German Craziness

Last weekend, I went to Freiburg, Germany to visit Brett. It was a crazy weekend, because they were celebrating "Karnival" which is connected to Mardi Gras somehow and is also a pagan political protest. Very very strange. Anyway, Brett wrote a wonderful blogpost about our experience, and I will attach the link here:

http://einamerikanischer.blogspot.com/2009/02/freiburger-karnival-for-leah.html

Be sure to check out the movie at the end; Brett is a master at film making.

Leah

New International Friends and a Valentine's Day in Strasbourg

Parisians are very difficult people to convince. That is my lesson I've learned from the past week. Most of my days have been consumed lately by trying to get train tickets to visit Brett in Germany and France. This has proved to be impossible, impossible, impossible.

My struggles started when I found out that I need to reserve a seat to use my railpass. Next, I found out it is impossible to do this online, so I had to go to the train ticket store to reserve a seat. At the train store, I stumbled around in my French trying to tell them I need to get to Freiburg (they pronounce it Free-burg, for some reason). After a long confusing conversation with them, I decide to purchase tickets to Free-burg, and reserve a seat to Strasbourg for last Sunday. "Impossible, impossible, impossible" they said. Apparently, there is only one car on every French train reserved for railpass holders and once that car fills up, there is no chance my railpass will work. They love to say the word "impossible". After demanding that I get to Strasbourg this weekend using my railpass, not leaving the desk after they say "impossible", and coming nearly to tears in their office, they look one more time and find a seat for me. It is a crazy system they have where at one moment, there is nothing available, but the next moment, there are plenty of seats.

So I got my seat to Strasbourg after over an hour arguing in the train store. Unfortunately, I would arrive there Sunday at 3pm, and have to leave at 8pm. But, Brett and I decided that we'd still have fun even though I only had a few hours in Strasbourg. My first time on the high speed bullet train was exciting! I actually got to see some French country side and the woman speaking next to me was very eager to speak French to me. The trip passed quickly; it was only about 2 hours.

Brett was standing at the platform in Strasbourg with a rose for Valentine's day. We went to the river in town that lines the German style architecture on the streets and had some champagne on a bench. After, we went to a cafe, then wandered around town. Because it was Sunday, it was a bit quiet, but still a charming little city. We saw a massive cathedral with a man playing guitar in front of it. The cathedral reminded me of the detailed walls of the Notre-Dame, complete with gargoyles and gothic looking people. After walking around, we went to a restaurant and had steak-frites (steak and french fries). It was a delicious dinner, and I was shocked to see how "cheap" everything was in Strasbourg compared to Paris.

After my few hour adventure with Brett, I had to hop on the TGV back to Paris. I brought the rose all the way back with me and it is sitting on top of my dresser. I arrived in Paris at about 10pm, and slept in yesterday because my earliest class was at 2:15.

Yesterday, after class, I went to the movie theater with a Paris international club that I joined. It is for young people that are from different countries. It was my first time out with the club, and I have to say it was a very fun time. We saw the film Eden a L'Ouest, about an illegal immigrant from Greece trying to get to Paris. I really enjoyed it. At the end, he traveled through Paris, and went by all the places I've been the last few weeks.

As a side note, speaking of films, Gran Torino has made it to Paris! The poster is all over the subway stations and pretty much any open wall. It doesn't open until the end of the month, but I think I should go to see it again, just because I can. I can't believe a little piece of Michigan is in Paris.

Anyway, after watching the film yesterday, I went with the club to a cafe to chat in French. We stayed there for 3 hours! I met an Austrian, someone from Sevilla, Spain, a Parisian, and an Italian. We all spoke in our mangled French and it was really a fun experience. They were all in Paris for different reasons, some for work, some for school. I enjoyed their company, and felt like a true world citizen with so many different countries at one table. I also think the experience helped my confidence in French, because tonight at dinner with my host family, I found myself speaking more fluidly. I'm pretty sure I'll go out with the club often, because it really helps me to perfect my French.

I had another wonderful dinner with my host family tonight. The Bexons like to hunt, which reminds me of Michigan and its many hunters. They were telling me about the animals they saw while hunting, but I didn't understand most of the words they were saying, and they didn't know how to translate the specific animal words in English. So M. Bexon tried to draw what they were describing and it turns out he has horrible drawing skills. I had no idea what he drew. It looked like a kiwi bird, but it also looked like Big Bird from Sesame Street. So we remained for the rest of the evening lost in translation...

Tomorrow, I'm going with my art history class to the Louvre for my first time. I'm pretty excited. We are going to see an exhibit by Nicolas Poussin, who is supposedly the leader of classicism. It should be interesting, and I'll have to update everyone about the experience.

This weekend, I'm traveling again, oh goodness! I'm going to Freiburg to see Brett, again. It's so lucky that we get to see each other so often, but also I still have time to see everything in Paris. I'm spending spring break in Freiburg just hanging out with Brett. We decided not to travel to save money, and I'm going to get a small regional pass to see the area around Freiburg in Germany, Switzerland, and France. As for other travel plans, I've been seriously considering a weekend trip to Loch Lomond, because I found a really affordable ticket there. It's kind of crazy, but I really want to see Scotland, because it is the homeland.

