Hello again!
I have so much to talk about since my last post! So I'm going to make 2 posts!
So as I said, I went Besancon for my orientation. It was a very long and overwhelming day and I have to say my oh my do the French love their paperwork - I have so much to fill out! However, it was fantastic to finally meet other assistants in my region and also meet Bianca and Jess - 2 girls I had been talking to on facebook before I arrived! And Besancon was a much bigger city than Poligny, they actually had real stores and an actual museum  - not just one for cheese like here haha. It's only about 1h30 minutes from Poligny and a cool city!

View of Besancon

The next day was a free day for me and absolutely a gorgeous day in Poligny -finally a little warmer and sunny!! So naturally I had to go on a walk and soak up the sun! I had my roommate Lina go with me and we just meandered around Poligny for a while! The natural beauty of this area is absolutely breathtaking and I have to keep telling myself that this is real life - I am actually living in a quaint, movie like, French town!!

Gorgeous right?! I wish you could all be here with me!!

But after this oh so tiring walk, Lina and I went to a wine tasting at the Caveau des Jacobins, which is a wine cave literally 1 minute from the apartment!
This wine cave is inside an old church and there were giant barrels of wine along the corridor. It created a cool atmosphere honestly - highlighting the link between history and wine. 

So since I live so close, I decided just to try the white wine selection that afternoon.
The Chardonnay - quite nice, very drinkable, and very light. It was one of my favorites from today. It is from the area - Arbois - which is the town over.
Bethanie - a mix of chardonnay and sauvignon. It had a very odd taste to me. Can't quite describe it, more acidic maybe. Not my favorite but the lady said it went well with Comte cheese (the cheese of this area) - naturally hah
Vin Jaune - a very specific wine only in this region! It has an intersting story behind it. So it stays in the barrel for 6 years and 3 months - yes 6 years. And on February 2 there have a festival called Percée du Vin Jaune - literally meaning to piece the barrel of the wine and many wine vendors from all over the area come and you get to tour around and try all the wine. Trust me, I will be attending.  Anyways, the vin jaune is also in a different size bottle than normal wines. 
I liked that taste of this wine, it also had a bit of a nutty taste. Quite nice but a little heavier. Every bottle is different. I tried one from Arbois and one from Cotes du Jura and I preferred the Cote de Jura better... same year, just different land. 

Vin Jaune - different type of bottle

 Anyways, I plan to make several more stops at the Cave! 

My birthday in France

My birthday (September 28) occurred on my 2nd day in France, my 2nd day in Poligny. It was definitely a different kind of birthday!

View from my seat at the bar on my bday

another view - center of the city

When I woke up, it was a brilliant sunny day - not a cloud in the sky!! Thank goodness! I needed some sunshine!

So my birthday happen to fall on a friday this year, and in Poligny, every Monday and Friday mornings they have a little fresh market in the center of the city. There are about 5 different vendors selling anything from organic oats, local breads, cheeses, and honey, to fresh fish. It is quite quaint. I bought myself an almond croissant - mmmm it was divine and a perfect start to the day.

Almond croissant

For lunch, Francoise took me out to lunch at a nearby restaurant and gave me a jar of her homemade Coing fruit - which is like a type of pear.

The lunch was delicious. We sat outside on the patio and dined.
Let me begin with what I ate and then I shall discuss the wine...

I had a Tortillas Jambon  - which was basically ham and comte cheese (Poligny is the capital of comte cheese. ie divine) nestled between 2 warm crepes. It came with a simple salad of greens, cubs of ham and cheese, and topped with a light vinaigrette. Oh it was so good and my first real French meal since I had arrived.

The wine, oh the wine. I let Francoise order it since I want to try everything unique to this area as possible.  We got a pitcher of wine - enough for 2 glasses per person. The wine is called  - Sauterne.
It is a specialty of this area and is something not to miss out on here. It is a white wine, but has a very strong nutty flavor. And when I say nutty, I mean nutty. It is quite good and very different. I plan to drink several bottles while I am here. haha

Then for dinner, I invited my roommate and her Asian friend to go out to dinner at the same restaurant. I mean it was good at lunch and there are not a lot of options here  - it is a very very small town! Like think of Stars Hollow from Gilmore Girls small.
Let me preference my saying that this was a divine eating experience.

I chose the Menu Terrain - which was a set menu and cost only 21 euros for 3 courses.
It included:
Salad Comtoise - which was a salad of green bib lettuce, topped with hard boiled egg slices, tomatoes, pecans, cubs on ham and comte cheese, and a light vinaigrette. C'est tres bon.

Truite au vin jaune - which was the main course and amazing.  It was trout cooked in vin jaune (a special wine of the area) accompanied with a medley of sauteed vegetables ( all in season of course) a roasted potato halve, and a roasted tomatoe topped with bread crumbs. I ate every single bite on that plate. And since it was my bday, the cook even made me a flower out of carrot :)

The main dish of trout - notice my birthday flower

Molton chocolate cake - the dessert. Oh my. So amazing. It was a warm chocolate moulton cake accompanied with 2 dollops of freshly whipped cream topped with nuts and a side of raspberry glaze. I wanted to lick my plate it was so good!!


As for the wine, I asked the waiter for his best recommendations. So I had a glass of the house Chardonnay since it is a dry wine that goes best with fish. But he even brought me a second glass of the Sauterne wine since he wanted me just to try it out. Ah I love the French love of wine!

