So I guess I should fill you in on the last, what, eight weeks! I apologise for not keeping up with my blog (again) – I've been having too much fun!!
After Toulouse, the rest of February pottered by, my time was filled with teaching, eating out, nights out and spending time with the girls. The Six Nations came and went; we watched the England-France match in the pub with George’s cross on our cheeks and were relieved when England won, much to the disappointment of just about every other person in the pub.
I’ve started Italian lessons at the university which is proving to be very useful as I didn’t realise how much Italian I’d forgotten! I paid 25 euro to join and can go to as many classes as I like. It’s improving my French as well as my Italian because of it’s taught in French, and I am the youngest in my class because it’s full of retired people.
We were lucky enough to have some good weather in February, so days off (of which there were many – my schools seem to cancel English lessons whenever possible) were spent in the park eating ice cream in the sun. The mountains look stunning on a clear day.
At the start of March, we had two weeks off for the winter holidays. During the first week, the weather was gorgeous so me & Jess went to the beach and stayed over on Kim’s boat after going out for an amazing three course meal with her and her flatmate. Later in the week I went skiing with two of the assistants which was as always, great fun, and managed to return looking like a lobster because I forgot to put sun cream on.
During the second week of the holidays, myself and the other girls went to Italy; Milan, Florence and Rome. Although the weather was crap, and just about everything that could go wrong DID go wrong, we had a great time & saw loads of things; I’ll post photos after this post. We saw the beautiful Duomo in Milan and went to Lake Como, saw all the main sights including the Ponte Vecchio and Santa Maria Cathedral in Florence, and of course the Colosseum and Forum in Rome. We went to the Italy – Ireland game at the Stadio Olimpico and were supporting Ireland on behalf of our Irish friend, but unfortunately Ireland lost and we then went to the pub to witness England’s embarrassing defeat against Wales. Arriving back in Pau on Sunday we were all pretty knackered but I was ready to get back into routine.
The next weekend, I was lucky enough to have my P’town girls come to visit! The weather was absolutely beautiful so we made the most of the sun and I took them to all my favourite restaurants, cafés and of course, to the Irish pub. We went out on the Saturday night which is possibly one of the most memorable nights out of my time here in Pau; we go told off for being too loud, left at half one and took the bikes into town, and danced the night away in l’Esprit. It was a great weekend and so good to see them!!
Then came Easter weekend, which was possibly the worst weekend in Pau so far. It was a long weekend, as we’d taken time off school to help out with teacher training earlier in the week. I had a boring essay to do for uni, and had no other plans as most people were busy/ boyfriends were here. So for about five days I wrote my essay and felt homesick about the fact I wasn’t with my family while everyone on facebook/twitter/Instagram was enjoying their Easter eggs with theirs. Boohoo.
This weekend, however, was fab. My family came to visit and we had such a fun time. Again I tried to show them my favourite places to eat and drink, and had chocolate mousse for dessert for three days in a row, YUM. We rented a car so took a trip to Oloron on Saturday morning, and drove up to the mountains in the afternoon. On Sunday we went skiing and I don’t think I have laughed that hard in a long time; seeing my entire family whizzing down the nursery slopes (mum even took out a child!) was hilarious. Although I don’t think Mum will ever ski again, everyone had a really fab time and caught the sun a bit too much!
Our plans for the next few weekends include nights out (of course- got to make the most of the sangria), and we are hopefully going to San Sebastian at some point. I only have three weeks left of teaching in Pau before I move to Italy! Although I’m very sad to leave Pau I’m sure I’ll return in the future and will definitely keep in touch with all the friends I have made here – but I am so excited to start my next adventure!
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