This will be a rolling list of things I find funny. According to the French:
1. black and brown do match
2. white shoes go with anything, at anytime of year
3. iced beverages do not exist
4. ham trumps chicken and turkey
5. peanut butter is extremely rare and expensive
6. stale bread is ok
7. police officers rollerblade
8. rollerblading is masculine
9. so are Longchamps bags
10. two heterosexual and grown men may ride together on a motorcycle
11. eggs need not be refrigerated
12. milk is always whole
13. when walking your dog, leash is optional
14. a grassy patch in a park is no place for sitting, playing, or doing sit-ups
15. tax and tip are included
16. accidental eye contact with a boy on the metro="please come talk to me and ask me for my number"
Monday, February 25, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
London with my Best Mates!
First of all, I had a blasty blast in London! I love that city so much! I saw pretty much everything I wanted to and was so happy to share the weekend with some of my best friends!
The train ride there was so easy and awesome-it was really early in the morning so I slept most of the way and it was only about 2.5 hrs. Crazy to think I was under the ocean for part of it! Eren and Jonathan met Hayley, Jayda and me at the train stop and it was such a happy little reunion! We checked into our hostel--it was out in Greenwich, real cute--and explored the area including the old royal navy academy. We tried to do some sightseeing but only made it to St Paul's Cathedral before 4 pm when all tourist spots close. We had pints at a pub on Fleet Street (from "Sweeney Todd") and just caught up. That night we met up with 2 other girls from Tulane who are studying in London and went to this pub/restaurant for fish and chips--my first time! I didnt like it that much, honestly, but it was the experience that counts. We then went out to the bars and clubs around Piccadilly--this one club had a cover band that we all really liked. Jonathan and I stayed out longer than everyone else and just explored some more bars. We even rode on the top of a double decker bus! Saturday morning we rose very early because we wanted to get tickets to a show for that night. We ended up scoring "Spamelot" tix for only 30 pounds (1/2 price!!!) Saturday was a sightseeing day and we did it all! Saw the changing of the guards, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Hyde Park, the London Eye (we didnt go up though), Leicester Square, Trafalgar Square, London Tower--did go in here and saw Britain's crown jewels (breathtaking!), the old torture chamber instruments, the famous ravens and everything-So neat! especially since I just finished reading THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL about King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. We even stopped while we were walking over a bridge to play "London Bridges." We had lunch at a Subway (haha) and then went back to the hostel to change. We had dinner in Chinatown --so good. Poor London isn't exactly known for its food.
The best part for me was "Spamelot" that night. I really loved it. I was quoting the lines and thinking of Robbie the whole time. "'Tis but a scratch," "Five is right out" and "We are the Knights who say 'Ni.'"
It was really funny and cute and the singing was wonderful. The entire audience even joined in when they sang "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" and whistled along with them. After that, we went to a pub in Euston Square and just enjoyed each other's company for a few hours before we caught the bus back to the hostel. Before my train back to Paris this morning I had a cup of tea and even put a little cream in it for the effect.
Such a fun weekend and so nice to see some really good friends across the pond. We all loved their funny phrases, "cheers (or cheerio)" "mate" "bloody," and the styles are so different than in Paris. It was also a nice break to speak the language;)
Here are some funny things I liked about London: on the street, they have printed "look left" or "look right" depending on where you're crossing so tourists don't get hit by unexpected oncoming traffic (driving the wrong way), their cigarette packs say "Smoking Kills" in big block letters--no Surgeon General's polite warning here, the girls there are thicker and wear tighter clothes than Parisian girls, they also have no rules about white shoes after labor day.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
J'aime aujourd'hui!
