September photos

A selection of snaps of Valence from when I had just arrived...

Mountain view on arrival at Valence TGV.

Valence centre, looking down Ave de Gambetta..

Le Grand Cafe

Chateau Croussol on top of the hill

The fountains on the Champs du Mars - the long building at the end is my school, Lycee Emile Loubet.

Looking down on to Parc Jouvet from Champs du Mars

Kiosque Peynet, the bandstand for 'lovers' (so my class told me)

Deer in the Parc Jouvet

Flowers in the Parc Jouvet

 On the way to my Foyer.

A classic French house with mountain backdrop

The Foyer, where I'm living...

The view from my room's window...

The garden and patio area behind...

Soph & I @ Cafe Bancel

Voignee (white wine of the region) and the olives and volauvents which came as compliments...from Soph's mum's favourite waiter.

The French getting their Strike on.

More demonstraters

Market of the Twinned Towns

Clacton on Sea cooking up their finest cuisine, Bacon and Egg sandwiches...!

Soph's Saturday morning is made.

Chateau Croussol, a ruined castle on top of the hills which back Valence

On our way up..

St. Peray blessing the town of his name below

Moi.

Sophie

Valence

Releasing our inner Maria Von Trapps/The Lion King, there was nothing like the view from that rock. A breathtaking panorama - and we realised how lucky we are to be living in the Rhone Alpes for the next 6 months....

Very exciting news from out of the blue... and a bit more.

I've had a pretty exciting week, so far.
On Sunday evening, after an afternoon of self-service church thanks to a Grace Church preach podcast on my iPod, I rang my family on skype and then checked my emails before bed... I had Facebook messaged my friend Clare's cousin, Simon, who had done this same assistantship programme last year in Nimes (just a bit further South from here) to ask him if he had some contacts for the church there, as I couldn't go every week, but once in a while I'd probably make a trip. He's in China at the moment and has problems Facebooking from there since it's effectively banned out there, so the reply was delayed and I knew it was coming by email... But on Sunday evening I happened to find it had been waiting in my junk mail folder since Friday - as if!
I opened it and he had written all about the church - but also that actually, he knew a young couple from the Nimes church who had got married last summer and moved to Valence last year for their jobs but also to be part of a church plant here. Here was their email, he said, and definitely email them! I couldn't believe it - this in itself was a massive piece of news - as I really had begun to wonder where there were, IF there were any Protestant churches in Valence - let alone ones connected to New Frontiers, the same family of churches as my home church in Nottingham.
So, I emailed them starightaway and waited for their response... The next morning, I woke and found they had added me on Facebook (let alone we also had a 'mutual friend' on Facebook!) and in the afternoon, Maellou, the wife, emailed me and very excitedly welcomed me to Valence and asked if I'd like to come to dinner the next evening, Tuesday?? I accepted immediately and we arranged to meet in front of the station at 18h30.
I spent a lovely evening on Tuesday with them at their top floor loft appartment of a large house in the area of the town behind the station. It's such a cosy and welcoming appartment - and they welcomed me like family and I felt so at home. By about 5 minutes in, I felt like a good friend already, and the conversation didn't stop all evening! They told me their story about the church in Nimes, getting married, moving to Valence - and all about the church here. Maellou said straightaway that Valence is actually great for Chtistian activity as there are lots of Christian organisations here - and that there are good links between the churches. Our church is based near the centre and is full of twenty-somethings, that's perfect for Soph and I! In October they are about the start home-groups for the first time, so I'll love that, as I do at home in Nottingham!
Also, another strange coincidence was that we have a mutual friend - made known to us via Facebook! We discussed and laughed over the coincidence of it all*, over dinner - a delicious fresh quiche from scratch, followed by the mini macaroons I'd bought as a present from Gaulthier's, the chocoloatier, for dessert.
I could go on and on, but I'll conclude by saying, what an incredible blessing and suprise that that has been this week - and God has really shown me His provision and, in only 6 days, has linked me up with the Christians and church support in Valence! I am so excited to get involved in the year ahead,and will go for the first time the Sunday after next (October 10th).
******
So - that's the big news, on other events:
- This week Soph and I climbed up to Chateau Croussol, the ruined Chateau on the moutains above Valence  from which you can look down at an incredible panorama of Valence.
- I've met more people in my Foyer, who are lovely and I chat to at mealtimes - a couple of guys doing Classes Preparatoires [which are classes for those who score in the top 2% of Baccalaureat results for their year, and is a 3 year course preparing them for exams for Les Grands Ecoles, specialist research schools -so, they are a bit like Oxbridge candidates.] and an Algerian girl and guy who do work in Valence and do an engineering course, respectively.
- I ventured to the Piscine on Tuesday to go swimming. Shorts are banned, men have to wear speedos, and all women have to wear caps - so I was transported back in time slightly to primary school as the latex cap pulled at my hair making me wince as I pulled it on. I went at lunchtime, but oh my gosh, even in Wellingborough, I have never seen so many grown people trying to lane swim at one time! I managed to swim constantly for an whole, but as there was at least 8 people in each lane, it was certainly much more slowly than usual. I was amaused by the cultural differences I could see in this pool compared to home, not only with the swimming hat thing, but also with no fast, medium or slow lane everyone simply wen tin whichever unless less were 'Nageurs confirmes' or in the lane for flippers. So at one point, I was swimming so slowly behind someone, that I was looking around the pool. I looked over to another lane and to my suprise, I saw a tube coming up from the water. Moving slowly in the direction of the flow, I followed it with my eyes, until I noticed it was attached to a head - which rose up to the surface displaying a man in full snorkelling kit! What!?  WHY WAS SOMEONE SNORKELING IN THE SWIMMING POOL??! With that, I knew I'd seen it all  - and very much amused by my experience, I left and decided I'd come at different time next time, definitely not lunch break again.
 - And so that ends pretty much my first two weeks here, as yesterday I caught up with some reading and played Handball in the evening with my Foyer (I didn't do too badly seeing as I didn't know the game until last night - and I was played with 6ft something european giants with as much strength and prowess as Michael Jordan had in his basketball prime!) - and today I'll be getting a French SIM and having dinner with Soph and some assistants. I am on a training weekend this weekend in Grenoble - and from Monday I start my teaching...
So, au revoir - and love to England, or wherever you are reading this from.
XXX

* Maellou had met him when she had done FP (a Christian gap year) at a Church in Kent... Small world, and Facebook makes it smaller, so it seems!

