What an eventful few days!
Friday morning I brilliantly managed to sleep through my alarm and missed my bus, therefore missing my flight. Smart, right? Anyway, I panicked for a few hours and finally managed to change the tickets for a flight early Saturday morning out of Frankfurt. So I hopped on the Lufthansa bus to Frankfurt in the afternoon and spent the night at a Holiday Inn by Frankfurt International Airport. A French girl on the bus thought I was Russian, which made me happy. Whenever someone thinks that my French accent is something besides American, I consider it a big accomplishment. When I arrived at the hotel, my room hadn’t been cleaned yet and they ended up upgrading me to a nicer room with a king bed and a bathtub. Woohoo! I was pretty happy about it. Also, as I was waiting in line, an entire professional German football (soccer) team walked past me. That pretty much made my entire day. They were all amazingly attractive, athletic, men in their early to late twenties. Uh, hi. Ich heisse Melanie?
I woke up yesterday at 4 a.m., having set at least five alarms just in case. My flight left at 7:25 a.m. and everything went fairly smoothly, except for a very rough patch of turbulence on our ascent that had me literally shaking. I arrived at Istanbul’s airport, bought a tourist visa, and managed to get a taxi to our hostel. Once I got the hostel, I found Maddie, Clariece, and Chris just chilling in our room. It’s really good to see them. They’ve already been here for a few days, but were amazingly nice and waited to do all the super touristy stuff with me. Aww. We went out to lunch, which for me consisted of lamb shish and Turkish coffee. Turns out Turkish coffee is pretty much espresso with lots of sugar. I’m a fan. After lunch we went to the Grand Bazaar, which is just completely overwhelming. The Turkish vendors are both funny and unrelenting. They also come up with completely bizarre cultural references, such as exclaiming “Angelina Jolie!” or “Charlie’s Angels!” I didn’t buy anything, but I’m sure we’ll go back for another opportunity for me to spend all my money. After we got back, Clariece and I went for coffee in our neighborhood. The place was about as Portland/Seattle-esque as I think Istanbul could get… turns out the owner was from Canada, which explains a lot. One of the Turkish baristas/waiters gave us his whole life history and told us about school here. It was pretty cute. Men here seem a lot more forward, but I think they’re just trying to get business and actually much more formal than American guys.
Last night we met up with Carolyn and grabbed a bite to eat at a nearby place. After that we took the tram over to Asia (how cool is that?) and found a really cool hookah bar. Hookah is a really big part of the culture and nightlife here. Anyway, this hookah bar was actually just sort of a tent thing with rows and rows of beanbag chairs. You sit down and someone brings you apple tea, hookah, and then vendors walk around with various types of food to purchase. It was a lot of fun and really relaxing. We eventually left and went back to our hostel’s bar, where I had some of the popular beer here – Efes. I think France and Germany have turned me into a beer snob… anyway, had some good conversations and eventually went to sleep.
As a side note, I should say that we’ve been saying that we’re Canadian and we get a very happy response every time. It definitely seems like the thing to do… especially with the recent political turmoil here. I mean, it’s not that far away from the truth. I’m only three hours from the border at home…
This morning we slept in, got brunch at the hostel, and leisurely got ready for a touristy day. Our first stop was the Hagia Sophia. It was formerly a basilica, then a mosque, and now a museum. It was stunning… easily one of the most beautiful buildings I’ve ever seen. It had so much natural light through the windows and so many different colors, which was definitely a contrast from the dark cathedrals of France. I loved that there were both Christian mosaics of Jesus and the usual cast of characters and Islamic scripts everywhere. So cool. After being completely awestruck by the Hagia Sophia, we made our way to the Blue Mosque… literally right across the street. It’s still used as a mosque today so we had to take off our shoes and make sure we were conservatively dressed before we went in. Finally, I’ve found a use for all of my French scarves! It was beautiful, but not as breathtaking as the Hagia Sophia (a tough act to follow). The exterior of the Blue Mosque is gorgeous, though. From there we went to the Basilica Cistern, an underground reservoir from the Roman Empire. It felt like descending into Moria (from Lord of the Rings… yes, I’m a nerd). There were a lot of epic columns and creepy reflections in the water. They set up a small café in a corner of the cistern, where we grabbed some tea and coffee. I’ve had coffee in a Roman cistern. What a crazy world. We were going to go to a palace after, but I think we’ll go tomorrow instead. For now I’m just taking a few hours to rest before another crazy night.