February 13, 2008
Ah! Today was the best day. I woke up and headed over to le marché on Place Monge. So cute! I was a little intimidated at the meat and fish counters, but I did buy fruits and veggies. I was just really proud of myself for finding my way there on foot (only a 20 minute walk) and ordering in French (even though a whole kilo of carrots is too much lol). I caught the metro to school because I wanted to use the internet and I booked my tickets (en train!) to London! I am so excited! Jayda (studying in Switzerland this semester) is meeting me here and coming with me from Paris and Eren (studying in Madrid) is meeting us there. My buddy, Consalvo (studying in Cambridge) is also coming into the city for the weekend. I am going to try to meet up with my friend, Vic, from high school who is going to grad school at Oxford. I know, right, how cool is she? We are going to try to see “Wicked” also while we are there. Could life be sweeter?
I came home, used Madame’s salad spinner to wash my lettuce, did some Art History reading, and then took a run (aaah best part of the day). I almost didn’t go because my shin is a POS and has been giving me problems lately, but today it was good! I went my normal route across the Seine (!) but turned left for a change, ended up on a little footpath that ran right along the river! I was this close to being in the water (I am making a small space between my forefinger and thumb right now) and a Bateuax Parisian, those tour boats, even floated by me! I wouldn’t suggest it though because the cobblestones were a little awk to run on. I randomly came across a little park that I have seen from the Metro window, there were a lot of young kids and musicians sitting on the grass looking out over the Seine and playing music, I continued on and found myself at the Bastille (!) next to it there were a bunch of skateboarders pulling tricks on a slab of cement. I crossed back over the river and followed a directive sign towards Place d’Italie (chez moi) and ran smack dab into the Jardin des Plantes—oh what a happy surprise! It is known for its botanical gardens, the Grande Gallerie de l’Evolution and three other natural history museums. Supposedly Paris’ oldest tree is in here somewhere, too. I ran behind this older man in short shorts for awhile and then took a steep hill up and around some sort of monument—I was smiling the whole time because the park is just breathtaking…I can’t even imagine what Spring will be like. I found my way out and figured out my way home from there. Oh it was just such a glorious day—plenty of sun, yet perfectly chilly. L O V E L Y.
Ah! Today was the best day. I woke up and headed over to le marché on Place Monge. So cute! I was a little intimidated at the meat and fish counters, but I did buy fruits and veggies. I was just really proud of myself for finding my way there on foot (only a 20 minute walk) and ordering in French (even though a whole kilo of carrots is too much lol). I caught the metro to school because I wanted to use the internet and I booked my tickets (en train!) to London! I am so excited! Jayda (studying in Switzerland this semester) is meeting me here and coming with me from Paris and Eren (studying in Madrid) is meeting us there. My buddy, Consalvo (studying in Cambridge) is also coming into the city for the weekend. I am going to try to meet up with my friend, Vic, from high school who is going to grad school at Oxford. I know, right, how cool is she? We are going to try to see “Wicked” also while we are there. Could life be sweeter?
I came home, used Madame’s salad spinner to wash my lettuce, did some Art History reading, and then took a run (aaah best part of the day). I almost didn’t go because my shin is a POS and has been giving me problems lately, but today it was good! I went my normal route across the Seine (!) but turned left for a change, ended up on a little footpath that ran right along the river! I was this close to being in the water (I am making a small space between my forefinger and thumb right now) and a Bateuax Parisian, those tour boats, even floated by me! I wouldn’t suggest it though because the cobblestones were a little awk to run on. I randomly came across a little park that I have seen from the Metro window, there were a lot of young kids and musicians sitting on the grass looking out over the Seine and playing music, I continued on and found myself at the Bastille (!) next to it there were a bunch of skateboarders pulling tricks on a slab of cement. I crossed back over the river and followed a directive sign towards Place d’Italie (chez moi) and ran smack dab into the Jardin des Plantes—oh what a happy surprise! It is known for its botanical gardens, the Grande Gallerie de l’Evolution and three other natural history museums. Supposedly Paris’ oldest tree is in here somewhere, too. I ran behind this older man in short shorts for awhile and then took a steep hill up and around some sort of monument—I was smiling the whole time because the park is just breathtaking…I can’t even imagine what Spring will be like. I found my way out and figured out my way home from there. Oh it was just such a glorious day—plenty of sun, yet perfectly chilly. L O V E L Y.
