My Luck

Just realized I left my book on the train...so upset :(

So if for Christmas anyone wants to get me Here Comes the Sun the biography about George Harrison....it would be greatly appreciated!

French!

Woohoo! A on my French Midterm! Hopefully I can do this well on all my finals! The next 3 weeks are going to be insane!

This weekend I'm going to visit family friends in Marseille. Then next week I have my communications final, Architecture presentation, and finishing up my Couture essay. Then next weekend I want to go to the museums for one last time, and then it's time to start prepping for finals!!! EEK! So close!!!

Max gets here in 19 days!
Going home in 29 days!

So soon, but I'm ready to be back in the good ol' USA

Versailles

So on Saturday our program took us on our final excursion for the semester to Versailles!!! Versailles was where Louis the XIV lived, and it's located about 40 minutes outside of Paris. We took the RER, which is not quite a train, but more than a metro. It is basically the metro system that takes you to the surrounding areas of Paris (I also took this to Disneyland, and Maxwell will use it to come into Paris from the airport).
As soon as we arrived in Versailles we walked to a restaurant where they served us salad, a savory crepe, and a sweet crepe of our choice. For my savory crepe I chose egg, ham and cheese. In my mind it was going to be the french version of a breakfast burrito...can you tell I miss my mexican food? For my sweet crepe I got sugar with Chocolate ice cream. It was delicious!!! After eating we walked to the palace.

The place is GIGANTIC!!!! It is crazy, and the gates and roof are covered in gold. The entire thing looks completely fake. We were lucky because the weather was gorgeous. Sunny, not too cold, but there still was a crisp feeling in the air. The leaves have all changed colors and are falling off the tree's. When we arrived to the palace I was amazed to think that 1. it was built hundreds of years ago and 2. that someone actually lived here! It is like nothing I've ever seen before, and was too grand to even begin wrapping my mind around.

 We took a self-guided audio tour of the palace, and my favorite room by far was the hall of mirrors. It was absolutely beautiful. I've learned about it in my architecture class and being able to see it in person was amazing. What many people don't know is that the ceiling, which looks painted, is actually just wall paper. They didn't have enough time to have someone paint the entire ceiling so instead the artist painted paper and then placed them to the ceiling. Fun fact :)

 Each room had crazy amounts of art, sculptures, etc. It was like walking through the Louvre...which makes sense since the Louvre was a palace for the kings as well.
My favorite part about the entire palace were all the busts of famous philosophers, musicians, thinkers, etc. They were so realistic and sort of creepy.

We then came to a hallway with all the past kings of France. It was so insane to me because many of them I was able to identify because of my classes. A few I could even say what types of garments they were wearing and how they have in fact influenced fashion! Go Haute Couture class :)

 It was too gorgeous outside to ignore the perfectly hedged gardens. Megan and I took a stroll and just looked at the amazing-ness of this Chateau from the outside. We wandered the gardens soaking in the cool air and sunshine.

Needless to say it's been a while since I've hugged anyone, and this nicely trimmed bush filled that void. I think I'm losing my marbles being over here!

   Seeing leaves changing colors is crazy to me!

At the very end our program took us to Angelina's. Angelina's is a very popular tourist spot in Paris and they are said to have some of the world's best hot chocolate. We were given a cup of hot chocolate, fresh whipped cream, and a plate of macaroons. It was delicious but SUPER thick. It was basically a liquid brownie!!! It was even too much for me and that's saying something! I drank about half, ate my macaroon and was ready for a nap.

All in all it was a gorgeous day at Versailles, and a great way to spend one of the last free days I have here in Paris.

Quick Update

I went to Versailles yesterday and had a great day. Unfortunately today I am working on my architecture paper so I will be unable to post pictures and a detailed update; however, I will do it tomorrow for sure!!! I promise :)

Also, I wanted to inform everyone that I finished my Communications paper (12 pages) and now am working on my Architecture Paper (15 pages). I am only allowing myself today to finish this paper even though it's due next Tuesday, since I leave for Marsailles on Thursday! I know I'm not going to be able to work on it at all between now and then!

