Monday, September 5, 2011
Versailles and then some
Not many times in my life have I had the opportunity to say, "I think I'll hop on a 20 minute train and go see Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette's crib!" But that is exactly what we opted to do this sweltering Saturday...
And I am so glad we went, because Versailles was amazing! I had been there before, but last time I strolled the gardens and never entered the Palace. This time, I was able to greatly appreciate the beauty of the palace, in the extreme heat nonetheless! And it was truly beautiful, it was like my dream home, covered in gold! It felt so surreal to stand in what was once a single family's home, whose exorbitant wealth was built by the exploitation of an entire empire. Versailles was crawling with tourists, which put a damper on the visit, but in two months when they are all back home, Versailles will be all mine! With my L'histoire d'art student card I get into almost every museum in Paris for free! Which is such a relief after paying $18 this summer to see the Gertrude Stein exhibit at San Francisco's MOMA. After an exhausting day in Versaille we decided to look for Mexican food that night... in Paris. Now, don't judge me! I absolutely LOVE french food, I love cheese, mussels, salads, everything! But sometimes, having grown up in California eating a diverse array of foods, you have cravings when you are thousands of miles from home. And it wasn't half bad! Don't get me wrong, it had absolutely nothing on Californian Mexican food, but we were cold (having just gotten drenched by a freak rain storm), and were extremely hungry and it was all together a fun experience!
Sunday I met up with Henriette in Montmartre, where went on a stroll to a cafe and drank chocolat and watched street performers play Bei Mir Bistu Shein! It was so crazy to see a pianist and cellist in the middle of a little square in Paris, but the fact that they were playing yiddish music made it all the more exciting! I felt so parisian sitting in the little artist community, sipping chocolat chaud and watching the tourists walk by. But then we got rained on... Leave it to Paris to have such an abrupt switch in weather!
Today our french class had an excursion to L'Opera Garnier which is the Paris opera house which inspired the novel The Phantom of The Opera. The opera house was gorgeous! One of the building's foyers was modeled after Versaille's hall of mirrors, and was just stunning, unfortunately, there was a rehearsal going on so we were unable to see inside the actual theatre, which is just an excuse for me to go to the Opera...
Love
And I am so glad we went, because Versailles was amazing! I had been there before, but last time I strolled the gardens and never entered the Palace. This time, I was able to greatly appreciate the beauty of the palace, in the extreme heat nonetheless! And it was truly beautiful, it was like my dream home, covered in gold! It felt so surreal to stand in what was once a single family's home, whose exorbitant wealth was built by the exploitation of an entire empire. Versailles was crawling with tourists, which put a damper on the visit, but in two months when they are all back home, Versailles will be all mine! With my L'histoire d'art student card I get into almost every museum in Paris for free! Which is such a relief after paying $18 this summer to see the Gertrude Stein exhibit at San Francisco's MOMA. After an exhausting day in Versaille we decided to look for Mexican food that night... in Paris. Now, don't judge me! I absolutely LOVE french food, I love cheese, mussels, salads, everything! But sometimes, having grown up in California eating a diverse array of foods, you have cravings when you are thousands of miles from home. And it wasn't half bad! Don't get me wrong, it had absolutely nothing on Californian Mexican food, but we were cold (having just gotten drenched by a freak rain storm), and were extremely hungry and it was all together a fun experience!
Sunday I met up with Henriette in Montmartre, where went on a stroll to a cafe and drank chocolat and watched street performers play Bei Mir Bistu Shein! It was so crazy to see a pianist and cellist in the middle of a little square in Paris, but the fact that they were playing yiddish music made it all the more exciting! I felt so parisian sitting in the little artist community, sipping chocolat chaud and watching the tourists walk by. But then we got rained on... Leave it to Paris to have such an abrupt switch in weather!
Today our french class had an excursion to L'Opera Garnier which is the Paris opera house which inspired the novel The Phantom of The Opera. The opera house was gorgeous! One of the building's foyers was modeled after Versaille's hall of mirrors, and was just stunning, unfortunately, there was a rehearsal going on so we were unable to see inside the actual theatre, which is just an excuse for me to go to the Opera...
Love
Thursday, September 1, 2011
September 1st
It has been quite a while since my last post, this may be partially due to the fact that I am tres busy, but really its mostly because I feel that my one reader, Mom, hears enough about my adventures via email. But just in case I have other admirers and number 1 fans of this blog, i'll try to keep you guys updated more often on Paris...
Last Sunday I moved into my host family's apartment in Neuilly Sur Seine, which is technically a suburb of Paris, but it is often looked at as part of the 16th arrondissement. Moving into another family's home can be intimidating, but my Madam and Monsieur are very sweet people. They have four grown children, the youngest Ludivine still lives at home, their cat Touch keeps me company in the early mornings when I am the sole awake human in the house. I was a little skeptical about the living situation, as I am a fifteen minute walk to the closest metro station and then its almost a 40 minute ride to get to Bastille, where my school is. But I am beginning to enjoy the early morning walks in the brisk air and the metro ride, as long as I get a seat, is quite an exciting part of my day as I get to people watch like no other, my favorite recreational activity... We are half way through our two week language intensive, and I feel like I have learned SO much, and yet so little. Even my english skills are slipping... it's beginning to be a problem. They keep us super busy, with daily three hour french classes and afternoon excursions that literally take us ALL over the city. Even though they are emotionally, physically, and intellectually draining days, I am super duper excited for the next four months.
