I am within my last couple weeks here in Paris and I can hardly believe it! It has been really incredible to just live in Paris for a bit! Here is a list of highlights:
1. The keyboards in France are different than the keyboards in the US! At first it took me hours to type anything and now I can't type on an American keyboard!
2. The French know I am a foreigner even though I have taken seven years of French classes! But they do not hate! The French love me! Sometimes waiters give me free food and I have been proposed to on many occasions! Also, the French tend to be interested in the US. All the time I am asked "D'ou venez-vous?" And I am surprised by how many people know Denver, Colorado!
3. One of the most incredible things about Paris is that you can go to a cafe, brasserie, restaurant, anything and eat alone! And no one is judging you or thinking how sad your life must be! It is perfectly acceptable and completely relaxing and freeing! No splitting bills or awkward silence! Just food and, usually, good wine and/or beer and/or coffee!! The other great thing is being able to sit and read or people-watch for as long as you like. No one rushes you out so they can seat someone else.
4. Paris is a location from which exploration is accessible! I made a day trip to Giverny and had an unforgetable day there! I hiked 4 kilometres to get to a place that home-makes apple cider! I hiked up a tiny country road through a forest and suddenly it all opened up onto this vastness of golden grain fields and a gigantic sky. I was completely alone for miles and miles. And, when I finally reached the cider place I enjoyed the best apple juice (jus de pommes) I have ever tasted in my life!
5. The Abroadco sponsored excursion to the Loire Valley was also a great weekend! We visited Villandry (cutest little town plus a lovely chateau) and Chenonceau (one of the more famous chateaux there)! Holly picked a great hotel and the meals were tres delicieux!! The best part, though, was Villandry's celebration of summer! We found, there, live music and tons of people enjoying themselves...plain and simple! It was goofy but one of the best times I have had! It just made me happy to be alive! And to top it off there was a fireworks display set to the theme of Star Wars! So funny!
6. Having been to Paris twice before, I have really been able to find the more obscure museums and see things I missed before! I don't think you could ever see all of Paris! So I am definitely kept busy with classes and sightseeing and also spending time with new friends!
7. Sitting down on the grass beneath the Eiffel Tower and reading a good book is truly something everyone should try at least once! I recommend Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" because it will change the way you look at life in its simplest of forms. Mary is reading it too and we both dig Paris the way Jack digs the USA.
These are just a few things I have enjoyed here! There's so much more, but of course I would have to write you a travel memoir or something! Classes are going great! Challenging but worth it! My French is better already! And I am loving Paris, as always!