Winter break has begun! I can't believe I'm leaving for Ireland on Saturday! I am staying over Danielle's tomorrow night being that her house is a 5 minute walk from the bus stop. We'll be rolling out of bed at 5:30ish, just when everyone at home is about to go out!
Let's see what else...I got my grades back from the first two tests I had; one in my conversation class and one in my grammar class. The grades here are a bit different than in the states. Passing is a 9, and anything from 15-20 is an A. Luckily for me, I just get credit that transfers back to Fairfield, so I'm not too concerned about my actual grade. As long as I have more than a 9 in all my classes, I will be fine! In conversation, I just passed with a 10. I literally laughed when I saw the grade. I would have cried at Fairfield if I did that poorly! But these tests barely count for anything in the course, since it is a conversation class. We shouldn't even have written tests in my opinion! I got a 20 on my grammar test :D My French is at the two extremes, I guess!
Today for architecture, we went to the Invalides. I already visited the museum, but today we just mainly looked at the structure and examined the beautiful church. It's amazing how many interesting things we learn just on a quick field study. The professor is the so sweet and super intelligent. She remembers so many dates and facts in her head. It's so impressive! I am doing a paper on the Eiffel Tower for this class coming up soon. Looking forward to learning all cool facts about my favorite landmark in the world <3
After our visit, I came home and started packing for Ireland. My bag is a few inches over the allowed limit for carry on bags, but it is not nearly stuffed, so I hopefully will be able to squish it in the box if they need me to check. I decided I will just have to wear a lot of layers if I do some shopping in Ireland...Not a big deal, I just may sweat.
Our French friends changed our little outing until tomorrow night, so that will be fun! I talked a bit with my host sister and her friend today. I was cooking dinner and they were sitting in the kitchen, eating cheese and drinking tea. I can't even take how cute the French people are! I'd love for everyone to be relaxed in America and be able to take a few hours out of the day to sit and talk with friends. That'd be lovely.
Not sure if I will have time to update my blog tomorrow before Ireland, so I hope everyone has a great week and I will have lots to post when I get back to Paris on 4 March!
Gros bisous à tous!
Friday, February 24, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Le ciel est beau
We have finally been having some nice weather here in Paris. I don't even need to wear my scarf or gloves! Hopefully it'll just keep getting warmer from here.
My parents come in exactly a month from today! I couldn't be more excited! I am finally finding great things to do and should be a good tour guide. Pretty sure my mom finalized her hotel and apartment. It's really soon!
This week has been pretty hectic. I had two tests and actually have a good amount of work that I want to get done before Ireland. Not sure if that's going to happen though, being we leave super early on Saturday!! So excited for this vacation as well!
Yesterday, I went to see an exhibit: Mathematics: A Beautiful Elsewhere at Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain. I have to give a 15 minute presentation on this exhibit for my conversation class. My inner nerd really enjoyed it. It was a bit philosophical and scientific, but the theme was basically that the mysteries of life can be better understood by using math. I am sure this exhibit is not on many people's to do lists while in Paris. Oh well, I enjoyed myself!
After that, I headed over to the Champs-Élysées to walk around. I finally found a white dress for Sensation, the big rave in Belgium on St. Patrick's Day. We also finalized our train tickets to and from Brussels. So many fun trips coming up, but that makes the time go faster...AH
Today, we climbed up Notre Dame. Definitely on my list of favorite things to do in Paris. It was a gorgeous day, so we had a beautiful view of the whole city. It really is breathtaking...
On the way back from Notre Dame, I stopped in the post office to mail a postcard. The one machine was in the middle of an order, but no one was around so I just cancelled it. I bought my stamp and when I went to get it out, there was a few extra coins in the slot. So yes, I found 1 euro today. It will go towards my macaroon fund. Donations welcome ;)
I went to mass tonight to get my ashes. I can't believe it's already Lent. 40 days until Easter already!? Friday they are displaying the Crown of Thorns at Notre Dame. How cool is that? We will definitely be attending!!
I also officially accepted the internship at Stanford this summer. I have to be there by June 25th, so the good news is I will be home for my 21st birthday! (Unless Daddy decides to take me to Vegas)
Our French friends are taking us somewhere tomorrow night. They didn't really say where, just that they discussed it amongst themselves...Guess it'll be a surprise? Hope it's another fun French party!
