Change du cavalier!

I went to a senior club the other day for a ball.  Okay, it was a guy playing guitar and a bunch of people dancing, but it was called a ball.  It was really great to see them all having such a good time!  They were excited about the songs and dancing with each other, and it was a really festive atmosphere.  I had a lot of fun dancing too, although I’m pretty horrible at following people.  One person called me out on it and said “what are you doing?”…I think it was clear I was dancing.  It was also awkward because I was taller than most of them, so spinning around required some flexible moves on my part. 

There were a lot of line dances which were pretty amusing, including a Spanish one that talks about a grandmother who drinks and smokes all the time (la abuela bebe la abuela fuma), and one dance where the singer would announce to change partners (change du cavalier!).  It made me kind of sad that our generation doesn’t dance like that, and I wonder what it will be like for us when we’re older…will we learn that style of dancing and listen to classics?  Or will we be grinding to Get Low?  (I hope not…that sounds weird). 

They also had a snack in the afternoon (so cute!) where they distributed small croissants and pastries.  I said I didn’t want any because I wasn’t hungry, but this one guy was pretty insistent.  And after I said no several times, he asked the director of the club if I could put them in my purse.  And she said sure.  I didn’t even want them in my purse…but he said “it’s okay, everybody does it, put it in your purse!”  I was pretty embarrassed, so he took me into the hallway and wrapped it in napkins and gave it to me to put in my purse.  And I noticed a lot of other people did it as well, which made me kind of sad.  I’ve definitely done it before (yay for dining halls), but for some reason it felt worse seeing older people do it…like they weren’t sure where or when they’d get their next meal.  It’s good not to waste food though!   

Beer and Pretzels (Berlin)

We took a 5-hour train to Berlin from Prague.  It was a really good deal (29 euros)! We bought it on a Czech site and didn’t see an option to reserve seats, so it was a little stressful when people would come in and say we were in their seats, but it worked out, and we only had to move a couple of times.  It was also stressful when the conductor was mad at us because we had folded our papers and ruined the barcode.  The paper says don’t fold the barcode (and we didn’t! we folded at the midpoint of the paper), and she couldn’t scan our tickets.  Other passengers told us we were very lucky because in the olden days, they would have kicked us off the train.

Eventually, we got to Berlin and met up with my friend Alette.  The first day was pretty low-key: we went up the TV tower to have a panoramic view of Berlin, and then we went to a beer garden to drink beers and eat pretzels.  It was delicious!

The next day, we walked around the city, went to the Berlin wall, Museum Island, Checkpoint Charlie, and the Holocaust memorial.  We had trouble (once again) identifying the important monument…the Berlin Wall wasn’t what we were expecting.  There wasn’t a sign (ok, it was clear that it was a giant wall), and there was a lot of graffiti and paintings on the wall.  The art was really good, and it seems like it’s a nice way to draw attention to all the events surrounding WWII.

The Holocaust memorial was very interesting (and depressing).  It seemed industrial and had lots of large concrete blocks of varying sizes arranged in a grid pattern.  Underneath the memorial, there was a museum which recounted the history of WWII and told the stories of many Jews killed in the Holocaust.  One room was all dark and just showed the person’s name, year of birth, and year of death on a big screen and then told their story in a few sentences in German and then in English.  It was pretty moving.

We also visited the museum at Checkpoint Charlie, and it was overwhelming and packed with information (and tourists).  Checkpoint Charlie was a crossing point between East and West Berlin during the Cold War.  The museum had lots of stories about the history of the wall, how people escaped East Berlin and the lives of those who helped escapees.  It’s definitely one of the best historical museums I’ve visited.

Museum Island was not very exciting.  There was a lot of construction going on, and it was a bit hard to navigate.  But we did find an amazing pizza place nearby, 12 Apostel, which had pizzas named after the apostles.  Delicious!

When we were walking around Berlin, we paused at a kebab place to get some waters and consult our maps before taking the metro.  We were under a bridge and walked into the metro station when Lisa said “Ew, what is that?” because something dripped on her shoulder. Alette said “It’s probably just water,” but then Lisa said “No…it’s brown.”  We looked up, and a giant evil pigeon was staring down at us.  And Lisa had a lot of white and brown poop on her jacket and in her hair.  I had always thought bird poop was all white!  Anyway, I went back into the kebab store and asked if I could have some water and napkins because my friend got pooped on.  The owner was confused and only spoke German.  Luckily, the amused man next to me translated (I wonder if it was a direct translation?) and we got a cup of water and paper towels.  Lisa was a very good sport about it!  And she didn’t wear her jacket the rest of the day.

There was a positive turn of events when we found a Ritter Sport chocolate shop.  I had never had the chocolate before, but it is so addicting! Be warned.  They had an area where you could make your own chocolate bar and come back in 30 minutes after it set.  We were tempted but decided to buy the premade flavors instead.  I bought a couple of bars for myself and a box to give to my roommates.  But I ended up eating the bars and the box for my roommates before I could get back to France.  It’s dangerous I tell you. 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Is that the castle?

Lisa came to visit me last week!  We spent a couple days in Paris and then traveled to Prague and Berlin.

