(Originally written on March 16, 2012)
Today is Friday. Fridays are awesome for a multitude of reasons. Let's see, I have no class, stores are actually open (Paris is pretty much dead on Sundays and Mondays), I have no class, I can sleep in, and I have no class. I try to do something fun in the city on Fridays so that I can, as the French would say, profitez-en.
Today I went and sat on the edge of the wall above the Seine. In the sun. With about 20 bazillion other tourists and Parisians. It's like the beach of Paris. The sun is out in Paris and no one stays inside (hey, it's like PLU, but I don't have to worry about getting beamed in the head by a frisbee....). In other words, it's finally starting to feel like Spring in the city. No more heavy jackets and scarves wrapped all the way up to your nose. Now is the time of flow-y, flowey scarves and light, airy trench coats.Gone is the hoard of black trench coats flowing through the metro, only to be replaced by the lively colors of.....that's right, you guessed it....grey and beige!
Anyway, back to the people watching and my wonderful afternoon. I met a few friends at Odeon (right by where I go to school at la Sorbonne) and people watched right outside of the metro exits white my two friends sketched. There are a lot of college students in that area as well as a lot of amazing crepe, candy, chocolate, and bakery food shops. Soooo much amazing chocolate! Yummmmmm! Eventually we grabbed a few paninis and slowly wandered to the river. Once we had picked out a spot we just sat and enjoyed our food and the fresh air.
The river itself is more of a canal. Boats full of tourists pass by like clockwork; there seems to be an endless stream of Les bateaux mouches. They are predictable (tourists with cameras pointed in every direction while the tour guide's voice--muffled due to distance--can be heard as it gives some interesting fact about Notre Dame) and amusing (making a sign that said "Wave if you can read English" would not be appropriate.....right?). Cameras constantly flashing, hoping to capture the late-afternoon sunlight slowly fading down the front facade of Notre Dame. Sometimes the tourists would wave to us (no sign necessary...) and we'd wave back, provoking a giant grin or two (or twenty). They even took a picture of me and my friends. Do they realize I'm not actually French hahaha? I can just picture it now, three years from now, some woman will be telling her grand kids about her trip to Paris and showing them her pictures: "Here's one of the Parisians laughing along the Seine, sketching and writing in the late-afternoon hours." Well, I'm just glad someone captured that moment...I don't want to forget it...
Eventually my two friends left and it was just me sitting alone among the crowds surrounding me, tourists or otherwise. It was really the first time I'd been along in the city when I wasn't moving to get somewhere. Gogogogogo this city screams at times. It's hard when there's always something new and exciting to explore, to see, to experience. I don't want to leave this city. I love it here.
Speaking of experiences, yesterday is definitely a day I'll remember. But also one I want to forget. I'm pretty sure it would't be overkill to say that hier, c'etait la plus pire journee de ma vie parisienne. Ummmm...where to begin? Oh, right, how about with the fact that group projects in France are just as annoying, problematic, and difficult in Paris/France as they are in the States. Drat. Not everything, it turns out, is better in Paris lol! Anyway, I had this presentation for a group project yesterday afternoon that, due to extreme lack of means of communication between students and professors in the French higher educational system, I was assigned my partner and project topic three weeks later than everyone else in the class and given a week to complete the project. Funsies with a capital F. Basically, after a few sleepless nights and a lot of stress, I gave the most nerve wracking and worst presentation of my academic career. Awesome opossum. Hey, at least I did it in French at a well-known, respected French institution. If I'm going to make a fool of myself, it might as well be there then, right? No, in all seriousness, I do not regret my decision to take this class, but I would be lying if I said I felt comfortable with or even capable of handling this class. Yet, I'm still proud of myself for taking advantage of this opportunity. It's not everyday you can take a class at a French university...
Yesterday was also yucky or a few other reasons A professor changed the syllabus and for some reason I didn't notice it so I hadn't done the right homework. This sort of thing just doesn't happen to me. I do not NOT do homework. So, while I was kicking myself pretty metaphorically hard, I realized I had scheduled an interview for an internship back at school for the same time that I have to attend a conference or my literature class,. Well, after explaining to my professor that rescheduling the EXTREMELY important interview would be EXTREMELY difficult, she told me that she would have to count me as absent for one class period if I missed this conference--which I want to point out is an extra, irregular even OUTSIDE OF and IN ADDITION TO our regular class schedule--as an absence. Awesome sauce. So now I don't do homework and I skip class. This is soooo not me. On top of all that, my internet connection at my hots family's house decided to not work again jut when I really needed Skype so I could at least talk to someone about my crappy day. Great. After a nap, my host mom came home and I went out to help her make dinner and she and I had a good talk. She really is a very smart woman. She and I sat on the couch and vented, laughed, and just all around had a great talk about our day/week. It was nice.
After dinner, I went out and had a drink with friends in the Latin quarter. That's always an interesting place at night. Soooo many Greek and Italian restaurant owners trying to convince you that you are in fact (miraculously!) hungry again even though you just thoroughly stuffed your face with really amazing falafel and gelato. Yeah, sorry dude, my food baby is already big enough. Thanks.
Well, the sun is no longer casting a metallic-gold light across the river, so I should probably head back home and leave the river behind for the day. I think I'll be spending a lot more time here. It's safe, sunny, and crawling with smiling, silly tourists. I'm off to find St. Michele so I can catch the 4. Maybe I'll stop by Notre Dame first for a bit...
Love from the Seine,
Sarah
Friday, March 30, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Half full or half empty?
As I sit on the 4, heading to Emmaüs to work the Saturday morning shift at the store, I start to get sad. It took me a bit to mentally pin down the sourse of this sadness, and once I found it, it wasn't really something I wanted to dwell on: I have 8 weeks left. 8. Weeks. What happened to the 4 months I had here? Key word, had.
I love life here: the 8eme is full of life all night long, slowly singing (ok, more like shouting and honking) me to sleep each night; my new Friday afternoon tradition with friends, sitting along the Seine en plein air with du soleil at Point Neuf, eating strawberries and camembert with fresh baguettes; even the dirty, fast, sometimes frustratingly annoying metro, yes, I even love you; the feeling of living in what I have actually come to learn is a small city with a "big city complex"; my inability to blend in with the Parisiens due to my inability to m'integrer into the fashion scene here no longer bothers me; I''ll miss my Emmaüs family (only to them am I "Obama", "Wahington Post", or "That one girl who should be Polish, but isn't"--hahaha gotta love culturally-based nicknames); no longer hearing the phrases "entre gimmets" or "j'ajoute une petite paranthèse" (with the appropriate hand gestures, bien sûr) in class will take some getting used to when back in the States. But you know what I'll miss the most and what I love the most about my life here? It's the confidence I've gained with my language skills. When I leave Paris, my worst fear is that my fluency will stay behind, not following me onto the plane, gone when I take that first step onto American soil, leaving me with a feeling of emptiness. I'm being selfish, I know, but I'd really just like to keep this one piece of me for always, but alas, c'est pas possible.
But should I really look at the glass half empty like that? No, I tell myself. I have some many other parts of me that will remain when I get back to the States that I have found here in Paris. I need to remember that even if the glass is half empty, that means it's also half full. I'm not quite sure what my glass is half full of at the moment, but I'm figuring it out.
Love from the city I love,
Sarah
I love life here: the 8eme is full of life all night long, slowly singing (ok, more like shouting and honking) me to sleep each night; my new Friday afternoon tradition with friends, sitting along the Seine en plein air with du soleil at Point Neuf, eating strawberries and camembert with fresh baguettes; even the dirty, fast, sometimes frustratingly annoying metro, yes, I even love you; the feeling of living in what I have actually come to learn is a small city with a "big city complex"; my inability to blend in with the Parisiens due to my inability to m'integrer into the fashion scene here no longer bothers me; I''ll miss my Emmaüs family (only to them am I "Obama", "Wahington Post", or "That one girl who should be Polish, but isn't"--hahaha gotta love culturally-based nicknames); no longer hearing the phrases "entre gimmets" or "j'ajoute une petite paranthèse" (with the appropriate hand gestures, bien sûr) in class will take some getting used to when back in the States. But you know what I'll miss the most and what I love the most about my life here? It's the confidence I've gained with my language skills. When I leave Paris, my worst fear is that my fluency will stay behind, not following me onto the plane, gone when I take that first step onto American soil, leaving me with a feeling of emptiness. I'm being selfish, I know, but I'd really just like to keep this one piece of me for always, but alas, c'est pas possible.