Time for some homework...
A bientôt mes chéris!
My parents come in exactly a month from today! I couldn't be more excited! I am finally finding great things to do and should be a good tour guide. Pretty sure my mom finalized her hotel and apartment. It's really soon!
This week has been pretty hectic. I had two tests and actually have a good amount of work that I want to get done before Ireland. Not sure if that's going to happen though, being we leave super early on Saturday!! So excited for this vacation as well!
Yesterday, I went to see an exhibit: Mathematics: A Beautiful Elsewhere at Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain. I have to give a 15 minute presentation on this exhibit for my conversation class. My inner nerd really enjoyed it. It was a bit philosophical and scientific, but the theme was basically that the mysteries of life can be better understood by using math. I am sure this exhibit is not on many people's to do lists while in Paris. Oh well, I enjoyed myself!
After that, I headed over to the Champs-Élysées to walk around. I finally found a white dress for Sensation, the big rave in Belgium on St. Patrick's Day. We also finalized our train tickets to and from Brussels. So many fun trips coming up, but that makes the time go faster...AH
Today, we climbed up Notre Dame. Definitely on my list of favorite things to do in Paris. It was a gorgeous day, so we had a beautiful view of the whole city. It really is breathtaking...
On the way back from Notre Dame, I stopped in the post office to mail a postcard. The one machine was in the middle of an order, but no one was around so I just cancelled it. I bought my stamp and when I went to get it out, there was a few extra coins in the slot. So yes, I found 1 euro today. It will go towards my macaroon fund. Donations welcome ;)
I went to mass tonight to get my ashes. I can't believe it's already Lent. 40 days until Easter already!? Friday they are displaying the Crown of Thorns at Notre Dame. How cool is that? We will definitely be attending!!
I also officially accepted the internship at Stanford this summer. I have to be there by June 25th, so the good news is I will be home for my 21st birthday! (Unless Daddy decides to take me to Vegas)
Our French friends are taking us somewhere tomorrow night. They didn't really say where, just that they discussed it amongst themselves...Guess it'll be a surprise? Hope it's another fun French party!
Time for some homework...
A bientôt mes chéris!
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Escargot!?
Hope everyone had a great weekend! Our friends from Fairfield visited this weekend. We had fun! We did the usual touristy things with our friends and showed them around. We got crepes, of course, for lunch and dessert and a baguette for dinner!
Danielle and I went to our friend Olivier's apartment on Friday night. There were a bunch of his French friends there and some kids from our program as well. It was a lot of fun! The French are so so sweet. I think we'll be hanging out with them again this week before we leave for Ireland! Can't believe this is our last week of class before winter break. Time needs to stop flying by!
Saturday morning, Danielle and I walked around by her house and looked in a few shops and got a really good/cheap pretzel from our favorite bakery, PAUL. It's funny that the only PAUL we found with the cheapest macaroons is over by school. The other PAUL's jacked up their prices for some reason! At least we're close to the good one :D We met up with Matt and Nico and headed over to the Eiffel Tower after they toured the Louvre.
Saturday night we all went to a restaurant called Chartier that Olivier recommended. It was so reasonable and really good. I tried escargot for the first time!! Definitely will be ordering it again! It was delicious! After dinner, Danielle and I walked around outside to see the Louvre at night and to watch the Eiffel Tower sparkle! The sights and sounds of Paris will never get old.
We ended up stopping in at a bar called The Hideout to meet a friend from our program and her other friends from France. It was so crowded and hot in the bar, but it was still a good time. Then I finally headed home after a long day...
Today was a calm day. Just hung around. I had to go grocery shopping since I didn't go last week and I went to mass. Basically just relaxed all day since I was tired from being out all weekend!
Also, irrelevant to France. I was accepted to intern at a laboratory in California this summer called SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SNAL) and it is affiliated with Stanford University! My mentor is a man who works in the Particle Physics and Astrophysics Directorate. Hopefully this has something to do with math. As long as it does, I will be accepting it and spending 10 weeks in California this summer. I couldn't be happier. This will look really good on my resume since it is through Stanford and the US Department of Energy. I am blessed.
La vie est belle <3
Danielle and I went to our friend Olivier's apartment on Friday night. There were a bunch of his French friends there and some kids from our program as well. It was a lot of fun! The French are so so sweet. I think we'll be hanging out with them again this week before we leave for Ireland! Can't believe this is our last week of class before winter break. Time needs to stop flying by!