...and let me introduce you to my new home - Valence, Rhone Alpes.

Well, apologies for the lateness of this first post - but I think I am now ready to tell you, Valence is beautiful, typically French - and I really, really like it already.
I arrived last Monday afternoon into Valence TGV station, just outside of Valence, to blue skies, sunshine and 26 degree heat. With all my heavy bags and a long journey, I was pretty hot but as I took the escalator up to the sortie of the station, I was greeted by the most breathtaking panoramic view of mountains - and I had to pause to take it all in.
I was based in Hotel de L'Europe for Monday night, and planned to be there until I found accommodation. I explored the town straightaway with a combination of wandering and the assisatnce of a map from tourist information. I visited the area of interest the Champs du Mars, which is a boulevard in the centre of the town lined with fountains, trees and benches and home to the Peynet bandstand in the middle. Looking straight out from there you can see the mountains, which is an amazing view. The Park Jouvet is just below this, and is a quaint, verdant park with exquisite flower and rose gardens, an animal area with deer in(!), tennis courts, a very impressive children's play park and a very sweet a little train for little children too! On the sunny afternoons and Sundays it is full of families and children, and is great place to read and to admire in the mountain view. The Avenue de Leon Gambetta is a wide boulevard running through the centre of the town, which then runs on over the Rhone river (which flows beyond Park Jouvet) to Guillherhand Granges, its sister town. Some of the most hip cafes can be found on the Avenue (such as Cafe Bancel), and in the evening it is stunningly European as it is lined with lights, which bring out the contrast of mountains silhouettes at the end as the light fades behind them. Valence has an old quartier which is comprised of a labyrinthe of tiny, cobbled streets and beautiful boutiques and cafes. It's a pleasant walk home for me from my accommodation and hopefully the beautifully dressed windows won't distract me to much on the way to school!
At the end of the Champs is my school. It's the main Lycee of the town obvious from its central location and imposing nature and, for me, it forms the picture of a typical French Lycee. I visited on Wednesday morning, and I was greeted very warmly by my coordinator, Christiane and the secretaries and Headmaster, who were all very welcoming and friendly.
So, the small matter of accommdation. On Tuesday made a bee-line for the accommodation I'd had contact with before I'd arrived, La Manu - a Foyer des Jeunes Travailleurs* down by the Rhone, on the edge of the centre-ville. I had heard they had no rooms, and Soph had even been in to push my case the week before - but they'd said there was no space yet for me, but I was on a waiting list. However, I was either very lucky or very blessed - but for some reason when I arrived on Tuesday morning, a room had become available there in the last few days - and they said to come back at 4pm and I could do the paperwork and get the keys. I think definitely blessed.
So, I sealed my room on Tuesday afternoon, moved in on Wednesday (with some help from Soph) - and cancelled the rest of my hotel booking. The foyer's great - it's a bit like uni halls, but the team who run them are so friendly and they will help you out with any problems you have from finances to health. They also try to keep people interacting in the Foyer - so for example, Monday night is film night in the Home Cinema, and Wednesday night we join up with Soph's Foyer on the other side of the town centre to play sport in a local sports centre. Because it's a place for young people too, they manage to get sweet deals like - FREE cinema tickets and tickets to the theatre for residents and super cheap ski weekends including all the components. So, Soph and I feel like we've hit on a good thing with the Foyers... Also as I eat my meals in the cantine, it means I have to be sociable with the Frenchies. I try smiling every now and again.
Soph and I have had a lovely week together here - she's been here a week longer than me, but we've been getting to know the town together over a glass of wine in Cafe Bancel (now named our local) or over dinner - and generally to debrief and share our new experiences together! On Tuesday evening, I had arranged an appointment to visit a potential house share with some French twenty-somethings - we arrived on time to a house, very untidy, and some very funny bohemian house mates who showed us around clothes-strewn rooms and then invited us to stay for a chat over some beer. We obliged, and it we can say its an evening we'll remember...
On Saturday morning, we visited the town markets in the centre, which are typically French and have a great selection of fresh fruit and vegetables, cheese, meats, cakes... almost everything! This Saturday there also happened to be another market on in the town... A market of 'Les Villes Jumelles' - meaning the towns in other countries twinned with Valence. So, admidst the German Schnitzel and Libyan flat breads on sale, we spotted "Clacton on Sea, Angleterre" and decided to go and say hello - and also managed to grab our last bacon and egg sandwich for a while. So we had a Saturday morning which combined the best bits of an English and a French Saturday morning... and we felt very at home in Valence.
So - my first week has whizzed past and it's been wondeful - and I hope I've brought you up to date with where I'm at and what I'm doing - and I'll blog again very soon with some more exciting bits of news and photos...!

* Foyers des Jeunes Travailleurs are common many cities and towns in France and are basically accommodation where young people who are working or studying the town can live together. It is like a university hall in set-up so each has their own room (all en-suite, some with kitchenettes too), but there are communal rooms like a games room, lounge - mine even has a Salle de Home Cinema! - and a cantine, for which I have a mealcard for included in my rent.