So, in short, I think I’m in love with this city. Granted, I’ve only really seen the touristy areas, but I will definitely come back. One of the things I love the most is the call to prayer from the minarets. It’s amazing to walk through the city and just hear the music echo around.
Okay, that was my past three days. I’m sure there’s much more to come. Until later…
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
The craziness continues...
After weeks of apprehension, I finally got up the courage to walk into a local coiffure this morning and ask for a haircut. This was terrifying on a number of different levels, as I had no idea where to go, if I needed a reservation, or how to describe what I wanted. So! After being rejected by the coiffure across the street for not having an appointment, I tried a coiffure closer to school. Luckily they had time for me so I sat down and looked through a hairstyle magazine. I eventually found a style that I liked and managed to ask for it with some adjustments. My hairdresser combed through my hair and asked me what products I use on my hair. I had no idea. We eventually established that they were drugstore products, which apparently are unacceptable. She said that my hair was too damaged from coloring it (yeah I know that, thanks) and that I should be using a hair mask every shampoo. This is a great example of how French women swear by their creams and masks. It is also a great example of how I am just too lazy to use most of them. Finally she washed my hair and started cutting it, though every once and a while she would scold me again about the abysmal state of my hair. As she cut my hair, she attempted to have a conversation with me about the state of education in the US and in France. Meanwhile, I was so overwhelmed by the whole process that I forgot most of my French. She evenutally finished and somehow coaxed me into buying a (relatively cheap) nourishing shampoo, which will hopefully help in the dry months to come. Even though my first experience with French women and their infamous beauty regimes was frightening, my hair does look a lot nicer now, if I do say so myself.
Last weekend, my adventures continued as I traveled to Paris and to visit my parents and Amelia. Sounds easy, right? Wrong. The transportation workers of France, as it turns out, decided to go on strike last Thursday and Friday. So last Friday I woke up at six a.m., walked to the train station (the trams weren’t running), and discovered that my 8:15 a.m. train was cancelled. The first train of the morning was at 11:15 a.m. After freaking out, I went to a café downtown, got a cup of coffee and read for an hour. After that café, I went to another one. Eventually I meandered back to the train station and waited in line with the other passengers from the four trains that had already been canceled. I managed to get a “seat” in the aisle, which was still better than those who had to stand for two hours. Meanwhile, I met a cute guy from Strasbourg in a seat near me who jokingly said, “Welcome to France!” as we were all cursing the strike. I’m still annoyed that I didn’t get his number, or give him mine. I arrived in Paris in one piece, surprisingly, took the metro to the correct stop, and promptly got lost in a shopping district. After an hour of dragging my luggage around the confusing streets, I arrived at my hotel and saw my parents, who had to deal with my horrible mood. The day got better after that, though. We went to Starbucks (love of my life), I took a nap, and we went to a yummy restaurant. Getting to the restaurant is another story… finally I got back to the hotel and found Sex & the City in French on TV. It was a good end to a crazy day.
Saturday morning I met up with Amelia, my lovely roommate from Lewis & Clark who is studying with another program in Paris for the semester, and several of her friends. We went out to brunch at a diner called Breakfast in America. It sounds obnoxious, but it was actually pretty cute and it was nice to have some real breakfast food for once! After that I wandered back to my hotel and then to a nearby mall, where I bought a cute black shirt. I then met up with my parents for some more shopping and wandering around. The neighborhood around their hotel was pretty adorable and filled with drunken Englishmen getting ready for the England vs. South Africa rugby final that night. Later I met up with Amelia at Notre-Dame and we explored a little. We went to Shakespeare & Co., a famous bookstore on the Seine, wandered around the Latin Quarter, and got drinks at a café. It was really good to catch up, since I hadn’t seen her since June. We eventually met up with my parents and the four of us went to another good restaurant that was quite yummy. Amelia and I left to go meet her friends at a bar, Sister May, and after several hours I went back to the hotel for some much-needed sleep.
