Spring adventures in Paris

Morocco albums

2008-05-13T22:30:00.003+02:00

So as promised, here are the links (you can copy paste them) to my actual Moroccan albums (it's an epic journey through about 600 pictures).

Days 1 & 2: Bus shots, thermal station Moulay Yacob, and half of my Fes photos (downtown and the medina)
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025440&l=31f18&id=14501731

Day 2: More pictures from the Fes medina
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025441&l=2e11f&id=14501731

Day 2 & 3: The mountains and Ifrane, Midelt, a Berber village, and some randoms
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025394&l=55249&id=14501731

Day 3 & 5: More of the Berber village, la vallee du Ziz, and the beginning of many many camel photos (day 4 is skipped because my camera battery was out of commission for a day)
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025396&l=bef39&id=14501731

Days 5 & 6: Going to/coming from our desert campsite on camels. Lots of camels.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025400&l=3b067&id=14501731

Day 5: Climbing the mountain ridges to watch the sunset in the desert
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025403&l=cedc9&id=14501731

Days 6 & 7: Ouarzazate, Marrakech, and bus stops in between
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025405&l=3f6f1&id=14501731

Day 7: the souk, the palace, and a koranic school in Marrakech
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025407&l=ea235&id=14501731

Days 7 & 8: Life at Professor Gilles's house in the seaside town of Essouira
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025409&l=fe95f&id=14501731

Days 8 & 9: More of Essouira, which is pretty much my favorite place ever
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025413&l=360e5&id=14501731

Days 9 & 10: The last evening/morning in Morocco, and some good shots of Gilles's house
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025415&l=1df02&id=14501731

I know it's a lot, feel free to skim, and enjoy!

A little slice of Morocco

2008-05-13T20:23:00.009+02:00

So even though I'll have to wait to tell you about Morocco, I can show you a bit! In the post after this I'll link to my 11(!) photo albums, but since there are only 6 photos in the entirety of those albums that I'm in, I'm gonna borrow some from friends for this post. Photos are by Colin (thanks Col!) unless otherwise noted. Here goes!

First day in Morocco, in the hills near Moulay Yacoub
L-R, Jenna D, Jenna E, me, Colin
Photo by Sarah

Jenna E, me, Sarah, & Jenna D enjoying the view

Exploring Berber architecture

Trekking through an oasis

On top of the sand dunes in the Sahara to watch the sunrise, about 20 kilometres from Algeria
Sand dunes are hard to climb!

I'm the little red sliver in the middle climbing the dune
Photo by Scott

Sunrise over the dunes
Photo by Scott

Good shot of the sand dunes as I try to deflect Col's relentless lens

In my shesch for sun/wind protection on my camel

We were on camels a lot. Bertrand got bored and started camel hopping.

Jenna, me, and Allie after climbing into the desert ridges to watch the sunset

All of us about halfway up the ridge in the valley where we camped overnight
Photo by Scott

A little group of us had tea in Ouarzazate with some amazing people, who taught us how to play some music

My lesson in Moroccan dance

Taking a picture of Ait Benhaddou, where Gladiator was filmed

Jenna D, me, and Theo waiting on a rock after our tour bus hit a car (everyone was OK)

In the place at Marrakech after seeing Uma Thurman haha

Watching the sunset from the ramparts in Essouira
L-R Jenna D, Jenna E, Allie, me, Theo

Taking tea with the spice man and his chameleon in Essouira
Photo by Jenna E

Our Moroccan band playing our hit single "Elle s'appelle Stephanie" with the vendor who gave us free mini-drums in Essouira
This photo's actually mine!

Colin, me, and Bertrand wearing our matching Moroccan shirts because we're awesome
Gille's house, Essouira
Photo by Theo

There are many many more, those are just some of my favorites. I'll post soon with the links to my albums as well. Miss and love you all!

Long overdue update

2008-05-07T20:10:00.002+02:00

Hi! I'm back! Sorry it's been so long since I've updated, but it's been a whirlwind month. Morocco was 11 days, then back in Paris for 3, then a long weekend in Amsterdam/Brussels, and now back in Paris for one more week before the program ends.

First off, let me just say that my trip to Morocco was one of the most wonderful experiences I've ever had. I loved every second of it- from the wonderful people we met to the camels to seeing the sunrise over sand dunes in the Saharan desert to life in a small pedestrian seaside town. It was an inspiring, beautiful country with the warmest, most welcoming inhabitants, and I didn't want to leave. I would LOVE to share my experience there with anyone who is interested- it is simply too much to blog, so if you want to hear about it, ask me the next time you see me and I promise I'll jump at the opportunity to relive it. I will, however, try to get some pictures up.

So, in other news... After being back in Paris for a whole 3 (!) days, my friends Jenna and Chelsea and I took off for our long weekend explorations of Amsterdam and Brussels. Some reflections...

We took buses because they were cheaper- they were not, unfortunately, comfortable. The one to Amsterdam was an overnight bus, on which we got zero sleep. So we rolled into Amsterdam at 6:30 AM, tired and disoriented. We then commenced a trek through the city, which was oddly deserted and absolutely filthy, with trash everywhere. When it reached 8:00 and we still had not seen a single living soul we started to worry that we'd stumbled into a zombie movie. Turns out, the night before had been the annual celebration of Queen's Day (the queen's birthday), and so we had actually just arrived during a citywide hangover. I guess it would be kind of like three Dutch girls walking into Times Square on New Year's morning- except they probably wouldn't have taken a bus. Even with the mess, our first impressions of Amsterdam were quite nice, because it's a beautiful city. I'd never realized how pretty it was (and it probably helped that we had perfect weather the whole weekend). The canals are everywhere, and adorable, and great for navigating. We were able to walk everywhere we wanted to go, which was nice. We checked into our hostel, which was very neat and clean, and partook in the free breakfast there before heading to the Van Gogh museum. It was small but horribly crowded and all in all a little underwhelming. We also discovered, much to our horror after living in Paris for 4 months, that the Dutch don't believe in student discounts. After the museum we got lunch at a little cafe. There we discovered that the Dutch speak perfect English- our waitress possibly spoke better English than me after a semester in France (some eviednce: when the waitress handed me my food, I said "Merci," because that's always what I say when someone hands me food). I had the world's largest hot chocolate (at which point we also discovered that the Dutch have a penchant for including free cookies with beverages, a trait we enjoyed), and a plate of kroket, which is like a fried meat/cheese roll coated in bread crumbs. Then we couldn't walk anymore and took a quick power nap back at the hostel.

After our nap we set out to find the house where Anne Frank had been in hiding, now a museum. On the way there we stumbled across a giant carnival- so naturally, we went on a ride. It was awesome. We also got food from the food slot wall- literally, a wall with little glass doors where you put a coin in and take a food item. After our little detour we made it to the Anne Frank house, which was also crowded but very interesting. You toured the house, watched video interviews with her father and the woman who helped hide them, viewed exhibits with records, photographs, diary excerpts, etc. It was very well done, and of course rather somber and intense. I'm really glad we went to see it. After the museum we walked around a bit more, then got a late (or on-time for Europeans) dinner at a pancake house. I got pannekoken with cheese, apples, and bacon (dinner pancake) and Jenna and Chelsea got poffertjes, which are like little puffy mini pancakes with fruit and goodness. We then found ourselves back at the carnival- but hey it was awesome!- where we went on another ride. This one was crazy- a giant rotating arm with seats on either end that flipped you around way high in the air, and you got a pretty good view of the city while you were flipping. We then went and explored the red light district out of curiosity to see the ladies in their windows. The evening rounded out relaxing in a small cafe before the trek home.

We were staying in an 8 bed dorm room, and although our roommates stuff was there when we got back, and we could tell from the look of their stuff that they were male, we hadn't met them. So that morning we were awakened to an unfamiliar noise- 6 booming, deep male voices speaking indeterminate languages that belonged to 6 GIANT men of unidentified European nationalities. Since they were still in bed, we didn't talk with them other than saying bye when we left- hilarious encounter nonetheless. That morning we started out at the Rijkmuseum, which is the Dutch national museum. It was full of Dutch things, and I was immensely saddened by the lack of Vermeers, and the extremely long lines. After the museum we got super yummy sandwiches and ate them by the canalside while we people-watched. Then we spent some time in the gorgeous Vondelpark eating ice cream (we ate a lot this weekend). Next came our stroke of brilliance- renting a paddleboat!! We paddled around the canals for our allotted hour, enjoying the beautiful weather and taking in the view of the city. A quick reflection on the Dutch, sparked by the memory of the man who rented us the paddleboat- the Dutch sure are nice and cheery and friendly. Maybe my sense of friendliness is off after Paris, but they seemed especially friendly. Anywho, we stopped back at the hostel to shower, taking a minute to note that the shampoo bottle in the bathroom was in Italian (we later ascertained that there were 2 groups of large men- 2 Italians, and 3 of indeterminate Slavic origin). There was also a pink roller hairbrush that must have belonged to one of our Slavic roommates- odd. After another leisurely walk we ate dinner in an outdoor cafe, where my "assortment of warm snacks" was quite good (it was different varieties of kroket and similar things). We tried to find the carnival again- but alas! it was gone. And we were sad. After more walking, we headed back to the hostel because we had an early bus to catch.

