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.