So much to do and so little time! I'm getting down the final days!

Countdown:
22 days until Maxwell gets here
32 days until I fly back to LAX
36 days until I move into my house in SLO

tick-tock, tick-tock!

Haute Couture...

Just so you know I also got an A on my Couture Midterm

:)

Just a month and some change

Maxwell gets here 4 weeks from tomorrow and while I'm excited that he is almost here and I'm more than ready to actually leave Paris and travel, I'm sad that it means my time here is coming to an end. Lately I've been telling all my friends back home how much I miss them and how I'm ready to come back, but at the same time I feel like there is so much left that I didn't get to do! I still have time and am going to make the most of it, but man-oh-man are these next 4 weeks going to go by fast!!!

Things coming up:

- French Midterm Wednesday
- Babysitting Friday Night
- Versailles Saturday
- Communication Paper due next Thursday
- Leave for Marsaille Thursday - Sunday
- 10 page Architecture Paper due November 29th
- Communications Final December 1st
- Architecture Presentation December 1st
- Babysitting December 2nd
- Final Even hosted by my program December 7th
- Student Conference Day for Communications December 9th
- Marketing & French Final December 12th
- Architecture Final December 13th
- Maxwell Arrives December 13th
- Fashion Final December 14th
- Leave for Amsterdam December 16th

Here we go!

International Marketing

For those of you who think I'm just slacking off all the time...

That's a 96%, one of the highest grades in the class, and a "WOW! Excellent" on my International Marketing Midterm.

BOOM! Getting work done!

Food in America

I just want to make a list of things I miss eating from America....Sorry!!! But this is what I'm thinking about right now:

- In-n-out
- Mexican Food Overall
- Venti Coffee from Starbucks
- Chips
- Donuts
- Guacamole
- FroYo


Ughh Now I'm just making myself hungry!!!! Only about 40 days left until I get to eat American food!

The Metro

Before coming to Europe I was amazed at their ability to see the necessity for public transportation. Coming from a small town in southern California, all we have are buses to get us from one side of the valley to the other. I had only ever ridden a train twice, a bus once, and had taken the subway just a few times on visits in San Francisco and New York. I was in complete awe of the fact that no matter where I went in the city I would be able to get home in a matter of minutes by using the metro.

When I first arrived in Paris the metro immediately intimidated me. Fearing the numbers, colors, and changes. I stuck to my line, or following my roommates wherever they traveled. After the first couple weeks I got the hang of it and easily mastered the task. Now I use the metro every single day, whether it’s riding to school or the Eiffel tower. It does smell, it does break down, and it is definitely an experience worth trying.

I think the hardest thing for me about the metro is being surrounded by people. Not just people, but Parisians. First of all, the stereotype that French smell is more often than not, a true assumption. Also, no one speaks while riding the metro. There are days where it seems like a 100 people are crowded into one cart and if a pin were to drop you could hear it. As Americans we are more vocal and social, wanting to talk and converse even on a short ride. We smile at strangers. Say “Bless you” when someone sneezes, whether we know them or not. We respect personal space, and would never push one another. Unfortunately that’s not the case here. People pack into the cars like sardines, without any smile or look of apology. Everyone looks at the ground, newspaper, or the game they are playing on their iPhone. You are being touched on all sides by people you will never come in contact with again.

Every morning my roommate Mackenzie and I enjoy the short stroll from our apartment to the metro stop. We laugh and joke, reliving stories or dreams that we’ve experienced the night before; however, as soon as we step onto that train our eyes drop and we become silent. Sometimes it’s hard and we have too much energy to contain. Occasionally one of us lets out a small giggle and people glare at us, size us up and down with their eyes, knowing right away that we do not belong in their city. You can tell their annoyance and hatred of us just from a small chuckle.

