Bonjour everyone and welcome to my blog! I have finally arrived in
Paris, and it is a WONDERLAND. Yesterday, I took a taxi from Charles de Gaulle and ended up at a beautiful building in a lively and chic neighborhood. My room is ridiculously large (quite possibly larger than my room at home in
Claremont) and there is even a marble fireplace in it (see photos). I am renting the room from an older lady who showed me around the neighborhood and fed me yesterday. She is GREAT—very nice and accommodating but she also allows me enough independence. The neighborhood, as I mentioned, is absolutely fantastic. I am 2 short blocks away from the Arc de Triomphe and Champs Elysées. There are tons of clothing stores, markets, restaurants, bars, etc. close to me and next door is even a wonderful boulangerie and pâtissière where I got a chocolate croissant this morning.
Today, I explored this neighborhood and got lost, which turned into a fun adventure through the 16th and 17th arrondissements. When I was just about to get nervous and ask for directions, I found L’arc de Triomphe, my landmark and was able to get on my way. Later, I explored the Champs Elysées and happened to turn down a random street, Avenue Montaigne, which ended up being the street where all of the high fashion (Chanel, Dior, Chloé, etc.) houses are. I then made my way to a very cool restaurant (La Flamme – I think?) on a street nearby my apartment and had a goat cheese and gizzard salad per Baggy’s suggestion, and an Irish coffee just because—both of which were great. I can see why the French are known for their lean physique; with such delicious and rich foods, there’s no way they can ever finish their plates!
I can already tell that my French is going to come along quite nicely. In the cab from the airport, I had a nice little chat with my driver, who told me that frankly, he thought my French was quite good. He even chuckled when I used the (perhaps sophisticated) expression “J’imagine…” (“I imagine so…”), and told me he thought I would be “très bien intégrée”. The woman who I’m staying with also complimented me on my French and we have had some nice conversations. Surprisingly, I’m doing a lot better with long conversations than I am with brief interactions, but I guess that makes sense as I’ve primarily learned the language in academic settings. I did order my meal and drink without difficulty or without the waiter just speaking to me in English (which has also been happening).
Tomorrow I have my first orientation activity and I’m excited to meet some of the students with whom I will be studying.
Paris is a wonderful city—everything I love about New York, but older, more charming, and much cleaner. All in all, I can tell that I’m going to learn a lot here and I’ve already fallen in love with this place.
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