Blah

That is exactly how I’ve felt this past week.  I have been sick since Saturday and it hasn’t changed much.  I went to school and whatnot but other than that I didn’t really do anything this week.  It has been a rather blah boring week and I want to feel better again and soon so that I can go out and do stuff and check out les soldes (the sales) that only happen twice a year.  Ugh, of course I would get the cold that doesn’t want to go away!  Today I have to go out to the grocery store and get some stuff and I am all out of tissues since I need to blow my nose what seems like every 5 minutes.  I also need to go to the pharmacie and get some cold medicine (I am throwing in the towel, I thought it would go away on it’s own but I was wrong).  Ugh, so many errands to run and I don’t want to do them.  It is funny because I don’t want to get up and do things since I just feel blah but I am getting stir crazy from being in my room and I just want to get better and quick so I can go out and do fun things.  This week during one of my bus rides home I had the revelation that I only have 4 months left in Paris for studying!!  That is not much time at all!!  Also since I have been cooped up in my room I have had a lot of time to think, which may not be a good thing lol!  But I did a lot of thinking about how short my time left here really is.  Four months is nothing, there is still so much that I want to learn and do and discover and I am not ready to go back to the States yet; I want another year or so to learn French and learn more about this country and whatnot.  It is just mind boggling to think how quickly my time here is going by and I don’t want to waste a moment of it (and of course I have this revelation when I am sick and am not up to going out and doing grand things).  I was thinking back on first semester (and how quickly it went) and how I struggled with a lot of things like just making friends with locals (and how I am still working on that).  When I first was looking back on that previous semester I was comparing it to other people’s experiences abroad and how they were all making friends and learning lots of stuff and changing and whatnot.  I would then look at my first semester and think, “what happened?  Why didn’t I get that?  Why is it that everyone else seems to be friends with locals or international students and I am still rather friendless?”  But now I realize that I can’t compare experiences abroad because each and everyone has their own unique experiences that come with their own difficulties.  I guess what I am trying to say is that first semester was really hard for me and there were a lot of times when I questioned what I was doing here and had lost sight of why I love French and France.  But the other day I had this “aha” moment and I realized that I have learned a lot (like how to navigate the metro by myself, I remember in the beginning when I was terrified to take the metro by myself) and I remembered how much I love learning French even though it is hard (I still have a lot of room for improvement though) and how much I love France and the culture.  I guess part of me is being all sentimental and reflective because 1) my experience is half way over and 2) the newbies will be coming on Monday and it will be funny to think about how I was in their position not that long ago.

Week 2 Back at School

Well it was my second week back at school after the holidays and not too much went on.  I had school, bénévolat, homework; the usual stuff.  However there were some fun things that I did do during the week.

Lundi le 9 janvier:

Today I ran errands and that evening I went over to the apartment that Ang and her boyfriend, Matt, were renting in Paris while he was here visiting her.  Perry joined us as well and we had chicken fajitas and chips with salsa.  It was all very good.  I was in charge of bringing the dessert so I found a delicious red berry tarte that was so good.  We had a really nice time and just hung out and talked.  I went home around 10:30pm and read a bit before going to bed.

This is the delicious tarte that I found at a boulangerie which is right by my bus stop

Mardi le 10 janvier:

Well I had school today and that went fine.  My afternoon class, Tourisme & Gastronomie, went on a field trip and so that was a lot of fun.  We got to try some different cheeses, some bread, a cup of coffee, and some Berthillon’s ice cream.  It was a very nice way to spend the afternoon despite the fact that it was ridiculously cold and we were all frozen by the end of the walking tour.

Jeudi le 12 janvier:

Today I had my really big language exam and it actually wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be.  We will see how the results turned out.

Vendredi le 13 janvier:

So this morning I did laundry and that wasn’t very exciting but it was necessary!  In the afternoon I went over to Hôtel de Ville and went ice skating with Perry, Ang, et Matt.  It was a blast!  There is an ice skating rink right in front of Hôtel de Ville and it is there during the winter, I am not sure how long it stays there during the winter but nonetheless it has been there since the holidays.  Anyways, I had so much fun ice skating, I had not gone ice skating in years!  I think the last time I went I was down in Kentucky visiting the Medinas.  I was afraid I was going to fall because well it had been a while but I didn’t fall once!  There were a couple of close calls though.  Afterwards the four of us headed over to McDonald’s and each got something to munch on.  It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon.  Sadly, I don’t have any pictures but I didn’t bring my camera because I was afraid I would fall and break my camera and I didn’t want to take that chance.

