Long Time No Blog

So I've taken quite the little hiatus from blogging...things have been slowing down here as my trip winds down and I've felt less of a need to share a bunch of things. This weekend was pretty quiet--Saturday I met up with David and then Saturday night I went with Jeanne and some friends to a cafe in Mouffetard just to chill for a while. Then Sunday afternoon the family went out to the suburbs to Jeanne's aunt house, where the weekly family gathering was moved to. They have a really cute house and a GORGEOUS garden/backyard area. We sat around and ate chocolate and pastries and candies for a few hours. Her grandma is really sweet--every so often she would check in with me to see if I was following the conversation and if I understood what was being said and all that.

(In the photo, from left to right--Jeanne's mom, Jeanne's dad, Jeanne's grandma, Jeanne's aunt France (mother of Jeanne's cousin Juliette, who wasn't there), Cedric (the husband of Jeanne's cousin Celine), Celine (Jeanne's cousin) , Jeanne's brother, Jeanne, Me, Jeanne's Aunt Michelle (whose house it was, and the mother of Celine) Not pictured: Jeanne's uncle, who was taking the photo)

After coming back to Jeanne's apartment, I took it easy--read a little, took a nap, etc. because the plan was to go to a night club with Jeanne's cousin Juliette. However, the plan got changed from leaving the apartment at 9 to leaving the apartment at 1130...but 1030 it was clear that I was not up to a grand night out, so I changed into my pajamas as Jeanne and Juliette changed into their clubbing clothes.

Then today we had no plans...eventually Jeanne and I worked out the idea to go to a garden, near Bercy, where there are all these cute stores built into what used to be caves for storing wine. However, due to part of the Metro being closed for renovation and extreme traffic caused by a protest by truck drivers, it took us way longer to get down there than we thought, and we had plans to meet up with Jeanne's friend at 3. So instead we detoured to Decathalon, which is a sporting store that has REALLY good prices. I managed to find a few things in the short time we were there, and then we hopped on a bus to go back to Place d'Italie. There we went to a cafe with Claire, Jeanne's friend, and Joe, her American friend who was staying with Claire. We took the time to switch from French to English, which was nice for me but stressful for Jeanne ( I did feel better about my French after...I couldn't remember how well Jeanne spoke English since I've got here, but now I remember that we're about comparable in our speaking abilities, so I don't feel so bad about my mangled French somethings). At 4, Jeanne ran off to go babysitting and went to the apartment and grabbed a bite to eat before grabbing my book and heading off to Parc Montsouris. I spent about two hours there, reading and listening to my iPod, before heading home. Now here I am, waiting for Jeanne to get back from babysitting and then dinner. We have no plans for tonight, and I don't think any plans for tomorrow, so we'll see what's to come...I'll post more later. Bisous :)

Photos from Disneyland!

La ou tes reves deviennent la realite...

Disneyland!! The eternal kid in me was so pleased. Walking into the Magic Kingdom and seeing Main Street, with it's cute little boutiques and the quaint trolly running by sent me giggling and ecstatic, like way back when I was a wee little kid. Jeanne and I ended up going only with Yanice, since her cousin canceled on us early this morning and there wasn't time to find a replacement. But it worked out alright--it was fun. The day started out a little rough though, as we first got on the wrong RER train and had to go back and catch the other one--took about an hour extra to get there. It wasn't a great day either, kind of chilly and super cloudy, but oh well. And it turns out that Disneyland Paris is kind of small--we only ended up going on 5 or 6 rides. But hey, it was the experience that counts. I actually think my favorite ride was It's a Small World--so cute and relaxing. The "rollar coasters" we went on were pretty rough and shook me around more than I liked. But all in all, it was a fun day.
I don't have too much more to say--I did take some photos though so I'll upload those in a little bit. (we may have played dress up a little....:D). But for now, I'm flying off to Neverland--ciao :)

French Grandmothers are....short

And talkative. The two of Jeanne's grandma's could have gone at it for hours without a break, I'm sure. I tried to talk a little, but found it hard to share in their grandmotherly jokes...in French. But Jeanne's mom made a beautiful dinner, with hor d'oerves and then an appetizer, then the main dish, then cheese and finally a raspberry tart to finish it off. And Jeanne's grandma's and great aunt were all very nice...we got a whole bunch of candy from them as well as some other trinkets.