Prague was pretty grey and rainy while we were there, so it seemed a little depressing.  (You would think I’d be used to that by now!) But it was a great city to walk around, and the buildings were very cool.  It’s actually the 6th most visited city in Europe after London, Paris, Rome, Madrid and Berlin.  I guess that explains all the tourists who were walking around. 

Our plans for the first night were foiled – we tried to go to a Mexican restaurant that had really good reviews (I haven’t had Mexican food in so long! Papagayo when I get home?), but we didn’t have reservations and were told we could try again at 9pm.  Obviously that’s far too late for Americans to eat, so we stumbled upon a delicious Italian restaurant serving fresh pasta (and aptly called Pasta Fresca).   We had more ethnic food the next night at a really good Indian restaurant.   Basically, we were just trying to avoid Czech food.  Goulash and pork knuckle do not sound appealing.

We walked around a lot and saw the old town square, the Charles Bridge, the astronomical clock, and the castle.  It was tricky to find though.  We took the metro to the closest stop and walked a bit until we found the Royal Garden.  There was a nice looking building, and I asked Lisa what it was, and she said, “I think it’s the castle…but there better be some damn cute animals in the zoo if this is the castle.”  It turns out it was the Belvedere – the Royal Summer Residence.   We spotted a tall majestic building in the distance and decided that was the castle, so we walked through the gardens to get there.

There was another building called the Ball Game Hall that was beautifully decorated on the outside.  A bunch of tourists were outside taking pictures, but the guide said that they couldn’t linger too long because the guards were about to change at the castle.  I decided that we should see the guards changing too, so we hurried along, found some guards, and waited outside the entrance for them to change.  I figured it would be at noon, but nothing happened for five minutes, so I thought we might have the wrong guards.  We decided to leave and explore the grounds instead.  Of course we get to the plaza and then see guards marching back towards the entrance.  I debated chasing after them, but they probably wouldn’t have been happy.  I snapped a picture instead.

The guards were very serious and didn’t move (like the British ones).  They had a small railing barrier around them with an opening in the front, and one Asian lady walked into the opening, stood extremely close to the guard, and smiled for her photo.  The guard looked very uncomfortable and told her (I assume) that she couldn’t be there.  It made me laugh.

Anyway, we bought our tickets for the castle and I asked Lisa “Is this the castle?” to which she responded “No, that’s a cathedral.”  We walked around the cathedral, which was very pretty.  It also had gorgeous stained glass windows (difficult to capture in pictures).  After we left and walked around outside, I pointed to the cathedral and asked whether that was the castle, and she said, “No, that’s the other side of the cathedral we just went into.”  It looked different from the side.  To be fair, there isn’t one building that is a castle.  It’s more a royal complex.  Anyway, there are lots of interesting buildings to visit, the grounds are very pretty (there were lots of people taking wedding pictures), and there’s a beautiful view of the whole city.  If you’re in Prague, go to the castle!

There was also a bar right outside our hotel, but sadly we didn't visit it.  Their drinks seemed tempting though.  I've never had sex on the bench.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Deauville

I went on a last-minute trip to Deauville the other weekend with Johan and Sabine and Sabine’s friends.  It was really nice out, so we rested on the beach and enjoyed the sun.  Sabine’s friend organized a getaway for her birthday, so we piled into cars, made the 2 hour drive from Paris to Deauville and stayed in a house she had rented.  It was a pretty relaxing weekend – lots of swimming in the pool, walking around the town, and going out.

I had my first McDonald’s in France!  It was pretty good (and better than in the US).  It was also really late and only the drive-through was open, so we got our food and sat outside in the dark at some patio tables.  French food is awesome (I know McDonald’s is not French), but I’m getting very excited to have American food again!

On Saturday night, we tried to go to the casino, but I couldn’t get in because I didn’t have my passport (because I had sent it to the embassy to get more pages).  I tried my best, trying to persuade them that my license or photocopy of my passport should be okay, but it didn’t work.  They needed to scan the passport to make sure I’m not addicted to gambling.  I didn’t even want to gamble!  I just didn’t want the whole group to split up for me.  But a few girls said they didn’t want to gamble either, so we went somewhere else to get drinks.  

The beach was pretty, but it was covered with long thin sharp seashells that are called couteaux (knives) in French or razor shells in English.  They created a very painful environment for a walk along the beach, but I persevered.  There were also lots of other nice shells, and we collected a bunch to put in the apartment!  We have a unique beach / Disney themed living room at the moment.  We’re a creative group. 

Bordeaux and La Rochelle

Mmm wine.  I made my way to southwestern France to visit Bordeaux and La Rochelle with some friends!  Jen visited Arcachon to see the largest sand dune in Europe and then joined me and Sara in Bordeaux. 

Bordeaux is the 9^th largest city in France and the world’s major wine industry capital.  The town seems really fun; it’s easy to walk everywhere, there are a lot of young people and universities there, and lots of wine!  It’s on a river, which is very pretty to walk (or bike) along, and the people seemed friendly.  There are two famous bridges, the Pont de pierre and the Pont Jacques Chaban-Delma (aka the Vertical Lift Bridge).  The Pont de pierre just seems like a normal bridge to me, but I still took photos.  The Vertical Lift Bridge was recently finished, and it’s Europe’s largest lift bridge!  It can be lifted up 53 meters to let tall ships pass through.  Sadly, I didn’t get to see it go up.