In the morning we tiptoed around the sleeping slavic men, who all had train-stopping snores (Chelsea dubbed them the sleeping giants). Oh we also names them all- Igor, Dimitri, Alexei, Giorgio, and Leonardo. During our breakfast we asked the desk clerk how far the walk was to the bus station- he said half an hour. He lied. An HOUR of stressed powerwalking later we just made the bus on time. We rolled into Belgium around 1 and checked into our hostel, which was not as nice as the one in Amsterdam but also much much cheaper. We set out into the city center (the tiny, tiny city center- Brussels was not large) and quickly found ourselves at the Grand Place, which was gorgeous. We sat in an outdoor cafe there and ate waffles, but not just waffles- sugary, caramelized waffles topped w/ ice cream and fruit and chocolate. Then we walked a bit more and bought giant cones of french fries and chose from the variety of sauces (you'll soon see the pattern we followed in Brussels- find Belgian delicacy, eat it, walk, repeat). After paying a visit to the Mannekin Pis, the famous (and perplexing) fountain of the little boy peeing, we stopped for a bit on a bench near a gathering of scouts (pronounced in French as "scoots"). There was some sort of giant scout scavenger hunt going on that weekend- scouts were EVERYWHERE, and usually running. We watched as the high school aged scout leaders sent the younger scouts off on a task, then spent a half hour narrating from afar the male scout leaders attempt to put the moves on the female scout leader by giving her beer. We named them Julien and Corrine, and they were hilarious. A bit later we found ourselves back in the Grand Place, eating more waffles (but from a different waffle place). Brussels had a very interesting feel- it's a bilingual city, and certainly feels more Dutch than French in attitude. We explored a different part of town, walked by some fountains and parks, and saw some churches (one of which had urinals on the side of it). Then we walked through an outdoor market and a covered gallery, spent some time in Place des martyres, and soon decided it was time to eat again. We had dinner at a cute little outdoor seafood place, and got lobster since we figured we should have a real meal after having eaten nothing but ice cream, waffles, and french fries. It was a long dinner, and afterwards we headed up to the hostel where we played cards for a while and chatted with our roommate, a courageous girl from Dallas who was exploring on her own.

Our bus left at noon the next day, so we headed back to the city center in the morning for one more meal at an outdoor cafe followed up by one last waffle (so yup, that's 3 waffles in under 24 hours). Then back to Paris, which is FINALLY beautiful and sunny and almost TOO hot because it's a sticky, urban sort of heat.

This week I'm finishing up my classes and trying to take advantage of the nice weather. I did my reading Monday in the jardin de Luxembourg, which was peaceful and wonderful. My museums class went to the musee Rodin yesterday, which is both a house and gardens full of his work, and it's great. It's hard with the weather finally being so nice, because we have so much end of the semester work- I still managed to squeeze in a nice long walk yesterday with a visit to St. Sulpice and the Vlaminck exposition at the musee de Luxembourg.

Yesterday I had to give a presentation in front of my University of Paris 8 class, which was terrifying- subjecting 20 French students to my accent for a half an hour just seems cruel. The professor seemed to like it though, and I'm glad it was overwith. One of the scarier assigments I've ever had, but I'm proud that I did it. I FINALLY feel confident when I speak in French- on the street, in class, with my host family (which may be largely in part due to Morocco, where I spoke French all the time because people were so friendly and patient). It's pretty frustrating to have finally hit that point just when it's come time to leave- although they told us at orientation that that would happen.

I can't imagine leaving- well, I can imagine leaving, but what's difficult to comprehend is not living in this wonderful city anymore. Because as students we know our time here is limited I think we've really made an effort to get out and know the city and make it our own, and now it's back to another life- a life without boulangeries! I also can't imagine not speaking French on a daily basis, especially because I'm proud of my progress and don't want to lose it.

It's not over yet though. There's one more week exactly- I still have a 15 page paper and 3 finals between now and then. And, hopefully, a few more days with this fabulous city!

Hope all is well, miss and love you all!

Quick Update

2008-04-16T21:29:00.002+02:00

Hello all! Quick update on a few of my adventures this past week...

I went to the national ballet at the Opera Bastille! I'd really really wanted to see the Paris ballet company while I was here, so that was awesome- plus, I won my ticket in an IES contest so it was free! It was a really interesting show- it didn't really have a title, other than Soiree Noureev/Balanchine/Forsythe. Those were the 3 choreographers, and the idea was that each of them demonstrated a different approach to dance. The first piece was very minimalist- one or two dancers at a time, in practice leotards, concentrating on the purity of the form. The second was a grand spectacle style ball, with elaborate costumes and gala group numbers. The third was modern ballet, with the curtain going up and down as the dancers made formations and such. The whole thing was lovely, and I'm so glad I got to go!

Last night I went to a play at the theatre des bouffes du nord, which is Peter Brook's theater in Paris. The show was made up of 5 fragments from different Samuel Beckett works, and was quite excellent. It was interesting to see Beckett played in France, because so much of his work is rooted here- and it was the first non-Shakespearian play I've seen done by Peter Brook (and the only time I've seen one of his plays live). The theater was very cool too- the perfect type of space for Brook (and Beckett at that).

Saturday my friend Whitney and I took the train (and then the bus) out to the chateau at Fontainebleau, the royal (and eventually empirical) hunting lodge. I loved it- I was primarily interested because that's where Francois I brought his favored Italian artists to work, but that turned out to be just the tip of the iceberg. The coolest thing about Fontainebleau was the fact that in just a single room you could see hallmarks of so many epochs- for instance, in Napoleon's throne room the decor was his, along with his crest, but on one portion of the ceiling you could see Henri IV's fleur de lys and H's, the wallpaper still had Francois I's salamanders, the Boucher paintings over the doors were commissioned by Louis XV, etc. After touring the chateau we had a nice picnic lunch and then explored the grounds and the town before heading back to Paris.

As far as my list progress other than the ballet and Fontainebleau...
-I saw the interior of Sainte Chapelle on a sunny day. The windows are just spectacular and I was surprised by how small and intimate it was.
-Went inside of Notre Dame, spent some time enjoying the decor and architecture. It was, of course, lamentably crowded.
-Climbed to the top of Notre Dame. The view, although certainly not as spectacular as from the dome of Sacre Coeur, was lovely. Moreso because knowing Paris so well now I was able to recognize just about everything I was looking at. Plus it was a cool angle on the architecture.

I also spent some time wandering/reading by the Seine on a sunny day. And I rescued Harold Bloom- someone had moved him to a different room in Shakespeare & Co, but I stubbornly found him (I'm not giving up on my 494 pages of progress!).

Tomorrow morning I leave for my 10 day trip through Morocco, which I'm super excited about. It will mark my first time venturing out of Paris this semester, and I can't wait. I'll likely be out of touch while I'm there, but I'm sure I'll have lots to write when I get back!

Love and miss you all!

My life, and my list

2008-04-05T18:15:00.004+02:00

Hello all!

I know it's been a while since I updated... Sorry about that. Everything is still going great here- it's even warming up a bit! (I never thought I'd be so excited about it being 56 degrees outside). So since it would probably be horribly tedious to subject you to a full rundown of my activites over half a month, some more scattered reflections...

Mom and the boys came! They spent a week here, which was awesome. So I got to run around and show them all my favorite spots, big sights, etc. And translated a lot of menus for Andrew, along with introducing him to chevre chaud (hot goat cheese) and of course the French MacDo. My host mom also hosted a lovely dinner for our families. Haha ever since she and Aline have been arguing over whether I look more like Adam or Andrew- my host mom says Andrew but Aline says Adam. It was so nice to have them here, and I hope they had fun!

Speaking of my host family, I finally feel like I've really adjusted to living with them, and vice-versa. I know it sounds crazy, because it took me until just about the halfway point of the semester to really feel comfortable, but coming into another family's life has proven to be so much more of a challenge than I thought it would be. And for their part, I know that they've hosted so many American girls with such vastly different personalities that it must be equally challenging to re-adjust every semester, and to figure out what this one's going to be like. We're perhaps not the best match there has ever been, and I've certainly struggled more than I ever expected I would, but I really think that that has made the experience all the more rewarding- I've really put in an effort, and I'm so very glad I did, because I learned a lot. And will still learn more, I'm sure. My host parents have taught me so much, often without me realizing it, and I've come to really enjoy their company. And I absolutely adore my host sisters- they are so fun, and endlessly patient with me, and the more I spend time with them the more I realize how lucky I am to be in a family with kids. They've gotten hooked on the French DVD version of Friends, and I watched a couple episodes with them today. It's really interesting, because there's so much humor in the show that is really inherent to American culture- sometimes the simplest jokes don't come across in the French subtitles, or even on the screen, because they're so conditioned by the American milieu. The girls still love it though- they like Rachel the best, then Joey and Chandler.

My language is definitely progressing as well. I think I will always lack some confidence in speaking, but I know that my speech is much better now. My reading has never really been a problem, so where I really see a huge difference is in my oral comprehension. Which, of course, makes sense- I have class entirely in French everyday, sometimes with my outside course professors who don't slow down their speech at all. Still, I hadn't really registered it until this past week, when I went to see a French film currently in theaters- which meant that subtitles weren't an option. I watch a lot of French films at home, but always with subtitles, and although I'm listening to the French I have the little cheat sheet at the bottom. So I went into the film thinking OK, well I'll just do the best I can, and I'll probably miss a lot, because any time at home I'd tried to watch a French movie without subtitles I hadn't really understood everything. But, to my surprise, I was just fine- sure, maybe I listened a little more "actively" than I would in English, but I was able to enjoy the movie just as I would in the US, and understood it just fine. So that was a major victory. Then today I went to see another French movie, Bienvenue Chez les Ch'tis- which is very much the little movie that could in France. It's a little, low budget comedy that's a HUGE phenomenon- approximately 20% of the French population has seen it. And I LOVED it- it's absolutely hilarious. A lot of the dialogue is in the Ch'tis dialect, which they speak in the north, which made it a little tougher, but I still got just about all the jokes, and enjoyed it immensely. I don't know how well it will translate to English, but I'm sure it will eventually be out in America- and you should all go see it! The title would be something along the lines of Welcome to the Home of the Ch'tis, and it's very very charming.

