Le Kir, Genepi, et le vin et snowshoes

Title of this message contains three different french drinks that i have grown to love. Le Kir is a mix between white wine and creme de cassis (currants) and was introduced to me last weekend during a dinner with another American assistant from a nearby town. The assistants name is Christa and she if from Colorado and we really hit it off. During the convo we discovered we have the same birthday.....eerie or what? Genepi is a hard liquor made from flowers that grow high up in the Alps. Usually dranken during Noel, this liquor is sweet and strong and my students brought some to class for me to try! (Shhhh, dont tell the principal!) Le vin or wine is usually associated to french culture and i think that Americans should follow the tread. Life is so much more enjoyable with a glass of wine or two in you everyday....
Last weekend my wish came true with a three hour snowshoeing hike in the mountains. I went with 4 other teachers from the high school. The weather was beautiful and even though the hike was quite steep and took me 1.5 hours to reach the summit, the view of several mountain ranges made it worth all the effort and sweat. We had a nice picnic lunch in the snow and then started our descent. I must admit the descent was far more enjoyable than the climb (go figure) and snowshoes are a lot easier to use than i thought they would be. They really allow you to grip the show and ice and with two ski poles to steady you, you feel someone invincible. We are going to go again next tuesday at a different ski resort. The high school organized an outing for several of its classes so ill get to go at no charge, which is really lucky because usually this resort is over 40 euros for the day. I hope you all are taking advantage of the weather as well! Take care!

You want me to go down there with those on!!?

I have been back in France now for over a week and have adjusted finally to the food and the cold weather. Its quite a shock to the system going from 35° C to -7° C! I am fortunate though, the winter in France is less cold that Wisconsin winters usually are. So classes are back in full swing and so are the activites like italian and skiing. Last saturday i tried my luck on the slopes of Crest-Voland ski resort. A mechanics prof and his wife were kind enough to take me and give me pointers on the safest way down the mountain. Even so, it was quite a challenge. The first descent, i counted 7 wipeouts! The number of falls decreased with each descent but still i have bruises the size of grapefruits on my legs. It looks like someone beat the hell out of me and it was just awful trying to sleep. Id wince with pain if i even approached the right side of my body. Its often easier for people to turn one way than the other and im no exception. Right turns get me almost everytime. Despite all that, i had a great afternoon at the resort. The weather was great and i was able to laugh at some of my crazy falls. I will definately try again really soon. The prof invited me again this saturday but i think ill opt for something less dangerous like snowshoeing until i heal = )
In other news, ive started looking for jobs this summer in Geneva and with the US State Department. Does anyone have any advice? The amount of information is a bit overwhelming! Also we celebrated Epiphany here in France which consists of a cake called a galette which contains a mini king. If your piece contains the toy you are deemed king for the day. The traditional galette is a round pastry full of almond paste. I really wonder why french people arent huge with all the great desserts they have here. The price of living is quite a bit higher here than the states. I bought contact solution today at the pharmacy and a large bottle was 22 Euros about 25 USD. Be thankful back home for affordable prices at your local Wal-Mart!

The rebellion lives on....

Casamance or the southern part of Senegal is snug between Guinea and the Gambia and is the closest to paradise ive ever been. Well except for the fact a regional governer was shot and killed by rebels the day before i traveled through that part of the country. No worries guys! I made it back to Dakar in one health piece! Its kinda of exciting really, to think i was so close to the action and perhaps political change in Senegal.

The Casamance is known for its fruit trees, its many rivers, palm trees, and tourist attiring islands. The atmosphere reminded me of the carribean but a bit cooler temperature wise. The people of the south really have no problems. They accept you, they take life slowly and the hospitality is out of this world awesome. I went first to the town of kolda with a friend, Pape, from the university. It took us almost 22 hours to reach his home by bus but it was far worth it. I almost crossed the entire country and saw a variety of landscapes. Termite hills the size of mini-vans! Pape's family was a great group of people. I felt a part of the family as i cooked with them, went shopping in the market, and ate a hell of a lot of great senegalese cuisine. While i was in Kolda, we celebrated the new year by going out 'en boite' or to a dance club. I had a great time dancing to african tunes with senegalese of all shapes and sizes and Pape made sure i didnt have to do anything...

After four days in Kolda i went to the town of Ziguanchor. My former university roomate Banna was waiting for me and took me into her home for my two days there. Ziguanchor reminds me the Antilles, it had an island like feel due to the palm trees and the relaxed atmosphere. We took a tour of the town and stopped by the port on the Senegalese River. There is a momument dedicated to the Joola. In 2003 a ferry boat 'The Joola' sank off the coast of senegal on its way to dakar. Over a hundred people died who were mostly students from Cheik Anta Diop. Currently, there is a new boat in its place called 'The Willis' which makes the trajet between Dakar and Zinguanchor twice a week. Due to the feast of Tabaski, the boat was schedule to leave a day early making my stay a bit shorter than planned. The 17 hour cruise in the Willis was truly a great experience. The boat holds roughly 500 people and has all the luxury of a first class plane seat. You are free to roam around the boat, eat in its restaurante or drink at its bar. They show films and music clips throughout the trip and the captain points out geographic landmarks to the passangers. I met some crazy people on the boat including a reggae musician who kindly sang for me, a medicine teacher from dakar, two nuns, and two expat french people who loved to drink and tell nasty jokes. My voyage ended at the port in dakar early thursday morning. Now i recupe and say goodbye.