The Halfway Point

     It's hard to believe that I'm halfway through my semester abroad.  In some ways it feels like I've been here much longer than three months.  I definitely think I've changed in many ways... but it also seems just yesterday that I was getting off the plane and moving in with my host family.

     Well the last few weeks have been very enjoyable and super busy.  I've hosted two dinners - one to celebrate a friend's birthday and one to cook a good American dinner for my host mother.  Above is a group shot of all of us in my dining room eating my garlic breaded chicken, sweet buttery carrots, and cheesy mashed potatoes.  It was very good, if I do say so myself - complete with the French version of a birthday cake (a chocolate hazelnut torte from our favorite neighborhood bakery!).  For my host mother, I made a similar meal, except I added a tomato-basil tarte and my well-known specialty, chocolate chip cookies.  I think Thérèse-Marie really enjoyed it (well, at the least, she ate everything on her plate!).

     I also had another visitor - my friend Ben from Wesleyan came to do a tour of all of

his friends studying abroad in Europe.  He stayed in Paris for three days, so I took him around to all the sites and we both had a really great time!  It was St. Patrick's Day while he was here, and as we are both Irish, we had to celebrate the only way we knew how... with Guinness!

     And I finally had a chance to play football (what we Americans call 'soccer') with some French students!  It was a very intense match, and I must admit that the French players were much better than us Americans.  My official excuse is that I haven't played soccer since I was a little kid...  Still it was an awesome - and very French - experience.

    I should also mention that I just got back from a weekend excursion to Mont Saint Michel and Saint Malo, but I will describe that in a separate post later this week!

Art, Food, Good Company, and a Cold

     Bonjour tout le monde! I'm sorry it's been a while since I last updated... somehow life in Paris has gotten very busy!

     Well the week before last I was on break, so I took the time off from classes to profiter de Paris (enjoy Paris).  I saw my first play and my first opera - the play was a short piece called "Paix du Ménage" by Guy de Maupassant at a quaint little theater in a part of Paris that I had yet to visit. It was very well-done; there were only 3 actors, and though it was written in 1893, the actors were very young and spirited and brought a humorous, modern element to the play. Afterwards was the best part: we had apéritifs and dinner with the actors and directors at the delicious couscous restaurant across the street! It was very interesting to talk to the actors about French theater and about Paris in general.

     I recently went to the opera at the Champs-Elysées to see "Les Noces de Figaro," and it was magnifique. The orchestra, the singing, and the operahouse were all amazing! Thankfully the opera was subtitled (in French), since it is performed in the original Italian. I also had the foresight to do some research beforehand to learn the story, since the plotline is somewhat confusing!

 

    I also hosted my first guest during the break - my friend Jill is studying abroad in London 

for the year, and so she came to stay at the apartment for the weekend. It was very fun being the tour guide and showing her all of my favorite spots in Paris! On the left, you can see us being dwarfed by the Eiffel tower.

     Another interesting experience I had was finally learning how to make a French meal - three friends and I decided to do a one-time cooking class. First we all went to the market together to select the ingredients for the meal, and then we went back to the kitchen to cook everything. It was delicious! The exact menu was mushroom soup, salmon with curry sauce

 and leeks, celery root, and carrots on the side, and chocolate mousse for dessert. Here we are at the table, about to devour our incredible mousse with our prof de cuisine, Thierry.

     Finally, I've been looking for a way to earn money while I'm here. Strictly speaking, we are not allowed to have jobs because we have student visas and not work visas. However, the English professor who teaches the course that I am an assistant for has asked me to correct English papers for a few hours a week. I also just began tutoring a thirteen-year old girl in English.... so though I'm not legally employed, I'm now bringing in a few euros per week!

     And I can't forget to mention that I have been sick with a cold for the past few weeks. I normally get a cold or two during the winter months, so I assumed it would just go away... but this one hung on for two weeks, so I finally decided to take my sad, sick self to the French doctor. I was very apprehensive about explaining my symptoms in French, as well as the French healthcare system in general, but I was quite impressed! Without an appointment I only had to wait about 40 minutes to see a doctor. The consultation only cost 22 euros, and my 3 prescriptions were 15 euros total! It was the most painless doctor's visit I've ever had - even in the US! So now my sinusitis has subsided and I am back to enjoying la vie parisienne.

     More to come soon, I hope...!