Alright, one last post for anyone who's interested. I promised my mom one email in the next week to let her know I'm alive, which is more than what she got when I went to Europe in high school, but I'm not bringing my computer with me on my trip. I leave Bordeaux at 7:57 tomorrow morning (or it might be 6:57? 8:57?- I shouldn't have chosen to travel on the day that the time changes...). I will be in Paris for a day and a half, enough time to explore a little more of the city, but unfortunately not able to go see Versailles or Monet's gardens because everything is closed on Mondays. I am going to be a history nerd and go to the cathedral of St. Denis, just a little outside of Paris, to see the first gothic cathedral. And I'm going to Montmatre, the one area of Paris that I really want to see but haven't yet (famous for being the setting of 'Amelie,' as well as the Moulin Rouge, but I'm really going to see the Sacre Coeur). Then a whirlwind of Barcelona, Lisbon, Sintra, Madrid and Paris. I'm only really going to be in Madrid's airport for about 45 minutes but I'm counting it. I actually just realized that I only have about 45 minutes to change terminals and check-in for my flight from Madrid to Paris so I can't check baggage. Funny that I'll be taking a backpack on a week-long trip when I had a duffel bag for my weekend in Paris. I'll be back in Bordeaux late Monday night November 5th, just in time for classes again on the 6th but not early enough to watch 'V for Vendetta' on the 5th of November the way I should.
This week actually went by very quickly, but it's weird because normally Fall Break feels like such a relief. This time, I'm very happy for the traveling time but I still don't feel like I'm really in classes. Oh well...I also thought I had a Linguistics exam this Thursday so I crammed late Wednesday and all morning Thursday just to find out that it won't be until the week after vacation. I blame the language barrier.
I'm looking into going to Sweden for St. Lucia's day, December 13th. I found a flight on Ryanair for .01 Euro, which is ridiculous on its own, but I might have another Linguistics quiz. However, as the last story proved, I actually have no idea. Something to look into...
I found out that I have no exams after Christmas so I have a much longer break between semesters than I thought. I just might come home for Christmas afterall, though it will make it much harder to come back here.
It's funny because I have much more complicated interactions in French all the time, but simple things like buying my train ticket all in French are what make me feel good about my language skills. There's times when I'm frustrated, such as when a waiter switches to english or when I have long conversations with my host family and they kind of assume I can't actually explain myself. But it's when I do something relatively complicated and logistical like buying a train ticket from someone who doesn't know I'm not french that I feel the greatest sense of accomplishment. It's hard because everyone keeps asking if my french is better. I'm sure it is, but not in an obvious sense. I'm more comfortable with it. My comprehension is much better just from living in the language. But it's not as if I wake up and feel, ok, today I know how to say this phrase. And tomorrow, I'll wake up knowing how to conjugate a different verb. My language skills aren't concrete, but I think that at the end of this I'll be shocked to think back to the beginning.
One other note on the differences between my college life here and at Midd: at Midd, I run out of my room 5 minutes before I have class across campus and make it before the professor. Here, for example when the trams didn't run between the center of town and campus on Friday afternoon (it's a much bigger deal than what it seems), I spent two hours walking home. It's normally a 10ish minute walk and a 25 minute tram ride. Ridiculous.
And now it's time to finish packing and go to bed. I have to wake up in 6 hours. Or is it 7?...
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Shakira and McDonalds
The internet in my house has completely disappeared so I'm sitting at McDonalds using the free wireless and they're playing "La Tortura" by Shakira. I'm not really complaining but it's weird because I've been really missing Spanish lately. It's hard because you have to choose one or the other, I know if I had gone to Spain I would have regretted losing my French and doing half and half isn't much better. We have a week-long vacation next week so I'm going to Barcelona and Lisbon, Portugal with a friend from Midd. I've been building up Barcelona for so long that I'm curious to see how I feel about it this time, over 4 years later. Barcelona was the first city in Europe that I ever saw and I've been desperate to go back ever since. And Portugal has been on my list for a long time, and I'm excited that I'm actually going. However, my camera is not really working...so mom and dad, I know you're reading this, maybe you could send a camera next weekend? Otherwise I'll be forced to buy a disposable camera and shoot film. Lame. Although appropriate for my return to Barcelona since that's all I had last time I was there. It's so pretty it doesn't actually matter what kind of camera you use. (I'm really excited if you couldn't tell...)
Classes are boring and exhausting. I complain about the lack of discussion but I'd be terrified if I had to actually participate. Hmm...
I found Chai Tea in this city!!! I didn't think it was possible but we found it and it was actually good. The ironic thing is that it's from a little place called "The French Coffee Shop," clearly trying to introduce the French to the Americans' love of Starbucks without the American brand. But I'll take it...
