Taking a break with Monet-Rodin

No update the last couple of days, largely because I haven't had anything too exciting to document or report. This entire week is orientation. I have optional lectures/activities during the day and then a two hour class during the evening on French methodology.

The French definitely have a different philosophy on writing/presenting knowledge. To simplify what I am being taught, think of it as a "mystery." You do not write a thesis here, but instead problemitize a very simple subject given to you. For example, the question might be, "Does the internet increase our liberties?" Instead of answering yes or no, you instead must define each of those terms (ie: does our refer to users? or does it refer to everyone globally, and therefore the lack of access to internet also interplays with notions of equality and inequality???).

Once you analyze every term, you attempt to create your "problematique" or what question you will be extrapolating, but again, there is no thesis. It is about the development of your argument leading up to some vague conclusion in the end. The French also stress the same notion in oral presentations, which are a big aspect of almost every class here.

It is definitely different, but also has been interesting to explore. I think it definitely allows for more creativity--students can inject their own perspective, educational background, personality, and passion into their chosen approach to the question.

I had a pretty lovely day. Went grocery shopping with a flatmate (currently munching on my favorite purchase of Lindt dark chocolate) and then met up with a fellow UC girl who lives near me to walk over to Sciences Po. It is about a 45-50 minute walk to my school, so not too bad. I went to an optional lecture in French about the history of Parisian fashion, which was pretty interesting. I definitely wasn't able to catch every word, but I did at least follow the main ideas.

After the lecture got out, I had about two hours before my methodology course. My friend Sophia suggested we go down to the Musse Rodin, which is literally just about a 10 minute walk from our school. Admission was free for international students, which was awesome, but I definitely would've paid the normal admission fee anyway. Monet is a pretty impressive fellow :)







There also was an exhibition of the contemporary sculptor Henry Moore. I really enjoyed his interpretation on the human figure.



After that, I headed to class. The unfortunate thing about my methodology class being in the evening (I didn't have a choice) is that it often conflicts with social activities of the welcome week. Tonight, our class was during "French Nibbles" (free wine, cheese, and bread). Our professor was nice enough to give us a break to grab some of the grub, but by the time we got there all the cheese was gone. I still got some delicious bread and wine, so I'm not complaining :)

When class finished I headed home to make some real food. Tomorrow is more of the same, except in the evening we are having a boat cruise on the Seine, which should be beautiful and also extremely cold. I'm planning on lots of layers tomorrow! I'm also trying to figure out a last minute trip. I just found out yesterday that courses in English don't actually begin until February 1, so I have absolutely nothing next week in terms of classes...hopefully there will be an exciting update on this soon :)

Stranded at the Metro and other tales...

Decided to attempt laundry yesterday. The washers here are much smaller and also quite different. When you open the top there is a tumbler inside which you must also unlock. You then put your close and detergent in the tumbler and lock it again. It also took forever, too long I know I did something wrong. It definitely was hotter than washers at home, my dark jeans bled for the first time on a white shirt. However, the shirt is now a very pretty baby blue, so I am not that upset about it! I also definitely feel spoiled having always had a dryer back home, but hang drying really isn't bad. Everything was dry by the next morning.

After waiting and waiting for my laundry to be done, I finally met up with a few friends from UC Berkeley. I underestimated how far away the district they were in was, took me over an hour to walk there. We went through Victor Hugo's house, which was really interesting, and then walked around the neighborhood for a couple hours.







The person who does this art goes by "Space Invader." There are tons of these around Paris.



This is all chocolate :) Thought my mom would like this. The truffles inside looked even more amazing.

They also went to the Pompidou, but as I had made the mistake of running that morning, I didn't think my knee could handle also walking around a museum for a few more hours.



Pompidou at night.

I came back to my apartment, chatted with Berton and my parents, and then had some wine with my housemates. Silome, from Holland, turned 21 yesterday, so we decided to go to a bar for drinks. We took the Metro over as it was quite a ways to the bar where we were meeting up with another one of my housemate's friends. The bar we ended up in was actually "private," only open to those friend's with the owner (one of the guys we went with did). It was quite small, but it was nice to have a glass of wine in a bar for the first time. However, since it was private, smoking was also allowed inside which led me to develop a headache pretty quickly. We finally left a little before two.

