Day 42 – July 27, 2019

Grenoble

I slept in Saturday morning after a late night out, but ended up having to rush down the street for a cooking class with other UM students. I was happy because Joyce and Clarissa were there with me. The class covered how to make lemon tartes, lemon frosting, and chocolate mini-cakes. We had to write down the recipe that the bakery’s owner recited for us in French, then we got to work as a team to make the items. It was interesting that the ingredients were measured using a scale, not a measuring cup. At the end we were able to enjoy our treats together around the table.

The class finished around noon, so Joyce, Clarissa, and I decided to head out for Thai for lunch. It was delicious! I got pad thai with shrimp inside it. We wanted to sit outside, but the weather restricted us. It was great to sit and talk with them about our experiences in college for an hour or so.

When we parted ways, I headed home and got started on my homework. My goal was to be done with all of my small assignments before the week started so I could focus on my paper and spending time with Gilbert and Janine. I managed to get a few things done before Jillian came over to plan for our trip to Italy. I’m really excited to go, but dang, my wallet hurts! We’ll be staying in hostels in Venice, Florence, and Rome before flying home on the 9th.

Jillian headed home so she could get ready for dinner and I sat down to eat with my host family. We had pizza for the first time because the temperature had fallen so far. This was the first day that we were able to wear jeans in Grenoble for the entire summer. The pizza was filling and satisfying.

Despite the relatively heavy rain that was falling, I decided to ask the group to go out for the night. I couldn’t stand staying home on my last weekend here! Clarissa, Jillian, Tara, Joyce, Brenna, and Sajini were all willing to brave the storm. I’m so happy they did! We drank wine together and danced at Tord Boyeaux before heading over to Barbarousse where we were able to dance to some American classics. We didn’t take advantage of the saucisson deal, but we did enjoy some blueberry wine and a vodka flamingo. I had such a great time with them! I’m so glad that we were able to meet and spend time together. They’re all so kind.