Sunday was pretty quiet. My parents left early to head back to Seattle and I met Amelia for brunch at Ladurée (adorable, yummy, and expensive – a dangerous combination). From there we walked to the garden outside the Louvre and got coffee in one of the cafes. If you couldn’t already tell, drinking and eating are a big part of life here. I’m not exactly complaining. We said goodbye and I made my way back to the hotel and then to the train station. I got a seat on the train and was able to appreciate it much more this time.
So I’m back in Strasbourg, but only for two more days. I have a ton of things to do before I leave for Turkey, but the weather here has suddenly turned very cold. Apparently it’s snowing already in Munich and it feels like snow is a possibility here, even though it’s rare. I can barely bring myself to do anything besides curl up in my (warm) bed and read. Mike said I'm just being wimpy about the weather, but I can't help it if my friends here are from Michigan and I am from Washington. Two different winter climates, thanks.
Wish me luck in my travels to Turkey and Greece for our Toussaints break! I’m not sure if I’ve ever traveled this unprepared before, as I don’t know the language and barely know my itinerary, but that’s what a semester abroad is about, right? Sometimes I just have to let go of my organized, vaguely obsessive Cohen ways, though it may seem impossible (or improbable). Here’s the itinerary I know thus far:
10/26 → Bus from Strasbourg to Frankfurt. Plane from Frankfurt to Istanbul.
10/26 – 10/30 → Istanbul, Turkey.
10/30 – 10/31 → Leave Istanbul and go to Avylik, Turkey. Spend a day in Avylik.
11/1 → Meet the LC Greece group and take a ferry to Lesvos. Stay the night there.
11/2 → Fly from Lesvos to Crete!
11/2 – 11/3 → Chill in Crete.
11/4 → Take a plane from Crete to Athens, Athens to Frankfurt. Bus from Frankfurt to Strasbourg. I arrive at 11:30 pm and I have class at 8:30 am the next morning. It should be fun.
Well, it will certainly be an adventure and that’s what I’m here for. Here are a few pictures:
La Seine doing what it does best and being gorgeous.
Parents et moi at a restaurant.
Amelia and I at the bar Saturday night.
Until next time.
Last weekend, my adventures continued as I traveled to Paris and to visit my parents and Amelia. Sounds easy, right? Wrong. The transportation workers of France, as it turns out, decided to go on strike last Thursday and Friday. So last Friday I woke up at six a.m., walked to the train station (the trams weren’t running), and discovered that my 8:15 a.m. train was cancelled. The first train of the morning was at 11:15 a.m. After freaking out, I went to a café downtown, got a cup of coffee and read for an hour. After that café, I went to another one. Eventually I meandered back to the train station and waited in line with the other passengers from the four trains that had already been canceled. I managed to get a “seat” in the aisle, which was still better than those who had to stand for two hours. Meanwhile, I met a cute guy from Strasbourg in a seat near me who jokingly said, “Welcome to France!” as we were all cursing the strike. I’m still annoyed that I didn’t get his number, or give him mine. I arrived in Paris in one piece, surprisingly, took the metro to the correct stop, and promptly got lost in a shopping district. After an hour of dragging my luggage around the confusing streets, I arrived at my hotel and saw my parents, who had to deal with my horrible mood. The day got better after that, though. We went to Starbucks (love of my life), I took a nap, and we went to a yummy restaurant. Getting to the restaurant is another story… finally I got back to the hotel and found Sex & the City in French on TV. It was a good end to a crazy day.
Saturday morning I met up with Amelia, my lovely roommate from Lewis & Clark who is studying with another program in Paris for the semester, and several of her friends. We went out to brunch at a diner called Breakfast in America. It sounds obnoxious, but it was actually pretty cute and it was nice to have some real breakfast food for once! After that I wandered back to my hotel and then to a nearby mall, where I bought a cute black shirt. I then met up with my parents for some more shopping and wandering around. The neighborhood around their hotel was pretty adorable and filled with drunken Englishmen getting ready for the England vs. South Africa rugby final that night. Later I met up with Amelia at Notre-Dame and we explored a little. We went to Shakespeare & Co., a famous bookstore on the Seine, wandered around the Latin Quarter, and got drinks at a café. It was really good to catch up, since I hadn’t seen her since June. We eventually met up with my parents and the four of us went to another good restaurant that was quite yummy. Amelia and I left to go meet her friends at a bar, Sister May, and after several hours I went back to the hotel for some much-needed sleep.
