I feel like I haven't written on here in a long time. I guess the last time I talked about la vie quotidian it was before Scotland.
I knew that I would feel like this now though. I have successfully completed six presentations in the six weeks I have been here in classes. And by successfully I don't mean I did well (I actually haven't gotten grades on any of them). I simply mean that I did them. And that in it of itself is a success...
And after deciding to change the course that nearly gave me an ulcer to Pass/No Pass, I am really starting to see life beyond SciencesPo. I am in love with my apartment, I couldn't have a better roommate (well maybe except Axel), I am starting my week of concerts (Michael Bublé next Wednesday, this crazy Sweedish chick I haven't heard of on the second, and Justin Nozuka with my frined Julie on Nov. 4). I only have two more presentations to do, only one of which requires me to speak. I have my carte de séjour. I still don't quite have my bank account fully functional, nor a good cell phone, but those will soon come.
This weekend I will be spending in the library (at least Saturday) working on my midterm paper for my Social History of the US course. I really like that class. Although my professor asks random questions that I feel like I should know beucase I'm American. It's kind of embarrassing how little contemporary history I know. If you ask me about how our government functions, I can go on and on, but if you asked me about major social movements and their ideologies.... not so much. I guess that's a good thing that I'm taking this class.
On Sunday, I will be cooking dinner for my first host family. Michele, Georgiana, Jerome and maybe Lucas will be coming over here. As of now, the menu is going to be be burgers and fries (I found hamburger buns and cheddar cheese!) and a dessert of strawberry shortcake. If I can't find whipped cream for the short cake, I'm gonna just rely on good ole Ben&Jerry's cookie dough. They told me they had never tried it so I think it is as good a time as any!
I've also discovered something interesting about this city. Since I live so far from the city center, I've realized that I've kind of been creating the soundtrack to my life here. I have a few playlists on my iPod, and depending on what my mood is, I choose one to listen too. Already, some of the songs are inextricably linked to emotions and memories here. And the French do look at you strange if you mouth the words on the metro. I've decided to keep doing it to see if I can get them to break that stoic look that every Parisian seems to have mastered. It's like they are looking at you, but right through you. It's kind of freaky.
But I'm starting to warm up to this city. Which is a bit ironic considering the temperature outside. But all in all, now that I've taken the stress of the grades away I can see why people would be jealous of me living here. And now I can start to see exactly what I've been missing out all this time.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Edimburgh! (Ecosse Partie 2)
We woke up pretty late, having stayed up until between 3:30AM and 4:00AM on Friday. By the time we were up and ready to leave Calum's house, it was noon. Now I was a little worried, because we were headed to Edinburgh, where I really wanted to see my friend Michele, who I worked with this last summer at the FVC. The only problem was, my phone wouldn't connect the call. I asked my friend Amara, also from the VC, who is teaching in Spain, if she had Michele's number. Luckily she did. I tried that one. Still didn't work. So before we left, I asked Calum if I could go on facebook and look it up. For what ever reason after I found her number on facebook again, it connected!
I got a hold of Michele, letter her know about what our plans were. She said that she would be happy to meet us when we got there. So after finally making contact, Emily and I headed out. We got breakfast at the same restaurant (this time I skipped the black pudding...) and we headed to Queen Street Station to take the train to Edinburgh. We bought our tickets and were on the 2PM train.
The train ride was only about forty minutes, but it took you through the scottish countryside. Man, Scotland is gorgeous! So much green!!! And sheep. Every field we passed was littered with them. They almost looked like mushrooms. The rolling hillsides and the dark grey clouds looked gorgeous. I hadn't seen green hills like that since, well since visiting the Amish country when I visited my step sister my sophomore year of high school.
We arrived at Edinburgh. My god... I didn't know a city could look like that. It had the feel of a mediaeval fortress (because it was one). It looked like it was just stacked on top of itself. When we were walking about, we would be on a road, then there would be a gap where no building was and we would realize that we were on a bridge. It was bizarre.
