So Little Time... To Do Everything Imaginable

I have been in Paris for over a month and I am beginning to feel acclamated. It is true that just last week, I called my parents crying and frustrated but I am learning that this will be the case several times throughout the year. I have begun 4 out of 5 of my classes and I like the French Education system. It is true that the classes are larger, a bit less structured and the students do not seem to thinking talking while the professor talks is rude but overall, I like my classes. My favorite class so far is my History of the Relations between France and Africa taught by a teacher from Middlebury College. He is very animated while he teaches and it is very engaging. I also love my History of French Cinema class because we get to watch different genres of movies every week that I probably wouldnt have chosen myself, I am trying to become more universal (mom you and S would be happy, right now we're watching movies from the '30's).

Nannying has been going very well and I am very much in love with A. He is very funny and he has begun to mimic me every day, that can be quite annoying since I put up with it for years with my younger sister but it is also a bit endearing... just a bit. Both A and R have received perfect marks on their English assignments so at least I know that I am doing well in that department (although, I must add, they are very advanced in English themselves and need very little assistance, it's more about practicing to the pronunciation of a word where I come in).

So I have left this out for a while and I know my cousin R is going to kill me but yes I have met someone. His name is Marco and he is also a student. We met at the bakery where he works and we have gone out since then. It is true, each day my friends say "I can't believe you're already dating a French guy" but it does not seem too fast for us. We are getting to know each other and enjoying ourselves. Hopefully Marco is correct and with his help I will be talking like a true Parisan by January.

I have pictures from our group trip to the Loire Valley to post later today, I must go play with the kids! A tout a 'heure!

It's Been a While... Time to Catch Up!

la Mosquee de Paris

L'Opera Garnier

Versailles

So it seems quite apparent due to my abscence that things are getting very busy really fast. Tomorrow is the last day of my orientation courses and next week begins my year studying at French universities (three of them might I add). This week was a bit hectic as most of us tried to enroll in our courses and were told that we were not listed in the university system... therefore, we couldnt officially enroll and we were frustrated for having to wait two hours to meet with the direction of international study in order for him to tell us that the director of our program enrolls for us when he receives our student identification cards. All is well, we can just go to our classes beginning next week and let the professors know that we are international students and that we are waiting for our cards to officially enroll. On a different note, we have been learning everything we can about Paris and are very excited to be around for some amazing experiences, (last weekend the Pope came to make a speech, this weekend is "journee de patrimoine"- all museums, historical sites and many shops will be open and gratuit- FREE, which is very nice for students, especially foreign students who would pay the normal fare to see these once in a lifetime exhibits another time).

I have been babysitting for two weeks now and I adore the children. Everyday I get to spend my afternoons playing basketball and soccer with A before we go back to his house and I make dinner for A and R. They are both delightful and they teach me everything there is to know about French culture (they are quite informed about American culture I must add).

I am going to post lots of pictures from group outings to the castle of Versailles, l'Opera Garnier, the building that was used to film the Phantom of the Opera a few years ago and the actual opera outlined in the book.

I have to finish here because I must study for my History exam but I will try not to wait so long to update!

Finalement, La Tour Eiffel (Finally, the Eiffel Tower)

La Tour Eiffel! Today, after our visit to the National Library of Paris, three of my friends and I went to see the Eiffel Tower. We didn't venture closer today, we rested and took photos from a nearby park but we definitely intend to get to the Eiffel Tower and go to the top sometime in the next nine months! This is one of four buildings of the National Library of Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale de Paris, where I will be spending many afternoons and maybe weekends, studying and using the many resource rooms to assist my French studies. Also, this library is very close to the university where I will be studying in a few weeks. (Hopefully pictures of Universite Paris VII, will come this weekend.) A cool fact about these buildings, the current president, Nicolas Sarkozy, had a hand in the design of these buildings and he wanted it to look like an open book. So there are four buildings shaped like an open book and in the center of the buildings there is a large garden. It is quite a nice place to study and relax.

A statue taken of the Academie Nationale de la Musique. More photos of this gorgeous building to follow soon.
A very pretty and very old apartment building (un immeuble.) Lots of the buildings in Europe are designed in a Gothic style such as this one.
These stars make up the symbol of the European Union, (l'Union Europeen), and it if you've been to the Eiffel Tower before and have not seen these stars, as was the case with me, that is because currently, France holds the presidency of the Union. The country switches every two years, as I am told by my friend. I thought it was quite cool, especially since we learned about the Union yesterday in my contemporary France course. So I am almost at the end of my first week of orientation courses and I must say that I love my Communication orale (oral communication,) and my Phonetique appliquee courses because they really help me improve my French pronunciations and I am better able to ennunciate the correct voyelle sounds. I begin my university courses in two weeks and I feel that, thanks to my introduction courses, I will not be too overwhelmed and nervous. Now, I do know that these professors will not be informed ahead of time that we are American students so nothing will be watered down for us. In this way, I need to thank my two professors from the other day who overwhelmed me because they, in turn, are helping me prepare for my French uni courses.