Sunday was pretty quiet. My parents left early to head back to Seattle and I met Amelia for brunch at Ladurée (adorable, yummy, and expensive – a dangerous combination). From there we walked to the garden outside the Louvre and got coffee in one of the cafes. If you couldn’t already tell, drinking and eating are a big part of life here. I’m not exactly complaining. We said goodbye and I made my way back to the hotel and then to the train station. I got a seat on the train and was able to appreciate it much more this time.
So I’m back in Strasbourg, but only for two more days. I have a ton of things to do before I leave for Turkey, but the weather here has suddenly turned very cold. Apparently it’s snowing already in Munich and it feels like snow is a possibility here, even though it’s rare. I can barely bring myself to do anything besides curl up in my (warm) bed and read. Mike said I'm just being wimpy about the weather, but I can't help it if my friends here are from Michigan and I am from Washington. Two different winter climates, thanks.
Wish me luck in my travels to Turkey and Greece for our Toussaints break! I’m not sure if I’ve ever traveled this unprepared before, as I don’t know the language and barely know my itinerary, but that’s what a semester abroad is about, right? Sometimes I just have to let go of my organized, vaguely obsessive Cohen ways, though it may seem impossible (or improbable). Here’s the itinerary I know thus far:
10/26 → Bus from Strasbourg to Frankfurt. Plane from Frankfurt to Istanbul.
10/26 – 10/30 → Istanbul, Turkey.
10/30 – 10/31 → Leave Istanbul and go to Avylik, Turkey. Spend a day in Avylik.
11/1 → Meet the LC Greece group and take a ferry to Lesvos. Stay the night there.
11/2 → Fly from Lesvos to Crete!
11/2 – 11/3 → Chill in Crete.
11/4 → Take a plane from Crete to Athens, Athens to Frankfurt. Bus from Frankfurt to Strasbourg. I arrive at 11:30 pm and I have class at 8:30 am the next morning. It should be fun.
Well, it will certainly be an adventure and that’s what I’m here for. Here are a few pictures:
La Seine doing what it does best and being gorgeous.
Parents et moi at a restaurant.
Amelia and I at the bar Saturday night.Until next time.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Mon voyage en Allemagne!
Well, I’ll start out this entry with the sad news of the week: England beat France in rugby. I sort of knew that they had a fluke win against the All Blacks, but it was still disappointing. Tant pis, I’ll just have to find another ridiculous French pastime to get obsessed with.
In happier news, I went to Munich last weekend! Three of my good friends from school, Mary, Dakota, and Alice, are all studying German there for the entire year. So when I got restless a few weeks ago, it seemed only natural that I’d visit them and I’m so happy I did! I woke up at 5:45 am on Friday morning and barely caught my 6:54 train. Several hours later, I arrived in Munich! After a giddy reunion, we dropped off my stuff at Mary’s room, and went downtown where we ate some amazing tomato soup and caught up. After lunch, Mary and Dakota gave me a tour of Munich. It’s a gorgeous city. It’s amazing how (relatively) close Strasbourg and Munich are and how different the architecture is. Strasbourg has one huge Cathedral, but Munich has several smaller, phenomenal churches downtown. That night I met several of the other students studying with them and we went to two bars, one near the student city and one in downtown Munich.