This morning Jeanne and I accompanied her mom's class to the Bibliotheque National Francais..the national library. It's an impressive building, four towers that form the corners of a rectangle, with a mini forest in the middle. It was kind of difficult, though, helping with the kids, because apparently they don't like to listen to people who have funny English accents. But it wasn't too long of an outing, so I managed. After we helped bring the kids back to the school, Jeanne went off to a dentist appointment and then her babysitting, and I rode the Metro to meet up with David. We caught up for an hour in a cafe, then I came back to apartment for a few minutes to check email and change into running gear. Then off the the park I went for a nice run (though it was hotter than I originally thought). Now I'm at the apartment, I'm planning on finishing my book and starting another. Tonight's plans include going to a restaurant in the suburbs of Paris (the one we tried to go to before, but it was closed). I'm not entirely sure what's so special about this restaurant...I think they serve some kind of fish thing but there was definitely a lot that got lost in translation. I'll let you all know later--betcha can't wait ;)
Tomorrow is Disneyland Paris--Disney and Paris, what could be better? I'm probably going to break down and spend exorbitant sums on overpriced Disney paraphernalia, simply because it's French, but oh well :D Ciao!

A few of my favorite things

Crepes, ancient ruins, a restaurant based around fruits, shopping...not a bad 36 hours :)

Yesterday afternoon Jeanne and I went with her cousin Juliette to eat crepes at their favorite creperie in Mouffetard. It was a cute place, very small, with a charming upstairs eating room...and my nutella crepe was superb :D Afterwords, Jeanne had to go babysit, so I chilled at the house for a little bit until her brother came home. Antoine is honestly one of the friendliest people I've ever met--he offered to take me on a little tour of the Latin Quarter and show me some neat things in a different part of Paris. I of course accepted so we hit the Metro and went into the heart of Paris.

One of the first things he showed me was the ruins of a Roman arena...right in downtown Paris. It was awesome--you enter this park, walking along, and all of a sudden your hit with thousand year old ruins. Unbelievable. Then we walked all through the Latin Quarter (named such because it is home to many of the universities in Paris...and way back when, when courses were taught in Latin, the students would hang out there speaking Latin). We walked past La Sorbonne, and the ruins nof ancient Roman spas (also very cool), past the oldest clock in France and past the beautiful fountain on the boulevard Saint Michel. Then we took a walk down some winding streets and made it back to the Metro for our return.

Then last night I finally made it to the meeting of the Club International des Jeunes a Paris--a group meant to help foreigners feel more at home in Paris. It was pretty cool--there were 10 or 11 of us around a table and we spoke for an hour in French and then an hour in English--I was the only American but there were several Brits. It was neat to hear everyone's stories and about their travels--I thought I was quite the traveler but I had nothing on these people. I'm not sure if I'll go back to the club next week or not, but I'm glad I went--it for sure inspired me to travel even more (like I needed help in that area...)

Then this morning Jeanne's mom took me and Jeanne out. First we hit up the Monoprix, because today was the start of the two week sale period in Paris (its a law that there are only two times a year that the stores can advertise Sales...the other times they can have discounted prices, but theyre not "sales"). I indulged and bought two pairs of shoes (cheap ones) and a clutch (not like I need more of those...). Then we went down and walked along a pretty garden along the Seine. We came up near the Opera de la Bastille and went to a restaurant called Paradis du Fruit--pretty much my dream restaurant. It was impossible to choose a meal, because everything was pretty much fruits and vegetables--my two faves. I ended up taking a huge salad with lots of fruit and veggies and a peach, strawberry and raspberry smoothie. Delicious.

After, we took a little tour, walking through Paris and window shopping at all the tiny boutiques. Then we made a spontaneous visit to La Maison Europeene de la Photographie, which had an awesome exhibit on Annie Leibowitz. It was really really enjoyable--I might go back later.

Now I'm just at the apartment hanging out--tonight Jeanne's grandma (the other one, not the one I've already met) and great aunt are coming over for dinner--should be quite the party ;);) A toute a l'heure, tout le monde!

Pictures from Last Night

I didn't have my photos on my computer when I posted this morning, so I figured I would put some in a separate post now.

Le Sacre Coeur

View of Paris

Square in Montmartre

Montmartre: Tourist Central

You know you've reached the tourist hangout of a city when you hear more foreign languages than native ones. We definitely hit that last night when Jeanne's mom, dad, brother and I went out to Montmartre after dinner. Montmartre is the quartier where Le Sacre Coeur is located. We started there, climbing a bazillion steps to get to the top where we had a panoramic view of the city--It was really pretty. Then we walked around for a bit--the streets of Montmartre are small and windy and lined with cute restaurants and tourist shops. I don't know how the residents of Paris can resist going out to eat every night--all the menus at the restaurant just look so tempting. It made my mouth water.

After walking around for a bit, we stopped at a cafe that was clearly a tourist trap. We ordered a coffee, a tea, a diet coke and a beer and it ended up costing almost 30 euros!! That was ridiculous--but that's what you get for stopping at a cafe in the heart of Montmartre.

