It's hard to live in Europe when you don't have any money

Well, the title says it all. Turns out Europe is expensive. Surprise!
My February break is next week, and I still don't have solid plans. I think that Scottie and I are going to go to Belgium. It's really not very far from here at all. The thing is, train tickets are just so expensive. So are hostels. So is food, including all of the chocolate I'm going to want to eat. Man. I also have to consider that my spring break is going to require some serious cash as well, so I've got to reserve a lot for that. Oh goodness. I'm bad at this whole traveling thing.

Yesterday, I met my host mom's sister and mother, who is like 90. She was very cute, and kept calling me "une petite" even though the rest of the family assured her that I am not "une petite" because I am 20 years old. But I suppose I am compared to her. My host mom's sister was very impressed that I could understand what she was saying. She said, "you can understand even when I talk fast?" and I nodded, so after that I think she decided it was a good idea to speak as fast as possible to test my comprehension skills. The whole family came over for lunch (I guess because it was Valentine's Day? Who knows? Also Sunday lunches are always big family meals). It was really nice. It felt kind of like Thanksgiving except smaller and with champagne. I even made an apple pie. When Jennifer saw it, she said "Ohhh it's a real American apple pie, like in the movies!" because I had made a lattice with the crust.

Apologies for the lack of photos recently. I have been negligent about taking them. It's not that the novelty has worn off, it's just that I don't feel like a tourist here anymore. I am actually starting to feel at home. In the morning, when I am walking to the bus stop, I think to myself, "oh yeah....this IS my city..."
And I like living in France. It has even been relatively sunny lately, which is a miracle.