TGITW

[Thank God It's The Weekend]

I had a fantabalabalabulous time this weekend.

Saturday night I headed over to Gabby's house.  Her new host family is awesome and hilarious and they have an adorable dog (I miss having a dog in the house!) We ate/made a delicious dinner using a raclette in which we first melted cheese and then poured it luxuriously over steaming hot potatoes, with some vegetables, salad and charcuterie on the side.  Definitely a meal worthy of adding to the dreaded exchange weight, but I didn't care it was so delicious.  

Gabby and I then had your typical North American girl sleepover in which we spent hours talking and finally fell asleep watching a movie (it was a Disney classic lol).  We woke up early the next morning because Gabby's host mom, Anne, wanted to take us to the Marché de Wazemmes, which is this big Sunday market on the opposite side of Lille than the one we normally would go to.  There were loads of stands and vendors that braved the cold morning air to come and sell their various goods whether it be delicious fruits, slick fish, raw veg, soft fabrics, or some clothes of the latest fashions (pat on the back for my description in that last sentence.)  

early mornings, french baguettes, and busy markets.  it's a happy time.

yayayayum

Trying some pineapple before Anne bought it

Anne&Gab

I LUV HER!

After a little over an hour of market browsing, Anne took us to a little cafe to catch our breath and take a little pause.  Gabby and I walked in and fell in love immédiatement.  Both of us looked at each other and shared big goofy grins as we both came to the same conclusion that the place was just AWESOME.  It had just the right amount of people to feel comfortable but not crowded, it reminded me of the adorable unique cafes you can find at home, and it emitted a Christmas vibe that got me under it's spell right off the bat (IT'S GETTING CLOSER EVERYONE).  It's specialty was that it had teas and coffees from all over the world.  Gabby ordered a special tea from China and I got a cappuccino that came with a good two inches of whipped cream on top of it.  No complaints there.

captivated

We wandered around a little bit more before heading back to Gab's house for some lunch.

Lunch was just as yummy as dinner the night before had been, and for dessert we had dark chocolate fondue with the pineapple we bought at the market that day.  Along with some other delicious yummies (do I talk about food too much here or what..) That afternoon Gabby and I went into Lille to explore a bit.  We've noticed recently that hanging out with the big group of exchangers seems to take us to all the same places and we move really slowly, so the two of us took that Sunday afternoon to explore.  We found some beautiful parks and places we didn't know existed.  Sunday means all the shops are closed, so Lille was calm and peaceful, and it made our exploring a little cooler (probably saved us some money too).  

We hung out in the city until the sun went down, and ended our day by talking on the steps of the opera house and making up a totally lame handshake that we will continue to do for the rest of the year because it was funny and who doesn't feel cool with a handshake.  Just as we were heading back to the tram and metro station, we looked down one of the big streets in Lille and saw that the GIANT CHRISTMAS TREE was going up in the middle of La Grand Place.  Think along the lines of the giant Christmas tree that goes up in NYC (it's been enough movies we've all seen it), but on a smaller degree, and European-ized.  We both started squealing, giggling and being foreigners but frankly my Christmas excitement is uncontainable so there's nothing that can be done.  Then we skipped back to the station.  Yep.  Good day.