The first thing we did there was hop on a double decker tour bus. We took it all over the city. It took us to the Castle, along the Royal Mile, the Holyrood Castle, the Scottish Parliament and to the Our Dynamic Earth museum. Then it dropped us back off at the train-station, where we hopped on. I gave Michele a call, telling her that Emily and I were going to walk up to the Royal Mile and do some shopping. She said that she would meet us up there.
The royal mile is really neat. I can't exactly remember why it is called the Royal Mile, but I assume it has something to do with the fact that at the top of it is the Castle and the length of it. When we were up there, I knew I wanted to get a genuine Scotish Cashmere sweater. And boy... was I in luck! I ended up with two sweaters (a black zip-up hoodie and a navy cardigan) and one scarf (tan and cream tartan print).
After I was decked out in my new Scottish garb, Emily and I headed over to the Elephant Café. This is a really important café. It is the location where JK Rowling wrote the first Harry Potter book. Michelle met us there, and we had tea (I had a hot chocolate. I don't understand tea... it tastes like slightly flavored hot water...). After tea, Michele took us down to Arthur's Seat.
Arthur's Seat (named after King Arthur) is a rock formation they say looks like a seated lion (the lion was the symbol of Arthur). It is a really cool hiking trail, and apparently at the top of it you have an amazing view of Edinburgh. We didn't have enough time to go up to the top, but we walked down to the base, where there is a charming little lake. There were swans and ducks swimming in it. The sky was turning a dark grey, but the sun was going down. The golden color pitched against the ominous clouds created my favorite sensation in nature, one that I don't have the skills to properly describe in words.
Around 5:45PM, the three of us decided to head back to the Royal Mile. Emily and I were going to go on a special tour and we needed to be there at 6:45PM, but we had to eat first. On the way up, we decided to stop in at a fish and chip shop, what the Scottish call a chippy. I had a baked steak pie and chips. It was SOOOOO good. Anyway, we said farewell to Michele at the shop and we ate. It was really great seeing her.
The restaurant was small, and didn't have any tables so we had to eat on the go. That was fine because we were going to go on a Haunted Edinburgh tour. We needed to get there there fifteen minutes before it started so we just ate up near the meeting point.
That tour was probably the coolest thing I have done since being here. The guide was this twenty-something blonde woman who had a wickedly sarcastic sense of humor. She was a great guide. We did a lot of walking around in the old parts of town. She told us a lot about what life was like for the poor down in Edinburgh in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. On this tour, I learned that the phrase "dead ringer" and "saved by the bell" come from the fact that in order to verify the corpse was actually dead, the grave diggers would run a string from a bell at the tombstone and tie it to the corpse's finger. If you suddenly woke up from your coma and were in a box, you would just pull on the string and hopefully someone would hear you and dig you up. Kinda gruesome.
But the coolest/freakiest part was when we went down to the vaults. The vaults were built originally as storerooms for the merchants of Edinbugh. After they realized that volcanic rock was porous and the store rooms would flood if it rained, the merchants said they were useless. That coupled with the fact that in 17th century Edinburgh if you were caught sleeping on the street three times you would be executed, the poorest of the poor started moving into them.
A lot of the vaults have now been converted into night clubs and bars and restaurants. But not the ones that we went to. Too many weird things happened in those ones... We were told stories about how during the great fire of 1824, seventy-eight people sought refuge in one of the rooms. Since volcanic rock conducts heat, the room turned into an oven. All of the people in that room were baked alive. Our guide had a lot of stories like that. But the only time I got actually freaked out was when I heard footsteps in the hall. And there wasn't anyone in the hall. That did make my heart beat a little faster.
The tour ended at a bar where they served Scottish Whisky and gave us shortbread cookies. It was a good thing too, because some of the people were pretty freaked. Oh, I forgot to mention, Emily and I made friends with Sonja, a really nice French/German woman from Madagascar. She invited us to go with her to a jazz club later that night, but we needed to get onto the train to go back to Calum's.
All in all, Edinburgh was a fantastic city! Probably my favorite in the UK (although I've only been to three).
I got a hold of Michele, letter her know about what our plans were. She said that she would be happy to meet us when we got there. So after finally making contact, Emily and I headed out. We got breakfast at the same restaurant (this time I skipped the black pudding...) and we headed to Queen Street Station to take the train to Edinburgh. We bought our tickets and were on the 2PM train.
