au revoir, paris, je t’aime! Monday, Jun 30 2008

oh man. i can hardly believe i have been here for a whole month!! time has flown! but i think my time here was well spent and i have enough memories to last a life time! i am very very excited to come home, but in the meantime i should recap on my last day in paris:

ok let’s see… we woke up sunday morning and decided to go see jim morrison’s gravesite. oscar wilde was supposed to be there too (along with edith piaf- la vie en rose) so i was excited for that. so we get to the place that we think it is, the cemetery at monteparnasse, and we dont see jim or oscar listed…yeah…that’s because they weren’t there. haha! so we hopped the metro and took another 20 minute ride to the right place. it was way on the other end of town, but we made it. so we walked around for a bit and found jim on a random side street. we were going to go to oscar after that, but he was very very far away and the cemeteries in paris are very large and confusing. but it was cool. then we went home to get ready for our last baylor dinner.

ok we were getting ready when our madame called and told us to wait on them to get home (they went to normandy this past weekend). we had to leave no later than 7, though, to get to the cafe on time. well they didn’t get home until about 10 after and we were sooo late! we couldn’t find the place when we finally got off the metro 30 minutes later, so we had to call someone to give us directions. luckily, we made it and we didn’t even miss the appetizer (salad by the way). then for the main course we had beef with noodles (not bad). the dessert was the best part though! it was like a little pastry puff with ice cream in the middle (like a sandwhich) and chocolate all over it!! it was so rich, but i think since being in paris i have been able to tolerate things that are more rich. i loved it! so good! then this is where things got interesting…

our prof, uber, proceeded to roast each of us…in a poem… yeah… it is just something you will have to see for yourself…i mean, half of the time we had no idea what he was even talking about and then the other half was pretty clever. i think someone got it on film. goodness. he didnt have hardly anything to say about me because i wasnt in his class, but it was interesting to hear what he said about the rest of the bunch. then he sang a song… i dont know… i was really confused. it was a nice lighthearted way to spend the evening though!

so after dinner we went down to the river by notre dame and watched these guys skate for a while. they were pretty impressive. then we just chilled for a bit and went on home. it was sunday so the metros were closing early. then i packed and went to bed. ok. i am going home now. it is kind of wieird, but i am happy to be able to see my family…even if it takes 11 hours on a plane… fun.

anyway, i hope you enjoyed reading this as much as i have enjoyed keeping you updated on everything! thank you so much for the well wishes and for all your prayers!! they mean the world to me!! i cant wait to see everyone when i get home and don’t hesitate to call me when i land at 7:30 tonight! i have a TON of pictures, too, so that will be fun to see! à bientot!! merci!

j’adore paris!

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c’est fini!! Sunday, Jun 29 2008

ok so since i was sooo happy to be done with finals, i celebrated by buying a puff pastry type thing. we have a little mall that is randomly inside a building that is right by our appartment. it is so funny how all the buildings look so very similar on the outside and you have no idea what is inside unless you go in. anyway, back to the pastry. it had chocolate drizzled over it with 2 little puff things that looked like a snowman. i decided to save them for dinner. i actually went to the store to try to get this cereal i am obsessed with (we eat it every day), but the store i went to didnt sell it. so i bought the puff pastries indstead.

then when i got home, ashley and i decided to check out this little vintage store down the street. now, this is the nicest part of paris (seriously) and so designer stuff is everywhere. we expected it to be a little pricey, but it was waaaay more expensive than we guessed…haha. i mean i am sure that the beautiful dress i saw and tried on which fit me like a glove was a steal at 460 euros….i just would rather go to college than pay that much money for a dress. (the dress was phenomenal though…like i could hear the halleluia chorus) the store was pretty amazing though. it had just rooms and rooms of clothes, designer jeans, chanel and dior shoes at 200 something euros, burberry, dolce and gabana or however you spell it, and every other thing you can think of. the most beautiful dresses, shoes, skirts, tops…yeah it would have been pretty cool if i could have afforded anything in there. so then after that i decided i really wanted that cereal so we set off to find a franprix (place where our madame shops). but on our way there we got a little side-tracked…we found a great little place with great sales! all the clothes were very perisienne- flowing, loose, strait cut, could be dress or top type stuff. you know, those things i wish looked good on me but dont. nonetheless i tried stuff on and even bought a cute sweater that was on sale for 21 euros! good deal! i am still considering buying that bracelet too… i dont know though. anyway, it was fun!