Saturday morning, Mary and I slept in a bit. Around lunchtime, we met up with Dakota and the three of us went to the English Gardens, one of the largest public parks in Europe. It had a very different feeling than the carefully trimmed Orangerie of Strasbourg that I’m used to, but still very nice. We had some coffee at one of the many Beer Gardens within the park. I was sort of amazed to see so many locals with steins of beer at 1 pm, but I suppose that’s just a part of German culture. On the way back, we bought some bread and cheese and had a picnic in Studentenstadt, the area that all the students live in. After a somewhat lazy afternoon, we went to a local restaurant/bar and I had my first maß (big stein of beer). I must say, I’m a big fan of German food and beer, though I don’t know how anyone manages to stay skinny there. A few hours later, we took the subway downtown and met up with Hayden, one of Mary’s friends and two of his friends. We went to Skyline, a rather posh bar/dance club. It was pretty slow at first, but ended up being really fun. I’m always a fan of dancing. I ended up dancing with a Swiss guy named Marco, who went away when I told him I was from the US. Next time I’ll say I’m Canadian.
Yesterday, we lazed around in the morning and went downtown for pizza. We went back, sat around for a while, and then it was time to go to the train station. I arrived in Strasbourg last night around 9 pm and it was really refreshing to be surrounded with a language that I (kind of) know. Then I ran into Sarah and Mike on the tram on their way back from Baden-Baden, which was a fun surprise. All in all, I’m really happy that my first adventure outside of France went so well. I hadn’t even realized how much I’d missed Mary, Dakota and Alice until I saw them and felt very at home in the middle of a foreign country. I hadn’t actually seen Mary for more than a few hours since December, so it was phenomenal just to catch up and see the city I’d heard so much about (she went there for two years of high school). It was a very good trip.
Now I’m back in Strasbourg, chez moi, and just trying to make it through the week. With any luck, I’ll be going to Paris this weekend to see my parents and Amelia, though the transportation workers are holding a strike this Thursday. I really hope it doesn’t carry over into Friday, but there’s always a possibility. The French people really love their strikes… a month ago that would have really bothered me, but now I just sort of find it amusing. Maybe that means I’m finally adjusting? That’s probably a good sign.
So here are some random pictures from Munich. I don't know the names of a lot of the buildings, as most of them were in complicated German. They're pretty, though.
Town Hall steeple in downtown Munich.
Mary and I in front of the Munich National Theater.
I forget what this building was, but there was a concert on the steps. Pretty cool.
Trying not to laugh inside a church.
Dakota and I at Manhattan, drinking good German beer.
Walking in the English Garden.
Mary being adorable in the beer garden.
Being silly.
Dakota, Mary, Justin (another student on their program, and Alice. What a good weekend.
Until next time, salut!
In happier news, I went to Munich last weekend! Three of my good friends from school, Mary, Dakota, and Alice, are all studying German there for the entire year. So when I got restless a few weeks ago, it seemed only natural that I’d visit them and I’m so happy I did! I woke up at 5:45 am on Friday morning and barely caught my 6:54 train. Several hours later, I arrived in Munich! After a giddy reunion, we dropped off my stuff at Mary’s room, and went downtown where we ate some amazing tomato soup and caught up. After lunch, Mary and Dakota gave me a tour of Munich. It’s a gorgeous city. It’s amazing how (relatively) close Strasbourg and Munich are and how different the architecture is. Strasbourg has one huge Cathedral, but Munich has several smaller, phenomenal churches downtown. That night I met several of the other students studying with them and we went to two bars, one near the student city and one in downtown Munich.
Saturday morning, Mary and I slept in a bit. Around lunchtime, we met up with Dakota and the three of us went to the English Gardens, one of the largest public parks in Europe. It had a very different feeling than the carefully trimmed Orangerie of Strasbourg that I’m used to, but still very nice. We had some coffee at one of the many Beer Gardens within the park. I was sort of amazed to see so many locals with steins of beer at 1 pm, but I suppose that’s just a part of German culture. On the way back, we bought some bread and cheese and had a picnic in Studentenstadt, the area that all the students live in. After a somewhat lazy afternoon, we went to a local restaurant/bar and I had my first maß (big stein of beer). I must say, I’m a big fan of German food and beer, though I don’t know how anyone manages to stay skinny there. A few hours later, we took the subway downtown and met up with Hayden, one of Mary’s friends and two of his friends. We went to Skyline, a rather posh bar/dance club. It was pretty slow at first, but ended up being really fun. I’m always a fan of dancing. I ended up dancing with a Swiss guy named Marco, who went away when I told him I was from the US. Next time I’ll say I’m Canadian.
