:'(

I really am very sad today. I woke up to some really bad news from home that my oldest friend's dog, Tubby, had passed away. I know that some of you probably think that it's not even my dog, I shouldn't be this upset, but I loved that dog. And I love my best friend. And it upsets me that he's now gone and she's crying and I can't do anything about it to help her feel better. Things keep happening at home that I can't be a part of and I hate that.

I was writing yesterday about culture shock. I think what gets to me most is that I feel like things should be getting better by now, that things should be getting easier, and I feel a bit useless because I don't think I'm making any progress... but when I have a proper think about it, I remember Derek, the guy who couldn't tell the difference between a washing machine and a dryer for six months, saying that he was so sad for the first year he was here. And when I last saw him, he didn't stop smiling the entire night. It's probably gonna happen the way most things in my life do: Just as I'm going to start to love it here, just as I'm starting to get the hang of the language and just as I'm starting to get really close the the friends that right now are still just aquaintences, I'm going to have to go home...

kinda like what happened in Nice...

Like I said, the beach in Nice doesn't have sand. It looks like this:


And it REALLY hurts to walk on barefoot. And it kinda isn't very comfortable to lie on or sit on either... BUT the real big advantage of having no sand, is that when you get out of the water, you don't have sand stuck to you everywhere! That is a HUGE plus! Also, sand doesn't get into absolutely everything you own. So... you win some you lose some... seems to be the biggest lesson everywhere.

It was a gorgeous beach though. How could you argue with water like this:



Other little beauties in Nice:

>The guys I have already mentioned, but on Thursday night we were joined by Aurel's oldest friend, Antoine. Who was really quiet compared to the other two, but just as funny and really sweet :) From left to right: Alex, Moi, Antione, Aurel.

>CHEESE fondue!!! Yes, for dinner one night the guys decided I needed absolutely to have cheese fondue because I never have before. So we ate bread, lots of it, dipped in hot melted cheese. LOTS of it!

>Having a bar that we always went back to at least twice a day... it's nice to be recognised by the staff, even if they are a little surly...

>Drinking from a giraffe. No, not the animal :P two and half litres of beer held in a loooonnnnnnnng neck with tap... yes we had a lot of fun with those listening to bad french rock bands playing good songs and stuffing up the lyrics...

>Watching Alex get beatn up by a four year old kid for about half an hour. Watch the video Attack of the little person :

http://carnunee.myphotoalbum.com/view_album.php?set_albumName=album05

>Looking for a castle that didn't exist and finding a waterfall, me a little slower than the others, instead :P

>Roadtrip to Monaco and Italy and Menton, singing BrightEyes songs, and realising that we were wayyy too buggered to care about anything anymore...

See? Just when I started to feel comfortable in Nice and make some real good mates I had to leave...

I've decided to cut things a little shorter this time because, well... I'm still feeling a little down. And anyway, if I tell you all the stories in such great detail here, what will I have to say to you when I get home??

I miss you all. Take care and keep smiling.

xx