Thankful.

I am extremely blessed to be able to study in Paris. I love it here. Enough said.

Fudge and Munich

As a welcome home present, I attempted to make Madame some fudge. Someone told me that fudge doesn't exist in France. I'm not sure if I believe that statement or not. The fudge didn’t turn out too bad except for the fact that I accidentally bought extra crunchy peanut butter instead of regular, no nut peanut butter. I hope she likes nuts.

Went to see the film Munich tonight. I liked it. If you’re a pacifist or don’t like Israel, I wouldn’t recommend it. Spielberg fans will love it. Although if you’re a Spielberg fan and a pacifist, I guess I would just say it’s your call. And if you have a thing for guys with olive skin, this would also be your movie. Although I love olive skin, I have accepted the fact that Jared is almost as pasty white as I am and together we will make pasty white children (not that I’m thinking of having kids …).

The reviews of Munich are mixed. Some critics say the film is overtly pro-Palestinian while others think it’s too pro-Israel. One girl at IES said her parents refuse to see Munich because they were told it condemned the Jewish people. I think it was neither too pro and too anti anyone. If anything, the film showed the confusion about the exact definition of terrorism and the fight for “home.” A fellow student went with me to see the film. He is anti-military and thinks of all wars and conflicts as propaganda. I listened to his angry rantings after the film. I don’t understand his logic just as I don’t understand everything going on in the Middle East. I think some mentalities are beyond my comprehension. I don’t understand the unwillingness to fight someone even if that someone had a gun to your mother’s head. I equally don’t understand the willingness to kill someone because of a different religion or ethnicity. The world is an amazing, confusing place.

Things at Present

So I’ve now been in France for 17 days. Things are present are going well. I have a French grammar review class for 3 hours every weekday until university classes start. My host mother is visiting her son in the United States for 10 days. Therefore I am alone in the apartment with the cat. I pretty much do my own thing with someone else’s stuff. My only concern is that, upon her return, my style won’t be compatible with hers.

I met some authentic French people the other day. Laugh at my word choice, but it can be really hard to meet French people. The only people whom I’ve easily met are shady guys who come up to you on the street because they want to meet rich Americans. Will somebody tell the world that all Americans are not rich! I digress. Anyway, I met Latifa and Delphine at a university cafeteria by chance. While standing in line, some friends and I asked the girls behind us the meaning of a word on the lunch menu. We started talking and had lunch together. Afterwards Sarah (a girl from IES) and I went shopping with them. I went to the Louvre today with Latifa and some others. Good times.

On other news, I tried rabbit today. I liked it although the taste was a little strong. I still have reservations about eating horse. Give me rabbit any day.

Until next time.

I Thought I Lost the Cat Today

I thought I lost the cat today. When I came home he was nowhere to be found. I searched every room. I called and called for him. I was at my wit’s end trying to find him. The cat has been hanging around the front door a lot lately and all I could think was that the cleaning lady accidentally left him out. I searched the hall, the courtyard, the nooks and crannies of each room … there was no sign of him. (By the way, I don’t know the cat’s name. Madame just calls him “the cat.”) I could have cried. Not that it would be absolutely my fault if he disappeared – merely mostly my fault. I am taking care of him while she is away. The cat is my responsibility. I sat down on the bed in the spare bedroom to think out what my next action should be when I noticed the pillow had an extra lump in it. The extra lump turned out to be the cat. He was under the comforter and pillow. The bloody cat. I searched for over 30 minutes and was almost in tears. I mean, had the cat permanently disappeared, the rest of my stay with Chantal probably would not have turned out pleasantly. I can just imagine her response if I told her the cat was gone. He is a relatively unhappy mound of cat, but he is her baby. ::sigh:: After I rescued him from the comforter, he promptly bit me. Got to love the cat. I do like him despite his temperamental attitude. He is a source of companionship. I love when he curls up beside me in bed … reminds me of my apartment cat Frankie and how he loves to sleep with me.

The Cat Who Stole My Filet

Madame made me filet tonight for dinner. We ate in the living room. I stepped out of the room for a moment and came back to find that the cat had stolen my filet and dropped it on the floor. While I'm standing there, Madame picks the filet off the floor and puts it back on my plate. Not wanting to offend Madame, I sit down and eat the filet. It was good. I merely didn't think about it being in the cat's mouth nor on the floor.

On other news, I went to a play at the Theatre de la Huchette. It was Ionesco's "La Cantatrice Chauve"(The Bald Soprano). The play was not at all traditional and I would like to see it done in English. It was absolutely better than “You Can Never Tell” in London. I have to go see it again. I guess the same two plays have been at this theatre since 1957. Absolutely incredible.

My Host Mother

My host mother is one of the most absent-minded people I know. I think she is so caught up in her work that she wanders through the smaller parts of life in a daze. She is constantly losing keys, shoes, and her cellphone. Strangely, she is exactly how I picture myself at 60.

I went grocery shopping with her yesterday. I have never bought so many groceries in so little time. It was like a race. She grabbed a shopping cart and started throwing objects in. Most older women take their time to inspect items. Madame could care less. I think we completely filled the cart and were out of the store within 10 minutes.