le Week-end
February 11, 2008
This weekend flew by as usual. Thursday night, a guy who works at the center (Alex) and his friend met three of us girls from my conversation class at a restaurant to practice French conversation and just to hang out. The restaurant, Chez Gladine, was wonderful! So typically French! Small and crowded—with only a couple of servers for the whole place. We ordered a charcuterie plate, a tray with about five different types of ham and a few pickles. It had chorizo, smoked ham, little sausages, big sausages, and I tried paté for the first time! It was ok, but I prefer other things. i was struggling at one point to pick up a slice of sausage with my fork and Alex told me to just grab with my hand. I said, “C’est impoli, non?” and he said that it is totally normal to grab things off a plate like that, even in a restaurant…Perhaps not a fancy restaurant, but this was ok. I ordered a salad that came in this huge silver mixing bowl (like the one we have at home, mom) and it came with diced cheese, round slices of fried potatoes, a large slice of ham and the best part an egg…over EASY (!) on top. It was sooo good and I was surprised I liked the egg. The conversation went well. We talked about the recent (January) ban of smoking indoors and Alex got into it. He thought it was crazy for the government to be able to prohibit something like that. I said it was bad for one’s health. He shot back (wine glass in hand, and motioning towards mine) so is drinking...and driving a car. He said it is part of the atmosphere and that people shouldn’t be criminalized and sent outside during a meal if they like to smoke. I strongly disagree with him on that, and tried to argue for as long and well as I could…but my vocabulary ran out. ;-)
On the walk home, I suddenly realized we were standing outside of the hotel that I stayed in my first time in Paris (Di and Mom!) I got all nostalgic and happy remembering our fun times there back in 2005—at the marché dans la rue and the Tabac ordering petits café au laits. I can’t believe how close it is to where I live now!
After a day of class on Friday, I met my French friend, Emmanuelle at a little café. We shared a crepe with nutella and bananas (staple food here) and each had a hot drink. We ended up talking for about 3 hours. She studied in London during her college years so her English is really good and she puts up with my French. She asked me about the presidential primaries and who I though would win, etc. I explained that although in France it is portrayed as a competition mainly between Hilary and Obama, that the real competition comes later between the Democrats and Republicans. I even talked to her about the Electoral College which, surprise?, she thinks is pointless.
Saturday I checked out Musée de l’Orangerie right by the Tuleries Garden with Hayley and Amy. It has Monet’s big water lily paintings. We also saw pieces by Picasso, Matisse, Cezanne and Guillarmi. It was a beautiful day so we sat outside for awhile and enjoyed the view of the garden on one side and the Tour Eiffel on the other.
That evening, the whole program went to a play, “On ne badine pas avec l’amour,” by Alfred de Musset. It was really well done—the actors were great and the set was just a large, slanted slab of grass. Unfortunately it was in Classical French so we didn’t understand a whole lot. We got the basic love triangle, but were a little confused about the deaths. One of my friends was upset because the only word he understood was “cousine” and that was what the two lovers called each other.
The theater, Théâtre de la Tempête, was really interesting and nice. It is located on the outskirts of Paris in Cartouchie. We had dinner, quiche, salad and a brownie and a glass of red wine.
I live in the 13th arrondissement and it is known for its Chinese population. On Sunday we went to the Chinese New Year parade just down the street from my apartment building. It was packed! The streets were sooo crowded. We watched the parade on Avenue de Choisy—floats carrying Chinese women in traditional costumes dancing with fans, men with drums, masks, painted faces, flags, confetti, balloons and big dragons. It was my first time going to something like that—how funny that happened in Paris. Every other storefront is a Chinese restaurant and a few girls stopped to get fried rice. When I went to bed that night I could hear the fireworks going off.
