For those of you who don't know the full story I'm in Aix Les Bains, France and I'm playing football for Chambery Les Aigles. A division 2 team here in France and yes there is American football in France and all around Europe. The people who have taken a liking to it have a very strong love for it. They really are super fans, next week the Super Bowl starts at midnight local time and I'm attending a watch party none the less.( I mean I obviously wouldn't be happy any other way lol.) Oh yeah and I think the Steelers are taking it, I can't go against a healthy steelers defense. I digress, enough about America I'm in Europe and contrary to what my mom and sister thought because they didn't hear from me as soon as i landed I'm not in some situation like in the movies hostel or taken. No I'm not some concubine being sold in black markets or being held in some weird European torture ring. Seriously they were thinking these things and freaking out, it was pretty funny actually. Thats enough backstory though, the entire point of this blog is to keep everyone at home updated. Dave Chappelle said it best, "America dont see us work they wanna see how we livin fo tha citttttyy."
France so far has been great and it looks like its only going to improve. I'm staying with the President of the team and his family. He has two sons, Killian 22 and Kevin 23 years old, who both play on the team and if I don't think it would be possible for me to find a more perfect place to stay while I'm here. The entire family is awesome and some of the nicest people I've ever met. The moment I stepped into their house they welcomed me and told me that I'm now apart of the family and they treat me just like they do their sons. Speaking of which, they are a big part of the reason as to why this trip is going to be so fun. We like all the same things, from movies to music, tv shows, video games and yes they are self proclaimed nerds also. They each have a ps3, share an xbox 360, ps2, and old school super nintendo. Needless to say my need to waste at least most of my day playing video games is fully taken care of. The lady of the house is Catherine and she is the best. When I say she throws down in the kitchen, just trust me. You can just look at me and tell that food is a big part of my life and Catherine hasn't disappointed. She will make you something to eat no matter what time of day it is. If you say your're hungry its a problem that needs an immediate solution. I'm usually always hungry and asking for more but with Catherine I have to decline her offers for food a lot of the time, which is the way life should be. Oh yeah quick sidenote French food is pretty bomb. If you enjoy cheese France is your mecca. In just one week I've tried 3 or 4 different cheese's that I've never even heard of back in America and they were all good. Last thing about food though lol, meal time and spending time with family or friends is very important in France. Every meal I've had here we've eaten at the table and didn't leave the table for at least an hour. Which is exactly the way I like it. We eat, converse, and just enjoy each others company. Even when me and the guys got McDonald's we went through the Mcdrive (what the drive thru is called in France, funny right) and we waited until we got back home and broke bread with each other. (Btw Justan if you ever read this you should marry a French woman, and that way you can both sit at the table for 3 hours and be happy lol.)
Quick side note about Mcdonalds and subway. These are the only two fast food places I've been to here in France and they are different. There's a KFC but I haven't ventured there yet. But McDonalds here has some different names. Theres the Mcfarmer, the 280, and the famous royale (from Pulp Fiction). Of course they did have to keep the Big Mac, but it is smaller than its American counter part. There are some great differences though. The McDonald's here serves beer, potato wedges and a lot more generally healthy menu options. Subway is the same thing as it is the states minus a few things here and there but the one thing about French fast food is there are no free refills!!!!!! Unheard of stateside right?
The last thing I'm going to leave you guys with is how beautiful this place is. To say I'm awe struck every time we go somewhere new would be an understatement. I've seen some of the most beautiful countryside I've ever seen. We're in the French Alps and really close to the (I think) the second biggest lake in France. Heres the wiki link to the town http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aix-les-Bains but I'm not going to sit here and try and describe it to you guys I'm gonna have an all picture update soon but thanks for reading. Hopefully it wasn't too boring.
Salut,
Marshall
