Ghana, Africa!

So Ghana is an awesome place. The people here are so kind and friendly. The weather is HOT hot HOT (but I like it a lot) (and I kind of rhymed on purpose there...).
The food is DELICIOUS. Lots of rice and fish or chicken, mangoes, bananas, plantains. Just wonderful!
I'm making lots of fun friends from all over the U.S. and little by little I'm making more Ghanaian friends.
I will have a Ghanaian roommate. I'm a little nervous, but really excited to meet her and to live with her.
In the morning where we live there are little colorful lizards running around. The showers are so cold, but it's not like I would a hot shower either.
We've been to the local markets where we try to barter for beautiful African cloth and jewelry (and so many other cool hand made crafts).

Today walking past the Night Market to go to orientation I stopped to talk to a tiny little girl who was with her brother and sister. She held my hand and looked at me with her huge brown eyes and said "Icecream" and I was so sad because I had no money with me. I told her we could get some next time, but her cute little hands and little brown eyes just wouldn't let me go. So I borrowed a cédi (like a dollar) from my friend and bought them an icecream. The lady at the desk look at my and said in her fun accent "Don't be givin them yo' money." I guess I can be a sucker for those little brown eyes every once in a while. I didn't learn her name unfortunately, but I hope I see her again soon. :D
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=138208&id=545028558&l=ed59e52e70

New Years January 1st= best birthday every!

I spent my birthday, and the New Year in the southern part of France. I already told you guys about the stay with the bee keeper family on their farm. So for the New Year's weekend, me and Mari (an awesome Aggie also on exchange in France) went to Nice, Marseille, and Monaco to celebrate. We met up with a group of other young adults in Marseille for a "bal" or dance (as we would call it) that went until at least 4 in the morning. There was a theme "Les détails qui tue" or the details that kill. So we had to think of a detail that would "make" the outfit. I wore my awesome roller skates that I found in a thrift shop in France for 3 euros. I won a prize for my sweet detail that killed my feet by the end of the night.
On the way there (and back) to Marseille, we stopped in Nice to look at the beautiful beaches and monuments. The people there are very friendly, as is apparently the tendancy for the people of the south of France to be more warm and friendly.
After Nice we went to Monaco, famous for its casino's in the French Riviera. Mari had the goal to run across an entire country, so I watched our enourmous backpack while she accomplished her way cool goal of running across Monaco.


http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=130032&id=724808512&l=019bf9c275

Noel. December 25, 2009

Bonjour tout le monde!
Hey everyone, its Brooke from France wishing you all a Merry Christmas (or "Happy Holidays") and sending you my love and best wishes for the new year! Love you all!
Here is just a lil' update. I'm leaving the 10th of January for my semester in Ghana where I will be until the end of June beginning of July where I will study geography and work in an orphanage. I have had a wonderful semester in France and I've been able to meet lots of friends from all over, and of course, learn a lil bit of french. I made this video to send to my family for Christmas and you can "meet" my friends from all over and hear them wish you a Merry Christmas for me in their native languages. Its I tried to put it on youtube so I hope it works...(sorry if it sucks..) I've try to post it like 10 million times but I had to cut it all up so it isn't that great, but oh well. I've been having some technical difficulties ;)
Anyway I hope you are all doing well tell me how things are going with you guys too!
Much love!
Brooke :D
here is the youtube link if that doesn't work http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_z5k_RFu0Z0

Thanksgiving! November 26, 2009

So like I was telling you, all of the Americans decided to do Thanksgiving all together and invite all of our friends that are here from other countries; we made the traditional turkey mashed potatoes etc meal and everyone brought a dish from their country. It turned out so well! All of our french friends brought french things, our finnish, korean, japanese, canadian, african and other friends came too. It was really so great. Of course it was a little stressful throwing everything together and having to cook and have class etc, but Thanksgiving wouldn't be Thanksgiving with out a little bit of craziness here and there. I helped with pumpkin and apple pies I made the salad and helped with rolls. So finally it all worked out and we had a great thanksgiving. We all sorts of pies and cakes and even crepes, sweet potatoes/yams, green beans, ...the works! It was a really great thanksgiving even if I was far away from home, it was a really cool cultural experience that we shared all together through food....like with the Pilgrims and the Indians :)

November 16, 2009

Me and my friends are organizing a Thanksgiving dinner here in France with all of the Americans and we are inviting all of our Korean, French, African, Finnish etc friends to come and bring something from their countries (so we can have a nice little cultural exchange...)
I am just getting to the point in school though when you realize how close the exams are, but at the same time that I only have so much time left with my friends that I have made here before I leave for Ghana. The time is just going really fast. I have an address but I will be moving out the 20th or 21st of December.

October 6, 2009

For fall break I'm going to Sweden and I'm staying with my friend from Annecy. She lives in Stockholm so she is going to show us around and we will probably go to Oslo Norway for a day or something. So I am in class with all of the french people and it is a little bit difficult sometimes but by the end of the semester I should be a lot better at french (obviously) but I gets kind of overwhelming with all of the work. So there is "faire du sport" and you pay 20 euros and you can do all of the sports you want to. like aikido tai kwon do, karate, swimming, handball, volleyball, rockclimbing lots and lots and lots there is too much to choose from. but anyway so i spend lots of time at school and then I try to faire du sport everyday that I can and then leave time to just hang out and make friends with the frenchies who live in my dorm.
so that is about all for now but i LOVE LOVE LOVE Utah State..and France, they're wonderful!!!!!!!

September 9th, 2009

So yes I moved from Annecy to St. Etienne and I started my first week of school. I went to Paris and Lille this weekend (in the north of France to visit some friends) I was in Paris Thursday night and Friday and Lille Friday night and Saturday-Sunday. and it is Sunday night and after 4 hrs on the train I'm back in St. Etienne and not exactly ready for school tomorrow but its ok :)
I'm liking the city alot more now because most of the stressful parts of moving in to a new place are over and I have started making some friends and getting into the rhythm of things. I keep going on weekend adventures to Geneva or Paris but that was more just for the "last hurrah"s of summer before I have serious school stuff to do. so we'll see more in the next weeks what normal life and weekends etc will be like.

But as for me luckily I don't have roommmates but it is just me in a really small room and I have my own bathroom and everyone on the floor shares the kitchen (and it can be kind of annoying sometimes when everyone needs the stove or the oven etc...but its not that bad). France has a grand variety of smells...it can smell delicious like pain au chocolate and fresh baguettes when you pass le boulangerie (the bakery) or it can smell like pee and dog poop (because french people are crazy about their dogs but they just poop on the street and it is really gross haha...sorry for the yucky image but France isn't always glorious eiffel tower wine and cheese and berets haha). But the best thing is just being on this learning adventure. Everyday I learn new words and I meet new people (and not all french people are nice and not all french people are mean...) but the thing is just that this experience is something is uniquely mine and that it is something that I am making my own. So the thing that has made it the hardest and the best is kind of the same thing, but it is the fact that it is just me in this country trying to learn as much as I can is the best and the hardest at the same time, it is just that if I take this opportunity to make it my own, something that I never had and something that no on else can have (the exact same experience that is).

August 30th New City Saint Etienne!

Tomorrow I move to my new city I'm nervous and excited at the same time! I can't believe summer is already over. well practically over. Oh man it is sad but its always like that. Summer has flown by and tomorrow I'm moving in and hopefully I can make new friends and all that. It is nice to hear your update. My new apartment. (9 square meters.....not so big, but if works) :)