La Ville des Lumières

Hi all! So it's been a few days, but I have certainly been busy.  Friday I had class and then rested up for my voyage to Paris! I was extremely excited to go to Paris.  I had been nearly 6 years ago with my parents.  I can't believe it's been that long! Crazy.

Saturday morning we all woke up.  Although I had slept the whole night through, I was still exhausted.  Is it still okay to blame jet lag?  We grabbed our backpacks and ran out the door because the boys were getting impatient.  Twelve of us walked to the train station, then waited for our train.  Wantagh to Penn Station much? It certainly felt that way; slightly different scenery, of course.  When we got into Paris, I was certainly not in Kansas anymore.  The Gare du Nord is about 5 or 6 times the six of Penn Station, no exaggeration.  With 12 people, it certainly wasn't easy to move around.  Everything moved slower.  I actually found myself getting quite frustrated at various times throughout the weekend, being as I was raised in one of the busiest areas in the world where fast paced life is the norm, and anything else is just ridiculous.  People were walking at a glacial pace and I found myself yearning for the New Yorkers that push you out of their way.

That all went away when we broke out of the train station and I was able to see the quaint streets of Paris.  Although it was extremely crowded, there is really nothing like it.  We first went to the church of Sacré Coeur, which is located in the neighborhood of Montmartre.  The church is located on a hill and overlooks the entire city.  It wasn't too nice of a day, but I was able to see a lot.  I definitely want to return on a nicer day.  After that, we all grabbed a sandwich from a stand and contemplated the next move of the day.  That little break was probably about an hour long.  So slow.  We then decided to go to Notre Dame.  Everyone was in agreement with that plan.  Such a beautiful church.  Outside, it was so interesting to see all of the people that the church attracted; people taking wedding photos, the bulk of tourists, people offering free hugs, etc.  Such a hub of diversity.  Truly interesting. After seeing the inside of the church, a few of us ducked into a café to get out of the cold and rain, and soon everyone joined.  We then decided that we would do some shopping and browsing to be inside for longer periods of time.  With plans made, we left the café and began walking.  About fifteen minutes later, we realized that we were missing a person, Bruno! We immediately went back to the café and looked for him.  After an hour without success, we decided to split up.  Some went to the shops, some looked around Notre Dame, some went to the Gare du Nord to see if he was going to try to go back to Compiègne.  NOTHING.  We all just then went to the hostel, although Bruno didn't know the address, but we were tired and were not accomplishing anything.

After checking in and recuperating for some time, we decided to get a bottle of wine and chill out for a few.  We walked out onto the street and guess who we saw walking towards us? BRUNO! Thank goodness.  No one knows how he found it, but I'm not asking questions.  Apparently he didn't think to go back to the café or anything, so he just went around Paris by himself and saw some more things.  How nice...

After another head count, we decided to go to La Tour Eiffel! Totally my idea.  It was already nighttime, so what could be more beautiful at night?  I was also extremely hungry and wanted to get moving.  We took our wine and our tickets for the metro and got moving.  We got out at the Trocadéro, which is right across the river from the tower (great photo op).  I walked up the stairs of the metro and I saw the light in the sky that radiates from the tower in circles to alert.  I was SO excited.  I then hustled to get in front of the buildings that were blocking the view.  I turned the corner, and there it was, twinkling for me!  I jumped up and down like a 5 year old, but I don't regret it for a second.  After taking it all in for a few minutes, I got a sandwich, and enjoyed my favorite moment in France thus far.  That was probably one of the best moments of my life as well.  Words can't really describe. All I can say is that was way more than just looking at a monument.

After staying at the tower for about an hour, we decided to get going.  The plan was to go to a boat club on the river, so we tried to find where it left from.  Upon arriving there, I found out that it was 25 euro to go, and the boat didn't move. Sooooo, yeah I opted out and went back to the hostel with a few people and got some shuteye.  The next day, we had our 2 euro breakfast of bread and coffee at the hostel.  Très bon. We then checked out of the hostel and went to a Louis Vuitton exhibit in a museum nearby.  It was extremely cool to see all of the old trunks and such that expanded into an empire.  After that we went to the Champs Élysées and l'Arc du Triomphe.  Classic. We then realized that our bodies couldn't take any more, so we trekked back to good 'ol Compiègne.  It was really nice to return, which made me realize that I have made something for myself here in just this short amount of time.  Plus, it's a lot more mellow than Paris, which I actually appreciate.


