Observations:

Casual Observations I've Noticed About Daily Parisian Life:

-ALL the eggs here are brown. Try finding a white egg! Go ahead, try!

-Girls frequently wear fur coats, high heels, and designer purses to class and don't look particularly overdressed.

-A chocolate bar at the supermarket can cost upwards of 8 euros. That's, what, 10 American dollars??!

-They serve beer at McDonalds.

-Dogs seem to be welcome everywhere, even in chic department stores like Le Galleries Lafayette.

-When things go on sale, it gets cutthroat. Think of the day after Thanksgiving in America and how hard it is to go shopping then. That's what it feels like when I approach the 3 euro rack at H&M.

-I don't feel like a minority being white. UCR is such an ethnically diverse school, but at AUP most of the other students (not visiting students like me, but actual students who go there) seem to be white. But I love that so many students there are from other countries around Europe. There seem to be quite a few people from Switzerland and Belgium. I've also met several fellow Brazilians.

-Everyone seems to think I'm English!! "I can tell by your face...You look like an English girl...Are you from London?..." Non, je suis americainne.

-The toilet (aka water closet) is in a separate room from the bathroom! Whoever heard of such a ridiculous thing?? There is this thing in the bathroom and I have no idea what it is. It looks like a sink, but very close to the floor. I am scared to go near it in case it's something gross.

-A spoonful of nutella can be a delicious snack in a hurry.

-Children don't have school on Wednesday. Why couldn't we have that in America?

-Evian is no more expensive than any other bottled water. In America, Evian is, like, twice the price.

-I feel naked walking out of the house without a scarf. They're such a prevalent part of one's wardrobe here, men and women wear them everywhere.

-Beware of color. A little bit in your outfit is okay, but you'd better have some black and neutrals in there to even things out. It sort of seems like my hair is already the color I'm adding to my outfit...

-They think Ratatouille is a French film? HA! It's American! You just can't tell it's dubbed because it's animated.

On another note, I fell down the stairs at the metro station today. It was pretty embarassing because there were a ton of people around and now I have a couple of bruises on my legs. It was bound to happen sooner or later with all those annoying stairs!

Also, I have been trying to find a babysitting job. Nothing too time consuming or demanding, just a laid-back way to make some pocket money. I've already met 3 women looking for babysitters, but I think I'll only take one of the jobs. One of the women lives really close to school and only needs me 2 or 3 days a week, so I think I'll do that one.

You know, I think that all the warnings we've been given about staying safe in Paris have been a little...superfluous. I have not had anyone try to steal from me or attack me, even though I've done some of the things they warned us not to do. I have approached random strangers on the metro, I have walked home alone at night. I think using common sense and adapting to each unique situation is more important than abiding by a strict set of guidelines. I am so glad I decided to study abroad! I definitely want to do this more in the future.

Also, I started painting class on Tuesday. It's going great, it really looks like it's going to be a fun class! Our first assignment is due in class next week: a still life. I decided to paint the table at the Angelina cafe with the macaroons. It's not done yet but this is what I've done so far:

"Aren't we classy?"

scarves are my vice... I've bought about 8 of them so far. And 2 hats. I got a keffiyah today! A pink one.

I got the funniest text from Serena today! i started giggling on the metro... See, the other day we ate lunch at Pigalle, which is the red light district of Paris, where the Moulin Rouge and all the sex shops are. And today I went by myself to this area of Paris that's a lot like downtown LA; dirt cheap and interesting but kind of scary and unsafe. I left after only 15 minutes because I didnt feel comfortable being there alone. So I texted Serena that she should come back here with me so we could look at the stuff together. So she texted back:

"Sounds neat! Seedy and cheap? We sure are classy! First the sex shops, now this..."

The other day not 1 but 2 people thought I was English! It must have been the outfit, it looked very London.

What I've been doing...

"These Gates Were Made For Sneaking Into!"

So on Friday, I woke up too late to do anything except go to class at noon. I bought a crepe in between classes at this little stand I've been going to. I've fallen in love with their cinnamon sugar crepe! Anyway, after class I took the metro across the city to go to this art store to pick up supplies for painting class. It was a little confusing, wandering through the store trying to find all of the exact products my teacher wanted us to get, and the store owners didn't speak very good english, but I ended up getting my supplies, plus some pastels.

Anyway, there was a dance later that night at a club for AUP students. I went to my friend Katie's apartment and ate dinner there and got ready. It turned out to be really fun, since I knew a lot of the people there. We evded up taking a taxi back because the metros had stopped running.

