Strikes

Hello all,

I haven't written in a while because it seems like there hasn't been much going on. I've lost track of how long this student strike has been going on. At least I have my exchange student classes to go to, but those aren't exactly a joy at sessions that last at least two hours (I've decided I like the American way of doing classes much better.). So there hasn't been a lot going on the past couple (?) weeks, but people around here are getting bored and going out a little more often, maybe.

Last weekend I went to Normandy with three carloads of people. First we went to a small town with some beautiful cliffs overlooking the Channel. Unfortunately, all of my pictures from that day were mysteriously erased. Anyway, we went to another small town which probably was a lot prettier a few weeks ago before all of their flowers died, and drove for another hour or so to get to our hotel in Avranches, right outside of Mont St. Michel. The next morning we went to St. Michel, which is famous for being a tidal island; until recently the causeway leading to it would be completely submerged at high tide. It's actually is a small town, but it's known for the castle monastery/prison at the top. It was fun to look around and learn some of the history. I remember learning a little about it with Mr. Johnson during World History in 9th grade, so it was one of the things I really wanted to see while I'm here.

On the way home, we stopped at a little town where a large part (most?) of Winston Churchill's floating harbor had washed up on the beach. During World War II, Churchill had the idea to create an enormous harbor in between England and France to use as a disembarking point for the D-Day invasion, I believe. I would probably have liked to see one of the landing beaches a little more, but it was still cool.

After I send this, I'm heading to Paris for (basically) the first time! I'm going to meet the Bryants (sans Adam, of course) and the Brattains and hang out with them for a day or so. I'm excited about seeing people from home (especially these ones)! I'm taking my laptop to backup the my pictures, and I'll try to make sure I don't lose three quarters of them this time.

See you all soon!
Stephen