Je Fais Le Bilan
Lawrentians (and Yuais in particular) will get this:
As I was walking from the bus stop to the Centre this morning, I passed a poissonnerie and (along with the characteristic fishy smell) the unmistakeable strains of Africa by Toto wafted out to me. It gave me a chuckle to know that even in France I can never escape Trivia.
Also, I'm realizing that my fondness for coffee in the mornings has progressed from a question of taste to an actual biochemical addiction. I had given the coffee a miss for the past three days, and all day long felt headachy, befuddled, and lethargic no matter how much I slept. This morning I had my habitual cup and distinctly felt the caffeine rush kick in; I am now buzzing with mental energy and purpose. I don't know how I feel about this. I don't like the idea of caffeine dependency, but on the other hand, I love coffee.
Tonight is the IES Halloween party, and Jeannette, Samantha, and I are gunning for the "Best Group Costume" prize. The three of us are dressing in tricolor and personifying "Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité." Samantha is liberté (not sure what she's going to do) and Jeannette is égalité (she's going with the idea of Justice, with a blindfold and scales.) I get to be fraternité. My costume? Let's just say it's a play on words and involves a popped collar and aviator sunglasses.
Things I Positively Adore About France (a somewhat-less-than-comprehensive list):
- Start from any point within any city or town. Walk three blocks in any direction. You will be at a boulangerie, where you can purchase incredibly delicious baguettes for less than a dollar.
- The buildings are all beautiful, even the modern stucco ones.
- CAMEMBERT.
- Menthe à l'eau. Basically, mint syrup in water. It's surprisingly good and I don't think you can get the same stuff in the States.
- Everyone is so much more politically aware. There are always demonstrations going on, and almost everyone I have met has immediately embroiled me in a political discussion. I stayed up until midnight talking about environmental politics in French with my host mother's visiting son. It was really interesting.
- Really, really great coats and shoes. They are all, of course, out of my price range, but it's fun to window-shop. (If I can find slightly less expensive ones, I may cave and get myself a pair of the kickass piratey knee boots that lace up the back that I keep seeing.)
- People write me letters! :D
- Food (produce in particular) is less removed from its origins. Vegetables and fruits are fresher, more people have gardens, and there's none of this American nonsense about being able to get whatever fruit you want even if it's out of season. There's definite regional cuisine, and animals are more humanely cultivated. This has the bonus of making everything taste better. However...
Things That Slightly Annoy Me About France
-... aforementioned agricultural consciousness means that I cannot find fresh basil anywhere, which irked me last week when I had a huge craving for it. (It's in season in summer, but has since disappeared from stores.)
- People don't really feel the need to clean up after their dogs.
- The 51 bus is never on time.
- Ramen and CDs are very expensive.
- Nothing is open on Sunday mornings.
- People don't really care much about Halloween, so the vaguely creepy late-October atmosphere that I relish so much is absent here. I've been making do with listening to "What's He Building" by Tom Waits over and over again and reading "The Hound of the Baskervilles" in French.
- Almost nothing is wheelchair-accessible, which does not annoy me personally, but my host mother works with handicapped children and she remarked on it to me.
-... That's really all. I love France.
As I was walking from the bus stop to the Centre this morning, I passed a poissonnerie and (along with the characteristic fishy smell) the unmistakeable strains of Africa by Toto wafted out to me. It gave me a chuckle to know that even in France I can never escape Trivia.
Also, I'm realizing that my fondness for coffee in the mornings has progressed from a question of taste to an actual biochemical addiction. I had given the coffee a miss for the past three days, and all day long felt headachy, befuddled, and lethargic no matter how much I slept. This morning I had my habitual cup and distinctly felt the caffeine rush kick in; I am now buzzing with mental energy and purpose. I don't know how I feel about this. I don't like the idea of caffeine dependency, but on the other hand, I love coffee.
Tonight is the IES Halloween party, and Jeannette, Samantha, and I are gunning for the "Best Group Costume" prize. The three of us are dressing in tricolor and personifying "Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité." Samantha is liberté (not sure what she's going to do) and Jeannette is égalité (she's going with the idea of Justice, with a blindfold and scales.) I get to be fraternité. My costume? Let's just say it's a play on words and involves a popped collar and aviator sunglasses.
Things I Positively Adore About France (a somewhat-less-than-comprehensive list):
- Start from any point within any city or town. Walk three blocks in any direction. You will be at a boulangerie, where you can purchase incredibly delicious baguettes for less than a dollar.
- The buildings are all beautiful, even the modern stucco ones.
- CAMEMBERT.
- Menthe à l'eau. Basically, mint syrup in water. It's surprisingly good and I don't think you can get the same stuff in the States.
- Everyone is so much more politically aware. There are always demonstrations going on, and almost everyone I have met has immediately embroiled me in a political discussion. I stayed up until midnight talking about environmental politics in French with my host mother's visiting son. It was really interesting.
- Really, really great coats and shoes. They are all, of course, out of my price range, but it's fun to window-shop. (If I can find slightly less expensive ones, I may cave and get myself a pair of the kickass piratey knee boots that lace up the back that I keep seeing.)
- People write me letters! :D
- Food (produce in particular) is less removed from its origins. Vegetables and fruits are fresher, more people have gardens, and there's none of this American nonsense about being able to get whatever fruit you want even if it's out of season. There's definite regional cuisine, and animals are more humanely cultivated. This has the bonus of making everything taste better. However...
Things That Slightly Annoy Me About France
-... aforementioned agricultural consciousness means that I cannot find fresh basil anywhere, which irked me last week when I had a huge craving for it. (It's in season in summer, but has since disappeared from stores.)
- People don't really feel the need to clean up after their dogs.
- The 51 bus is never on time.
- Ramen and CDs are very expensive.
- Nothing is open on Sunday mornings.
- People don't really care much about Halloween, so the vaguely creepy late-October atmosphere that I relish so much is absent here. I've been making do with listening to "What's He Building" by Tom Waits over and over again and reading "The Hound of the Baskervilles" in French.
- Almost nothing is wheelchair-accessible, which does not annoy me personally, but my host mother works with handicapped children and she remarked on it to me.
-... That's really all. I love France.