Official

I'm pleased to report it is officially legal for me to live and study in France. My trip to Vancouver was successful, and tons of fun, and the French Consulate gave me my student visa on the spot. It's nice to have that stress over and done with because there's not really anything major I have left to do from this point until I arrive.

As some of you know I am a list person. Thus, I have multiple lists on the go so I dont forget anything; lists on email, Word, paper, stickies, in my mind and in my folder of France documents. You'd think that many lists would actually make me more confused, but somehow it all works out and I keep track of all things necessary.

Also, I've started packing already. Yes, I'm fully aware there are still 28 days until I leave but I figure this way I'm less likely to forget anything or not be able to find things I need when I'm desperate to pack. There's still lots to figure out such as how I am going to pack few enough items that it won't cost me a small fortune in luggage fees to come home in December. As well, I'm hoping to play rugby with "Les Givrees" women's rugby in the fall which means I'll be bringing most of my rugby gear with me (aside from the warmer clothes I might have to buy there since I'm used to practicing in 20 degree weather rather than the zero degree mark). Plus I'll also be bringing along my snow gear for skiing and boaring in the Alps (if it snows early enough since the ski season in the Alps usually doesn't start until mid-December). All of the sudden my giant suitcase and a backpacking bag just don't seem like enough space...

Anyways, I don't want to bore you with the details running through my mind. Needless to say I am distracted by France. I dont think this next month could go by fast enough but at the same time I'm quite enjoying my summer and all the activities I've had a chance to do before I leave. Let me tell you that the longer a person can go before they start a countdown the better. I think I started a good month ago at least and it just makes time seem to go by so much slower.

I'm a little bit frustrated (being a person who likes to plan in advance) because we don't get our school schedule until September 9th. This means I don't get to start planning my weekend trips to far-away-lands until over a week after I arrive in Grenoble. This seems counter intuitive to me since you'd think they'd want students to be focused on the begining of classes and have planned their trips already during their summer and prep time rather than just as school starts. Maybe they just like to play ignorant to the fact that school is probably the last priority for many exchange students and that the tally of countries visited clearly takes presedence.

Alright well this has been enough rambling for now but I'll probably make another post or two before the departure date (August 29) depending how absorbed I am in tying up lose ends and seeing whomever I can before I say aurevoir to Canada!