A Somewhat Busy First Week

Well, I have been in Paris for a week and have been busy with administrative like things.  I was able to get a métro pass, open a bank account and go to my school and meet the English teachers as well as the principal.  It still amazes me how much I have accomplished in this short amount of time.  I have also had a lot of free time and so I have been reading a lot (which is wonderful) in the local park near by and just exploring the city and the neighborhood I live in.  The 11th is a nice area in the fact that it isn't quite so touristy and it is mostly true working Parisians that live in this area.

So here are some of the highlights from this past week:

I found a cute little park that is not far from the place I am staying at and it has become one of my favorite spots to just sit and read or just watch the people walk by.

Square M. Gardette, one of my favorite spots in the area.

On Tuesday I went to the young adult group at the American Church in Paris and helped make the pizzas for pizza night.  I had a nice time and met some really nice people there.  On Wednesday, I went over to the Luxembourg gardens and went to the crêpe stand that is near there that has delicious things to eat.  I also went over to the gardens and just sat and enjoyed the park.  It was kind of funny to see all the tourists bustling about.

Enjoying the Luxembourg gardens like everyone else

I met up with Rachel, a girl who studied abroad in Paris on the Central program with me in the spring, on Wednesday evening at a place called Le Pure Café.  I had such a great time getting to talk with her and enjoy a glass of wine.  It was also really nice getting to see a familiar face in the city.  On Thursday, I headed over to Lycée Rabelais in the 18th where I will be an English assistant for the year and met the English teachers (except for one) and the principal.  Everyone seems really nice and willing to help out in any way that they can.  I am really looking forward to getting started and working with the kids.  On Friday I went back to the park I always go to and hung out there I also went to a café near me called Les Cent Kilos and had a café.  It was great just sitting there and watching the people walk by.

Enjoying an espresso (un café) and getting some much needed journaling done

On Saturday I met up with the Kleville family, which is a family I have been in contact with about possibly living with them for the year.  They were in Paris for the Protéstants en Fête, which is like a big conference type thing that only happens every four years in a different city in France for Protestants, and were doing things for that.  I hung out with them and went around to the different stands.  I then went with them back to their house in the south suburbs and hung out and had a lovely dinner.  I had such a great time and am going to be moving in with them later.  Today, I found out that my dear friend, Becky, is coming to Paris for her Christmas break and will be spending Christmas and New Years with me in Paris.  I was super excited when I found out that she is coming over.  I also went to church and afterwards explored around my neighborhood.  I was also able to Facetime with my parents and my grandparents.  It was so great getting to talk with them and I am really looking forward to my grandparents coming to Paris in October, it will be such a wonderful time!

Walking around the streets of the 11th

A very stereotypical looking French bakery that I came across in the 11th

St. Ambroise, a church that is near where I live

Back in Paris

Being back in Paris has been a roller coaster of mixed emotions.  There are moments where I am enjoying life back in the big city and there are moments where I have questioned what I am doing here and if I am capable of jumping through all the hoops to even just get a simple métro pass let alone open up a French bank account.  You see, when I studied abroad in Paris for a year I had a program with a director right here in Paris (and was rather spoiled).  She told us where we would be living, helped us get our phones, open a bank account, get a métro pass, etc., etc.  In the beginning she held our hand through the whole process and at any point during our time here you could go to her for help.  Well, this time around I am rather alone in the whole process of living abroad.  I do have a contact person in the French government but when one is working with the French expect slow responses and not much help in jumping through the hoops of 'becoming a local.'  It can be rather daunting when you have to open a bank account, get a métro pass, find a permanent place to stay, find a place that will translate your birth certificate and that the French government will accept as a valid translation, amongst other things.