We have been discussing President Sarkozy a lot in both my Modern France and Muslim Presence in Europe classes. I even tend to bring him up in conversations with French peple I meet or my host mom, Madame Lafont. Lately we have discussed his nomination for the mayor of Neuilly, suburb of Paris. A man who has no political experience and seems like an absurd choice for the well-to-do area…Also, his personal life is very interesting to me. The fact that it is being made so public in the first place is extremely unusual for France’s president. Also, that he has been divorced twice and is now married again would never fly in the U.S. Plus, the way he is going about reforms now that he is in office is driving the French people, especially Madame who thinks he is “un dictateur,” crazy. My friend Mary’s host mom thinks he can’t do his job as president because he is in love with Carla Bruni. How is anyone supposed to run a country when they’re in love? … Wait, what?
Madame and I had dinner together last night. She made rice, Ratatouille and little tofu patties. She said she had to buy the tofu at a natural food store, but she told me where one is so I can go there. We talked for a long time and I learned that when she was 21 and left home for the first time, she went to Morocco to teach French to little kids! I thought that was really interesting. She said my French was really improving and commented on how well I can construct my sentences (lol). She’s sweet.
This weekend flew by as usual. Thursday night, a guy who works at the center (Alex) and his friend met three of us girls from my conversation class at a restaurant to practice French conversation and just to hang out. The restaurant, Chez Gladine, was wonderful! So typically French! Small and crowded—with only a couple of servers for the whole place. We ordered a charcuterie plate, a tray with about five different types of ham and a few pickles. It had chorizo, smoked ham, little sausages, big sausages, and I tried paté for the first time! It was ok, but I prefer other things. i was struggling at one point to pick up a slice of sausage with my fork and Alex told me to just grab with my hand. I said, “C’est impoli, non?” and he said that it is totally normal to grab things off a plate like that, even in a restaurant…Perhaps not a fancy restaurant, but this was ok. I ordered a salad that came in this huge silver mixing bowl (like the one we have at home, mom) and it came with diced cheese, round slices of fried potatoes, a large slice of ham and the best part an egg…over EASY (!) on top. It was sooo good and I was surprised I liked the egg. The conversation went well. We talked about the recent (January) ban of smoking indoors and Alex got into it. He thought it was crazy for the government to be able to prohibit something like that. I said it was bad for one’s health. He shot back (wine glass in hand, and motioning towards mine) so is drinking...and driving a car. He said it is part of the atmosphere and that people shouldn’t be criminalized and sent outside during a meal if they like to smoke. I strongly disagree with him on that, and tried to argue for as long and well as I could…but my vocabulary ran out. ;-)
On the walk home, I suddenly realized we were standing outside of the hotel that I stayed in my first time in Paris (Di and Mom!) I got all nostalgic and happy remembering our fun times there back in 2005—at the marché dans la rue and the Tabac ordering petits café au laits. I can’t believe how close it is to where I live now!
After a day of class on Friday, I met my French friend, Emmanuelle at a little café. We shared a crepe with nutella and bananas (staple food here) and each had a hot drink. We ended up talking for about 3 hours. She studied in London during her college years so her English is really good and she puts up with my French. She asked me about the presidential primaries and who I though would win, etc. I explained that although in France it is portrayed as a competition mainly between Hilary and Obama, that the real competition comes later between the Democrats and Republicans. I even talked to her about the Electoral College which, surprise?, she thinks is pointless.
Saturday I checked out Musée de l’Orangerie right by the Tuleries Garden with Hayley and Amy. It has Monet’s big water lily paintings. We also saw pieces by Picasso, Matisse, Cezanne and Guillarmi. It was a beautiful day so we sat outside for awhile and enjoyed the view of the garden on one side and the Tour Eiffel on the other.
That evening, the whole program went to a play, “On ne badine pas avec l’amour,” by Alfred de Musset. It was really well done—the actors were great and the set was just a large, slanted slab of grass. Unfortunately it was in Classical French so we didn’t understand a whole lot. We got the basic love triangle, but were a little confused about the deaths. One of my friends was upset because the only word he understood was “cousine” and that was what the two lovers called each other.