Samedi le 14 janvier:

So I woke up today and wasn’t feeling too well but I got ready for the cultural visit that is run by retired people (whom I do the conversation hour with once a week).  I am glad I went because well it is free and I got to learn about the Quartier Latin de Paris.  There were four other students that came along on this adventure.  We visited a couple of churches and whatnot.  I had fun but it was freezing cold out that morning!!  Towards the end I could barely concentrate because I was so cold!

Musée du Moyen Age (we just walked around the outside of it)

The group listening to Mr. Rondet explain the architecture

Walking through Paris, it was sunny but cold!

One of the churches we visited, St. Eustache, which is right next to la Pantheon

After the tour finished the lady who helped guide the tour with M Rondet invited us four girls over to her apartment for a cup of coffee and lunch.  She lives not too far from Hôtel de Ville.  It was very nice of her to do such a thing.  We got to talk with her and we found out that she has done a lot of traveling and has lived in a lot of different places like Australia, South America, and Japan.  It was so neat to see her apartment because it is full of stuff from all over the world!  She is a well traveled person to say the least!  Afterwards, one of the girls, Jessica, and I went over to BHV, which is a big department store and walked around.  We then walked down rue de Rivoli and just talked.  Around 3pm I went home and went I got home I wasn’t feeling well at all!  I slept for about three hours and woke up and had some dinner.  I then went to bed at 10:30pm.  I was so miserable and could barely even move because I felt so sick.  It wasn’t fun at all.

Dimanche le 15 janvier:

Well today I was feeling a little bit better, I could actually get out of bed and not feel sick to my stomach when I stood up; which was a good thing because I had promised Jessica that today we would go to a museum together in the afternoon.  In the afternoon I met up Jessica at the Grevin Museum, which is the wax museum in Paris.  It was ridiculously expensive so I will not be going back but I can now say that I have gone.  It was interesting though and we had a good time making fun of the wax people, there was George Clooney along with some really gross ones like the history of science in France and a guy dissecting a hand.  I didn’t take any pictures of the gross ones. 

Le Petit Prince, I would have to say this one was my favorite

Even Indiana Jones was at the wax museum

And here is my old pal, Albert Einstein

Afterwards we walked over to l’Opéra and there was a group of students playing music on the steps leading up to the Opéra so we stopped a listened for a while.  We then said goodbye and I went home to take it easy because I am still sick and don’t want to push it.

Students playing on the steps of the Opéra (they were all wearing orange in some way)

I did facetime with my family back home and I got to see my two favorite little guys!  Stephen and Elijah were over at my house for the afternoon and I got to talk with them briefly.  I knew that they would be bigger but they have changed so much especially Elijah!  Oh my goodness, he is running!  The last time I saw him he was only crawling.  It made me realize how much I miss being around little kids and how much I miss the kids that I know back home.  It also struck me that things back home are changing too and when I get back stuff won’t be the same anymore and I am not exactly sure how I feel about that yet.  By July 22^nd, things will definitely be a lot different and I will have to be readjusting to life back in the States.  Ugh, but I am not going to think about that too much at the moment because I still have a semester (4 months) in Paris, a month in Spain, and three weeks with my family exploring more of Europe before I have to get on a plane to go back to the U.S.

Back to School

Well school started back up on Tuesday for me and school this week went fine.  There were some days where it was a major struggle to even get out of bed but I made it off to school and the days went fine.  I had homework and whatnot and part of me was glad to be back in school and have things to do again.  It was nice to be busy with stuff and not just laze around and be a bum.  On Friday the 6^th of January it was such a nice day out that I walked over to the fnac (which is like a best buy and barnes & noble combined) and I picked up another book because I finished my other book rather quickly and needed something else to read.  I love reading in French and it is awesome practice.  I then headed back to my foyer and eventually headed over to the Rodin Museum to check out the gardens.  When I got over to the museum there wasn’t a line to get in and it was free to get into the gardens so that was cool!  The actual museum part is closed until April for renovations but there are statues in the garden and it was just such a nice day out that I was excited to be outside and get some Vitamin D.  That garden was beautiful and I can only imagine what it is like with all the flowers in bloom and whatnot.  I really enjoyed my time there.