Anyway, today we're going out for crepes (finally--I've been dying to eat a crepe with Nutella) in the early afternoon, and I have no idea what's on slate for later. Tonight I'm hopefully going to go to that International Club, so that'll be a new experience. I'll fill you later--ciao for now!

We celebrate Easter when we want, OK?

Mmmm I love lazy mornings :) Somehow this morning I managed to sleep through all the noisy kids at recess and woke up around 1045 or so. Jeanne wanted to take a bath, so I took my time getting read, checked my email, read a little, ate some breakfast. By the time I was showered and dressed, it was after 12. Jeanne and I were planning to go to Luxembourg today, to enjoy the park and grab a coffee, but our plans got tweaked. Justine was supposed to swing by around 12 to grab her dress for her party tonight, but by 1230 we hadn't heard from her so we went out to run errands. I had to stop at the pharmacy to by allergy medicine (figures) and then we walked up to a homestore called Maisons du Monde. I basically fell in love with the store. There were so many cool things I would have liked to buy for my house/dorm room....and that I probably would have bought, if I didn't have to worry about fitting them into my suitcase. As it was, I picked up a few small trinkets for me and some friends.

Finally Justine called, and met up with us to walk back to the apartment. We ate lunch together and she got her dress...but by the time we were ready to go out, it was 3 and Jeanne had to leave by 4 for babysitting. So instead of going to a park, we went to the circus themed cafe we had visited earlier...the one with the glasses of marshmallows :D While enjoying our coffee, Jeanne got a craving for a certain sugar biscuit so she ran over to the neighboring grocery store to buy a box...and came back with a set of Kinder easter candy that was on sale for 2 Euros. So in addition to our coffee and marshmallows we each ate a couple pieces of Kinder chocolate. It was quite the cafe experience :) It was actually really nice, though, because lately we've been hanging out with her friends and haven't been able to hang out just us 2, so grabbing a coffee was a good change.

At 4 Jeanne went off to babysit, and I went to the park Montsouris to sit and read. I found a tree that worked perfectly as a back rest and enjoyed my book for a good hour. As I was leaving, I saw two guys juggling together, so I not-so-discretely grabbed my camera and snapped a pic to share. You never know what you're going to see while out and about in Paris.

Tonight is Justine's big party, but after a lot of thinking I decided that I really don't want to go. So instead Jeanne's mom and dad and brother and I are going to go to Montmartre after dinner to walk around and see the sights...and maybe grab an ice cream or something;) I'm looking forward to it--I've been wanting to see Montmartre again. Anyways, I'll post on that later. Au revoir!

Jugglers in the park...don't you just love free entertainment?

Dancing in the Streets (well, sort of)

It has been a busy 48 hours. To say the least. Two days, three festivities, very little sleep. To begin, Saturday morning Jeanne and I woke up and took the metro to her dad's school to help with La Kermesse. It's a carnival that almost every French elementary school holds at the end of the year to raise money for the school--people design games and donate food, and then tickets are sold to be able to play the games or buy the food. Jeanne and I worked at the drink stations, where we poured glasses of Coke and Orangina and apple juice for 3 hours. It was kind of neat, to see this whole big thing--people were really enthusiastic about it. Jeanne's dad introduced me to the mayor of the 13th arrondisement--though he seemed less than thrilled to be meeting an American. Wonder why...

Anyway, it certainly wasn't super fun or anything but it wasn't awful. Then we came home round 1 or so and basically vegged out for the rest of the afternoon, cause we knew we'd be out late during the Festival of Music. I watched some TV and took a two hour nap and read and SKyped--basically whatever I do when I'm at the apartment. At 7 Jeanne's friends came over to drop off their sleepover stuff, and we headed out at 730. We walked up to the McDonald's at the Place D'Italie (Mickey D's--my fave....) and ate dinner sitting on a bench, in the sun...less than enjoyable, to say the least. Then we moved on, walking toward the direction of Mouffetard. Now, let me explain the Fete de la Musique really quick--basically, musicians set up all over Paris to show their stuff, and the rest of the Parisians use it as an excuse to get drunk and spend all nights in the streets of Paris. It was honestly crazy--imagine a huge frat party, multiply it by a whole bunch and set it loose in the streets of Paris. There were people everywhere, drunk, glass bottles on the grown, trashcans overflowing. To say the least, it was not a great time. And instead of staying in one quartier, we ended up walking around all night--5 hours of nearly continuous walking. It was rough--I didn't really have anyone to talk with and didn't enjoy the atmosphere that much. Plus my feet and legs were screaming at me. We finally made it back to Jeanne's around 130 and were in bed by 2--not horrible...