But should I really look at the glass half empty like that? No, I tell myself. I have some many other parts of me that will remain when I get back to the States that I have found here in Paris. I need to remember that even if the glass is half empty, that means it's also half full. I'm not quite sure what my glass is half full of at the moment, but I'm figuring it out.
Love from the city I love,
Sarah
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Somewhere between a Parisian and a tourist....
...lays a student.
The other day, I was waiting for the metro at Rome on Line 2 (it is one of the nicer metro lines, as in roomier cars, not as jam packed as say the 1 or the 13 during morning or afternoon rush hour--you really don't have any concept of invasion of personal space until you've taken the 13 toward Chantillion at 6pm, funsies!) and I had a very weird, reality-enducing moment:
As I decended the stairs onto the platform, I saw a huge group of what appeared to be US high school students with a few chaperones. They were all wearing blantantly obvious nametakes which identified them, first of all, as tourists (aka easy targets for pickpockets and money scams in the metro) and second of all, as students traveling with some international travel organization. Yup. I was right; I had just stumbled upon the (not-so-) rare herd of American tourists. However, instead of feeling like I should go introduce myself and make small talk (first of all, rule number one of "Metro Riding in Paris 101" is "One must never talk to other people in the metro, even if one is sandwhiched between two adorable French guys and one of said guys makes eye contact...before mowing one down to get out at the next stop that is."), I kept my distance and just observed as I waited for the metro to pull in. Oddly enough, I found myself feeling glad that that wasn't me. I had a chance to go to France when I was in high school during my senior year, but since I knew that I wanted to study abroad in colllege, I decided to save the 3 grand and passed on the 10 day whirwind trip through France with my high school French class. So, yeah, that could have been me, but it isn't. Instead, I stood off to the side, letting them wonder if I was actually French/Parisian or not. It was kind of a moment where I realized I'm LIVING in this city; I'm not a tourist, but I'm not a parisian (Hahahaha....that would take a few more semesters in this city, that's for sure...), so I guess that puts me somewhere in between. And that liminal state, as I see it right now, is best summed up as "student". That may seem obvious since I'm studying away after all, but I ask u this, how many of you can say you studied in Paris, that you lived in an apartment in Paris? If you can, be proud of that fact--I am.
So an update on my life is probably in order, so here it goes:
I had midterms last week. They went alright, well they went pretty well actually. I think this past week was the first week where I didn't get at least 9 hours of sleep on school nights. (Not gonna lie, I really was tempted to just wear my frumpy study sweats on the metro to class after only getting a few hours of sleep, but that won't fly on the metro--well unless I throw on some high heeled boots with my sweat pants....hahaha no way, even I'm not that fashion illiterate lol!) This is definetly a change from PLU. I'm gonna miss this calmer academic lifestyle. When I say calmer, I don't mean not as hard academically, instead it has more to do with the slower pace (syllabi are non-existant here--so I guess that doesn't mean I have to read 300 bazillion pages for next class.....ummmm yes please). With all that was going on in my life last semester, this semester is a much needed break, I'll be honest. Burnout and compassion fatique are real and both of these little "friends", shall we call them, both of them had settled nicely into my frontal lobe and had full control of my mental health last semester. I can gladly say they're on leave at the moment....hopefully permanently.
My new host family is perfect. Moving was the best decision I've made. I'm very lucky. I have freedom to move around (no, literally, I can physically walk in my room, through the apartment, and sit and get off of my bed), my friends and I have movie and pizza nights in my room, my host mom is funny and nice (she even offered to let me stay with her for the summer and then offered to call the US embassy to demand they extend my non-extendable student visa when she found out I can't stay for the summer hahaha love it).
Volunteering at Emmaüs is the second best decision I've made here. Working for this organization is....well it is, in one word, simply humbling. And wonderful. And fun. And always interesting. And doing wonders for my French (fluency at last!!!! Whoo!!!). Ok, so one word doesn't suffice evidement. I just love it. I'm meeting political refugees and individuals who have been dealt a rough hand for one reason or another in their lives and hearing their stories is amazing. It makes me realize how lucky I am to be able to travel, to know that I will always have food and a place to sleep, that I can see my family easily, and that I have people who love me in my friends and family. I'm working there about 8.5 hours a week as a volunteer and I wish I could work there more. I've made sooo many new friends from all over the Middle East, Africa, and Eastern Europe. I'm interacting with French people and helping to run a store every Saturday morning and I feel like I'm really able to use my French as a means to function within a society instead of just trying to practice it. The language is there, now its time to put it to practice.
Love from Paris,
Sarah
The other day, I was waiting for the metro at Rome on Line 2 (it is one of the nicer metro lines, as in roomier cars, not as jam packed as say the 1 or the 13 during morning or afternoon rush hour--you really don't have any concept of invasion of personal space until you've taken the 13 toward Chantillion at 6pm, funsies!) and I had a very weird, reality-enducing moment:
As I decended the stairs onto the platform, I saw a huge group of what appeared to be US high school students with a few chaperones. They were all wearing blantantly obvious nametakes which identified them, first of all, as tourists (aka easy targets for pickpockets and money scams in the metro) and second of all, as students traveling with some international travel organization. Yup. I was right; I had just stumbled upon the (not-so-) rare herd of American tourists. However, instead of feeling like I should go introduce myself and make small talk (first of all, rule number one of "Metro Riding in Paris 101" is "One must never talk to other people in the metro, even if one is sandwhiched between two adorable French guys and one of said guys makes eye contact...before mowing one down to get out at the next stop that is."), I kept my distance and just observed as I waited for the metro to pull in. Oddly enough, I found myself feeling glad that that wasn't me. I had a chance to go to France when I was in high school during my senior year, but since I knew that I wanted to study abroad in colllege, I decided to save the 3 grand and passed on the 10 day whirwind trip through France with my high school French class. So, yeah, that could have been me, but it isn't. Instead, I stood off to the side, letting them wonder if I was actually French/Parisian or not. It was kind of a moment where I realized I'm LIVING in this city; I'm not a tourist, but I'm not a parisian (Hahahaha....that would take a few more semesters in this city, that's for sure...), so I guess that puts me somewhere in between. And that liminal state, as I see it right now, is best summed up as "student". That may seem obvious since I'm studying away after all, but I ask u this, how many of you can say you studied in Paris, that you lived in an apartment in Paris? If you can, be proud of that fact--I am.
So an update on my life is probably in order, so here it goes:
I had midterms last week. They went alright, well they went pretty well actually. I think this past week was the first week where I didn't get at least 9 hours of sleep on school nights. (Not gonna lie, I really was tempted to just wear my frumpy study sweats on the metro to class after only getting a few hours of sleep, but that won't fly on the metro--well unless I throw on some high heeled boots with my sweat pants....hahaha no way, even I'm not that fashion illiterate lol!) This is definetly a change from PLU. I'm gonna miss this calmer academic lifestyle. When I say calmer, I don't mean not as hard academically, instead it has more to do with the slower pace (syllabi are non-existant here--so I guess that doesn't mean I have to read 300 bazillion pages for next class.....ummmm yes please). With all that was going on in my life last semester, this semester is a much needed break, I'll be honest. Burnout and compassion fatique are real and both of these little "friends", shall we call them, both of them had settled nicely into my frontal lobe and had full control of my mental health last semester. I can gladly say they're on leave at the moment....hopefully permanently.
My new host family is perfect. Moving was the best decision I've made. I'm very lucky. I have freedom to move around (no, literally, I can physically walk in my room, through the apartment, and sit and get off of my bed), my friends and I have movie and pizza nights in my room, my host mom is funny and nice (she even offered to let me stay with her for the summer and then offered to call the US embassy to demand they extend my non-extendable student visa when she found out I can't stay for the summer hahaha love it).