In other news, my ten-day Morocco trip is coming up soon! We leave the 17th, so in about a week and a half. I'm so excited! We had our final meeting, to learn about what to bring, cultural norms, safety, money, and other such practical stuff. For instance, we're supposed to try to trick the French pharmacists out of various prescription medicines, one of which contains opium, for when (apparently not if) our tummies get upset. In much much better news, the diram is 11 to the euro- which means that the average meal of 30-40 diram will cost about or under 3 euro. Finally a favorable currency rate! We also learned about clothing and such- although it's far from fundamentalist, it's a Muslim country so we do have to keep our shoulders and knees covered. But, happily, it's going to be nice and warm- my first t-shirt in months! Then we had a little preview dinner at a Moroccan restaurant, which was very very yummy. I really can't wait- it should be great! (Oops didn't mean to rhyme. My apologies.)

Now that we're into April, we're all acutely aware of just how little time we have left, and how fast it's going to go by. Yes, we're here 'til May 15- but 10 days of that (2 weekends) is Spring Break, one long weekend will be spent elsewhere, and of course one week will be finals. Which leaves just this weekend and then two more to be actually spent in Paris- we of course have class during the week. Being properly horrified by this fact, a number of us made lists of what we still want to do in Paris- knowing that we won't get all the way through. The past two weekends my friend Chelsea and I have been singlemindedly pursuing our lists, and making fairly decent progress. So, here's my list in all it's glory, with the bold items being those that we squeezed in the past two weekends:

-Picnic on the champs du mars
-Explore the Bois de Boulogne
-See Napoleon's tomb at Invalides
-On a miserably cold and rainy day we fought our way to Invalides to see Napoleon's tomb and the various museum exhibits there. We even got in for free with our art history student cards- even thought we saw very little art history (although we saw a whole lot of armor).
-Eat at El Rancho
-Wandering around our very well-off, chic quartier one day the Jennas and I found a deliciously tacky, neon-blinking restaurant called El Rancho that promised to be the best Tex Mex in Paris. So, naturally, we made up our minds to go back, particularly seeing that they had chevre (goat cheese) taquitos and quesadillas. We went last night, and particularly enjoyed the "Mexican vocabulary" page and the fact that coleslaw, onion rings, and tabouli were all on the menu. Phenomenal.
-Go to the top of the Eiffel Tour
-Go to the top of Notre Dame
-See Sainte Chapelle on a sunny day
-Explore the jardin du luxembourg
-Walk down rue mouffetard
-An old, clustered, and windy market street that's great fun. We bought a 1 euro box of slightly suspect strawberries and had a hilarious time standing in the street picking through the mushy ones and eating around certain others. We also intend to return to make us of...
-The underground bowling alley on rue mouffetard
-Galeries Lafayette
-Ginormous French shopping arcade with a beautiful domed roof housing all of the haute couture you could ever want. Chelsea and I wandered, ogling some of the odder styles, and here's a quote from her that pretty much somes up the galeries lafayette: "This coat is 7,490 euros. I touched it."
-Canal St Martin
-A still-working canal in the northern corner of the city. It was so lovely and peaceful- you almost forget you're in Paris. Lots of pedestrian bridges and such- a very nice place to walk.
-See the Marie Antoinette expo at the Grand Palais
-Go back to our favorite place ever, the Pompidou
-Musee Rodin
-Musee de l'Orangerie
-Musee Marmottan
-Tiny little museum in my quartier that houses Monet's private collection in his possession when he died. Not crowded and much more peaceful than the big museums.
-Paris en couleur
-Photography exposition at l'Hotel de Ville with color photographs of Paris from the 1900s on. Absolutely phenomenal- it made me never want to leave the city. It also made us want to be the glamorous ladies in the pics from 1914- until we realized that that was during WWI. Tres bien fait!
-Flaner a Montmarte
-We'd all been to Montmartre and done the touristy stuff (saw the Moulin Rouge, went up Sacre Coeur, etc.) but we really wanted to go and just feel the area, wandering and exploring (in French, flaner). It's a very cool section of Paris, up on a hill, with a history of harboring bohemian artists and such. It has a very village feel, and so much character, and it was so nice to spend the day (which was beautiful) outside.
-See DISCO, a French film that just came out
-Go to the top of the Arc de Triomphe
-Musee Carnavalet
-Go to an opera and a ballet
-Enjoy coffee in an outdoor cafe
-Explore the Catacombs
-See the chateau at Fontainebleau
-See the Chartres cathedral
-Visit Victor Hugo's house
-Visit Balzac's house
-Visit Parisian Chinatown
-Explore Parc Monceau
-See the chateau de Vincennes
-See the tombs at the Basilique Saint-Denis
-See the tombs at the Pantheon
-Visit Saint Sulpice
-Hang out with Thibault (Colin's host brother)
-Go to a farmer's market
-Finish the Harold Bloom book I started at Shakespeare and Co
-See Bienvenue chez les ch'tis and Il y a longtemps que je t'aime
-The two French movies I saw recently. The second stars Kristen Scott Thomas, who is much beloved by the French as she has lived here for most of her life.
-Drink hot chocolate at Angelina's
-Ride the VeLibs
-Explore the parc des buttes-chaumont
-We actually stumbled upon this and then added it to the list retrospectively so we could cross it off. This is an amazing park hidden up in the northern part of Paris- peaceful and not tourist-filled, with Parisians all over the hills enjoying the sun. It's stunningly beautiful, with waterfalls, a lake, and an incredible cliff topped by a temple. Phenomenal find.
-See a show at the Comedie Francaise

And that's my list!!! I know, it's crazy- the written version even has a star-rating system and little weather icons indicating what kind of day would be best. We're booking through it though- all that bold is in just two weekends.

So that's what's been happening... Coming up, Morocco of course, and various other adventures in Paris. Two of my friends and I just finished booking our May long weekend trip- we're spending two days in Amsterdam and then a third day in Brussels. And I am DETERMINED to see a ballet and an opera soon. And of course whatever else comes up!

Bref, je vous souhaite bien, et je vous embrasse! Gros bisous!

(I wish you all well and send my best! Much love!)

I think I can legitimately say that it's spring now...

2008-03-16T19:18:00.003+01:00

Hello all! Back again, with lots to tell. It's been a very busy few weeks, even for me. So here goes...

Notable events, the week of March 3-6
-I saw the Boccio Bandinelli exposition at the Louvre, and I absolutely loved it. He's fascinating in any context- we studied him a bit in Frank's class last semester, particularly his rivalry with Michelangelo. The Louvre exposition was very well done, with over 40 of his drawings presented chronologically, interspersed with pieces of his sculpture to demonstrate how the two mediums correlated. I think my favorite thing about being in Europe just might be having access to things like this- the actual pieces by the artists that I've studied. I don't think I could ever get tired of it.
-In that same vein, I had a university break that Wednesday, so I spent the day at the Musee d'Orsay. The d'Orsay used to be a train station, and is now a museum housing Paris's largest collection of impressionist works. I love the museum layout and architecture, and the Degas collection was absolutely stunning- particularly his bronzes. And while I enjoyed Monet's cathedrals, and the Van Gogh room, and such, I must say the Professor Frank has thoroughly converted me into an Italian art aficionado- I was actually rather surprised when I realized how much so. Impressionism used to be my favorite type of painting, and while I still enjoy it, I much prefer the Italian painting in the Louvre. So that was a surprise, but it was still a very fun visit.
-On the host family front, only Aline was at home for the week, so she and I got to bond a bit. She's quite funny, and quite the teenage girl. She was absolutely appalled that I did not like Troy or Pearl Harbor, two of her favorite movies. We had fun debating for a bit, and it was nice to have the chance to hang out with her more, because normally she has such a full schedule that I don't really see her.
-A big group of IES kids gathered at Emily's lovely homestay for a nice, low-key evening of just hanging out. Emily lives in an actual house, which is quite unusual for Paris. It's down an adorable little cobblestone path that's gated, so you feel like you're in a little village within the city. It's fun to see other students' homestays, and get a sense of the different modes of life in France.

Weekend adventures- March 7-9

-Friday: Pretty low key, I spent some time early in the day reading some more of my massive Harold Bloom book at Shakespeare and Co, then my friend and I embarked on a true cultural litmus test: We went to a French MacDo. The French even class up fast food- all MacDos are very sleek-looking, with wifi and ipod plug-ins. The food is better as well, much less grease. And they don't have drive-thrus; instead, they have windows on the side of the store where people who don't want to eat in line up on foot for their orders. Still, a MacDonald's is a MacDonald's, n'importe quel pays (no matter what country). I headed back home to get some work done and hit the sack early, because I had to get up the next day and go to...
-Versailles: Saturday I went on an IES excursion to the Chateau of Versailles, the famous French palace built by Louis XIV. We started out with a guided tour of the chateau, going through the king's public apartments, the hall of mirrors, the chapel, state rooms, and eventually Marie Antoinette's private apartments. It was very cool- there's so much history embedded in everything at Versailles, and of course the lavish decorations are just amazing to see. There are also some phenomenal frescoes and large format paintings, which I loved. Then we had lunch at a little restaurant in the gardens, which was delicious. After lunch we had free reign to explore the gardens, so I set out with some friends to roam. We were a little bummed out that everything was sleeping for the winter- even most of the statues were covered, and the fountains weren't running. But at the same time there was something peaceful and serene about it, and so we enjoyed the little bit of the gardens that we saw (they're HUGE). I really loved Versailles, both the palace and the gardens, and I hope to go back in April when the fountains are running. After that we headed back to Paris proper, and I had tex-mex that night, which was a nice change of pace.
Sunday- work, work, work. I had a rough week- my 8 page commentaire compose for my Sorbonne class, two explications du texte for my IES lit class, a grammar test, a news report, and an art history take-home test.

