Acclimating to Lille

Laying out was fun. No one else there was in their bathing suit, but I didn’t care because I wanted some sun! We laid out for an hour or two, and I had a tan line, so I am happy. The park was so beautiful! It is one of my favorite places in Lille so far. We then had dinner somewhere downtown. The restaurant was super HOT and miserable. The service sucked too. It took forever; I was so hungry and ready to leave when we did. Dinners here take like 2 hours; I kinda hate it haha. I think one hour is perfect, but it’s the French way, so I need to get used to it. Downtown Lille is really nice and pretty. I looks like a mini Pars! I love it there. There is good shopping, bars, food, and lots of people. Afterwards I went to Bryan’s room with a few people uploading pictures for a while. All of us had decided to not go out that night, but then randomly we heard people were, so I got ready in five minutes to join them.

We headed towards After Hours, which supposedly has international students, but it was closed for some reason. We kept walking on and found another bar that was full of cute French guys, so I was happy. I met a Piere, and he was so interesting to talk too. I just asked him all about France, his travels, and studies. A small group of us then followed another French guy to show us more nightlife, and I had a blast. I felt like a VIP because this French guy knew of where to go and could get us into places that we otherwise couldn’t have.

This morning we went to the Sunday market! It was so cool. There were so many people and vendors crammed together and lots of amazing shopping. The clothes and shoes were so cheap. I bought a pair of what I call gypsy pants. They are so unique, European, and comfortable! I am getting shoes next time for sure; they were only six euros! I got lots of cheap and yummy fruit too. I am glad the market is open three days a week!

We headed back to the park again in hopes of laying out, but it was too cloudy. I had fun regardless; we all just talked and had fun. We explored more of the park and we discovered a canal and there was a little carnival for kids going on. We saw a man dressed up in a chicken suit performing and singing; it was cute. We then headed to downtown to see a movie. We saw Very Bad Trip 2 (aka The Hangover). The movie theater was a little different than what I am used too. The theater and screen were smaller, and people chatted a lot through the commercials, so I was worried they would continue to do so during the movie, but luckily they didn’t. I fell asleep during the movie. The lack of sleep caught up to me, so I just let myself pass out. I am mad I didn’t really watch it, but I can see it again someday. It was also weird because you had to exit at the opposite entrance from where you entered. We made fools of ourselves trying to get out the wrong way but quickly learned.

Now I am back. I am soooo tired. I have not gotten a proper night’s sleep since being in France, so I am retiring early!