A week in review

I’ve never been to Tokyo, nor have I starred in a Sofia Copolla produced film, much less a film period.  However, I am studying abroad in a foreign country that speaks a language I thought I knew, so I guess Bill Murray and I do have something in common.

I’ve been meaning to write this blog since arriving, so it seems now is the best time to write it seeing as how if I wait any longer I probably won’t do it.  A quick rundown for anyone in the dark - this blog will be dedicated to my nine to ten months that I’ll be studying in Paris as well as my adventures within the city and across Europe.  Many of you know that I’ve always wanted to do this, so the fact that it is happening right now is, quite frankly, surreal.  I would have never been able to do this without the love and support from my parents.  Initially it was difficult to get them onboard, but once they understood the benefits of studying abroad they were all for it.  Another shout out to former UT student, Alina Slavik, who did the same program I’m doing.  It was through her that I was able to get in touch with my host mother.  A big thank you to Alina for guiding me through the process of applying for study abroad and getting prepared for coming over here.  Her blog was also a huge inspiration, too. 

Now on to what’s been going on over here.

My first week in the city of lights has been a rush to say the least.  I arrived at Charles de Gaulle Friday afternoon and immediately taxied over to the MICEFA office (the exchange program).  The cab ride in itself was an adventure because it involved two people (the cab driver and myself) trying to speak to each other in broken French.  Needless to say, it was a nice, quiet ride once she understood the directions.  A few hours later I was able to make it over to my host family’s apartment and get settled in.

Six flights of winding stairs later with baggage in tow, I finally made it up to my new home.  I’ll be living in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, also know as the Marais.  When I say I was fortunate to get such a space I really do mean it.  I’m living in one of the oldest parts of Paris, so old in fact that part of it wasn’t touched during Napoleon III’s reconstruction of the city in the early 1800s.  Pretty awesome!  Plus, it’s cool to be a five-minute walk from Notre Dame and Bastille.  My host mother, Laurence Dubaut, works for a museum near the Louvre and her son, Camille, 18, has just started what we would call undergraduate school in the states.  Baseball runs in the family as Camille plays for the French national team and Laurence used to coach AND play until this year.  Maybe their love for the game will rub off on me?  We’ll see with time.  I’m hoping I can get them into American football but that might be too optimistic on my part.  I mean, I’ve got to have someone to talk to about fantasy football, right?

My room

Le salon i.e. the living room

Looking out over the balcony

Other than that most of my days have consisted of walking around and touring this amazing city.  The long boulevards adorned with little cafés and shops really are a sight to behold.  Pictures really don’t do it justice unfortunately.  I was planning on giving a rundown of my adventures here the past week, however, I don’t want to bore all of you so I’ll just give/show ten of the highlights and things I’ve noticed.

1) Visited the Ralph Lauren on Saint Germain.  WOW.  Somehow the store transcends being just another retail store and turns into an experience.  I spoke to the manager in RRL and Blue Label about a part-time position and they said once I get my school schedule figured out to come in for an interview.  Talk about opportunity of a lifetime.  Fingers crossed it all works out.
 

Directory of floors within the store....yes floors.  Photo courtesy of materialiste.com

RRL room.  All RRL i.e. all awesomeness.  Photo courtesy of materialiste.com

Staircase if you so choose not to take the elevator adjacent.  Photo courtesy of materialiste.com

 2) My big ‘sight seeings’ thus far has been the Eiffel and the cemetery in Montmarte.  Pictures below.

Cat within Cemetery Montmarte

It really is a sight to behold.  An acre of graves and mausoleums mushed together

3) The French really do like their expresso.  It’s pretty damn good I might add.

4) Missing orientation to get a cheaper flight might have been a mistake because I was not able to meet the other North American exchange students in my program, however I stand by it (gotta save that cash!). 

5) I don’t know as much French as I thought I did.  My host family must think I didn’t learn any prior to coming over.  I think with time though it'll all come together once my brain can catch up with the rate at which the language is spoken.  The two biggest hurdles have been learning all of this vocabulary as well as not making silly mistakes whilst talking (that’s been the norm since arriving).

6) Don’t order wine at the bar in a restaurant.  I learned the hard way when I first arrived.  I said, ‘Je voudrais un vin rouge’ to the bartender and the elderly woman sitting at the bar just shook her head.  On the plus side, the two of us ended up having a nice conversation in the end.

7) The French love their sports, however they don’t wear it like we do in the states.  I was the only person who was wearing a French soccer jersey when national team played Romania for Euro 2012 qualifiers.  I somehow must have looked the part of a tourist too because a homeless man asked for a euro in English.  Fail on my part. 

8) Subway is a lot more expensive in Europe.  In the States, I would rely on the company of Jared to save me some cash for a quick meal during finals.  Here however, not so much.  8 Euros for a foot-long sub?  In the words of Keyshawn Johnson, ‘C’mon man.’

9) Everyone dresses nice.  See number 7 on what not to wear.

10) As much as I do love it here, I do miss the States and friends.  I know I made the right decision in coming over, so this is probably the culture shock talking right now.

I’ll try to keep this updated as much as possible but for now ‘a bientôt’ as the French say.  Once again, thank you to everyone who has been so supportive of this experience.  It has been great to have such fantastic support.