In Bordeaux, we biked around the city, visited churches, walked around parks, ate a lot, tasted different wines, and went to the wine museum.  At the end of the museum visit, they talked about different types of wines and gave samples, so that was fun.  We ended up staying a bit too long, so we had to rush to make our train.  It was a poor decision to bike extremely fast to the station and run to pick up our luggage after drinking wine.  I swerved into a bush avoiding a dog in the bike lane, but I recovered quickly.  And we made the train!

We then took the train to La Rochelle to spend a night in a pretty beach town.  La Rochelle is where bike-sharing started!  In 1974, they launched a bike-share program called Velos Jaunes which had bicycles that were free to take and use.  It’s considered one of the first truly successful bike sharing programs.  Sara is doing a project on Velib, the bike-sharing program in France, so she wanted to visit La Rochelle for that reason (and I thought it looked pretty in pictures and wanted to go).  Ironically, we could not rent the bikes.  You need a pass to rent them (and need to live in La Rochelle to get the pass).  They do have a separate system for tourists, but by the time we went to ride them (5:30), the tourist office was closing soon and said we had to come back tomorrow.  So we sat on them and took pictures.  

There are three big towers (the St. Nicolas tower, the Chain tower, and the Lantern tower) in La Rochelle that were built in the 14^th and 15^th centuries.  We went inside two of them and climbed up to the top to have an awesome view of the city.  One was a military building, and the other was a prison for pirates and enemy seamen.  The prison was full of ornate graffiti drawn by the prisoners and was really cool to see.  It’s also the only medieval lighthouse on the Atlantic coast that is still standing!

La Rochelle is a very fun town to explore and walk around.  We ended up getting sandwiches (and dessert of course) from one of the many bakeries to have a picnic at the harbor.  The beach was also pretty, but the water was cold!  

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Strike at the Louvre

I was wondering why there have been a lot of police cars outside the Louvre the past few days.  Museum workers went on strike on Wednesday in protest over pickpockets.  The thieves have become more aggressive recently...spitting, threatening, and kicking staff. 
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/10/louvre-closed-pickpockets

The other week, I saw a couple of kids at the Louvre running and then walking fast and looking over their shoulder.  I was trailing a little bit behind them on my usual walk home from school (it's a pretty sweet walk - I see the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Palais Royal and Opera House).  When I reached the crosswalk, I heard a siren and saw a man jump out of a car and try to grab the boy, causing the kid to fall to the ground.  Then the man picked him up, shoved him in the car with several other men, and drove off.  It happened extremely fast.  Everyone around stared at the scene, and I was pretty confused and surprised no one (including me) did anything.  I justified not doing anything because I figured he was probably a pickpocket, and an undercover police officer picked him up.  This article makes me feel more justified...but I guess I still feel guilty for not questioning it.

I feel pretty safe in Paris, but I went to an English class (I don't need help with English, I was helping them) at a senior club the other day, and they were telling me how dangerous Paris is.  They don't go on certain metro lines at night, never switch trains at Chatelet, don't go out past 10pm (they're probably also sleepy by then), and they told me how they've been pickpocketed and grabbed by people demanding money.  I'm very glad I haven't experienced that and will cross my fingers for the next couple of months.  (Disclaimer: I was nearly pickpocketed, but I felt someone going for my iphone in my coat pocket, so I put my hand over it and turned around to glare at him, effectively scaring him away.)

Krysten!

She gets her own blog title.  My sister came to visit, and it was lots of fun!  We had some good adventures.  The first night she was here, we went to a bar with my roommates and had some Belgian beers and croque madames.  When we were heading home, we were stopped in Gare de Lyon by a man who flashed opened his wallet and touched Krysten on the arm, and she swatted him away and walked quickly.  Then he started yelling at her (in French), and another man came up to her, and my roommate and I slowed down to hear what they were saying.  It turned out they were plainclothes train control people who wanted to check our tickets to make sure that we had paid.  They were pretty mad that Krysten brushed them off, but Sabine and I tried to calm everyone down, explaining that we were tourists, didn’t know what they were saying, they weren’t in uniform, etc.  I totally understand Krysten’s reaction; it’s not smart to just stop for a group of guys in an empty train station at midnight.  Sabine and I had never seen people checking who aren’t in uniform, so everyone was wary and confused.  It turned out fine though!  
 

On Thursday, we went to Versailles to walk around the gardens and the castle.  I think Krysten and Jennifer enjoyed the trip, but it tainted my image of Versailles a little.  I visited Versailles in late summer, and it was sunny and the gardens were beautiful.  This time, there was a lot of construction, no flowers, and bare trees.  I guess that’s to be expected in winter, but I hadn’t really thought about it. 