On our way out, more friends of the people we were with were coming to the bar.the They definitely enjoyed that I was Californian and I got to practice a bit of my amateur French with them. I am really amazed about how much people know about America here...a couple of them started asking about Jerry Brown being governor and the Steelers game that was in progress. Also, when I told them I was going to Sciences Po, they began to bow to me, literally. Apparently it is a really big deal to go to this school here...similar to Harvard in America I suppose. It will be interesting to be in a private institution. They already told us during orientation that we don't have to worry about strikes since it isn't a public school. I'm sure I'll have a lot to say about this by the end of the semester :)

Anyway, we were heading back to the metro a little before 2 am, under the impression that it didn't close until 3 am. We were wrong. We got to grab one train that brought us closer to the center of Paris, but could go no further. The gate of the metro were literally closing as we were attempting to exit.

We would have probably began a one hour walk home, but my knee at this point had had it. I was ready to just take the hit and hire a taxi. However, my housemate who navigated us home through the bus system. We ended up getting home at 3:30, and to celebrate making it and our friends birthday, we finished the night off with some Paris pastries and tarts (yummy).

The consequence of staying out so late however, is that I didn't get up for mass at Notre Dame and lunch after with Berkeley friends as I had planned, which I was really bummed about.

I instead got up when mass was about getting out, 11:30. My housemates and I decided to visit the Catacombs today, which was definitely interesting, but more creepy.





I didn't expect it to be so massive...it really went on forever, and tourists are only allowed through one path of the catacombs, it is really crazy expansive. Also couldn't get great pictures because flash was not allowed :(

Because of the beautiful weather, Silome and I decided to make the trek over to the Tour Eiffel. However, we underestimated how tired we were.



I thought the name of this place near the Tour Eiffel was really funny-stands for the dog who smokes.

But of course we made it there :)



I thought the Tour Eiffel was really impressive. I've had people tell me that it isn't such a big deal in person, but I thought it was very awe inspiring.



We didn't buy tickets beforehand, nor were we up for the wait in line, so after walking through the park we took the metro home and took a bunch of pictures of the Tour Eiffel on the other side next to the Seine.



I think my plan for tonight is to RELAX and stay off my knee. We may watch a movie and drink some wine later which sounds perfect to me :)

On another note, definitely felt my first pinch of homesickness today. Little things that are different/more difficult/need to be fixed (washing machine, house needing to be cleaned, knee hurting, fridge not being very cold, school starting) have left me a little anxious. However, I'm trying to take on one thing at a time. My orientation begins again at 9 am tomorrow with free breakfast, so I'm sure that will lift my mood. If not, I'll stop by a pastry shop on the way home :)

Orientation Day 1 and Notre Dame

After waking up at 11 and finishing yesterday's blog post, I didn't have much time before taking off to orientation. The UC Center is in the Bastille area which has the largest Paris Opera house. Orientation was fine, most of the discussion was about housing, transportation, and other things I have already pretty much figured out since I got here a few days early.

Afterward, myself and five other girls from UC Berkeley went walking to find some food. I had only had breakfast, so by the time orientation got finished at four, I was pretty hungry. However, not knowing Paris that well makes it rather hard to choose a place to eat. We ended up stumbling upon the Seine and decided to make our way toward Notre Dame.





These are love locks. All along the Seine there are bridges with gates where people lock locks with the names of those they love. Such a beautiful and random practice :)

Notre Dame was, of course, gorgeous, inside and out. I will get more/better pictures another time. I'm planning on attending a mass on Sunday so I can experience it fully :)







After, we finally just walked into one of the endless restaurants, which ended up being pretty good. I got a Crouque Madame (basically cheese, bread, ham, more cheese, an egg on top, and more cheese). It was really good, but unfortunately I was too hungry to remember to take a picture. We stayed at the restaurant for a good 2.5 hours getting to know each other better. I'm not close with anyone who is here from Berkeley, but I have definitely met/had classes with a few before.

Just got home and I think I'm taking it easy for the rest of the night, but I'm excited for more Paris exploration this weekend!

