Amuuuurica

Oh how I missed it. And my little Gigi.

I'll post more Paris pictures with a proper blog goodbye soon, or a bientot... ;-)

PARIS MARATHON 2010!

I got up at 8:30am to go run to Bastille and watch the Paris Marathon go by! AMAZING! So inspirational and supportive. Runners everywhere.

-5 degrees

It's damn cold today. I also have 3 classes to go to in three different paris of Paris =[. It might take 2 cafés, but I can do it. Because after that, it's the weekend! Today: Avant-Garde Literature near Bastille, then my Cahtolique T.D. from 2-3 near St-Sulpice, then my first ever Sorbonne class near St-Michel. Phew.

I think it's bye-bye free time, and hellloooo metro life.

SNOW

Snow in Paris! And it's really getting obnoxious. It was charming at first, until I slipped on the sidewalk and nearly broke my back, and let's not forget the damage done to my ego; although I 'spose it does look pretty and ornamental.

Today I picked up my Sorbonne placement results and schedule. Looks like I got lucky, my classes are right off St-Michel! Phew. I was a bit terrified they'd be in the building where I had to go pick up my schedule which is off cardinal lemoine and at least 2 connections away from me. Anywayyy, off to go live my uber-French life... ;-)

Oh no...

I don't want to go back to America...

Maybe it's the cafés, or the late night glasses of wine, or the sub-par seafood. I think it has something to with the cold, the complaining, and the both offensive and enticing smells. I can;t imagine leaving.

Skyp-ing with Enyi

Enyi is trying to talk to me about the superbowl. who's playing again? oh and he's also trying to convince me he DOESN'T have the musical affinity of a middle school girl... please stop serenading me with cher and mika, enyi! and change your bb txt sound.

Don't you wish you were in Paris...

"Damn, I wish I was in Paris right now..." -Enyi

Place st-michel!

claire et adrien dans le metro

jolivette - post crepes

posing after some bar-hopping in saint-michel

the morning-after brunch at The Barbershop off Ave. de la Republique

Line 1 et 4 Metro Players

This blog makes me appreciate things I take for granted, here in Paris. Alors, I take photos and videos of things I wouldn't normally deem photo-worthy.

dear metro players,

je vous adore.

Fool's Gold encore

Last night, dinner at Verre Vole in the 10th with Fool's Gold members: Lewis, Amir, Michael, and Brad! Good food, amazing wine, and ex-pat company. Aaron is sickeningly literate when it comes to wines and aperitifs, alors it's in my best interest to pay attention and soak it all up. It took me a good 15 minutes to actually find the mysterious location of Verre Vole off the Canal St. Martin, but I arrived none too late and none worse the wear, and just in time for a few glasses of bright, sunny tasting wine and good conversation. I wish I had taken photos of the FOOD!

PS. sorry i haven't been writing that much in my posts, i promise to be more articulate next time!

ERASURE

is one of my favorite bands. ever.

Fool's Gold @ point fmr

Ce soir: Fool's Gold in Paris!

Leaving in une heure to go see friends Fool's Gold play at Point Ephemere, here, in PARIS!!! Many thanks to my boo ptao for making sure i get in avec mes amis. More on this, avec les photos, later!

bis

À bout de souffle

La nouvelle vague... j'adore.

Things I don't do often enough while in Paris:

1. sleep

2. count (people wearing mittens vs gloves, dogs, jars of honey, etc.)

3. read my vintage Tin Tins from Brussels, Belgium in French

4. go to all the tearooms on my other list

5. cook new recipes

6. take photos

7. run - it's the only way i sleep well, think well, and hurt well, i miss it

8. smile (another thing I've become acclimated to [no smiling, that is])

9. eat baguettes (but to be honest, I'm kind of over them)

10. play chess (it's too cold right now to hit the parks)

The bunny matches...

So I'm downloading a bunch of "nouvelle vague" films right now. I'll start my first voyage into the realm of black and white, snob-fest, film critiquing with "Á Bout de Souffle (Breathless, 1960)" currently ranked number 3 of director Jean-Luc Godard's top ten films PRE-1968... you see? I'm already annoying myself.

Below are some photos taken after dinner. Vogue menthols, my lima bean scramble and an oreo binge = Justine + Brit typical night in Paris. Bah OUI!

If you're missing Paris right now... it's about to go below zero again... >=[ so count your blessings, I suppose; although, I did find myself sweating a little bit today in my tunic and coat. Does this mean I've become acclimated? A terrifying thought, indeed. Today consisted of boring-ly busy orientation week things: La Sorbonne information session, Institut Catholique information session, a short placement test, intensive french classes, grocery shopping at the Ledru-Rollin Monoprix @7:15pm (which is NOT advisable, seeing as everyone in the bottom of the 11th quarter was doing their own last minute dinner shopping...), and then hanging out in the apartment with Justine, and then wining with Samira and her friend Mona. My tummy is growling angrily after the 4-oreo-binge I went on post-dinner-and-Riesling. It's playing its own little digestive tune. So I sit, and let my gluteus maximus' (maximi?) feel like they are congealing and tap away slack-jawed and much too awake for 1:46 am Paris time. Blahhhhhhh. Why can't I sleep???

If i could sum up the night in one photo...

Ma Chambre, Part Deux

Welcome to my cozy room in my new apartment! I live off the metro stop Rue Saint-Maur in the 11th quarter of Paris. I like to describe the area as a charming balance between seedy and student-y.

futon-bed = coach/bed whenever i see fit

my usual view from my couch-bed.

Wine Country!

Seriously considering renting a car and planning a wine-country-wine-tasting trip outside of Paris (Alsace? Loire Vallery??). Am now accepting any and all suggestions! :-]

LES SOLDES

It's Sunday morning and everything is closed. Comme d'habitude, I suppose. I have one mosquito bite on the top of my left foot: this really bothers me.

Yesterday... I slept in and then met up with Co, one of the "new kids" of the USC Paris program. Together, we stormed Rue St-Honoré with heated window-shopping and general exploring of Les Soldes. I was unprepared for the rumored treasures of Parisian Soldes, but they were pretty eye-popping. They only come twice a year, in January and July, and I've finally caught them!

Justine made some new additions to our apartment, a new table and chair, je pense. She found them on the street during late treks home, just like another chair we already had. The XX - Crystalline is playing in the living room and I just moved all the space heaters to strategically better positions. It's 12:41 pm and it's a Sunday - what to do?

I'm about 2/3 through Hemingway's For Whom the Bell Tolls, so I 'spose I'll find a cozy café or tea room open to get some reading under my belt. Apologies for the static blogging, my brain isn't quite functioning up to it's normal fluid speed. Things are toppling out like a bin of legos right now, and I can't yet find the means to build anything too formidable.

Bien, bien.

???!!!

Tried to stay up as late as I could, went to bed at 8pm (set my alarm for 7:30am)... Woke up at midnight, stayed up till 6am... WOKE UP AT 1pm !!!

Too Jet-Lagged

...to blog. But I landed around 10:30am, met a really friendly French guy named Dimitri from the Loire Valley, met some of my program peeps, etc. Will elaborate on this further tomorrow!

Hello Readers

I'm back, and blogging!

I've been spending the last three weeks between San Diego and Los Angeles, and it has been fabulous; not to mention so much cheaper! I'm eager to start blogging again during my next semester in Paris; and I hope you're all following along with me!

You'll get to meet my new Parisian roommate, Justine Audrain, and experience pitfalls and triumphs the Parisian way.