We also found pretty amazing Thai food. And last week we found samosas. I was craving asian food so this kind of makes everything better. If only we could find decent Mexican...
Now McDonalds is playing French techno and it's just too much for me. Luckily I've run out of things to say anyway.
Classes are boring and exhausting. I complain about the lack of discussion but I'd be terrified if I had to actually participate. Hmm...
I found Chai Tea in this city!!! I didn't think it was possible but we found it and it was actually good. The ironic thing is that it's from a little place called "The French Coffee Shop," clearly trying to introduce the French to the Americans' love of Starbucks without the American brand. But I'll take it...
We also found pretty amazing Thai food. And last week we found samosas. I was craving asian food so this kind of makes everything better. If only we could find decent Mexican...
Now McDonalds is playing French techno and it's just too much for me. Luckily I've run out of things to say anyway.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Babysitting, Teaching Class and Strikes...
This last week has been stressful and exhausting. First, I somehow ended up agreeing to babysit the kids three times. Then I came down with some serious allergies (maybe to babysitting?). I like the kids and the family, but it's a little stressful feeling like a guest/au pair all the time. I know that I don't feel comfortable in my room because I keep it far too neat. If I felt like I really lived here, my room would be a disaster- the way I like it.
Last Monday I had a meeting at the school, assuming I was going to be helping the teacher at least in the english class, maybe during the rest of the day too. However, she asked if it would bother me if she gave me half the class and shared some of her lesson plans with me? Because I obviously know how to teach 3rd grade english since I'm a native speaker. It's not like I can teach the class in english since the kids have only a grasp of colors/animals. It's going to be interesting, stressful and probably pretty amazing to be in that situation. I only wish I felt a little more qualified...and that I had my mom's preschool lesson plans to borrow.
Tomorrow there are going to be huge strikes all around France because the new president, Sarkozy, wants to extend the work-week from 37 hours to 40. That sounds kind of silly to most Americans, but it's a huge deal here. Almost nothing is open on Sundays, although Sarkozy just pushed through a law to change that too, and the French really value their free time. They work just the minimum to have the lives that they want and after that it seems unnecessary. Kind of an interesting way to look at things, but frustrating when you need milk on a Sunday.
My friend Caroline from Midd visited me this past weekend for the first time...it was weird because it almost didn't feel weird that we were in France together. I enjoyed feeling like I could show someone around Bordeaux as if I knew what I was doing. I think we're going to go to Barcelona and Lisbon during our Fall Break in a few weeks which I am very excited about because I have been dreaming of returning to Barcelona since sophomore year of high school.
The time difference is starting to make me really insane. It's always too late or too early everywhere else. It would be much more convenient if everyone was on the same time schedule.
Last Monday I had a meeting at the school, assuming I was going to be helping the teacher at least in the english class, maybe during the rest of the day too. However, she asked if it would bother me if she gave me half the class and shared some of her lesson plans with me? Because I obviously know how to teach 3rd grade english since I'm a native speaker. It's not like I can teach the class in english since the kids have only a grasp of colors/animals. It's going to be interesting, stressful and probably pretty amazing to be in that situation. I only wish I felt a little more qualified...and that I had my mom's preschool lesson plans to borrow.
Tomorrow there are going to be huge strikes all around France because the new president, Sarkozy, wants to extend the work-week from 37 hours to 40. That sounds kind of silly to most Americans, but it's a huge deal here. Almost nothing is open on Sundays, although Sarkozy just pushed through a law to change that too, and the French really value their free time. They work just the minimum to have the lives that they want and after that it seems unnecessary. Kind of an interesting way to look at things, but frustrating when you need milk on a Sunday.
My friend Caroline from Midd visited me this past weekend for the first time...it was weird because it almost didn't feel weird that we were in France together. I enjoyed feeling like I could show someone around Bordeaux as if I knew what I was doing. I think we're going to go to Barcelona and Lisbon during our Fall Break in a few weeks which I am very excited about because I have been dreaming of returning to Barcelona since sophomore year of high school.
The time difference is starting to make me really insane. It's always too late or too early everywhere else. It would be much more convenient if everyone was on the same time schedule.
Friday, October 5, 2007
Where's fall?
It's now been over 3 weeks since I've been here. I've "survived" 2 weeks of french classes. And all of my worrying about credits and hours in-between. Classes here are very different- there's no discussion or interaction really, except in my translation course when the professor calls on people and usually responds to their translation as "No. why would you put that?" As much as we complain about having to do the reading in our small Midd classes, I'm missing that bubble right now. The french students write down every word the professor says for 1 hour, 1.5 hours, 2 hours, whatever...there's no reflection, no engagement. However, there's also almost no work. Until the giant final anyway, and I'm not actually sure when that is.
