Getting There...

I bought my tickets. My flight leaves at 1:22pm on August 31 and is due to arrive in Brussels at 7:30am on September 1. In the end, I decided to fly to Brussels rather than Paris because 1) Brussels is closer to Lille, so I'm looking at a shorter train ride (about half the time) and 2) Sébastien may be able to meet me at the airport, depending on whether he can get off that day.

My Campus France application is complete. They received my payment. For good measure I had sent them a copy of my letter from the university in France, so they marked me as exempt from the interview portion. As it turns out, the amount their web page showed that I needed to pay was incorrect, so they are refunding the remainder. That's good, since I'll be able to apply those funds to my Visa application.

I'll have to go to the French Consulate in Atlanta to complete my Visa appication now that the Campus France application is complete. I have to provide some documentation to them as well, including a certified copy of my birth certificate with translation. I emailed the Tennessee Foreign Language Institute to get an estimate on the cost of translating it. I also need to email R__ K___ to see if she can recommend someone (may be cheaper that way). When I emailed the Study Abroad office, they said they usually have students use her, but she's in England right now, so I don't see that being a valid option. However, they said she may be able to suggest someone else to use.

I also have to provide two passport-sized photos to them and proof that I have enough money to stay a year in France without a job. That's where getting my financial aid documents in order comes in. I hope I can get that from them in a reasonable amount of time so I'm not scrambling at the last minute to get my visa approved. That could be a problem.

I've started reading one of the French readers I got at McKay's. I think my reading comprehension is pretty good. I can write fairly well so long as I have my dictionary on hand and can run the grammar checker at bonpatron.com. My listening comprehension is still only so-so, though, and I get nervous when I try to speak, and I can't think of the right words for anything. Since I'm got a little over two months left here, I'm going to start on my grammar review next week and try to knock out at least a chapter a week. I also need to get over to the Le Palais du Sultan forums on the Irida website more often. I need to start getting to know some of the dancers over there a little better as well as practice my French. Speaking of reading French, I think I'm going to read for a little while and try to get to bed early so I can get up on time tomorrow to head out to Bonnoroo.

À bientôt!