Volunteering at Emmaüs is the second best decision I've made here. Working for this organization is....well it is, in one word, simply humbling. And wonderful. And fun. And always interesting. And doing wonders for my French (fluency at last!!!! Whoo!!!). Ok, so one word doesn't suffice evidement. I just love it. I'm meeting political refugees and individuals who have been dealt a rough hand for one reason or another in their lives and hearing their stories is amazing. It makes me realize how lucky I am to be able to travel, to know that I will always have food and a place to sleep, that I can see my family easily, and that I have people who love me in my friends and family. I'm working there about 8.5 hours a week as a volunteer and I wish I could work there more. I've made sooo many new friends from all over the Middle East, Africa, and Eastern Europe. I'm interacting with French people and helping to run a store every Saturday morning and I feel like I'm really able to use my French as a means to function within a society instead of just trying to practice it. The language is there, now its time to put it to practice.
Love from Paris,
Sarah
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Lovin Life
Life is going great. Life is grand; life is glorious; life is surprising; life is spontanious; life is...life is...life is just simply wonderful! La vie, elle est belle! I've had a change of perspective over the past 48 hours. Since moving into my new host family on Friday, I'm beginning to finally feel a l'aise, at ease, with life. I don't feel like I have to fight or force things anymore--instead, I'm just living. I'm savoring each moment and not thinking about the next or how I got there. I've been trying new things and learning a lot about myself. I haven't been pushing my limits too the extreme, but I have been stepping outside of my "timid American student" persona and trying to pick up new attributes--trying on titles such as "spontaneous American Student" or "Likes-to-try-new-things, ?Young Girl from the States". I like the way they feel. I'm still trying to get comfortable wearing them and they often lead me a bit outside of my comfort zone (ok, let's be honest here, they kind of lead me way outside of my comfort zone...but in a good, healthy way). Don't worry Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Granpa, the "Smart, Logical, Doesn't-go-too-far/Jump-off-the-deep-end, Quiet, American Girl you raised or watched grow up is still lurking underneath, but she's letting these other personas step out for a bit and stretch their legs--even if she's not far behind keeping a close eye on them lol ;D.
Last night, a couple of my girl friends and myself were invited to a French house party. It was an "appartment warming" party for a new roommate in an apartment where a friend of a friend (who is French) used to live. Ok, that's kind of vague and complicated at the same time. I appologize, but basically all you need to know is that I'm FINALLY meeting REAL French people lol! Long story short, my friends and I didn't think we were going to the party (we had heard about it earlier in the week, but we weren't sure what we were going to do about actually going to it...that's the thing, these parties sound like fun, but they can be intimidating--especially for someone who doesn't have a past with going to parties). We had actually planned on going to see Sherlock Holmes 2 at the cinema at Chatlet, Les Halles (one of the larger train/metro stations in the city), but it was sold out. Luckily, due to a few chance communications (even if it takes FOREVER to send a text message here, I'm soooo glad that I can send des textos!) with our French cell phones and through Facebook, we were able to deduce that it wasn't too late to head over to the party near Montparnasse (one of the more central-southern districts of the city--it's also very near where I used to live). It was a great experience. They were all VERY nice. By the end of the night I'd made friends with several really nice French girls. I even got their phone numbers and said if they ever wanted to grab drinks or had another party, I'd love to hang out again! (No guys sadly...lol--mais c'est pas grave lol ;D). Getting back home was a bit tricky. My friends and I left the party about about 2am (the night life here is crazy--people stay up all night at clubs and just hanging out at these low-key house parties) to catch the metro home since it closes at 2:30 on weekend nights. At least, that is what we thought. Since I'm not in the habit of taking the metro during the wee hours of the morning, I guess I should have double checked when it closed. Anyway, we got kicked out of the metro a bit past the hour and ended up having to take the night bus. Oh le noctillin--soooooo funny! This is not a bus you ride by yourself. If you can avoid it, then you should. However, after a quick glance at the bus route maps at the Montparnasse bus stop/station, my friend and I deduced that it wouldn't be hard at all to take the N1 or N2 since our home stays are close to stops on those lines. We quickly hopped on the N1 and away we went. After a few minutes on the bus, a very friendly French man heard us talking in English and interrupted our conversation (about university funding and athletics hehehe--even at two am you can have intelligent conversations apparently lol) asking if he could talk with us and practice his English. "My English, it zees not veeery goot, you zee." We didn't really say "yes", but we didn't really say "no", so he continued to ask us simple questions in very broken, very drunk English. It was quite a hoot. He was harmless, but quite intertaining. When he realized we could speak French, he asked if we wanted to speak French with him, and I, in spit-fire French (I'm getting MUCH better at and MUCH more comfortable with speaking French) I say: "Ouais, bien sur, on peut parler en francais si vous avez envie (yeah, we can speak in French if you want to)". The look on his face was PRICELESS. He and his less-drunk, obviously-more-adept-at-speaking-English friend looked at me and scoffed. I couldn't help but smile. What can I say--I'm proud of the progress I've made in France. I CAN speak the language. It's kind of nice to know that French people (even if they are a bit tipsy...or a bit more than a bit tipsy....) think so too. Anyway, they got off the bus before we did so I didn't have to worry about them trying to follow us (not that they would have I don't think, but it doesn't hurt to be aware/be careful...). The night bus dropped me off at one of the two metro stops that are about equal distance from my new apartment (only about a 1-2 minute walk) and I made it home just fine at about 3am. What an adventure. I was nervous and scared to meet new people, but I'm fine. As my new host mom would say: "nothing changed--you just overcame your fear that was all in your head and learned that the world doesn't end when you try something new or stretch out your comfort bubble a bit". She's right--it doesn't. Hopefully I'll meet up with those really nice girls I met last night sometime soon and see if there are some friendships to be made.
This afternoon I got to spend time with my friend Fred who was a student at PLU last year. He lives in France and so we met up and had brunch and then explored the Champs Elysees. It was great to see him. It's been over a year since I last saw him, and even though we've stayed in touch over Facebook and Skype, it's always nice to get to see your friends in person again! We explored all the expensive car shops and a few clothing stores on Champs Elysees. It was weird seeing all these really expensive marques (brands) like Chanel and Mercedes-Benz--I laughed a bit when I starting thinking about what it would be like to actually be in this store because I wanted to buy an over-priced luxery car or really expensive parfum. Hahaha, a lifestyle I have never been interested it. It was still kind of fun to pretend though hehehehe (hey, the person in the corner watching me look at the cars doesn't know I'm not actually considering--in a million years--buying a car like this....it could happen....hahaha not). We also explored the Virgin Mega Store on the Champs Elysees and I bought 4 CDs of contemporary French artists for 20 Euro--great deal! I want to have more French music, and I never know what to get, so I bought two albums that looked good and thought I'd try them on a whim! Fred also reccomended one and I found an artist that I already knew. I'm in the processes of listening to all the new songs. Music really helps me better understand the language--there's something about mastering the lyrics of a song and being able to sing along with the artist. I don't know how to explain it, but it's somewhat gratifying--especially if you understand what they are saying (which is becoming a lot easier for me yay!).
This afternoon I'm going to finish my homework, work on planning my trip to Morocco in early April (soooo excited--I hope it works out!), and possibly take a nap!
Je vous aime tous! Bisous!