Notable events, the week of March 10-13
-Finished and turned in my Sorbonne commentaire- hooray! It was one of the most challenging academic tasks I've faced, and I'm very glad to have it done with. Overall, the week was pretty work-consumed.
-We had our first meeting about the Morocco trip in April. There are 20 students going, along with Bertrand (our student activities adviser) and a French professor who works with American programs in Paris, but has lived part-time in Morocco for 20 years. He gave us an overview of Moroccan history and culture, as well as an inkling of what to expect. We don't know the whole program yet, but he's determined to show us the 4 main aspects of Morocco: the mountains, the cities, the desert, and the sea. So we'll spend some time in a mountain village, then visit the big cities (Marrakech, Fez, etc.). We also get to do a desert trek, where we take camels into the desert and camp overnight to see the sun rise over the sand dunes. Then we finish up in a little villa by the sea. I'm so incredibly excited- the trip's not until late April, but I can't wait!
-Christine, another Oxy student, celebrated her birthday last week. A few of us from Oxy/IES went out to dinner with her to celebrate, along with her Parisian cousin and two of her friends visiting from home. They were all very nice, and I especially enjoyed meeting her cousin and practicing my French.

Weekend adventures, March 14-16
-Friday: On Friday I did one of my citywalk card, and roamed from Place de la Concorde (where the guillotine was), through a park, past the palaces, and over Pont Alexandre to Invalides. I also inadvertently stumbled upon this tiny, gorgeous little hamlet type garden right by the major quai d'orsay road. I love little discoveries like that- you never know what you'll find in Paris. Then I decided to walk home. Well, maybe decided isn't the right word, as it wasn't really a conscious decision. I started walking south, and just kept going. It took me about two and a half hours total, but I really enjoyed it. Later that evening the Jennas and I decided to take drastic action, and hang out in the 16th. All three of us live here, but we're always hanging out with people in more central locations, so it was nice (and a little surreal) to do dinner and shopping just 3 metro stops away.
-Saturday: A bunch of us IES girls went to les marches de puces (flea markets) just beyond the northern border of Paris. Les puces are generally considered the largest flea markets in the world, and we spent the afternoon browsing through the antique books, knick knacks, and various bric a brac. Then Emily had some "recup" time with pizza and a Matt Damon movie (The Rainmaker)- on a side note, Europeans put egg on their pizza, and it is pretty much the best idea ever. I love it. We went out to The Frog and the Princess later that night and met a few interesting people, including a Croatian guy who was very insistent that I must be Chinese.
-Sunday: On Professor Montag's suggestion, I went to the salon du livre, which is a huge book fair/expo held once a year. It was HUGE, and so so so crowded! I saw a panel debate with Toni Negri (Italian expat philosopher very well known in France) on Spinoza and the social sciences- it was very interesting, at least what I could follow of the rapid academic French. I'm glad I got to see Toni Negri- I've read him quite a few times, and even though he's in his seventies now he was such a passionate speaker, very animated and excited. The debate got cut off at the end due to a bomb threat, and so the afternoon ended with the salon being evacuated (don't worry, there wasn't actually a bomb).

Notable events, the week of March 17-20:
-Midterms: This week was midterms, so a lot of studying followed by a lot of in-class French essays. Not terribly exciting really.
-Oxy visitors: Alison and Chad, who are both studying in England at the University of York this semester, were in town, and it was great to see them. We just kind of wandered, saw a few sights, and caught up. They're both francophone ECLS majors, so we always have loads to talk about. It was a lovely, if cold, evening, and I'm hoping to make it out to England sometime next month and possibly meet up with them.

So that's what's been going on! Mom and the boys arrive later this afternoon, so I'm sure we'll do quite a bit of adventuring in the next few days. It's Easter Sunday, so I have Monday off of school (the French like vacations, I've noticed). So looking forward to that, and to whatever else the week brings. Love to all!

Picture update (I hope it works!

2008-03-02T20:24:00.017+01:00

So here are some picture updates from the last few weeks, enjoy!

The view from my window

At the top of Sacre Coeur**

On the steps of Sacre Coeur

Sacre Coeur

The view from the top of Sacre Coeur

My favorite photo, also from the dome of Sacre Coeur

Palais Royal

Random Parisian street corner

Sitting on the edge of the Seine

Looking out from the pyramid

The pyramid from the passage Richelieu

Walking along the bank

The Seine at night from Pont Neuf

Tour Eiffel**

From right in front

Straight up

The tour Eiffel from the Champs du Mars

Pere Lachaise cemetery

Pere Lachaise is my favorite place in Paris**

Culinary weekend with my fellow Oxy expat Dana

Centre Pompidou- Random guy contemplating the minimalist panels for a while

Same random guy, now contemplating... The wall

Now it's our turn!

Me, Jenna, and Chelsea enjoying the view from the top of the Pompidou

Protected yet removed from society in the Pompidou

Jenna and Chelsea and a giant red rhino at the Centre Pompidou

Rampart walls at Provins

Archery niche, Provins

On the ramparts

Tour Cesar in Provins

All of the starred** pictures are courtesy of Colin

Highlights from the last few weeks

2008-03-02T17:05:00.003+01:00

Hello all, sorry about the delay in posting, with a full schedule of classes in swing and IES excursions starting time has been more limited. Although in exciting news for all of you back in the States, I figured out how to change everything back into English on the blog page! Since there's a lot to update, I'm going to do my best to organize as logically as possible, but with my penchant for ramblings we'll see how that goes...

Weekend adventures the 22 and 23-

-Friday: Went to a famous teahouse in le Marais, Mariages Freres, for afternoon tea with a couple friends. It was very cool, the walls are lined with hundreds of varieties of teas, all in tins. I had orange-cinnamon, and it was delicious. Then we walked around for a while, ended up at Place des Vosges, the oldest square in Paris built by Henri IV. I'll have to go back sometime to see Victor Hugo's house, which is there. I headed home for dinner with my host family- I don't usually eat with them on Fridays, but they were leaving on vacation for a week so we did an extra dinner. It was fun, my host dad was home and I almost never see him so that was nice. Afterwards Louise taught me how to take care of her pet mouse, Pistachio, and then I played twister with her. Twister was absolutely hilarious- it's one game where the language barrier doesn't matter whatsoever. Then I met up with an Oxy pal and his host brother Tybault (sp?) to see a movie. It was great to have an evening out speaking only French, normally I'm with American students so that doesn't really happen. We saw Juno, which I'd seen in the states, and the French subtitles were terrible- although I can see how it would be a difficult movie to translate. Afterwards Tybault commented on the fact that we as anglophones had been laughing a lot, but in French the movie wasn't funny at all- heartwarming and charming, but not funny. It was an interesting reflection on language, and translation, and the nuances that go along with it.
-Saturday: Took one of my CityWalks cards and saw the Palais Royal, which was lovely. Then that evening I met up with a friend and we went to see a play- although we were terrified we wouldn't understand much of it. Actually, we understood just about all of it, except for the parts you weren't supposed to understand (it was theater of the absurd). It was a great experience because it was one of my favorite writers, Eugene Ionesco, and although I've read his work I've never seen it on stage. It was his first play, La Cantatrice Chauve, (The Bald Soprano), and I loved it- phenomenally acted I thought. What was cool was it was playing at this tiny little theater- I couldn't believe how small!- where it's been playing for the past 40 years, and this version is actually a revival of the original by the director, Nicolas Bataille, who originally staged the play when it came out in 1950. So my first foray into actually French French theater was a success, and there's another Ionesco play at the same venue that I'll probably see soon. After that we met up with another friend and grabbed dinner, then some of the best gelato ever- nutella flavored.