The other night I was on the metro, making my way home from babysitting and I placed my headphones in my ears and cranked the volume. I looked at my boots as I usually do, just counting down the stops until I was home. All of a sudden a new family boarded the metro: a husband, wife, and fairly young baby. The baby was looking all around the metro, observing her environment. Laughing, smiling, making noises. While the metro was not packed full, there were still quite a few people in the cart. Eventually the baby started looking at me, sticking her tongue out and laughing. I started mimicking her facial expressions, which threw her into fits of giggles. Now, in America this is normal behavior and strangers make faces at babies all the time. Apparently it’s not okay to do here in Paris because after a couple minutes the mother picked up the child and spun her around so she was facing the other way. The baby kept looking over her shoulder but the mother wouldn’t let her turn back to see me. Not knowing what to do the baby tried making a new friend, a woman in her mid-twenties. I watched as the baby made faces, and noises while the woman just sat there sans emotion. It was ridiculous.

It seems as if the Parisians don’t care about anyone but themselves. On the metro they are going from point A to point B. They do not want to converse, be disturbed, or have fun. If you are having fun on the metro you will get judged. If you talk on the metro, you will get judged. If you stand out at all you will get judged. It’s just such a sad way to travel. Now that I’ve been here for 3 months I dread the metro. I can’t wait to be home and not get glared at for speaking, laughing, or making faces at babies.

The Home Stretch

Sorry I haven’t written in a while! I haven’t been feeling well and was overwhelmed with midterms, homework, and projects for school. I just had a week long break, and while relaxing, I was in bed sick with the flu for most of it. I will try to catch you up with everything going on in my life.

On Friday one of my new best friends Brett and I went to Disneyland Paris. It’s located about 45 minutes outside the city, but we thought it would be worth the venture. I was in LOVE. Growing up at Disneyland, this park was no way comparable. It was much smaller, didn’t have as many rides, but the thing that I loved is that it felt like home. When I was buying my ticket the woman asked where I was from and when I responded “California” she presented a full-faced smile saying, “you have the better Disneyland, why are you coming to this one?” I told her I thought it would be fun to see what it was like! 

When you first walk into the park there is “Main Street USA” and I felt almost like I was back in Anaheim. We saw characters, went on rides, stood in lines, it was great. There were obvious differences, such as all the instructions being said to you in French, the people there are much more rude, parents are smoking throughout the park pushing baby strollers, and they serve alcohol at all the restaurants. I didn’t even care, I had a HUGE smile on my face the entire day.

 

The rides were so different from Disneyland in California. Anyone who knows me knows that I dislike roller coasters; however, Brett (who has been before) failed to inform me that the rides are pretty intense. We are talking fast paced, winding tracks, and even upside down loops. I was scared riding Indiana Jones, and Space Mountain, where at home I would have braced them like a pro.

 

Another difference is that the park closed at 7. No Fireworks, no light parade, just “please leave the park”. We decided to go grab drinks and appetizers to avoid the crowded train back into Paris. Right next to Disneyland is the equivalent of “Downtown Disney”. There are stores and restaurants. We went to several places before finding one with a short wait, and then we got drinks, and I ordered nachos. Now let me just say, I guess it’s my fault for forgetting that we are in Paris and not Southern California. My head was still spinning from Space Mountain, and feeling like I was back in America. When I got my “nachos” it was a plate of stale tortilla chips, and three small packages of salsa that tasted like BBQ sauce. We just laughed and realized how much we miss America. 

The rest of the week we had break; however, Monday I ended up getting really sick, and to spare you the details I stayed in bed and watched many movies until Wednesday. Two of my roommates: Mackenzie and Gabby, came home from their travels on Tuesday morning. 

On Wednesday Gabby, myself, and our friend Kristin woke up early and decided to brace the catacombs! It was awesome, but unfortunately my camera was not cooperating so I only have a few photographs. 

We waited in line, and then ventured deep underground where the ceilings were low and the hallways were dark. My head grazed the ceiling, and I couldn’t imagine anyone over 5’6” being able to stand being in there. It was totally reminiscent of the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland. 

 

On Thursday Mackenzie and I went to the Architecture museum over by the Eiffel Tower and did some research for my Architecture paper. We went to the library, sat and read some books. The highlight of my day was seeing an entire section on “Palm Springs Architecture”. I looked at some photographs to remind myself of the beautiful desert that I miss so much. 

