OTHMAN'S diary

October 2, my first day in Arles. Rocio, Lola and I arrived by train from La Gare du Marseille. The trip from Seville to Marseille with a stopover to Lisbon, was very quiet and very comfortable.When we arrived at the Gare de Arles, our host families welcomed us very well and welcomed us home in the best way. Léo, my pen pal and his family are a very happy family and always so attentive to me. I thank them every day for everything they do for me and I am very comfortable with them.

This weekend, we did several things. The first day, Friday, we were watching a movie in French which its plot was about anguish and suspense.

That day was the first day I noticed that his meal schedule was very different from ours. For example, when we finished the movie, it was around seven thirty and Léo's father told us to prepare the table for dinner and I was surprised that they ate so soon but with time I knew that I was going to get used to it.The style of his father's house was something that also caught my attention because of how rustic it is. Personally, I like the elegant style better, but I really liked this one. Anyway, on Saturday we went to Avignon, a well-known city in Provence which is immersed in too much Roman and French culture from two or three centuries ago.

The day went quite well. The living room, which by the way had a very rustic touch, which made it so cozy, we settled in after every dinner. Which Léo's father was in charge of cooking. During dinner, they talked to each other in French, and I tried to blend in, which was very difficult as they spoke too fast and barely vocalized. But over time I was adapting. The next day we started classes in France or so we thought ...

FIRST WEEK

The time zone is the same as in Spain, but the class schedule was very different. At least I had to get up at 06:00 a.m. to catch the bus at seven. In which during all that hour it served me to prepare. On the first day of class, we all had breakfast together in the Montmajour High School Canteen. A simple and quick but rich breakfast. Juice of any kind and cakes. Shortly after eating, they told us that due to bad weather we had to retire home. Lola went with Rafael and Rocío with Tomas. Instead, I went with Léo to Léa's. Léa, she is one of Léo's friends and one that I get along best with. She is funny, funny, and very nice. Her personality is broad, she socializes with everyone and is open to anyone. Also, she is a fan of anime and manga. The Belgians and Finns also had lunch with us at her home and it was a most enjoyable lunch. Pasta carbonara, cooked by Léo which came out quite delicious. Arthur, also a friend, Belgian, taught me a well-known song on the piano. Which was a bit difficult for me to replicate. I am good at playing the piano according to Zach, Léo's best friend and well I also have a great friendship with him. I would rather say that what unites us as friends is the Piano. Fur Elise, Sleeping Lotus ... songs and melodies which he knows how to play wonderfully. He spent some of his time teaching me some and it turned out to be quite good for me. Léa plays the transverse flute since she goes to the conservatory, that is why she has a wall piano at home. We spent a while playing the game of who guesses the music. And to end the afternoon, we watched a horror thriller movie, The Conjuring: The Warren Cases, and it was very exciting. One rainy day, Léo's mother, at the end of the film, came to pick us up.

THE TOUR

Today was going to be a great day, we were going to hike to the Camargue. Natural park, similar to Doñana, in which you can find different types of exotic species and invasive species. We study the different species and their corresponding ecosystems. The structure of the park was mainly characterized by the marshes. The other part of the Camargue, were large groves and bushes that surrounded an extensive meadow covered by interesting plants and beings. One of the species that caught my attention the most was a small wild plant with true deep red and green colors called Salladle. The mosquitoes played a great role in this story, during the whole outing, both Rocío, Lola and I were running away from them all the time, but it was impossible, they were everywhere. Finally, we ended up with the leg and part of the neck destroyed by mosquito bites. The last place we went was a large grape field where wine was made and exported. The outing which apart from discovering and visiting a new place, the experience with Belgian and Finnish students made it a memorable day.

THE PRESENTATION

Wednesday, third day of the week and we still had not attended any class. Lola and I, we had our presentation to our corresponding class of French ESO 4 and it was not quite good. French, it was difficult for us to communicate with him in a flexible and fast way, which was very difficult to introduce ourselves to the natives. I think we made a bit of a fool of ourselves. But from then on everything went for the better. That day we had a great time. At the end of classes, Lola left for lunch. On Wednesdays, all the institutes in France end classes at 12 noon, a curious difference with respect to those in Spain. All the rest of us went to Mac Donald's. He was in a shopping center about 13 minutes from the Montmajour institute. The stores were not well known, there were hardly any that I knew of. The HyM, was the only present store that knew, along with the Fnac. After lunch we went on a tour of those French stores and I have to say that we had a very good afternoon.

#THURSDAY

Thursday of that week passed so quickly that I don't have much to say about it and apart from that day we definitely started classes. Well, maybe there is something interesting ...

