and fought through the slowness that my computer has decided to impose on itself), and then when my eyes started to droop, I snuggled in and fell asleep.

Then came Christmas Day! We actually had to get up earlier in the morning, so Amandine and I reluctantly got dressed and ready for the day, and I got to meet Amandine’s lovely sister, Audrey, who very kindly fixed Amandine’s hair and mine in some adorable curls. Before I knew it, many of Amandine’s relatives were flooding in the door, and I met so many people that day, and I certainly had my share of bises (cheek kisses typical in France for greeting new people)! We all sat down for a grand luncheon at the dining room table, and we shared lots of conversation in French, and I got in some great practice of my own French listening and speaking abilities.

All the members of the family present had their turns asking me all about my family, my studies, and my hobbies, and in turn, I listened to their extensive conversation about various subjects. We had a wonderful meal with many amuses-bouches (hors d’oeuvres) - including the traditional foie gras - along with a wide selection of cheeses, and with a spectacular dessert of another French traditional food: bûche de Noël - a yule log rolled cake. At the end of the meal, presents were distributed, and Amandine and her family were nice enough to even get me a couple of presents! I was touched, and I can’t wait until Alex gets here with a special surprise for Amandine and her family :). The rest of the day was spent finishing interesting conversations with and saying goodbye to relatives, digesting all the wonderful food we had eaten at lunch, and having our own discussions about how Christmas traditions differ between the United States and France. Oh, and I can’t forget - I did Skype into a Christmas celebration with my mom’s side of the family! It was so nice to say hello to everyone from France. I’ll see you all in no time :) Soon enough, I had to get myself to sleep, because early the next morning, I would be making my way to Paris.

 L-R: Amandine's sister Audrey, Amandine, and me.

Just the beginning of our wonderful Christmas Day luncheon!

Bûche de Noël - the traditional French dessert at Christmas.

I had received an email from the Spanish Consulate in Paris saying that they had approved all my paperwork, and they invited me to come back to Paris so that they could place the visa in my passport. Amandine’s dad very nicely woke up early and took me to the train station to catch my train to Paris at 6:40AM, and then before I knew it I was on my way. (At this point, I’m pretty used to traveling to Paris by myself - even navigating the metro!) After the one-hour train ride to the Gare du Nord, I made my way on the metro to the Spanish Consulate (and I finally figured out how to get a day pass on the metro instead of just 10 one-way tickets). Once I got there before 11:00AM, they told me to leave my passport and come back before 1:30PM to pick it up.

Gare du Nord train station in Paris. Such Christmas spirit!

I took advantage of the time I had to make my way to Sacré-Coeur, the famous white basilica on the top of the hill, taking photos all the way up the hill. When I entered the church, I looked and walked around for a few minutes and eventually just sat for a while in a pew, taking in all the mosaics and all the beauty. I actually took advantage of the opportunity to go to confession, since I hadn’t been to Mass in a while (and had purposely skipped it) and hadn’t been to confession in longer. It certainly was interesting trying to go through something as personal and humbling as confession with the added obstacle of speaking in French, but I just used the words I knew, and the priest was very nice, which made it a little less intimidating. Afterwards, I made my way back down the hill, past a whole street packed with tourist shops, and on the metro to the Arc de Triomphe and down the Champs-Élysées. On my way down the famous avenue, I saw the Paris Christmas Market, which was unsurprisingly more commercial than any of the three I had seen before, but nonetheless it was still a nice sign of Christmas and the holiday spirit.

The famous basilica on a hill, Sacré Coeur. So beautiful.

Breathtaking views looking out from the basilica.

Arc de Triomphe

Finally, I went back to the Consulate with plenty of time to spare, and got my passport and everything - I finally had my Spanish visa! (It only took a few different times going to Paris to get it right.) I had bought a return ticket for a later time, but it turns out I was ready to leave hours before my ticket, and so I grabbed my ticket and hopped on an earlier train, and got back to Lille with time to spare, where Amandine and her father picked me up to take me home. When we got back, we had dinner, and then we settled in to watch La Reine des Neiges! Unfortunately I was a little too tired to stay awake for the last half, and so once the movie was over we all sleepily made our way up the stairs and into our beds. What a long day - but what a relief, to finally be all set for next semester!

Saturday and Sunday were more relaxed, just as vacation should be. Amandine showed me her Zumba DVDs and we actually did some Zumba a little later (which I was VERY excited for!), and I worked on my blog a little more. And then, at midnight, I Skyped into another Christmas celebration, this time with my dad’s side of the family! It was once again so nice to chat with everyone, and it almost felt like I was there with everyone (as I would have been had I only been abroad for this semester). I had to speak softly, as everyone else where I was was asleep, but I said a quick hi to the many people at the party, and then chatted with my family for a few minutes before making my way up to bed. Then on Sunday, we went to a birthday party for one of Amandine’s cousins, Élisa, and I had a wonderful time meeting even more of Amandine’s family! Once we had lunch and Élisa opened her gifts, we all went up to her room and started on a 3-D puzzle of the Empire State Building that she had just received as a present. It was another great time to practice my French, but more importantly, I felt so welcome as the +1 to Amandine’s family, which was wonderful. We then returned home, where I tried to post pictures from last week, but unfortunately my computer has been acting up lately, and so I was not successful. But overall, the weekend was wonderful, and here I am.

Playing with Élisa's stuffed animals :)

This Christmas break has been magical so far! I’ve gotten to immerse myself in purely authentic French culture, practice my French, and spend time with some of the kindest people I know. I still have at least a few days left here at Amandine’s house, but I’m already so grateful to have had this opportunity. As the days pass, I’m getting more and more excited about Spain next semester, but mostly I can’t wait for Alex to get here! I haven’t really been able to push the concept of the future in my mind past that point - when Alex gets here. Which, by the way, will be New Year’s Day, January 1 - I hope she has the chance to see some fireworks from the plane! Anyways. I’m off to enjoy what I have left of my break, and I will write you all next week. Until then, à bientôt!

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