The weather has been excellent lately, compared to all the rain we had before! It's still chilly, but at least the sun is out.

On Saturday, I went shopping with Rachel all day! We scoured the shops looking for sales, which end in about a week. H&M, Zara, Gap, Claires, and a lot of little boutiques. We spent well over an hour in United Colors of Benetton, because Rachel bought a pair of shoes and 2 pairs of pants, and I bought the same pants but in a different color. We got so excited about the pants! Theyre soft and dark gray and very European looking. I also bought new tights from Monoprix and a couple scarves.

We ate lunch as McDonalds, which turned out to be exactly the same as every other McDonalds, except they serve beer! When we got tired we went to the place I found earlier with the carousel and shared a cotton candy!

So today is Sunday and since it was such a nice day, I went to the Tuileries Gardens, by the Louvre. Serena met me there and we took a billion pictures. There were some bronze statues of naked women and we had fun dressing them up in our sunglasses, scarves, purses, jackets, etc. The other people in the gardens were laughing and taking pictures of it too. Then we went to Pigalle and had lunch, but we were tired and it had gotten cold so we went home after a while. And now I'm meeting Emily in an hour for dinner...

Shopping up a storm!!!!

Well, I had to write today because I did something very special. It was one of the reasons I wanted to go to paris actually. Angelina. The best chocolat chaud in Paris! (hot chocolate). It really did live up to its reputation.

So I met up with Emily after class and we took the metro to the Tuileries, which is right by the Louvre. While we waited for Joanne to show up, we walked around a bit on the Rue de Rivoli, Rue Saint Honore and Rue Cambon. Do any of those streets sound familiar? Those are the streets with all the expensive designer stores!

We stumbled upon Collette, which was pretty cool upstairs. There were mannequins set up everywhere, each dressed in a gorgeous outfit, complete down to the shoes. Emily and I wanted to take pictures, but we decided we'd come back another time when we were feeling more touristy.

We wandered through a few more stores and eventually found our way to the famed Chanel store on the Rue Cambon. I was reluctant to go inside because I didn't feel I was dressed chic enough, but we ventured inside and tiptoed around the designer purses as though we were in a museum of priceless art. And when my cell phone went off, with its tacky ringtone, I felt just as awkward as I did when it went off in the sacred Sacre Coeur.

Joanne met us there and we left and took pictures outside. We finally got to Angelinas! The decor was beautifulo inside. It looks exactly as one would imagine a Parisian salon should look! It seems like such a pleasant place to go for a cup of chocolat chaud in the middle of the day. We ordered colorful macaroons and 2 orders of hot chocolate for the 3 of us to share. Next time, we'll just get 1 order because the chocolate is so thick!

It tastes very strong and rich, sort of like a melted chocolate bar! They serve it with a dish of whipped cream and glasses of cold water. I felt very heavy and sleepy afterward. Of course, we then spent about 10 minutes working out how to split the check (one of us only had a 20, so we had to figure out who owed who what, etc...) One order is about 6.50 euros. So next time if 2 or 3 of us share 1, and we don't get the pastries, it's really not any more expensive than buying a cup of hot chocolate on the sidewalk.

Yesterday was fairly uneventful. I went to a cemetery early in the morning. I couldn't find the graves of Marcel Proust, Edith Piaf, or Oscar Wilde, but after about an hour of wandering about, I gave up and was happy just to find an exit. That place is huge, like a maze!

I ended up in a really cool metro that sold makeup for 2 euros. It actually made me think of Marissa, and how fun it would be for us to pore over the makeup selection! And after class I went to Free P Star again, and this time visited their other branch which was a block away. I bought a fuzzy purple beret, which I wore today, a scarf, and a white angora cardigan (10 euros!) that I think I might give to Marissa. As I was leaving, I saw a beautiful 2 story carousel with vendors selling cotton candy for 2 euros. That is definitely on my to-do list!

I'm still on the hunt for a good, cheap touristy store where I can buy postcards and mini eiffel towers and t-shirts and the like! Oh, and I'm thinking about pursuing babysitting jobs with a family who wants a native English speaker. Nothing time consuming, just for pocket money to keep up with my shopping!

the first images, cont.

the first images...

These are just a few of the pictures I've taken here so far... Posting them takes forever so I put up only a couple.

It's actually sunny outside today!

So Versailles was beautiful, even during the winter. I started out the day feeling pretty sick but once I found a bathroom and ate breakfast I was fine. I listened to the Marie Antoinette soundtrack from Rachel's i-pod the train ride there! It only took about 20 minutes, I was expecting longer.

