isn't it fun when i'm ambitious?
so yeaaaaaa......
Updating everything that has happened since i've been here just isn't going to happen. Nice thought, but just not going to happen.
Please go check out Christie's journal if you really want to know everything that's gone on up to the past two weeks. If not, I'll have to personally tell you about my adventures sometime in the future. I will serve you italian coffee from my wonderful antique italian coffee pot in my little french cups. It will be lovely.
This weekend has been a mixed of good and bad.
On Thursday I had a presentation in my strategic management class. It was an 8 minute presentation split between four people with an extra 2 minutes for questions. I don't get those types of presentations. What can you really say in two minutes? But despite that, I should have practiced a little bit more. I hate how I still get nervous speaking in front of people even though I've done so much it.
After class, Christie and I met up with Demian in the Latin Quarter. It's a very cool area that during the day has lots of shops and monuments, etc. and at night has lots of nice restaurants and bars/clubs. We went into a very French bar right off the St. Michel metro. Inside was very comfortable: brown leather circular chairs, dark wood, candles on the tables, red and purple accents. It was exactly what I was in the mood for. I have yet to be sick of Christie even though I'm with her more than anyone else and Demian's fun. We had a good conversation and it was cool to learn a little bit more about Demian's background.
As we arrived at St. Michel around 11, there was an unusual amount of police cars speeding down the street. At various points during the night, the square in front of the St. Michel fountain filled up with students until finally the riot troops showed up with their face shields and sticks. They didn't have too much trouble clearing everyone out of there and were more concerned with clearing away the road block that the people set up. The people at the table next to us said that the students at the Sorbonne were protesting the new labor laws saying that companies can fire any new employee no questions asked for up to two years. I've come to learn quite a lot in my Western European Economics class and I have to say that the labor markets in France are really too rigid. The job protection laws are too abundant and detrimental to the economy, but the unemployment rate is so high that I understand the people's fears. The whole system needs to be revamped before any of this is fixed, but as an American, when I first heard what they were protesting about, I had to wonder what the big deal is. If you loose your job, you just go find a new one.
On Friday, Christie and I decided to walk from Montmartre across the city to les Halles for a little shopping. Walking in the little park right outside our apartment building and below le Sacre-Coeur, we walked by a group of young French people having some beers on a bench. They seemed to be enjoying themselves and probably mockingly asked:
"Do you vant some beirrres?" (my written version of the French accent may not make sense, but bear with me)
Christie: "It's merde, right?"
Me: "Yes....."
Christie to the group: "Merde!"
*roars of French laughter*
Me: "Why did you just say shit to them?"
Christie: "Oh crap! I thought that meant drunk!"
That was undoubtedly the funniest thing that happened this weekend.
Anyway, we had a nice walk down through the 9th, past Paris's wax museum and through these cool alleyways which are covered with glass ceilings and lined with ancient shops. One of them is an amazing looking pastry and chocolate shop. I need to indulge myself one day and go for a visit. Then we continued on into the 2nd and 1st arrondissements. We walked through the Jardin des Tuileries until we hit la Seine and then walked along the river until crossing by Notre Dame. The Parisians are crazy about their dogs and pet shops line la Seine. Christie and I went into each and every one of them to see the puppies. They were absolutely adorable. Christie fell in love with a Jack Russel but got a goldfish instead. I decided that I want a puppy. And a baby, but I have to wait a long time for that one. The puppy is more doable in the near future. At that point it started downpouring and instead of going shopping, we got muffins and went home. We were supposed to go back out to the free young people's night at le Louvre, but by the time we got home and ate dinner, we would have gone out, gotten there, wandered around for an hour, then come back again. It was decided that it wasn't worth it on Friday and that we'll have to go next week.
This morning we were up and at the school for 7:45am. My French Culture class had a trip to la Champagne region today. That's where the main vineyards are in France and where Dom Perignon perfected champagne-making. What was supposed to be an exciting trip turned out to be very disappointing. We were on a bus for a total of five hours and the country side wasn't that enjoyable due to the miserable weather. We stopped at the Mercier Champagne house and took a tour for an hour. It was cool that we got to see the wine cellars and learned a little more about how the wine was made, but it could have been better. It ended with a tasting, where I realized that I don't like even up-scale champagne.
We continued on to the town of Rimes. I had a good panini with mozzarella, tomato, and ham for lunch. Then we walked around the nice downtown area for an hour and looked at a church that was built using the plans from Notre-Dame, except much less elaborate inside. Then we got back on the bus and rode for 3 hours back to Paris. Yay!
Tomorrow is the museum of fashion and textiles. I'm hoping that it will be surprisingly good, but my hopes aren't that high.
Paris needs to be sunny and warm now. Everyone's moods are starting to be affected by the rainy, grey, cold weather.