we never did find a franprix so we went home to try to look for one on the internet. we got the address and headed off again. we found it just about 2 blocks down and we really really wanted to get just 3 things- sauce for our ravioli, ice cream (remind me to tell you about the cones), and cereal. guess what? we got all 3 and more!!! i was sooo excited to see the cereal you have no idea!!! so we bought that, and bonus- i got some cheese for the next few days! it was exciting!

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ou est le temps? Saturday, Jun 28 2008

ok this week has gone by so very fast! so we hit up the sales on wednesday i guess it was and found some cute little shops on la rue de st. michel. i mean, it is up to 70 percent off!! insane! i found the CUTEST dress shop ever, too, but the dresses were still like 60 euros even with the sale. we looked for a good while and then headed over to Rue des Rennes and found H&M (kind of like forever 21). it was 3 stories!! so cool! the lines to try stuff on were very long, and the dressing rooms are not nearly as nice as they are in the states, but it was fun! i got a pair of shorts for 15 euros. i am hesitant to wear them here, though, because you get whistled at if you wear shorts. not cool.

ok so then we headed home for our usual family dinner. tonight was special, though, because their previous foreign exchange student was coming for a visit. she goes to harvard. she was there for all of fall semester i think. she walked in the door and ashley and i were like, “oh crap she speaks french sooo well!” needless to say, the only time we opened our mouth for then entire dinner was when we had to put food in it. but, i do have to say, i could understand almost everything they were talking about! really! so that was kind of fun! we ate in the dining room for the first time since we have been here, so that was nice too. we usually try to crowd around the tiniest kitchen table known to man for dinner every night (i have pictures to prove my point). anyway, the girl (julie) was very sweet and very cute. she said she had been to france 7 times and was so amazed that it was our first. she said she was here to do research for a thesis and that harvard was paying for it…must be nice.

ok so then the next day after class i cant remember what we did…probably study. but the next day (friday i guess) was our last day of class (yay!!). we went out to eat as a class and on the way there, i ran into kristy!! it was so funny!! i was crossing a street and then out of nowhere i hear, “gracie whitaker?!” omg it made me sooo happy!!! we have been trying to get together this whole time and it has never worked out! but, we planned to have lunch or something on sunday, so that should be good. then after about 3 metro connections later we end up at this maroccan restaurant. i got couscous with chicken, and it wasnt the best, but it was ok. i would take mexican over that anyday. it was pretty cool, though, to add another cultural experience to the mix.

ok so after lunch (and after buying some chocolates), a group of us had to go to a french university and take some pictures for an assignment. the place was huge and so confusing with a ton of buildings that kind of connected, but not really. i like american universities better i think. but i only saw one so i cant base my assumption on that i guess. then we had to head over to the Belleville…which is supposed to translate to beautiful city, but it is the farthest thing away from beautiful. i hated it. it was supposed to be a melting pot type place with a ton of different nationalities all in one central area, and it was, but it was just dirty. there was trash everywhere, soo many people, and i did not feel very safe at all. we had boys with us, but i just didnt want to hang out there. it made me appreciate the very very nice part of town i live in! oh yeah, and the metro ride too forever because it was waaaay on the other side of town.

so then we went home finally. thank goodness. it wasn’t that bad, but i had a lot of studying to do and that trip took up most of my afternoon. so then i studied forever and ever and tried to cram 2 semesters worth of french in my brain…not fun. we had our last family dinner last night because they went to normandy again. tonight we are on our own and attempting to make our favorite meal- ravioli! exciting! then i studied more and went to bed. days without naps are kind of hard…haha!

so then today i took my finals. they were ok. not too bad. hopefully i did ok. we will see i guess. we are going shopping at a vintage store today so i will let you know how that goes. ok. i come home monday, and i am excited, but i love paris!! it is fantastic! i am looking forward to seeing everyone, though! can’t wait!

ps- sooo glad my classes are finished!!!

