BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - IU volleyball standout Katie Pollom is studying abroad in France this semester and has graciously agreed to chronicle her time in Europe throughout the semester for IUHOOSIERS.com. This is the second installment of her diary series.

"Well, this Wednesday we wrapped up our intensive course and I have already started two of my regular courses...one is the History of France and the other is a literature class studying female writers from the 19th and 20th centuries. Both classes are interesting, and next week I begin the rest of my courses at the University of Provence. The French educational system is a little different than what I was used to in America, however. The professors do not hold office hours so we must ask questions directly before or after class if we need to speak with the teacher individually. Also, most of our grades are based on either a midterm and a final or just a final! That is a lot of pressure for that single test! In some classes, we have the option of writing a dissertation or doing an expose (pronounced ex-po-say, this is where we research a subject and basically give a presentation to the class about it). I had practice by doing my first expose last week on the life of a student-athlete. Fortunately, the expose was not as stressful because it was in front of other Americans and not French students, so it was good practice!

Our classes (instead of being two or three times a week for about hour like at IU) are always once a week for either two, three or four hours at a time. We do get small breaks in the middle of class to eat (or for the French to smoke in the hallways of the school!) or just mainly for a mental break.

I have visited the city of Marseille twice since I have been here...and yes, being tall and redheaded in a city of people with a Mediterranean origin...I stuck out a bit! It is a very nice city though with so much to see. Not only is it the oldest city in France, it sits right on the Mediterranean and people have lived in this town for 26 centuries! In Marseille, I visited the oldest church in Europe, the old port, one of Napoleon's castles, the Chateau D'If (another castle, a prison...and the setting for the well-known novel The Count of Monte Cristo), and an archeology museum. Tomorrow, I am going on an excursion with my program to two other towns here in Southern France so I'll let you all know how that went when I write next week.

I love music (and of course dancing as well) and I have really enjoyed the music in this area. They actually play quite a bit of American Hip Hop and R&B, and the French Hip Hop sounds very similar (just with French lyrics of course!) Being so close to Spain, some of the music also has a Latin flavor, which is really interesting. Last night, I had the opportunity to go to a jazz club called the Skat Club. A group called Tri-Funk was playing, and the music was great...a combination of jazz, salsa, blues and funk! Also, there are always musicians playing in the streets for money...I have passed musicians playing the accordion, guitar, keyboard, flute, violin, and drums all dans la rues (in the streets) of Aix. It does create a nice ambiance!

Well, have a great week everyone...stay warm! (Just so you know...it's very sunny here but still very cold...I don't think it's as cold as Indiana, but we're at about 34 degrees)

Katie"