Yesterday, we lazed around in the morning and went downtown for pizza. We went back, sat around for a while, and then it was time to go to the train station. I arrived in Strasbourg last night around 9 pm and it was really refreshing to be surrounded with a language that I (kind of) know. Then I ran into Sarah and Mike on the tram on their way back from Baden-Baden, which was a fun surprise. All in all, I’m really happy that my first adventure outside of France went so well. I hadn’t even realized how much I’d missed Mary, Dakota and Alice until I saw them and felt very at home in the middle of a foreign country. I hadn’t actually seen Mary for more than a few hours since December, so it was phenomenal just to catch up and see the city I’d heard so much about (she went there for two years of high school). It was a very good trip.
Now I’m back in Strasbourg, chez moi, and just trying to make it through the week. With any luck, I’ll be going to Paris this weekend to see my parents and Amelia, though the transportation workers are holding a strike this Thursday. I really hope it doesn’t carry over into Friday, but there’s always a possibility. The French people really love their strikes… a month ago that would have really bothered me, but now I just sort of find it amusing. Maybe that means I’m finally adjusting? That’s probably a good sign.
So here are some random pictures from Munich. I don't know the names of a lot of the buildings, as most of them were in complicated German. They're pretty, though.
Town Hall steeple in downtown Munich.Mary and I in front of the Munich National Theater.I forget what this building was, but there was a concert on the steps. Pretty cool.Trying not to laugh inside a church.Dakota and I at Manhattan, drinking good German beer.Walking in the English Garden.Mary being adorable in the beer garden.Being silly.Dakota, Mary, Justin (another student on their program, and Alice. What a good weekend.Until next time, salut!
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
An absurdly long post to make up for my absence.
In the past few days I have purchased tickets to Munich, Paris, Turkey, and Greece. Oh, my poor bank account. I told my host sister about going to Turkey and she looked at me like I was crazy, "Why are you going there? Honestly, there is nothing to see in Turkey." I disagree. There are wonderful friends and amazing sights in Turkey. Why wouldn't I go there? It is a once and a lifetime opportunity, like I would pass that up. French people are so elitist. Liking your own culture is one thing, but not being able to at least appreciate another culture is just sad.
Speaking of other cultures, I have found a new love: Rugby. It is like a brutal combination of soccer and American football, except with no pads and it never stops. What a good sport. France has been hosting the Rugby World Cup for the past month or so and last Saturday they beat the All Blacks, the hardcore New Zealand team, in a surprise victory to get to the semi-finals. It was a really good game and I happened to be walking to a bar when they won. Seriously, people went nuts. Every bar was full of people screaming and cheering. Practically every car was honking in celebration. Passengers were leaning out of windows and even sunroofs as they drove past. One driver had a french flag that he was waving as he drove... and these were just the quarter-finals! Next weekend France plays England, which is always a fun rivalry. With any luck they'll make it to the final game! Allez France!
Last weekend my parents also visited! It was crazy having them here in Strasbourg. My host mom recommended a good restaurant for Tarte Flambée, an Alsatian specialty, so we went there with Mike and Sarah. Other than that I can’t say I was the best host, mostly because I was sick and completely exhausted, but I think they had a good time. I’ll get to see them again in two weeks in Paris! Definitely looking forward to that.
Also, we had our first excursion last Friday. It was... intense? The first stop of the day was Struthof, the only concentration camp on French soil during WWII. I guess in retrospect I'm glad I went, but it was very upsetting. Not the best start to the day. The next stop was Chateau de Haut-Koenigsbourg, a chateau that was built back in the day and then burnt down by the Swiss. Then the Germans came at the beginning of the twentieth century and rebuilt it to look like an ancient chateau. The only problem is that they didn't really know what an ancient chateau would look like so it was sort of... tacky. I think I'm spoiled, having been to Mont Saint-Michel. Finally, we ate in Kaysersberg, an Alsatian town very similar to Ribeauvillé. Not really a thrilling place, but I guess it's quaint or something.