The theater, Théâtre de la Tempête, was really interesting and nice. It is located on the outskirts of Paris in Cartouchie. We had dinner, quiche, salad and a brownie and a glass of red wine.
I live in the 13th arrondissement and it is known for its Chinese population. On Sunday we went to the Chinese New Year parade just down the street from my apartment building. It was packed! The streets were sooo crowded. We watched the parade on Avenue de Choisy—floats carrying Chinese women in traditional costumes dancing with fans, men with drums, masks, painted faces, flags, confetti, balloons and big dragons. It was my first time going to something like that—how funny that happened in Paris. Every other storefront is a Chinese restaurant and a few girls stopped to get fried rice. When I went to bed that night I could hear the fireworks going off.
We have been discussing President Sarkozy a lot in both my Modern France and Muslim Presence in Europe classes. I even tend to bring him up in conversations with French peple I meet or my host mom, Madame Lafont. Lately we have discussed his nomination for the mayor of Neuilly, suburb of Paris. A man who has no political experience and seems like an absurd choice for the well-to-do area…Also, his personal life is very interesting to me. The fact that it is being made so public in the first place is extremely unusual for France’s president. Also, that he has been divorced twice and is now married again would never fly in the U.S. Plus, the way he is going about reforms now that he is in office is driving the French people, especially Madame who thinks he is “un dictateur,” crazy. My friend Mary’s host mom thinks he can’t do his job as president because he is in love with Carla Bruni. How is anyone supposed to run a country when they’re in love? … Wait, what?
Madame and I had dinner together last night. She made rice, Ratatouille and little tofu patties. She said she had to buy the tofu at a natural food store, but she told me where one is so I can go there. We talked for a long time and I learned that when she was 21 and left home for the first time, she went to Morocco to teach French to little kids! I thought that was really interesting. She said my French was really improving and commented on how well I can construct my sentences (lol). She’s sweet.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
One whole month!
My weekend with Thomas in town was so nice! We spent all of Saturday together. We met up with three more Americans and went to the Notre Dame. Thomas hadn't been to Paris so it was really fun to be with him during his first trip--he was so giddy and excited. We toured around a bit--Hotel de Ville, le Louvre, le Jardin des Tuileries and that area. That night we met up with my girl friends near the Bastille for dinner at the Bastille Pub. It was so good! (like any meal has been bad...well except when I ate at the University Restaurant next to AUP...that was bad) I had a salad, steak and potatoes, and chocolate mousse for dessert. The girls and I continued on to a few bars, met a nice Frenchman named Jean and talked to with him and his friends for awhile. Jean even asked me for my 0-6 ("zero six:" slang for a cell phone number because they all start with 06).
The next morning I met Thomas and another friend from Tulane, Brennan, in Montmartre. We had lunch at a really nice restaurant (well Thomas did) and just walked around taking pictures of the Moulin Rouge and being cutesy tourists. They left from there and I went to Les Deux Moulins, the café in Amélie!! It was awesome. I had a café créme and made my Paris to-do list: all things I must do before I leave. A few have stars next to them if I want to do them with Roxy/ my mom, dad, Di and Tom when they come.
That night was Super Bowl Sunday aux ´Etats-Unis...don't worry we still celebrated in Paris. Two kids in my program, Jaclyn and Justin are from New York. We all met at The Moose, a Canadian Bar in the Latin Quarter at 10 p.m. for 1 a.m. local game time. I am pretty sure every American in Paris was at this bar...no joke. It was delightfully packed and the crowd was wild. Jaclyn and Justin were really fun to watch the game with...Jaclyn cried when the Giants won. A few of us girls danced during the Tom Petty half-time show, obvi. It was hilarious. We caught the 5:30 a.m. Metro home the next morning...