Well, time for bed. I have to wake up early tomorrow to do homework and get a youth pass to the Louvre. Until next time...

Leah

Brett Arrives in Paris!

I'm sorry this update is so late, but I finally started classes and have been very busy! Also, last weekend was really busy because Brett came to visit me in Paris. He came on Friday, and left Sunday. On Friday, we went to my homestay to cook lunch and Brett met Mme. Bexon who doesn't speak any English, so I had to do some translation (but kept forgetting to clue Brett into what Mme. Bexon was saying). Anyway, she told us that it was supposed to snow on Saturday, which I couldn't believe because it was such a beautiful sunny day on Friday...

After lunch, Brett and I had to walk around the 16th a little bit to kill some time because it was too early to check into our hostel. We went to a bakery and split a tart while we sat on a bench and people watched. The time passed quickly, and soon, we were on the Metro headed for the Bastille, where our hostel was located. I forgot to pack a map of Paris, so when we got of the Metro, I just had to randomly ask people where the hostel was, and no one knew, so we ended up asking someone at the grocery store, and the woman was very helpful with her directions.

Checking into the hostel was the biggest hassle of my life. Well maybe not the biggest, but it was way too much trouble than it should have been. We sat there for at least an hour waiting first for a group of German school kids to check in, and then, I'm not even sure why we kept waiting after that. Eventually, she finally finally checked us in. Our room was really a crash pad. It was the cheapest hostel in Paris! We had a private room with two bunked beds. We found it much more comfortable to throw the mattresses on the floor then sleep on the bed springs. So we took a nap in our vagabond hostel room, and then in the night we walked around Bastille looking for some nightlife.

There wasn't much we could afford, but we did have to meet up with my friends at a bar, so we did that quickly and had one expensive drink, then left. Not knowing what to do for the rest of the night, Brett and I decided to go to the Seine and hang out by the banks of the river. It was pretty late at this point, and the Metro was about to close, so we had to walk back to our hostel. The Seine was gorgeous. The sky was clear and the moon lit our heads and made white sparkles across the water. We sat on a bench for a while, and then, with no map of Paris, we wandered back to our hostel following road signs pointing towards the Bastille.

The next morning, I woke early. Brett slept in, and I went downstairs to get the continental breakfast. The dining area was very crowded and I ended up sitting with a girl from Australia, and a girl from China. We were all studying abroad in France to learn French, but the other two girls weren't studying in Paris. We ate breakfast and all spoke mangled French to each other. After eating, I had promised Brett I'd bring him something back, so I walked outside to get a little something from the supermarket. I got lost, as I usually do, and ended up instead at a bakery, where I bought two croissants, and then an open air market where the friendliest old man sold me lots of huge oranges. I didn't actually have enough money to pay for all the oranges (he even stuffed a few clementines in there), but he said that was fine and to come back later to buy more. So, it was a wonderful start to the day. Brett and I sat on our little beds on the floor and had our little breakfast of oranges and croissants, then left for Paris excitement.

Then the snow came, as my host mother predicted. It was horrible. It wasn't nice small snowflakes, it was big globs of slushy snow. It was wet and cold, and awfully unpleasant. We went to the top of the Galeries Lafayette, a big shopping mall, to see a view of Paris, and the snow wasn't too bad at that point. After, we decided to walk to the Eiffel Tower, which was almost invisible in the clouds and fog. We walked and ate ham and cheese sandwiches for quite a while in the snowy wetness. Finally, we got there and took a few pictures under the tower (of course). Then, we decided to get out of the cold as soon as possible, and hopped on the Metro towards the Musee D'Orsay.

With my museum pass, I cut the line and got in for free and had to watch Brett freeze in the cold waiting in line. Luckily, the line wasn't too long. We wandered around looking at some impressionism (Monet's poppy field painting is one of my favorites) and some wonderful sculptures. Then we wandered into a ballroom, which was very strange because there didn't seem to be any reason for this ballroom in the middle of the museum. It was ornately decorated with gold sculptures of angels and hanging chandeliers and mirrors all over the walls.

We got tired quickly at the Musee D'Orsay, and left for our hostel for a little nap. We woke up at dinner time and went to a fancy little restaurant where I butchered my French (as usual) in trying to order. Brett and I dressed up very fancy. It was the first time I saw Brett in a suit! I had two things for the first time: Escargot, and Duck. They were both very delicious, but I didn't know how to eat the escargot, and I felt like the waiters were all looking at me like I was a fool the whole time. There were these weird plier like things I guessed I used to hold the shell and then a tiny fork I guessed I used to pull out the meat. Then, I got escargot oil on my dress, and I don't think I'll be able to get the stain out. :( Then, the waiter came to my table and told me to go to the bathroom to try to wash off the stain! I couldn't believe he said that! It was a very strange French restaurant, and I felt very foolish.