So I left on a Wednesday and it was hard saying goodbye to my parents but I did and caught my flight to Stockholm, Sweden.  I tried to sleep on the plane but as per usual it was in vain.  I then had to sit around the Stockholm airport for a few hours and I caught my flight to Paris, they changed the gate on me but thankfully it was just across the hall so I didn't have to go very far.  The flight was packed and I was surrounded by the chattiest people so trying to catch any sleep was no use.  I make it to the airport in Paris and got my suitcases and found a phone to call the shuttle company.  The guy that was picking me up was waiting for me and took me out to the van.  There were two other ladies already in the van and we were going to pick up the last woman.  Traffic was horrible going into Paris so I got to the apartment I'm staying at temporarily a bit late.  I am staying in the 11th arrondissement with an American woman who has lived/worked in Paris for 22 years and has just recently retired and decided to stay in France.  She is very nice for letting me stay with her for a bit before I find somewhere else to stay for the rest of my time here.  I got a tour of the apartment/apartment building and we chatted for a bit.  I was able to contact my family and let them know I made it to Paris.  Nothing else exciting really happened on Thursday because I was tired and went to bed early.

On Friday I did some grocery shopping at 2 of the nearest grocery stores and was not impressed with the one but the other one isn't too bad.  I also took a chance and found out that I can use Maissie's old French cell phone so that was good news (just one less thing I had to worry about).  I walked around the neighborhood for a bit in the afternoon and came across a street that has a lot of nice looking shops that sell cheese, or meat or wine.  I think I'll be stopping back there to check it out more closely.  I also just walked around and happened upon a church and a school that was letting kids out for the day.

Saturday I got up and hung out around the apartment.  I then had to be out of the apartment between noon and 5pm because Carolyn was having some friends over to celebrate her birthday.  So I bought some métro tickets and went over to my old neighborhood in the 8th arrondissement.  It was nice being back in that area but things had changed somewhat since I was living there.  I definitely felt more comfortable walking around there and could kind of go on "auto-pilot mode."  I went over to Parc Monceau and walked around for a bit and found a nice bench and just sat there for hours.  It was really nice and I was able to read and just enjoy one of my favorite spots in the city.  I then walked to the Arc de Triomphe and a gypsy tried to play the "you lost your ring" trick on me but I just said no and walked away.  I then headed down the Champs-Elysées and stopped to sit on a bench in the park across from the American Embassy.  It was also perfect timing because my mom called to see how things were going.  I eventually headed back to the apartment and just hung out before going to bed.

Sitting in Parc Monceau, it always does me well

Checking out the Arc de Triomphe

Today I went to church at the American Church in Paris and really enjoyed being there.  I am hoping to get involved with their young adult group this time around since the last time I wasn't able to because I had service-learning at the same time.  ACP (the American Church in Paris) has a bulletin board with people looking for housing/offering housing options.  The majority of the options were way out of my budget but there were a few that I will contact.

Heading over to ACP for church and this is the view I get to see (not too shabby, right?)

This coming week I will just be trying to get stuff done before I start up at school and have meetings with the program.

The Beginning of a New Adventure

I just couldn't resist, when the opportunity arose for me to possibly move back to France after finishing college, I had to apply.  You see, my advisor/French professor my freshman year had talked about students returning to France to teach English and it was at that moment that she planted the idea in my head.  After that moment I kind of put it on a back burner and didn't even really consider it because I knew for a fact that I would be living/studying in Paris my junior year and I had that to look forward to.    Also, life post college seems like a million years away when you are a freshman.  Well fast-forward to life post Paris, aka senior year, and I was itching to go back so I looked into it and found out I could start the application process via the French government in October.  So what did I do?  I applied.  I took a huge chance and said, "what the heck, why not?  the worst they can say is no."  I sent my online application in the middle of January (before the deadline) before starting my student teaching experience and knew that I would not find out anything until April.  Life was busy with commuting, planning lessons, and teaching.  Low and behold the month of April comes along and I received an email saying I was accepted to teach in the Paris Academy.  I was completely and absolutely surprised that 1. they even accepted me and 2. that I was going to be back in Paris.  When I applied I thought it was a complete long shot and they would never even consider me as a candidate and then I thought even if I do get accepted it surely won't be in Paris because they make it very clear that it is not easy to get a spot to teach in Paris.  But here I am with a teaching assistant position in Paris and I realize how blessed I am to have this opportunity.