On Friday I babysat. Gabby’s Aunt lives in Paris and a friend of hers just moved here from Seattle. Gabby passed along my email address and viola! I’m officially a babysitting in Paris! There are 2 children, a boy Aiden, and a girl Cecelia. They are sooooo adorable! This was my second time watching them and each time we watch a movie, do some arts and crafts, and they read before bed (their bedtime is at 9pm). It’s quite a trek to get to them, taking me almost 45 minutes on the metro, but the family is super nice, and I love their apartment. They are also in the 16^th district which is very, very nice. 

Over break I also accomplished a small feat, I wrote my architecture paper. Right now it’s about 7 pages, but I am going to add more this week and then send it to my professor for revisions. I know it’s exciting that I finally got one done, but I still have so much more to do!

Half Way Home

I've officially reached the half-way point of my journey. I only have 7 weeks until Maxwell arrives, and 8 weeks until I am home in my own bed. It's starting to sink in that in just a short amount of time I will be thrown back into a culture that I once knew as my own. I currently am experiencing a tizzy of emotions: excitement, depression, fear, stress, etc. I am happy to be back home in America, with my friends and family, being able to eat a burger and fries. Being able to drink a Venti coffee, a giant diet coke, and eat pizza with my hands. I'm excited to have heating, washers, and dryers. I'm stoked to have all my clothes, and texting back on my phone.
I'm sad because I will be leaving Paris. I will be leaving this lovely city that I have called my home for the past few months. I don't know when I will be coming back to Europe, and I don't know if I will ever be given the opportunity to live here again. While I've seen most of the sites, I feel there is so much left to see and do that I haven't had enough time to experience.
I'm afraid to go back to America. Believe it or not, a lot of things about re-emerging myself into that culture is scaring me. Driving in cars. Huge portion sizes. Having to deal with people yelling at you in a language you can understand.
I'm stressed because I have a ton of school work left to do. A European adventure to plan with Maxwell. A flight home to get situated, and above all making the most of the few weeks left.

I have vowed to myself that over the upcoming fall break I will do something new every day. I will go somewhere or do something that I have yet to do since living here in France. Even if it's just walking down the street with my camera, I don't want to miss a beat. It's been hard because it's so easy to get sucked into the everyday life of just sleeping in, or watching movies on my laptop. While I've been able to experience so much, I don't want to leave here feeling like I didn't live it up to its fullest potential. Prepare for a plethora of blog entree's this next week because I have a feeling I will have a lot of new experiences to talk about.

Tomorrow I am ditching class and going to the Catacombs, and Friday my friend Brett and I are going to Disneyland Paris !!! Just to kick off our Fall Break in the right kind of way!

Fontainebleau

So yesterday my program took us to the beautiful city of Fontainebleau. We did an early (and freezing cold) morning hike in the forest, and then walked through town and had lunch. After lunch we were free to roam and do whatever it was we wanted. They gave us an open-ended train ticket home and various trains left the town about every half hour.
After lunch we decided to find the castle. It was massive, and one of the most beautiful that I have seen thus far on my trip abroad. I've learned much about in in my various classes, so to see it up close was unbelievable.
My friends, Erin and Brett, and I decided that we wanted to be outside because it was a gorgeous day and we wanted to roam the grounds. We rented a small boat and rowed around the lake. We wandered the gardens. Most importantly we had a great time pretending to model where ever we went. We set up mini photoshoots and just laughed our way through them all and it was such a fun time!
The weather was gorgeous, sunny and bright. It was cold enough to be in jeans and a sweater, but we no longer had to wear our bulky jackets. We left Fontainebleau at around 4 and came back to Paris where we all slept and enjoyed the heaters in our apartment.

A Day in Haute Couture

So on Wednesday for Haute Couture we had an excursion. Our professor took us around this area of the city over by the Louvre. It was originally were all the diplomats and jet setters use to shop. We were able to see where Chanel had her first shop.