I shall update again soon! Right now I am sitting outside the bar, sipping on a warm cup of tea,the sun is shining, and I'm watching the townspeople pursue the local market.
I'm headed to Besancon this afternoon for training and can't wait to share about that experience!!

Til then!

Yes, I am alive and finally here!

Hello Everyone!

Well today is my 6th day in France and what a whirlwind it has been. Today is the first day I have been able to access internet on my computer. Whew what an ordeal and man do I realize how much I need internet!!

Anyways, I finally made it to France after 2 long and exhausting days of travel - especially the second day when I had to lug my 3 bags - 2 rollers and my backpack. Man I was quite a spectacle. One older gentleman even asked me if all the luggage was mine and in my response he says, you are quite strong, quite strong haha well I guess so...

All my luggage- I looked like a pack mule

When I arrived it was rainy and cold, but my contact at the school - the wonderful Francoise - came and picked me up at the train station. I couldn't have been happier to see a trustworthy and nice person!
She let me stay at her apartment in Arbois, which is about 10 minutes away from Poligny and prepared a simple, but tasty dinner of a tuna, cheese and tomato quiche, a salad, an apple tart, and wine (of course) from Arbois! It was tasty!

The next day, she took me to the school and I met a lot of people, all very nice, but let me be honest, it was quite a blur and a tad overwhelming! But never the less, it seems to be a wonderful place to be an assistant. I look forward to teaching soon!

 

 

 

The front of the school

Then we went to go check out my living accomodations. Let me be honest, it's quite sparse, but it is big. I have a little bitty kitchen with a college size fridge, 2 burners, a toaster oven, and a hot water maker. And the school lent me kitchen stuff like cutlery, plates, etc..
The heat isn't turned out yet, and I have been quite cold! I bundle up in a lot of blankets haha France is definitely colder than Memphis Tennessee - that's for sure!
But hey, at least I have a place to stay for not an exorbitant amount of money!!
There is also no wifi yet in the appartment (hope to get that soon) but I found wifi at the bar -
I've become a regular customer. Haha

Overall, it is a very charming city filled with lots of old time character and delicious food!
My next post, which will be about my birthday, is basically dedicated to all the food I ate haha

Eat Well. Travel Often.

Bonjour mes amis!
So here it goes. My first blog. I'm hoping to use this blog as a way to share with you about my  musings, adventures, and of course, all the food I get to enjoy while I will be living in FRANCE for the next 7 months! 

So pour yourself a glass of wine and let me start by telling you how this journey all came about:
Ever since I was little, I have been enamored with travel and other cultures. After my freshman year at Auburn, I got to study abroad to Italy, France, England, and Scotland. Let me just say, my fervor for travel only increased. I was addicted. Then I got the fabulous opportunity to study abroad in Paris for a month the following July. I knew from then on that I must get back to France. Not only was I in love with the culture, but the food, the lifestyle, the language, the history - everything. When my French professor suggested I apply to be an English Teaching Assistant in France, I thought, why not. I am young, unattached, and when else in my life would I be so free. With my professors, family, and friends' wonderful support, I applied both to the French program as well as the Fulbright program this past October. For the next 7 months, I took part in a long waiting game, just waiting to hear anything from the French. Finally, one day in late May on my way to work, I got the email. I was accepted to the program! I was so happy I started crying! It was such a huge wave of relief! My dream became a reality. Not only was I going to be a French Teaching Assistant, I was also a Fulbright Scholar for Auburn! My life was surreal.

The school - Lycee Hyacinthe Friant

 I got placed in Poligny France to be an English Teaching Assistant at the high school - Lycee Hyacinthe Fraint, which is an internationally renowned hotel and catering school!
God is definitely smiling down on me and man oh man did He teach me a thing about being patient.
Honestly, what could be more perfect?!  I will get to help teach English at a culinary focused school and even get to take some classes there myself! I am so lucky and get to live on campus in a private apartment with my own kitchen and bathroom, whew such a relief!

 The town of Poligny is absolutely gorgeous, honestly like right out of a movie. It's a rural village surrounded by vineyards and mountains in the Franche-Comte region (which produces over 200,000 rounds of my favorite cheese a year and known for their Jura Mountain wines). Even have a house of Comte cheese to visit - yes I will be going there. ps, y'all should try Comte cheese - it's divine.
Poligny is very close to Geneva and Lyon - about 1 hour and 30 minutes away from each. Lyon is the gourmet food capital of France, let's just say I'm going to be on a whole other level of foodie heaven. 

Main church in Poligny

Poligny, France. Can't wait to stroll around here!

Click here to see an awesome 360 tour of Poligny, worth it!

Back to the teaching part of my program... I will be an assistant to English teachers at the school. I will be sharing things about American culture, holidays, food, restaurants, basically anything about America. My students will be 14 to 23 year olds - keep in mind that I will be turning 23 the end of September and I look young for my age haha I sure do hope they like me! I work 12 hours a week and have 5 weeks of paid vacation! Pretty cool huh? Let's just say I plan to do a LOT of traveling around Europe! Please give me any suggestions of places to visit - I'd love that!

So in about a month, I will be saying au revoir not only to my family and all my wonderful friends, but also to American food, lifestyle, and culture.  I am nervous but thrilled beyond words. I know that this journey I am about to embark upon will be a wonderfully life changing opportunity.

I promise all my posts won't be this long, probably will be mostly pictures of food and European discoveries!

Til' next time :)