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so much to do and so little time Friday, Jun 27 2008

ok so a lot has happened since the sales, but i do not have any time to explain it because (this is a long story) i just got back from the most sketchy part of paris i have been to and i have to study for 2 finals tomorrow and do a take-home part tonight. but, quickly, here is the low down: went shopping, had fun, bought some shorts. ate dinner with family and their most recent exchange student from harvard (fun story). did a lot of homework. went to last day of class and went out to eat with class. randomly saw kristy in the latin quarter (made my day). had to go to a university in paris for another dang assignment (oh yeah i forgot that i did another video project somewhere in there, but i am sure you don’t care). then had to go to belleville (sketch part of paris i just got back from). not really the best experience, and the ride home was like an hour. now i have a ton of work to do, but i promise after my final tomorrow i will sit down and elaborate more on the past few days. say a prayer that i do well!!

ps- dad, i would LOVE to get mexican food when i come home!! cant wait!

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soldes…my new favorite word Wednesday, Jun 25 2008

ok so in france, the stores can only have sales twice a year- in the summer and in the winter. and guess what? today is the first day of the summer soldes (sales)!! very exciting! up to 50 percent off in most stores! so, today i am looking. (after of course my infamous video project. oh ps i have had 3 due this week…not fun) i might buy some things, too, but there are so many options! i can’ wait! i have been window shopping since day one!

oh yeah, random note- and ashley went to go to the town where her dad was born today…wouldn’t be a big deal except she has the house keys with her. yeah. i called her and she said she would leave them under the mat, but that still doesnt solve the problem of getting through the first locked door you go through to get to the elevator…i can only pray someone comes home soon. wish me luck.

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le musee d’orsay Tuesday, Jun 24 2008

oh wow. i think i liked d’orsay more than the louvre. incredible.

i saw the most wonderful impressionism!!! monet, van gogh, manet, degas…they were all there! i immediated entered the old train station (precious by the way) and made my way to the top floor. van gogh’s starry night on the siene (pre- famous starry night that is at the met in nyc) was awaiting me. perfect. the stars really looked like they were glowing from within! next i looked around the van gogh room and saw his sunflowers, self portraits, and the room he stayed in while in paris. his brushstrokes progressed in each one to become more defined, yet perfectly harmonious. his color choices reflected the mood of the painting, and the swirls on the background of his portrait were very starry night-ish. i loved it!!! i was in awe the entire time i was there!! so gorgeous!

on to monet. one of the most famous impressionists of all time, monet did not disappoint! his waterlilies were flawless, and his bridge was the perfect addition to the quiet nature that the painted. my favorite was a picture of the gardens with flowers everywhere. he also had a series of churches at d’orsday which i had never seen before. so pretty. his color choices, too, were so so pretty. it was very interesting to see the differences in style between each painter. monet had very small brush strokes, almost like dots, and they they combined beautifully to form a precious moment in time.

degas. i have been waiting for this moment since i arrived in paris. the blue dancers- incredible. just incredible! i was amazed! even the background with the different dots of purple, pink, blue, and green jumped off the canvas and captured my heart! (my second love after the ballet) the blues of the tutus were light, dark, and everything in between! degas managed to caputure exactly what the dress would look like when light strikes this part and that. i kept having to go back to that one. it melted my heart. there was also the dance class, the orchestra, and the dancer of 14 years (bronze statue with a cute little cloth tutu and ribbon in her hair). she was precious. i loved it!!

i looked around at everything else and saw a little rodin (gates of hell, torso of a man), and couldn’t believe i was actually there! everything was beautiful, but the impressionists stole my heart! the colors are melt together so well, and the real life depictions leave it to your imagination, yet give you the general idea. i would love to know how their mind could function like that so they could see the world in bits and pieces that could be taken appart and analized seperately, before putting them back together on a canvas with colors and motions that weren’t there or not noticed at a first fleeting glance. i love it. i loved every second i was there. almost as much as i loved the ballet.