Spanish was an elective class as French is for us. Spanish class was one of my favorite classes along with English classes. Since we both laughed a lot. During our first class with Professor Valero, we were analyzing a synthesis of the song of a Spanish song which I do not remember now of its name. Apart from the fact that several students were very familiar to me and it was there that I met Sanaa, a Moroccan girl who was so happy to know that I was Moroccan. The class was quite lively that day and the students made very funny gestures. Neither Lola nor I could put up with all that constant mass of laughter that we had. At the end of the class we were exhausted. I have forgotten some curious aspects with which I could make a comparison with those of our institute. The first is that all students, when a teacher enters, get up, thus demonstrating education and respect for the teacher. Another aspect that I would highlight would be that, at the end of the class, the students do not go out in a brutal way and collect before playing. Everyone awaits the bell. The autonomy, discipline and responsibility of each one is always present and it is something that I have admired a lot during my stay there. At 12, it was time for lunch in the canteen. Kind of cafeteria which all students who must stay in the afternoon attend. Cantina food is like a roller coaster, one day it can be very tasty and another day it can be the worst in the world. During Thursday afternoon, we didn't have any other classes so both Lola and I went home.

PARTY

I guess you wonder what I did on Friday. The truth is that I dont remember. It shouldn't be very important. But on Saturday it was. On Saturday morning, we went out as a family for a walk around the small town of Raphele. After eating at 12 in the morning. The afternoon was approaching, while Leo and I were getting ready to celebrate Rocío and Artuur's birthdays, we had to take our bags to her mother's house since that week we would be with her. During my stay in France, every week I had to be with one of her parents. Leo was used to it, but it cost me my life. Lea was waiting for us to help her prepare everything. Drinks, sweets, homemade cookies ... Shortly after five thirty the guests began to come, and the birthday girl of course. Rocío, she was wearing a black velvet dress and brown leather boots. Me, always so elegant, a light blue shirt, with dark blue jeans and white NIKE sneakers. Leo, unlike me, was not wearing such an elegant shirt, but more street. The black jeans he wore to match his black trainers attracted Eline's eye. Although I would not like to talk much about her right now. The time will come. The party started, and we all started dancing and singing to the rhythm of Olivia Rodrigo with her hit “Good for u” and with the beautiful voice of Shawn Mendes and many more… Lola, she arrived around seven thirty almost eight. Rafa, she had karate and that's why they were a bit late. We spent most of the night singing and dancing without rest. The almost, is because we hardly sleep more than 2 or 3 hours. The next morning, we all felt tired and with a headache. I at least needed to rest. Around eleven o'clock, Léo's father came to pick us up. It was honestly one of my best parties so far.

ERASMUS DAY

The week had passed very quickly. On Thursday 14, we celebrated, together with the institute, the international day of Erasmus. The great important project that allowed us this wonderful experience. During the day before, we decorated the entire Cantina with balloons and the colors green, red and yellow; as well as the flags of all the countries of the European Union. Flags and posters of Europe. Everything was perfect. Something was missing, the food. On Thursday, we had lunch in the canteen a meal, prepared by some students, Portuguese. My colleagues and I had to make and present a presentation about Seville. The Belgians provided us with a kahoot instead of a presentation. Also, we weren't the only ones who made a presentation. A former student, who studied at the Lycée Montmajour, came to talk to us about how you can charge your mobile with renewable energy in six hours. I know there are too many, but it is progress, right?

LA PETITE VENICE

The weekend with his mother, it was quite fun. Especially when we went to a beautiful town, called les Martigues, which associated several very similar traits to Venice. But I think I'm getting ahead of myself ...

In the morning, John Philippe, Léo's mother's boyfriend, arrived. He had a basketball game in Saint Martin du Crau, a town near Raphele. In fact, he was the one who took us. The game did not last too long and I have to say that they do not play badly at all. Léo played replacing a teammate of his since he couldn't be present that day, but despite playing a few minutes he gave everything on the court. We celebrate the victory of your team and we head to the Martigues. We made a little stop at Burger King for lunch. La Martigues is a beautiful town with alleys of all color palettes and small boats that covered the entire area, they made that little memory of an afternoon in Venice real. And I'm not saying it because the physical appearance but the sensitivity and the light it transmits reminds you that you are in Venice. We went through every corner of that petit souvenir and at sunset we started back on our way to our little Arlesian town.

OCTOBER 19, 2021

I didn't like this day too much ...

The day before, I had severe chills and headaches. That's when I assumed it had been the breeze from the Martigues coast. Anyway, at night I slept very uncomfortable as both my throat and my head did not stop from the pain. The next morning I told Léo that I felt bad going to school so I stayed all morning resting. I had the wonderful idea of ​​asking Léo's father if he could take me to the doctor for a little check-up on whether I was suffering from something a little more serious, but it was the biggest mistake I made. I never should have. He picked me up from the stop where we took the bus to the institute and we went to a doctor, which as far as I was concerned, was private. But it turned out that in France there are no public or private doctors, both rich and poor went to the same doctor. Hence the worst. The doctor's diagnosis was one that they usually make me in the outpatient clinic, which was unnecessary. When he finished, he told the father in French something that I did not understand very well. I asked him to translate it for me and I wish he hadn't. I had to pay 25 euros to the doctor for an incongruous diagnosis. Remind me not to get sick anymore.

