the week of walks & lasts

i was getting a little restless in my room studying earlier last week, and messaged the girls to see if they wanted to take a walk. sar and mary said they were going to walk to carmes by the river to study for econ. i figured why not go for the walk, so we moseyed our way down along the river and then stopped at a cafe while we waited for the econ people to show up. they had a glass of sauvignon for like 2.50 euros, so ry and i ordered a glass of that and mary and sar ordered a red. it was lovely, the weather was nice and just enjoying a little wine (and not studying, the best part) 

decided to take a walk/run solo because the sun was peeping out on Monday night. I walked across the bridge and kept straight, seeing the large campus of the hospital (hadn't realized how large it was.) I walked toward what I determined to be the chapel, and when I got to the top of the stairs I saw a dad and his two little girls playing hide and seek and running around. reminded me of dad with Tessie and I no doubt, but then I started thinking about why they were there. I hoped he was just taking them on a walk (mom and dad did that when we were small - so fun) and stopped to play, but I hoped wished and prayed that they weren't passing the time waiting for someone on the inside of the hospital doors. 

hol, ty, jibri, juan, sarah, kerst mary and i all went for a walk last week and were throwing ty's new rugby ball around. as fate would have it, it went bouncing into the river - one that isn't very clean and is definitely cold. the boys ran upstream to try to snag a boat (terrible idea, we know, but boys..) and we eventually were able to snah it on the other side of the river (photo below, directly behind us in those trees off the highway) and thank goodness because hol and ty had quite the mish trying to find a rugby ball to begin with. hol snapped a little photo shoot for the dayton girls, as it was the last time we'd all be together in angers. kerst left thursday, mary left for good friday morning with sarah, but sar is coming back and going to paris with me to fly home. holly and ty leave the 25th, so i have to do goodbyes with hol monday as i fly out for a quick trip to marseille.. yes everyone, it's going to be a rough one. stay tuned

so i've been wanting to get into the fountain by the bus stop, but the other night when we were walking home from our squad excursion, hol and i played what are the odds that i'd get into the fountain. we both kept saying different numbers, and i said screw it hol i'm going in. above is a picture of me standing in the center of the freezing cold fountain near our apartment. no time like the present to be silly, right?

a big group of us went out on thursday night, as a last hoorah, because quite a few faces would be leaving friday. we played a little flip cup taught ty how to play as the game was happening, told him what to do and to step in for me so he could play. "fill it, chug it, flip it, WIN TY." "ok no pressure or anything jules." LOL it was a blast. we all walked to a bar by Foch, danced the night away, and i managed to lose my footing getting down from dancing on a barrel with sarahjane, and about flipped backwards. luckily i half caught myself, and so did a few of the girls. hol was too busy cracking up to ask me if i was alright, but no fear i am alive and well. my thigh and backside are pretty black and blue - battle scars, amirite? nini and i were singing up a storm, threw back a few drinks and headed home. not without stopping for a kebab of course.. 

so there's a grocery store across from ESSCA, which is pretty much the only food option around school. we (pretty much the whole squad) have come to LOVE the baguette sandwiches they make - but they're only available from like noon to 12:45.. they go so quickly. they're fresh baguettes, and hol and i's favorite is the chicken lettuce and mayo. SO GOOD. well nini had never had one (loon) so she tried it and of course loved it. we conquered finals (or so we hope) and threw up the deuces to ESSCA on thursday, happy to never see it again - ever again. worst academic institution known to man

holly's corner: 

• wagged. meaning: skipping school  
• till. meaning: cash register  
• raw. meaning: intense
• dark about something. meaning: pissed, annoyed  
• packed a sad. meaning: being troublesome, throwing a tantrum
• skull it. meaning: chug it  

after everyone else took off, i had the weekend to myself with ty and hol. we made dinner a few nights, we went out for a walk during the day on saturday and saw the gay pride festival, as well as a ton of other people. we wanted to rent bikes to take them to the lake, but as luck (or french lifestyle) would have it, the bike rental place was closed. on a saturday. in may. WHY. so instead we walked around and saw a ton of hustle and bustle in the city. it's like the weather finally shapes up in angers and people come out of the woodwork and start living. we popped into one of our favorite boulangeries and their pain au chocolat was so fresh and incredible the three of us were swooning. we laid in the grass and giggled for a while, went home and had a lovely dinner together and ice cream (ty and i's favorite) afterward. cherishing my time with these two as goodbyes come tomorrow - and no way in hell am i ready for that. it's been a real blast seeing the two of them together, their love so evident and so kind. they take care of one another, and just play around like old pals. thank you, richard tyrone for sharing your incredible woman with me the last few months. looking forward to the wedding and all the big milestones to come for the two of you. cheers cheers cheers, love you both forever. 

off to marseille tomorrow for a few days - excited for maybe a beach and definitely a lot of sunshine as angers is back to it's good ol self with chilly and rainy weather. 9 days (single digits!!) left until eurojules is back on the home soil..

cheers, jkro