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j’ai tombé amoureux Tuesday, Jun 24 2008

i fell in love last night. yes, it is true…

we were going to the opera, and so i was all dressed up in my green banana republic skirt and pink sweater. we got off the metro and waited outside the gorgeous opera garnier (i have a whole post about it from like 2 weeks back). then, we entered the large, beautiful hallway and went up the stairs to the first level. an usher showed us to our seats and they turned out to be in a private BOX CENTER STAGE! oh yes. i mean, we had 4 other people to share it with, but i hardly noticed them. the stage was beautiful and the decor even more so. the ceiling looked like a water color painting and the colors just illuminated everything. the stage was set with a couch, piano, chairs, and a rug. there was also a sign that said “liquidation” set up to the left. people entered the stage before the orchestra even played the first note and started taking everything away. then i saw the most magnificent thing i have seen since i have been in paris…POINTE SHOES!!!!! that’s right – we weren’t seeing an opera, WE WERE SEEING A BALLET!!!! and so i proceeded to fall in love with the paris ballet!

the ballet was titled “la dame aux camelias” and it was wonderful!! from the moment the first note played on the piano, i was hooked! the costumes were remeniscent of the nutcracker party scene, very period, and no tutus. they flowed beautifully and the first scene has couples walking across the stage getting ready to watch a show. they used the entire stage, and the dancers were so theatrical. the costumes were beautiful shades of purples, reds, and pinks. the dancers’ technique was impecable as well!! the majority of the music was just piano and it was choreographed beautifully to the melody!! the opening scene did have the orchestra play a bit (which was wonderful), but the second and third acts were mainly piano only. gorgeous.

the story was about a dame, margerite, who was a big socialite who went to a bunch of parties all the time and had boys falling all over her. she even had a socialite boyfriend who indulged her in nice things (like parties and jewerly and such). she, however, had eyes for one boy in a lower social class. oh yeah, and she had tuberculosis (hey i didn’t make it up, alaxander dumas wrote it). so she sees this guy on the side, while still managing to be popular in act 1. act 2 rolls around and they are in the country with a bunch of friends just having a good time, and the boy she really loves is there too. (their costumes were very scarlet o’hara.) they have a wonderful opening dance full of joy and fun, and then her rich boyfriend shows up and tells the other guy to leave. she stops him, though, and throws down the necklace he had given her to show that she didn’t care about the money and was going to do what she wanted. and so the rich guy ends up leaving. then the count (her dad or uncle or someone) showed up and she got in a lot of trouble for seeing the other guy out of her social class. there was a very dramatic scene where she and her father talk and he almost leaves her while she is begging on her knees. he comes back, though, and kisses her. so then her true love comes and they do a wonderful duet expressing their love. (i know you can’t wait to see what happens next, right?)

ok so at the end of act 2, she has to leave and so she gets her maid to give him a note from her. we don’t know exactly what it said, but she has a flashback of what her life would be like with the money and the old lifestyle (i will have to explain that later) and she wanted that back. so, she left him and went back to the city. but i think that she knew she was very ill and wouldn’t be alive much longer so she just left him because it was easier for her. so he gets very upset and runs after her.

then act 3 rolls around and they are back in paris, and the mood is very somber. she is out about on the streets and she runs into her true love again. after some dancing around each other, they are finally alone and rekindle their lost love. then she leaves him again. (i am leaving a few things out so sorry if this doesn’t make a lot of sense.) then she gets very very ill. she tries to write him a journal thing and she can’t make it. she calls for her maid to get her dressed (i didn’t see that coming). she puts on a red dress and a black vielover her head. then she heads over to see another show. she thinks she sees her lover and walks over to greet him, but it is not him and so she runs off. then back in her bedroom she tries again to write and falls over. she gets back in bed and tells her maid to give him the book. and she dies. sad, i know. then the maid gives him the book and it ends. ok i know it doesn’t sound like the most upbeat thing in the world, but i’m telling you it was AMAZING!!!! haha!

really though, the costumes, the music, our cute little private red box, and the art of dance just made it one of my favorite nights in paris!!! the lifts were flawless, and everyone was just so graceful!! the atmosphere was incredible, and i can not tell you enough how much i LOVED it!! the artists were sooo talented, and their passion was evident the entire way through!! that is what makes a good performance!