Last night was Mardi Gras. It was bitter sweet being here and not in New Orleans. Hayley, Amy and Audrey were sweethearts and shared a bottle of wine with me at this bar near the Bastille (J'aime beaucoup the area around the Bastille).
Tonight we went on a tour of the Montparnasse cafés where famous writers and painters used to meet and dream up masterpieces. Montparnasse became famous at the beginning of the 20th century, referred to as "les Années Folles (the Crazy Years)", when it was the heart of intellectual and artistic life in Paris. Between 1921 and 1924, the number of Americans in Paris expanded from 6,000 to 30,000. The cafés we visited, Le Dôme, La Closerie des Lilas, La Rotonde, Le Select, the Dingo Bar and La Coupole are all still in business and were frequented by Picasso, Hemingway, Fitzgerald and Gertrude Stein. We even saw Picasso's house! It was a really nice tour.
I am hoping to go to a jazz club tomorrow night. I will let you know how that goes:)
Friday, February 1, 2008
Fin de Janvier
We went to the Musee d'Orsay yesterday for my Art History class and it was awesome! We saw Degas, Monet, Manet, Van Gogh and Gauguin (all the impressionist artists we're learning about in class!) We wore these ear piece headphone things (My prof called them earrings--English is his second language) and he wore a mic to tell us about the paintings as we toured. It was so wonderful. The museum is an old train station. It's huge and beautiful and light and there is a café that is behind the huge clock so one wall you look out through it. There is also a ball room with ornate ceilings and statues. I learned so much and realized how much greater and more interesting it is to go to a museum with someone who can explain things clearly. My professor knew so much about the paintings and was able to share their historical significances with us. Little thingsin the paintings that i would never notice on my own turned out to mean something extraordinary...like some huge transformation in the style of art that was happening at the time. So cool.
After the museum, a few of us girls stopped in a café for hot chocolate and shared two cheese plates. It was bitter cold, wet and rainy so the "chocolat chaud" was perfect. I then went home, took a hot bath, read some stuff for class and took a short nap. Then I met Hayley and Amy at the Bastille at 9:30. There are tons of adorable cafés, restaurants, bars, and shops in that area. We went in one bar that had a submarine/extreme sports/Aussie theme feel to it. The guys working there and their friends were pretty funny and cute and we ended up hanging around for awhile talking to them. Then we went to another bar down the street where we made friends again! This really cool girl, Olivia from Normandy and I really hit it off--she said she could understand my French (!) Her friends were nice too and we ended up hanging out with them for awhile! She gave me her number and I am to call her tomorrow for some concert or something. I thought that was really nice... I always really appreciate friendly Parisians:) My friend Thomas from Tulane is studying in Lyon for the semester and he is visiting Paris for the weekend! It will be really nice to see him. Too bad we're both missing Mardi Gras weekend! We will have to make up for it somehow!
Chloé
After the museum, a few of us girls stopped in a café for hot chocolate and shared two cheese plates. It was bitter cold, wet and rainy so the "chocolat chaud" was perfect. I then went home, took a hot bath, read some stuff for class and took a short nap. Then I met Hayley and Amy at the Bastille at 9:30. There are tons of adorable cafés, restaurants, bars, and shops in that area. We went in one bar that had a submarine/extreme sports/Aussie theme feel to it. The guys working there and their friends were pretty funny and cute and we ended up hanging around for awhile talking to them. Then we went to another bar down the street where we made friends again! This really cool girl, Olivia from Normandy and I really hit it off--she said she could understand my French (!) Her friends were nice too and we ended up hanging out with them for awhile! She gave me her number and I am to call her tomorrow for some concert or something. I thought that was really nice... I always really appreciate friendly Parisians:) My friend Thomas from Tulane is studying in Lyon for the semester and he is visiting Paris for the weekend! It will be really nice to see him. Too bad we're both missing Mardi Gras weekend! We will have to make up for it somehow!
Chloé
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