After a hot shower and a little bit of homework, I went to bed.  This morning I woke up early to go sign my contract for my apartment.  I have to pay for the month of July, which is extremely frustrating, but other than that, all looks good.  This week I don't have class Tuesday or Friday, but I do have class Saturday morning.  Totally cramping my style.  BUT, we are going to the Château Pierrefonds on Wednesday, which makes it all better.  Hope everyone at home is doing well, and happy first day of school to all of the ZTA/URI buds.  Miss you all!


Love,
Amanda 

Une Semaine!

Mon Dieu! I have been here for exactly one week!  I can honestly say that I am not sure whether it went fast or slow.  I feel completely removed from myself, which is probably a sign of culture shock, but it isn't bad at all.  I have gotten to the place where I am beginning to know what I want to buy at the market, where the market actually is, the best way to get to the market, what time I have to go to school, etc.  I'm beginning to know what works for me, and what doesn't.  A routine is forming, and that comforts me...a lot.

School is going well.  It is a little slow, but there is a lot to be done during the first week, which is understandable.  There is certainly a lot of work to be done on my behalf the next few weeks before the semester starts.

Today we had a Rallye de Compiègne, which was a sort of scavenger hunt around the city.  I was teamed up with some people from Mexico and Spain.  I obviously tried to put my little bit of Spanish to use, which did not work out well. We had lunch after the hunt and then we all met up at the Chateâu de Compiègne.  There, we toured the huge palace, and it was breathtaking.  I may even dare to say that it is a mini Château de Versailles.  Just maybe.  The horrible internet in this hostel/slum that I'm living in will not let me upload any pictures, but I took a lot and will get around to that when I move.

Speaking of this hostel/slum; all of the exchange students received a hilarious letter from the management about noise control.  It has the "threats" in French, then a horrible English translation on the bottom half of the paper.  The noise level is probably a bit elevated, but then again, there are about 40 students living in the same hallway, constantly interacting.  The crazy French manager lady came to the hallway yesterday at 1pm to yell at all of us and tell us that she has our credit card numbers and isn't afraid to use them.  Gotta love it.

This weekend, I am going to Paris for a night with a bunch of the other students.  We rented rooms in a hostel to avoid having to rush back to Compiègne at night, plus we want to go out and have Sunday to explore.  Well, I have to go do some homework and get some stuff together!

xoxo,
Amanda

Le Stage Intensif

Bonjour! Today begin the stage intensif here in France for me.  This is a class that lasts for 4 weeks that is a language immersion course.  My roommates and I woke up this morning, groggy as ever.  The sun seems to take longer to rise here; I don't know why.  We took the bus to school with a bunch of our hall mates and proceeded to UTC to try and find our building.  After much confusion between three languages (French, English, and Portuguese), we finally found our classroom.  There, the French professors took roll of every exchange student.  Let's just say that I'm a minority.  The bulk of students here are Brazilian and Chilean.  Other countries that are represented are: Germany, Italy, Mexico, Portugal, S. Korea, Slovakia, and the good ol' USA! There is one other American here with me, Liam, who is from Illinois.

After hearing all of the places that are being represented, we were given bags with folders inside that had a ton of information about Compiègne; bus schedules and good places to go eat and shop.  We also received a packet of the schedule for the next few weeks of the course and I am super excited.  We are going to the Château Pierrefonds, Paris (on a boat cruise!), and around Compiègne! We were then broken up into ability level with a short oral interview and review of our online test scores.  I was bumped up to the highest level, luckily, and I am with my roommate Luiza.  I really like our class.  There are 9 people in it.  Three people are from Brazil, two from the USA:), three from Chile, and one from Mexico.  A really nice group of people and the instructor is one like I would find in Rhody, but she definitely speaks faster.