The week of the 25-
-Host family: this pas week my host family was skiing for their winter vacation, they got back today. Which meant that I had the apartment, and more importantly the kitchen, to myself to use without being in the way. I've noticed that my host mom makes most of our meals using simple ingredients, but it's delicious because everything is fresh here. So I tried to do my own French style meals, simple but fresh. I bought my first baguette, as well as supplies from the fruit, cheese, and pasta stands, and had some nice simple meals, my favorite of which was toasted brie and apples on a baguette.
-Classes: still busy, work picking up a bit. That's all I have to say about that.
-Tutorial: I have a paper due soon in my Sorbonne class, and for outside classes you can arrange through IES to do a tutorial with a French doctorate student in your field. My tutor is very nice, and extremely helpful. French composition forms are much more complicated- there are several specific types that adhere to strict guidelines, so it's nice to have someone making sure I'm writing a commentaire compose and not an explication du texte.
-RestoU adventures and our architect friends: Tuesday night I went with a friend from IES to the Porte Royale restoU (student cafeteria), which we'd heard was very good. We ended up very confused though, because the items on the menu didn't seem to be there. I got beef, which was pretty good, and she got... well. We thought it was eggplant, but it was definitely not eggplant. Most of our meal was spent trying to identify her mystery dish, and laughing uncontrollably about it. Finally this gentleman seated next to us leaned over and told us it was "blood." We've since discovered it was blood pudding or blood sausage- I've definitely never seen that in the MP at Oxy. RestoU's are nice because you can stay as long as you want- at a nomral restaurant you would have to keep paying for coffees or something every half hour/hour or so to continue "renting" the table. So we were there for quite a while, chitchatting away in rapid English, and eventually one of the French students sitting next to us leaned over and asked if we were American. We said yes, and he replied that that was a relief, because our English was so fast that he couldn't follow it at all and he was feeling discouraged about his English skills. We laughed and said that we had just been saying how we feel like that around French students, and soon his two friends were in on the conversation as well. They were very nice- all architect students, from I believe Algeria. One was studying architectural sociology, urban planning and development and such, one was studying feng shui architecture and was a singer in a "metal" band, and one was shy. It was nice to have someone be so patient with our French- they all speak Arabic and French fluently but are more limited in English so I think they related a bit. They eat there every night, so we may bump into them again- although unfortunately Chelsea and I couldn't understand any of their names!
-Thursday falafel day: Often on Thursday nights we end up at L'As du Falafel, the amazing falafel place in the Jewish quarter. It's a pretty good deal when a good number of us go because then the table can share a couple orders of fries, and it's just so delicious! Afterwards we went back to Chelsea and Lauren's homestay in Le Marais- it's adorable! It's all purple and small and cute, decorated by their interior designer host father. The building they live in is the same as in the Maggie Gyllenhal vignette from Paris, Je T'aime, if anyone's seen it. There were about six of us there, and we played a hilarious game- simple but fun. Everyone has a stack of paper, as many pieces as there are people, and you write a phrase, quote, word, name- anything- on the first one. Then you pass it to the right, and that person looks at it, puts it on the bottom of the stack, and has to try to draw it. They then pass there drawing to the right, and the next person looks at it, puts it on the bottom, and has to write what they think it is. So on and so forth, until it gets back to the person it started with and each person shows the contents of their stack to the circle. Hilarious, and just a nice low-key evening.
-General week sentiments: Busy busy busy. Classes, and the commute, take up a lot of time, as do all the readings/papers for my lit classes. It's a good busy though, I'm enjoying it.

Weekend of the 29/1-
-Centre Pompidou: Friday was officially one of my favorite days in Paris. I met up with a couple friends and we grabbed a simple, French lunch at a brasserie, then met up with another friend at the Centre Pompidou. The Centre Pompidou is, simply put, massively entertaining. It is Paris's modern art museum, famed both for its contents and its decor. I remember learning about it in high school French, and how the architecture is very controversial as it's aggressively modern and built "inside out," with the tubing and piping on the outside. I never truly understood how aggressively modern it could be until I came to Paris- the buildings here are so old and so classically beautiful that there's just nothing as jarring as the first time you stumble upon the Pompidou. So we went in, and made use of our student ID cards to get in for free (hooray!). To get to the museum you take this outdoor tube escalator up over Paris- as always, Paris from above is a phenomenal view. We started at the top floor, and although I'm not usually a huge fan of modern art, there was some really amazing stuff there- I was particularly into the Georges Braque and the Kupka, and we also saw the Matisse, Duchamp, Picasso, and related sections. There's also loads of other cool stuff on that floor that we're saving for another day. Then we proceeded down to the 4th floor, which is the infamously so-modern-it's-bizarre floor. It was so much fun- we saw some crazy stuff. One room had an artist's "self-portrait" that was an apocalyptic bird/horse made out of bones and sticks that was attached to a moving pulley- very horror film, especially with the creaking and groaning noises playing in the room. One room was just full of rolled carpets, to allow one to be both protected and removed from society. There was a giant red plastic rhino, a video of marionettes, an inflatable furniture room... Really just no end to our amusements. There was also the anti form room, that included giant sticks covered in cotton, a rope hanging from the ceiling, and a pile of rocks and hubcaps. I should add that there was some stuff on the floor that was pretty awesome- like the prism room specially designed for the museum where as you move what you see changes, or the artist who had come up with seven childlike uses for war materials. There was also a giant wicker flying monster that has knives and scissors and such impaled in it everywhere- we thought it was odd, but then we read the description. All the implements had been taken from day-to-day security screenings at an airport, and represented a world gone mad- it was cool actually. But then came the day's crowning triumph- the minimalist room. I've seen minimalist art before, so it wouldn't have been more than perhaps a passing chuckle of confusion, until events started to unfold. In the minimalist room there are three blank white canvases on the wall- no they're not optical illusions, they're really blank white canvases. The description informed us that the minimalist movement focused on basic elements, such as color, often with a predominant use of the color white. We were considering this oddly phrased explanation when a guy about our age started contemplating the three white canvasses with intensity. He was really into it- he spent several minutes at each canvas, seemingly not concerned that they were all white. And then came the day's shining moment- after about 5-10 minutes of contemplating white canvasses, he went and contemplated the blank white wall. Yes, I have a picture of him staring intently at the wall. For a very long time. Then he called his girlfriend over and they contemplated it together. It was absolutely priceless.
-Provins: Saturday I went on one of my two IES excursions, to the town of Provins, which is a world heritage site. It's a medieval town, where most of the houses are still in the 13th century style, and it's surrounded by rampart and archery towers. We started out taking a tour of the ramparts and wishing we were archers, then walked around the town. We toured the church- beautiful, I love European churches- and then toured the medieval tower. It was like Bishop's Castle, but for real. And with less crazy. Although there was no dragon, like at Bishop's Castle. Then we had a nice three course lunch at the Table St Jean- hearty, old-fashioned French food, definitely hit the spot. After lunch we took a tour of the town's sous-terrains, which are underground catacombs/quarries. They were so cool- an elaborate series of underground rooms and halls, and a lot of the walls had inscriptions in them from centuries ago. It was only about an hour and a half out of Paris, but it was overwhelmingly rural- so much green. So that was cool, and I enjoyed it.
-Saturday evening: Had dinner with some friends, then headed to the Lizard Lounge for our friend Scott's birthday. So that was very fun, spending time with a great group of people, and just rounding out the weekend nicely.

Today I've just been doing some homework, my family's back so I have dinner with them tonight. Looking forward to this week- universities are on break so I only have IES classes. So tomorrow I don't have class until four, which means I get to spend the day at the Musee d'Orsay, where I haven't been yet- super excited. Next Saturday I'm going to Versailles, so I'm excited about that as well.

I'm going to try to post some pictures on here if I can figure out how, so hopefully that will happen in the next few days. As always I send my love, miss you all!

The one month mark

2008-02-20T19:01:00.001+01:00

So, as of this week I have officially been in Paris one month. That sounds so bizarre to me, for a number of reasons. In a way, I feel like I have been here forever- we were so immediately thrown into day-to-day Parisian life that it seems completely normal to me now. At the same time, I feel like I just got here, at least in the sense that my list of things to do keeps growing rather than shrinking. It's quite the paradox, and I don't know quite what to make of it. Only having class 4 days a week is probably contributing to my confusion- my Monday-Thursdays are completely packed full and then weekends of course fly by, even if they are three days long.

Both of my university courses are underway now, so I'll reflect on each briefly.

First, there's my comparative lit class at the Sorbonne, which is certainly the most intimidating of my courses. I have two lectures a week with a Monsieur Masson, dealing with the origins of the myth of Faust. The lecture hall is the largest on the Sorbonne's lit campus- I would guess that there are about 350/400 students in my class. Coming from Oxy, with our tiny student body and 13 person classes, this is quite an adjustment. In such a large lecture, student behavior varies widely- there are the extremely studious individuals, frantically taking down every word that the professor says and constantly changing highlighters, pens, and notebooks in some complex note-taking method, and then there are the rest- students chatting nonstop, students on cell phones, students asleep, etc. I also have a 2 hour seminar section for this class, with about 25 students and a different professor. In the seminar we analyze the readings in the French style, and discuss occasionally. I'm the only foreign student in the class, but my professor knows and kindly does not put me on the spot- impulsive French in front of a room of native speakers is not my strong suit. The class is hard, but interesting, and probably the most authentic "French" experience I'll have while studying here.

I'm taking an interdisciplinary class at Paris VIII, on Said's Orientalism as applied to feminist theories as applied to works of fiction. Or something like that. Paris VIII is an entirely different entity- first of all, it's not actually in Paris, it's in the Saint-Denis suburb, which is, well, sketchy. The school is very run-down and dingy, and has a very odd feel. My class here is small, maybe 15-20 students, at least 10 of whom are American. I like the professor very much, and because the class is so much smaller I'm less hesitant to participate. The only drawback is that it's 3 hours straight, and sometimes my brain starts rejecting the wave of French coming at me around hour 2 and a half.