On Friday, we went to Laduree (she is obsessed) and bought macarons to eat on top of the terrace at Printemps.  It was a warm day, so we spent a while just sitting on a bench and looking at the city.  We also walked around Montmartre, ate some croissants, took pictures and hung out.  It was nice that she had already seen a lot of the tourist sites so that we could just have a low key time hanging out with each other.   Come back!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Brussels

Jennifer visited me last week!  She came to spend some time in Paris, and then we also went to Brussels for the weekend to visit Camille.  We drank some delicious Belgian beers and ate a lot of waffles, fries, and chocolate (I ate my 200 gram box in 24 hours).  We also visited the tourist sites and saw the main square, the pissing boy, the squatting girl (I missed her the last time I visited!), and went to the top of the music museum to have hot chocolate and enjoy a nice view of the city. 

Jennifer and I also visited a lot of sites in Paris since it was her first time in France!  We went to the top of the Eiffel tower (which I hadn’t done yet this year), and it was freezing.  We got some good photos though!  We also walked along the Champs Elysees, saw the Arc de Triomphe, Trocadero, Palais Royal, Notre Dame, etc.  I’m a good tourist guide.  She liked France so much that she decided to stay a bit longer and travel around!  She took a trip on her own to Arcachon, which has the biggest sand dune in Europe, and then we went to Bordeaux and La Rochelle together.  Pictures coming soon!

Nice

I went to Nice the other weekend, and it was…nice.  Ha!  I know.  I’m sorry.  I went with two friends, Emily and Aaron, and it was great to escape the rainy Parisian weather to stroll along the beach and sit under the sun.  

We had a packed weekend and spent one day exploring Nice and the other hiking in Eze and walking around Monaco.  When we mentioned that we were taking a trip to Monaco, someone suggested stopping in Eze, a medieval village on top of a hill.  There was a path leading down to the ocean (called the Chemin de Nietzsche) that had really pretty views.  It was only an hour walk down a very rocky path, but the next day(s), we were so sore.  Hiking down can be pretty strenuous too.

We also walked around for half a day in Monaco, making sure to hit up the casino.  There were lots of tourists there, and we tried to get a drink on the terrace, but it was only available for the high rollers.   It wasn’t quite as opulent as I was expecting, and I didn’t see James Bond.  Oh well.  Monaco also had a pretty garden, a church where Grace Kelly is buried, and delicious Italian food.   And it had an ice skating rink near the port with lots of fancy boats.

In Nice, the highlight was the carnival parade.  I have always wanted to go to a carnival (Brazil has been on my list ever since my grandmother told me her wild stories), so I thought Nice would be a great idea since it has one of the largest carnivals in the world and the biggest in France.  We booked a Saturday night parade, and the lights and colors and floats were impressive.  There were also tons of people shooting silly string and throwing confetti, which made for an amusing atmosphere (except when a woman got string in her face and she freaked out at a kid and shit went down).

The floats were…interesting.  Perhaps a bit racist?  Not politically correct?  The theme was “around the world,” so lots of different countries and regions had floats.  The American float had an obese woman in a skimpy bikini as the Statue of Liberty, and she was standing on a giant hamburger, holding a scale in one arm and a diet coke in the other, and a crown of ice cream cones melting on her face.  Yay America!  There were also other ones like one with Middle Eastern people with gold teeth and turbans dangling oil over desperate people in cars and one with New Zealand tribal people riding turtles.  I didn’t understand why there was a Hawaiian hula woman on a float with aliens and a black kid on a volcano.  I also didn’t get the float with a giant red bird in a black and red striped jersey and a crown.  Points if you can explain them to me!

It was weird to see floats like that because it’s not something that would be okay in the US.  Obviously stereotypes exist, and Americans do poke fun at them, but it’s important to do so in a non-offensive manner.

Overall, I really liked Nice!  We also took the elevator up a giant hill and saw a park that had some awesome views of the city.  And we ate a lot of delicious food and wandered around the old city.  The Marc Chagall museum was also very cool (Chagall is the artist who created the stained glass windows in the cathedral in Reims and part of the ceiling of the Paris Opera).  

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Turkish Toilets

I went to Turkey last year with my mom and sister, but I never encountered a Turkish toilet.  But last night, I went to a bar in Montmartre, and there it was!  After a couple of beers, one naturally has to go to the bathroom (I have proudly taught my French roommates the common phrase “break the seal”).  So I went into the bathroom, and there was a tile floor with two raised porcelain footprints and a hole in the ground.  And an empty role of toilet paper.  So I walked back out and sat at the table, and my friend asked “Back already?”  I explained that there wasn't any toilet paper and that I was a bit overwhelmed by the squat toilet.  And it’d be especially hard for someone clumsy who doesn't balance very well.  I’m sure my camping friends or people who have been to more exotic places aren't particularly surprised, but I wasn't expecting it in a bar.  Anyway, long story short, I used it successfully!  Supposedly in Asia they have these types of toilets on the trains, and I imagine that would be very challenging. 

