Advice from Maisy:

That's as good a send-off as any, I suppose. My flight leaves at 6:30 tomorrow evening; I'm neither packed yet nor worried about the fact. All I really need are my passport, confirmation number, clogs (required!), and apartment address. For once, forgetting a doodad such as lighter or a map will not incur hypothermic consequences! Bliss! Plus, I have to leave lots of room for the regulation knife set that I will get issued, and any fancy cookware that I happen to pick up, don't I?

I've decided to take it easy-peasy for the first week, relatively speaking. Thus far, all I've got Tour-wise is a train ticket back from Saint-Étienne to Paris on the critical evening. A couple of days before stage 20 will probably be spent rambling in the Massif Central. Then orientation on the 25th.

On another note: correspondance with my flatmate (rolls through the tongue much better than apartment-mate) and the school have been in alternating languages. I'm hereby fiercely vowing to get through the newspaper every single morning so I can become more fluent in Least Useful Language For Western North American Living. Amen!