Weekend in Paris!

I just got back from a weekend in Paris. How cool is that? Just a quick little side-trip to Paris for the weekend, no big deal! Paris is just one hour by train (about $15 each way).


Arc de Triomph; the Louvre

The first day we roamed around seeing all the major sites of Paris. I went with two fellow Americans, Amy and Sergio, who are also taking French classes with me at the university.


Notre Dame with locks of love; Me, Amy, and Bank

The last day we had the chance to meet up with Bank, my sister's host sister from Thailand (from her Rotary Youth Exchange waaay back in 2004?) Bank has been living and studying in France for the last 4 years or so after her own successful Rotary exchange. The world is soo small!


The magnificent Tour Eiffel!

The Eiffel Tower was definitely the highlight of trip. It is truly gorgeous!! We didn't get to go to the top because it was too crowded... so that means I will have to go back! We did, however, get some free Eiffel Tower keyrings from a police officer who had confiscated them from someone selling them illegally.


Centre Pompidou

We stayed just outside of the city via couchsurfing. If you don't know what couchsurfing is and you like to travel, be sure to look it up! We basically stayed at a stranger's house for free... but the best part is, by the end of the weekend our host was no longer a stranger, but rather a good friend. And the money we saved on lodging we got to spend instead on the local areas that he introduced us to.


My fellow Americans and travel buddies: Me, Amy, and Sergio.

I can't believe I have been here for a month now! There is soo much more to see, not only in Paris but also in the rest of France. If my money will last, I plan to get in a some travel every single weekend. It's a lot- but I don't want to miss something and regret it!
Paris having been very expensive, however, I might take only a short day trip this coming weekend.

Classes!

Classes have finally started!

The campus is beautiful, even though it is often cloudy and rainy in Orléans. I even have roses growing outside of my building!

(Photos: Swans on campus and the building where I have my classes.)

I took the French exam to figure out what level of French classes I would take:

• Level 1: DPF (Diplôme Préparatoire de Français)
• Level 2: DEF (Diplôme Elémentaire de Français)
• Level 3: DAF (Diplôme Approfondi de Français)
• Level 4: DSF (Diplôme Supérieur de Français)

I am proud to say that I managed to get into the most advanced level!
The professor who did my evaluation warned me that it might be a little difficult for me, but that she thinks I can do it. This is great news! It means I will learn so much more!

(Photos: The cathedral downtown and the city hall.)

My core classes:

• Geography, Civilization, History, Language Structure, Oral Practice, Written Practice, Oral Comprehension, Litterary Texts, and Autonomous Work (?)

The optional classes I think I will take:

• Choir, The Francophone World, and Initiation of Economic and Legal Studies

(Photos: Yummy French chocolates!)

Les Ormes

The name of my university dorm is "Les Ormes," which means "The Elms." As far as I can tell, all the residences are named after flowers or trees, which is pretty befitting since the campus has quite a few flowers and trees.

(Photos: My dorm, Les Ormes.)

On move in day, Sept. 1, it took about 3 hours to do all the paperwork and get my keys. Then, since I only brought one big suitcase (mostly filled with clothes) it took about 30 minutes to get settled in my room.
Along with my keys, the international student office provided a few other things to help me get settled. Namely, a box full of cooking utenstils to use in the kitchen: mismatched chipped and broken (though glued) plates and bowls, a pot with a lid way too big for it, a wine glass, a tiny cappuccino mug, an odd assortment of used silverware, and a dented, but obviously important, crêpe pan. What more could an international student need?

And while a pickier person would probably throw most of the box's contents away, let's face it: I'm only here for a semester, so I'll take all the free, glued-together flowery plates I can get!

My room came with a turquoise bed frame, green blankets, a yellow wall, a blue door, and brown trim. I bought red sheets to add to the kindergarten feel, and I don't say that in a bad way-- I love colors!

The dorm has shared bathrooms, shared showers, and a shared kitchen, all of which are in less than decent condition. The kitchen is definitely the worst: only one of 4 stovetops works and the microwave looks like it hasn't been cleaned in years. Also, there is no trashcan, so people have just put their trash in bags on the counters. I think the problem is a lack of personnel to clean the public areas... because no matter how many signs you post in French, you cannot get a floor of 29 college students to clean up after themselves.
Well... I'm assuming all 29 rooms will be filled eventually. Right now, it feels like I'm one of about 5 people in the building.

It's a bit like living in a cheap hostel except that I get my own room with a locking door.

Welcome to France!

I arrived in France on August 16^th, at the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. The university arranged for a temporary host family to pick me up and take care of me until the dorms opened up, and waiting for me at the airport was Patrice Mothu and his 16-yr old daughter, Mathilde. The Mothu family lives in Combleux, a small town just east of Orléans and about an hour and a half away from Paris.

(Photos: The Mothu family home and the Mothu family.)

After a long overnight flight crossing 6 different time zones, I was hardly in the mood to do anything but sleep. Nevertheless, they were excited to have me there so I didn’t object when the insisted on treating me for lunch in downtown Paris, walking along the “Paris beach,” and passing by Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower for a few quick photos before taking me back to their home to meet Verónique, the mother of the family.

(Photos: The Eiffel Tower and a boat on the river in Paris.)

I have been extremely pleased with my French. Even though I cannot carry on a fluid conversation, I understood the majority of what is said to me and I can generally make myself understood despite repetitive vocabulary (for example, everything is “good” for me because I cannot say “nice” or “pretty” or anything else).

If I were to draw conclusions about all French people based on this family, I would say the women go completely crazy over cats and the men think that everything has a little sound that goes with it. Patrice always makes little noises for everything—a ‘tok’ everything he clicks on the computer, a ‘pat’ everything he picks something up, a ‘tak’ everytime he puts something down, a ‘shhhhhh’ to indicate fluid motion, and an "hup!" everytime he stands up. ‘Tik,’ ‘teek,’ ‘dop!’ ... everything makes a little noise.

(Photos: The cathedral in Orléans, the Joan of Arc statue in Orléans.)

Dinner, as with every meal, is followed by a choice of different cheeses to go on bread or crackers as well as yogurt. Then, after dinner, Patrice makes a big deal of pulling out their over 10 different flavors and styles of ice cream and presenting each one with a short introduction (“mmmm… this one is dark chocolate, mmm!”) This, combined of course his tiks toks taks and teeks of the sounds of the ice creams being picked up and put down, makes for something terribly hilarious.

I tried my best not to laugh, since no one else was. Perhaps the presentation of ice cream in France is a serious undertaking.

After two days with the Mothu family, I left for an amazing 2 week tour of Spain by myself. I have a ton of pictures and stories for this trip, so I created a different blog for my travels around Europe since I want this blog to focus on France: maija-europe.blogspot.com

After I came back, I spent another night with the Mothu family and then, the day before yesterday, I moved into my university dorm.