In other news, my classes are finally sorted out. Lewis & Clark is sort of ridiculous and requires me to take six electives, all in french, in addition to my ten hours of language per week. The good news is that each elective is only one hour of class per week and has fairly little homework. The bad news is that each class has one cumulative exam at the end of the semester and that’s your grade. Oh god. So anyway, here’s a brief list of what I’m taking :
Phonétique
One of my better classes, surprisingly. It’s actually really interesting to think about the phonetics of french and the professor is pretty funny. The last class was all about the rhythm of the language and how the syllables are grouped together equally in a phrase. She also talked about french being one of the only languages that places emphasis on the last syllable of a phrase. Definitely a cool class.
Littérature du XXème siècle
I’m not a big fan of literature classes, but Lewis & Clark adores them and so I’m in this class. The class covers the important french literature in the first half of the twentieth century, which has the potential to be interesting. The last three classes have been focused on poetry, however, which pretty much the opposite of interesting to me. Hopefully it’ll get better. I’m looking forward to the lecture on Albert Camus.
Philosophie en France
For some reason, and don’t ask me why, philosophy is better en francais. I’ve never liked it in english, but I love this class. The professor is this hilarious guy, who looks like how I would picture a french devil – round body, vaguely pointy head, and really devilish grin. My favorite class thus far was all about Sartre and existentialism. Existentialism really confused me in english, but it just seems to make sense in french. It’s almost like it’s more appropriate here in its original context.
Société français
A completely absurd required course on french society. It’s pretty painful and almost completely useless, as we’ve been learning about the media and sports in France. I feel like if you’re living in France for more than a few weeks, you figure out most of this stuff for yourself. Ah well… the professor is an amusing middle-aged woman who seems very disgusted with the current state of french society, hehe.
Histoire de l’art
This class would have potential, were the professor not completely timid and neurotic. It’s actually pretty painful and I am becoming increasingly pessimistic about it. One of these days I’ll need to take a real art history course.
Littérature thématique
Oh boy, another literature class! We’re studying short stories this semester, which I guess is fairly intriguing. The professor is a woman in her late twenties and brings a lot of energy to the class. The class isn’t bad, but it isn’t incredible either. I think I just have high standards.
Now that we have school, it’s even easier to just go to school and then hide in my room for the rest of the time. Most of the time when I get home, I really don’t have the energy to go back out. I’ve found, however, that when I force myself to get out of the apartment I generally have a better time. For instance, tonight Sarah, Clif, and I discovered Le Kafteur, a local « théâtre d’humour » (literally : humor theater) and saw a Québécois group perform. It was brilliant and completey hilarious. Most of it was physical comedy so comprehension wasn’t really an issue. We’re definitely going back there for their next few shows. Sarah and I have decided to try to go to something cultural once per week so next week it’s the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra. The best part of all this is that we have "Culture Cards", which give us great discounts on everything from museums to movies.
Again, here are some random pictures from the last few weeks:
At the Orangerie, an amazing park here close to the European Parliament.
Chateau du Haut-Koenigsbourg. I don't know how to pronounce that.
The Chateau again, but this time with pretty Alsatian landscape.
Les parents at a cafe near the Cathedral.
The Cathedral in the daylight. It's big.
Okay, enough of my ramblings for now. Sorry for the crazy long post. A bientot.
Speaking of other cultures, I have found a new love: Rugby. It is like a brutal combination of soccer and American football, except with no pads and it never stops. What a good sport. France has been hosting the Rugby World Cup for the past month or so and last Saturday they beat the All Blacks, the hardcore New Zealand team, in a surprise victory to get to the semi-finals. It was a really good game and I happened to be walking to a bar when they won. Seriously, people went nuts. Every bar was full of people screaming and cheering. Practically every car was honking in celebration. Passengers were leaning out of windows and even sunroofs as they drove past. One driver had a french flag that he was waving as he drove... and these were just the quarter-finals! Next weekend France plays England, which is always a fun rivalry. With any luck they'll make it to the final game! Allez France!
Last weekend my parents also visited! It was crazy having them here in Strasbourg. My host mom recommended a good restaurant for Tarte Flambée, an Alsatian specialty, so we went there with Mike and Sarah. Other than that I can’t say I was the best host, mostly because I was sick and completely exhausted, but I think they had a good time. I’ll get to see them again in two weeks in Paris! Definitely looking forward to that.