Luxembourg and Feminism

I woke up again at 6 am today, actually a little before, 5:52. However, I forced myself to lie in bed, in and out of consciousness, until 8:00. My legs, and of course my dysfunctional knees, are pretty sore from all the walking I've been doing in boots, so I decided to get back to doing pilates which I usually do regularly at home which actually made me feel more normal and at place in the apartment.

One of my new roommates for the coming semester arrived last night from the Netherlands. I took her to the grocery store yesterday evening when she got in. I definitely wanted to share with her any of the little knowledge I have acquired in the few days I have been here. Even though I was planning on staying in during the afternoon today, I figured she, like myself on the first day, she would want to get out and see the city, so I suggested we go on a walk. We ended up choosing the Luxembourg Palace and it's gardens as our destination (and those are the new boots in the picture, my feet are very grateful for the shoe change).



Definitely was nice to have a companion on the walk today. The palace isn't too far from our apartment, I think it only took us about a half hour or so to get there.



There were little kids playing soccer on the walk up to the palace, so I had to take a picture.



Usually there are flowers and trees everywhere, but because it is winter, Luxembourg is not in fool bloom. Luckily I am here till the spring, so I can go many a time. This is actually the building where they house the orange and palm tress during the winter which I thought was interesting.



And a few more pictures of pretty things in the garden....If you want to see more you can check out my flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lindseyfree/







Definitely in a ritzy part of France, all of the surrounding area was really beautiful. Semona (housemate) and I grabbed a coffee on the way back, my first French cafe experience. I am happy to report that I was able to order in French and be understood :)

Later today I went to a French feminist exposition with my American friend Steph and a bunch of the girls she worked with. The event was really cool and there were TONS of real French people there so it was fun to people watch as well. It basically documented the feminist movement, largely through pictures, from 1880-present. Although I couldn't talk much to those around me, i gained satisfaction by being able to understand most of the information on the displays.





After the exposition, we went to dinner with the organizer of the even (who one of Steph's friends knew) to dinner. It was my first real French dinner out, and it was also probably the latest dinner of my life. We didn't sit at the restaurant until 9:15 and didn't get our food until 10:15, apparently the French prefer to eat pretty late. The meal was delicious!



I ordered a petite rooster, which came with mashed potatoes. We also decided to share two carafes (jugs) of wine. I guess the French serve very protein dense meals at restaurants. All in all, it was pretty reasonable. I got my meal and wine for 17euro (which always includes tax and tip). Although more expensive because of the exchange rate, I'd expect to pay about 17 bucks at a nice restaurant back home with tax and tip. Obviously not going to be able to do this every night, but it was definitely a treat!

Was a really fun day! I got to bed super late (around 1 am) so even though I am saying "today" it is really the next morning that I am finishing it. I was also very happy to learn that my metro stop and neighborhood are still very much lively around 12:30--felt completely safe getting home. Didn't wake up today until 11, which I was happy about after the last two early mornings. I have my first session of orientation starting at 2, so I'm off to get ready for that!

Exploring

So maybe I'm not as adjusted to the time difference as I thought...I woke up this morning at 6 am and knew right away I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. First thing on my mind was the time difference calculation, since it would only be 9pm in California, I thought I would have a good chance at finding my parents still awake and able skype--and I was right. Got to chat with them for about 30 minutes which was definitely a treat :) Despite the rain, I left the house around 8:45, hoping that most stores would open up around nine. I had a list of things to do: 1)inquire about a bank account 2) get an international number 3) find a good Paris map.

My experience at the bank definitely was intimidating because of the language barrier. The first two people I spoke to didn't have much of any English. They finally called in a women to help me. Embarrassing, yes, but my French will improve. I then went off to find a FNAC (French bookstore), to find a detailed map of each of Paris' Arrondisements. Unfortunately, googlemaps deceived me to a false location.

I decided to worry about finding the store and map later. Orange (the phone company) didn't open until 10 so I had some time to kill while walking back to my apartment. Today the bi-annual sales of Paris (and maybe all of France?) began. Instead of having continuous sales throughout the year, they have one huge sale in January, and another I believe near the summer (we're talking 30-75% off everything). Anyway, there were plenty of stores to keep me occupied while waiting for Orange to open.