My daily schedule, then, goes something like this:
Mondays
-Wake-up, shower, eat breakfast, metro to the Sorbonne (40 min)
-12-1, lecture at the Sorbonne
-30 minute metro ride to IES, grab a sandwich or quiche at the boulangerie on the corner
-Do homework, be social, return to the boulangerie at least once for a pastry
-4-5:30, 19th century lit
-45 min metro home with the Jennas (a couple friends of mine who live near me. They're both named Jenna.)
-7:30/8ish dinner with my host sisters
Tuesdays
-Wake-up lamentably early, get ready, metro to IES
-9-10:30, French language and grammar class
-Do homework/drink hot chocolate from the machine in the student lounge
-12:15- later grammar class finishes, go grab lunch with friends
-1:30- same group goes back for pastries
-2:15-sometime in the afternoon, Paris Museums
-After museums I usually do some Parisian meandering with friends in the class, then either pick myself up dinner or make something when I get home
Wednesdays
-Wake-up early, get ready, metro to the Sorbonne
-9-11 Sorbonne seminar
-Grab metro across town and out to Paris VIII in the suburbs, eat my sandwich on the metro while attracting odd looks from Parisians (the metro is apparently not a dignified dining establishment)
-12-3 Paris VIII class
-Metro back down to IES with Ama, another IES student who's in the class with me
-4-5:30 19th Century Lit
-Metro home with the Jennas
-7:30/8 dinner with host sisters
-After that my brain pretty much rejects French for the rest of the day
Thursdays
-Last early wake-up day, get ready, metro to IES
-9-10:30 French language/grammar
-Run very very fast to the metro, catch a train to the Sorbonne
-11-12 Sorbonne lecture
-Metro home
-12:30-1:30 lunch with youngest two host sisters
-Metro to IES
-2:15-whenever, Paris museums
-Generally go on some sort of exploration with people in the afternoon/evening that includes food

My weekends are up to me, and each one has been a little different so far. Last weekend was pretty awesome- I won this essay contest thingamabob at IES so I got to do a culinary exchange. About 8 IES Paris students met up with about 8 students who are doing the IES program in Nantes for a culinary weekend. Friday we had a lesson on French regional cuisine, which was interesting, and then a three course French dinner out. My appetizer, chevre (goat cheese) ravioli, was glorious. Then Saturday morning/day we did a cooking course where we prepared a three course meal. The menu:

Entree (which in France is the appetizer):
Terrine de legumes, Emulsion au basilic
-Basically a sort of veggie casserole with basil sauce

Plat (main course):
Grenadin de veau Forestier aux legumes epices, sauce au Noilly
-Sliced and sauteed veal, with julienne vegetables and mushrooms in between the slices and greens on top. The sauce was cream-bases, and was yummy.

Dessert:
Mousse de mangues au coulis de framboises
-Mango mousse with a raspberry jelly/sauce concoction

We then got to eat our masterpieces, which were delicious. We also got a free apron- nice. Later in the day we had a quick entree/salade at a restaurant near IES, then a Latin music concert at Cite Universitaire. Afterwards Dana and I hit up this adorable little creperie on the rue Daguerre for a truly French dinner- it was 11 PM.

In other news, my Paris museums class went to the Musee Jacquemart-Andres, which was like the coolest place ever. It's a very small, intimate museum. It's actually a mansion, that was built in the 19th century by an aristocrat named Edouard Andre and his wife, Nelly Jacquemart, who was a portraitist. In addition to throwing lavish fetes and bals and such, they were lovers of art, and amassed an amazing collection. When they died, they left their mansion to the city to be made into a museum. It's been kept much as it was, so you can walk through their bedrooms, salons, boudoirs, libraries, etc. The furnishings are amazing- these rooms exude luxury and comfort. And their collections are simply incredible. She was a portraitist, so she has all these phenomenal portraits by Rembrandt and David and Le Brun. There's a lot of French art, Boucher and Fragonard and Hubert Robert mostly. But what was coolest for me was the Italian collection. Andre was in love with Italian art, so the top floor is almost entirely his personal museum. The ceilings are Tiepolo paintings, and when you climb the stairs you reach an amazing Tiepolo mural. And in his personal museum there are Donatellos and Botticellis and Peruginos and it's just phenomenal. What I liked best was the fact that the art remains displayed the way they intended it to be displayed, and you can almost imagine living their life of luxury surrounded by only the most beautiful things. Little treasures like this are why I wanted to take this class- I never would have known it was there on my own.

What else... I've become a huge fan of le Marais, and finally hit up the oh-so-famous falafel place on the rue de rosiers, which is a famous jewish street. It was fantastic, and Lenny Kravitz-recommended haha. My Louvre count is up to 6, although most of those were visits to very specific pieces for class. I'm completely obsessed with crepes and boulangeries- it's really a problem. And I've found some fantastic friends here and am having a blast exploring with them.

So that's it for this update, random and meandering as it is. Love and miss you all!

Little Amusements

2008-02-13T18:57:00.000+01:00

So, I spend a lot of time either walking or on the metro, and thus have devised a few little games to amuse myself. Today I was thinking about it and realized that a lot of them highlight little cultural differences or even just help sum up my daily life here. So, some observations:

Game: Metro race
It seems that people in Paris are always in a hurry. Always. So it can be quite amusing to watch people sprint through the metro station, often with pointy shoes and briefcases (yes, the men wear pointy shoes too. It's kind of weird). Then they'll take a leap of faith through the metro doors just as the buzzer sounds for the door to close. I've only tried this twice- once I made it, once I had to wait for the next train. Obstacles include couples who seem to think that the world will end if they stop holding hands and little old ladies with rolling shopping bags.

Game: Find the American
This game is no longer a challenge. Some Americans stick out like a sore thumb, others give themselves away more subtly (my main giveaway, for instance, is that I'm very smiley- Parisians never smile on the metro). But you can just about always tell- often from the shoes. As far as tourists, they're usually visible a mile away looking bewildered and beleaguered. I've recently modified this game to be guess-which-country-that-european-backpacker-is-from (usually Germany, ocassionally Britain).

Game: Hide the American
My fellow IES students and I pretty much spend all of our time trying to pretend we're Parisian, and blend in as best we can. We usually give ourselves away as soon as we open our mouths, because English is a dead giveaway and our French certainly doesn't sound anywhere close to native. However, for some reason French people like to ask me for directions when they're lost (standard answer: "Je ne sais pas"). And in all of my university classes so far whichever student happens to be sitting next to me has asked me questions about the syllabus/and or the lecture, at which point I'm forced to inform him/her that I'm probably not the best person to ask, although they usually figure that out on their own when I respond in accented, grammatically incorrect French. We all know we'll always be recognizably American, but we try anyways.

Game: Will it nuke?
The French really like food, and they really like fresh, homemade food. As a result, they don't really believe in the microwave. They use it occasionally, for things like heating up oatmeal or warming the occasional leftover, but they would never dream of microwaving a pizza. Even their bagel bites and hot pockets (which they have here) don't have microwave instructions. I don't generally have oven access, as it is super complicated, and very slow, and usually in use. So I've been experimenting with microwaving things that the French don't intend to be microwaved- ready made quiches, chicken cordon bleu, and the like. No disasters so far.

Game: Musical chairs
Oh the metro. Every line has a distinctly different personality, so the trains on each line are formatted slightly differently. But all trains have some combination of seats/standing room. There are usually 4-8 permanent seats in between the doors, and then in the little bay just inside the doors their are usually little folding seats that flip out when it's not too full and poles for hanging on to. And everybody wants to sit. The only sort of seat etiquette there seems to be is that very very old people get offered a seat, and women carrying babies get offered a seat. Other than that, it's very much a free-for-all scramble. Business men will race each other for seats, people vie for prime pole position, and generally everyone's goal is to find a spot in which they have enough room to open up their newspaper. I am awful at this- in my Americanness I am just not aggressive enough, although I have gotten pretty good at reading standing up without losing my balance.

In sum, I get bored on the metro and turn everything into a game. Yep.

Busy week!

2008-02-10T19:06:00.000+01:00

Back again, after a very full week. Some reflections...

Classes have started, well IES classes at least. Other than possibly midterms and finals week they seem to be far less demanding than Oxy classes. There's certainly some work entailed, but just overall the material seems to be a lot easier... Of course it's all in French, but thus far that actually hasn't been a problem. I was worried that having 5 classes all in French would just be absolutely exhausting and overwhelming, but it hasn't been. Really the only difficulty has been that on Tuesday/Thursdays I have class starting at 10:45 and eventually ending at 3:30, with only 15 min breaks separating my 3 classes so lunch has been a challenge. But that's probably not so academics related. Of course IES professors know that we're American so they slow down their speech for us, we'll see about French university professors... Quick overview of my classes thus far:
-19th Century Lit- I really hope this class gets better. Right now it's just way too basic for me, and although the readings are fine the class itself has been deathly boring.
-French language and culture- the extension of my weeklong grammar session, with the same students and professor. We've got a good chemistry going, and along with the grammar we're starting to learn about Paris and the intricacies of the city. I like it a lot.
-Islamic art- interesting, surely, and probably the most challenging of my IES courses. Not really my preferred area of art history, so this class may or may not be dropped depending on the timing of my outside courses. There's good incentive to stay in though- since we have required museum visits we get a special ID card that lets us go to any museum in Paris for free. Professor's awesome, I actually have her twice in a row, for this class and then for...
-Paris museums- amazing. We spend each class in a different museum. And it's awesome. Loving it so far.

Tomorrow outside classes start, so we'll see how that goes. A lot is up in the air right now for me- I really want to take two outside classes, but the timing is nearly impossible because you have to factor in commuting time between campuses. But I will definitively be taking 1 or 2 of 3 possible classes, and I'm pretty excited about them in general. Slightly terrified, but excited.

Things, I think, are looking up with my host family. I think I'm gradually acclimating and vice-versa, as it is very much a mutual effort. Tuesday Aline (15) brought me a crepe for mardi gras, which was very sweet. She and I are getting along very well, which is really nice. Louise (10) has been teaching me some different French board games very good-naturedly, so that's been very fun as well. I haven't seen Charlotte (13) much this week, but hopefully I will next. I'm getting more comfortable with when and to what extent I can use the kitchen, laundry machine, etc., and so things seem to be falling into place nicely.

This week the weather was just perfect, beautiful days for the most part that were quite a bit warmer than the last two weeks (50 degrees!). So of course there were various adventures to be had, and I'll try to highlight some...

-Had dinner with Tali's grandma, who has a French companion in Paris (Heskel). Tali's uncle Tim ate with us as well, as he's enjoying a month-long sojourn here. I had so much fun, and they were so incredibly kind to me. We went to a little, hole-in-the-wall neighborhood restaurant that is Heskel's favorite, and the owner knows him and his favorite wine. It was very very French, complete with little dogs running around underfoot. It was also very very delicious. I thoroughly enjoyed the meal and the company, and hope to see them again while I'm here.