Updating everything that has happened since i've been here just isn't going to happen. Nice thought, but just not going to happen.
Please go check out Christie's journal if you really want to know everything that's gone on up to the past two weeks. If not, I'll have to personally tell you about my adventures sometime in the future. I will serve you italian coffee from my wonderful antique italian coffee pot in my little french cups. It will be lovely.
This weekend has been a mixed of good and bad.
On Thursday I had a presentation in my strategic management class. It was an 8 minute presentation split between four people with an extra 2 minutes for questions. I don't get those types of presentations. What can you really say in two minutes? But despite that, I should have practiced a little bit more. I hate how I still get nervous speaking in front of people even though I've done so much it.
After class, Christie and I met up with Demian in the Latin Quarter. It's a very cool area that during the day has lots of shops and monuments, etc. and at night has lots of nice restaurants and bars/clubs. We went into a very French bar right off the St. Michel metro. Inside was very comfortable: brown leather circular chairs, dark wood, candles on the tables, red and purple accents. It was exactly what I was in the mood for. I have yet to be sick of Christie even though I'm with her more than anyone else and Demian's fun. We had a good conversation and it was cool to learn a little bit more about Demian's background.
As we arrived at St. Michel around 11, there was an unusual amount of police cars speeding down the street. At various points during the night, the square in front of the St. Michel fountain filled up with students until finally the riot troops showed up with their face shields and sticks. They didn't have too much trouble clearing everyone out of there and were more concerned with clearing away the road block that the people set up. The people at the table next to us said that the students at the Sorbonne were protesting the new labor laws saying that companies can fire any new employee no questions asked for up to two years. I've come to learn quite a lot in my Western European Economics class and I have to say that the labor markets in France are really too rigid. The job protection laws are too abundant and detrimental to the economy, but the unemployment rate is so high that I understand the people's fears. The whole system needs to be revamped before any of this is fixed, but as an American, when I first heard what they were protesting about, I had to wonder what the big deal is. If you loose your job, you just go find a new one.
On Friday, Christie and I decided to walk from Montmartre across the city to les Halles for a little shopping. Walking in the little park right outside our apartment building and below le Sacre-Coeur, we walked by a group of young French people having some beers on a bench. They seemed to be enjoying themselves and probably mockingly asked:
"Do you vant some beirrres?" (my written version of the French accent may not make sense, but bear with me)
Christie: "It's merde, right?"
Me: "Yes....."
Christie to the group: "Merde!"
*roars of French laughter*
Me: "Why did you just say shit to them?"
Christie: "Oh crap! I thought that meant drunk!"
That was undoubtedly the funniest thing that happened this weekend.
Anyway, we had a nice walk down through the 9th, past Paris's wax museum and through these cool alleyways which are covered with glass ceilings and lined with ancient shops. One of them is an amazing looking pastry and chocolate shop. I need to indulge myself one day and go for a visit. Then we continued on into the 2nd and 1st arrondissements. We walked through the Jardin des Tuileries until we hit la Seine and then walked along the river until crossing by Notre Dame. The Parisians are crazy about their dogs and pet shops line la Seine. Christie and I went into each and every one of them to see the puppies. They were absolutely adorable. Christie fell in love with a Jack Russel but got a goldfish instead. I decided that I want a puppy. And a baby, but I have to wait a long time for that one. The puppy is more doable in the near future. At that point it started downpouring and instead of going shopping, we got muffins and went home. We were supposed to go back out to the free young people's night at le Louvre, but by the time we got home and ate dinner, we would have gone out, gotten there, wandered around for an hour, then come back again. It was decided that it wasn't worth it on Friday and that we'll have to go next week.
This morning we were up and at the school for 7:45am. My French Culture class had a trip to la Champagne region today. That's where the main vineyards are in France and where Dom Perignon perfected champagne-making. What was supposed to be an exciting trip turned out to be very disappointing. We were on a bus for a total of five hours and the country side wasn't that enjoyable due to the miserable weather. We stopped at the Mercier Champagne house and took a tour for an hour. It was cool that we got to see the wine cellars and learned a little more about how the wine was made, but it could have been better. It ended with a tasting, where I realized that I don't like even up-scale champagne.
We continued on to the town of Rimes. I had a good panini with mozzarella, tomato, and ham for lunch. Then we walked around the nice downtown area for an hour and looked at a church that was built using the plans from Notre-Dame, except much less elaborate inside. Then we got back on the bus and rode for 3 hours back to Paris. Yay!
Tomorrow is the museum of fashion and textiles. I'm hoping that it will be surprisingly good, but my hopes aren't that high.
Paris needs to be sunny and warm now. Everyone's moods are starting to be affected by the rainy, grey, cold weather.