Apparently, the advisors forgot to mention that we could buy tickets to go into the palace at the same time when we bought our train tickets. When we got there, there was a huge, enormous line of people waiting to buy tickets to go inside. So my group and I decided not to go inside and just walk around the grounds. Even in winter, the lawns were perfectly manicured and the architecture was impressive.

I took a million pictures, and fed the swans and petted the sheep. I had brought some bread with me so we used a piece to feed the birds. My favorite place to take pictures was the place in Petit Trianon with the black and white checkerboard floor. I recognized it from the Vogue photoshoot with Kirsten Dunst!

I will definitely return sometime in April or May to see the garden in the spring, as well as to go inside. Note: Bring a picnic lunch! The food there is too pricey and it's very pleasant to eat outside on a bench or in a gazebo.

On Monday classes started! I got to school at 9:30 am to change my schedule of classes but still waited in a line for 2 and a half hours that wound up 3 flights of stairs in order to fix my schedule. I dropped art history and wanted to take sculpture but it was full. I'm taking painting instead!

I also took the french placement exam last week and to my surprise, I placed into the intermediate class, not beginner! I'm not even borderline, I'm squarely in intermediate! And this is after practically no official french study. I'm also taking entrepreneurship and human resource management.

I've already gone to the first class for each subject. The 2 business classes seem kind of boring, but not especially difficult. Entrepreneurship has only 10 people in it! French...seemed a little over my head, but I'm eager to learn. Painting seems fun, but I wish I had brought mom's acrylic paints and brushes with me, because I have to buy them here!

That kind of sucks, because I am trying to be as frugal as I can. However, France's semiannual sale ends in a week or two, so I'd better move on with the shopping!

I live right where Princess Diana died!

This is going to be a superquick blog post because I have to be at school at 10:00 am tomorrow to go to Versailles! Better remember the camera!

So today was the walking tour of Montmartre. Personally, I didn't think it was too special. We saw the restaurant Amelie worked at in the movie and the weather was good and we went to the Sacre Coeur, which is the oldest church in Paris and one of the biggest. My cell phone rang inside it.

Mostly a lot of hills, and uphill walks. Lame. There was a really good souvenir shop I want to go back to though. I went out to dinner with rachel and Joanne afterward and had delicioud smoked salmon. I was disappointed that I didnt really like the rosay wine, because it was such a stunning color.

And later tonight I went to a few bars with my new friend Emily and some people. Emily is really cool! I have a feeling shes one of those people I'm going to hang out with a lot on this trip. (She lives next to the president of france!) Bar hopping is lame because drinks are outrageously priced. And I'm not a big drinker or anything. I'd rather go to a club and dance but we passed on it tonight because we have to be up early tomorrow.

Ooh, but the main thing is that I live right next to the tunnel where Princess Diana died!!!!!!! There's a memorial to her and tons of people have written stuff in marker on the overpass. It's really cool to me because I pass by it a couple times a day and now I actually know that it's a cool piece of history that I'm so close to. I'm going to write on her memorial one of these days....

Black stilletos are no match for the cobbled streets of Paris

So last night the school had this event called a "pub crawl." When I first heard about it, I envisioned small groups of about 6 or 7 students being led around to different bars in the area where we would drink, laugh, and mingle with French natives.

I was so wrong! The school organized it terribly. What could have been a really fun, cool night ended up being a big drag. First, we had to get into groups, which entailed writing your name on a paper and having a colored ribbon tied around your wrist. That took about an hour and the ribbons did nothing. Then, groups started leaving. Me and my friends werent sure which was our group, and neither were a lot of other people so everyone went with the last group, which had like 50 people.

We walked to the metro (no easy task in the shoes I was wearing) and took the metro all the way across Paris for about half an hour until we finally got to the latin quarter. The first pub we went to was okay, it looked like a cave inside. But there were only AUP students, and no french people! The next one was way too crowded, and still, only Americans. By this time, the metro was going to close soon and I didnt want to get stuck all the way across Paris with no way to get home, so I just left with a few people.

Overall, the night was pretty lame, although I did meet some nice AUP students and planned some things with them. If we want to find the fun places to go in paris, we're going to have to find them ourselves.

Today, there's a walking tour of Montmarte, which starts in an hour and a half. I'd better get ready! Montmarte is the artsy, bohemian area of Paris where Johnny Depp lives that has become very touristy. My feet hurt from the heels last night but I'll wear flats today and hopefully be fine.

Life in 68 Rue Boissiere

So the name of the club we went to was Duplex, btw.

Ever since I got here, I seem to be staying up and waking up reallly late. I think that is going to have to change when school starts on Monday. I'm intending on switching around some of my classes but I'm not quite sure how to do it yet.

