Bonjour de Biarritz!

Salut! Salut! From one of the most fabulous corners of the world, the southwest Atlantic coast of France! where "basque" country meets Spain, the coast and the Pyrennes mountains (all of which we can see from standing on the beach...). I'm sorry but the pictures I'm about to upload do NOT do it justice.  Biarritz is absolutely breathtaking, so much so that the girls' minor culture shock upon arrival diminished signficantly with every corner we turned.  Allie said "it's scary, but at least I'm HERE in this incredible spot"..Ellie said today while lounging on the beach: "I used to think Long Island had the greatest beaches..." and many other comments (such as "can we go into THIS boutique?" ten girls, you can imagine).  All the students are doing fantastic, especially now that they've started their classes, met their families, learned their way around town, and eaten 4 dozen crepes. ok, 3 dozen. I'm very impressed to see their efforts in the language increasing so quickly, as they have had a LOT of french thrown at them in very little time; each day I'm hearing more and more from each of them. It's normal for the "deer in headlight" reaction for a time, each time they're spoken to, but every day that is changing.  It's the effort that counts! We've planned some fun activites for the next 10 days, least amongst which are surf lessons and rafting in the pyrennes.  I will keep you updated!   - Elizabeth