Parc de Proce - you couldn't ask for a nicer place to go walking/running.
The Intermarche where most of my grocery shopping happens and Place Zola, for which the neighborhood seems to be named.
cool little bakery that is often open when others are closed. random fun pic...
pretty church whose bells i hear each day from the apt
view of the tour de bretagne, located in centre ville, from rue de la montagne.
view of the tour de bretagne, located in centre ville, from rue de la montagne.
I had fun at a post-thanksgiving feast at the home of another american assistant and her french roommate. the menu included guinea fowl, sweet potato casserole, (complete with marshmallows believe it or not), green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, fresh cranberry sauce, apple and pecan pies and stuffing, (which i made for the first time in my life and it turned out pretty good!)
It was a challenge to adequately explain the what and why of Thanksgiving to the few French and English folks who attended and they were surprised that you would put a little of each dish on your plate all at the same time! Everyone was groaning at the end of the meal and us Americans laughed and said - 'Welcome to Thanksgiving'. I think they were properly initiated!
It was a challenge to adequately explain the what and why of Thanksgiving to the few French and English folks who attended and they were surprised that you would put a little of each dish on your plate all at the same time! Everyone was groaning at the end of the meal and us Americans laughed and said - 'Welcome to Thanksgiving'. I think they were properly initiated!
Some of you may have already heard that Greenpeace has been running a "SarkObama" publicity campaign in Paris with posters depicting Sarkozy in the style of the Obama campaign posters, demanding that Sarkozy - who is currently president of the EU - to work harder on getting greenhouse gas emissions down. It's been getting a lot of attention in the press lately....
finally, i learned that today is Aid al-Adha - a Muslim holiday - and had a few students absent because they were home celebrating with their families. Here's what i discovered online...
Eid ul-Adha (عيد الأضحى), or the Festival of Sacrifice, falls approximately 70 days after Eid ul-Fitr (end of Ramadan) and is celebrated in honor of the prophet Abraham willingness to sacrifice his son as a proof of his loyalty to God. Celebrations usually include presenting an animal (usually a cow or a sheep) sacrifice, and the meat is shared with family, friends and those in need.
The festival also marks the end of the Pilgrimage or Hajj to Mecca.
The festival also marks the end of the Pilgrimage or Hajj to Mecca.
Also in the news today, a muslim graveyard (in another city here in France) was defaced, which highlights the tension that still exists over Islam in France. Living here in Nantes has been interesting for me, coming from Durham, (which is prolly 50/50 in terms of minority/majority) because there are so many more Muslims here than I've ever been around before. Often women wear hijab, though usually it's just a head scarf, long sleeves and skirts - I've not yet seen any women wearing the niqab, chador or burqua, (ironically enough - i've seen plenty of these latter kinds of coverings in NC!)
Anyway, there's been plenty of controversy and the following Wikipedia article covers it pretty well if you're interested.