So anyway, I have been taking the metro everywhere. Yesterday I took it to the Champs Elysees where I went to Zara and Monoprix and a couple other stores. I tried to find the market my host mother told me about but I couldn't find it so I took the metro to ED (pronounced ooh-day) which is a supermarket chain and bought bread, nutella, cheese, soda, and salad. I wanted to buy smoked salmon but it was too expensive. Actually though, later that evening I found that the market across the street had smoked salmon for much cheaper.

I also want to buy more opaque black tights from the drugstore, because on the Champs Elysees they are way overpriced--like 10-12 euros per pair.

Getting home on the metro was difficult... I knew which line I had to get on, but I kept getting on metros that went in the opposite direction from what I wanted.

Once I was home, I was sitting around when I realized I hadn't yet been to Free P Star, which is a clothing store I've heard SO much about. Apparently, Kirsten Dunst went there all the time when she was filming Marie Antoinette. So I took a metro all the way across Paris just to get to the store; I went pretty late too, it was already dark. Free P Star turned out to be this little hole-in-the-wall vintage store with tons of CHEAP clothes. I bought a black felt beret for 3 euros---at Le Galeries Lafayette they were 11 euros. They had a ton of fur coats for cheap too. The cheapest one I saw was only 30 euros! Most of them were around 50-60 euros. I was tempted to shop for one, but how will I take it home? It probably wont fit in my luggage and I won't be able to wear it once the weather warms up.

Later in the evening, on my way home, I took a detour to go to the spot on Avenue President Wilson where everyone takes pictures of the Eiffel Tower. It was really deserted, which was good, and after a few minutes the hourly light show started.

Paris really is the City of Light. As much as I like it during the daytime, I think it is even more beautiful at night.

Une Nuit Blanche a Paris

*NOTE: I wrote this blog post several days ago and intended to post it, but it didn't work. So bear in mind that the following events happened a few days ago.

My french is improving rapidly. I find that even when I speak in english, I subconsciously affect a french accent and speak in broken english just to sound more like everyone else! I feel that I am blending in well with the locals. I know I dress like them. I THINK I act like them for the most part. The only thing I will never be able to do is speak exactly like them.

I am taking tons of pictures, however it is tres difficulte to get them out of the camera and into the computer. And many of them are not interesting anyway.

I carried my red alice tote bag today and was SO paranoid that I would get pickpocketed!

Oh, and my watch broke. The strap broke. I dont think it is unfixable, but it wont stay affixed to my wrist. I cant believe that out of the 3 watches i could choose from, ALL of them broke! I bought a new one today from a little shop for about 10euro. Right now are the sales in paris, january and june! You literally see the word "SOldes" EVERYWHERE in practically every shop window.

I wanted to go to the grocery store again today, but I didnt want to carry anything with me. I am pleased that I am no longer utterly confused by the metro! My map has been such an unbelievable help but it is true that even after being in the city for several days, you are able to figure things out and adapt so quickly!

Anyway, the weather today was HORRIBLE. Freezing, spontaneous rain all throughout the day, wind... Everyone, even the native parisians thought it was especially bad. So anyway, I had to go to a UC meeting at 2 ALL the way across the city. I didnt get lost though!

Afterward, I walked around to the stores with some friends, Nilo and Jamie. We got on the metro to go back to school for "Crepes Night" but ended up on a fun detour! I met 3 teenage girls on the metro and started talking to them. (It turns out they were 17 year old jewish girls) They didnt not speak very good english and i did not speak very good french but I asked them where the good places to shop were. (Talking to a stranger on the metro, even smiling or making eye contact es une grande faux pas, as I am constantly reminded by advisors, but they seemed safe and friendly so I took a chance!)

Anyway, it turns out one of the girls was going to H&M herself, so she invited us to follow her there. We took a picture with her, so I'll post it later sometime. Anyway, we ended up right at Galerie Lafayette! The department store is gorgeous inside. it reminds me of a very elegant opera or theater. We took some pictures and felt a bit embarassed until we saw other ppl doing the same.

The store is tres expensive, all big designers, but outside there is Zara, H&M as well as many cheap stalls that sell scarves and things for 5 euros. Nilo got a pair of flat black boots for only 20 euro and a passport cover for 5. I really want to go back soon!