Saturday morning, Danielle and I walked around by her house and looked in a few shops and got a really good/cheap pretzel from our favorite bakery, PAUL. It's funny that the only PAUL we found with the cheapest macaroons is over by school. The other PAUL's jacked up their prices for some reason! At least we're close to the good one :D We met up with Matt and Nico and headed over to the Eiffel Tower after they toured the Louvre.
Saturday night we all went to a restaurant called Chartier that Olivier recommended. It was so reasonable and really good. I tried escargot for the first time!! Definitely will be ordering it again! It was delicious! After dinner, Danielle and I walked around outside to see the Louvre at night and to watch the Eiffel Tower sparkle! The sights and sounds of Paris will never get old.
We ended up stopping in at a bar called The Hideout to meet a friend from our program and her other friends from France. It was so crowded and hot in the bar, but it was still a good time. Then I finally headed home after a long day...
Today was a calm day. Just hung around. I had to go grocery shopping since I didn't go last week and I went to mass. Basically just relaxed all day since I was tired from being out all weekend!
Also, irrelevant to France. I was accepted to intern at a laboratory in California this summer called SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SNAL) and it is affiliated with Stanford University! My mentor is a man who works in the Particle Physics and Astrophysics Directorate. Hopefully this has something to do with math. As long as it does, I will be accepting it and spending 10 weeks in California this summer. I couldn't be happier. This will look really good on my resume since it is through Stanford and the US Department of Energy. I am blessed.
La vie est belle <3
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Un jour, l'amour me trovera
Hope everyone had a Happy Valentine's Day. I had a great day in the city of love :)
After class, we went to go see The Artist. I really liked the movie. It was so different, but the idea was really neat. Of course, on the way to the movies, I stopped at my FAVORITE bakery, PAUL, to get two macaroons. Yes, I splurged since it was Valentine's Day!
We headed over to Angelina's after the movie. This is the place with the best hot chocolate in Paris. There was a little bit of a line, but it moved quickly. And once again, the hot chocolate was phenomenal. What are we going to drink when it starts to get warmer? At least my wallet will thank me!
We headed back over to school being that we had a meet and greet with French students since we are going to have language partners. It seems as if there will be 2 American students to one French student, since there were not a lot of French students. I am not exactly sure how it's going to work, but the boy Olivier that Danielle and I were talking to is so nice! We also met two other boys that didn't know English to well, so they want to improve their English. We all went out to a bar after the meeting and it was fun to just chat! I already got us invited to a party for Friday night :) Should be a good time! Especially since our other two friends from school are visiting this weekend! We'll show them what it's like to hang out with actual French students!
Today was a pretty calm day. We went over to the place that has the best baguette in Paris. It's hard for me to judge bread, but this was pretty darn good! Then we walked around a bit and window shopped at the fancy store "Printemps." I couldn't afford anything even if I was rich. Goodness!! I have a lot of things to do for school coming up, so I came back around 5ish to watch 2 movies and do some readings...I forgot I was actually in school until now!
Danielle had a good idea to film random things we do and compile it into a movie. I tried my first one, and will premiere it when I come home. This one is titled "Un matin dans ma vie" (A morning in my life).
Gros Bisous!
After class, we went to go see The Artist. I really liked the movie. It was so different, but the idea was really neat. Of course, on the way to the movies, I stopped at my FAVORITE bakery, PAUL, to get two macaroons. Yes, I splurged since it was Valentine's Day!
We headed over to Angelina's after the movie. This is the place with the best hot chocolate in Paris. There was a little bit of a line, but it moved quickly. And once again, the hot chocolate was phenomenal. What are we going to drink when it starts to get warmer? At least my wallet will thank me!
We headed back over to school being that we had a meet and greet with French students since we are going to have language partners. It seems as if there will be 2 American students to one French student, since there were not a lot of French students. I am not exactly sure how it's going to work, but the boy Olivier that Danielle and I were talking to is so nice! We also met two other boys that didn't know English to well, so they want to improve their English. We all went out to a bar after the meeting and it was fun to just chat! I already got us invited to a party for Friday night :) Should be a good time! Especially since our other two friends from school are visiting this weekend! We'll show them what it's like to hang out with actual French students!
