Le décalage horaire

It's been week since I returned from Canada and "je n'ai pas encore récupéré du décalage horaire" (I have yet to recover from jet lag). It's easy enough to fall asleep, but then I wake up at two in the morning and can't get back to sleep. If any of you have received emails from me in the middle of the night, that's why. After a couple of hours of reading or working on the computer, usually I've been able to doze for another hour or two. Living on 4 or 5 hours of interrupted sleep hasn't helped my language aquisition either. Not only am I tired, I am once again having trouble with comprehension and speaking French. I wonder if the two aren't related? 

B2 is much more difficult. Besides that, I find that I am the oldest student and the worst student in the class, which is not great for morale. I was ready to go back to B1 right away, but after talking to a couple of profs, I've decided to "tough it out" for a couple weeks to see if the situation improves. The first week in a higher level is always the most difficult and apparently an excellent prof will be returning from sick leave in another week. I'd like to wait and see if I feel more comfortable with the new prof and some additional time. If not, I won't hesitate to go back. 

In the interim, I have made some dates to try and meet some people to speak to in French and have some fun. One of the profs who knows I like wine (surprise, surprise) told me about a caviste called Tire-Bouteilles. Apparently the proprietor or at least his wife is Canadian. I am going to go there late this afternoon to try it out and see if I can talk to these people. If nothing else, I should be able to enjoy a good glass of wine. On Tuesday night, there is a Babel/Babbel (I've seen it written both ways) group meeting at la Dome Brasserie in Saint Denis. This is an informal gathering of people that meet weekly at this bar/eaterie to talk and improve their language skills - French, Spanish, English etc. Another classmate and I are going to try it out. Then I have arranged coffee dates to chat in French with a couple of people I met before I left on holidays.

On Friday, the school is hosting an excursion to Arles for the afternoon. I think that it might be a golden opportunity for me meet some people as well as explore a place I have not yet visited. Vincent van Gogh lived and painted in Arles from 1888-1889. As a child, my grandmother took me to an exhibition of his paintings at the Winnipeg Art Gallery and I've been a fan ever since. More about Arles in a subsequent blog. 

Alors à bientôt.