Prostitutes

Transvestite prostitutes.  It was beautiful in Paris the other day!  I knew I had to get outside and take advantage of it, so I pulled out my map of Paris and found a couple of parks that I still hadn’t seen yet.  I told Sabine’s boyfriend that I wanted to go to Bois du Boulogne, and he just said “Why?”  I was a little startled by the question, but I said that it looks like a really nice park – there’s a lake in the center, and it’s big, and it’d be great for a bike ride.  I had even looked it up online and found that there were boat rentals for rowing on the lake, bike rentals and some Velib stations as well.  And it’s in a really nice neighborhood in Paris.  He responded “That’s where the hookers are.” And I was confused because I had never heard that, so I thought that there might be a translation error. 

Anyway, I had already sent a text to some friends asking if they wanted to bike around there, and my friend Alette said yes, but she had class until 5.  So we made a plan to meet there around 5:30 and explore the area.  It was creepy.  It stays light here until 7pm, but the part we first biked through was full of bare dead-looking trees and men walking through the woods.  It felt like we were in a bad movie, so we looked at my map to see how to get to the lake and biked a little faster.  We then found ourselves on a dirt path biking past three Spanish-speaking men dressed like women (and in short skirts) hanging around.  And there were a couple of cars paused on the road through the park near the dirt pathways.  But eventually we found the lake!  And it was very pretty! And there were people running and biking around, including women!  

When I told other French friends I went to the park, they all told me that everyone knows the park has transvestite prostitutes.  And the other one I wanted to visit (Bois de Vincennes) is known for having prostitutes.  They were quite surprised I chose to bike around at night…the timing wasn’t intentional though! And it looked nice on the map…

Aix-les-Bains

I made it to the mountains!  My roommate Johan invited me to his house in Aix-les-Bains, a small city in south-eastern France on a lake surrounded by mountains.  It was really beautiful and great to see a new area of France!

We drove to Chamonix one day to go to the top of the mountain and see Mont Blanc, the tallest mountain in Europe.  Unfortunately, we got there and the person selling the tickets said the view was not very good that day.  We had even checked the weather before leaving!  Also, the ticket cost 50 euro to go to the top.  So we ended up going halfway up (for 15 euro) and had a nice view of lots of mountains and the village of Chamonix.  It was also freezing cold, so we didn’t last that long.  We were the only people hanging out at this stop (besides some skiers who left pretty quickly). 

The next day we went to his brother’s house for his niece’s 4^th birthday.  It was a lot of fun to be surrounded by kids, and his family was so welcoming.  I felt a little awkward meeting the kids because I wasn’t sure whether I should faire la bise or not…and so I did with some of them, but they were only expecting a cheek kiss, not two…it all worked out in the end – I think I won them over with my pillow fighting skills.

We also went skiing!  I really wanted to go this winter, so it was great to be just a short drive away from the mountains.  It was sunny and decently warm the day that we went, and the views were amazing.  I made it down the mountain without falling…but going up was a different story.  They had the t-bars where you sort of rest your legs while standing on your skis and then you’re pulled up the mountain.  But there are little bumps and other people’s tracks…anyway, I lost my balance and went on a snow bank, and despite my valiant efforts at recovering and getting back on track, I fell.  I proceeded to block the path before I could scramble to the side and grab my ski.  And then several kids sailed by and said “Are you okay?” and “Did you fall?”  What does it look like??  Luckily, Johan heard my yelp and got off the tire-fesses, and we skied down half the mountain.

I also went to a raclette party, and the food was delicious!  Potatoes and cheese…who doesn’t like that combination??

Here’s the link for pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Besancon

Last week I went to Besancon to give a presentation.  I was pretty nervous to give a speech in French in front of a bunch of people on a topic in which I’m supposed to be an expert, but it went pretty well, and it was a “good experience.”  The reactions were interesting.  I was told that my talk was provocative, and there were definitely people who didn’t agree with what I was saying.  Unfortunately, I think I came across as an American saying the French need to change and work later, whereas I meant to highlight the fact that there aren’t enough opportunities for older people who want to work later, and it would be beneficial for everyone if there were.  Anyway, my talk created a good debate / discussion, and the professor who invited me seemed happy with it.

I also spent an extra day there so I could explore the city!  The professor scheduled a bunch of lunches / dinners / activities, which at first I wasn’t looking forward to (I thought it’d be constant work talk), but it turned out to be really fun.  I went to the Museum of Time (there’s a booming clock industry), and saw the Citadelle, an old military fort that now houses a zoo and several other interesting museums.  Sadly, most of the animals were inside and trying to stay warm.  I also walked along the Doubs river for a while, and it was good to be out of the city and surrounded by nature for a bit.  Besancon is a small, pedestrian town, and I felt like I got to know it pretty well after only a couple of days.  The people I spent time with were very friendly and welcoming, and I’m glad I took advantage of the opportunity to visit a new part of France.  

I added some more pictures to Flickr…and there are a bunch of random ones from the past couple of months.  My snow pictures weren’t as cool as I thought (and Nemo looked way better).  Anyway, some other exciting recent events: my mom visited for a while, Camille came back from Belgium for a weekend, I went to the French Senate and Jill Biden spoke to us at my mid-year orientation.  Fun times!