Today was a pretty calm day. We went over to the place that has the best baguette in Paris. It's hard for me to judge bread, but this was pretty darn good! Then we walked around a bit and window shopped at the fancy store "Printemps." I couldn't afford anything even if I was rich. Goodness!! I have a lot of things to do for school coming up, so I came back around 5ish to watch 2 movies and do some readings...I forgot I was actually in school until now!
Danielle had a good idea to film random things we do and compile it into a movie. I tried my first one, and will premiere it when I come home. This one is titled "Un matin dans ma vie" (A morning in my life).
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Shelby vient à Paris!
What a busy weekend! My friend, Shelby, visited Paris with two of her friends from her program in Madrid, Spain. I was so glad I got to show them around! We will start with Friday. Danielle and I stopped to get some bagels at this jewish bakery place. They were basically croissants with poppy seeds on them. Yum. Then we went over to Champs-Elysee and had hot chocolate at McDonald's and I tried one of their frozen macaroons, aka there is ice cream in the middle. They ran out of the good kinds, so I had the coffee flavored one but it wasn't bad at all! We met up with Shelby and her two friends and walked towards the arc de Triomphe. We went inside it this time and actually climbed it. The view was breathtaking. It was such a clear day and you could see the entire city. I was so glad we got to do that, even though we had to climb a lot of stairs!
After that, they wanted to go to the Long Champ store, so we walked there. It was all the way on the other side of Champs Elysée, but it was a nice walk. Luckily, we got to the store just a bit before closing, so they were able to buy their bags! For dinner, we took them to the Fondue restaurant. I couldn't believe that it was so empty when we showed up. We didn't have to wait at all! And the cheese was definitely better this time! Well, actually it was probably the same but we were just dipping our bread in wine, instead of scooping the cheese at the bottom of the pot onto our bread...that explains why I didn't particularly like the cheese the first time. We had a delicious meal, and then decided to call it a night.
I met the girls at the Louvre early on Saturday morning. They were basically done when I got there, so we just took a bunch of touristy pictures outside and walked through the Tuileries. It's going to be beautiful when the weather gets nicer! Somehow, we walked all the way from the Louvre to the Eiffel Tower. What a long walk! But it was definitely worth it. They especially enjoyed it. We grabbed paninis outside the tower and I had to get a hot chocolate because it was so COLD. Danielle met us and we headed over to Notre Dame. After visiting the church, we walked over to this little island called ile de Saint Louis. On the way there, we pointed out the lock bridge and took a few pictures. I love that bridge. And I almost died when a couple that had just gotten married pulled up and were putting a lock on the bridge. The lady was still in her wedding dress! So precious.
The island was such a cute little place. It was filled of cute shops and cafes, but the only reason we went was to get Berthillon ice cream. The best ice cream in Paris. We sat in the tea room and all ordered our ice cream. They aren't kidding. It was delicious! After enjoying the warm for a bit, we headed back out to visit Saint Sulpice and The Luxembourg Gardens. Saint Sulpice was very pretty. It is the church that is in the Da Vinici Code. We walked through the church and took some pictures and then headed over to the gardens. There were tons of people walking and running through the gardens, but the poor pond was frozen. It looked so sad. We will definitely be back in the spring when we can have a picnic on the lawn.
Next, we took the metro over to the Latin Quarter. The girls wanted to try a baguette, a croissant and a macaroon, so we found a bakery and sat there for a while. They really liked their macaroons :) Who doesn't!? Then we went to dinner at Au P'tit Grec. This time, I actually tried a sandwich crepe. I had one with feta, salad and tomatoes. It was so good and so inexpensive. I can't wait to go back! We stopped in a bar for happy hour after dinner, and chatted there for a while. Then we walked around a bit more, even though it was cold and went back to the "cave" bar that Danielle and I went to a few weekends ago. It started getting busy around 10:30, so we danced for a while. The girls were tired around 11:30/12, so we walked them back to the metro and said our sad goodbyes. The good news is that we will see them in Barcelona!
Danielle and I just walked around a bit more and got spinach pie at a greek place and then headed home for the night. You encounter very strange characters on the metro late at night....let me tell you!