...Except we had to wake up at 10 to get ready to go to Justine's dad's house for her birthday lunch. He lives in the suburbs so we had to take the RER to get there, which means it was somewhat of a long voyage. He has a really nice house, but his family wasn't super warm or welcoming. Also, they had food catered--except I had no idea what it was. There were tortilla type things and all these different colored pastes to spread on them, egg rolls that were filled with cheese instead of cabbage, dumpling looking things--it was interesting. I'm pretty sure none of the French people knew what they were eating either. So, it was a pretty long afternoon--no one really paid attention to us girls and we were there for 6 hours. I did have a slice of a really good strawberry tart, though, so it wasn't all a waste. But yeah, it was a rough night/day--not the most fun I've had since I've been in Paris, that's for sure. But it's over with, and I have the rest of the night to chill out, massage my sore legs, etc. etc. Not entirely sure what's on the plate for tomorrow, but hopefully it's nothing that requires getting up early :) A toute!

Just a quick update

Today has been pretty chill since my failed outing in the morning. I hung around the apartment after that, watched some TV with Jeanne and Antoine, read, etc. Then Jeanne and I went to the park to read for a little bit, and I ran 3 miles or so. Then we came home and (yep) chilled some more. At 830 we went out with her mom and brother to meet her dad at a Chinese restaurant. It was more or less fast food actually. it was really just okay--Antoine said they really like it there and go often, but I wasn't all that much of a fan. My food was kinda cold and not super flavorful. Her dad joked that I've tasted the best of "french" cuisine--first couscous, now Chinese. Not exactly escargot and ratatouille, but what can you do?

I'm thinking I'm gonna go to bed soon--I"m pretty sure Jeanne and I have to get up early tomorrow morning to help with the party at her dad's school. Jeanne seems less than thrilled--but hey, that's life. Tomorrow night is also the festival of music--apparently we're going out around 930 or 10, and staying out most of the night. Should be...an experience haha. I'm sure I'll have plenty of stories to share with you all. Anyway, for now I'll say bonne nuit :)

Failed attempts

So yesterday after chilling around the house I finally decided to go for a coffee by myself. There are several cafes right near Jeanne, but I felt like walking a bit so I chose one I had seen while coming back from her mom's school. I walked to the Cafe Canon, ordered une noisette (coffee with just a little bit of cream) and sat for an hour, listening to my ipod and people watching. It was cool--very Parisian.

Then last night Jeanne's friend Justine came over for dinner, and we sat around for a while planning what to do (it was going to be an outing night because it was the end of the bac, and also today is Justine's birthday). Salsa somehow fell off the radar and it was decided to just go to a nearby bar with some friends. Well, I'm clearly not one to drink, and although Jeanne and her friends certainly weren't going to get drunk, I felt out of place with my fruit cocktail (which cost 5 euro. what a rip off). Plus, it was super loud so I couldn't hear the conversation, I definitely couldn't understand it, and it was all about school and funny things that had happened--inside joke sort of things. Sooo I did what I learned to do when you want to get out of something--feign a headache :) Jeanne walked me back to her apartment, where I spent the night Skyping and IMing.

This morning I could have gone out to breakfast with Jeanne and Justine, but I decided I would rather sleep. Then I found online the names of some English bookstores in Paris and, feeling slightly homesick, decided to visit Tea and Tattered Pages to maybe try to run into some other Americans. I found a map, plotted my Metro course and set off. It wasn't difficult at hard and I easily found the shop--only to have it be closed. It was just after 12, and the hours on the sign said 11-7 mon through sat, and i can't imagine they would open at 11 only to take a lunch break at 12. But regardless, I couldn't get in :( So I navigated my way to the Rue de Vaugirard, which I then followed quite a ways to the Jardin du Luxembourg. Luckily I had brought along my own book, so I sat and read for an hour or so before heading home.

Jeanne's still not home yet, but I think she's coming home soon. I dont' know what we'll do this afternoon/tonight--I'm hoping to go for a run but the large rainclouds are scaring me off, at least for the moment. We'll see. For now I'm going to read and enjoy a cup of tea. A toute a l'heure :)

HOW COULD I FORGET

to tell you about the amazing ice cream i had last night?!?!? just quickly--after going for a run, I hung out with Jeanne and Yanice for a bit, then came home to eat dinner. Then Jeanne her dad her mom and I went up to the Ile Saint Louis for an ice cream outing. We went to one of the several stores of la Maison Berthillon--which is reputed to be the best ice cream in Paris--and I would not argue with that reputation for one second. I got chocolate and coffee and they were both to die for. Definitely recommended.

