Brief Recap Continued

Gabby and I arrived in Montpellier on a Wednesday. We took the train down from Paris where it had been not exactly warm and slightly rainy. We arrived into a sunny 70 degree Montpellier afternoon. We were greeted on the platform by my parents friends' friends who had nicely agreed to host us for our first week in the city. The train stopped, and Gabby, myself, and 8000 pieces of broken luggage exploded onto the platform where we find an Albert Einstein look-alike staring at us clearly thinking, "they must be the Americans" as two seconds later he says "Are you Lisa Shames?" Luggage. Dead give away. Dad, please don't say I told you so.
Jean-Marie (Einstein) and Claire (his wife) were the coolest hosts ever! Gabby and I had our own separate little apartment. At dinner time, they invited us down, poured us delicious wine to welcome us to the city and immediately put on a Best of Woodstock vinyl. The next day Jean-Marie took us all over the city on a walking tour of all the best shops and cool things to see.
During our first week in Montpellier we explored the city. There was a honey festival with tons of tents sent up on the esplanade and you could buy and sample honey and honey products from all over the world. I, of course, fell in love with this hazelnut honey cream from Tuscany and went back to the stand twice before I decided to finally buy a jar. We went to the beach one day, wandered through the center place de la comedie, ate crepes and doner kebabs, and went to the cinema.

After a week Gabby left to go to her first farm. Jean-Marie and I took her to the train station and I hugged her goodbye for the first of many times in this city. And then I went on to set up my life here. Jean-Marie and Claire left for Egypt and I went and stayed with Erbin, a wonderful and generous guy I found on couchsurfing who agreed to host me at the last minute until I found an apartment. It was around this time that some of the other assistants started arriving. Darcy was first and we discovered this adorable little juice bar where the two young guys behind the counter peeled and squeezed the fruit right before your eyes. We proceeded to return there everyday, each day bringing whatever new friends we had made the night before.

One memorable night was when I went out with a few assistants and erasmus students to this australian bar. The bar itself was like a loud disco stuck in the early ninties but on the way I met this wonderful girl from Madrid named Nezha who happened to be leaving her apartment at the end of that week and she offered me her place. I moved in the following weekend. My room is long and narrow with a gorgeous, chocolate colored chest of drawers and matching armoire. There is a door that opens onto a small balcony that is just big enough for three or four chairs to sit outside in the sunshine. There is a view of the ancient Roman aquaduct and stone houses. To the left a giant tree rises from the garden below. The sun pours in around noon and fills the room with its warm yellow light. I decorated the walls with photos from home and the signs from my first ever hitchhiking experience.

The beginning of Montpellier was one giant fete, lazy end of summer days followed by endless summer nights that lasted till dawn. It was an infinity of new friends, foods, cultures, parties, pubs, days at the beach, sunsets, and walks through twisted, medieval streets.
Soon October drew near and the beginning of my new job as an assistante de langue.