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la féte de la musique!! Sunday, Jun 22 2008

yesterday was so fun! one of ashley’s high school friends came into town named matt and so we took him all around. we first went over to montparnasse and got some lunch. there was also a little market thing going on and so i got some gifts (get excited!). they had everything from clothes to paintings. and there was a terrific little jazz band playing in the train station!! so cute!

so then we traveled to montemart to see the sacre ceure again. i loved it so i was all for it!! we get all the way up there (this time taking the elevator to the ground level instead of those ridiculous make-you-want-to-die spiral stairs) and have to wait on the boys from our group to show up. so they finally get there and we head uphill to see the church. it was strangely hot (the hottest it has been since we have been here) so it wasnt a very fun walk. but we made it and matt and i went inside. everyone else had seen it already so they just laid on the grass listening to the musicians on the steps of the church. inside, once again, is wonderful!! there was even a service going on so that was interesting to witness. i think this church is my favorite just because it is so precious!

so then we sat on the grass outside for a while and listened to the music. it is so funny how everyone plays american stuff!! the guys we listened to were from spain and they played quite a few american songs. so after that we got up and went to the little touristy stores that are all over the place and shopped for a bit. then me and one of the baylor boys (josh) saw this guy with a table and it was like street gambling. he had 3 little round black things with a white dot under one of them and you had to choose which one the white dot was under. he switched them pretty fast, and you had to be at a good angle to see. this one lady lost at least 100 euros. josh and i tried to guess just for fun, but we were not going to bet any money on it. no way. our other baylor friends were not as fortunate though. they saw another guy down the street and decided to try their luck… not smart. this guy was worse than the one josh and i saw because he would switch them all around, and then when he was finished and you go to reach for your money to place a bet, he turned it again! sneaky!! ashely lost i think 40 euros, matt lost 60, and kevin maybe lost 40 too. they might have won 1 hand, but i think they felt pretty stuid after that. so after that we went back home. we were getting hungry and we needed to get ready for the festival of music. they had been setting up stages all over the city so we knew it was going to be a big deal, but i had no idea how big…

ok. i had no idea what do expect for this music festival… it was CRAZY!!! people were absolutely EVERYWHERE!! resturants were open late (i saw countless numbers of mcdonalds bags) and the metro ran all night. there were just bands on all these little random side streets and it was so fun!! we heard everything from jazz to the police. most of them were good, but there was 1 or 2 that couldn’t even keep the crowd for 5 mins. oh man, i really can not stress enough how many people were on the streets of paris last night!!!! cars were backed up in traffic, people were all over the sidewalks, and the police were ready with tear gas in case something broke out…yeah they weren’t going to play around. people were even jumping into the fountains! some clothed, some not. and the metro stations were packed!!

we walked for sooo long trying to find bands and it was harder than i thought it was going to be. we found maybe 5 or 6 bands the entire night. the last one we found was in a cafe though, and so we all danced and it was so fun!! matt even asked me to swing dance! it was getting late though, and ashley had to catch a train somewhere early this morning, so we headed back home. on the way though, a girl passed me and said, “i have those shoes.” and i said, “target?” and then they freaked out because we were american. then they asked where we were from, and they were from texas too! in fact, they had just graduated from baylor a few years ago! small world!

so we headed home after that and luckily we didnt have to wait too long for the metro! it was fun, but a little too wild for me i think. definately something i never thought i would see while studying in paris!

 

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the catacombs Friday, Jun 20 2008

so today we didnt have class and it was so nice!! we chilled in the morning and then headed over to the Eiffel tower to meet some friends. from there we went to the catacombs of paris. the catacombs consists of underground passageways that are lined and lined and lined with bones…human bones. back when the plague was around, the people of the town thought that the cemeteries were a danger to public health so they decided to move all the bones from every cemetery…not a fun job i would think.