Just had to share that quick tidbit to make you all jealous :D

Leave it to me...

...to break a door in France. Yeah. I was coming home and was struggling to open the apartment door with the key, as per the usual, and somehow managed to get it stuck. Luckily we got the door open, but my key is still stuck in there and Antoine (Jeanne's brother)has been fumbling with it for the past 15 minutes. Teehee. He's being super nice about it though, which is good, and seeing as its just the door to our apartment, and not to the building, it's not a huge deal--we can leave it until Jeanne's dad gets home.

Anyway, the reason I was coming home was because I spent the morning out with Jeanne's mom's class. They had an outing through Paris today and Jeanne and I tagged along--even though it's a pretty ugly day. But we met the class at Jeanne's mom's school and took them down to the Metro. Just FYI, taking twentysomething kids on the Metro might be one of the scariest things you could do. I thought for sure we were going to lose one. Luckily, we had no casualties--save for the shoe of one of the girls, which fell into the track (poor thing had to walk around with a bag tied around her foot until we were able to buy her a new pair of shoes). We walked along the Seine and across the Pont Neuf where we got on a bateau mouche for a tour along the Seine. Then we had a picnic in a little park, then walked through the famous Marche des Fleurs (flower market) on the Ile de la Cite. After that, we visited Notre Dame, then got back on the Metro and went back to the school. Jeanne stayed at the school, because she has to babysit at 4 and didnt feel like going home then going right back out, and I hopped on the bus to go back to her house, where I then had to get into her apartment by myself and...well, you know the end of that story.

Kids are kids, no matter what country you are in. They of course adored Jeanne, because who could be cooler than the 18 year old daughter of the teacher? And several took an instant liking to me too, although we struggled to comprehend each other at times. By the end of the trip I had a girl on each hand and a little boy walking at my heels talking his mouth off to me. One spunky kid said to me "Tu es vraiment americaine" (you're definitely american), a comment on my accent I guess (which is definitely not French). But for the most part the kids were good and it was good to get out of the house.

I'm not entirely decided on what to do for the next 3 hours while Jeanne babysits--I'm thinking I"m going to rest, and then either go for a coffee or go for a run, depending on what sort of mood i'm in in a bit. Then tonight Jeanne, her BFF Justine and I are going to a salsa club to celebrate Justine finishing her bac (the end of year testing for the high school). I'm not sure how much I'll enjoy it, and don't know how awake I'll be seeing as we got up super early this morning, but we'll see. Anyway, I'll share my salsa adventures later. Bisous :)

Photos, photos, photos

Here are some photos of places I've been. I didn't bother editing or filtering them at all, so there may be several repeats. But enjoy!

L'Opera Garnier

Okay, so on to today. Jeanne's mom had received an invite to the opening of a new exposition at the Opera Garnier and offered to let me and Jeanne go. We accepted, of course, so today we hit the metro and came up in front of the Opera. It just might be my favorite building in Paris (probably because I was and still am in love with the film Phantom of the Opera). It's gorgeous and majestic and honestly breathtaking. The exposition itself was actually really cool too. It was a new wing of the images de la danse gallery. There were all sorts of photos and paintings and sculptures ( a couple Degas, too)--also two tutus that had been worn during performances at the Opera. It was all beautiful and really cool to see.

Then we grabbed lunch, again at a sandwich cafe, and strolled down to La place de Venome, which is basically a bunch of really ritzy stores. We gazed at the jewels in the windows of Chanel, Dior, etc. etc for half an hour, then went to catch the bus. We took the 27 through the streets of Paris and back to the Place D'Italie. Now we're just chilling at her apartment--once I finish with this, I think I'm going to go run so I'm not completely out of shape when I get back to the States. I don't think we have any grand plans for tonight--but who knows really. This is Paris, after all.
Ciao! :)

Lots to catch up on

Yeah, so I'm not entirely sure what I've written about and what I haven't...but here goes anyway. Yesterday around noon Jeanne and I went up to the Hotel de Ville, which is the mayor's office essentially. Out front there was a temporary garden that was put up the 13 june and will be up until the 14 july. It was just small, some trees and flowers, a small pond, an area with some neat benches, but it was cool nonetheless. Then we walked around a bit and did some shopping, then grabbed a quick bite for lunch at a sandwich cafe. We were going to chill in the garden for a bit, but the sun had gone away and it actually had gotten quite cold. So we decided to just go back to her apartment.