-Sarah
Last night, a couple of my girl friends and myself were invited to a French house party. It was an "appartment warming" party for a new roommate in an apartment where a friend of a friend (who is French) used to live. Ok, that's kind of vague and complicated at the same time. I appologize, but basically all you need to know is that I'm FINALLY meeting REAL French people lol! Long story short, my friends and I didn't think we were going to the party (we had heard about it earlier in the week, but we weren't sure what we were going to do about actually going to it...that's the thing, these parties sound like fun, but they can be intimidating--especially for someone who doesn't have a past with going to parties). We had actually planned on going to see Sherlock Holmes 2 at the cinema at Chatlet, Les Halles (one of the larger train/metro stations in the city), but it was sold out. Luckily, due to a few chance communications (even if it takes FOREVER to send a text message here, I'm soooo glad that I can send des textos!) with our French cell phones and through Facebook, we were able to deduce that it wasn't too late to head over to the party near Montparnasse (one of the more central-southern districts of the city--it's also very near where I used to live). It was a great experience. They were all VERY nice. By the end of the night I'd made friends with several really nice French girls. I even got their phone numbers and said if they ever wanted to grab drinks or had another party, I'd love to hang out again! (No guys sadly...lol--mais c'est pas grave lol ;D). Getting back home was a bit tricky. My friends and I left the party about about 2am (the night life here is crazy--people stay up all night at clubs and just hanging out at these low-key house parties) to catch the metro home since it closes at 2:30 on weekend nights. At least, that is what we thought. Since I'm not in the habit of taking the metro during the wee hours of the morning, I guess I should have double checked when it closed. Anyway, we got kicked out of the metro a bit past the hour and ended up having to take the night bus. Oh le noctillin--soooooo funny! This is not a bus you ride by yourself. If you can avoid it, then you should. However, after a quick glance at the bus route maps at the Montparnasse bus stop/station, my friend and I deduced that it wouldn't be hard at all to take the N1 or N2 since our home stays are close to stops on those lines. We quickly hopped on the N1 and away we went. After a few minutes on the bus, a very friendly French man heard us talking in English and interrupted our conversation (about university funding and athletics hehehe--even at two am you can have intelligent conversations apparently lol) asking if he could talk with us and practice his English. "My English, it zees not veeery goot, you zee." We didn't really say "yes", but we didn't really say "no", so he continued to ask us simple questions in very broken, very drunk English. It was quite a hoot. He was harmless, but quite intertaining. When he realized we could speak French, he asked if we wanted to speak French with him, and I, in spit-fire French (I'm getting MUCH better at and MUCH more comfortable with speaking French) I say: "Ouais, bien sur, on peut parler en francais si vous avez envie (yeah, we can speak in French if you want to)". The look on his face was PRICELESS. He and his less-drunk, obviously-more-adept-at-speaking-English friend looked at me and scoffed. I couldn't help but smile. What can I say--I'm proud of the progress I've made in France. I CAN speak the language. It's kind of nice to know that French people (even if they are a bit tipsy...or a bit more than a bit tipsy....) think so too. Anyway, they got off the bus before we did so I didn't have to worry about them trying to follow us (not that they would have I don't think, but it doesn't hurt to be aware/be careful...). The night bus dropped me off at one of the two metro stops that are about equal distance from my new apartment (only about a 1-2 minute walk) and I made it home just fine at about 3am. What an adventure. I was nervous and scared to meet new people, but I'm fine. As my new host mom would say: "nothing changed--you just overcame your fear that was all in your head and learned that the world doesn't end when you try something new or stretch out your comfort bubble a bit". She's right--it doesn't. Hopefully I'll meet up with those really nice girls I met last night sometime soon and see if there are some friendships to be made.
This afternoon I got to spend time with my friend Fred who was a student at PLU last year. He lives in France and so we met up and had brunch and then explored the Champs Elysees. It was great to see him. It's been over a year since I last saw him, and even though we've stayed in touch over Facebook and Skype, it's always nice to get to see your friends in person again! We explored all the expensive car shops and a few clothing stores on Champs Elysees. It was weird seeing all these really expensive marques (brands) like Chanel and Mercedes-Benz--I laughed a bit when I starting thinking about what it would be like to actually be in this store because I wanted to buy an over-priced luxery car or really expensive parfum. Hahaha, a lifestyle I have never been interested it. It was still kind of fun to pretend though hehehehe (hey, the person in the corner watching me look at the cars doesn't know I'm not actually considering--in a million years--buying a car like this....it could happen....hahaha not). We also explored the Virgin Mega Store on the Champs Elysees and I bought 4 CDs of contemporary French artists for 20 Euro--great deal! I want to have more French music, and I never know what to get, so I bought two albums that looked good and thought I'd try them on a whim! Fred also reccomended one and I found an artist that I already knew. I'm in the processes of listening to all the new songs. Music really helps me better understand the language--there's something about mastering the lyrics of a song and being able to sing along with the artist. I don't know how to explain it, but it's somewhat gratifying--especially if you understand what they are saying (which is becoming a lot easier for me yay!).
This afternoon I'm going to finish my homework, work on planning my trip to Morocco in early April (soooo excited--I hope it works out!), and possibly take a nap!
Je vous aime tous! Bisous!
-Sarah
Saturday, February 18, 2012
From the South to the North; From the 14eme to the 8eme
So a lot has happened in the past 24 hours. I'm in a completely new host family in an entirely different part of the city. It's like black and white. If Paris is a circle (which essentially it is...), I was living on the southern edge of the circle, in the bottom, right hand corner of the 14th. I'm now in the northern end of the city, more toward the west side, in the 8th (though the 17th only starts one street over). Hopefully this map helps:
I really like the 8th arrondissement. It's a lot more active than the 14th. I adore the 14th and think I'm going to miss it, but the 8th is very interesting. There is a saturday market and lots of cute little boutiques that my host mom showed me around today. I'm totally going to be buying soooo much new and good food on saturday monings--homemade galettes for breakfast? Ummm...yes please!
I'm off to Angelina's cafe for the afternoon with my friends after making lunch with my host mom!
Love from Paris,
Sarah
Sunday, February 12, 2012
When does cultural miscommunication become passive agressive behavior?
I've made my decision. I need to leave my host family and look for a new place to live here. I just can't do this anymore. I'm tired of walking on egg shells all the time. I can't do anything right in my host parents' eyes; with each step I make a huge "faux pas" which then escalates into something huge which usually ends up making Madame mad at me for one reason or another. I can only do bad things in their eyes. Take last night for example. I went to McDonald's so I could skype with my parents (yeah, that's right, I have to go find a place with wifi since I don't feel like I can comfortably skype in my host family's house--that should have tipped me off that maybe I'm not welcome here...) but the wifi at the restaurant didn't work. I returned to my host family's house about an hour after I left (around 11:15pm) and when I entered my room, I found this note on my desk and saw that the sheets on my bed had been removed and that new ones had been set aside for me to remake the bed. It's 11:15 at night--how can I remake my bed when it's noisy and I'm constantly being yelled at for shutting doors to loundly? Heck when my bed creaks when I stand up I think Madame is going to come barging into my room and yell at me that I'm making too much noise. Anyway, back to the note. This is what Madame wrote:
"Sarah,
Je n'ai pas pu faire le manage dans ta chambre car tu n'as pas donne signe de vie toute la journee. Ce que tu fais est tres mal eleve je suis desolee. tu aurais pu me dire que tu ne bougerais pas de la journee. Le menage ne sera pas fait cette semaine. Nous avons parle l'autre jour mais je pense que tu n'as rien compris. Il faudra que tu vois avec Celine quoi faire parce que ca ne va pas."
"Sarah,
I couldn't clean your room because you didn't give any signs of life all day long. What you are doing is very rude I'm sorry. You should have told me that you would not move at all during the day (she means leave my room). Your room will not be cleaned this week. We spoke the other day but I think that you didn't understand anything we talked about. You need to go talk with Celine (the housing lady with IES) to figure out what to do because this is not ok."
I give up. I was in my room all day because I had spent the last two days and nights with friends and had to do homework and wanted to sleep and have some time for myself. Is that such a crime? And "didn't give any sings of life all day"--that's sooo not true! I was moving around in my room, I took a shower, I ate meals in the kitchen. I left my room! Also, would it have been so hard for her to knock on my door and ask ME if she could come in and clean my room. How is it that it has escalated to such a point that I'm starting to think that what she did--put a note in my room during the one hour we weren't in her house together during the ENTIRE day--was more along the lines of passive aggressive behavior and does not amount to simply another instance of cultural miscommunication and misunderstanding? I need to get out of this house. I don't feel welcome and I'm actually starting to get a bit angy. I love Paris, but I don't love living in this house. Time for a change I think.