#halloweenweek

Halloween was getting closer and more and more their preparations. The darkest holiday of the year was just around the corner. During that week we were organizing and discussing the location of the party, the appetizers, etc.… while in the classes, we carried out recreational activities on the eve of all the dead. Miss Poulliart, our English teacher at Montmajour High School, warned us that on the last day before the holidays, the class would be about Halloween. That day we listened to the famous iconic Halloween song. "Thriller" performed by Michael Jackson, had been since its premiere until now one of the most listened to and praised songs on Halloween. Gummies, chocolates ... a great variety of sweets stood out on all the tables in the class and the best of all is that the culture of this tradition in a playful way was in a common language, English. Honestly, Halloween is not one of my best holidays. The bad idea of ​​scaring people and watching scary movies, at least I didn't like it. Although the makeup ... not bad.

That Friday, the last before the holidays, I discovered a new gastronomic tradition among teenagers called Raclette. Although it was a very simple dish at first glance and its aesthetics did not impress too much, its flavor was intense and very addictive. They were boiled potatoes, with melted cheese and a separate complement that could be a slice of ham or chicken. The melting of the cheese was part of this tradition in which everyone sat at the table and in the middle, they put a casserole in which they melted the cheese together. That day I discovered that the union both in love and food always brings good people.

LES VACANCES PART 1

On the first day of the week, he was so happy that he hadn't slept much as our first visit awaited us. Nimes is over two thousand years old. Two thousand years of history, architecture, art and passions. The history of Nîmes is like a tale. By extension also, what's more, it reminded me of Seville. But it's because I miss her. Our first stop was the Roman amphitheater in Nimes. Huge monument located in the main square. Not far from it, the Place de la Fontaine ... The great variety of ancient Roman monuments present in this city, made it light up in a magical way. On the other hand, my reel was filled only with photos of beautiful architecture such as the Maison Carré, the Cathedral and the museum of fine arts. The latter contained precious paintings and sculptures. Style that for me is considered more than a work of art, apart from the ancient vessels and the forged weapons of ancient knights. Nimes considered a fairytale city, to which we say goodbye with a happy ending. The next day, we entered the old and cloudy city of Avignon. Historic city that was home to many monuments such as the Palais de Papes, the Cathedral and the theater. The small streets gave the city a very cozy air and gave the feeling of being in centuries ago. At the end of the day, we accompany my corresponding mother to the university. I have to say that I was quite impressed by that university due to its great design and extension.

LES VACANCES PART II

On the third day, we visit Arles. The small Roman city. The amphitheater was a great work of art and its conservation was admirable. Next to it, the main theater of the old town, currently in ruins. Next, a little visit to the catacombs of the city, which as far as I am concerned, I felt like I was in one of the Harry Potter movies. What made me fall in love with that city were its streets. Its beautiful and narrow streets, adorned with flowers and colors. And at dusk, an incredible sunset over the Rhone ...

SPECIAL JOURNAL: NICE?

I think you all know the wonderful and beautiful coastal city of Nice. A beautiful place very close to the Monacas waters. Leo's mother, that day she had to go to Cannes to see a truck that, possibly, she would end up buying and we decided to accompany her. After the visit in Cannes and the van ride, we arrived in Nice. We had lunch by the sea. The elegant waves and that cyan hue in the water made both Léo and I swim. Crystal clear water caressed my skin and stones collided with my feet. So cold yet hot, it was perfect. Shortly after lunch we headed towards the most interesting and cultural-historical monument in Nice. The Russian Orthodox Church stood with towers that collided with the last rays of the evening sun. A magnificent architectural and religious construction that attracted both religious and atheists. Saying goodbye to Nice, we set off on our return journey and walked slowly along the Promenade des Anglais.