Then at 4 Jeanne had to go babysit, so I walked with her to the Place D'Italie where I caught a bus to take me to the Jardin du Luxembourg. Oh my gosh. I love it there. It's this huge garden/park area with beautiful walking paths and chairs and benches EVERYWHERE to sit and enjoy a book or a conversation or whatever. There was a concert going on there when I first arrived and for an hour I just enjoyed the music and walked through the park, taking pictures and people watching. There's a huge fountain, several courts for petanque, tennis courts, a bunch of ponds, and a cafe inside. After making it through most of the park, I found a chair and just sat and read for another hour. It was so nice. I was glad to have ventured into Paris by myself--probably I'll go back to the garden when I have free time. It's the perfect place to just be in Paris.

Then I came back and met Jeanne at the Place D'Italie. We hopped on a metro and went in search of the Club International de Jeunes a Paris, an international club that hosts weekly get togethers for all the foreign students in Paris. We wanted to get me registered so I could go to the franco-anglais studio that night (a conversation get-together where you speak one hour of english and one of french)--I was able to register but couldn't go to the studio because there were too many people signed up already. It was a bummer, but we thought it would work out alright because Jeanne's mom (before knowing about the studio) had planned to take everyone the a suburb of Paris for bowling and one of their favorite restaurants. So we hopped in the car and drove half an hour through traffic to Joinville, a little town just outside of Paris, where we parked and walked at least a kilometer to the bowling area and restaurant--where we were disappointed to find out that they were closed Mondays and Tuesdays. It was just not our night. So we hiked back to the car and drove back into Paris, to a restaurant that specialized in couscous (okay so at this point its 9, 930 and I'm STARVING. And tired. So I said like 2 words the entire night). I ordered Tagine de canard aux fruits sec, which was basically duck in this really really good honey sauce with dried fruits. It was unbelievable--I was in heaven. It was honestly one of the best things I've ever eaten. By the time we finished it was 1030, and after making it back to the apartment I crashed immediately and slept like a rock. I like to eat dinner late, but 1030 was a little ridiculous. But, c'est la vie, non?
I think I'll end this post here and start another one for today, because this is outrageously long. Bisous!!

Quiet Day

Yesterday was a very quiet day. Slept in, woke up, ate breakfast. We went out to meet up with some of Jeanne's friends for lunch. Her one friend, Melissa, is taking her examen bacclaureate, which is the huge end of year exam for the high school. You pretty much have to pass if you want to do anything with your life. Melissa is actually Jeanne's age but she failed the bac last year, which is why she had to retake the last year of high school this year. I'm so glad we don't have anything like that in the US--I thought the SAT was bad enough.

After lunch Jeanne's friend (well, sort of boyfriend I guess) came over. We were going to watch Into the Wild, but the DVD store wasn't open so we ended up watching The Notebook (In French--called N"oublie Jamais) which Jeanne had never seen but of course loved, because she is female. It was good for me, because we listened in French and I got to practice comprehending fast conversations. After that Jeanne went to babysit and I retreated to my room, reading and emailing and all that. Later I went grocery shopping with Jeanne and her mom and we stopped at a cafe on our way back. it was actually a really cool cafe--it was themed like a circus. Plus they gave you a glass full of marshmallows with your coffee. I don't know why. But they were good:)

We ate dinner late (of course) then Jeanne's brother took her and me down to the Seine, to a popular hang out place for the local Parisians. There were lots of colorful people, including a fire juggler, a group of older people dancing, and some drunk guy rapping who tried to hit on me and Jeanne but was turned away by her brother (he's a rugby player--need I say more?) Anyway, it was cool to get out of the house and see Paris nightlife up close--although it was only Monday so it wasn't all that lively.

Anyway, Jeanne's cleaning lady is here and I need to get out of my room so she can clean it, so I'll write more later. A bientot :)

So that's why they call it the City of Lights...

French grandmothers are absolutely adorable. We went to visit Jeanne's yesterday, as every Sunday they do a small family get together for a couple of hours. It was really cute--Jeanne's grandma is this adorable old French lady, short and with cute chubby cheeks and huge eyes, and was as kind as they come. She put out all kinds of terrible sweets, from lollipops to chocolate bars to gummies to tarts to a whole variety of cookies. I ate more sugar in those two hours than in the whole time I've been here combined. Her family is all extremely sweet--I especially like her cousin Juliette. She's the same age as Jeanne and really friendly. Anyway, after several hours of conversation and binge sugar eating and being shown her Grandma's prized garden and stuffed animals that make noise when you squeeze them, we left to go back chez Jeanne. Since we were all sick from the goodies, we didn't really have a dinner. I hung out, blogged a little and read some until it got dark enough for Jeanne's dad to take us on a tour of Paris at night. Jeanne, me, her dad and her bro piled in their mini car (as all cars in Europe are tiny) and went to pick up Juliette.