After class, I felt like I was in 6th grade again, walking home from school and feeling like I could do anything I wanted.  A few of us walked together and stopped in the cell phone shop to ask some questions, although I am well-equipped with a phone thanks to Cait.  We then went to the cutest little bookstore to get our workbook for the course.  After that, two of the girls and I decided to be spontaneous and take the bus to the centre commercial, which is the area with big department stores and such.  I went to the French version of Best Buy; definitely not as good, but it held its own.  We then went to Carre Four, which is like a Target, Walmart, Stop & Shop, and Best Buy put together.  Very easy to get lost there, but it is a super fun place to browse around and read all of the labels.  What can I say? I'm a nerd.

Anyway, I'm going to take it easy tonight.  I did a lot of walking and rushing around today!  Talk soon!
-Amanda

Je suis arrivée!

I am here in France! After a long and quite tiring trip, I have arrived.  Lots to tell!

I left NY in style; I saw Lauren Conrad on line at security and then proceeded to bawl my eyes out when leaving my parents at the scanners.  This is definitely the hardest thing I have done thus far in my life.  After my parents were out of sight, I knew that my journey had started and I was alone.  I was sad, but a little bit excited for the trip.  On board the plane, I met an extremely nice guy, Liman, who had left his life in the states to search for a photography career in either Paris or London.   He had packed his bags without knowing if and when he would return home.  That made me admire him and the journeys that he and I were both beginning.  After reaching Paris and saying goodbye to my new friend, I was really by myself.

I purchased a bus ticket to the train station, Creil.  From Creil, I would then take the train to Compiègne.   Buying the ticket was no problem, although my two suitcases and huge backpack had trouble fitting through the door.  That was the first moment that I used my French and it worked! YAY! After purchasing the ticket, I had to wait an hour for the bus.  During that hour I saw many people doing their daily hustle and bustle to and from their work.  I even saw the doppelgänger of Marshall Eriksen (Jason Segel) of How I Met Your Mother.  Yes, my obsession of that show has made its way overseas.  I then had my next hurdle: getting my luggage on the coach bus.  Luckily, a very nice French man helped me and we were on our way.

I got off the bus in Creil and a very nice French lady that was on the same bus as me saw me looking around and decided to talk to me.  She showed me where to go and asked me about where I was from, once again, very nice.  We said our goodbyes and I bought my ticket to Compiègne.  Only problem?  It was three hours from the time I bought the ticket.  I had two suitcases and nowhere to sit, so I stood.  For three hours. After the train track was announced I had to lift my luggage up and down stairs where another French man helped me.  I was almost there!! The train came and before I knew it I was in Compiègne, my long awaited destination.  The lovely Caitlin Hurley retrieved me and helped me find my lodging.  We rolled my suitcases all over town before we found a very well hidden Cap'affaire, the name of the hostel-type place.

I checked in, and left immediately with Cait.  We went to UTC and then to a party for all of the exchange students to celebrate the end of their semester.  I met a few very nice people and despite the jetlag and extreme hunger, was able to have conversations in French with them.  It was nice to see how well they spoke.  I'm excited to see what I will learn here.  After that, I knew I had to go to bed, so Cait brought me home and I finally got some sleep!

The next day (Friday), Cait took me around Compiègne with one of my roommates, Zuzanna, who had arrived that day.  I went to the bank to open an account, put minutes on the cell phone that Cait gave me, and walked around the town.  So pretty!  Later that night, I ate with Cait and some of her friends then stayed for a little soirée to celebrate their end of the semester.

Today I didn't do very much.  Zuzanna and I walked around the city and bought some pasta and other groceries to make lunch and dinner.  My other roommate, Luisa, is in Paris with her mom and sister, so she hasn't been around much.  Tomorrow should be the first day that we are all together in this pretty tight space.  We shall see.  Anyway, I'm going to go to sleep!

-AM

A few more days in the USA

I have decided to start a blog.  Shocking, I know.  I never was quite comfortable with the whole scene, and I still don't think that I really am, but since I am about to embark on a quite memorable journey, it seems appropriate.  I am leaving for France this Wednesday and will be there for 5 1/2 months!  I am staying in Compiègne, which is about an hour northeast of the city of lights. So now I am in the midst of packing and consolidating.  It's kind of difficult to compress your life into a bag or two.  I am going to go enjoy being home for a couple more days, but will certainly be writing upon my arrival.

XO, 

AM

PS: Can you find Compiègne?