The train ride was only about forty minutes, but it took you through the scottish countryside. Man, Scotland is gorgeous! So much green!!! And sheep. Every field we passed was littered with them. They almost looked like mushrooms. The rolling hillsides and the dark grey clouds looked gorgeous. I hadn't seen green hills like that since, well since visiting the Amish country when I visited my step sister my sophomore year of high school.
We arrived at Edinburgh. My god... I didn't know a city could look like that. It had the feel of a mediaeval fortress (because it was one). It looked like it was just stacked on top of itself. When we were walking about, we would be on a road, then there would be a gap where no building was and we would realize that we were on a bridge. It was bizarre.
The first thing we did there was hop on a double decker tour bus. We took it all over the city. It took us to the Castle, along the Royal Mile, the Holyrood Castle, the Scottish Parliament and to the Our Dynamic Earth museum. Then it dropped us back off at the train-station, where we hopped on. I gave Michele a call, telling her that Emily and I were going to walk up to the Royal Mile and do some shopping. She said that she would meet us up there.
The royal mile is really neat. I can't exactly remember why it is called the Royal Mile, but I assume it has something to do with the fact that at the top of it is the Castle and the length of it. When we were up there, I knew I wanted to get a genuine Scotish Cashmere sweater. And boy... was I in luck! I ended up with two sweaters (a black zip-up hoodie and a navy cardigan) and one scarf (tan and cream tartan print).
After I was decked out in my new Scottish garb, Emily and I headed over to the Elephant Café. This is a really important café. It is the location where JK Rowling wrote the first Harry Potter book. Michelle met us there, and we had tea (I had a hot chocolate. I don't understand tea... it tastes like slightly flavored hot water...). After tea, Michele took us down to Arthur's Seat.
Arthur's Seat (named after King Arthur) is a rock formation they say looks like a seated lion (the lion was the symbol of Arthur). It is a really cool hiking trail, and apparently at the top of it you have an amazing view of Edinburgh. We didn't have enough time to go up to the top, but we walked down to the base, where there is a charming little lake. There were swans and ducks swimming in it. The sky was turning a dark grey, but the sun was going down. The golden color pitched against the ominous clouds created my favorite sensation in nature, one that I don't have the skills to properly describe in words.
Around 5:45PM, the three of us decided to head back to the Royal Mile. Emily and I were going to go on a special tour and we needed to be there at 6:45PM, but we had to eat first. On the way up, we decided to stop in at a fish and chip shop, what the Scottish call a chippy. I had a baked steak pie and chips. It was SOOOOO good. Anyway, we said farewell to Michele at the shop and we ate. It was really great seeing her.
The restaurant was small, and didn't have any tables so we had to eat on the go. That was fine because we were going to go on a Haunted Edinburgh tour. We needed to get there there fifteen minutes before it started so we just ate up near the meeting point.
That tour was probably the coolest thing I have done since being here. The guide was this twenty-something blonde woman who had a wickedly sarcastic sense of humor. She was a great guide. We did a lot of walking around in the old parts of town. She told us a lot about what life was like for the poor down in Edinburgh in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. On this tour, I learned that the phrase "dead ringer" and "saved by the bell" come from the fact that in order to verify the corpse was actually dead, the grave diggers would run a string from a bell at the tombstone and tie it to the corpse's finger. If you suddenly woke up from your coma and were in a box, you would just pull on the string and hopefully someone would hear you and dig you up. Kinda gruesome.
But the coolest/freakiest part was when we went down to the vaults. The vaults were built originally as storerooms for the merchants of Edinbugh. After they realized that volcanic rock was porous and the store rooms would flood if it rained, the merchants said they were useless. That coupled with the fact that in 17th century Edinburgh if you were caught sleeping on the street three times you would be executed, the poorest of the poor started moving into them.