Eventually she bought the entire block for her growing empire. This is where the house of Chanel currently is. While we were outside we saw these four women walk into the building covered from head to toe in Chanel attire. It was crazy. My professor explained to me that they were board members...executives.

It's sort of difficult to see through the reflection, but we were able to look at the famous Chanel stair case. I was in love.

City and Colour

So on Tuesday night my roommates and I went to a concert down the street from our apartment, the band was City and Colour. They are Canadian, and really only Mackenzie and Gabby had heard of them prior to us purchasing our tickets. I downloaded their music and have been listening for a while.
We were surprised how many people were at the concert, we didn't think that many would know who they were and would want to come listen. It was so much fun as we swayed to the tunes, and got to know the band a little better. It was a great night for only 13 euro.

My favorite part of the concert was when Dallas Green told the audience to just put down our camera's and phones...to just enjoy the moment...to go back to a time where memories were created with just our minds and we weren't obsessed with just capturing the memory with our technology. Everyone put away their devices and we all just were together enjoying the music.

Home

It was really interesting at the end of this weekend because my roommates and I kept talking about how much we couldn’t wait to go “home”. How we missed “home”. Home referring to our Parisian apartment. At first we were slightly alarmed by the way we were describing where we lived. Home tends to have such an emotional connotation, but to be honest, it felt so natural. Home can mean so many different things to a person, and I guess to us home is now our apartment.

In Communications class on Tuesday we broke into groups and had to analyze certain quotations. One of them was “Everywhere is home, if you know enough about how things work there”. I thought this was so interesting coming from the weekend, where I couldn’t quite understand why we kept using this word.

At the beginning of this trip (as you can read in earlier blogs) I felt so disconnected. I counted down the days until my return flight. I would sit in my room and look at pictures from the summer or school. I didn’t want to make this my home, it simply was a temporary house. Now I have become so comfortable where I live. The people in the U (our grocery store) know us…and tend to get annoyed when we walk in and it’s busy because they know we will need extra assistance checking out. Our neighbors are polite when we cross them in front of the mailboxes. Even certain regulars in our area know our faces. I know how to get around our part of the city. I’ve mastered the subway. I can order food. I’ve become more comfortable in my environment, and have allowed myself to accept this as my “home”.  That quote is true, once one starts learning about the way things work and how things are done, it becomes your home.

I had this same experience when I moved to college. At first I was resistant and didn’t want that “foreign” place to be my “home” but now I can’t imagine not calling it my home. I reference SLO as my home, moreso than La Quinta.

It’s interesting that the number of “homes” is increasing as years fly by. Acquiring new one’s as my life progresses. La Quinta, San Luis Obispo, and now Paris. I feel like I will always consider Paris one of my “homes”. While I don’t speak fluent French. I may not know all the best restaurants. It has captured my heart and will always have a small piece of me.  

Miss You

I miss everyone so much!!!!

Strasbourg and Germany !!!

This past weekend our program took us to Strasbourg and Germany. We left bright at early (at 7:45) on Saturday morning, and returned late Sunday night. A big group from our school went and the best part about the trip, in my opinion, was getting to know all the people just a little bit better. We had so much fun with all our fellow classmates, laughing, joking, and just enjoying our time together. The dynamic is so different when no one has access to a cell phone, and we are all as out of place as those standing next to us.
We took the train from Paris to Strasbourg, which was about a 3 hour trip. We were all so exhausted from the soccer game the previous night that we slept. I wish I could have stayed awake to see the gorgeous scenery, but I was exhausted and needed so well deserved rest. 

We had a tour guide named Pierre-John and he was HILARIOUS. He was Parisian, but his sense of humor in English was amazing. He kept us laughing the entire trip and was witty and sarcastic. Usually those don't translate well with the language barrier but he was great.

We arrived in Strasbourg and a bus picked us up to drive to the Hotel, but unfortunately the rooms were not ready for us yet. We all placed our bags in the luggage room and then went off with Pierre-John to explore the city. We were given about an hour to go off and enjoy lunch, and then met back in the main square for a walking tour of the city. It started raining and being the super Parisians that we are, we of course had our umbrella's ready to go.

