Iowa gets blizzards...Tahiti gets tropical storms

Cyclone or no cyclone? For the past few days, Nisha has been inching towards Tahiti. Unfortunately, it seems no one knows for sure if it's going to hit the island or not. Supposedly, it was going to hit today, but so far all we have is wind, clouds and some off and on again rain.

Olga, another cyclone, is forming off the coast of Australia, so we may be hit by that one later this week.

Life is good

Tumata and I on the island tour (Saturday).

I just came back inside from spending a couple of p.m. hours on the beach, and I haven't quite been this content since I spent the semester in D.C. Though I miss my family and friends back home, I have a wonderful host and friend, Tumata, who makes me feel at home here in Tahiti.

It's going on week three of studying abroad, and I have my good days and not-so-good days. A good day consists of feeling like I fit in at UPF; I recognize other students I have met and do the official Tahitian greeting of side-cheek kissing.

Seven Simpson students and the four Tahitian students that studied at Simpson last semester.

Thursday I ate lunch with another student in the program, and she had to leave shortly after I joined the group. Not knowing anyone or able to speak the language, we were able to communicate through the little English they know and what little French I know, and it sufficed! They invited me, and a couple other Simpson students they have met, to spend a weekend with them on Moorea, the closest island to island, over holiday break. Hopefully it works out that I can spend my last weekend of break on the other island since Mom and Casey are visiting for the first half!

But still, the most frustrating part of this experience is the language barrier, because my French is so limited. For those who know me, I love to laugh, and nothing stings worse than listening in on a conversation and A. not understanding the conversation and B. not understanding the joke or comical comments being shared. Aw. Frustrating, but I will work through it, and hopefully by the end of the semester I will be able to understand!

Tomorrow it is an island tour with the other Simpson students!

Hint of home

As Tumata and I headed to Papara this morning, I noticed the similarities of our fathers' trucks: bolts and screws scattered along the floor, random pieces of paper along the dashboard, and the dusty, woody scent of someone who works with his hands. I saw and smelled the life of a man's hard work.

*Like my dad, Tumata's father is a carpenter who owned his business of building houses. Though he is retired, he still assists his son in building homes on the island.

Check back on Sundays!

Hopefully, I'll be able to post pictures within the next couple weeks! And I apologize that I've let so much time go between postings; I wish I could post more often. We don't have internet at our house, but we will generally spend one night a week at Tumata's parents' home, which has internet. Check in on Sundays because we will usually spend Saturday nights at in Papara- her hometown- and go to church on Sunday mornings.

View from the Pink Coconut during a happy hour. Moorea- island nearest to Tahiti- can be seen in the background.

Je déteste les moustiques!

Just one view of the university and a few of the buildings.

I'm currently battling about 35 mosquito bites, but I'm managing- I'm just so sweet! :)

Classes are going well so far. The scheduling for classes here at UFP are quite different than in the U.S. Students here go to school for three years, and they choose their studies before their first year begins. Every student within their year and division of studies and has the exact same curriculum/classes together. Professors are then able to play around with class times and change them, possibly the day before it meets. Coming from an education system that values structure, this can be a shock. Sometimes professor A will have professor B tell his- professor B's class- that professor A's class is not meeting or class has changed to a different day, but some of professor A's students aren't in professor B's class. You might one or two students show up for the original scheduled time only to find no one there. Frustrating! And I hope that just made sense!

I have only one UPF class- American Civilization. My other classes are "Simpson Core Classes," which include a Tahitian language class, French language class, Polynesian culture class, and geography of French Polynesia. My geography class is in French, but I understood the essentials suprisingly! I'm sure it'll become more difficult as my français est tré limité- my French is very limited!

UPF's student newspaper- Te u'i mata- hosted a soirée last night at Le Meridien, one of Tahiti's gorgeous resorts, and Tumata and I went as she is involved with the organization. It was a a great time!! I met other students and danced. By the way, people my age here love techno; Blaiqe, you'd love it!!

Tumata lost her sandal in the ocean! She was giving me a night tour of the resort since my mom and brother will be staying there when they visit next month, and I just wanted to see the exclusive hotel. As we were about to sit down on the walkway that leads to the famous bungalows, which sit on top of the water and have a glass floor, she began to warn me to not lose my shoes in the ocean and sploop. She stopped mid-sentence because she had taken off her right sandal, and it was lost in the eight feet of water. Perhaps it'll still there be when I stay with my family? Most likely not.

We left about 1 p.m. and headed to her friends' house, which is conveniently located on the beach. I ended up falling asleep as the after-party continued.

You may be wondering how in the world could I have fallen asleep and not joined in at the beach. Well, no one ever told me this but I'm going to tell you.... studying abroad is exhausting. At the end of every day since I arrived, it's a struggle to make it past 10 p. m. Tumata assures me there will be plenty of occasions to spend the night at the beach.

Today we went to Tumata's aunt's house for her 50th birthday. There, I met some family and friends, as well as three extremely cute American Mormons. Daniel has been here only four months, and he already speaks French extremely well. I only hope to be as advanced as that before I leave!

Bienvenue!

Pictured: The market in Papeete.

I made it! I arrived Thursday night and was greeted by my professor who organized the partnership with the university in French Polynesia, her family, my host, Tumata, and her mom, Viviane.

Tumata is 21 years-old. We have a small house together in a short drive from the university.

Pictured: Dinner- fish and taro- my second night here. Yes, I ate all of it :)

Friday, I met up with Sharon, the professor from Simpson, and the other students for orientation. They showed me around the campus and hopefully I am able to find my classes come Monday! Beware: I am typing on a French keyboard so my punctuation may be off. We then into Papeete, the islands largest city and home of the university. We walked around the market and the city. To be honest, the city reminds me of Mexico with its busy, store-lined streets.

I still have so much to write- classes, Tahitian church services, and how exhausting study abroad is!

Not there yet

I left Sunday morning so that I could make it to L.A. without having to worry or push the hassles associated with flying stand by. I was supposed to be able to take a flight to Papeete, Tahiti on the fifth, but unfortunately flights have been booked solid through Thursday. The past few days I've been spending time with my uncle who lives in the area and my cousins.

Today Sarah and I went to Disneyland. To be a kid again! She's in fifth-grade and a pretty cool kid :) She knew her way around the park, so I just sat back and took it all in; you appreciate the atmosphere once you realize you're no longer a kid and life is not a fantasy.

But as much fun as I had today, I still wish I was beginning my study abroad experience. I just saw pictures of my classmates that landed there, and I can't explain how jealous I am.

Tomorrow I'll try my hand at attempting to get on a flight, and if that does not work out, there are a few options for Friday. Wish me luck!!