"Sarah,
Je n'ai pas pu faire le manage dans ta chambre car tu n'as pas donne signe de vie toute la journee. Ce que tu fais est tres mal eleve je suis desolee. tu aurais pu me dire que tu ne bougerais pas de la journee. Le menage ne sera pas fait cette semaine. Nous avons parle l'autre jour mais je pense que tu n'as rien compris. Il faudra que tu vois avec Celine quoi faire parce que ca ne va pas."
"Sarah,
I couldn't clean your room because you didn't give any signs of life all day long. What you are doing is very rude I'm sorry. You should have told me that you would not move at all during the day (she means leave my room). Your room will not be cleaned this week. We spoke the other day but I think that you didn't understand anything we talked about. You need to go talk with Celine (the housing lady with IES) to figure out what to do because this is not ok."
I give up. I was in my room all day because I had spent the last two days and nights with friends and had to do homework and wanted to sleep and have some time for myself. Is that such a crime? And "didn't give any sings of life all day"--that's sooo not true! I was moving around in my room, I took a shower, I ate meals in the kitchen. I left my room! Also, would it have been so hard for her to knock on my door and ask ME if she could come in and clean my room. How is it that it has escalated to such a point that I'm starting to think that what she did--put a note in my room during the one hour we weren't in her house together during the ENTIRE day--was more along the lines of passive aggressive behavior and does not amount to simply another instance of cultural miscommunication and misunderstanding? I need to get out of this house. I don't feel welcome and I'm actually starting to get a bit angy. I love Paris, but I don't love living in this house. Time for a change I think.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Il y a un mois...
que je suis arrivee a Paris. I've been in Paris for a month now. It's official. I arrived on the morning of January 11th, and it is now the afternoon of February 11th. It seems like time here has slowed down a bit, and that is nice. I know it's been a while since my last blog update, and I'm sorry for that, but since life has slowed down a lot, I figured you all probably aren't interested in hearing about what I talked about in my European Union class or my French Women Author's litterature class hahaha. But, life has still managed to throw me a few curve balls (adventures and challenges alike) over the past couple weeks--don't worry!
I've been exploring more areas of the city lately. Like the night I got lost in the Latin quarter at 5am. hahaha fun night! I went to go watch the superbowl with another girl from the IES program and we ended up in an underground, exclusive bar (scary bouncer and all at the door!) run by a group of really nice South African immigrants. It was really fun getting to watch the game--I'm starting to feel a bit homesick and it was nice to get back to something that is truely American for a bit. Of course I was in the company of some very high-spirited and sometimes extrememly drunk French and American 20-something year olds. (How many female, American exchange students does it take to explain the rules of football americain to a group of tipsy french guys? Good times, good times...). I guess the fun thing about being lost in Paris at 5 in the morning is that you have really good views of all the national monuments and tourist attractions, such as Notre Dame. No lines or hoards of people! It was great to just gaze upon the cathedral as the sun was starting to come up, and there were enough people around and bakeries starting to open that I felt safe. It was one of those moments in life where I lived in the moment and not so much in the next or the one that just happened. That was a good night.
I've also been testing out the Paris nightlife. It's very intimidating for someone like me who has never gone to a club before. Sooo....I convinced one of my girl friends here to come with me to this party being hosted somewhere in the 9th. The party was just for students from all over the world who are studying or who are in Paris for one reason or another. After standing in line for hours, my friend and I finally made it into the club. There were soooo many people! IT WAS CRAZY! IL Y AVAIT DU MONDE LA-DEDANS! OH LA LA! But by about 2:30am (we got there at 11 when it started), we were dancing and having fun. They played mostly spanish and english songs, so I recognized most of the music and enjoyed it. Also, whenever, shall we say, an "unwanted advance" on the part of a guy who asked either myself or my friend to dance would happen, it was great to just say "No, I've already got a dance partner, but thanks anyway." and just start dancing with my friend again! It was sooo great to just get to dance and let lose after last semester. Life in Paris is sooooooo much more relaxed for a student. It's so much slower and calmer. I can enjoy life and not worry about if I'm going to have enough time to actually live it (if that makes sense...). Of course there were some guys who asked me to dance, and I said yes (big step for socially-awkward, timid Sarah, I know) and it was fun. (There was a really cute Italian guy who wanted to dance until he found out I could only speak French and English--if you're reading this cute Italian guy, I'm working on learning Italian, I promise! lol!). I can honestly say that I don't really need to repeat that experience again. It was EXHAUSTING! Fun, but exhuasting. I didn't get home until about 7am (because the party got over at 5am and my friends and I--I found more IES people at the party--decided we would just hang out for a bit until the metro opened again at 5:30, and then it was a good hour ride back to my host family's house in the south of the city). It was kind of a lot at once, but I'm glad I tried it. I just don't think that is the lifestyle for me lol! (Also I ended up losing my wallet--It disappeared from my coat sometime when my coat was in the coat check. In the end, I lost an ISIC card, 40 Euro, my WA state driver's liscense, and my debit card. I got the card canceled immediately and the driver's license is easily replaceable and not very vital while I'm here since I have my passport, but the 40 Euro in cash is kind of a hard hit to take. Oh well, you live and learn, right?)
I've also been looking (with my friends) for really good, really inexpensive places to eat in the city. Life in Paris is expensive, and with the Euro to US Dollar exchange rate, you can add at least another third of what you're already paying on to the price of something you buy. Last night, my friends and I were extremely successful! We found the cutest little cafe in the 13th. It's called Chez Gladines and is SUPER popular and SUPER tastey! I had the best salad I have ever eaten in my entire life there: mozzarella, a fried egg (sorry mom!), really fancy (yet really common for France) thinly-sliced ham, tomatoes, tons of lettuce, fried, thinly-cut potatoes (sooooooo goood), some creamy sauce, and probably a few other things I'm forgetting. It was also HUGE and only 8,50 Euros, and with a glass of wine for 2,50 Euro, that's an amazing deal! Plus the atmosphere is qwarky and fun. The waiter we had was hallarious! I don't envy him his job though--the place was jam packed and he was constantly running around. After we ate dinner, my friends and I went and saw La Taupe (or Tinker. Tailor. Soldier. Spy. in English). It was very confusing and heavy, but well done. I think it's one of those movies I'll need to watch again sometime in order to follow everything that was going on (and maybe attempting to read the book on which it is based wouldn't hurt either). Also, I saw L'Artiste (The Artist) a few weeks back and it was REALLY good (I can't remember if I already blogged about it or not, but you should all go see it if you can--it's such a good movie!).
I've recently lost my voice, and I sound like Roz from Monsters Inc. It's actually kind of funny, to a certain point. It's making it hard to communicate in any language. This happened to me once before at the summer camp I worked at where I could only speak in French. My theory is that the French language (especially the Rs and the accent itself) force my vocal cords to work in new/different ways and thus stresses them out. I highly doubt that's true, but it could explain why they hate me right now and refuse to work lol! I'm also finding it harder and harder to speak and write in English. That is a weird feeling! But a good thing, right? lol!
Sadly, outside of my love for the city and the slower-paced lifestyle, my transition into living with my host family is not so much of a positive in my life right now. It's a long and complicated explaination, but what it amounts to is that I'm in the process of looking at moving in with a new host family. I will know more about what will be happening by the end of next week (and will try to remember to keep you all posted). I just don't feel welcome at my host family's house. In fact, I just feel like a burden and that cultural miscommunications are being taken to an extreme (they're going to happen, yes, but they shouldn't be occuring to the level they have for me in my opinion...). I just don't feel comfortable living with them. It's no fun feeling like I'm walking on egg shells all the time. But who knows, as I continue to talk about all of these feelings and this situation with my host parents and with the housing lady at IES, things may work out in such a way that I stay (but I think in this moment, I'm leaning more toward switching...).
I hope all well with your lives!
