Sunday night my host family returned from a wedding they were at in the countryside and Tuesday I had dinner with them. They're really wonderful and I feel so lucky to be placed here! Tudy, the father, is indeed as loud and welcoming as I heard he was. He speaks nearly perfect English, but he only uses it with me when it's absolutely necessary because I don't understand something important. Annie is very sweet and she doesn't speak any English. Their son, Arthur, is really goofy and has been equally welcoming, which is great considering how used to having students here he is. I'm something like their 15th student so by now, they know how to give students independence as well as make them feel welcome. For dinner Tuesday we had delicious asian noodles made by Annie and an apple tarte that Tudy made. We had great conversation and I got to know more about them, including the fact that they love spicy food! What a great match. Tudy told me all about a great Indian restaurant close by that makes very spicy curries and Arthur suggested we go together last Friday. It actually did end up being pretty good- no dosas or anything, but I'll take what I can get. I met Arthur's girlfriend that night too and got to practice French a lot over dinner and then drinks with them and my friends. Part of what makes Arthur so goofy is that he really likes practicing his English with me, which isn't quite as good as his Dad's. He spent some time in Australia so he does speak a considerable amount, but sometimes the way he puts things is just hilarious and adorable. Overall it's been a smooth transition moving in with the Berniers and it's hard to imagine anyone else got as lucky as I did.
Wednesday the student living next door to me moved in. It turns out she isn't American, but rather, from the coast of France. She doesn't speak any English, which a lot better for the sake of my French. She's here for podiatry school for the next few years and this is actually her first time in Paris. I haven't gotten much of a chance to hang out with her because we've both been busy, but tonight we're going to have a drink at some point. I like the people on our program, but I'm also really happy to have some young French people to hang out with.
Classes started last week too. For the most part they're okay. Here's my schedule:
Lundi: 9h30-10h55 Grammaire
Mardi: 11-12h25 Conversation, 12h30-15h25 Muslim Presence in Europe
Mercredi: 9h30-10h55 Grammaire, 15h30-18h30 Issues in 19th Century French Painting
Jeudi: 11-12h25 Conversation, 14-15h25 Paris Collage
Vendredi: rien! hurray!
I LOVE my grammar prof. She's hilarious and amazing at teaching grammar. To counteract the torture of a Monday morning grammar class she constantly tells us, "vous etes jeunes...vous etes a Paris... La vie est belle!" (You are young... you are in Paris... life is beautiful!). Paris Collage should end up being cool, as it's an architecture class in which every class we take a field trip to discuss the buildings of Paris in person. My other classes are just alright except for Muslim Presence which is currently a little terrifying since my prof acts like an Israeli general. Hopefully she'll calm down as the semester progresses, but for now, 3 hours of her at once is a little intense.
If you know me at all, you know that the one thing I don't do is procrastinate. This week, however, I found out that studying abroad is a whole new game. I think for the first time in my life I waited more than a few days to start homework. I'm definitely not in the school mode and it's difficult to be considering how much there is that I want to see and do here that isn't homework. I'm sure I'll find a good balance eventually, but until then, sacrificing an evening in a great café to read 40 pages about Jacques-Louis David is not high on my list of priorities.
Something really fun I did to avoid homework was go to Fashion Night Out on Thursday with a bunch of friends. Fashion Night Out is a night all over the world hosted by Vogue when couture houses open their doors to the public (with an invitation from the September Issue) and offer free champagne and deliciously expensive shopping. I went with a bunch of friends and had champagne at Ferragamo and cosmos at Chanel for a very fancy and totally free night of fun. It was so great to do something out of the ordinary and feel like a part of this high society (consisting of the most fashionable people from the most fashionable city in the world).
Champagne at Hal's apartment with Miranda and other friends before heading to Champs Elysees.
Another cool thing I did this weekend was see an exhibit at the Pompidou about India and France. The pieces in the exhibit were extremely diverse ranging from a movie about the experiences of hijras and transsexuals in France, Dehli and Bombay to a pieces critiquing the relationship French people have with Indian culture. This was the first museum trip for me since I've been here. I'm honestly waiting to see a lot of them because I'll be going with classes or with my dad I'm sure when he and my brother visit.
The exhibit poster.
Okay. Enough for now. I'll try to post more often so these aren't so rambling.
Love,
Anj
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