Studying abroad has been a difficult adjustment, I go through waves of emotions on a daily basis. Leaving Berkeley and Santa Cruz was a hard decision, but so far I haven't truly regretted it. Thanks to the U.S dollar's excellent value I am saving tons of money here! (JUST KIDDING) everything is out of my price range, I will be in debt come December, but it will all be worth it.
Every morning I am out the house by eight o'clock in order to arrive on time to my 9am class. When I exit the metro station outside the Opera house and turn left I see the same family asleep everyday. The mother and father are not much older than me, maybe in their late twenties, and they are usually asleep when I walk by. They sleep on a old mattress two feet away from the street in a busy district, with a seven year old, a four year old, a toddler and a baby in between them. This is perhaps the worst part of my day. It just upsets and confuses me why a young couple, who obviously can't support and protect themselves, would choose to subject four young children to this lifestyle. Its just so selfish and unnecessary. I don't believe this family are gypsies, because I have never seen them beg for money or work tricks in order to pick pocket tourists. I don't know what the politically correct term is for the Romani people known as "Gypsies" but they are all over France and use their children for financial means. It surprises me that the French government doesn't have more effective social institutions to control the homelessness in cities. I understand that its a major problem that can not be easily fixed, but it is something that needs to be addressed, if a couple can raise four young children on the streets in a neighborhood that is known to be slightly dangerous at night in a city with extreme weather conditions, there is a problem. But I try to not let these little things upset me and instead try to thoroughly enjoy the complete french experience that would not be complete without... FROMAGE!
As anybody who knows me would tell you, I absolutely LOVE cheese. stinky cheese, soft cheese, blue cheese, fromage is my absolute favorite thing to eat and I am so lucky that my host family ends every meal with a cheese plate. We eat dinner around 8:30 every night when Monsieur comes home from work, so by the time we are finished with dinner I am ready to pass out... however there is work to be done! I know I am here to study french and European studies, but forcing myself to study has been an ordeal, as I feel I am learning so much from experiencing the city itself. But my french homework won't finish itself...
Last Sunday I moved into my host family's apartment in Neuilly Sur Seine, which is technically a suburb of Paris, but it is often looked at as part of the 16th arrondissement. Moving into another family's home can be intimidating, but my Madam and Monsieur are very sweet people. They have four grown children, the youngest Ludivine still lives at home, their cat Touch keeps me company in the early mornings when I am the sole awake human in the house. I was a little skeptical about the living situation, as I am a fifteen minute walk to the closest metro station and then its almost a 40 minute ride to get to Bastille, where my school is. But I am beginning to enjoy the early morning walks in the brisk air and the metro ride, as long as I get a seat, is quite an exciting part of my day as I get to people watch like no other, my favorite recreational activity... We are half way through our two week language intensive, and I feel like I have learned SO much, and yet so little. Even my english skills are slipping... it's beginning to be a problem. They keep us super busy, with daily three hour french classes and afternoon excursions that literally take us ALL over the city. Even though they are emotionally, physically, and intellectually draining days, I am super duper excited for the next four months.
Studying abroad has been a difficult adjustment, I go through waves of emotions on a daily basis. Leaving Berkeley and Santa Cruz was a hard decision, but so far I haven't truly regretted it. Thanks to the U.S dollar's excellent value I am saving tons of money here! (JUST KIDDING) everything is out of my price range, I will be in debt come December, but it will all be worth it.
Every morning I am out the house by eight o'clock in order to arrive on time to my 9am class. When I exit the metro station outside the Opera house and turn left I see the same family asleep everyday. The mother and father are not much older than me, maybe in their late twenties, and they are usually asleep when I walk by. They sleep on a old mattress two feet away from the street in a busy district, with a seven year old, a four year old, a toddler and a baby in between them. This is perhaps the worst part of my day. It just upsets and confuses me why a young couple, who obviously can't support and protect themselves, would choose to subject four young children to this lifestyle. Its just so selfish and unnecessary. I don't believe this family are gypsies, because I have never seen them beg for money or work tricks in order to pick pocket tourists. I don't know what the politically correct term is for the Romani people known as "Gypsies" but they are all over France and use their children for financial means. It surprises me that the French government doesn't have more effective social institutions to control the homelessness in cities. I understand that its a major problem that can not be easily fixed, but it is something that needs to be addressed, if a couple can raise four young children on the streets in a neighborhood that is known to be slightly dangerous at night in a city with extreme weather conditions, there is a problem. But I try to not let these little things upset me and instead try to thoroughly enjoy the complete french experience that would not be complete without... FROMAGE!
As anybody who knows me would tell you, I absolutely LOVE cheese. stinky cheese, soft cheese, blue cheese, fromage is my absolute favorite thing to eat and I am so lucky that my host family ends every meal with a cheese plate. We eat dinner around 8:30 every night when Monsieur comes home from work, so by the time we are finished with dinner I am ready to pass out... however there is work to be done! I know I am here to study french and European studies, but forcing myself to study has been an ordeal, as I feel I am learning so much from experiencing the city itself. But my french homework won't finish itself...
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