Furthermore, I must say, I am quite a pro at the metro by now and thanks to my mothers' advice, I am able to recognize landmarks that will assist me one I get out of my metro exit so I will not get lost again. Things are coming together and I am feeling very accomplished if I do say so myself. Tomorrow I have an interview with a French family who wants me to teach English to their children, A (9) and R (11) and bring them to their sports lessons and cook for them. It will be a lot of fun and I will also feel a little more at home being able to speak English some of the time. I must go to bed now but I am happy to report a wonderful and very informative day!

A tout a l'heure (Until Next Time, See You a Little Later.)

MademoiselleM and the no good, very bad day!

So, today is my third day of orientation classes at Reid hall... we have been learning about how to compliment your host family and when to be formal or when to be familiar. These lessons are very informative and helpful ( I have already learned that the first day I told my host mom I was pregnant instead of full, a common mistake made by Americans apparently.) Things have been progressing well these past few days, I have mastered the metro, I was able to buy a Parisian phone and I am generally able to navigate my way around the city. However, yesterday was a pretty bad day.

Similiar to my college in America, we have block scheduled classes and we don't meet for the same class every day... we met new professors yesterday who were not as patient as the professors we were introduced to the day before... we were yelled at twice to be quiet and we had to listen really hard as all three professors told us yesterday that "the French are the French and they would not slow down just because we were American students." It was all meant with good intention but it just made things harder for everyone. I was pleasantly surprised that after a few minutes of intent concentration, I was able to understand more than I have thought I would be able to. It was pretty exciting.

Now for the troubled times... Yesterday afternoon our "Paris Pratique" class was about how to buy and use French cell phones. That was easy enough to understand yet, we were not prepared to go to the store and buy them ourselves, what a spectacle it was for the other shoppers when they were locked out of the store while 23 American students tried really hard to speak French with the men who worked in the phone store. It took a few hours and lots of broken phrases but we managed to get what we wanted (with a little help from another store a few metro stops away.) I left my friends to take the metro home to my apartment and all went well... however, when I got out of the train station I was completely lost even though I knew I was only a block away. In Paris there are many exits and I always exit from a different place than I enter in the mornings. So, being my tired, cold, self yesterday afternoon, I did not know where I was. I asked three people (in French) where my street was and none of them knew how to help me... only direct me back to the metro stop with the same name as my street. It took me 35 minutes and the assistance of my lovely mom (yankeetransferred) using google maps to guide me home. Ugh, what a stressful day. I don't mean to rant and I know some days will be like this but it was my first after several amazing days.
I must go to my class now and learn about academics in France! A tout a l'heure ( A little later!)

Ma Vie- parte 2

This is my apartment, I live in the 11th arrondisement in Paris! My host mother's name is Claire.



This is my room here, I have lovely Bay windows that open out into the terrace, it allows for great refreshing air!





This is part of the salon. It is very lovely and comfortable.




The kitchen! My host mother, Claire (L) and her friend Armelle.

Ma Vie a Paris ( My Life in Paris)- Part 1

Yesterday morning we had our first group meeting at Reid Hall. Reid Hall is a building in Paris that is used my Smith, Middlebury and Wellesley College when they send their students abroad as a training and immersion school. For the next three weeks, we will meet for classes at Reid Hall with Smith professors and associate directors from Paris who will teach us all things French, that is give us oral communication lessons, practical studies, guided tours of the city and grammar lessons. Below are some photos of the building.






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La Maison Verte
(the green house)

Bienvenue a Paris

After a very long day of traveling, I arrived in Paris, France this morning at 8:10 am ( 1:10am Memphis time.) I was not freaking out going through Immigration and customs because my flight mate was a 26-year old American woman who lived in Paris this past year and was returning to Paris to reside here permanently. She walked me through the exit and told me what I would need to be allowed to enter the country (my Visa, which, thanks to my mother and my good friend Lexi, I was able to acquire without much fuss.) Then, due to my last minute boarding (my connecting flight almost caused me to miss my flight to Paris) my luggage was one of the first to be dropped so I was able to get out to my shuttle very quickly. The shuttle driver was very nice and he made sure all the passengers were settled at their hotels before he left. *Quick note: What a small world after all, a young woman and her mother were traveling with me on most of the same flights and it turns out the young woman is a dancer with one of my friends who is in my Paris group and will be arriving tomorrow, it was cool that we made that connection.*
So After I settled in and showered, I fell asleep for five hours and woke up refreshed and ready to venture outside, well a short distance anyway. I made my way to the super market (supermarche) and bought some dinner for myself, conversing entirely in French (minus the time I asked a woman, in French of course, if there was another department to the store which sold food items, it turns out there were two levels to the store and I needed to be downstairs!)
That pretty much sums up my day, tomorrow I meet my friends at the hotel across the street that was reserved for us by my school and the day after next the real fun begins! I meet my host family and discover my new home for the next 8 months.
I am very excited about my upcoming adventures and I am glad to be sharing it with all of you.

Love you lots, M and S!