Le Penseur and les Invalides (in the background) are just a stone’s throw away

Roaming the gardens on this gorgeous day

A statue out in the gardens at the Rodin Museum

The Rodin Museum gardens with les Invalides and the tip of the Eiffel Tower (to left of dome) in the background

Rodin Museum and it’s gardens

The pond in the gardens

A picture perfect day at the Rodin Museum

Me at the Rodin Museum

An awesome tree that I was fascinated with

The Rodin Museum and amazing tree

The Rodin Museum and les Invalides (dome in the background)

Well now that I have practically added every picture from my time there you now have a good idea of what the gardens look like.  It was just a picture perfect day and I am in love with like all my pictures from that day it is just a beautiful location and is so serene in the middle of a big bustling city.  There also weren’t a ton of tourists which was wonderful so it was like I practically had the gardens to myself.  It was just really nice to go out and explore more of this beautiful city.

Bonne Année!!

That is what one says in French for Happy New Years!  I was rather bummed out for a while because I had absolutely no plans for New Years Eve.  I was just planning on hanging out around my foyer and not doing too much.  I thought maybe I would venture over to la Tour Eiffel before midnight and be there at midnight but I am so glad that I didn’t because from what I heard it was super duper crowded and is like the equivalent of being in Times Square in New York.  I heard the lines to just get on the metro were insane.  I actually was invited to go to a church at the metro Porte D’Orléans.  It is kind of the other side of the city from where I live but I was excited to be invited and said yes.  The girl that invited me was Mislane, she lives in my foyer and we go to the same church on Sundays.  She is a very sweet person.  Anyways, it was me her and Jasmine who went to this church.  We got there and there were other young people around our age and families and whatnot.  We had dinner and then had a church service and started praying like 10 minutes before midnight and kept praying until a few minutes after the new year.  The pastor wanted to be in prayer during the old year and new year which was kind of cool.  Afterwards, everyone said bonne année to each other and was doing la bise (which is the kisses on the cheeks).  It was fun just getting out and seeing a different part of the city.  I had a really nice time and am very glad I went.  We helped clean up and then took the metro home and there were a lot of people and everyone was yelling bonne année and it was quite the experience.  I got home around like 1:30am, I think.  I then skyped with my family and the Medinas.  They still had several hours before it was New Years in the States.  I was really tired and went to bed at 2am and slept in the next morning.

Me, Mislane, and Jasmine at the church party

Mislane, me and some of the other girls at the church

So What Exactly Did I Do?

Looking back at the week between Christmas and New Years, that is exactly what I am thinking.  What exactly did I do during that week?  Well, I couldn’t really remember anything special and so when I was looking in my journal at what I did it was absolutely nothing.  I did go out and venture around in Paris on the 29^th of December but other than that I did dittily squat.  I did do a lot of reading and pestering Maissie via facetime but other than that there isn’t much to report from this week.  I do have some pictures though from when I did venture out and around Paris.  I was going to go to the Rodin Museum on the 29^th but once I saw the line to get in I decided that I can wait and go back another time when there are a lot less tourists.  I foolishly thought that Musée D’Orsay would be less crowded so I jumped on a bus and headed over there.  When I got off of the bus and made it over to the entrance it was just crazy and I decided that it could wait.  Since it was break and everyone was on vacation everyone was out and about in Paris and that was annoying because all the touristy things had ridiculously long lines.  Anyways, since I live here I can just go back and visit another day when there are less tourists, there are never no tourists in Paris but after the holidays there aren’t as many tourists.  So I just walked around by the Seine and made it over to Place de la Concorde and then headed home.  Here are some pictures from walking around Paris.

La Seine et le Louvre (building on the left)

Paris, there is just something about this city

Musée D’Orsay (I avoided that museum because of the crazy lines)

L’Assemblée Nationale (building with columns)

Place de la Concorde

Me at Place de la Concorde, I love this city.