A lot of the vaults have now been converted into night clubs and bars and restaurants. But not the ones that we went to. Too many weird things happened in those ones... We were told stories about how during the great fire of 1824, seventy-eight people sought refuge in one of the rooms. Since volcanic rock conducts heat, the room turned into an oven. All of the people in that room were baked alive. Our guide had a lot of stories like that. But the only time I got actually freaked out was when I heard footsteps in the hall. And there wasn't anyone in the hall. That did make my heart beat a little faster.
The tour ended at a bar where they served Scottish Whisky and gave us shortbread cookies. It was a good thing too, because some of the people were pretty freaked. Oh, I forgot to mention, Emily and I made friends with Sonja, a really nice French/German woman from Madagascar. She invited us to go with her to a jazz club later that night, but we needed to get onto the train to go back to Calum's.
All in all, Edinburgh was a fantastic city! Probably my favorite in the UK (although I've only been to three).
Monday, October 18, 2010
L'Ecosse (partie 1)
Scotland was awesome.
So I went with my friend Emily, who I worked with last year. We were going to visit our friend Calum, a scottish exchange student we met at Toastmasters last year. He goes to the University of Glasgow, so a about two months ago, Emily asked me if I wanted to go visit him. I said why not, and we booked our flight!
We took off from Paris-Beauvais (an airport about an hour by bus out side of the city) and landed at Glasgow-Prestwick (very important that you remember it was Prestwick) at 11:40PM on Thursday night. From Prestwick, we took a bus to the city center. It dropped us off at Buchannan Street Station and from there we cabbed it to Calum's flat. We ended up going to bed around 2AM. When we got there, Calum was standing out front in his UCSB sweats there to greet us. We talked for a little, then crashed becuase Emily and I were exhauseted.
The next morning, Calum had to go to class and do some work at the library so it was Emily on our own, exploring Glasgow. We ended up getting out the door around 10:30AM. We walked over just up the street and had breakfast at this cool little café. I had the traditional breakfast, which consisted of bacon (more like canadian bacon), a fried egg, a sausage, a patato scote and a slice of black pudding. Black pudding is disgusting, just fyi. But I did try it.
After our breakfast we walked around. The waiter told us about an art museum in Kelvingrove park, the huge park on the West End of Glasgow, where Calum lives. We walked around the park for probably thirty or forty minutes before finding the museum. The park was gorgeous though. After being in the concrete jungle of Paris, it was nice seeing wide open green spaces.
We got to the art museum and it turned out to be more of a natural history museum. It had a lot of stuff on the scottish history, plus some paintings and exhibits for kids. I really enjoyed it!
From there, we hopped onto one of the double decker tour buses that are designed for foreigners. It took us all around the city. We went from the West End to the city centre, to the River Clyde down to the Glasgow Green. When we got to the Green, we hopped off and went into the People's Palace. It had even more Scottish history, mainly talking about the rise of Glasgow as a major city in Scotland.
After that, Emily and I took the bus back to the city center. It was about 5PM by then, so we walked around and got some food down there. We didn't want to bother Calum, to let him have as much time as he needed to get his studying done, but around 6, we called him asking him what he was up to. We headed back to his place around then.
Once we got back to his place, we sat around and talked, met his roommates and then some of his friends. They all were incredibly nice. Really good guys. They sat around for a few hours, knocked back some beers and then we all headed out to the student union. Now, when I say student union, I don't mean something like the UCen. It was a legitimate union. The bottom floor was a huge dance floor and the second floor was a karaoke bar. It was exactly what I expected college to be like. I guess it is just easier to do that when the drinking age is 18 instead of 21. We ended up going back to Calum's house (after getting some fries, of course) around 3AM.
Then we were off to Edinburgh the next day...
So I went with my friend Emily, who I worked with last year. We were going to visit our friend Calum, a scottish exchange student we met at Toastmasters last year. He goes to the University of Glasgow, so a about two months ago, Emily asked me if I wanted to go visit him. I said why not, and we booked our flight!
We took off from Paris-Beauvais (an airport about an hour by bus out side of the city) and landed at Glasgow-Prestwick (very important that you remember it was Prestwick) at 11:40PM on Thursday night. From Prestwick, we took a bus to the city center. It dropped us off at Buchannan Street Station and from there we cabbed it to Calum's flat. We ended up going to bed around 2AM. When we got there, Calum was standing out front in his UCSB sweats there to greet us. We talked for a little, then crashed becuase Emily and I were exhauseted.
