Fitted Sheets, 3-prong outlets, and other things from home I already miss

Just a quick list of things I jotted down yesterday while walking around town:

I almost forgot how much I LOVE:
- French food in general
- unpasteurized goat cheese
- aisles of yogurt and chocolate at the grocery store (really, itùs unfathomable!)
- open-air markets (fresh and good for you!)
- walking everywhere
- the train system (especially the TGV) (love, love, love!!!)
- the way people dress (so classy!)
- Carte d'Or caramel ice cream (*droooooool*)
- LU cookies (you can buy them in the States, too)
- old Renault cars (so cute and stereotypical)
- the French countryside (so calm)


New things to love:
- wind energy (this area relies primarily on wind energy; it is so efficient! Love it!)
- Palm trees and sunshine
- being close to the beach
- Rousquilles fondantes de Roussillion (like powdered donuts, but much, much better!)


Then again, there are things that I would have rather forgotten. Things that I DON'T love:
- doggie doo on every corner
- porn shops on every corner
- dirty, smelly streets (sometimes I wonder if I'm not in a third-world country!)
- no recycling
- beggars everywhere in the center of town (they are never violent, but can really get in your face)
- Sundays (everything is closed; it's like a ghost town!)
- "me first" attitude (a kindly-looking older gentleman stormed in front of me at the grocery store the other day. I couldn't believe it!)
- everything is expensive (yikes!!)
- anything bureaucratic (and therefore complicated and slow)
- graffiti everywhere
- round pillows (they give me a headache)


New things to hate:
- the alarm system at my school (it woke me up at 7 am this morning)
- foot pain
- weekends at my school (everyone leaves)
- no WiFi in my room (yet)
- having to use a converter
- no kitchen in my room (I would like to be able to cook. *sigh*)


So there is my list of things I love and hate about France. HOPEFULLY, I will be able to upload pictures, at least, so you can see my town. Maybe that will inspire you to come visit me! :)

A très bientot!

Dorm Sweet Dorm: Enfin à Perpignan!

(First of all, I want to apologize in advance for what could be a post full of errors. I am typing on a European keyboard, and it is a bit different from the ones back home. So bear with me...)

On Friday, I took the slooooow train from Paris Austerlitz to Perpignan. NINE HOURS LATER, I pulled into the station that I will get to know very well this year. Because I arrived at night, I wasn't able to see the city at all, so on Saturday, I got a nice tour of the ville. It really is a very pretty city (I think), with palm trees all over and a nice mixture of very Parisian- and very Catalan-influenced buildings. The Parisian buildings are large and square, with ornate window decorations and long, lean windows themselves; the Catalan buildings are narrow and tall, painted in bright yellows, oranges, and reds, with red and blue shutters. It's quite a striking contrast.

In the middle of town, there is a canal that is really quite something else. It is set below the city streets, and has gardens surrounding it on either side. Palm trees line the canals through the center of town. I can't wait to show you pictures!

My school is nice, too. Right now, I have a lot of bureaucratic issues to take care of; today, I've already jumped through more than a few hoops to get keys fixed, get a food card, etc. Later on, I have to *gulp* open a bank account. Le pire (the worst), as we would say in French.

The people here are very nice. I have a nice little room where I get to stay for free -- I don't yet know if I'll stay there all year or not. I have the option of moving into the apartment across town; yesterday, I got to see the area, and it is beautiful! There is a nice, family-oriented park at the end of the road that is lined with palm trees. So we'll see about that.

This afternoon, after I open my bank account, one of the English professors (who is British) is going to take me to Canet-Plage, the nearest Mediterranean beach. Should be fun!

Bienvenue à Paris!

Well, I made it! I had a very easy, very quick plane ride from Portland (even got some sleep!), and made a few friends along the way. Right now, I am sitting at one of the Starbucks in Paris, waiting for one of the other Fulbright girls to show up. I am so glad to meet someone before orientation begins.

But first, a bit of some true-to-France information: when I got off the plane in Paris, I went over to one of the buses to take me into town, bought a ticket, and waited. Then the guy in front of me says, "Y a des grèves aujourd'hui" (there are strikes going on today). Oh great, I thought. And hello back to you, Paris! So it was a slow trip into Paris, since most of the trains and buses were on strike (and thus everyone was driving their car). But I am here, I am wide awake (thank you, Starbucks), and I really, really miss my cell phone. I am a little too dependent on certain technologies!

After I meet up with the other Fulbright girl, I plan on checking in to my hotel, freshening up a bit (because I am sure that I look looovely after a long flight!), and then getting some things in order before orientation begins tomorrow.

