(no subject)
oh time how you fuck with me
i spent six weeks in grenoble last summer. i've now been in aix for two and a half weeks, and i note that the amount of immersion from the grenoble program was much greater. there, the language was the barrier - here, i myself am the barrier. a six week time line provided a scale that enabled the smallest events to have such significant. ten months is a lot longer. i can speak french now, communicatively with some added depth from time to time, but i am lacking any recipient of such words. it seems like my six weeks in grenoble will much outweigh my first six week in aix en provence in terms of progress, but i can honestly say from this point forward that i speak french. i still take much joy in the days little events, like when the lady at the market asked me three times, "is that all?" and i said "euuh, unless you have anything magical that you're hiding back there". she then said something i didn't understand to which i reponded "oui" and she gave me a bunch of italian parsley and a beautiful pinkish red catelon tomato to consume with a little bit of olive oil (so she said, so i did). or when i was doing my laundry and i asked a guy of about my age if he could make change for a 5, and we then talked, he gave me a book recommendation, and told me about an art exposition for the école des beaux arts where he attends. i also take much joy when i pay with a 10 euro bill to add the extra change to make the transaction even. it says "yes, i understood what you just told me, and i didn't just shove a 20 in your face because i wasn't sure". i also like that the guy who owns the fish market shakes my hand every morning, that the woman who works there tells me about all the fish there and how to cook it, that the lady who runs the register shows me a most genuine smile. i like that i found a cafe where the walls nearly match the color of my shoes.
in conclusion, i will learn oral french, even if it will be necessary to acquire it from truffaut films and internet radio.
despite feeling from time to time that everyone in this and neighboring countries hate me passionately, i am happy to be here, happy to be free, and happy to be alone.
i spent six weeks in grenoble last summer. i've now been in aix for two and a half weeks, and i note that the amount of immersion from the grenoble program was much greater. there, the language was the barrier - here, i myself am the barrier. a six week time line provided a scale that enabled the smallest events to have such significant. ten months is a lot longer. i can speak french now, communicatively with some added depth from time to time, but i am lacking any recipient of such words. it seems like my six weeks in grenoble will much outweigh my first six week in aix en provence in terms of progress, but i can honestly say from this point forward that i speak french. i still take much joy in the days little events, like when the lady at the market asked me three times, "is that all?" and i said "euuh, unless you have anything magical that you're hiding back there". she then said something i didn't understand to which i reponded "oui" and she gave me a bunch of italian parsley and a beautiful pinkish red catelon tomato to consume with a little bit of olive oil (so she said, so i did). or when i was doing my laundry and i asked a guy of about my age if he could make change for a 5, and we then talked, he gave me a book recommendation, and told me about an art exposition for the école des beaux arts where he attends. i also take much joy when i pay with a 10 euro bill to add the extra change to make the transaction even. it says "yes, i understood what you just told me, and i didn't just shove a 20 in your face because i wasn't sure". i also like that the guy who owns the fish market shakes my hand every morning, that the woman who works there tells me about all the fish there and how to cook it, that the lady who runs the register shows me a most genuine smile. i like that i found a cafe where the walls nearly match the color of my shoes.
in conclusion, i will learn oral french, even if it will be necessary to acquire it from truffaut films and internet radio.
despite feeling from time to time that everyone in this and neighboring countries hate me passionately, i am happy to be here, happy to be free, and happy to be alone.