The Ugly Sweater Party That Wasn’t

Last weekend, I went to a French ugly sweater party in an ugly sweater and discovered that most people were not actually wearing ugly sweaters.  I’m not sure if I've ever even been to one in the U.S., but I know they’re pretty popular around Christmas time, and people go all out.  I wasn't in a super ugly sweater (I found an awesome one at a thrift shop, but it cost 20 euro) and ended up wearing a tacky, sequin, candy cane striped shirt that I got for 3 euro at a market.  My Norwegian friend came decked out in a horrible red reindeer sweater and was definitely in the running for the prize.  Anyway, I found it really amazing when the French explained that their sweaters were ugly because “it’s an ugly color” (it was beige), “it has a lot of pills and is a little big” (it was black and you couldn't notice them), or “it has a hole.”   My friend and I were laughing about the fact that we actually liked some of the ugly sweaters.  But that’s okay; I've always known that I’m not very fashionable.  The party was a lot of fun though, and there was more than enough vin chaud to go around!

Snow!

It snowed in Paris last night!  It was beautiful.  Actually, they were huge flakes that were very wet and didn't stick on the ground, but I was still happy.  I went out at 10pm in my pajamas and took some pictures (which I'll upload later).

The other day I went out to lunch at a creperie in my neighborhood, and there were only two other groups there - one father with his three young kids and one couple.  The food was very good!  At some point, one of the boys (probably 8ish) cried out and yelled at his brother.  And the dad said stop yelling; we're in a restaurant.  And the boy protested basically saying but he hit me!  And the father said it's not appropriate to yell in a restaurant...you need to leave right now and go outside.  So the kid took his jacket, left and stood outside for a while.  The dad didn't raise his voice at all, but he reinforced that his son's behavior would not be tolerated (even though the other kid did hit him).  I don't think that would have happened in the U.S. 

Totally unrelated, but here's a cute video of a slow loris eating a rice ball.  I unsubscribed from an annoying site, and after I was done they said I was unsubscribed and included this link as an apology.  At first I was annoyed to be distracted with a link, but I was happy I clicked on it. He looks so innocent and sweet and adorable.  I want one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18-xvIjH8T4&feature=youtu.be

Champagne

I figured the title accurately covered most of this post.   Okay, not the first part, I didn't have champagne on the Ferris wheel…but it sounds like a good idea.

La grande roue!   I went to Place de la Concorde with some friends to ride the Ferris wheel in late December.  It wasn’t a very long ride, but it was still quite exciting.   And it was pretty because we went at night when all the Christmas markets were open on the Champs Elysees. 

The markets were fun to see, although I only bought an ornament (and a crepe or two) from them.   There were also lots of rides for kids, such as giant slides, trampolines, and carousels, but I had had my fill with the Ferris wheel though.   There was also a show where Santa happened to fly over the Champs Elysees around the same time each night!  I was a bit surprised because I would have thought he would've been pretty overwhelmed with all his work in December.

I went back home for Christmas, and it was wonderful to spend a lot of time with friends and family!  The vacation went by too quickly though (as it always does).  I came back to Paris on the 28^th, and my brother was already there with his wife, Kate, and two friends (Sharif and Kate).  They had all planned a vacation in Paris earlier in the year, and I was happy I could come back to spend more time with them.

We went to Reims to see the city and go to a champagne tasting (you know I wouldn't miss that).  We went on a Sunday, so it was a bit quiet, but luckily a champagne house was open.  We ended up buying 6 bottles.  We wanted to have a good New Year’s Eve!  We found a café that was open and had lunch in the city, and Kate ordered unlimited soup for lunch.  I didn't really know places do unlimited soup, but that was cool.  Sadly, she didn't take advantage of it.   And we also saw the church in Reims, which is very impressive and beautiful.  I don’t think the pictures do a good enough job of capturing it!

For New Year’s Eve, I walked around the Champs Elysees in the early evening to see all the action…but there wasn't any.  I was a few hours too early.  There were just tons of tourists and police setting up fences for the evening because supposedly the area gets pretty crazy at night.   Then I went over to my brother’s apartment with 20 euros worth of cheese, two baguettes, a bottle of wine, and champagne.  And they supplemented with 4 more baguettes, several more bottles of wine and champagne.  It was a good night!  We also went out to get crepes around 11pm, and they were delicious, of course.   Happy New Year!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Christmas Markets in Strasbourg

In early December, I took a train to Strasbourg with two friends, Emily and Hannah.  Emily was / is very excited about Christmas, and Strasbourg is the (self-proclaimed) capital of Christmas!  And it has the tallest natural Christmas tree in Europe (over 30 meters tall)!

It was lots of fun wandering the streets of Strasbourg – the architecture was interesting, the people were friendly, the markets were exciting, and there was lots of mulled wine.  It’s such a popular town to visit in December that most of the hotels were booked, so we ended up spending two days there but just staying one night.  It’s part of the Alsace-Lorraine area, which has been traded back and forth between Germany and France, so there are a lot of influences from both cultures.  The medieval buildings lining the river flowing through the city made the city quite picturesque.