After dinner, we went back to the hostel and fell asleep! We were so tired! On the way to the hostel, we went through two different metro stations where there were string ensembles playing classical music. We also went to through a metro station with a jazz band playing. It was all a very musical day!

The next morning was sad, because Brett had to leave too soon. We went to a cafe with Wifi for lunch so that Brett could figure out the train schedule back to Freiburg. Afterwards, we went to Starbucks for Brett's coffee fix. Starbucks is expensive in the States, but it's about double that in Europe! We stayed in Starbucks for a long time just passing the time before he had to go to the train station.

At the train station, he went to the office to try to buy a ticket, but the man was very mean and told us that there was no chance Brett could get a train to Freiburg that day! I couldn't believe it. We were all of the sudden extremely panicked, because Brett had a class to get to the next morning. I was about to take him to the airport to get a flight back. We stepped outside to consider the situation, and then went back to the ticket desk and talked to a different man. He got Brett a ticket to Freiburg no problem. I have no idea why the other man said that he couldn't get a ticket. Somehow, everything worked out, except Brett had to wait 3 hours more before the train boarded.

So we left the station and near the Louvre and the little islands in the Seine to have an early overpriced dinner. Afterwards, we had a glass of wine at a cafe overlooking the sun setting on the Seine. The time passed quickly, and soon Brett had to go to the station again. I was sad to see him go so soon! But today, I was able to get some train tickets to meet him in Strasbourg. I'm very excited for this, and can't wait to see Strasbourg and Germany soon!

This week, classes have started. I am taking French (obviously), French Cinema and Society, Woment in Conflicts, Paris Museums (an art history class where each class meets in a different art museum), and History of France. All of my classes seem pretty interesting, except sometimes I have no idea what is going on because they are all taught in French. French Cinema seems to be my favorite so far. Today we didn't even watch a French film. We watched a clip of Fellini's "Rome". I really enjoyed it. The professor is a French film director, himself, and is very passionate about movies. Tomorrow, my Paris Museums class goes on it's first museum visit, and I'm so excited for that.

The classes at the Sorbonne for IES students have been canceled this semester! :( This is because there is an ongoing strike at the Sorbonne, and none of the classes are in session. They have no idea how long the strike will go, and thus, we can't take classes there, because we probably won't get credit. That is pretty disappointing, but I guess it's all a part of French culture.

Well, now I have to have dinner with my host family. Last night was an adventure because I flung lentils all over the table, and accidentally a blueberry tart, too. They had to get a vacuum to clean up after me. That was embarrassing. Anyway, that's all for now. Au Revoir!

Leah

Free Sunday and Snowy Monday

Yesterday was the first Sunday of the month, so all of the museums and such were free. A few of my friends and I woke up early to do some touristy sight seeing. First, we met at the Notre Dame cathedral, but it was very cold, so I went inside to wait for them and ended up sitting through mass twice. The mass was gloomy like at the Sacre Coeur, and the church looked very much like the Sacre Coeur on the inside. After my double mass, my friends came and we decided to go up to the top of the cathedral.

Of course, there was a long line to go up top, so we stood for a long time, and my toes and fingers began to freeze off. I almost couldn't stand it, I was so cold, and ended up buying a warm crepe just to keep my fingers warm as I held it and ate it. The wait was about an hour, and I was able to eat the lunch I packed while standing in line. By the time we got to climb to the top, I was so miserably cold, that I just wanted to get back down and inside the church as soon as possible. It was a shame, because the view was wonderful...although I was able to snap a few pictures before running back down the millions of stairs.

After the Notre Dame, we walked to St. Chapelle, another church. This church was very beautiful on the inside. It is definitely my favorite so far. It was crammed full of rainbow colored stained glass windows that sparkled all over the floor. It was a small chapel, so I felt like I had stepped into a kaleidoscope, watching the colored light float by me.

Next, we went to the Conciergerie, where all of the nobles were imprisoned and executed during the French Revolution. Surprisingly, this was a pretty boring exhibit, because the original cells and execution rooms were renovated, and then changed back to how they think they looked. Everything was just a replica, except for Marie Antoinette's chair, which she sat in while in her cell waiting to be guillotined. Since normally, the Conciergerie costs money, I'd say skip it if you ever have to pay. It isn't worth any money to visit.

We were getting tired at this point, but somehow, we convinced ourselves to go to the Picasso museum in the Marais. So we went there for about an hour, but I spent most of the time sitting on the benches watching people pass the paintings on the walls. I was so tired, but I enjoyed examining the Picassos from my bench, and soon we left for home.

I didn't do anything last night but watch a movie on my laptop and go to sleep. This morning, I walked outside to see about an inch of snow on the ground. It was snowing and sleeting all the way to school, but by the afternoon, it just turned into a cold ugly rain. Today, I had grammar class (gag!) and then I went to a university cafeteria with a few people from class. Paris just has a bunch of cafeterias around town where any university student can go eat. We decided to check it out, but it wasn't very good at all, so I don't know if we'll go back. I spent the rest of the day lounging around at the apartment. Tonight I will eat dinner with my host family. Until then, I'll do some homework, and maybe take a nap. That's all for now.

Leah