Love from Paris,
Sarah
I've been exploring more areas of the city lately. Like the night I got lost in the Latin quarter at 5am. hahaha fun night! I went to go watch the superbowl with another girl from the IES program and we ended up in an underground, exclusive bar (scary bouncer and all at the door!) run by a group of really nice South African immigrants. It was really fun getting to watch the game--I'm starting to feel a bit homesick and it was nice to get back to something that is truely American for a bit. Of course I was in the company of some very high-spirited and sometimes extrememly drunk French and American 20-something year olds. (How many female, American exchange students does it take to explain the rules of football americain to a group of tipsy french guys? Good times, good times...). I guess the fun thing about being lost in Paris at 5 in the morning is that you have really good views of all the national monuments and tourist attractions, such as Notre Dame. No lines or hoards of people! It was great to just gaze upon the cathedral as the sun was starting to come up, and there were enough people around and bakeries starting to open that I felt safe. It was one of those moments in life where I lived in the moment and not so much in the next or the one that just happened. That was a good night.
I've also been testing out the Paris nightlife. It's very intimidating for someone like me who has never gone to a club before. Sooo....I convinced one of my girl friends here to come with me to this party being hosted somewhere in the 9th. The party was just for students from all over the world who are studying or who are in Paris for one reason or another. After standing in line for hours, my friend and I finally made it into the club. There were soooo many people! IT WAS CRAZY! IL Y AVAIT DU MONDE LA-DEDANS! OH LA LA! But by about 2:30am (we got there at 11 when it started), we were dancing and having fun. They played mostly spanish and english songs, so I recognized most of the music and enjoyed it. Also, whenever, shall we say, an "unwanted advance" on the part of a guy who asked either myself or my friend to dance would happen, it was great to just say "No, I've already got a dance partner, but thanks anyway." and just start dancing with my friend again! It was sooo great to just get to dance and let lose after last semester. Life in Paris is sooooooo much more relaxed for a student. It's so much slower and calmer. I can enjoy life and not worry about if I'm going to have enough time to actually live it (if that makes sense...). Of course there were some guys who asked me to dance, and I said yes (big step for socially-awkward, timid Sarah, I know) and it was fun. (There was a really cute Italian guy who wanted to dance until he found out I could only speak French and English--if you're reading this cute Italian guy, I'm working on learning Italian, I promise! lol!). I can honestly say that I don't really need to repeat that experience again. It was EXHAUSTING! Fun, but exhuasting. I didn't get home until about 7am (because the party got over at 5am and my friends and I--I found more IES people at the party--decided we would just hang out for a bit until the metro opened again at 5:30, and then it was a good hour ride back to my host family's house in the south of the city). It was kind of a lot at once, but I'm glad I tried it. I just don't think that is the lifestyle for me lol! (Also I ended up losing my wallet--It disappeared from my coat sometime when my coat was in the coat check. In the end, I lost an ISIC card, 40 Euro, my WA state driver's liscense, and my debit card. I got the card canceled immediately and the driver's license is easily replaceable and not very vital while I'm here since I have my passport, but the 40 Euro in cash is kind of a hard hit to take. Oh well, you live and learn, right?)
I've also been looking (with my friends) for really good, really inexpensive places to eat in the city. Life in Paris is expensive, and with the Euro to US Dollar exchange rate, you can add at least another third of what you're already paying on to the price of something you buy. Last night, my friends and I were extremely successful! We found the cutest little cafe in the 13th. It's called Chez Gladines and is SUPER popular and SUPER tastey! I had the best salad I have ever eaten in my entire life there: mozzarella, a fried egg (sorry mom!), really fancy (yet really common for France) thinly-sliced ham, tomatoes, tons of lettuce, fried, thinly-cut potatoes (sooooooo goood), some creamy sauce, and probably a few other things I'm forgetting. It was also HUGE and only 8,50 Euros, and with a glass of wine for 2,50 Euro, that's an amazing deal! Plus the atmosphere is qwarky and fun. The waiter we had was hallarious! I don't envy him his job though--the place was jam packed and he was constantly running around. After we ate dinner, my friends and I went and saw La Taupe (or Tinker. Tailor. Soldier. Spy. in English). It was very confusing and heavy, but well done. I think it's one of those movies I'll need to watch again sometime in order to follow everything that was going on (and maybe attempting to read the book on which it is based wouldn't hurt either). Also, I saw L'Artiste (The Artist) a few weeks back and it was REALLY good (I can't remember if I already blogged about it or not, but you should all go see it if you can--it's such a good movie!).
I've recently lost my voice, and I sound like Roz from Monsters Inc. It's actually kind of funny, to a certain point. It's making it hard to communicate in any language. This happened to me once before at the summer camp I worked at where I could only speak in French. My theory is that the French language (especially the Rs and the accent itself) force my vocal cords to work in new/different ways and thus stresses them out. I highly doubt that's true, but it could explain why they hate me right now and refuse to work lol! I'm also finding it harder and harder to speak and write in English. That is a weird feeling! But a good thing, right? lol!
Sadly, outside of my love for the city and the slower-paced lifestyle, my transition into living with my host family is not so much of a positive in my life right now. It's a long and complicated explaination, but what it amounts to is that I'm in the process of looking at moving in with a new host family. I will know more about what will be happening by the end of next week (and will try to remember to keep you all posted). I just don't feel welcome at my host family's house. In fact, I just feel like a burden and that cultural miscommunications are being taken to an extreme (they're going to happen, yes, but they shouldn't be occuring to the level they have for me in my opinion...). I just don't feel comfortable living with them. It's no fun feeling like I'm walking on egg shells all the time. But who knows, as I continue to talk about all of these feelings and this situation with my host parents and with the housing lady at IES, things may work out in such a way that I stay (but I think in this moment, I'm leaning more toward switching...).
I hope all well with your lives!
Love from Paris,
Sarah
Friday, January 27, 2012
Ca Va Mieux
Today was better. Much better. I went shopping, explored the city some more, found some really cheap clothes at H&M thanks to the sales and got the last book I need for my classes at IES (only 5 books total for all my classes and no more than 50 Euro--cheapest semester for books ever, and that's expensive for French classes apparently...I'm not in the States anymore).
I'm really feeling this song right now for some reason (Thanks to John, my music guru, for introducing me to the artist!):
Mika's new (French) song is pretty catchy too. I can't wait for the rest of the album to come out later sometime this year. It's kinda a cute song-listen! =D
I'm really feeling this song right now for some reason (Thanks to John, my music guru, for introducing me to the artist!):
Mika's new (French) song is pretty catchy too. I can't wait for the rest of the album to come out later sometime this year. It's kinda a cute song-listen! =D
Thursday, January 26, 2012
What an "Epic Fail" of a Day
Today was supposed to be a good day. It's Thursday, which means I have one class at 10:45. I'm done at 12:15, and since I don' t have classes on Fridays, today is basically my Friday. Hence, when I woke up this morning, I was in a great mood, ready for another weekend full of exploring the city. Well, that excitement quickly turned to frustration and embarrassment, and to be honest, a bit of anger.
My friends who have studied away in the past have told me that there is a cyclic nature to studying in another country. First, you get anxious before you leave; check. Next, you arrive and are on a high because you're actually IN the country/place you've been trying to get to and for which you've been filling out scads and scads of paperwork for what seems like years; check. After that, you come down off of cloud nine as your faith in your ability to navigate a new culture and to speak the language (if it is different) begins to wane; check. No, more like circled in bright red pen with stars and fireworks shooting off of the page. I knew I was full on in this stage of my journey abroad when I was on my hands and knees on the rain-soaked, filth-covered, Parisian sidewalk with tomato sauce splattered all across my hands and my jeans, watching as person after person walked by and didn't ask if I needed help cleaning up the mess I had just made. I'm just glad no one stole my yogurt laying three feet in front of me--heaven knows it's almost impossible to find normal yogurt in this country lol!
Let's go back a few hours. It's 10:45 am. I'm in class. It's a translations class and today is the first day we will actually be discussing translation and not just French grammar (good thing too--I needed a break from trying to cram back into my brain everything I had ever learned about French grammar in the past seven years during the past week and a half). I'm usually really good with French grammar and have no problems following along. That was not the case today. I felt so lost and so behind and couldn't form a coherent sentence in French when my professor looked at me. That was a weird feeling for me, and I didn't like it. I don't mind being challenged, that wasn't the problem. The problem was that I was failing at something I know I'm good at. Why?, I kept asking myself. I still don't know the answer to that question, but I'm hoping that I start to become more at ease with the class because I know I can learn a lot from it. I just hope it doesn't kick me too hard.
