Bienvenue à Menton

View from my window

I didn't get to do much this weekend because I was holed up studying procrastinating on exams.  That said, here are just a few thoughts and photos from the past couple days.

Planes. I had forgotten how dehydrating they are.  And turbulent.  I ended up rushing to the airport 3 hours early, barely packed, because my original flight was cancelled (I have a feeling it wasn't full enough to make it worth the trip for them).
 I also managed to fall asleep the second I sat down, anywhere.  I don't remember takeoff from Philly.  I don't remember takeoff the next morning on my LHR - NCE leg of the trip.  I don't remember most of the bus ride from Nice to Menton.  I remember being in Monaco, and the next thing I know it's the end of the road and Menton, when I thought we were still in the principality.

Before I even got to France, I had an interesting experience.  I set off the metal detector in Heathrow with just a necklace, even though the same one hadn't set off the Philly metal detector.  Anyway, I got patted down.  It was the most invasive pat-down I've ever experienced.  I definitely would have freaked out had it not be a woman doing it.  She felt under the top of my waistband... that must be even more awkward for her; she practically apologized as she did it.

View from the Sciences-Po St. Julien building

When I arrived in Menton I was glad I had taken the earlier flight, because it meant I made my trek to the Sciences Po building in the daytime.  Most of the streets we take are pedestrian, rues piétons, and having to do all that on foot, with bags, in the dark would have been no fun.

Just to go quickly through the next few days... met my référent, Alexis.  He took me for coffee and we chatted about Menton, and the courses, and basically what to expect.  Didn't get anything useful done like buying a telephone, or setting up a bank account, of course.
Met a ton of the students--échange et non--at Casa Italia, the nickname for the Italian kids' apartment.  Staying in my room studying over the weekend, and taking my finals and my Arabic placement test.

Finally finished all that today (yesterday by now), and finally got to breathe and see the town with relaxed eyes.  Tout d'un coup I saw things I hadn't noticed, little nooks and crannies.  It was dark by the time I started walking around, so these pictures don't quite capture everything. But they're a start.

We got coffee here

Just another square...