SPECIAL DIARY: HALLOWEEN

Our favorite night of the year, the night when terror, fear, darkness, candy and laughter bring us all together. Our union was the Halloween party. Everything is when Léo and I were getting ready to go to the party at Casa de Winona. My costume was elegant, beautiful, charismatic and bloody. Do you get the idea? Yes, a vampire. Léo, had dyed his hair orange and his costume was made up of the idea of ​​a waiter. When we got to the party, everyone was waiting for us there with some costumes and terrifying makeup. Lola, disguised as a modern mummy and Rocío, well I don't know what she had disguised as. Throughout the night, we were dancing like crazy and singing our hearts out. Drinks, food and lots of music. In fact, since I've been here, I think I'm the one who dances the most. At around 1:30 in the morning, Lola and I decided to go rest a bit because dancing too much had left us dead. But I think it was a bad idea. When we started to shut our eyes, some of the guys at the party started bothering us and banging on the room where Lola, Rafael, Léa and I slept. Shortly after 2, bottles and wet paper. Both Lola and I were fed up so we decided to tell them to stop bothering us since we did not find the humor in any of their actions. At last they fell silent, but that did not last long. An hour later, they turned on the music at full volume and that was the last straw. At first I thought those practical jokes would end soon, but they got worse. Lola stood up to them, one way or another they managed to continue bothering and annoying us throughout the morning. At one point I exploded and decided to explode everything once and for all. I grabbed a beer from the table and decided to toss it to someone. My goodwill and my humanism decided not to, so I scrubbed across the floor in front of their noses. I have never used force with someone else to stop him, I use words. Words that upset that person and make them feel even worse. A girl started insulting me and Lola, but I didn't let her finish. In fact, I think I beat him. For the hours following these events, my head was spinning and I was very dizzy. I just wanted to get out of there. I have to admit that overall the Halloween party was a success, even with that fight. Seeing how Lola fought with them, I was very funny. A night that, however short it may seem, would become one of the unforgettable nights of my life.

FAMILY HOLIDAYS

The next two days to the party, I was very tired, I just wanted to sleep. On Wednesday, we left for Perpignan. A city near the border of Spain and France. I met Léo's paternal family, and they were very nice. The three days of our stay there seemed so short, but I think it's because I really enjoyed it. The first day we went to a castle, with a great history that included Spain as well. During the conquests of the Catholic kings. On the second day, we visited a huge and beautiful aquarium, which housed different marine and terrestrial species. The aquarium had views of the sea since it was not located precisely in Perpignan but in a town near it. That same day we had lunch at a Chinese Buffet restaurant. The wide variety of Asian food was amazing as well as its taste. The best thing I tried was the chicken wok with Thai sauce. On the last day we made a small tour of the area of ​​the grandparents' house, we gathered our things and we returned. The holidays passed so quickly that he needed others.

AN AFTERNOON IN THE RHONE

Well, this day I was very stressed, as I had no ideas to write my book. Burdened by not being able to write, I repressed my feelings, forgetting that I had a perfect idea in front of me. I decided to go out and get some fresh air and feel better, hopefully I would be able to find my inspiration. - You can Othman - I said to myself before leaving. Visiting the amphitheater, the alleys of the ville d´arles, the Rhone… I got my inspiration. In fact, the title of the novel is An Afternoon on the Rhone. An idea that was presented to me based on my feelings; frustration, sadness and discouragement. Writing makes me happy and I always have to find inspiration in my place. That same afternoon, we all enjoyed a soireé together as one would say in France at Lou-Anne's house. Spending a lot of time with the French and Belgians has broadened my experience and facilitated it to the point that forgetting them would be impossible and unimaginable. They are already part of me.

A HAPPY SUNDAY

This day, the one I intend to tell you about, was very fun and pleasant despite being a Sunday. In the morning, I got up early with Léo to go see a basketball game. His team played in Arles and we had to give them support. Throughout the game, his team was losing, but even so we did not stop insisting until the last minute and when we lost too. When we finished, María del Mar, a friend of Léo's mother, came to pick us up for lunch all together in a bar on the main avenue of Arles. That sounded good, but at the same time it didn't bring any problems. The restaurant we had chosen was elegant, sophisticated and… expensive. Which was one of the problems and to top it off it was packed. So we had to find another one where they would attend to us without any problem. All the restaurants in the area were completely full, this means that we ended up eating tacos in a small place. But I knew that the important thing was to be united as a family, that's why we all were eating and chatting quietly in spite of everything. When we finished we wanted to have a drink at the Irish Pub across the street and we did. The pub had a vintage 60s flair and a non-American setting. American songs, they sounded all over the pub. Léo, Ines and I played several games of billiards. And one of them didn't turn out very well. Leo and I fought simply for the fact of winning, our ego got bigger and we both exploded. But like in every fight, there is an apology. Lou-Anne had invited us to her place again for an afternoon of friends with crepes. I did not reject that offer and I went as soon as possible. Léo arrived a little after me, and that's when he told me that he was sorry, and I forgave him too. The afternoon was wonderful, we all laughed and sang together. But there was something that we didn't quite like, the next day there was class ...

The following days, after firing the Belgians, were bittersweet, but in a personal sense, incredible. For my part, I enjoyed the last parties and outings with my French friends and the last beautiful places to visit. Days later, our time would come, preparing our bags and hugging our companions, the day came when we returned home. I could not define exactly that day, it was very sad inside, I did not drop any tears, but it hurt me to get away from those people who, after living with them for 2 months, became part of me. Arles, said goodbye to us between clouds and smiles.