OOPS!

I forgot to mention it.


ONE MONTHHHHHHHHHH!



Chris Carrabba says that he's sad that I'll be gone for a month.

But he's also happy that I get to go to France.

Always,
Amanda

Did I mention plane tickets are expensive?

Thank you for booking your flight with StudentUniverse!
Base ticket price: $1,101.53
Fly Green: $0.00
Trip Protection: $0.00
Taxes and fees: $139.20
Service fees: $5.00
Total for ticket: $1245.73


Reservation code: DFOOQF

Ticket will be issued in the name of:

First: Amanda
Middle: Nicole
Last: Catron

Confirmation email: catrona@gmail.com


Well......at least I'll get to France somehow.

Always,
Amanda

Paris and Money

Yesterday I made a list of places to go while in Paris (because it's important) listed under the pictures are some of the reasons I want to go there (and I realize that there is great history to each of these places....but I'm 19 and have limited interests when it comes to history):

Notre Dame-home of the hunchback of Notre Dame!

Champs-Elysees (including L'Arc de Triomphe) and right next to it is a restaurant:

Man Ray is owned by Johnny Depp, Sean Penn and John Malkovich. And I know Johnny Depp used to go to the bar he owned in LA (The Viper) when he lived in the states, so maybe that will be my opportunity to kidnap him and bring him home to AJ.


Pantheon has a bunch of cool people buried in it (Voltaire, Victor Hugo, Dumas, etc.) I'm uber scared of cemeteries, but I think it'll be cool!



Montmartre because that's where the entire video Moulin Rouge took place! woot! And at the peak of Montmartre is a church:

Sacre-Coeur is uber famous....and Savage Garden shot the video "Truly Madly Deeply" here....mwhahahahaha

The Louvre is a museum and, well if you don't know what the Louvre is go google it. The one painting I HAVE to see is the Mona Lisa.....because I hear it's ridiculously small.

Eiffel Tower.........obvi.


Père Lachaise Cemetery because a TON of cool people are buried there (Balzac, Sarah Bernhardt, Chopin, Jean Moulin, Édith Piaf, Oscar Wilde, and the infamous grave of Jim Morrison!) P.S. If you don't know who these people are....go google it.

Versailles...which is right outside of Paris!

If I forgot something....let me know! ;)

Today I went to financial aid and got a loan increased so I can buy my plane ticket. It should hit my bank account in a few days....so I should be able to buy the ticket soon! Hooray!

Always,
Amanda

Sunday/Monday

Yesterday I did nothing involving France....except for securing Hector, Edgar, and Katrina a home while I'm gone. Thank goodness I have such good friends to take care of my inanimate objects while I'm abroad!

I forgot to turn in my scholarship application today, but I did write the essay for it! That's on the to-do list for tomorrow.

Other than that I really need to apply for that loan, buy a plane ticket and figure out where I want to go in France.

Always,
Amanda

Step 1: Create a Blog

So....as you may have noticed....I created a blog. Here you can keep up to date on my getting ready to go to France for the next 39 days. Then, I thought it would be easier to update you here while I am in France instead of sending out 600,000 emails since time in the internet cafe is going to be somewhat expensive.

Well, today we had our first and only meeting for study abroad. I realized that I really need to get my butt moving when Christophe said, "I'll see you in France!" when leaving instead of "Goodbye". 39 days. GAH! So......after the stressful and yet exciting meeting I have begun to compile my to-do list!

To Do:
-GET LOANNNNNN!
-Apply for Kirby Scholarship
-Fill out crazy health insurance thingy
-Fill out crazy cell phone thingy
-Turn in my resignation form
-Talk to housing and dining
-Talk to father about skype vs. phone cards
-get an ISIC card (student identification card-gets you deals on hotels and such)
-get an extra picture for a 12-25 card (gets you deals on train tickets, can you tell I'm into getting deals?)
-look up what excursions I would like to take (especially since we are not taking a group excursion to Paris....oy vay!)
-buy a plane ticket, eh?
-buy other tickets to get from plane to Avignon
-call bank and credit card companies
-make copies of passport, birth certificate, credit card, driver's license, etc. Give a copy to father, keep a copy somewhere else.
-buy a lot of stuff.

Now, you may be wondering what I need to buy according to Christophe and that other chick that's co-organizing the trip (or rather I am wondering.....so I am going to list that here......oy vay)
-adapters
-rechargable batteries (already have a charger.........somewhere........)
-school supplies (cheaper here)
-gifts for the host family and anybody else I may run into (as in OU paraphenalia or however you spell that)
-a guide book-the lonley planet
-a new messenger bag so my purse will not get stolen
-plane ticket
-train ticket from Marsielles to Avignon
-some shower supplies (not all, mind you)
-a few nice shirts or something since my wardrobe is tragically casual

Things I will need money for when I get there that are a necessity:
-taxi from Avignon train station to hotel
-lunches
-hairdryer (if I don't buy one there all the sockets will blow up! AHHH!)
-textbooks
-shower supplies
-train tickets for excursions
-hotel rooms/nights in hostels
-magazines and newspapers
-gifts for my friends and family
-internet cafe
-money for time on cell phone
-12-25 card for deals
-drinks at bars and cafes (because that's what there is to do to socialize in Avignon)

So, yeah. After all that....it's nice to see it written down and very do-able, and yet it's very stressful to see it written down and how much I have to do!

Hooray. I'm sure I will update soon as I begin to mark things off my list.

A bientot,
Amanda