Also, we had our first excursion last Friday. It was... intense? The first stop of the day was Struthof, the only concentration camp on French soil during WWII. I guess in retrospect I'm glad I went, but it was very upsetting. Not the best start to the day. The next stop was Chateau de Haut-Koenigsbourg, a chateau that was built back in the day and then burnt down by the Swiss. Then the Germans came at the beginning of the twentieth century and rebuilt it to look like an ancient chateau. The only problem is that they didn't really know what an ancient chateau would look like so it was sort of... tacky. I think I'm spoiled, having been to Mont Saint-Michel. Finally, we ate in Kaysersberg, an Alsatian town very similar to Ribeauvillé. Not really a thrilling place, but I guess it's quaint or something.
In other news, my classes are finally sorted out. Lewis & Clark is sort of ridiculous and requires me to take six electives, all in french, in addition to my ten hours of language per week. The good news is that each elective is only one hour of class per week and has fairly little homework. The bad news is that each class has one cumulative exam at the end of the semester and that’s your grade. Oh god. So anyway, here’s a brief list of what I’m taking :
Phonétique
One of my better classes, surprisingly. It’s actually really interesting to think about the phonetics of french and the professor is pretty funny. The last class was all about the rhythm of the language and how the syllables are grouped together equally in a phrase. She also talked about french being one of the only languages that places emphasis on the last syllable of a phrase. Definitely a cool class.
Littérature du XXème siècle
I’m not a big fan of literature classes, but Lewis & Clark adores them and so I’m in this class. The class covers the important french literature in the first half of the twentieth century, which has the potential to be interesting. The last three classes have been focused on poetry, however, which pretty much the opposite of interesting to me. Hopefully it’ll get better. I’m looking forward to the lecture on Albert Camus.
Philosophie en France
For some reason, and don’t ask me why, philosophy is better en francais. I’ve never liked it in english, but I love this class. The professor is this hilarious guy, who looks like how I would picture a french devil – round body, vaguely pointy head, and really devilish grin. My favorite class thus far was all about Sartre and existentialism. Existentialism really confused me in english, but it just seems to make sense in french. It’s almost like it’s more appropriate here in its original context.
Société français
A completely absurd required course on french society. It’s pretty painful and almost completely useless, as we’ve been learning about the media and sports in France. I feel like if you’re living in France for more than a few weeks, you figure out most of this stuff for yourself. Ah well… the professor is an amusing middle-aged woman who seems very disgusted with the current state of french society, hehe.
Histoire de l’art
This class would have potential, were the professor not completely timid and neurotic. It’s actually pretty painful and I am becoming increasingly pessimistic about it. One of these days I’ll need to take a real art history course.
Littérature thématique
Oh boy, another literature class! We’re studying short stories this semester, which I guess is fairly intriguing. The professor is a woman in her late twenties and brings a lot of energy to the class. The class isn’t bad, but it isn’t incredible either. I think I just have high standards.
Now that we have school, it’s even easier to just go to school and then hide in my room for the rest of the time. Most of the time when I get home, I really don’t have the energy to go back out. I’ve found, however, that when I force myself to get out of the apartment I generally have a better time. For instance, tonight Sarah, Clif, and I discovered Le Kafteur, a local « théâtre d’humour » (literally : humor theater) and saw a Québécois group perform. It was brilliant and completey hilarious. Most of it was physical comedy so comprehension wasn’t really an issue. We’re definitely going back there for their next few shows. Sarah and I have decided to try to go to something cultural once per week so next week it’s the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra. The best part of all this is that we have "Culture Cards", which give us great discounts on everything from museums to movies.
Again, here are some random pictures from the last few weeks:
At the Orangerie, an amazing park here close to the European Parliament.Chateau du Haut-Koenigsbourg. I don't know how to pronounce that.The Chateau again, but this time with pretty Alsatian landscape.
Les parents at a cafe near the Cathedral.The Cathedral in the daylight. It's big.Okay, enough of my ramblings for now. Sorry for the crazy long post. A bientot.
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