anyway, we get to the entrance (which is just a very unassuming black building) and wait in line for about 20 mins. then we go in and go down this spiral staircase that seems to go on forever. then when we actually get underground, we have to walk down a very long tunnel that just keeps growing deeper and deeper beneath the city. it is very dark, and very cold. so after walking through all these narrow tunnels with low ceilings and taking a countless number of twists and turns, we make it to the actual catacombs. above the doorway is a sign that reads, “stop. you are about to enter the room of death” or something like that…whatever it said, it was creepy.

so we walk in and are immediately welcomed by hundreds and hundreds of bones. it was so strange and kind of sick because they had arranged them in patterns, kind of like turning them into a work of art. it totally wasnt art though. the skulls were just everywhere and the femur bones were all stacked very meticulously. this went on for a very long time. i can not even imagine how many bones were in there. and it wasnt just like a wall was covered in them, the walls consisted of them…they were quite deep too. then we got to this place where water was dripping and that added to the unsettling mood already in the air. it was pretty cool, and we had fun, but it was just very strange. i only took like 2 pictures because it was the same thing all the way down…skulls and other bones (so is that like a chi-o’s paradise? just curious). i think the whole tour was about a kilometer. we went through it in about 30 mins or so. then we went back up the very long spiral staircase and came out of another very unassuming building on a random side street. interesting afternoon.

then for dinner my family wasn’t here (they have a house in Normandy and they go pretty frequently, so they are there until tomorrow night) so ashley and i cooked a pizza. it was pretty good too! and we were quite proud for figuring out the oven. i don’t know what is happening tomorrow, but there is a city wide music festival so we are going to check that out. apparently they have concerts all day, all around town, including churches. should be very cool! i woke up from a nap the other day to a group in the street practicing…it was really cool and they were good! oh did i tell you that there is no air conditioning here? and that there is a school right under us so the kids at recess are sooo loud? and that we have to keep our windows open all the time? so yes, i wake up to children yelling every morning…haha! it is ok though. i am not looking forward to the 100 degree weather back home. here it is a perfect 60 or 70 every day. be jealous.

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thursday! Thursday, Jun 19 2008

well, i stayed home last night because i realized earlier i have not had any alone time since i have been here. so, last night i sat in bed and just read and then fell asleep whenever i wanted…it was magical!! ashley went to the eiffel tower to meet a few friends though, and she had a really good time! anyway, today was our last day of the week since tomorrow starts our long weekend of baylor in paris (i will be spending my long weekend in paris to save money, but thats fine- i plan to shop). thank goodness. really, these 4 hour classes are no fun. i mean, she tries to make them as enjoyable as possible, but let’s just be honest- they are terrible.

anyway, for the second class of the day she took us on a little field trip. there are only about 11 of us so it was pretty easy to hop a metro all the way over to the 5th arrondisement. we get off the metro and see a mosque…yeah… we had no idea what to expect. we didnt actually go in, but i peeked inside and it was like a little nature haven in there…very cool. we ended up going around the back of it and there was a little resturant there (with a gift shop by the way) attached to the mosque. it was very authentic, open air, with round gold tables lining the inside wall. so cute! so we ordered mint tea (it was very hot, but very very good!!) and authentic pastries! omg so good! i couldnt even tell you what it was, but i liked it! it was nice to get another cultural experience! oh yeah, and then we decided to get a little lunch at a cafe near by (me, 3 boys and our teacher), and it was wonderful!! i got crepes with chicken and mushrooms and it was sooo good!!! and to answer your question ginny, yes i’ve had crepes with sugar and they are a little too sweet for me believe it or not, but this crepe with chicken thing was amazing!! they sell crepes everywhere here (along with ice cream), and you can get anything you want in them- cheese, sugar, nutella, ham, chicken, tuna…il y a beaucoup des choises (there are a lot of choices)…it is pretty sweet to watch them make them too!

tomorrow should be fun because we are going to the catacombs and hopefully to a ballet!! there is also this other place in town that features modern dance performances that i want to check out. i will let you know how that goes. it is hard to believe i have been here almost 3 weeks!! i have been so cut off from the world, but it has been a wonderful experience! i would love to hear how you are doing, so let me know how everything is back home!

oh ps this is random but i just had a realization that i am 20….that is so weird…i don’t think it hit me on my birthday because i missed most of it cause i was sleeping, but yeah… 20. goodness.

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