When I found out I was returning to France, it was only April and I still had to finish my student teaching and graduate, I also still had the whole summer ahead of me.  Well summer has come and gone and school has started back up.  Now, the fact that I am going back to Paris for a year is becoming more and more real as the days draw closer to my departure.  I don't think it has really hit me yet that I am going back to Paris, it is quite a strange feeling.  I am excited and nervous about the whole thing because I don't know yet where I will be living in the city and I don't really know much yet as to how this whole program works.  It can be daunting to think about in general.  It means another year away from family and friends and the comforts of home.  However, I do know that this is where God wants me to be (it is amazing how clear He can make things by closing doors and opening others) and I know that it will be a wonderfully amazing experience that will help me grow.  I am leaving shortly and am the least bit prepared, I do have a visa even though it is 9 days too short but at least it is something.  I have a feeling that it is going to get rather hectic around here with packing and whatnot and hopefully I will have decided what I am going to do about my living situation in Paris.  But for now I am just going to enjoy the time I have with my family and friends before I start the next chapter of my life with a wonderful adventure.

Back in the Saddle

Well, I am back at it, blogging that is.  I know while I was in Paris and Spain I was rather lacking on the blog entries but unreliable/no internet access made it difficult at times to accomplish such a task.  Now I know you are probably wondering why I am going to be blogging again and that is a good question.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t mean that I’ll be back in France (my other home) but I’ll get the next best thing…Chicago!  I am going to be spending my last semester as a college student student teaching in a Chicago Public School.  I will be helping out in a French classroom of course and am so excited for this opportunity and what lies ahead.  I know it will not be easy but are things that are worth it ever easy?  Just looking back on my experience in Paris makes me realize how difficult it was but how much it was all worth it in the end.  I will be moving into the city in January (of course it will be freezing) and will be living downtown until the beginning of May (and will be moving out of course when it finally starts warming up).  I don’t know much else at the moment but don’t worry there will be many stories to tell throughout spring semester.

I´m still here!

So I need to apologize for the lack of blog entries. I am sure you all are pry wondering what has happened to me (or maybe not) but nonetheless don´t worry I´m alive and well and now living in Spain (well I have been since the 26th of May).  I always told myself that I would never be one of those study abroad students that says they´ll put up blog entries and then never does.  Well unfortunately that is exactly what has happened... I do have some good excuses though (well not that good), the best one of all is the lack of internet (I think that can justify my lack of blog entries, right??). I have been without internet where I live (my foyer in Paris and now the apartment that I live in in Spain) for so long that it is kind of a luxury being able to get internet access.  It has made me realize how dependent I am on the internet and that isn´t always a good thing. Don´t worry though I want to keep all of you guys updated on my life that has changed quite a bit (well in the fact that I am now living in Granada, Spain and no longer Paris, France which is really quite the change) but walking the half hour in the scorching heat with a huge laptop on my back doesn´t sound like fun to me. I will eventually get up all the posts that I am missing and don´t worry you´ll get to see all the pictures that I have taken.  When I get back to the States you can ask me to see all of them (and then I think you´ll be overwhelmed by the amount that I´ve taken lol).  Well, I should get going I have Spanish homework to do.

