Bonsoir,
It is towards the end of week 4. Last weekend (9/20/13), I went to Clermont. It is about 30 minutes from Vichy and it is where the main university campus is located. It was beautiful and a much larger city than Vichy; however, everything closed at 7pm, which is even earlier than in Vichy. I had a lot of fun traveling there with everyone.
In a little over a week, I will be flying to London to meet my mother. I've been before but it wasn't really my cup of tea. I'm going to give it another chance though and do some research on what to do.
Currently, I am enjoying the slow pace and having a good, relaxing time. I have a package to pick up tomorrow with somethings I forgot to pack...tennis shoes, swimsuit, mac-n-cheese, peanut butter, etc.
The schoolwork here is very doable and I don't have to study a lot, which leaves a lot of free time. Today was the first day I actually went walking around by myself and it was really freeing because I know "my city" now. No need to ask for directions or ask if the person can speak english anymore.
I am really enjoying everything, minus the occasional drama.
I'm looking forward to October because I will be traveling the entire month, living out of a backpack. My posts will definitely be more interesting.
Stay tuned,
Hillary