-Wound up at the Louvre 3 times. Once was on my own, to see the works I studied with Prof. Frank last semester, once was with my paris museums class to see a painting that, unfortunately, turned out to be on exhibition in Spain for the week, and once was because Chelsea, Colin, and I had been walking for a long time and needed to find a clean bathroom. The Louvre is... A paradox. Kind of a fundamental paradox just upon looking at it, with its palace square and old passageways punctuated by the famed I.M. Pei pyramid(s). The museum itself is at once incredible and frustrating. The works inside are, of course, amazing. My favorite piece of art is there, as are so many of the works and artists that I studied last semester, so I set out intent on seeing two specific sections. That proved to be more difficult than anticipated, partly due to the layout, as the museum is simply immense, and partly due to the complete ridiculousness of the tourists. I was in the Denon wing, which, in addition to housing the Michelangelo sculptures and Titian paintings that I wanted to see, houses the Mona Lisa. So the crowds were absurd, and so many of the people just had no museum etiquette. I actually saw a woman touch the Winged Victory of Samothrace- then the guards grabbed her. But for me there are so many phenomenal pieces in the Louvre that it's worth the trouble. I anticipate being back there a lot- it's free for me, and there's so much there that even given all semester I may not see it all, but I'm going to try.

-Discovered Shakespeare & Co, decided that it rocks. Shakespeare & Co is this famed English language bookstore in the Latin Quarter that has been there since the 50s. It was originally located in Odeon in the 10s and 20s, and was the gathering point for all the famous literary expats (Fitzgerald and the like). The current location used to be one of Allen Ginsberg's famous haunts, and it's just generally a gathering place for the lit-minded community. The bottom is an English-language bookstore, with an incredible selection and some amazing antique books as well. It's crowded and cluttered, with ladders and shelves everywhere. The upstairs is hard to describe- it's a lending library of sorts, where anyone is welcome to come in, sit down, and read any of the books. It's funky and cramped, with more books than you can imagine in no discernible order crammed everywhere. There's a little typewriter where people pound out their thoughts or messages to post on the wall, as well as beds and couches for travelers who stay there and earn their keep by working in the shop. I found a spot on the bench right next to a window looking out across the Seine at Notre Dame, and curled up with a Harold Bloom book on Shakespeare that I happened across. Whenever I have some time to kill (sometimes you'll have the odd hour or two where you have no homework, your friends are in class, and it's not worth going home just to leave for IES again 5 min later) I intend to pop in and curl up with my discovery- I'm on page 97 of 800 or so.

-The Marais- is a trendy Jewish/gay quartier where my friend Chelsea lives. Spent quite a bit of time there this weekend with different combinations of people. For lunch one day we went to Breakfast in America, which is an American diner, and got hamburgers, french fries, and such things. It's a fun little place, and we certainly amused our waiter. We were back in the Marais later in the weekend for Lauren's birthday, which was at this trendy little place called the Lizard Lounge. Very fun neighborhood, with a lot to do and see.

-Other adventures- Paris is really not that big. It's crowded, but very very compact. So you'll start wandering and wind up all sorts of cool places, and we did quite a bit of that this weekend. Wandered around by the Eiffel tower, at Pere Lachaise again, around the Seine, in St Michel, and all over.

I've met some wonderful people here, and I'm really enjoying getting to know them. I think going to a school like Oxy, which is so small that most students know one another, makes it really fun for me to meet so many new people from all different schools. So that's been awesome, and I'm excited about spending a semester with my newfound friends.

I'm sure I'll be updating soon, with news about my foray into the French university system. I wish you all well, and send my love!

Lovely Weekend

2008-02-03T19:55:00.001+01:00

Hello again from Paris! The week-end's coming to a close, but it's been quite an eventful one. So, from the top...

Friday it was rainy and COLD. Unpleasant. In the morning we had our grammar test, to see if we were paying attention during our language session I suppose. After that I went with a group of friends, some new and some old, to this cute little creperie that's tucked in off the Rue Daguerre. It was pretty good, and the formule (set menu) was a decent deal. Then I found out that IES had changed the time of my weekly grammar class, so I wouldn't be able to take the Faust course at the Sorbonne. I spent about an hour trying to figure out how to fix my now-mangled schedule, and eventually settled for and Islamique art class. So I only have one outside course now, but that may be a good thing because I didn't actually know anyone else taking two, they can be quite a bit of work. And now I have a little extra time to explore/volunteer/enjoy. After that I met up with some Oxy folk in the Latin Quarter, and it was a little early for dinner but we were too cold to stay outside. We started looking for a cafe or something to sit in for a while before dinner and wandered into what we thought was your average cafe. Turned out to be a gay bar, complete with bras hanging from the ceiling and lots of Madonna music. There were a lot of young female college students and gay interracial couples inside, as well as one really confused looking middle-aged tourist couple. It was warm and comfortable though, so we stayed there until dinner time and watched the waiters dance along to MMmBop. We grabbed dinner at this little place owned by an Egyptian gentleman who was also our waiter, and then met up with a group of girls from IES in the Bastille area, which is the place to go for Paris nightlife I guess.

Saturday was an absolutely beautiful day, with the sky pure blue and clear after the rain. And the sun was out, so even though it was still quite cold it was at least a more pleasant type of cold. A small group of us went up to Montmartre, the famous bohemian sector of Paris with more of a village feel. We went to Sacre Coeur, which is perhaps indescribable but I'm going to try. The butte Montmartre is the highest point in Paris, and at the very top of it is a beautiful basilica church called Sacre Coeur. It's huge, with "ice-cream scoop" domes that look amazing against the type of sky we had that day. You start out looking up at it from this little park area that has an old-fashioned carousel, benches, and a little playground. Then to get to the church you have to climb a series of steep, imposing steps. There are probably 5 levels in all, and you can stop at each one to admire the city laid out behind you and the church coming up in front of you. It was truly a phenomenal experience, and absolutely my favorite sight so far in Paris. At each level you can't imagine ever seeing a more amazing view, and then you get to the next level and it's even more incredible. We took so many pictures- I took well over a hundred. It's quite a melange of people as well, with Parisians enjoying the nice weather, couples taking advantage of its reputation for romance, and tourists tourists everywhere. There are also street performers, some of whom are quite good, or at least quite amusing- like this guy juggling with a fish bowl on his head. After quite a while of climbing we made it up to the church itself and went inside- it's incredible. The altar has one of the largest mosaics in the world, and the organ likewise is one of the largest in Europe. There's stained glass windows, and mural paintings, and each alcove is dedicated to a different saint. It's all seen by the light streaming through the stained glass windows and the candlelight from the prayer candles which anyone can light. Quite a profoundly moving experience. We then decided to actually go up to the top of the dome. It's a small fee, but it is absolutely worth it- the view from the top of the dome is the most incredible thing I've ever seen. You have to climb what feels like a thousand steps up these narrow spiral staircases, and then it's much like the experience of getting to the church itself- you stop at various levels, each more unbelievable than the last. At the top you can see all of Paris and probably beyond, and it's just indescribable.

After we worked our way back down we went exploring in Montmartre and Pigalle, stopping to take a quick picture of the Moulin Rouge (really just not cool anymore). We just kept on walking and exploring until dinnertime, when we wandered back to the Bastille area. We ate, and found a cozy little spot to spend the evening chatting. A random French guy sitting at the next table ended up teaching us French slang, and just generally amused us. On a random side not, there are actually a number or Korean restaurants in the area, but thus far I don't approve of any of their menus- none of them have bul go gi and they all seem more Japanese than Korean.

Today I woke up to another beautiful day. France is largely Roman-Catholic, so most places are closed on Sundays. I resolved to go to Pere Lachaise, which is the largest cemetery in Paris. It is likewise fantastic- absolutely huge, so big in fact that I had to buy a map of the cemetery. All sorts of people are buried there- Moliere, Balzac, Edith Piaf, Delacroix, Chopin, Gertrude Stein, the author of the Babar books... The most famous two tombs there are Jim Morrison and Oscar Wilde, whose tomb is covered in lipstick imprints (it's traditional to kiss his grave. I don't know why). Ironically neither are French. The cemetery also has a lot of history attached to it, and is traditionally associated with free thought. The wall against which a number of protesters were famously shot is now a monument, and the park also contains monuments for various tragedies, from unkown soldiers to concentration camp victims. It's astonishingly beautiful, and walking around the serene grounds among the 300,000 plus stone tombs and chapels and monuments was a great way to spend the day. I did get lost for a while in the crematorium trying to find Isadora Duncan, but other than that I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

I made myself dinner tonight- well, heated up dinner at least- a ham and cheese croissant from the boulangerie down the street along with French instant mashed potatoes- simple, sufficient, and satisfying. Tomorrow classes start, but since Mondays are my light day, with only one class that doesn't start until 4, I'm going to go to the Louvre for a good portion of the day. Looking forward to the week, and getting a sense for what my classes/routine will be like this semester. I hope the weather holds, but if it doesn't, at least I got to make the most of it this weekend! Every time I go someplace new it becomes my new favorite place, which means that right now Sacre Coeur is my favorite, with Pere Lachaise not far behind. Love you all, keep checking to see what next week's favorite place is!

New Friends and Culinary Adventures

2008-01-29T21:06:00.000+01:00

Back in my room after dinner with my host family, and contemplating the fact that I have yet to find a French desert that I don't like. It's really quite extraordinary- and it's a good thing I walk so much.