This morning, I woke up pretty late...woops, guess I turned my alarm off by mistake. But I still made it to church. After church, I met Danielle by Sacré Coeur and we went to the highest point in Paris. What a view! It was even foggy today, but we still had a magnificent view of the city! Even found the Eiffel Tower hiding between the trees! The church Basilica itself was beautiful inside, but we unfortunately couldn't take any pictures. Definitely would recommend walking up the 2394823 steps to get there just for the view. We tried to find this hamburger place over in that area, but it was closed today. We stopped in this other place and had really good pizza. Then we did a little souvenir shopping and I chatted with the friendly clerk. He was amazed that I've only been here for 4 weeks and could speak French so well. I liked that compliment!! We found some crêpes and walked around by Moulin Rouge. It was a nice and relaxing afternoon, but time flies by!
After that, they wanted to go to the Long Champ store, so we walked there. It was all the way on the other side of Champs Elysée, but it was a nice walk. Luckily, we got to the store just a bit before closing, so they were able to buy their bags! For dinner, we took them to the Fondue restaurant. I couldn't believe that it was so empty when we showed up. We didn't have to wait at all! And the cheese was definitely better this time! Well, actually it was probably the same but we were just dipping our bread in wine, instead of scooping the cheese at the bottom of the pot onto our bread...that explains why I didn't particularly like the cheese the first time. We had a delicious meal, and then decided to call it a night.
I met the girls at the Louvre early on Saturday morning. They were basically done when I got there, so we just took a bunch of touristy pictures outside and walked through the Tuileries. It's going to be beautiful when the weather gets nicer! Somehow, we walked all the way from the Louvre to the Eiffel Tower. What a long walk! But it was definitely worth it. They especially enjoyed it. We grabbed paninis outside the tower and I had to get a hot chocolate because it was so COLD. Danielle met us and we headed over to Notre Dame. After visiting the church, we walked over to this little island called ile de Saint Louis. On the way there, we pointed out the lock bridge and took a few pictures. I love that bridge. And I almost died when a couple that had just gotten married pulled up and were putting a lock on the bridge. The lady was still in her wedding dress! So precious.
The island was such a cute little place. It was filled of cute shops and cafes, but the only reason we went was to get Berthillon ice cream. The best ice cream in Paris. We sat in the tea room and all ordered our ice cream. They aren't kidding. It was delicious! After enjoying the warm for a bit, we headed back out to visit Saint Sulpice and The Luxembourg Gardens. Saint Sulpice was very pretty. It is the church that is in the Da Vinici Code. We walked through the church and took some pictures and then headed over to the gardens. There were tons of people walking and running through the gardens, but the poor pond was frozen. It looked so sad. We will definitely be back in the spring when we can have a picnic on the lawn.
Next, we took the metro over to the Latin Quarter. The girls wanted to try a baguette, a croissant and a macaroon, so we found a bakery and sat there for a while. They really liked their macaroons :) Who doesn't!? Then we went to dinner at Au P'tit Grec. This time, I actually tried a sandwich crepe. I had one with feta, salad and tomatoes. It was so good and so inexpensive. I can't wait to go back! We stopped in a bar for happy hour after dinner, and chatted there for a while. Then we walked around a bit more, even though it was cold and went back to the "cave" bar that Danielle and I went to a few weekends ago. It started getting busy around 10:30, so we danced for a while. The girls were tired around 11:30/12, so we walked them back to the metro and said our sad goodbyes. The good news is that we will see them in Barcelona!
Danielle and I just walked around a bit more and got spinach pie at a greek place and then headed home for the night. You encounter very strange characters on the metro late at night....let me tell you!
This morning, I woke up pretty late...woops, guess I turned my alarm off by mistake. But I still made it to church. After church, I met Danielle by Sacré Coeur and we went to the highest point in Paris. What a view! It was even foggy today, but we still had a magnificent view of the city! Even found the Eiffel Tower hiding between the trees! The church Basilica itself was beautiful inside, but we unfortunately couldn't take any pictures. Definitely would recommend walking up the 2394823 steps to get there just for the view. We tried to find this hamburger place over in that area, but it was closed today. We stopped in this other place and had really good pizza. Then we did a little souvenir shopping and I chatted with the friendly clerk. He was amazed that I've only been here for 4 weeks and could speak French so well. I liked that compliment!! We found some crêpes and walked around by Moulin Rouge. It was a nice and relaxing afternoon, but time flies by!
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