Drama Parisian Style

With every semester abroad it is a given fact that at some point that someone will take a trip to the hospital. Well, two weeks ago it was my roommate. After my final class for the day I receive a frantic call, Lauren has been hit by a motorbike. She wasn't injured too badly but was going to go to the hospital. After a long stay in the emergency room, Pam and I took Lauren back to our apartment with a wheelchair we stole from the hospital. Luckily, the hospital was only three blocks from our apartment...and we returned the wheelchair.

It ends up that Lauren had broken her foot and had a large cut in her leg that required two levels of stitching, one for the outerskin and another for the muscle underneath. She had been crossing the street when a man on a bike ran a red; while the man on the bike tried to miss Lauren, he still hit her leg. It's lucky that he didn't impact with her anywhere else, the accident really could have been much worse. The driver was thrown off his bike and while we don't really know what happened to him, we're pretty sure he was more badly injured than Lauren.

This little accident is one of the main reasons I haven't updated this blog in a very long time. Lauren can't walk, so I've been doing the routine tasks for her like making food, doing laundry, etc., but putting that on top of the end of the semester work for Sciences-Po makes very little free time. Lauren is healing well though, she'll stay with a wheelchair for about another week and then slowly begin walking with crutches. The girl is defiant too, she insists on trying to do things herself sometimes, which usually ends with comedy. Good news is that she shouldn't have any lingering effects from the accident.

School is winding down, I've only four final left over the next three weeks and then I'll be on my way home. It is crazy to look back and see how quickly the semester has passed. Whether I'm here or in DC, every year seems to fly by. We're all very tired of Sciences-Po. While it is a good university, some of the professors and the "French" way of doing things can become a little tiring. Overall, it's been a interesting peek into the French education system. It makes me appreciate the education I got at home a little more, but also reminds me of some of the things that could change.

This weekend, GW is taking the group to Normandy. I've always wanted to see this area of France and am very excited. We'll be staying on Mont St. Michel, which is a small village that becomes an island with high-tide. Despite the 6 hour bus trip, the trip should be very nice. We'll be seeing the D-Day beaches, the abbey at Mont St. Michel, and as always a free meal from GW. I think they are secretly trying to fatten us up for some sinister reason. I'll be sure to take plenty of pictures and update this in a more timely manner.

Another interesting development that I am very excited for is another quick trip I'll be taking in two weeks time. My friend Matt recently told me about WWOOFing, World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. WWOOFing is a system of farms that in exchange for help in their daily activities will allow you to stay on their property with room and board. Participating farms are all over the world and in two weeks I'll be going to one! At first Matt and I made fun of the idea; I mean really...going to a random strangers farm and working with them? Turns out that it looks like a great idea. We'll be able to see both another region and another lifestyle here in France, and all we have to pay for is our transportation.

Matt and I will be staying with a British couple near Parthenay, located in Western France, about an hour west of Poitiers. We'll be working on gardening, building structures for the couples many animals, and whatever else they'll need us to do. I'm most excited about the wide range of animals: dogs, cats, pigs, rabbits, ducks, geese, chickens and bees. The couple has a website, www.treefrogfarm.co.uk, if you're interested to look where I'll be. We'll only be staying for four days, three really with travel, but I think it will be a really great trip! Hoping it will be at least.

The next couple posts will be for things that happened in the past weeks, but they warrant a seperate posting, like the family visit!