Today is crazy-person day in Paris. Oh, wait...that's everyday.

I didn't have class until 10:45 this morning (yessss...sleep=wonderful), so I was taking my sweet time getting ready. When I went to leave the building, there were two men with power tools waiting to come in, so I opened the door for them. Except they thought it would be funny to pretend that their drill was a gun and pointed it at me from outside the window. Um, okay? Best of all, they had about three teeth between the two of them. Classy.

Then, when I was coming through the metro turnstile, the man behind me loudly exclaimed "YES! J'ai pas paye!" ("I didn't pay!"). Meanwhile, I was bending down to pick up a glove that the women in front of me had dropped. I'm trying to get her attention and saying "Madame! Madame!" and the crazy man behind me yells all...crazily..."MADAME! MADAME!" mimicking me. She, of course, is paying zero attention because she doesn't want to associate with the insane. I finally gave it back to her and hurried away from the man who illegally entered the metro station. Did I mention that one of his eyes was covered by a gigantic patch? Always a good sign.

Anyway, back to the weekend.

It was FREEZING on Friday, so despite our best efforts to see the sites of Paris, we ended up just going to Shakespeare and Company and looking at books for a while. It was amazing, of course, and full of book (like, from floor to ceiling). The cashier was hot and British and said "cheers!" after checking us out. I think I'm in love.

Afterward we noticed that, oh, hey, Notre Dame was right across the street. Magic. We didn't go in because they charge a fee, but we'll definitely go back another day. We wandered the streets some more, taking shelter in random stores every once in a while, and finally ended up at this little restaurant in the 5th district. We were the first people there because it was only 6 or something (and the French usually eat at 8ish), so we had to wait a half an hour until we could order. The food was excellent and warm, which was really all I needed.

I saw _Le Secret de Brokeback Mountain_ on Saturday (immersion shmimmersion--it had French subtitles, though). It was amazing and sad and made me want to go to Wyoming (and marry Heath Ledger, but that's another story). Nicole was visiting her sister, so a few of us made dinner at my place. As to be expected, there was much wine, bread, and cheese. It actually felt like home, just sitting around and chilling instead of eating out. There are plans to do it again soon.

Sunday was my "I want to go home" day, mostly because I didn't really have anything to do. I did finally go see my friend Sam, who lives on the other side of the city. We didn't do much, but I listened to Coldplay on her ipod, which definitely made my life better. My parents called me on Sunday night, but it was the least productive conversation ever because my cell phone apparently gets zero reception. They just kept saying "We can't heeaaaar you! It sounds like the ocean!" Perhaps it's the Atlantic, parents.

Classes started yesterday. I took three pages of notes in my History of Paris class (what?!) and we got no syllabus. Off to a great start. My cinema class seems cool. The professor is also a director, so hopefully he won't be too artsy-intense. Women in French Literature seems a little...hard. My professor's strict and big on punctuality. We have to look up the names of the French dictionaries from the 19th and 20th centuries for tomorrow, which means I may have to go to the library. Eeeek. I'm afraid!

I had my grammar class this morning. The professor seems ridiculously nice and smiles all the time, which is atypical for Parisians. It doesn't seem too difficult, so I think it should be fine. We'll see.

I still have no idea what's going on with Amazon, but I'm less freaked out about it today. Whatever. Not a whole lot I can do about it.

Now I'm off to find some lunch and make my dictionary list. Oh, hurray.

The plan was to write an in-depth, play-by-play account of my weekend, but now I'm too tired/stressed. Apparently Amazon.com is out to get me because not only did I receive notice that one of the textbooks I sold over winter break never reached its intended recepient (or so he claims), but apparently some shit's been going down with my credit card and I need to "confirm my identity." Unfortunately, the link doesn't work so I am now identityless and concerned that someone has been using my credit card number (how? why? who knows?). Sometimes being on the other side of the world is very, very sucky.

Until tomorrow, when I will hopefully be able to fulfill all previous promises of writing about my weekend.

Apologies for the lack of updates. It's hard to get everything done when time is sparse.

IES held a wine tasting on Tuesday. We got to try two white and two red and discovered the proper way to drink wine (sniff, swirl, sniff, swirl, sip). Everyone got really excited about all of the bread and cheese they gave us (free food), which was surprisingly delicious.

We had our welcome dinner cruise on the Seine on Wednesday night. It was beautiful, though I could only name a few of the monuments we passed by. It was a strange experience to be warm, well-dressed, and full of fancy food only to pass bridges under which communities of homeless people had constructed veritable carboard mansions. There are a surprising number of beggars here, which I guess is the case with any large city. I just can't imagine having to live in a metro station. It's not like I've never seen a homeless person before, but there's just a surprising juxtaposition here between the rich and the poor (I know, I know, just like every other country).