Friday night I came back to the apartment around 12:00 AM. I was very quiet as I didn’t want to disturb her or the cat. At 1:30 I hear the front door open. Madame has just got home. I hear her coat being thrown on the dining room table and various other things spewed about. Then she starts drawing water for a bath. At our cultural orientation, we were explicitly told that the French do not take baths, especially not late at night. I guess this is because most buildings are old and neighbors can hear everything, plus water is expensive. Anyway, not only does she get in later than I do, but she is also taking a bath in the middle of the night. Haha. This makes me laugh for some reason.

Today I was informed that she is going to Oregon for 10 days. I will be staying at the apartment by myself. I offered to take care of the cat. I can’t imagine leaving a complete stranger in charge of your house for 10 days, but that doesn't seem to be an issue. I will take good care of things.


p.s. I walked up the Eiffel Tower yesterday. It was amazing! I think there are around 660 stairs to the second level. My legs are going to be in great shape after a few weeks here.

Strange Paris Beauty

Today I got lost while trying to get to orientation. This is the second time I’ve been lost since I arrived. I was so frustrated. I am still weak and extremely tried. I feel as though I’ve had the flu for weeks. Getting lost again did not help uplift my spirits.

Anyway, as I wandered around lost, looking for the metro, I passed a sculpture of a giant foot. It was a random sculpture in the middle of an otherwise empty space. It made me smile. Suddenly I realized that everything was going to be all right. I realized that I wasn’t truly lost, only misdirected. And if I hadn’t gotten misdirected, I would not have seen something strangely beautiful. Nothing like a giant foot to help you out when you’re feeling down.

The Best Meal of My Life

That wonderful dinner I mentioned in my last post – turns out it wasn’t so wonderful. I woke up the next morning (Tuesday) with some serious stomach issues. Spent a little time in the bathroom and I thought things were taken care of. Enough said. Mander and I had booked a bus tour of the English countryside for which I really wanted to do. About an hour after boarding the bus, we both looked and felt ill. The type of ill my grandmother calls “green around the gills.” I was gripping the seat in front of me for dear life while Amanda was hunched over in the seat beside me. The first destination was Warwick Castle. If you ever go, the staff and public facilities are excellent! A staff member walked us to the nearest doctor’s office, god bless her. I won’t go into all the details except to say that the doctor wouldn’t see us and sent us on a wild goose chase for the hospital. Amanda eventually left me practically lying on the sidewalk (I honestly could barely walk) and went to find a taxi. Somehow she directed the taxi to my location and we were whisked to the hospital. I was immediately admitted. Amanda was admitted about 6 hours later. I thought I was going to die. Think about the worst cramps you have ever had and multiply them by 20. I usually don’t react to pain, but I was screaming. Even the nurses had scared looks on their faces – one told Amanda that I was extremely sick and not to go into my room without gloves and a mask. You would have thought I had bird flu. God bless those nurses though. I was not in control of myself and it scared me. When they put whatever magic drug in my IV to numb the pain, I really didn’t know if I’d wake up.

Fast forward to today. I am still sick although I can walk. I am in France. I was told I had a severe gastric infection from food poisoning. I was stubbornly determined to come to France today, although I should have stayed in bed. Amanda left for the airport early this morning. She feels better, but is still a bit unwell. I took the Eurostar into France around 12:00 PM. I slept for the duration of the trip with a giant water bottle in my lap. For the sake of those around me, I hope I wasn’t snoring. When the taxi dropped me off at my host mother’s firm, I was not in the mood to talk in English or in French. Of course, everyone there wanted to talk in English and in French. At this point, I am seriously questioning my reasoning for coming here. This is probably because I am still dehydrated and doped up on pain meds. All I want is to be back in the States.

London Weekend

A quick overview of my weekend in London:

• The London Eye is fabulous. It’s like a giant Ferris Wheel except it goes slower and it doesn’t make you sick (I get kinda sick on Ferris Wheels).

• Walked the Tower of London Bridge at night, in the rain. It was definitively a beautiful bridge. It is drenched with spotlights at night making it all the more beautiful. We were thoroughly chilled (think cold winter rain) but happy after walking it.

• Went to a Vivaldi concert at this old church. The church was lit by candles and I just wanted to sleep because everything was so peaceful – until my serenity was disrupted by a choking lady a few rows in front of us. She was ok but the night wasn’t so serene after her near demise.

• Had an absolutely wonderful dinner at this place called Café Fish. It’s a French restaurant where the servers are snobby but the food is fantastic. I think it may have been the best food of my life. For the record, just because a restaurant is French, doesn’t mean the service MUST be snobby. That is a misconception.

• Did the “Jack-the-Ripper” waking tour. It was raining and gloomy. We had a great time.

• Afternoon Tea is also fun. Go to some loftly place and attempt to be fashionable. I kept dropping my silverware.

• The Speakers Corner at Hyde Park is interesting. Go to hear shocking things that you would (most likely) never hear said in a public place in the United States. The phrase “to stand on a soapbox” applies here. Although I don’t think anyone really uses soapboxes anymore ….