Christmas à la Campagne

Well, I didn’t get to go home for Christmas this year which was kind of hard for me to come to grips with at first.  When the majority of my program was going home and getting all excited about being able to spend Christmas with their families I was left behind to mope around.  Maybe that is why I spent most of the week before Christmas just hanging out around my foyer.  However, I spent Christmas with Perrine's family in Beauvais, France.  Perrine invited me over to her house for Christmas which was very nice of her to do so!  I took the train out to Beauvais and getting to the train was an adventure in and of itself!  So I had to go to Gare du Nord to catch my train to Beauvais.  Well Gare du Nord is a huge train station and I was running late and was rather frazzled and couldn’t figure out where I needed to go!  I ended up calling Perrine and she explained to me how where I needed to go.  I had 5 minutes until the train left and didn’t have a ticket yet.  However, Perrine told me that I could just buy one on the train.  But there was a slight problem with that scenario, I never saw anyone that worked on the train to buy a ticket from them!  So I got a free ride from Paris to Beauvais on the 24^th of December.  It was rather nice not having to pay but not something I will ever do again!  So I got there and Perrine was waiting at the station and we walked back to her house which is in town.  I got to meet her parents and her older sister and younger sister.  Her two sisters also each had a friend coming for Christmas.  We hung out and went to a Christmas Eve service (her mom is a pastor).  We had dinner and played a game afterwards and then eventually went to bed.

Dimanche le 25 décembre:

Joyeux Noël!!  Or as we say in the States, Merry Christmas!  So I felt kind of bad because I didn’t wake up in time to go to the church service on Christmas morning but her family was totally fine with us coming or not coming, they didn’t force us to do things.  I didn’t feel as bad because Perrine’s younger sister’s friend didn’t get up in time either.  We had an aperitif and after that we opened presents.  I gave to Leila, Perrine’s younger sister and Perrine’s older sister gave a present to me.  I got a little chocolate fondue pot with dark chocolate and a little notebook.  It was very nice of her.

They actually lit the candles on the tree!  I was afraid that something would catch on fire but nothing did

Perrine opening up her present

Afterwards we had lunch and that consisted of the dinde et marrons which is turkey and chestnuts and is a very typical French Christmas dinner.  After for dessert we had la bûche de Noël which is like a cake.  It was all delicious!  A family tradition at Christmas for Perrine’s family is going over to place that is like a forest preserve and walking around.  I guess they do this every Christmas, rain or shine.  It wasn’t too cold out so we had a nice walk.  We then headed back to the house and hung out for the rest of the evening.  I got to skype with my family and that was a lot of fun.  They were just beginning the festivities and ours in France were coming to an end.  We had a light dinner and watched a dvd of a comedian afterwards.  It was rather hard for me to understand at times because he used a lot of slang that I didn’t know but I would get the gist of it sometimes.  I did miss my family but it wasn’t as hard as Thanksgiving because I was with a family and was busy doing stuff unlike at Thanksgiving where they don’t celebrate it.  I had a very nice Christmas day despite the fact that I didn’t get to spend it with my own family.

Lundi le 26 décembre:

Well today I got to walk around the town with Perrine’s family.  I also got to see some churches and some old ruins that the town found.  It was a nice day out and we had a nice time just walking around and enjoying the fresh air.  For dinner we had a raclette and this was my first time ever having one and it was so good!  For those of you that don’t know what a raclette is, well it is a cheese fondue and you melt the cheese and put it on potatoes, charcuterie, or pickles.  I skipped the pickles since I am not a huge fan of them.  We played a card game afterwards and it was fun and I had never played it before.  I won the first round but it was just because of beginner’s luck, the second round I lost horribly.  But I still had fun.  Later on in the evening I went to bed.

Mardi le 27 décembre:

Well today I got up and got ready to head back home.  I had lunch with her family and then Leila and I took the train back to Paris.  Leila was going to go to her Grandma’s house and so she had to take a train to Paris and then catch another train to get to where her Grandma lives.  It was nice being back in Paris.  I enjoyed my weekend with Perrine’s family and it was nice to see how her family celebrates Christmas. 