One last thing: I guess I had forgotten (or willed myself to forget) how expensive everything is in Paris! From the 15 Euro bus ticket to the 10 Euro locker rental in Montparnasse to the 3 Euro shotglass of coffee at Starbucks, I can already feel my bank account screaming at me! Luckily, I have everything (and more!) that I could need, so all I must buy for now is food and some other essentials. Well. I say that now...

Waiting at the Airport!

Well, I am now waiting at the Portland airport for my flight to Philadelphia (then to Paris). I can hardly believe that this day has come already -- it sure got here quickly! I'll get into Charles-de-Gaulle around 11 pm (Pacific Time)/8 am (Paris Time) tonight. It's strange to think that in just a few hours I will be hearing more French than English. I haven't quite prepared my mind for that.

We are boarding! More later when I arrive in Paris!

Thanksgiving in September

Hotel des Invalides

Paris,
France






With only six days left until I leave, I have been keeping busy with things to do: packing, cleaning out my room, giving stuff away, throwing stuff out, and saying good-byes (or rather, "see you laters") that I would just rather not say at all.

But one thing has me very excited: I am having Thanksgiving this Saturday! Yes, that is right: Thanksgiving. My mother asked what one thing I wanted to do before I leave, and I decided that I wanted to have a big dinner, with family and friends over, in order to say good-bye to them all at once. And I added to that when I decided to make that a Thanksgiving dinner, since I won't be here in November to celebrate (and I'll probably be teaching that day, too!). So, on the menu is the traditional turkey, stuffing, cranberries, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, etc. etc etc -- but with the added bonus of having it earlier in the year, and with family and friends who ordinarily wouldn't be able to come! I am certainly looking forward to it!!

Here are the details of the week to come:

Sunday, September 21: Leave for Paris (Portland --> Philadelphia --> Paris) at 9 am.

Monday, September 22: Arrive in Paris

Tuesday, September 23: Begin orientation in Paris

Wednesday, Sept. 24: Attend party for the 60th Anniversary of the Franco-American Education Commission at the Hotel des Invalides (the big, gold-domed building where Napoleon is buried)

Friday, September 26: Take the train to Perpignan


I am very excited to leave, but also getting nervous. I still have a lot of things to do, and I am quickly running out of time! But I am certainly looking forward to the adventures that are yet to come.

And, of course, the Thanksgiving dinner.

Two Weeks Left!

(<-- Yes, this is Perpignan! Please feel free to drool)






The countdown is on: I have two weeks left until I leave for France! Part of me is oh-so-excited; part of me knows that reality hasn't quite settled in. And in either case, I definitely haven't started packing...

Today at my store, something unbelievably coincidental happened: a lady came in, and I talked to her for a minute, noticing her strong British accent. I asked where she was from, and she said, "France" (I was convinced she was English!). We began speaking in French, and she told me that she was from Lyons, in eastern France. I told her that I was moving to France in two weeks, to Perpignan. "C'est pas vrai!" (No way!) She said. She is going to Perpignan next week! It was totally bizarre. So we started talking about the town (still in French, mind you) and her impressions of it. What fun to be able to talk to someone who has been there and who knows the culture. She warned me of the strong southern accents. "You won't understand them at first," she warned me. "Or at least I don't." Great. But the best part was that she told me my accent was perfect -- that I didn't sound American at all, but close to a true Poitevin (someone from the Poitiers region). Awesome.

With the limited time I have left, I've started making a list of all the things I am looking forward to when I arrive in France. I thought I would share some of them with you:

- Going to FNAC (my favorite store in France; like a Virgin Megastore meets Best Buy meets Borders)

- Taking a train everywhere and not having to drive (yay, Carte 12-25!)

- Carte d'Or caramel ice cream (oh, if only you knew...)

- Red wine. Oh, the red wine!

- Saturday markets (so wonderful and cheap -- I love it all, except for the skinned rabbits)

- The relaxed culture, so laid-back and at ease (it's great until you need something done RIGHT NOW)

- The food. Oh my. Meat with fruit. Exquisite desserts. Delectable pastries. Fois gras (yeah, I'm inhumane like that). Bread. Cheese. Wine. Have I mentioned the wine? (Need I go on?)

- My apartment. Granted, I won't be moving in until late October, but that won't stop me from being excited. I can't wait to be there! It looks soooooo cute!

As you can tell, I am really looking forward to going back "home." I will keep you updated as the time gets closer! And if you are interested in coming to visit, please let me know! I'd love to have visitors.