As much as I like to pretend that I'm adjusted to french life, I'm realizing how much I still stick out and how much I miss from home. I miss turkey like crazy- everything here is ham. I'm starting to forget what real Diet Coke tastes like. I also miss just being able to communicate the simplest things without stressing. There's so many ideas and phrases that I just can't get across easily in French so I don't say anything.
It turned out the photo contest was already full, so we decided to go to Paris for the weekend. We had all been feeling sad that when we were in Paris for Orientation we didn't get a chance to see many of the big touristy sights. This weekend we packed in as much as we could: the Latin Quarter, Notre Dame, Monparnasse (Callie had to find the cafe where F. Scott Fitzgerald used to drink), le Musee d'Orsay (my favorite museum ever- it has all the most amazing impressionist art, even though Chicago's collection isn't bad), Centre Pompidou (all the modern art- this was for Callie too), Luxembourg Gardens... Being in Paris makes us really reflect on Bordeaux itself, but it's hard to compare the two. In Paris, we were literally stumbling along famous monuments and history. The whole city just has this feel of art and culture constantly. That part made Bordeaux feel a little more like just a sleepy little town. However, everywhere I went in Paris I heard tons of Americans. That's not normally a problem, and in some ways it was comforting, but I'm here to learn french. It would be hard in Paris to know that most people on the street don't speak the language of the country. In Bordeaux, we're the weird ones who don't understand everything, but we're some of the few non-native French.
I have a meeting at a school today to discuss when I'm going to go help out in the English classes...since I don't have class on Mondays I figure I can spend a few hours there and it will remind me that I do actually speak one language relatively well.
Next weekend, Caroline is coming to visit from Poitiers so that should be fun. It's weird because we haven't seen each since May dpesite the fact that we've both been in France for almost a month now. And I have a long break at the end of October so I need to decide where I going to visit...I want to go to Morocco at some point this year, despite the fact that parents offered to pay me not to go there. It' safe, I promise. But I'll probably go somewhere on Continental Europe for this break.
I still not sure where Fall is. I thought I saw some leaves on the ground the other day, but I don't think it counts. However, I heard it was 90 degrees in Chicago the other day so maybe it's not just missing in France.
As much as I like to pretend that I'm adjusted to french life, I'm realizing how much I still stick out and how much I miss from home. I miss turkey like crazy- everything here is ham. I'm starting to forget what real Diet Coke tastes like. I also miss just being able to communicate the simplest things without stressing. There's so many ideas and phrases that I just can't get across easily in French so I don't say anything.
It turned out the photo contest was already full, so we decided to go to Paris for the weekend. We had all been feeling sad that when we were in Paris for Orientation we didn't get a chance to see many of the big touristy sights. This weekend we packed in as much as we could: the Latin Quarter, Notre Dame, Monparnasse (Callie had to find the cafe where F. Scott Fitzgerald used to drink), le Musee d'Orsay (my favorite museum ever- it has all the most amazing impressionist art, even though Chicago's collection isn't bad), Centre Pompidou (all the modern art- this was for Callie too), Luxembourg Gardens... Being in Paris makes us really reflect on Bordeaux itself, but it's hard to compare the two. In Paris, we were literally stumbling along famous monuments and history. The whole city just has this feel of art and culture constantly. That part made Bordeaux feel a little more like just a sleepy little town. However, everywhere I went in Paris I heard tons of Americans. That's not normally a problem, and in some ways it was comforting, but I'm here to learn french. It would be hard in Paris to know that most people on the street don't speak the language of the country. In Bordeaux, we're the weird ones who don't understand everything, but we're some of the few non-native French.
I have a meeting at a school today to discuss when I'm going to go help out in the English classes...since I don't have class on Mondays I figure I can spend a few hours there and it will remind me that I do actually speak one language relatively well.
Next weekend, Caroline is coming to visit from Poitiers so that should be fun. It's weird because we haven't seen each since May dpesite the fact that we've both been in France for almost a month now. And I have a long break at the end of October so I need to decide where I going to visit...I want to go to Morocco at some point this year, despite the fact that parents offered to pay me not to go there. It' safe, I promise. But I'll probably go somewhere on Continental Europe for this break.
I still not sure where Fall is. I thought I saw some leaves on the ground the other day, but I don't think it counts. However, I heard it was 90 degrees in Chicago the other day so maybe it's not just missing in France.
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