The Week Before Christmas

The week before Christmas I didn’t really do much of anything.  I mostly just hung out in my foyer relaxing and it was rather nice because it wasn’t very noisy in the foyer since the majority of people had gone home for break.  There isn’t too much to say but I did hang out with Clayton, a guy from my program, on the 20^th in the afternoon, we went over to Sacré-Coeur and walked around that area for a good two hours.  It was fun getting to hang out with another person from the program before he left to go back to the States.  However, on Wednesday the 21^st I did actually do something fun and I got to get out of Paris and visit the suburbs, well actually it was just one suburb, Joinville-le-Pont.  Now, you may be wondering what was there to do in the suburbs and why did I spend the day out there?  Well, I have some French cousins, Christine & Bruno and their three kids and Christine’s parents, Michele & Noel all live out there.  Christine’s kids are in high school and middle school so it was nice to be around young people closer to my own age.  I got to the train station in Joinville-le-Pont at 11am and didn’t get back home until about 8pm.  We had a very nice lunch which was a delicious lasagna and of course a salad and we had a yummy dessert.  We also had some aperitifs, and of course you have to have wine with lunch and then Christine pulled out some champagne to go with dessert.  It was all very good and I loved just hanging with the family and being able to help set the table and whatnot.  It was a great way to spend the day!  Hopefully, I will be able to go out and visit them again!  It is only a 20 minute train ride away.  Here are a couple of pictures from my day in Joinville-le-Pont.

 

Noel, me and Michele

From left to right: Morgane, Jimmy (behind), Noel, me, Michele, et Dylan

Christine, me and Bruno and their dog Canelle (I look rather scary in this picture, I have no idea what is going on with my hair lol!)

But anyways, it was a wonderful day to spend a rainy Wednesday, we were hoping to walk around the town and by the river but it was rather rainy so we just hung out around the house which was fine with me.  I had a great time nonetheless!  On Thursday I did absolutely nothing and on Friday I went shopping over by Hôtel de Ville to find a Christmas present for Perrine’s younger sister.  At Christmas we are going to do a present exchange and I pulled Perrine’s sister’s name.  Hopefully it will be a nice weekend!

A Weekend in Strasbourg

Well I spent my first weekend of Christmas break in Strasbourg, France which is right on the border of Germany so there is a lot of German that is spoken there too, which was really interesting to hear.  Anyways, the reason why I went to Strasbourg is because it has these really cool Christmas markets and there is le grand sapin de Noël and lots of decorations.  It was a lot of fun just walking around and exploring what Strasbourg has to offer.  I have been to Strasbourg before but that was like almost 7 years ago and it was during the summer time.  There isn’t too too much to tell so this blog I think will mostly be pictures.  I just did a lot of walking and I took a ton of pictures!

Vendredi le 16 décembre:

Well today I got ready for leaving for Strasbourg in the afternoon.  I got to the train station super early but I didn’t want to be running late and be stressed out about things.  Public transportation is great but it isn’t always reliable.  The train ride went fine and we got into Strasbourg right on time.  I then found the hotel that I was staying at rather easily.  It was a 3 minute walk from the train station and not too far from the center of town.  When I first got there the markets were closed because of really bad wind.  And let me tell you, it was really bad wind!  It was also raining so I was using my umbrella and the wind killed it.  But anyways, I got my room and the people at the front desk were very nice and helpful and my room was nice and clean and small but for just me I don’t need something huge.  There was also a bathroom in my room which was super nice (one is not always guaranteed a private bathroom in European hotels).  I did eventually go out and walk around a bit but it was just way too windy to stay out and enjoy anything, also all the markets were closed for the day so I didn’t have too much to do that evening.  I did stop at a sandwich place though and pick up a sandwich for dinner while I was out and about.  I also stopped in this church called St. Pierre le Jeune, it was really pretty but there was one room that was super creepy with all these angel statues and I felt like I should have been in Doctor Who where there are those weeping angels (I think that is what they are called) that are super creepy.  Therefore I left that little sanctuary room rather quickly.