Jeanne's dad was a fantastic tour guide. He knew all of the history and interesting facts about the landmarks in Paris. Jeanne and her bro and cousin would pipe up every now and then with a fact as well. It was absolutely beautiful driving down the streets of Paris at night--it really is the city of lights. Its nothing like the big cities in the USA. They showed me the tallest building in Paris--of which they were extremely proud--and it would be litle more than a bump of the skyline of NYC. But that's part of the Parisian charm--very little of that modern city junk. Anyway, it was a great time. It was cool to see the rest of the city so close, because I feel a little removed way out in the 13th Arrondissement.

Today we're taking it easy, then going to meet some of Jeanne's friends for lunch. After that one of her friends is coming over and we're going to watch Into the Wild, and after that I have no idea. Jeanne has babysitting tonight--if it's nice i might try to go for a run or maybe venture out on my own a little. We'll see. Anyway, more later. It's time for le petit dejeuner (or breakfast, to all you English speaking folk out there)
xoxo Laura

Oh, goodness, I should post more often

I can't remember what I've done what days. This is ridiculous. I feel like I'm losing my memory like my dad (hehe love you Daddy). Anyway, I'll try to recount what I've been up to these past couple of days. Friday night, Jeanne and I went out with her two friends Melissa and Judy. We walked through Mouffetard and then went up to the Pantheon to hang out and wait to see the Eiffle Tower sparkle at 10. Then we came home and, surprise surprise, I crashed. Saturday morning I got up and hung out for the most part. Then Jeanne's mom came home and the three of us went up to the Champs Elysee to walk around and see the sights and all that. Oh, how I wish that I were rich. Haha it was actually easier "shopping" in the pricey boutiques, because there was no way I would buy anything and thus I was less tempted. Anyway, it was so funny because we came up from the Metro station and saw all these people waiting behind blockards along the street. We asked some people what was going on but no-one seemed to know, until Jeanne's mom asked a policeman and he told us that they were waiting to watch--guess who-- Bush go by. I just laughed--I come to France and I still can't get away from Bush. What a world. Anyway, we saw him pass (what an excitement!) and continued on.

After we made it all the way down the avenue to L'arc de Triomphe, we went to a plush hotel called the Hotel Napoleon. It wasn't very big, but it was gorgeous--very swanky. We stopped to get cocktails (without alcohol, of course) and sit and pretend like we were a part of the high life. I got a Nap 1er, which was creme de cocoa, banana juice, pineapple juice and apple juice--delicious. After that we just took the metro back to Jeanne's. Jeanne and I rested for an hour, then went to her tennis school's end of year banquet. Not exactly thrilling. Jeanne and Justine (her BFF) didn't know anyone so the three of us sat around for several hours. They had paella for dinner, but it had like whole shrimp (including legs and eyes) and fatty pieces of chicken in it, so I didn't eat a lot of mine. it was kind of scary to look at...bright yellow with eyes staring back at you. Yummmm...

This morning, Jeanne and me and her mom got up and went to Le Vide Grenier--basically a hugeeee yardsale through the streets of her neighborhood. It was crazy. There were tons of people out and about, scavaging for a good bargain. Think Trash-to-Treasure, but it the middle of the streets of Paris. Unbelievable. Anyway, then we came home and ate, and in a few hours we're going to go to her grandma's house for their weekly family gathering. Should be a good time. Lots of rapid-fire french though, I bet. Anyway, I'm gonna go rest my brain--I get a headache trying to speak French :) C'est difficile...
Bisous a tous!

Il y a tout ce que vous voulez aux Champs Elysee

You Tube video of the Champs Elysee--this song is stuck in my head a lot when I think about being in Paris.

The Streets are Alive in Paris

So I was just laying on my bed, enjoying a a book and the ability to put my feet up, when I heard swing music wind its way up from the streets. At first I just thought it was music time at the school below Jeanne's apartment, but as it grew louder I began to realize that it was live music being played in the streets below. I got up and went to a window where I poked my head out and saw 3 men, one with a trumpet, one with an accordian, and one with a clarinet, rocking out below. It was really neat. There were a bunch of people in the building across from mine at their windows, dancing with children and enjoying the music. Some of them threw coins down to the men. I swear, it was like something from the movies. I ran and grabbed my camera quickly and began to take some pictures. One of the men noticed me and proceeded to do a quirky dance as he waved and shouted bonjour. Seriously, Parisians are cool. I thanked them for the show and they wandered on down the street, looking for more bystanders to entertain.