I Brought an Umbrella Just In Case

Well I was invited to go and visit Versailles with the three lovely Canadian girls in my foyer.  I have already visited but there is always more to see in the gardens.  So we went on Saturday, March 31^st to the Château of Versailles.  It was a really overcast and dreary day so I brought an umbrella just in case if it decided to start raining.  Thankfully it didn’t rain at all while we were out there.  I was joking around with Janine and Julia that if I hadn’t brought my umbrella it probably would’ve poured on us.  The other Canadian girl, Sarah, joined us but she likes taking a lot of pictures so she was always falling behind (good thing we have cell phones!).  Anyways, we got out to the château and finished walking around it in about half an hour (well except Sarah).  But we went out into the gardens and had some lunch and walked around for a bit.  Then Sarah joined up with us and got her food.  It was kind of a funny day because I ran into three different people that I know at Versailles and wasn’t expecting to see any of them and I knew all of them from different places in Paris.  It was a pleasant surprise to say the least.  Well we went over to where Marie-Antoinette had her little village and château and gardens.  Let me tell you, I fell in love with this area!  It was so lusciously green and felt a lot more natural compared to the rigidity of the hedges and gardens at Versailles.  Seeing as we are in early spring there were unfortunately not many flowers and that is another reason why I think I loved the Trianon where Marie-Antoinette lived because there were just open areas with amazing soft squishy grass.  You can almost say that grass is a commodity in Paris and so going somewhere where the grass is in abundance was refreshing.

                                         

The Chapel in Versailles

The impressive ceiling of the Chapel

A dreary day out at Versailles

There were some daffodils though

The gardens of Versailles

The Grand Trianon (one of Marie-Antoinette’s residences)

Marie-Antoinette’s bedroom (she must have been tiny because her bed is so short!)

Le Temple d’Amour

Janine and I at the Temple in Marie-Antoinette’s gardens

Marie-Antoinette’s gardens

Such natural beauty

A cool tree

The cute little village that Marie-Antoinette had built in her gardens

Janine, Julia & I exploring the little village

A cute little house/Moulin

More of the little village

We then came across this beautiful magnolia tree

Janine, Julia & I (probably my favorite picture of us)

That was some the softest grass I had ever been on

At the Grand Trianon (Julia & I had a lot of fun sliding down this hallway)

What I like to call the little lake in the gardens of Versailles

We had a really nice time exploring Versailles despite the fact that it was cold and dreary out.  It was nice though because there weren’t hordes of tourists unlike when I visited in the fall with my program.  I so much enjoyed just walking around and finding out more of what the gardens of Versailles have to offer.

Girls Just Want to Have Fun

Well the month of March was rather uneventful; it just consisted of going to classes, doing homework, the usual.  Not a lot of exciting things went on but I didn’t mind.  However the weekend of my birthday was a lot of fun and I got to spend it with a really good friend of mine out in the countryside at the cousins’ house.  Well I had invited my friend Laura to come out to Les Sièges for the weekend with me and just hang out in the countryside.  Françoise and Manu were gracious enough to welcome two girls in their house for a weekend.  We took the train out to Sens in the afternoon on Friday March 23^rd.  Françoise came and picked us up and when we were in the car the song “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” came on the radio and I was joking around with Laura that should be our theme song for the weekend.  It was so nice to get outside of Paris and see green rolling hills.  We had awesome weather that weekend!  It was 70s and sunny the whole weekend, we weren’t complaining one bit.  We just hung out and went for a lot of walks around the town and countryside and would also go into the backyard with a blanket and just lay out soaking up the sun.  On Saturday the 24^th of March, Françoise and Manu took us out to a nice restaurant for my birthday.  It was very nice of them.  We just had a relaxing day and had fun just walking around and exploring the tiny town of Les Sièges.  Then on Sunday March 25^th we went on a picnic with Françoise and Manu’s friends in the neighboring woods and had a nice time.  It was a very French picnic to say the least but Laura and I loved it!  It was also really cool for me to see how much more I could understand and respond since the last time I was out there was in October.  Then Françoise and her friend took us back to the house to get our bags and then we headed off to the train station.  When we got on the train it was packed!!!  It was so full that Laura and I had to sit on the ground the whole ride like a bunch of other people; thankfully it is only an hour long train ride and it was direct to Paris.

Laura and I out at the cousins’ house