My connecting flight to Paris from Heathrow was refreshingly quick and smashingly British. I overheard this cute, old British couple cracking jokes about the national strike in France that day (see pics on Fbook). I wish I could remember his exact phrasing, but I can't. At most I can say that it was *delicously* British.
Upon arrival in CDG, I managed to make my way through the passport line and then completely skip the place to pick up my baggage. I walked right through the exit assuming my baggage was just on the other side of two sliding glass doors, only to find that, in fact, it was not. It was to the left. So, I had to sneak back in the glass doors and glide past security to get my bag. Pas de problème.
My secret agent skills continued on the TGV from Paris to Montpellier; they were cultivated by the national strike. I had (wrongly) selected a method of picking up my ticket that required a ticket window and not simply the self-service kiosks smattered around the train station. Unfortunately for me, all of the ticket windows were closed due to the strike, as I was oft-reminded over the loudspeaker. Fortunately for me, none of the trains had controllers to check the tickets (as they were also on strike).
The TGV was a surprisingly quiet ride (see Fbook for video + pics) and I made my way into Montpellier at around 10 PM. My first discovery was that my French was more rusty than I had imagined. My second discovery was that the weather is quite nice in Montpellier. Those two distracting non-sequiturs aside, upon arrival, I was greeted by my gracious hosts and I slept well in the maisonette. The next day, yesterday, I took a tour of Montpellier on foot and, typically, forgot to bring my camera along to meticulously document each step.
Afterward, I went to watch the World Cup match (Chile vs. Spain) on the big screens stationed at one of the many bars in downtown Montpellier (they rotate for each night [I think]). After an exciting match, I went with one of my hosts and her friends to Les Estivals, a summer music, wine and food festival in a park. It occurs every Friday in the summer and involves lots of wine consumption and comparatively very little music listening. Today, I sort of woke up at a normal time (6 then 9) and hope to soon arrive at some sort of sleep schedule that makes sense.
As for the research, that I hope to start soon, but I'd like to refine my French to an acceptable level. I give myself about five days for that... I'll probably start by going to the huge library here and see what I can dig up.
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