Une saison dans Lacoste

une_saison @ 2006-11-15T20:22:00

2006-11-15T19:22:37Z

Tomorrow at 4AM (tonight, basically) I leave for the Marseilles airport to head back to the States. I relly have mixed feeling about leaving Europe, but it will be nice to get back to my family, my friends, and my man. And my sweet new apartment.

And now, a list! Things I will miss about France:

-No preservatives or hormones in foods.
-. . .that means no preservatives in wine, which means no hangovers!
-The amazing mountains
-The Frech's open-mindedness (Is that a word?)
-Inesxpensive wine. We're taking 1 - 3 Euro a bottle.
-My new friends. . . but I'll see them in Savannah and Atlanta.

Aaaaand there's more, but I'll update again when I get home. It's 8:15PM here and I'm about to go to bed so I can wake up at 3AM. I just consumed my last bottle of Franch wine and I'm all packed and ready.

I'll post pictures, etc when I get back home.

une_saison @ 2006-11-05T23:20:00

2006-11-05T22:20:41Z

Cool, I was in the newspaper!

"Savannah Williams, a junior at Savannah College of Art and Design majoring in Interior Design, is studying this quarter at SCAD's campus in Lacoste, France. She has also taken weekend trips to Barcelona, Spain as well as London, Paris and taken a Mediterranean cruise.

Savannah is the daughter of Leisa and Jay Williams of west Cobb. She is a graduate of McEachern High School."

-Marietta Daily Journal

In other news, the quarter will be over in less than two weeks. Everyone around here is ready to go back, but I'm not sure if I am. I miss people but I really like the way they live over here.

I may be able to travel a bit between school and Thanksgiving, so we'll see about that. Maybe, maybe not.

It feels good to be back on AutoCAD, but more than anything I wish I was making something tangible. I go into the fine arts studio every night and my heart hurts because I really really miss making real art.

And I think I have ovary problems. I'll spare the details but I've been in a lot of pain and it scares me to death.

Today was a good day. I like my new friends but I miss my old ones.

Paris. . . a week ago

2006-10-29T20:40:56Z

Avignon TGV station.

This clown matches his car. . . which almost got towed.

The Bacarat Crystal store designed by Philipe Starck, the love of my life.

OH, PHILIPE! One of the most amazing interiors I've ever seen.

My first sighting of the Tower.

The original Chanel store.

Some scenes from Amelie were filmed here. I was really excited.

Versailles.

Versailles again.

Marie Antoinette's bedroom.

The Louvre.

Winged Victory.

OH YES I DID.

My good buddy Venus.

Notre Dame.

Art nouveau Metro sign.

Lazy Sunday.

French pugs!

And that's that.

There are more picture of adventures and nightlife on Facebook because it's easier to post pictures there.

I see London, I see France. . .

2006-10-24T17:06:02Z

I took about 600 photos in London alone, so it's been hard to narrow down which ones are really worth showing. And so now. . . London! A week and a half ago.

Buckingham Palace Gate.

It's difficult to take pictures of London at night because the smog makes everything blurry.

Houses of Parliament.

The London Eye, largest ferris wheel in the world.

Janelle, this reminded me of you.

The London Bridge was pretty anticlimatic.

But the Tower Bridge was cool!

Happy to finally be in London!

From The Eye.

Westminster Abbey.

Buckingham Palace.

. . . oh yeah, and I can see your underpants!

Paris photos soon.

une_saison @ 2006-10-18T15:29:00

2006-10-18T19:29:25Z

I'm still alive, I swear. I just haven't had time to do. . . anything. School has been so busy that I've even been skipping meals, much to the dismay of my pancreas. We've had SO much work. . . SCAD Lacoste is no picnic. Though I wish it was.

London was incredible. . . just as I'd always imagined. I really could live there. It's so nice. And they speak English. It felt like home.

Little kids with British accents make my ovaries happy.

And now my homework is done. . . for now, anyway. We have no time to do anything, so the quality of my, and everyone's, work is sacrificed. It's so frustrating. Oh, well. . . we're leaving for Paris in the morning! I'll post London and Paris photos when I get back. Or when I have time.

I hope everyone is doing well!

Lodon Calling

2006-10-11T23:16:28Z

In about 27 hours I'll be leaving for LONDON!

I'm so so so excited. :)

une_saison @ 2006-10-10T16:11:00

2006-10-10T20:12:00Z

Interior design girls can be so bitchy. They're just so serious all the time. I, however, am a believe in the importance of balancing work and play. You have to keep a sense of humor (or at least a good attitude) because even if your work is great, you can't present it, sell it, or execute it if you're seriously lacking in your mental and physical health.

Don't tell people not to talk to you for two weeks when we all have the same amount of work during that time. If you can't balance work, social activities, health, family, and everything else, you'll never survive. . . well, anywhere.

At the end of the day, we're just students and it's just a grade. If I die tomorrow at least my friends and family will be able to say that I had a damn good time while I was here. (And made good grades in the meantime!)

Moderation, people. Moderation in everything!

Marseilles

2006-10-07T15:18:45Z

I am completely in love with Marseilles and the Mediterranean. So far, it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.

