mood: chill
music: gavin degraw - follow through


i feel like anyone who is a loyal reader of this deserves a more detailed account of what the devil has been going on since i've been cavorting around europe. but honestly, too much has happened to recount here. this has been quite the whirlwind of a trip. i can't believe i will have been gone for a month in two days.

it's a little bizarre, really. i'm starting to feel at home here. things that confounded me at the outset of my journey are becoming habitual. it's as normal for me to have a bedee in my room (though i have yet to use it), kiss someone hello, have a 3 or 4 hour meal that doesn't start until 9:30, or to have all the stores around me close from noon until 2 or 3 everyday for lunch here as it was for me to do the opposite of all of these things in the states. the mullets, man-purses, and speedos are no longer shocking at all. oh, the things one can get used to.

classes have been very interesting. i'm learning the language so luch better.only a few days of them left. thank god. this 8:30 every morning business is really starting to get to me. the activities that the school plans for us are pretty brill, though. par example, yesterday we went to Antibes to a couple of museums. the first was a picasso museum. it's located on the sea (litterally) in a chateau (castle) which used to belong to the Gribaldi family (the royal family of monaco). he lived and painted there for an extended period of time in the early to mid 20th century. so that was pretty much the best thing that ever happened to me, considering my immence fascination with him. there was also an exhibition of art by nicolas de stael, a russian-french painter of the 50s. i'm really into him now as well. bought a couple of very pretentious art books on the two of them. and guess what? they're written in french. of course i would do something like that. mostly i can't wait to set them up in my apt and have other people marvel at how smart and cultured i am. anyway, the other museum housed a lot of modern art that was pretty badass. they had some stuff by marc chagall, who i think did one of the windows of the chicago art institude. anyway, he's most definitely worth looking up, among others, who i can't remember at the moment.

oh damn, i've got to run. we're going downtown now to visit the local porn shop. one of the girls has a friend who insisted that she buy him a gift. we will finish this lecture in french, spanish, and catalan art another time...


je vous manque!