While shopping for boots (eventually finding a pair I later went back to buy), I realized how much smaller the shoe selection is here. I'm a roomy 37 in European size and often that was the largest or second largest size they had. Mind you, I'm a 6.5-7 at home. It might just have been the boots I was looking at, but I definitely noticed a difference.

My French worked a little better with the man at Orange and I got my prepaid simcard. When I went to visit a friend last night at her apartment, I got a little lost and ended up having to call her. I'm sure I got smacked with international charges for it, but at least it motivated me to get myself to Orange today. I now have an international number that I can use with friends I meet here and since I blocked the data plan on my cousin's old IPhone, I can use wireless internet for free which I think will come in handy :)

Finally got back to my apartment around 10:30, ate, and then began devising a plan for the afternoon. I finally decided finding a FNAC and a map was pretty necessary. I found a store in the 13em (I live in the 14em) which only was about a 30-40 minute walk away. Even though the weather was a bit intimidating, I decided to brave it.

Found the shopping mall pretty easily--it was incredibly gorgeous, massive, and ridiculously packed because of the sales. I got my map pretty quickly and decided to explore more of the neighborhood and ditch the crowds.




(Candy shop inside the mall)

The 13em is home to the Buttes-Aux-Cailles neighborhood which was one of the first to resist in the 1848 Revolution and a breeding ground for activists in the 1960s. Very pretty area with cobble stone streets, old-fashioned lampposts. Also found some really awesome murals on the walls.









I decided to go back to the mall after a long time wondering around the neighborhood. All the walking I have done in the last few days in the same pair of books has left me in pain in my heel on my left foot and my baby toe on the right. Definitely needed to buy another pair of boots to make it through this cold weather. Glad I went back. Got to see more of what a Paris mall is like and a bunch of kids with their parents which I always enjoy :)

Didn't find boots at the mall after several stores. I even went to the same store I had tried in my own neighborhood this morning. Not only did they not have the same boot I had like earlier, the ones they had in the same style were more expensive and less discounted. I realized I probably found a really good deal this morning. I decided to leave the store and walk back home, hopeful that the boots were still there. They were, I had worked to strategically hide them before I left just in case haha.

At this point, I was pretty exhausted, so I made my way home--stopping first to buy my first demi baguette (demi meaning just half) which is delicious and probably won't last through the day :)



No big plans for tonight, it is about 4 pm Paris time now. Mind you, I have been up since 6 am and walked around for 3 hours, so I think I can justify taking it easy tonight :) I will be uploading more of my photos to flickr which you can check out here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lindseyfree. I am too lazy to add them all individually to my blog.

Lazy Second Day

I woke up today at around 8 am Paris time, and honestly can say I feel pretty much adjusted to the time difference already. Went to bed around 7 pm, so I definitely got in lots of sleep, and slept well!

I also woke up incredibly hungry...I didn't eat very much yesterday largely because I think I was too exhausted/excited to notice hunger coupled with the fact that the sandwich I did buy once I made it to my apartment was basically mayonnaise and turkey (which if you know me well enough, you prob know I despise mayonnaise.)

I was determined to find something delicious to start out my real first day in Paris. I went back across the street to the same boulangerie I had purchased the failed sandwich of yesterday, but this time made the much more wise and scrumptious choice of an almond croissant.



Ya, tastes even better than it looks. Sinfully sweet and buttery and pretty cheap :) Took me nearly an hour to finish it, mind you the picture is under half of how big it was haha. Definitely put to shame the "croissant" American Airlines served upon arrival in Paris.

I also wanted to include some pictures of the street from my living room/dining room window (though the quality isn't so great). My apartment is definitely smack dab in the middle of all the Parisian action. Luckily, the bedrooms are in the back of the house, so the city noise doesn't come through at night





I went grocery shopping today. I figured I shouldn't allow myself to eat almond croissants for every meal. Finding cheddar cheese definitely took the most time as nearly all of one side of the grocery store was devoted to frommage. I'll definitely have to branch out and find new delicious choices. Learned a few things, like that eggs aren't refrigerated here. I initially left my eggs on the counter when I got back to my apartment, but I felt too strange and decided to put them back in the fridge haha. I was relieved to find that groceries weren't as expensive as I was expecting. Also, and probably most importantly, I found a French brand of peanut butter, so of course I have to try that :)

Anywho, I spent most of the day researching Paris in the apartment as well as tickets to Berlin and Copenhagen for hopefully trips soon to come! I did go on a short walk around the neighborhood to orient myself a bit more. Just down the street about 5-10 minutes is a really pretty park.