• Saw the Tower of London. I guess every winter the city of London puts an ice skating rink beside the tower and anyone is able to skate there – for a small fee. We wanted to go, but it started to rain.

London so far

I like London. It’s a terrific city. British accents. Lots of history. Cars on the “wrong” side of the road. All the traditional touristy stuff is here, and sometimes it’s just fun to be a tourist! Plus there is random quirky stuff everywhere that makes me laugh - like the above picture of a sign on a park bench.

As I expected, our hotel is less than pristine. It looks like the hotel used to be old apartments which make for a more interesting experience if you don’t mind giving up a few American standards (i.e. large baths, standard beds, elevators, etc.). Since bathrooms weren’t as common 100 years old or so (think in-room wash basins instead), it’s hardly a surprise that our pre-fab bathroom unit doesn’t mesh well with the room. The bathroom is TINY. The sink sits over the toilet and the shower head is relatively close to the toilet as well. Basically the unit is not made for those over 150 pounds, taller than 5.5, or with long hair to wash. But really, all we need is a safe place to sleep and keep our stuff. Nothing too fancy needed. Plus the multiple flights of stairs we walk up and down each day gets us in shape (I will admit that neither of us can get up the stairs without stopping to catch our breath. Haha).

Amanda and I have done all sorts of things since we arrived Wednesday morning. To start with, we took a long nap as soon as we checked in at the hotel. Most travel guides suggest you stick it out and don’t succumb to the urge of continuing to function at your normal time zone. However, we really didn’t care. We slept for about 5 hours. Wednesday night we went to a fabulous little pub around the corner for dinner. It was low key and exactly the atmosphere we wanted.

Thursday’s event was the Tate Modern, preceded by a LONG walk by the Thames River. It was my idea to walk. I love rivers. The fact that most major cities are built beside rivers gives me all the more reason to visit those cities. I digress. Anyway, the Tate Modern occupies a huge old warehouse. Like the name indicates, it’s full of modern art. My most memorable “art work” was this film with 6 obsessive people repeatedly doing various random things like taking coats off hangers. Hard to explain. The film’s bizarre quality will always made it memorable in my mind. Wow, that last sentence reminds me of some sort of BS persuasive paper ….

Thursday afternoon I wanted to go to the Theatre. London’s West End district is renowned for Theatre. Some would argue that it bypasses New York as far as cutting edge theatrical performances go. Anyway, I left most of my research on current performances at home except for some reviews on a piece called “On Ego.” The show had a short run and closes Saturday. After wandering around for an hour, we finally found the theatre only to be told that all tickets were sold. Dang it! ::sigh:: So we ended up going for a more typical performance which happened to be Bernard Shaw’s “You Can Never Tell” at the Garrick Theatre. From our seats, we had a terrific view of the actor’s spit projectiles. Overall, it was a fun experience although a bit predictable. Edward Fox did a great job (he played a grandfatherly, all-knowing waiter) and was perhaps the best part of the play. Amanda and I have one particular line stuck in our heads: “you think you won’t, but you will.” This line was repeated several times near the end of the final scene and brought about loads of laughter from the audience. We will always remember it as a token of our London theater experience.

I have been told that Harrod’s is the essential destination in London for females. All that I have to say is that it was nice. I was there for quite a few hours this morning and only saw two levels. Most of the stuff I couldn’t afford and probably wouldn’t buy if I could – especially items of the gaudy variety. I prefer classic style rather than loud, fleeting trends. Does anyone really remember what Dior came out with last year? Hmm, probably not. I digress.

Our night ended with a trip to a little pub called the Bull & Gate. It’s a music venue for up and coming rock (among other genres) bands. For 5 GBP, you can see 4 live bands and enjoy yourself immensely. If you like rock or want to relive your youth, this is definitely the place to check out. Perhaps you’ll even get lucky like us and see British teens attempt to perform Reggae (it was hysterically bad). Haha.

Until next time.

It's "tu me manques" not "je te manque"

The French have an odd way of doing things. At least that's what it seems like to my American brain. In French, if you want to say "i miss you" you say "tu me manques" which translates to "you miss me." I would think it would be easier to say I miss you (je te manque) than ordering someone to miss me, but who am I to criticize an entire language.

On other news, I am currently sitting in the first class lounge at the Philadelphia International Airport. Upon checking-in my baggage, the nice lady at British Airways informed me that I had been upgraded. I have no idea why AND I didn’t want to ask lest she change her mind. On flight I even get a bed with unlimited amounts of food!!! This is all very exciting. I believe this is merely the start of an incredible adventure – as corny as that may sound.

Penn State is playing Florida State in the Orange Bowl right now. I hope Penn State wins. I’m not much of a football fan, but it is a bit thrilling when your home team is doing well.

My flight lands in London around 10 in the morning. This is my first time in London and I am all excitement. Next Wednesday I’m scheduled to take the Eurostar into France and start school in Paris. I got an email from my host mother yesterday. She is a lawyer with four children who’ve all grown (thank goodness!). I think she lives alone with her cat in the suburbs. What fun! I love animals.

Well, for the remainder of my time in first class, I am going to sit here enjoying the life of luxury. Until next time …