L'arrive

Well, here I am in Lille. I have to say this was a much less enchanting arrival than Cagli. Or perhaps I just don’t remember it clearly enough? The journey was relatively smooth—only the flight from Frankfurt to Paris was delayed and we had problems meeting up with Mandi in CDG, but we all arrived at the train stations in Lille this afternoon safely. What more can you ask for? Meghan took us to her residence hall to drop off our bags and she very kindly made us lunch. I was starved! After lunch, we took a little tour of Lille. Although it’s not huge by any means, right now it seems rather daunting. It’s not as comfortable as Cagli seemed to be—big group of students, faculty leaders, small town, etc. I saw the same people every day and by the end of my time could recognize pretty much everyone from the town. I’m not sure it’s going to be that way here, but only time will tell. One thing was really exciting though: the ferris wheel in the middle of town that is up at Christmas was still up when we got here, so we decided to take a ride and got some amazing views of Lille! We also walked around the Musée des Beaux-Arts for a bit. I just don’t feel as amazed as I have been every other time I’ve been to Europe. Maybe it’ll kick in after a few days? Right now I just feel stressed out and unsettled. I think I’ll be going to sleep in the not too distant future, and then the real fun starts—paying rent, getting medical insurance, moving to my new dorm…sounds exciting, right? Hopefully the rest of the day will bring more fun.