The next morning, Calum had to go to class and do some work at the library so it was Emily on our own, exploring Glasgow. We ended up getting out the door around 10:30AM. We walked over just up the street and had breakfast at this cool little café. I had the traditional breakfast, which consisted of bacon (more like canadian bacon), a fried egg, a sausage, a patato scote and a slice of black pudding. Black pudding is disgusting, just fyi. But I did try it.
After our breakfast we walked around. The waiter told us about an art museum in Kelvingrove park, the huge park on the West End of Glasgow, where Calum lives. We walked around the park for probably thirty or forty minutes before finding the museum. The park was gorgeous though. After being in the concrete jungle of Paris, it was nice seeing wide open green spaces.
We got to the art museum and it turned out to be more of a natural history museum. It had a lot of stuff on the scottish history, plus some paintings and exhibits for kids. I really enjoyed it!
From there, we hopped onto one of the double decker tour buses that are designed for foreigners. It took us all around the city. We went from the West End to the city centre, to the River Clyde down to the Glasgow Green. When we got to the Green, we hopped off and went into the People's Palace. It had even more Scottish history, mainly talking about the rise of Glasgow as a major city in Scotland.
After that, Emily and I took the bus back to the city center. It was about 5PM by then, so we walked around and got some food down there. We didn't want to bother Calum, to let him have as much time as he needed to get his studying done, but around 6, we called him asking him what he was up to. We headed back to his place around then.
Once we got back to his place, we sat around and talked, met his roommates and then some of his friends. They all were incredibly nice. Really good guys. They sat around for a few hours, knocked back some beers and then we all headed out to the student union. Now, when I say student union, I don't mean something like the UCen. It was a legitimate union. The bottom floor was a huge dance floor and the second floor was a karaoke bar. It was exactly what I expected college to be like. I guess it is just easier to do that when the drinking age is 18 instead of 21. We ended up going back to Calum's house (after getting some fries, of course) around 3AM.
Then we were off to Edinburgh the next day...
Le meilleur decision de ma vie
I have offically decided to take my law class as pass/no pass. Everyone says not to do that (and by everyone I mean the UCEAP Advisors/my department advisors back at UCSB) but frankly, I would rather have to take an extra class back at UCSB than stress as much about this course as I have. I actually don't know why I didn't think about doing this before.
Instead of having to work myself up into a frenzy about the quality of my work, I can actually enjoy this city. I don't have to freak myself out about not doing it perfectly, or even very well. I just have to pass. And it is going to allow me to actually focus on my other courses, courses that I enjoy and that I have a shot at doing well in.
I just needed to write this and actually let the world know that I officially don't care about my law class. I am still going to the courses, I am still attending the lectures and I am still going to do the work. But I will not allow it to make me sick to my stomach anymore. I am going to enjoy my time abroad. I am going to LIKE France, if it is the last thing I do, damn it!
Instead of having to work myself up into a frenzy about the quality of my work, I can actually enjoy this city. I don't have to freak myself out about not doing it perfectly, or even very well. I just have to pass. And it is going to allow me to actually focus on my other courses, courses that I enjoy and that I have a shot at doing well in.
I just needed to write this and actually let the world know that I officially don't care about my law class. I am still going to the courses, I am still attending the lectures and I am still going to do the work. But I will not allow it to make me sick to my stomach anymore. I am going to enjoy my time abroad. I am going to LIKE France, if it is the last thing I do, damn it!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Je ne veux pas sentir comme ça
Every day since Sunday, I have woken up feeling homesick. It is the oddest thing. When I go to bed, I generally don't feel homesick, but I think I am still having dreams. These dreams bring me back to the places I know. They allow me to talk to people I am used to. They are good dreams.
