Sorry it’s been a while. Like every other project I start, this blog has succumbed to procrastination. There’s a lot to talk about, but I’ll try to be concise. I’ve been hanging out with Hannah, a girl named Jess from Boston and a girl named Sam from Phillie. When I say “we” I’m referring to the four of us.
Last Friday night Allie showed us a bar she frequented last semester, which is conveniently close to our school – perfect for FAC. We were invited to sit down by a group of guys who were there celebrating their friend’s 21st birthday and we ended up hanging out with them all night. Between the 8 or so guys that were there, their proficiency in English ranged from exceptional to absolute shit. I have no room to talk however, because my French is nothing to brag about. At one point in the night I was looking for my coat and one of the guys, who spoke no English, asked me what I was looking for. I replied “Mon couteau, mon couteau”. The guy looked at me weird and then, Abdou, who is fluent in both, corrected me, “you mean ‘mon manteau’.” I immediately realized I had stated that I was looking for “my knife”. Abdou joked, “to cut, a coat, it’s the same thing”.
Side note - Last week I bought conditioner for my hair. I was next to the shampoos and has the word for moisturizer on it so i figured it'd be fine. Later that day when I was in the shower I put it in my hair and it didn't feel right. I turned the bottle around and couldn't find the word for "hair" anywhere on the bottle. I'm pretty sure I put shower gel in my hair. Damnit.
Saturday night was a bust, so come Sunday Hannah and I were excited to go out for the NFC championship game. Hannah found a place that is a Canadian bar which shows American sports games. We got there shortly after kickoff and the place was packed. Every American who happened to be in Paris was most definitely in that bar that night. Through the crowed of people, one person stood out because he was a good 5 inches taller than everyone else. It was John C. Reilly….I kid you not. It suddenly made sense why people kept saying “Boats an’ hos!” He wouldn’t take a picture for me, so Hannah and I settled for standing next to him during the game. I noticed that he kept talking to this woman in front of him and she was asking him about what agency he worked with and what not. I turned to Hannah and asked, “who is this chick?” Who had the balls to talk up John C. Reilly like it was nothing and have the nerve to ask about showbiz? Well once she turned all the way around, it was clear. It was Jodie Foster. Instantly all I could think about was Silence of the Lambs. Hannah and I stayed in that spot the whole game. John C. Reilly was rooting for the Bears and Jodi Foster was such a flip-flopper. We met some nice Packer fans that were there on their honeymoon and there were a ton of other American students there as well. Overall it was a fun place to be, which was only made more fun by the exciting game itself. And now the Packers are in the Superbowl!
Classes started this week and for the most part, I’m pretty excited. My French classes are not difficult, yet I’m not extremely bored. I have two French classes; a conversation class and a grammar class. They each meet twice a week for an hour and a half. In addition to those I take three “content classes” that are in English but have a French theme of course. I’m taking Memory and Commemoration, Avant-garde art history, and 20th Century French Novels. They all sound really interesting, however each content class is 3 hours long. Though they only meet once a week, I know it’ll be a struggle to keep my attention in those long classes. Since most of this week consisted mostly of syllabus and “getting to know you introductions” I’ll write more about classes later.
I know some of you are asking yourself (namely mom and dad) “Has she actually done anything cool since being there?” And the answer is yes. To solidify the fact that I’m not just partying and shopping here, I’ll let you know what I’ve done. I’ve gone to Musée d’Orsay and just scratched the surface of what can be seen there. I’ve gone to the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Élysées, and the Eiffle Tower. I’ve been to the Bastille, the Marais, and the Latin Quarter. Hannah and I were dying to go to a Monet exhibit that was open 24 hours, but even at 3 am the line was multiple hours long. We decided against it and then heard that it was so packed once you got inside anyway, it wouldn’t have been worth it. Lame.
In two weekends I am going to Madrid for a few days with Hannah to celebrate her friend’s birthday. The weekend following that is the start of our winter break. Hannah, Sam and I are spending the week in Italy going to Milan, Florence, and Rome. I’m very excited to start traveling. Sorry I waited so long to post, I’ll be quicker from now on. Beaucoup d'amour de Paris!
No comments:
Post a Comment