For dinner tonight we had a carrot salad, then sausages and ratatouille with rice, and then this phenomenal bread called pain perdu (lost bread) that I'm pretty sure is the basis for french toast. It's bread that's prepared in a pan with eggs and sugar and milk and some other words that aren't in my vocabulary, and it's phenomenal. Last night we had these little potato balls, kind of like tater tots but without the grease, and I was really excited about them. Last night we also had escargot- dun dun dun! It wasn't the main course, it was more of a side dish, and my host sisters freaked out when they saw it coming out of the oven because apparently it's a real treat. My host mom told me that they don't get to eat it very much but they had some left over from Christmas. I'd tried escargot once in the states and hadn't liked it, but I wanted to be a good sport so I took one. And then hilarity ensued. I proved to be ridiculously inept at using the little fork-thingy to dig it out of the shell- Louise helped me (she's 10). So then I'm holding it speared on my fork, and Charlotte (13) is going "Ne le regarde pas! Ne le regarde pas! Si tu le regarde, tu ne mangeras jamais!" (Don't look at it, don't look at it! If you look at it you'll never eat it!") Both Louise and Charlotte had, at this point, wolfed down about 7 each. So I popped it in, and it actually wasn't bad- I'm not sure if I care for the texture, but the sauce was good. Then Louise asked me what kind of weird foods Americans eat, and I couldn't think of anything, so I said corn dogs. I then spent 10 minutes trying and failing to describe a corn dog, with the added challenge of French. I was never able to completely convey the idea- it's really just not very French at all. So then the girls came to the conclusion that the most American thing they could think of was peanut butter, which they seemed to view as the height of American cuisine. And, as it turns out, peanut butter and jelly is not something that appeals to the French- the girls thought I was joking when I described a PB and J sandwich. The whole exchange was just hilarious, especially with little Louise desperately trying to figure out why anyone would ever put a sausage on a stick, a la corn dogs.

My propedeutique (language session) has been ongoing this week, and they're not kidding when they say it's intensive. It's also very early, especially with my 40 minute commute. But I like my professor, and I've made a few friends in the class, which is nice.

The last few days I've been going out to lunch with a few girls I've met here, and we've been experimenting with stretching our weak dollars are far as we can. Today we went to a RestoU (university restaurant) at Cite Universitaire for lunch. They have them all throughout the city, and at mealtimes you can get a salad, entree, and dessert for under 3 euros if you show a student ID. It's certainly nothing gourmet, but it's probably comparable to a lot of what I eat in the dining hall at Oxy. Our lunch ended up costing less than the coffee/tea we got later at a little cafe in Chatelet- 4 euros a cup! I'm really enjoying meeting students from other schools, with different college experiences and different reasons for being in France. Plus, it's so nice to have someone to share experiences with when everything's a little bit different- you feel less silly trying to figure it out.

I registered for classes yesterday, and got into all the courses I wanted. The only rough spot is that my lit class at the Sorbonne apparently has 2 lectures and a seminar instead of the 1 lecture and a seminar that I was expecting. One of the lectures is unfortunately a half hour after my grammar class at IES, and the Sorbonne's across town, but luckily as an American student I'm only graded in the seminar, and French students don't really believe in coming to class on time anyways so I can be 5 minutes late (it's a huge lecture hall). So I'm taking two outside classes, at Paris VIII and the Sorbonne, and 3 IES classes. I'm really excited about my Paris Museums class- it's an art history class where we study exclusively subjects that we can see in museums throughout Paris which we visit every week. I also know someone in all of my IES courses, which is really nice.

Tomorrow night we have an IES welcome dinner, which should be fun. I'm still adjusting to the French time table- they eat very late, usually after 8, and meals are very long. Although the late dinners work to my benefit quite a bit- when I eat with my family I can still stay out exploring until 7 or so, and when I cook for myself I can have sole use of the kitchen if I eat between 6 or 7, which is when I eat at home anyways. Although they don't drink milk, and that makes me sad. They don't even really have milk the way we do- they have more like half and half which goes in cereal, tea, etc. and weirdly doesn't have to be refrigerated.

Wow, there's a lot of food in this update. I really do things other than eat in France! I'll hopefully be at a museum Thursday or Friday, and then Sacre-Coeur/Monmartre one day this weekend, and then IES classes start Monday and university classes the following Monday. So stay tuned!

First week in Paris

2008-01-27T16:49:00.000+01:00

Hello all! I'm writing from my little room in Paris, on the top floor of my family's apartment building. I've been in Paris for almost a week now, although it feels like a lot longer.

This week has been crazy! Dealing with jetlag and orientation and adrenaline and sleep deprivation all at once and all in French has been quite a challenge. Paris is of course beautiful, and the past few days have been such a whirlwind that I'm not quite sure where to start.

I guess I'll start with my host family. I'm living in the 16ieme arrondissement, in the southwest of Paris a few blocks from the Seine on ave. Mozart. I'm staying at the DeMiramon residence, with M. and Mme. DiMiramon and their three daughters- Aline (15), Charlotte (13) and Louise (10). And their Brittany spaniel, Crunch, who's 5 weeks old and likes to chew on, well, everything. My host family is very nice, although living in the 16ieme is a bit of an adjustment culturally. Everything is very haute-bourgeoisie, which is very different to what I'm used to. I live above my family's apartment in what are known as maid's quarters, because that's what they were originally used for. I have a window from which I can see the Eiffel tower, a little wardrobe, dresser, bookshelf, and tv. I share the bathroom with Aline, the oldest of my host sisters. There are all sorts of little, day-to-day changes that I'm adjusting to- from having 4 keys and having to use 2 just to get downstairs to trying to shower in 3 or 4 minutes to have hot water to my laundry escapades. I'm not quite sure how much integration I can really expect with my family- I'm their 5th IES student and 11th American student overall so I sense that at this point I'm more of a boarder than anything else. The neighborhood is lovely, with the metro just across the street and a little fruit stand downstairs. If I get off one metro stop earlier I can walk home and stop at the supermarket, as well as pop into the chocolate shop, stop by a wonderful little bookstore, or pick up a french baguette or even chinese food.

This past week has been orientation, both at the program center and Cite Universitaire, the center for international students in Paris. The theater restaurant there, where we had lunch twice this week, is very French and very delicious. IES is on the most adorable street called the rue Daguerre, which is just packed with vendors of every kind, from fruit vendors to seafood stalls with the biggest prawns I've ever seen, with all types of cafes and boulangeries (bakeries) every few steps. The center itself is very compact, as is everything in Paris, but quite nice. It's in Montparnasse, in the 14ieme arrondissement. It takes me about 30 minutes on the metro and then 10 or so minutes of walking to get to IES, but I'm really lucky- the line I transfer to from the 9 (my line) is the 6, which happens to be above ground. Which means that every morning I get to watch as we go across the Seine right by the Eiffel Tower, which certainly brightens up the metro.

The metro makes it quite easy to get around, and I already have my metro pass. I've been all over in the past few days, exploring with various other IES (quite a few of them Oxy) students- the Ile St. Louis, St. Michel, Notre Dame, the Champs Elysees, the Marais, etc. I'm quite taken by the Latin Quarter in the 5th- it's currently my favorite Parisian neighborhood. I also walked around the Montparnasse cemetery, with the tombs of Baudelaire, Samuel Beckett, Eugene Ionesco, Alfred Dreyfus, and the joint tomb of Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. I've certainly walked several miles over the past week- but everything is so pretty that walking is the best way to get around, and the weather's been nice- cold, but not rainy. It's all a little surreal- the other night I ate dinner across the Seine from Notre Dame, with a view of the cathedral, and we ended up eating crepes right in front of Notre Dame and watching the street performers.

I've also seen all kinds of things that I just think could only happen in Paris, haha and mostly on the metro. One evening two men got on my metro car with accordions, and proceeded to play very French music the whole ride. I have not only seen dogs in the metro, but also in stores and yesterday I saw a little scottish terrier wearing a tartan sweater walking on the moving sidewalk in the large Montparnasse station. One metro station I walked into had a full string orchestra performing. I've seen Parisians climbing out onto their apartment window ledge to smoke, and in front of the Hotel de Ville there's an outdoor ice rink flanked by, yes, two igloos.

Yesterday IES sponsored an open bus tour of the city, so we could see the landmarks from the top of a double-decker. It was quite lovely, but very very cold. Luckily, cafes with hot tea or coffee or chocolate are everywhere.

Classes haven't started yet, although we do have what are called "propedeutiques." These are grammar-intensive language sessions held every day to revise and prepare our French. We were placed based on a test we took during the first few days- I placed pretty highly, so my class is a little intimidating. These grammar sessions will continue throughout the semester as our language class, with the same students and professor. My professor, Mme Teyssandier, is very nice, although, like a lot of Parisians, a bit intimidating. Everything is very on the spot here in classes, and the French are not shy about correcting you. My registration time is tomorrow, and hopefully I'll be taking 3 IES courses and two outside courses. There's my IES language course, a nineteenth-century literary course, and an art history course that takes place throughout Paris in different museums. Then I'm hoping to take a comparative lit class at the Sorbonne, that consists of studying the myth of Faust in it's different forms, and requires each student to read at least one of the texts in its original language (other than French). Luckily, Marlowe wrote his Faustus play so I can likely do my presentation in French about an English text- which is kinda weird. My other outside class, I hope, will be a class on Orientalism and the Feminine at Paris VIII, which is Helene Cixous' school for women's studies, and it will be very lit-theory heavy (yes I know I'm a freak). My classes are Monday-Thursday, which leaves weekends for the occasional IES excursions, exploring Paris, and eventually probably some Euro-hopping.

I hope all is well with everyone at home, and love and miss you all. A tout a l'heure!