So when I wake up, I am... I guess it is kind of surprised, to find out that I am still in France, thousands of miles away from anyone I know. And I hear from my friends at UC Paris, or friends studying abroad at UC center in a foreign country. They are surrounded with their friends, they get to go off traveling all these awesome places. They are taking classes only in English. Their school isn't that much different from their home UC. UGH
I know it doesn't do me any good to think about that. Yeah, I know SciencesPo is a great school. Yeah, I know I am going to come back a stronger person. Yeah, I know when I get back to the states I know that NOTHING can stop me from doing what I want to do in life. But all that right now doesn't really mean much. I find the desire to leave my apartment nonexistent. It may be because I feel so safe here, and thanks to the internet, I feel like at my desk I can actually be back in the States.
And it makes me feel so guilty. I wish I wanted to go out and explore, go out and see the sights, go out and travel. But honestly, the idea of watching TV on my computer and staying in my bed all day sounds better than any of that. Hopefully my trip to Scotland this weekend will snap me out of this funk.
But this weekend is going to be hard for me. It is the weekend of the Youth and Government Intern Retreat. It may sound stupid that I would rather be there than in Scotland, but the Interns are some of the best people I have ever met. I have laughed and had more good times with them than virtually any other group. They make me feel important, respected, smart. They build up my self-confidence more than I ever thought possible, because they just accept me for me. Not that people don't, but they just go out of their way to prove it.
And this would be my third and final year in the Intern Program. After three years of Y&G as a delegate, my senior year of which I was delegate of the year for the state wide program, interning was the perfect way to stay involved. And now I am not. I am not helping out the organization that, more than any other thing in my life, has shaped me into who I am today. And my best friends are now the leaders of the intern program. I couldn't be prouder of them, but I wish I could be there with them. Instead I look around, and see all that I have yet to do and it just feels like a weight is crushing me.
Two of my intern friends, in-particular are making it really hard not to be there with them. At our first retreat, three years ago, we all bonded. We hadn't met each other before then, but we couldn't be separated after. Not seeing them, when I know if I had stayed in the States I would have is really hard for me to deal with.
I guess I'll just have to convince them to come over and visit me.
So when I wake up, I am... I guess it is kind of surprised, to find out that I am still in France, thousands of miles away from anyone I know. And I hear from my friends at UC Paris, or friends studying abroad at UC center in a foreign country. They are surrounded with their friends, they get to go off traveling all these awesome places. They are taking classes only in English. Their school isn't that much different from their home UC. UGH
I know it doesn't do me any good to think about that. Yeah, I know SciencesPo is a great school. Yeah, I know I am going to come back a stronger person. Yeah, I know when I get back to the states I know that NOTHING can stop me from doing what I want to do in life. But all that right now doesn't really mean much. I find the desire to leave my apartment nonexistent. It may be because I feel so safe here, and thanks to the internet, I feel like at my desk I can actually be back in the States.
And it makes me feel so guilty. I wish I wanted to go out and explore, go out and see the sights, go out and travel. But honestly, the idea of watching TV on my computer and staying in my bed all day sounds better than any of that. Hopefully my trip to Scotland this weekend will snap me out of this funk.
But this weekend is going to be hard for me. It is the weekend of the Youth and Government Intern Retreat. It may sound stupid that I would rather be there than in Scotland, but the Interns are some of the best people I have ever met. I have laughed and had more good times with them than virtually any other group. They make me feel important, respected, smart. They build up my self-confidence more than I ever thought possible, because they just accept me for me. Not that people don't, but they just go out of their way to prove it.
And this would be my third and final year in the Intern Program. After three years of Y&G as a delegate, my senior year of which I was delegate of the year for the state wide program, interning was the perfect way to stay involved. And now I am not. I am not helping out the organization that, more than any other thing in my life, has shaped me into who I am today. And my best friends are now the leaders of the intern program. I couldn't be prouder of them, but I wish I could be there with them. Instead I look around, and see all that I have yet to do and it just feels like a weight is crushing me.
Two of my intern friends, in-particular are making it really hard not to be there with them. At our first retreat, three years ago, we all bonded. We hadn't met each other before then, but we couldn't be separated after. Not seeing them, when I know if I had stayed in the States I would have is really hard for me to deal with.
I guess I'll just have to convince them to come over and visit me.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Les États-Unis
I feel like writing, but I don't really know what to write about. I think this blogpost is going to make the least amount of sense (not that the other ones really had any particular rhyme or reason to them).