After class, I wasn't in the best mood, but I was looking forward to grabbing something nice to eat at the local bakery and then doing some grocery shopping (pasta for dinner is getting a bit old, and I'm totally already out of Nutella hahaha). First, I needed to print a few things for class on Monday. I didn't want to have to go back to the IES Center tomorrow (since I don't have class) to print my readings (it is the only place I can print things here). Well, my quick "printing pit-stop" turned into a "Sarah, j'arrive pas a croire comment t'as fait se casser l'imprimente...encore" (basically, for those of you who don't speak French, it became a shouting match where I was on the receiving end of lots of angry French people shouting at me for "breaking" the printer...again). Funsies! It could have happened to anyone. This printer is very touchy. It just decides to freeze and stop working at any moment. It just so happens that two of these most recent moments have been when I was using it. Well, that's what I call bad luck. Oh well, I'm trying not to take it personally.
It's about 1pm by now and I just want to go get my groceries, go home, and maybe go for a run in the park next to my house. I get to the supermarche and find everything I need but a few items, so I decide to go down the street to the other grocery store which has more stuff (but which is more expensive) to get those last few items. Bad idea. By the time I got out of there, I had been accused of stealing by a very irate French man (the security cop got involved--ugg). I tried in very broken French (my French doesn't flow very well when I'm nervous, scared, or accused of stealing apparently...) to tell both the angry French man and the security guard that I had NO IDEA what they were talking about. I just wanted to buy my pretzels and dried pineapple pieces and get the heck out of there. Finally, they understood and believed me and let me go after apologizing and helping me get all of my groceries resettled into plastic bags. I booked it out of there trying not to cry. (Mom, why is it that I always have the gut reaction to cry in moments where I'm uncomfortable but in which that is the last thing I want to do cause it will only make it worse? lol!)
I was only a couple 10 minute walks and a short metro ride from being home. I just wanted to get there and curl up on my bed with a good book and be done with this day. That was not going to happen. After getting off the metro (during which someone almost stole me wallet), one of the plastic bags decided to give way and my groceries spilled all over the sidewalk. This is the moment I knew I had hit rock bottom. The jar of tomato sauce I bought fell to the ground and shattered, making a sound like a gun shot had just gone off (so, basically everyone in a three block vicinity probably heard it--great...). Haha, my first thought (after screaming a few expletives in my head) was "well, there goes 3 Euro". I didn't even feel embarrassed; I didn't even feel sad; I just felt angry. I tried to do damage control, but the best I could do was throw what was left of the jar and about half of the sauce contained within those glass fragments into the nearest public trashcan. That left about half the sauce on me and the sidewalk. Whoopsies. Sadly, I didn't even care that there was a big pile of red goo on the side walk. Dogs here poop all over the sidewalk and no one ever cleans it up--what is a little (ok, a lot!) of tomato sauce then? I felt bad leaving it, but I had no way of cleaning it up. That's not even what made me mad. It was the fact that EVERY single person who walked by me (there must have been at least a dozen in that few minute window) didn't even stop to ask if I needed help. If this had happened in the States, even in a place like NYC, I'm sure at least one person would have stopped to try to help.
I'm getting a bit fed up with the "mean" facade the Parisians put on most of the time when they are walking outside or on the metro. Would it be such a crime to smile at those you see or make small talk, or for heaven sakes ask the girl walking in front of you whose groceries just spilled all over the ground if she needs a hand? No, I really don't think so. But, I can't think like that. This isn't my world. I know that and I understand that, but it doesn't mean it doesn't frustrate me. I'm allowed to not like it, but I can't let it make me angry. All of these little inconsequential things don't seem to be a big deal when I look back at what I have written. In fact, they look like I'm just venting or complaining. However, these events, today, has taught me that I'm still me. I'm still American, and that's okay. It just means there might be some hard times and some bad days. But bad days are going to be the exception and not the rule. I'm sure things could have been much worse, and they might even get more challenging (here's to hoping they really don't), but I'll survive. I'll be just fine. I'm in Paris after all! Plus, each down is an opportunity to learn how to get back up, right? After all, what goes down has to go back up???? That's it....right??? ;D
My friends who have studied away in the past have told me that there is a cyclic nature to studying in another country. First, you get anxious before you leave; check. Next, you arrive and are on a high because you're actually IN the country/place you've been trying to get to and for which you've been filling out scads and scads of paperwork for what seems like years; check. After that, you come down off of cloud nine as your faith in your ability to navigate a new culture and to speak the language (if it is different) begins to wane; check. No, more like circled in bright red pen with stars and fireworks shooting off of the page. I knew I was full on in this stage of my journey abroad when I was on my hands and knees on the rain-soaked, filth-covered, Parisian sidewalk with tomato sauce splattered all across my hands and my jeans, watching as person after person walked by and didn't ask if I needed help cleaning up the mess I had just made. I'm just glad no one stole my yogurt laying three feet in front of me--heaven knows it's almost impossible to find normal yogurt in this country lol!
Let's go back a few hours. It's 10:45 am. I'm in class. It's a translations class and today is the first day we will actually be discussing translation and not just French grammar (good thing too--I needed a break from trying to cram back into my brain everything I had ever learned about French grammar in the past seven years during the past week and a half). I'm usually really good with French grammar and have no problems following along. That was not the case today. I felt so lost and so behind and couldn't form a coherent sentence in French when my professor looked at me. That was a weird feeling for me, and I didn't like it. I don't mind being challenged, that wasn't the problem. The problem was that I was failing at something I know I'm good at. Why?, I kept asking myself. I still don't know the answer to that question, but I'm hoping that I start to become more at ease with the class because I know I can learn a lot from it. I just hope it doesn't kick me too hard.
After class, I wasn't in the best mood, but I was looking forward to grabbing something nice to eat at the local bakery and then doing some grocery shopping (pasta for dinner is getting a bit old, and I'm totally already out of Nutella hahaha). First, I needed to print a few things for class on Monday. I didn't want to have to go back to the IES Center tomorrow (since I don't have class) to print my readings (it is the only place I can print things here). Well, my quick "printing pit-stop" turned into a "Sarah, j'arrive pas a croire comment t'as fait se casser l'imprimente...encore" (basically, for those of you who don't speak French, it became a shouting match where I was on the receiving end of lots of angry French people shouting at me for "breaking" the printer...again). Funsies! It could have happened to anyone. This printer is very touchy. It just decides to freeze and stop working at any moment. It just so happens that two of these most recent moments have been when I was using it. Well, that's what I call bad luck. Oh well, I'm trying not to take it personally.
It's about 1pm by now and I just want to go get my groceries, go home, and maybe go for a run in the park next to my house. I get to the supermarche and find everything I need but a few items, so I decide to go down the street to the other grocery store which has more stuff (but which is more expensive) to get those last few items. Bad idea. By the time I got out of there, I had been accused of stealing by a very irate French man (the security cop got involved--ugg). I tried in very broken French (my French doesn't flow very well when I'm nervous, scared, or accused of stealing apparently...) to tell both the angry French man and the security guard that I had NO IDEA what they were talking about. I just wanted to buy my pretzels and dried pineapple pieces and get the heck out of there. Finally, they understood and believed me and let me go after apologizing and helping me get all of my groceries resettled into plastic bags. I booked it out of there trying not to cry. (Mom, why is it that I always have the gut reaction to cry in moments where I'm uncomfortable but in which that is the last thing I want to do cause it will only make it worse? lol!)
I was only a couple 10 minute walks and a short metro ride from being home. I just wanted to get there and curl up on my bed with a good book and be done with this day. That was not going to happen. After getting off the metro (during which someone almost stole me wallet), one of the plastic bags decided to give way and my groceries spilled all over the sidewalk. This is the moment I knew I had hit rock bottom. The jar of tomato sauce I bought fell to the ground and shattered, making a sound like a gun shot had just gone off (so, basically everyone in a three block vicinity probably heard it--great...). Haha, my first thought (after screaming a few expletives in my head) was "well, there goes 3 Euro". I didn't even feel embarrassed; I didn't even feel sad; I just felt angry. I tried to do damage control, but the best I could do was throw what was left of the jar and about half of the sauce contained within those glass fragments into the nearest public trashcan. That left about half the sauce on me and the sidewalk. Whoopsies. Sadly, I didn't even care that there was a big pile of red goo on the side walk. Dogs here poop all over the sidewalk and no one ever cleans it up--what is a little (ok, a lot!) of tomato sauce then? I felt bad leaving it, but I had no way of cleaning it up. That's not even what made me mad. It was the fact that EVERY single person who walked by me (there must have been at least a dozen in that few minute window) didn't even stop to ask if I needed help. If this had happened in the States, even in a place like NYC, I'm sure at least one person would have stopped to try to help.