Strasbourg has a beautiful cathedral in the center of town (I got some nice night pictures of it) with a huge astronomical clock inside.  Emily, who studies astronomy in Paris, and I went to a presentation of the clock so we could see the figurines move (and learn some of the history).  The first clock was built in the 1350s, the second was completed in 1574 when the first stopped working, and then the current clock was finished in 1843.  (Facts from Wikipedia)  

The presentation was actually a little depressing...it kept emphasizing how we're all on a slow march towards death.  And the clock (and our time on Earth) is ticking away. There was also a creepy grim reaper who rang a bell at 12:30, and then an old man figurine came out of the clock and then the grim reaper tapped him with a bone, and then he disappeared into the clock. To die! (Of course, he comes out at 12:30 the next day though.) 

In the markets, I bought lots of exciting things that I didn’t need.  Like candy, nuts, chocolate mousse, ornaments, egg liquor, beignets.  Hmm that’s mostly food.  I took a lot of pictures though.  While I may have come back to Paris with more things than I left with, I lost a mitten!  I tried wandering back through the markets for it, but I pretty much knew it was a hopeless cause. 

We also went to a few concerts.  We saw an Italian bag pipe (perhaps it was a zampogna?) group playing in a church.  It was an older crowd (not sure how many people choose to spend their Friday nights at an Italian bag pipe concert), but the music was very pretty and unique.  The next day, there was a choral concert in the center of town where the group sang Christmas carols, and the crowd sang along.  I could sing to Alleluia, but otherwise I didn’t know the words to the songs.  There was a song called “Il est ne, le divin enfant,” and I sang “il est ne, le petit enfant” the whole time.  Then Hannah and Emily told me it was the “divin enfant” which made more sense.   Kids are very small when they’re born though. 

Anyway, even though Strasbourg may be very touristy in December, I had a lot of fun!  And it’s a beautiful town in general that I’d love to visit again.   

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

London

Happy belated Thanksgiving! I know; I’m so behind.  I went to London for Thanksgiving to spend it with my aunt, uncle, and cousins.  Nasir’s niece lives in London with her family, and my aunt and uncle were going to a wedding in Scotland right after Thanksgiving, so everyone decided to meet up in London.  It was really nice to be with family!  I was feeling a bit homesick too, so it was especially good to spend time with them. 

They rented an apartment in Eaton Square, which is a central area in London.  We did lots of fun tourist things like going on the London Eye, shopping / eating at Harrod’s, drinking beer, and going to museums.  I also walked around a bit on my own to see Buckingham Palace and St. James Park.  My uncle was super jealous that I got to see the guards wearing their “bear hats” because they weren’t wearing them the day before when he took photos.

I also met up with two friends who are living in London now, Guillaume and Laura.  It had been a while since I’d seen them, but it was fun to hang out again.  Laura wanted to see the Ian Hamilton Finlay exhibition at the British Tate, so we got coffee and walked around there for a while.  There was also a band playing in the museum, and it was interesting to look at the art while listening to live music.

But another museum I went to (with Betsy, Nasir and Nicola) that I liked even more than the Tate was The Somerset House.  I loved the Tim Walker photography exhibit!  I had never seen his work before, and it’s really provocative and creative.  There were also installations of the objects he used to create his photos, and it was very cool to see them side by side.  See some examples here: http://timwalkerphotography.com/recent_work.php

And as for Thanksgiving, it was lots of fun! We went to my second cousin’s house and had drinks and dinner.  They ended up cooking Indian food…not very traditional, but it was very delicious! And being with friends and family is what’s really important anyway.  And my mom promised we’d make pumpkin pie when I’m home.  I can’t believe I’ll be back so soon! I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone! 

Here's a link to photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Fontainebleau

More castles!  I went to Fontainebleau in late November with a friend from my program.  It was good to get out of Paris, and it was very pretty because there is a huge forest, and the leaves were still changing colors.  The castle was also cool to see, though if I had to choose a castle to live in, I’d go with Versailles.

It only took about 40 minutes to get there by train, so it was a great day trip.  Make sure you validate your ticket before getting on!  No one checked on the way there (so I’ve got an extra if you need one), but on the way back we were told we should have validated.  The conductor was very nice though and didn’t charge a huge fine!

We walked to the castle area from the train station so we could go through the town, and the town was really dead…it seemed a little depressing.  There also weren’t many tourists at the castle.  Maybe I was expecting it to be more packed because of my experience at Versailles.

We had some trouble finding the entrance (it was difficult…we’re not just stupid), but eventually we did.  There was a lot to see inside, so it took a while to make our way through all the rooms.  At the end, there was a girl who stopped us and asked if we speak French, and I said yes because I thought she had a question.  Then she said asked if we could fill out a survey about the castle, so I said that we don’t speak French well enough to do a survey.  And she said she had it in five different languages and asked which one we wanted.  Trapped!  

It was a very amusing survey though…pretty poorly translated.  I wish I could remember the questions…one was “Are you aware of handicapped people?”  Yes, I am aware!  (It was followed up by questions about how handicapped accessible we thought the castle was.)  And then some options for our overall experience were a bit strange…like “enlightening” or “amazing”…some people say I’m a pretty enthusiastic person, but I probably wouldn’t select those choices for the visit.  It’s interesting how difficult it is to really master the nuances of a language.  I can understand French pretty well, but I know I’m saying / writing all sorts of awkward things where it makes sense to me to translate it like that, but a native speaker wouldn’t say it.