Anyway, I felt I needed to share that story so I figured while I was at it I would update my blog. I woke up extremely late for me (11:30--and I totally could have fallen right back asleep) and ate breakfast, then Skype-d with my parents for a little (once I realized that I had to unmute my computer to be able to hear them--tee hee), then showered. Jeanne had run out for a quick errand and when she came back we decided to go take a little tour of Paris. It's not a great day, it's kind of chilly and overcast, but it was fine for being out and about. We walked up the mall near her house, which is where the closest metro station is (in case I get lost and need to take the metro to get home), then walked around a bit. We walked to the Quartier Moufftarde, which is a nice little neighborhood with cute cafes and boutiques and all that ( and we walked past the nearest Starbucks!!! Not that I'll be going there--it's expensive, and definitely not French). She showed me her high school and where she'll be going for university in the fall. When we walking down one of the streets, I was totally oblivious about the people we were walking past but then Jeanne leaned over and whispered to me that the man we had just walked past was a famous French actor. my mind was blown. Apparently she's used to it though, because its pretty normal for a movie or tv show to be filmed in the streets of Paris. And sure enough, as we were making our way back home, we walked past a cafe that had been taken over by a film crew (I tried to take a picture but I don't know how well it turned out). Crazzyyy.

We stopped to grab a Coke in a small cafe, then wandered back to her apartment so she could eat before going out to babysit. And now here I am, alone in the apartment, except for the occasional passing musicians in the streets. I'd like to go back out, just in the streets around her house to take a few more pictures and see what's up, but it's not very nice and I'm still pretty tired. My laziness is kicking in and it's more than likely that I'll be a couch potato and stay in and read or surf the internet or something. I really want to explore all of Paris, but it's so overwhelming going out by yourself in a foreign city. I wouldn't even know where to begin. Maybe in a week I'll feel more situated and can go take some walking tours of the Latin Quarter or Montmartre. But for now, I'm content to enjoy the view from my window.
Ciao for now!

I made it

Have I ever mentioned that I'm impatient? Well, I am. Which made my extremely long day of waiting very painful. I was happy to see my flight get changed from 9 to 8:30, only to have to wait until 8:30 to begin boarding anyway. I have no idea what time we actually took off but it was too late. I ate the slightly-more-appealing-than-cardboard dinner the airline served me then watched P.S. I Love You on the inflight entertainment. I had trouble keeping my eyes open towards the end, though, so I decided to plug into my headphones and take a nap. It wasn't even close to comfortable and I woke up often but I think I managed to pull off about 3 hours of sleep. Then I began to watch a TV Show and before I knew it we were making our descent into Paris.

I was super excited to get off the plane, but then I had to wait almost 45 minutes for my luggage to arrive (the french sure don't rush things).  I met up with Jeanne and her dad and got up to their car, only for us to realize that their lisence plate was nearly falling off. So we got maybe 3 minutes from the airport and we pulled off to have a mechanic fix it and--guess what--we had to wait more. Probably another 45 minutes. And thennnn, after we finally got on the road, traffic hit. So I think it took me a good 2.5 hours after getting off the plane until I was in Jeanne's apartment.

We had a nice quick classic french lunch--quiche and a baguette--and then I took to unpacking my suitcase. Once that daunting task was over, I crashed and took a quick one hour nap. I woke up, showered, and here I am. I'm going to try to take some pictures tonight--Jeanne's friends are coming over in half an hour or so so there should be plenty of photo ops. I'm feeling an early night to bed, though, and then who knows what I'll do tomorrow. The streets of Paris look inviting--maybe I'll check them out ;)

A bientot!!

Dumb Airlines

I just love airlines. Seriously. My plane from Philly to Paris was delayed for 3 hours, so I've been wandering the Philly airport for the past 3 hours looking sad and lonesome and bored. Until I bought wifi and have been facebooking and emailing like a crazy person. It is 5:45 right now, which means I would be boarding had my plane not been delayed. What a bummer. Oh well, what can you do?

Anyway, I still can't believe I'll be in Paris for the next four weeks. It was starting to hit me when I left State College, but then I got delayed and it lost all its sense of immediateness. I probably won't realize it for real now until we start to take off from Philly, and then I'll have 7 hours and 40 minutes to get excited/freaked out/homesick/nervous about speaking a language that is not my native language for the next four weeks. It should be an adventure, that is for sure. I'm really excited to get to experience the city like a Parisian--all that touristy stuff is nice, but I want to see the French side of things.

A small side note--my parents and I downloaded Skype and bought a headset so I can make free calls over the internet--if anyone has a Skype account or ends up getting one, let me know so I can add you as a contact! Skype is free from computer to computer so if you're just dying to hear my lovely voice it can be just a click away :)

Well, I'm getting hungry. I'm gonna go try to scrounge up some nice airport food--yumm. Here's hoping my flight doesn't get delayed again
Bisous (the french equivalent of xoxo),
Laura :)