A lot of IES students are leaving this weekend to travel to Brussels or Amsterdam or a number of other cities. It's kind of hard to believe. I feel like I'm just establishing my roots here and have no intention of leaving this city for at least a few more weeks. Different strokes, I guess.

Hopefully I'll find some Parisian fun this weekend before classes start on Monday. Happy Friday, all.

I finally got to do some touristy things this weekend, so hurray. I went to the Eiffel Tower on Friday night and it was too amazing for words. It twinkles every hour on the hour, which just increases the beauty. As is to be expected, I was witness to many a make-out session (the French know how to grope), but I tried to ignore it and focus on more important things. I also finally drank some delicious French wine (mmmm).

We went to the Louvre as planned on Saturday. I saw the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, and not a whole lot else. The museum is enormous, so it's definitely going to take multiple visits to get through it all. Maybe someday...

I feel like all of my good eating habits are going out the window. This weekend I consumed, in addition to my regular meals, one Nutella crepe, two chocolate croissants, one brownie, and a slice of cheesecake. Today I ate 3/4 of a pizza. I guess I walk everywhere, so calories are not only appreciated, but necessary. Whatever. I can eat salad in America.

I washed my clothes for the first time this weekend and because dryers don't exist in France, everything had to be hung on the clothesline above the tub (not exactly a prime location). I had a presentation this morning, so I was trying to look as non-schlubby as possible and definitely found myself drying my jeans with a hair-dryer. But, hey, it worked and I spared myself the agony of walking around freezing Paris in wet jeans.

Okay, I guess other people need to use the computer. Later, yo.

I think that the jetlag is subsiding. It's been seven days, so according to the "one day of jetlag per timezone" philosophy, this should be it. Let's hope.

I can't believe I've only been here a week. It feels like months. I guess I've made a lot of progress since I arrived last Wednesday. Now I actually have the metro figured out and know how to get to my regular places (apartment, IES, Institut Catholique). Time is a funny thing these days.

After copious amounts of rigamarole, I finally got my traveller's checks exchanged. I had to present my passport, sign the checks, wait for the man to stamp them, sign the receipt, and pay a 5 euro commission (laaaaaame), but now I actually have cash. All is well.

I've eaten so many croissants already. They're so delicious and often filled with chocolate, which is pretty much heaven on earth. Nicole has also introduced me to avocados (not that I didn't eat them before, but I've just realized how amazing they are). At first she asked me how I take mine: "Avec du citron? De l'huile?" Ummm...? She put oil and vinegar inside and it was SO GOOD. Unfortunately, last night we ate mushroom soup, which was not so good. At first I was tasting it and thought it was potato or something and, thus, didn't really have a problem with it. But as soon as Nicole told me it was "la soupe de champignons" I just couldn't do it anymore. Ignorance is definitely bliss.

In short, life is better. Hope all is well aux Etats-Unis.

Studying abroad is so much better after the first day. I still haven't seen that much (other than the Arc and the Eiffel Tower from a distance), but I keep telling myself that there's plenty of time. I think a few of us are going to go to the Louvre this weekend. So excited!

Nevertheless, I'm pretty sure I'm in the "everything's annoying" stage of culture shock. It's the little differences that end up being the most irritating.

I can hear the people above and next door to us at all times. If they open a door, run the water, or get into a heated argument, I can hear it. There are also cars driving on our street during every hour of the night and day.

The shower isn't really a shower, but a bath with a connected shower head (as in, it's a long, snake-like thing that's attached to the tub spout). I have to sit down to take a shower for fear of hitting my head on the clothesline hanging above the tub.

Electricity is sparse, so only two-three lights are on at a time in the whole apartment. This makes for very dark entrances when returning home late at night.

The French have less than no time for everyone other than themselves. Moreover, while it infuriates them to have American speak English, they don't even give you a chance to speak French. My attempts to purchase a "seche cheveux" had the entire staff of Monoprix replying "you're looking for a hairdryer?"

There are no rules about anything. Lines don't exist. Sidewalks are not just for walking. Red light? No matter. Just go.

It's impossible to find anything because the streets are neither perpendicular nor parallel. Instead, they run into each other and change names when it's convenient.

I promise that life doesn't suck. I'm excited to be here, but the adjustment process is difficult. Everyone's tired and getting sick (I'm trying to avoid that second one). Sleep only comes when it so desires. Speaking and listening to French all day long is completely exhausting. But I'm in Paris and it's amazing. I have not immediately fallen in love with this city, but I'm getting there.