Cafe interior.

A painting in McDonalds (my blood sugar got low).

Sarah the gargoyle.

The Communist Part of France. . . we found it!

Our bus got stuck in the tiny one-way streets so the boys had to get out and move a car.

On the boat!

It was an amazing day.

And when I got home I had a message to call Shelby, so I did. She found a "dream apartment" on Jones. . . we can walk to Eichberg! And our chances of getting shot are significantly lower. It sounds incredible and I'm so so so excited. Unfortunately, we can only live there for seven months. I'm so tired of moving and moving and moving all the time. . . but until we have to move out, it wil be great. Shelby doesn't have to go home now! Hurray!

I am currently sitting on the steps outside my room drawing. For fun. It's been a while since I've done that. And it's been a while since I've listened to Joanna Newsom. . . but she makes for great artsy fartsy music. In France.

After a nearly all-nighter and a real all-nighter this week, it's so nice to be able to relax on the weekend. I love it here. After brunch, Sarah and I went to Cafe de France for some coffee and foosball. It's so nice to be able to enjoy simple things like art and new friends and clean air and sunshine without distractions like cell phones, cars, grocery shopping, jobs, et cetera. I highly recommend it.

une_saison @ 2006-10-04T07:50:00

2006-10-04T11:50:44Z

If anyone wants to send me a letter (HINT HINT!), my address is

Savannah Williams
SCAD Lacoste
Rue du Four
84880 Lacoste, France

And I will most definitely write you back.

The past week or so.

2006-10-01T11:54:53Z

I live here:

My new friend!

For Studio II, we're designing a commercial and residential plan (with ADA accessibility codes) for a huge 800 year-old building at the bottom of the hill. The room pictured was particularly photogenic. . .

And another shot from Barcelona.

Now that wasn't so bad, was it?

Every morning my roommates have a new story of what I was saying in my sleep the night before. I don't think I've ever been so crazy in my sleep before. And I don't remember a thing! Weird.

I'm still feeling sick but I rested yesterday so today I have to work. Ugh. it's so hard to be motivated to do schoolwork while I'm here.

But I booked my London hostel last night!

une_saison @ 2006-09-30T07:20:00

2006-09-30T11:20:22Z

Well alls I gots to say is, "Lacoste gone wild"! Thursday night was insane.

And now I'm so sick with a cold or an ear infection or a sinus infection or all of the above. I have so much to do but I have absolutely no energy. I can't even believe I'm on my computer right now.

And I have more cool photos to post. . . another time.

Apparently I was freaking out in my sleep last night. Every orning since I've been here I've heard my roommates' tales of how I talk in my sleep, but they say that last night I was sitting up and flailing my legs around in the air. Weird. I blame it on the cold medicine.

I've started to warm up and have made some really good friends since I've been here. We're a tight group.

Ok, I'm done thinking. I'm off to go hand wash my clothes because it takes less brain power than a research paper or space planning.

Could someone please please please fly over here with my big bed, chicken soup, and ice water? I miss ice.

une_saison @ 2006-09-27T12:57:00

2006-09-27T16:57:43Z

I'll begin by telling the whole story. A group of interior design girls were going to join the architecture kids for a trip to Munich for Octoberfest. They invited me, but I declined, as I'd had a few too many the night before. When I asked them they next morning if they were excited for Octoberfest, they told me that they had instead decided to visit Barcelona for the weekend and asked if I would like to come. I agreed and we left right after class at 4:30.

We took a cab to the train station in Avignon and after I bought a train ticket, there were no more left for the other girls. I had my ticket refunded and we headed to the bus station across the street. Luckily they had a bus heading to Barcelona at midnight, so we got our tickets. We ate dinner and talked at a local cafe until 11. Whle waiting a the bus stop, we watched cars pick up the prostitutes across the street. Some of them even got dropped off again before we left. That was our entertainment for the night, I suppose.

I slept for the entire bus ride and woke up in Barcelona. We ordered a cab to take us to the hotel the school uses when they visit, but it was completely booked. In fact, everything was booked, hostals and hotels. Apparently last weekend was Barcelona's national holiday, and everyone had come to the city to celebrate.

After walking around for six hours trying to find a place to stay or even a cafe to sit in, Barcelona's information center found us a hotel room for six. And it happened to be right in the middle of all the action, too!

The next two days were spent touring, sight-seeing, Gaudi-hopping, shopping, and dancing. Barcelona is a fun, beautiful city with a great nightlife and some incredible architecture.

And now, the visual aids:

Walking around at 6am.

Plaza Reial, the view from our hotel window.

Gaudi's Casa Batllo

The Gaudi Cathedral

une_saison @ 2006-09-26T10:28:00

2006-09-26T14:28:58Z

September 23 was the one year anniversary of Randall's death. And every day since then I've been terrified about it happening again, losing someone else I love and being the one to discover it.

Scariest night of my life.

I didn't even make it to his memorial because my car broke down.

une_saison @ 2006-09-21T06:08:00

2006-09-21T10:08:52Z

I'd love to stick around and chat but I'm about to head to Barcelona for the weekend. . .