Also have found that Subway, KFC, McDonals, and Starbucks are all within a short walking distance haha. Definitely on my "to-do" list to eat at the McDonalds before I leave :)



That is all for today. It is only about 5 pm, but I am already feeling pretty tired (and the weather outside is wet and windy). Tomorrow I plan to venture out and do something touristy so stay tuned.

hel-bonjour :)

I have arrived safely in Paris. Currently I am sitting in my apartment taking some time alone to write out a quick blog. It's 5 pm Paris time, 8 am at home, and although I am more than ready to sleep at this point, Matt scared me that to sleep now would only sabotage my attempt to adjust to the time difference.

Definitely has been a long and emotional couple weeks of goodbyes to friends and family. I especially felt strange saying goodbye to my nieces. I know I will only be gone for seven months, but I feel like every time I see them they have changed. Everyone else in my life seems more stable and constant. My mom had the idea to take a picture of Jamie and I before I left since she is just about my height already. I'm sure she'll pass me up by the time I return. Of course, it must also be pointed out that she has already surpassed her grandma :)



Unfortunately, though really fortunately, I lack any terrible travel stories to share. My flights and public transport to my apartment went really as smooth as could be wanted. In true Freeland fashion, we arrived at the airport 3 hours before my flight, leaving me sitting in the terminal at 8 am without another passenger around for quite some time.



Sat next to a really nice man on the way to Dallas. And since this is my blog, I will give useless details :) His name was Carlos who is a pilot in the airforce. He was traveling to Madrid and kindly gave me all kinds of military tips on how to adjust to time differences. Once in Dallas, I had to take a shuttle to the international terminal, which was arriving exactly when I was. I had about 35 minutes before my connection to Paris, so I grabbed a sandwich and finally loaded.

Flight was not good-it wasn't the worst experience of my life, but it was long and uncomfortable. There weren't individual screens, I could barely make out the closest one to me, and the plane just generally didn't feel comfy haha.

However, I did end up being in the middle section with no one next to me. Definitely made the trip more comfortable than it was for others since I could curl up. Also was next to a really friends man from Finland that helped me several times with my carry on luggage. I was too short for the plane. I could even reach the handle above me to open the compartment. Side note, which I thought was funny. I was flying American Airlines, but they served us a croissant for breakfast before arrival. Although I thought it was good, with liberal amounts of Smuckers jam, I can't wait to try actually French croissants for comparison.

Once I arrived in Paris, things were a bit confusing, but I found my way through customs and to the baggage claim. Finding the RER B (the train to take me from the airport to paris) wasn't so much difficult as it was far. And my bags were heavy. My first annoyance with France is that NOTHING is handicap accessible...it's really striking coming from California-especially Berkeley where I complain that we are not handicap accessibly enough. There are little step ups everywhere, and forget the convenience of elevators.

I was lucky to meet another women studying abroad on the train who was headed towards the same metro line as myself. She had done a much better job at looking up directions and really made my life easier. We were also able to help each other shove our wayy to big of bags up stairs :) When I finally got of the metro line in my neighborhood, I knew right away I was living in a good place. The shops are lively and clean and there were just tons of people everywhere. My apartment building is literally a 5 second walk form the nearest metro entrance.

As I was trying to figure out the security code for my apartment building, one of the girls who currently lives in the house just happened to be coming back from grocery shopping and was able to help me in. The apartment is cute! Definitely small, but I will make the best of it. The women I'm living with were super welcoming. One invited me to join her for a walk around the city. We were our for a little more than two hours and I feel like I've seen so much already... However, I failed to bring my camera, so pictures of Paris will have to wait!

That is all for now. I refuse to go back and edit this because I am sleep deprived, so forgive the errors!