End of October holidays!

Hello everyone!

Well, the end of October is here. And no, I take no interest in your Halloween costumes! 

The end of October can only mean a nice week-long holiday and break from the stresses of college life.

Life in IUT2 is good, really getting into lessons now and understanding the content better. My group work for economics got handed in too, which is all sorted. 

Small word of caution for you out there: the CROUS restaurants appear to be closed this week - definitely caught me by surprise. Suddenly having to make alternative plans was certainly not on the cards!

Most of my classmates and friends appear to have gone to all four corners of the continent this week, making me startlingly alone in this big old city. Got a couple of friends dotted about though.

The Centaurs sit 1-1 after a tough loss the other week to the Falcons. Hopefully this weekend will bring about a victory!

There is also a chance to get some refereeing done this weekend with some of the junior matches in the area. Should be great fun!

I must keep remembering to post these. If you see me in town, prod me to write another one!

Ill let you all know how I'm doing soon!

Best wishes

Mike :)

The first few days...

Hello everyone!

Well I've had a cracking few days in the home of the Alps and now it's nearly time to get down to business....

Last night I got the chance to meet some Erasmus students - went to a local bar for a beer and a chat about everything.  They are really nice people, look forward to seeing them again.
Today I have the odd thing to sort out and get on with and then of course tonight is my first session with the Grenoble Centaurs - that should be a fantastic experience.

I hopefully will get to run a mailbag or something over the next few days.  In the mean time, I shall keep busy and on the lookout for anything useful!

Best wishes to you all,


Mike :)

Les Centaures de Grenoble - Football Américain

While I'm away as an Erasmus student, I'm sure I'll get many life-changing opportunities. One of the great things about being a student is that you can many great different things before you get into the grind of a job.

One thing I've been doing at university in England is playing American Football, the greatest team sport of them all.

The drama, the tactics, the sheer levels of toughness and fitness needed to play such an aggressive game has always been a major attraction for me since I watched my first game back in 2007, that legendary Fiesta Bowl between Boise State University and University of Oklahoma. 

The hits are ferocious, hitting four times harder than rugby. The speed is intense - half a step too early or too late and you don't quite make it, in the words of Al Pacino. It also allows me to use my head to win - 5ft10 and 12st is about as small as we come, so thinking and reacting forms my game.

At the time I was playing rugby - the contact/collision aspect translates pretty well. Being perhaps un-resourceful I didn't spot the opportunity until I got to university and I took up the sport for the University of Lincoln Colonials. In my second year I would become the team's president (and if our two qualified coaches hadn't walked out in December, I'm sure we would have finished the season too.)

Going away has meant taking a step away from the team, though it doesn't mean I can't play... A transfer form and a €100 fee can send me anywhere in Europe (the advantages of keeping it amateur or semi-pro at worst.)

Going to Grenoble has given me a rare opportunity to play with a fantastic team, Les Centaures de Grenoble.

I've been in contact with several members of the management and coaching staff to facilitate my move and they appear very welcoming. I've been given my defensive playbook to get me started - it's a beast of a thing that sits 120 pages long and all in French.

I've always had a dream, since I started playing. That was one day I could represent my country in the game. I think Grenoble will give me a big boost in getting there.

I cannot wait to get onto the field.

Mike

Over the airwaves and over the field...

When do you really define 'the beginning'?

Is it when you get in the car that morning, is it when you see Grenoble for the first time, nestled in the mountains? 

For me, there's a clear argument that it started the day I got my letter of acceptance. Maybe my Level 2 results.

I'm fairly certain though that yesterday was a big step. 

To start off with, I plugged my SIM card into my phone and got my phone number. It's an old iPhone that I'm being loaned, so plugging into iTunes and making it like home was nice too.

Obviously keeping the data roaming off, I would rather avoid any nasty surprises! 

Next thing that I managed to do was to pay for my American Football transfer - I sent money off to the European Federation of American Football's office in Germany.

I'm now patiently awaiting that wonderful email welcoming me to the French league... The Centaurs will be a great experience I'm sure and I'm looking forward to playing my third year in the sport under some great coaches.

Considering life in Arsonval will be different to Junxion, Lincoln, I decided to cut down on a lot of stuff I won't be needing. In Lincoln there is definitely a more 'self-catered' approach than Grenoble, where the student cafés will give you a 3-course meal for €3,50 or less. Whilst in Lincoln I had my own kitchen (within the flat) in Arsonval it's a big kitchen/catering kitchen between about 50 of you. Perhaps this will work to my advantage and stop my usual rampant overspending!

I also considered what sort of clothing I would need. Firstly, I'll push aside the irony that Grenoble today is expecting to see temperatures of 30 degrees and mention that it will be pretty cold in the winter. I'm assuming snow is a certainty!

Managed to dig out my thick winter coat and everything I only wear in Lincoln in extreme weather (as we call it in the UK, the prepared Europe calls it 'winter')

Travel plans are set in place now: we'll travel by Eurotunnel and stay overnight near Riems before making the trip down to an Alpine chalet near Grenoble.

We'll travel on a Friday, get into Grenoble on the Saturday afternoon.

Less than three weeks remain... I want to go, but a bit of me wants to stay. Nerves I'll put that down to.

I'll run another Mailbag at some point and write something American Football related during the week.

The countdown runs down.

Mike.