Adios!

Guess what?!

2006-09-20T19:49:00Z

I just booked a flight to London for October 13 - 15. I'm SO excited! I've wanted to go there since I was little.

une_saison @ 2006-09-19T07:52:00

2006-09-19T12:26:05Z

Ok, I made it here safely! In my first 24 hours in France, I took over 160 photos. Here are some of the highlights:

Lacoste!

At the market in Cavaillon.

More sights around town.

Chateau Marquis du Sade.

So far I am having the time of my life. I love French culture. . . but I'll write more about that later. Time to explore!

Well well well. . .

2006-09-16T18:48:22Z

I'm about to leave for the airport from where I have an 8.37 hour flight to Paris, a 1.25 hour connection to Marseilles, and a 1.5 hour bus ride to Lacoste.

I'll update when I get there!

une_saison @ 2006-09-15T02:19:00

2006-09-15T06:28:51Z

If you know me, you know I looooove babies. Just seeing one in a store or a restaurant will make me melt. So a couple days ago I went to Nashville to meet my new baby cousin. He's so precious!

[Hey, Janelle, he's half Egyptian! See, I have mixed people in my family! We're exotic too, right?]

So cute!

He's lovin' it.

Look at those eyes!

Regular baby stuff.

Silly cousins.

I've been pretty busy making final preparations and whatnot. I'm just about done packing. And I've been watching a lot of Will & Grace. I need a certain amount in my system at all times. Being in Kennesaw makes me so anxious, I just can't be myself.

For now, there's a sweet sweet redhead sleeping in the room below mine. He came bearing gifts of Stella DVDs and Dove dark chocolate. . . oooooh yeah, he's a keeper. But I think the best part is that my family likes him as much as I do.

And tomorrow brings SCAD Atlanta bookstore visits, more packing, Ru Sans, etc.

I usually hate "Today I . . . and then I . . ." entries, but that's what's up for now.

I know I'm a few days late with this but. . .

2006-09-14T06:04:42Z

My family went on vacation to New York City this summer. I absolutely fell in love with it.

And now, some scenes from Ground Zero:

I was sick to my stomach for the rest of the day, but I think the city did a very good job of keeping the area respectful. And it bothers me that production companies didn't wait longer to make a movie about the World Trade Centers. To me it seems entirely too soon.

More New York photos later.

Adventures in babysitting. . .

2006-09-09T06:58:32Z

(My personal favorite.)

And finally. . . yes, I was babysitting Mikey.

"Are you a Pharaoh?!"

FRANCE IN A WEEK!

une_saison @ 2006-09-07T22:56:00

2006-09-08T02:56:20Z

One more chain I break
To get me closer to you
One more chain does the maker make
To keep me from bustin' through

One more notch I scratch
To keep me thinking of you
One more notch does the maker make
Upon my face so blue

One more smile I fake
And try my best to be glad
One more smile does the maker make
Because he knows I'm sad

Oh Lord, how I know
Oh Lord, how I see
That only can the maker make
A happy man of me

une_saison @ 2006-09-03T11:55:00

2006-09-03T15:55:20Z

I much prefer my life sans livejournal, it leaves too much oppurtunity for saying things I'll later regret. But I want to share my cool stories and photos while I'm in France, so for now, let's just stick to the basics:

Some friends from home are very disappointing.

...but luckily I still have several awesome ones left.

I am babysitting the most precious babies in the world. I missed them so much!

Shrek 2 is way better than the first one.

And I guess that's about it for now.

The times, they are a-changin'. . .

2006-08-23T06:16:42Z

Upon several discussions and upset stomachs, I have decided to move out of the house I'm currently in. I will have lived here almost two months. Sad. . . but it really is ridiculous to pay $2,000 in rent for a house I won't even be in for four months. So a storage shed it is. I've really been waning to live alone lately, for many reasons. But I do love my roomies! And this house, and my room. Maybe Shelby and I will get a two-bedroom place in December. We'll see. Until then, it will just drive me crazy.

I'll be coming home September first and leaving for France on the 17th. Over two weeks at home? I haven't been home that long in a year. And frankly, I haven't missed it. Oh, I miss certain people. Just not actually being in Kennesaw. I don't know if I'll ever want to live in the suburbs. I want to raise well-rounded, open-minded children in a city. (Not that you can't do that in the burbs.) I guess that's just my way of saying that many or most suburban areas depress me.

[What I meant by that tangent was this, plain and simple: I'm really scared to be home for so long.] I don't know why. . . memories I guess? The last major lengths of time I spent there certainly weren't the best. And I guess I figure that most of my friends there have given up on me, except for four or five of them. I'm so looking forward to catching up with everyone! Of course they'll/you'll have their/your own lives to attend to. And I'll have babies to love on, family to be goofy with, bags to pack, a wonderful boy to miss, and a new life to look forward to.

Maybe I'll compose a mega-update of everything that's gone down in the past year. As if this one wans't long enough.

35 days and counting...

2006-08-13T17:52:28Z

I'll use this more as September 17 approaches.