All the buildings were super adorable and quaint. It seriously looked like Disneyland. Every building was a different color, with various shades of shutters. The majority of my photographs from the weekend are of the buildings just because they were so interesting and beautiful. 

My favorite buildings were those with the flowerpots on the windowsills. They were so gorgeous and it made me happy to see. I really would like to have a garden when I get back to the states. 

Strasbourg is filled with just amazingly adorable streets, buildings, and plants. This was one of my favorite alleyways in the heart of the town. The archway was covered with plants, and all throughout the city the streets were made of cobblestones. 

In the main square of the city there is a giant cathedral. It was just as spectacular as those in Paris. I loved all the details, and colors that were put into the building. 

After the walking tour we headed across town to a winery where we did a wine tasting. We had four different wines and were taught about all the different smells, regions, and tastes that are in each wine. There was also delicious cake, so I was happy.

 The leaves have started changing colors all throughout Europe which I find beautiful and unbelievable. Coming from Southern California, I feel I have never experienced the "seasons". Being in Europe, I'm finally getting a sense of fall. Orange leaves slowly dropping to the ground. Crisp cold air. The clouds covering the sky in a layer of blankets. I. LOVE. IT.










 Our school paid for us to have a really nice dinner which was delicious. We had appetizers, a main course, beer/wine, and then creme brulee for dessert. We finished dinner at around 9 and since we had taken naps earlier in the day we decided to go explore the city at night, potentially find a bar to sit and have a drink.

We finally found a cute little locals bar and about 8 of us girls just grabbed a table and had some solid girl talk. It was so much fun getting to know everyone outside of school and just acting like old friends, even though we've only known one another for 2 months. I seriously have met so many amazing people through this program that I hope to keep in contact with once we leave.

 

 

We stayed the night in Strasbourg in a "hotel". It was essentially just a really nice hostel. There were four to a room...but we only had three since Megan decided last minute not to come. We had bunk beds, our own sinks, and a private shower. It was nice and we all fell in love with the blankets. We seriously considered stealing them for back home.

In the morning we had breakfast (provided by the hotel) and then hopped on the bus for an hour drive to Germany!!!! We drove through the country side and it was gorgeous. I was taken aback by the simple beauty of the country. I listened to mellow music and just looked out the window thinking about how amazing it feels to be in Europe.

 We arrived in a small town called Titisee, which is in the black forest. We were given about an hour and a half to explore and just have fun. We took pictures, and walked around the town (which was extremely small). We considered renting a boat to take on the lake, but to be perfectly honest it was FREEZING and my desert blood was not prepared for the weather.

 Instead we decided to find a restaurant and grab some lunch. None of us were really that hungry, but "when in Germany...". Unfortunately it was too early to grab a beer. I decided to order an authentic Bratwurst! It was delicious and filling. Eventually we tried a pretzel and other German sweets.





After Titisee we went to the town of Freidburg which is also in Germany. Our group went on a walking tour and saw the amazing cathedral and adorable houses in the city. We then hopped back on the bus and drove back to Strasburg where we had a boat tour. At this point we were all exhausted and really just wanted to be "home" aka Paris. The boat tour was about an hour long and most of us spent it playing peek-a-boo with a baby sitting in the front of the boat.
Prior to our ride, Mackenzie (my roommate) dropped her ring into the Ill river. Our tour guide (who didn't go on the ride) spent the entire time trying to figure out a way to get the ring out of the river. When we returned he had a metal coat hanger and told one of the boys in our program that he was to hop the fence, and use the hanger as a hook to catch the ring. Unfortunately, it was extremely difficult because the wall was sloped and the water went right to the edge. Billy, another gent in our program, held onto Colin's arm and lowered him near the water.

Eventually Mackenzie got her ring back, and now we all have a funny story/funny pictures of Colin.

All in all a very fun yet tiring weekend!!! I can't wait to travel more and more, especially in December with Maxwell!!!