Anyway, we then went to school for "crepe night" which was a socializing event with 1 cheese filled crepe. It was okay for a while, but then it started to get boring. I met up with some people, including my new friend Tara from Berkeley and we went to Ricardo's apartment around 11. He's from colombia and must be extremely rich because he has a gorgeous apartment all to himself that he pays 2500euro per month for! We listened to music and dance, and drank a little bit. He has been in France for 6 months already so he knew all the good places to go. He took us to a club called..... I forgot. The name escapes me, but it was very difficult to get into, the bouncers really give you a hard time and you have to be dressed nice. We eventually got in and just danced. It felt like any regular club or discotheque in the united states except that everyone else spoke french and le garcons seemed much more aggressive.

We were out very late (because a few of us went out for pizza afterward) before I finally made my way back home on the metro, but luckily we dont have class until 3pm tomorrow!

So far I have been living off bread and butter! I am starting to fall in love with the city of Paris. The city is full of vivre, I can see why so many people love living here. I want to go to the louvre on friday because it is free for people under 26.

J'ARRIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am finally here!!!! After many hours on the plane, I am living in Paris. This is only my second day here but I already feel that I am getting to know the city and starting to find my way around. I've gotten lost a few times, but now I feel that I know the area around where I live pretty well. My map has been SOOO useful, although it's a dead giveaway I'm a foreigner.

So I took a flight from LAX to Chicago O'Hare and then went on to Charles de Gaulle in France. Window Seats both ways. To CDG there were a bunch of movies playing: Ratatouille, Rush Hour 3, hANNAh Montana. I watched most of Into The Wild because I'd wanted to see it for a while.

Both flights came in early. In Chicago, I met a lot of other students. I met 2 french kids and a lot of American AUP kids. They were pretty nice and friendly. Almost ALL girls. Like, 16 girls and 3 boys.

So once the plane arrived in Paris after about 8 hours, we got our luggage and took a bus to the American University of Paris. We arrived early in the morning, around 10. They kept us busy the entire day, which was totally exhausting. I can't even believe this is only the second day I have been here because we've already had to do so mu8ch stuff!

We checked in, went to a bunch of informational seminars, walked around the area, slept in a hotel the first night. And we shuffled our bags around everywhere for the longest time. (HEAVY)!! Today we had a very french breakfast at the hotel: evian, fresh squeezed orange juice, gouda cheese, croissants, nutella, etc. For lunch the past 2 days we've been given baguette turkey sandwiches and soda. The soda comes in funny shaaped bottles. I am so close to the Eiffel tower! It can be seen from one of the windows in the apartment! (Not my bedroom, which would have been too good to be true.)

Anyway, early today I took a taxi to my host family's apartment. They live in a gorgeous, very posh area in the 16th arroindissement. It's on the 5th floor, but there's an elevator. It's an older couple, Madame and Monseuir Egnell, who have housed many AUp students. Their 33 year old son, Stephan, also lives with them. (He got me connected to the internet.)

I took a french placement test today and am quite sure I placed in the beginners class. I walked to and from my homestay apartment and school several times throughout the day. The first 2 times, I got slightly lost, but the last time I found it no problem. Actually, the first time I was on the correct street but walked the opposite direction and found myself at this incredible view. It was teeming with tourists and people taking pictures: the classic view of the Eiffel tower you always see on postcards! I was standing the the spot where you have a beautiful view of it. I was in a hurry to get back to school so I didnt stay long.

I took the metro for the first time today- seems pretty confusing. I was never too good with subways. We went in a big group so I just followed everyone but if I went by myself, I know I'd have to pay closer attention.

Nothing has been stolen from me! Hurray, a victory! I found out I CAN in fact open a bank account here, but its a lot of paperwork and may cost money to transfer money over from my citibank account. My goup and our student advisor went to dinner tonight at a Crepe place. My advisor is named Catalina, she is from Switzerland and she's been great so far! Very welcoming and friendly and helpful and funny. We stayed at the crepe place for HOURS, I was almost falling asleep.

People seem to drink wine at every meal! I've tried white wine and red wine, but I most prefer white wine mixed with sprite. We went to a small pub on the Champs Elysees after dinner, which was beautifully lit at night. It gets pretty cold here, but my jackets are warm. The pus was packed so we didn't stay there long. Now I am here in my room ready to go to bed.

I dont have to be at school until noon tomorrow so I can sleep in!! I'm buying a cell phone sim card tomorrow. I wanted to get one today, but its closed on Sunday. Many students purchased one yesterday, when we first arrived, but I did not have any euros on me at the time.

I was pleased to note that my attire seemed to blend in perfectly with what the native parisians were wearing. I did my research!-- artfully knotted scarves, boots, and black black black.

I already feel like I've seen so much of the city, and yet there are miles more to explore.