I'm getting a bit fed up with the "mean" facade the Parisians put on most of the time when they are walking outside or on the metro. Would it be such a crime to smile at those you see or make small talk, or for heaven sakes ask the girl walking in front of you whose groceries just spilled all over the ground if she needs a hand? No, I really don't think so. But, I can't think like that. This isn't my world. I know that and I understand that, but it doesn't mean it doesn't frustrate me. I'm allowed to not like it, but I can't let it make me angry. All of these little inconsequential things don't seem to be a big deal when I look back at what I have written. In fact, they look like I'm just venting or complaining. However, these events, today, has taught me that I'm still me. I'm still American, and that's okay. It just means there might be some hard times and some bad days. But bad days are going to be the exception and not the rule. I'm sure things could have been much worse, and they might even get more challenging (here's to hoping they really don't), but I'll survive. I'll be just fine. I'm in Paris after all! Plus, each down is an opportunity to learn how to get back up, right? After all, what goes down has to go back up???? That's it....right??? ;D
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
And We're Off!
Today marked the second day of classes for this semester. Things are thus officially in full swing. I'm taking four classes right now at the IES center and will be adding another class soon once I can sign up for my university class at L'Institut Catholique de Paris (which is only about a 20 minute commute from where I am living--I'm finding more and more that I really do live in an ideal spot in the city). I am taking a literature class (one of only two classes I have left before I am done with my French major, whoot!), a political science class on the European Union, a French language class (it's been drilled into my brain that it is NOT a grammar class by IES) on translation, and a service learning class where I will be learning about French social policy as well as volunteering somewhere in the city (probably with organizations like OXFAM and Goodwill-like places) for 4-6 hours a week. I should have my placement sometime in the next few weeks. I'm really excited that I'm going to have the chance to interact with French people in a context that I would not have otherwise had the opportunity to work in if I wasn't currently studying abroad. It should also be a great way to meet French people and test my French speaking skills. There are only four of us in the class, so that should be kind of fun (we're all girls and we all speak French well and seem to get along great--plus our professors for that class are super funny and really helpful).
I've started to tone down the tourist-y activities as of late. I've kind of exhausted myself a bit with playing the tourist. Don't get me wrong, I've loved every moment of it, but I'm ready to start having a bit more routine in my life. I'm sure I'll be doing lots more tourist-y stuff in the future (even revisiting some of the places I've already been probably). I've seen the Eiffel Tower, been to the Musee d'Orsay, explored a small part of the Louvre, have seen the Arc de Triomph and the Champs Elysees, walked along the Seine, seen a few castles in the Loire Valley, and fully mastered the subway system (or so I like to think lol) as well as some of the cultural norms. Even though I'm living in a very western country, the cultural differences between France and the U.S still manifest themselves everyday. For example, today I had to go to Office Depot to buy a mini stapler (IES seems to not have any staplers and it's kind of an organization nightmare for me lol) and I some how managed to make one of the sales people angry just by saying I didn't need any help since I was just looking for a few small things when he asked if he could help me. This would have been fine in the States, but apparently smiling and politely refusing help is kind of offensive here--whoopsies! I'm slowly learning that I'm going to make mistakes, and most often, they're going to be when I think I'm doing nothing wrong or when I'm being perfectly nice. Oh well, you live and learn, and I'm sure learning a lot. I have a feeling I'm going to be learning a lot more outside of the classroom than in it this semester.
Other than a few crazy adventures with the metro this past weekend and a trip to the Louvre, live has slowed down a lot and I'm starting to feel more at ease. It'll be even nicer when my schedule is completely set sometime in the next two weeks, but for now I'm just learning to take things a few days at a time. And, before I know it, I'll be back in the States (I can tell I'm already going to be sad to leave this amazing city).
Love from Paris,
Sarah
I've started to tone down the tourist-y activities as of late. I've kind of exhausted myself a bit with playing the tourist. Don't get me wrong, I've loved every moment of it, but I'm ready to start having a bit more routine in my life. I'm sure I'll be doing lots more tourist-y stuff in the future (even revisiting some of the places I've already been probably). I've seen the Eiffel Tower, been to the Musee d'Orsay, explored a small part of the Louvre, have seen the Arc de Triomph and the Champs Elysees, walked along the Seine, seen a few castles in the Loire Valley, and fully mastered the subway system (or so I like to think lol) as well as some of the cultural norms. Even though I'm living in a very western country, the cultural differences between France and the U.S still manifest themselves everyday. For example, today I had to go to Office Depot to buy a mini stapler (IES seems to not have any staplers and it's kind of an organization nightmare for me lol) and I some how managed to make one of the sales people angry just by saying I didn't need any help since I was just looking for a few small things when he asked if he could help me. This would have been fine in the States, but apparently smiling and politely refusing help is kind of offensive here--whoopsies! I'm slowly learning that I'm going to make mistakes, and most often, they're going to be when I think I'm doing nothing wrong or when I'm being perfectly nice. Oh well, you live and learn, and I'm sure learning a lot. I have a feeling I'm going to be learning a lot more outside of the classroom than in it this semester.
Other than a few crazy adventures with the metro this past weekend and a trip to the Louvre, live has slowed down a lot and I'm starting to feel more at ease. It'll be even nicer when my schedule is completely set sometime in the next two weeks, but for now I'm just learning to take things a few days at a time. And, before I know it, I'll be back in the States (I can tell I'm already going to be sad to leave this amazing city).
Love from Paris,
Sarah
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Some Photos
I thought you all might want to see some photos of my adventures as of late, so I have uploaded several dozen photos (I'm taking a study break, not procrastinating, I promise) for your viewing pleasure:
On the way to the Loire Valley:
Eating in a Cave! So cool!!!:
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| This picture is for you, Mom! They had little mustard packets! You'll fit in just fine here! ;D |
Amboise:
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| My new home??? Yes please! |
Chateau Chambord:
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| This staircase was designed by DaVinci! |
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| It is in the shape of a double helix. |
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| They would hang large tapestries like this one on the walls to add color and to keep the heat from escaping. |
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| Francois 1er's bed/bedroom. |
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| Francois 1er (un roi de France/A French King) |
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| Marie d'Autriche's bed/room. |
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| Louis XIV's room! Soooo much gold--I have a feeling it resembles Versailles... |
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| More of Louis XIV's room. |
Le Centre Pompidou:
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| PICASO! |
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| DUCHAMP! I studied this piece in my art history class last year! So surreal to see it in person! |
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| Kandinsky! |
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| Gotta love Warhol! |
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| View from the museum! Just gorgeous! |
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| The tower lit up while we were looking out over the city from the top of the museum after our tour. |
The Eiffel Tower Take 2:
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| My very first view of the tower...ever! |
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| I saw this while we were walking to the tower from the metro stop--it says Pullman! But I don't know why lol! |
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| Since the tower was closed (for "exceptional circumstances") that afternoon, we decided to just walk along the Seine as the sun set. |
Miscellaneous
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| The view from the plane--the clouds look just like cotton candy to me hehehe. |
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| Interesting effect with the blades when I take a picture of them. They can't be seen with the naked eye because they are moving too fast, but when I took a picture of them, they would show up in weird ways... |
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| Somewhere over Western Washington. |
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| The cafe machine at the IES center. This picture is for Nicole. Is it the same magical machine, Nicole? Everyone here thinks it has to be some form of magic that makes it work lol! |
Le Parc Montsouris (which is right by my homestay):
More of Amboise, just because I love it soooo much!:
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