Well, I'm here.

The flight over was fine. I ended up switching seats (long story), so the flight attendants wanted to give me many free things. It really wasn't a big deal at all (I still got to sit by the window, which was really the only goal), but I got a free headset out of the deal. I watched Wedding Crashers, which was okay, but not as funny as everyone had led me to believe.

Charles de Gaulle (the airport, not the person) is kind of...dumpy. I couldn't find anyone from IES Paris (though there were some on my flight), so I ended up walking with some kids from NYU. They were nice and waited with me when I thought my luggage was lost (it wasn't) and then helped me find where I needed to go. I needed to take the Air France bus to the Gare Montparnasse, but that particular bus was on strike or not working or something, so I was left clueless as to what to do. The ticket attendant was completely non-helpful and kept saying "etoile" and some other stuff that I couldn't understand. I finally got to the Arc de Triomphe and then took the metro to the IES center, all the while lugging my 45 pound suitcase and 30 pound backpack around with me. Basically, yesterday was one of the most stressful days of my life. I almost got squished by the metro doors and run over by a motorcyle (people don't stop in this city for pedestrians EVER). It wasn't exactly the wonderful start I was hoping for, but after sleeping and meeting some of the other students, everything is going relatively well.

My host mom, Nicole, is very nice. She has a little dog, Voyou, who's cute and fun and makes me miss my dogs less. She's in her 40's, I think, and has two sons who live in Lyon. She wears a wedding ring, but I guess she's separated from her husband. Although she tells me that her "ingleesh eez terrible," she can generally understand what I'm saying if I can't figure out a word in French. I think that we'll get along well.

All of the other students seem overwhelmed right now, so although we're trying to make friends, we're also exhausted and not adapted whatsoever to French life. The French are both relaxed about nearly everything (meals, for example) and incredibly intense (see: driving). This is definitely going to take some getting used to.

I miss everyone and May 25 seems very far away right now, but I know this semester is going to fly by.

Aaah. Less than 48 hours. I feel like time is speeding up.

My computer decided that last night would be a spectacular time to stop working. I watched a movie on it w/ my mom the night before and everything was fine, but when I went to turn it on yesterday, the screen was black. Although, weirdly, I could see the images if I shined a light on it. After many, many minutes on hold on Dell's tech support line, I finally talked to a person who, after much trial and error, concluded that my screen needed replacing. Great. Want to, perhaps, do that within the next three days? Unfortunately, there was no such luck. The laptop must be sent in to be fixed. They're sending me a postage-paid box in 2-3 business days and will be returning the computer 5-8 business days after that. My parents have convinced me that Dell WILL send the fixed laptop to France, arguing, of course, that an eight-month-old computer really shouldn't be having problems. My dad is feel powerful and will convince them in the morning. We'll see how that goes.

Otherwise, things are going well. I am less nervous and more excited about this adventure, despite the overwhelming feeling that I have no idea what I'm getting into. Because, you know, I don't. I am such a plan-ahead-control-freak that it's driving me absolutely crazy not knowing about...everything. Only a few short days until many mysteries are solved, I guess, at which point significantly more will be created. Ah, well. It's good for me, right?

one week!

Well, the past seven days have brought me a lot of clarity and tranquility. The stress is definitely still there, but I'm also getting really excited.

I received my housing assignment last week, which was probably the most worry-invoking part of this whole process. I'll be living with the Gagneux family (Gagneux literally translates to "winners"--a sign, yes?), although I'm not really sure if it's a family or just a woman. IES didn't initially give me their/her e-mail address, so I was naturally freaking out because I had to call them/her and speak IN FRENCH. HOLY CRAP. I was basically afraid I was going to miss something major and, you know, show up on the wrong day or something. Fortunately, Nicole (host mom) e-mailed me this weekend. The good news is she's excited to meet me. The bad news is she's not getting home until 7:45 p.m. on the day I arrive. I arrive at l'aeroport at 10-ish a.m. Now, granted, I have to go through customs and immigration and all of that, but that still leaves a good seven hours. I spoke with IES today and, although I can stay at the center until she comes to pick me up, they close at 6. So I have to stand out on the street for two hours? My IES advisor reassured me that they'll probably just stay open for me, although she wasn't sure because this has never happened before. Oh, good. Setting precedents already. I know it will all be okay, though. More importantly, I know that it will soon be a distant memory.

The OTHER good news is that I got a phone call from Sam, who lives three blocks away from me and is going to Paris on the same program. Not only does she live in my neighborhood, she also went to my high school. And I never knew her. How weird is that? We talked on the phone and we're planning on getting coffee later this week, so hurray for friendly faces.

Until next time, I guess.