 

St. Pierre le Jeune really pretty but at the same time kind of eerie

Inside the big sanctuary (the little sanctuary with the creepy angels was behind the wall in the front, I didn’t take any pictures in there, I was too weirded out)

There were a ton of beautiful paintings on the inside of the church it was rather colorful

Le Grand Sapin at night

So I didn’t stay out very long because of the crazy weather and so I just hung out in my room at the hotel.  It wasn’t super exciting and I felt like Amanda Woods in the movie The Holiday when she first arrives in England and has no idea what to do with herself.  But hopefully the weather will be better on Saturday.

Samedi le 17 décembre:

Well today I got up and pretty much spent the whole day outside roaming around les marchés and Strasbourg.  The weather was very nice today, it was really cold but there was no rain and no wind so I didn’t mind too much.  So here are some pictures of what I did in the morning, in the afternoon I went back to the hotel to warm up since I had been out all morning and hadn’t been inside once.

The city of Strasbourg

The streets of Strasbourg

Les marchés by the cathedral

The big cathedral which is very ornate

Inside the cathedral

The very cool clock at the cathedral (My family and the Medinas should remember this)

Walking around Strasbourg (I don’t know if this is typical but the water was very high)

Restaurant all decorated for Noël

I then made my way back to the hotel and hung out in my room for a little while to warm up since it was so cold out.  Afterwards I headed back out but this time I went to go check out the area of Strasbourg called La Petite France, which is a very cute little area of town.

Heading over to La Petite France (also I just love this picture with the sun shining)

Still making my way over to La Petite France

Finally made it over to La Petite France, it is a rather cute area

Another pretty view of Strasbourg

I then headed back to the hotel but first I stopped at a boulangerie and picked up a very yummy slice of quiche lorraine.  It was delicious!  I then headed back out to check out the Christmas tree at night since it wasn’t crazy windy.  There happened to be a drumline like concert going on so I stood around with the rest of the crowd and watched the end of it.

Strasbourg at night

Le Grand Sapin at night, it is rather pretty

Me in front of le Grand Sapin

I then just hung out in my room that night and talked with my family via facetime and eventually went to bed so I could get up and be ready for another day of exploring Strasbourg and les marchés de Noël.

Dimanche le 19 décembre:

Well I got up and got ready for the day.  I then headed out and checked out some more of the markets.  By the end of the day I had made it to all the Christmas markets that Strasbourg had to offer, which is a good thing because I was leaving Monday morning.

All the options in ornaments one could buy at the markets

Christmas decorations galore!

Looking at the cathedral from down the street

Later in the morning they had Christmas Carols going on by the Grand Sapin so I joined in on those and that was a lot of fun getting to sing Christmas songs in French.  I just wandered around for the afternoon looking at things and enjoyed a vin chaud along with a jus d’orange chaud.

These are a popular treat at Noël in Strasbourg, I think they are called bons hommes (they are kind of like a sweet bread but shaped like a gingerbread man, some have chocolate chips in them)

Also I forgot to mention, big soft pretzels are very popular over here, except they call them bretzels (which I guess is the German word for pretzel).  You could find them everywhere.

Later in the evening I went to a musical of the Nativity scene at the cathedral in the center.  It was very well done and it was kids that were performing in it.  Afterwards I walked around a bit to check out the lights at night since it was my last night in Strasbourg.

Musical of the Nativity scene

Christmas lights in Strasbourg

Walking around Strasbourg at night

Buildings all decorated and lit up for Noël

Looking at all the lights in Strasbourg

On my way back, I happened upon a concert by the Christmas tree so I stopped and listened

Lundi le 19 décembre:

Well today I got up and got ready to go home.  When I left the hotel I saw that there was snow on the roofs!  That was the only snow that was there but I still got rather excited.  I took train back to Paris and that went fine for the most part except for the ticket guy chewing me out in French about how a student id is not a form of identification and since I am a foreigner I need a passport.  Well, I foolishly didn’t think I would need to bring it with me since I wasn’t leaving the country so I left it in Paris.  But there was nothing I could do about it at that point.  Now that I think about it he pry just wanted to get his anger out on someone and I was the lucky winner.  But all went fine and I made it back to Paris safe and sound.  While on the ride home I did get to see snow and more than just a little dusting left over on the roofs!  It was so amazing seeing the French countryside covered in snow and huge forests with big evergreens completely white.  It was a bummer that I didn’t get to share this awesome experience with anyone but I still had fun going out on my own and seeing more of what France has to offer.