After seeing the castle, we walked around the gardens, which were also very pretty.  I saw a massive duck who had a very loud quack…he was at least two times the size of a regular duck and quite scary.  I didn’t get a good picture though.  We eventually found our way to the forest and went for a walk / hike, which was fun.  Good to be immersed in nature (for a limited time…I don’t like bugs)!

Sadly, I've uploaded too many photos on my blog and am over my Picasa limit.  So, I'll be posting them on Flickr from now on.  Here's the link: 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/26879303@N03/

Morocco!

Anna came to visit the other week! She spent the weekend in Paris, and then we went to Morocco for 6 days.  It was so cold in Paris while she was here – I had to lend her my puffy coat! We still walked around and did touristy things and took lots of pictures though. We also had lunch with her family friend and met up with Camille a couple of times.  She was a huge fan of my cheese shop, so we ate lots of bread and cheese too.

In Morocco, we went to Marrakech and Rabat. Our flight was delayed from Paris, but eventually we got to Rabat and made it to the train station to buy tickets to Marrakech.  First class was sold out (the price difference is only a few dollars), so we said we’d take second class in order to get the next train out. Then we sat at a cafe and ordered some ice cream while we waited for the train (I got a sundae! The scoops were so much bigger than in Paris!). 

We went down to the platform and were quite nervous because our train wasn’t listed, but that’s because it was a half hour late, so they were listing the previous trains that were late.  An hour later, our train arrived, and it was packed. We climbed on, and there were no seats, but two people got up and gave us their seats, which was really nice. We were not excited about the idea of standing for four hours.  Anyway, the train was pretty gross…it was sweaty and hot, lots of weird smells from the tanneries, and no announcements of the stops, so we almost got off at a pretty deserted one. (Okay, this post will take forever if I keep describing things in so much detail.)

Eventually we made it, and we stayed in a really nice riad. A riad is basiacally a house where a rich person used to live that is converted into a small hotel.  It was very cute, and the people who worked there were so helpful!

In Marrakech, we visited the Jardin Majorelle, which was owned by Yves Saint-Laurent, the Ben Youssef Medersa Koran school, the souks (shopping!), went to a hammam and took a Moroccan cooking class.  It was very rainy, so it wasn’t ideal for all the outdoor activities, but we managed okay.

Shopping in the souks was fun but a bit stressful. When we went shopping in Rabat a few days later, we realized we were really ripped off in Marrakech. Oh well…we knew it would happen. The person working at the riad told us that we should ask for 1/5 of the price that the shopkeeper asks for! Sometimes we did (and we were told to go away because we couldn’t be serious), and sometimes we just aimed for half.  The important thing is that we’re happy with our purchases.  : )

The cooking class was also lots of fun! We made a fish tajine (aren’t you all so proud I eat fish now?).  It didn’t taste much like fish because there were so many spices and tasty vegetables in it.  We also did a spice test where we put on blindfolds (or fake ray bans painted with black paint) and guessed what the spice was by smelling it.  I wasn’t very good at it.

After several days in Marrakech, we took the train back to Rabat.  We had one day there, and we were planning to go swimming at the beach, but it was overcast and rainy. We walked around the city, bought some more things, and walked to the beach to people watch for a while. We had room service one night (so nice to eat in bed) and went out the other night. People eat so late! We tried to get dinner at 6:30, but they said the restaurant wouldn't open until 7:30, so we could only drink until then (too bad…).

Anyway, the trip was lots of fun, and it was great to see Anna! And everyone else should come visit.  : )  

Paris

Anna attempting to touch the top of the pyramid. Her spatial skills are lacking.

Being a tourist.

We both thought it was a great idea to pop out from behind a bush.

What's that!? It's Anna with the Eiffel Tower, of course.

A cute chubby kid all bundled up.

Morocco

We got lost when we first tried to go to the souks. So we took pictures and pretended we knew what we were doing.

In the gardens

Cactus!

Anna is a great photographer. Ashley in between a cactus!

Ashley with a yellow pot! (I still don't know how to rotate pictures on this blog..)

Caught fixin' her hair

Green highlight camera setting

So colorful! Such a pretty background! And a pretty person!

They hung the mannequins by their necks in the souks...

Tourist dinner overlooking the square

Spice test at our cooking class

 Fish tajine! The superior looking one on the right is obviously mine.

We even had live music while cooking...

The whole group

Lots of rain while we were there...I don't think this was supposed to be full of water...

Dinner at the riad

At the Koran school

A Spanish gameshow kicked us out early so they could film. Luckily we got to be in the background of the film while they were running through the streets of the market.

Shopping!

Translation?

Nom nom nom. Poor fish.

Pretty impressive.

Room service! I was really sad on the phone when they said they didn't have any more french fries...so the guy asked the kitchen staff to cut up a potato and fry it for us. Quite tasty!