I think that I'm going to talk about America. I know, I know, I do that a lot. But I can't help but compare everything that is new and strange to me hear to what I know and is familiar back home. For example, getting a bank account. Back in the states, you just have to sign some forms. Here, I had to bring in my proof of schooling, my passport, and a document saying I lived in France. Since I didn't have all three, my French bank account is STILL not fully operational.
Being in this country really has reaffirmed my love of the American government system. Everyone complains about how politics in the US is such dirty business and that politicians there are nasty people. But I disagree. Our government, our federalist system was built from scratch and remains unique. What is most impressive is the fact that for over two hundred years, we have had a functioning government (yeah, the civil war kind of messed up stuff, but the Union never stopped functioning). The French are on their fifth republic.
But what I love most about being here is talking about the United States. In that terrifying law class, we were talking about the US Supreme court and federalism. It was sooooo strange that the french kids had no idea how our government was really set up. I know that is an incredible arrogant statement to make, because I had very little knowledge of their system before getting here, but still. It was awesome describing the importance of Obama's decisions for justice's on the Supreme Court. It was great letting the class know that the states and federal government have different laws.
I know it is weird, but my favorite class this semester is my Social History of the United States in the Twentieth Century. My professor is French, but he is an expert on Chicago. I've never been to that city, but it seems cool. The only bummer, is he uses it for virtually every example. I wish he would talk abotu DC or LA or some city I know about... But at least he is talking about the US. What makes that class even better is the fact that there are only a few Americans. I think we counted five total. So it is great, because just by chance of birth, I have an automatic leg up in that subject. I guess it is kind of like the antidote to my Monday mornings.
I've also come to realize that I am going to enter into the public service. I'm not sure how, or when, or if I am going to do something first, but becoming a politician I really see in my future. Which brings me to my next point. I have had an embarrassingly lack of exposure to the news since I've been here. But that all changed yesterday when I realized I could download the video podcast for NBC Nightly News. All it means is that every morning, the previous night's news is automatically downloaded onto my Computer for me to watch when I have twenty free minutes. So I have watched the news for the last two days.
All in all though, this American pride thing I have going on is making me feel really guilty. I know that I am clinging to my culture as a safety blanket. I am not immersing myself completely into the French culture. I have the option of watching the news in French or in English and I choose English. I could either read Le Monde or the LA Times. I choose the LA Times because it is easier. I could travel around the country on the weekends if I wanted to. But I choose to stay in Paris because it is a place I am familiar with.
I don't want to leave Paris in May saying "man I wish I spent more time getting to know the country and not focusing so much on America" , but at the same time, America is the land that my family is in, the coutnry where I was born, and the only country I have ever really known. I know how the government works, on both a state and Federal level. I could tell you how the court system is organized. And most of this stuff is not stuff I've studied, but stuff I've picked up in my twenty years there.
It probably just takes some getting used to, but I'll choose our Capitol Building to l'Assemblée Nationale any day.
I think that I'm going to talk about America. I know, I know, I do that a lot. But I can't help but compare everything that is new and strange to me hear to what I know and is familiar back home. For example, getting a bank account. Back in the states, you just have to sign some forms. Here, I had to bring in my proof of schooling, my passport, and a document saying I lived in France. Since I didn't have all three, my French bank account is STILL not fully operational.
Being in this country really has reaffirmed my love of the American government system. Everyone complains about how politics in the US is such dirty business and that politicians there are nasty people. But I disagree. Our government, our federalist system was built from scratch and remains unique. What is most impressive is the fact that for over two hundred years, we have had a functioning government (yeah, the civil war kind of messed up stuff, but the Union never stopped functioning). The French are on their fifth republic.
But what I love most about being here is talking about the United States. In that terrifying law class, we were talking about the US Supreme court and federalism. It was sooooo strange that the french kids had no idea how our government was really set up. I know that is an incredible arrogant statement to make, because I had very little knowledge of their system before getting here, but still. It was awesome describing the importance of Obama's decisions for justice's on the Supreme Court. It was great letting the class know that the states and federal government have different laws.
I know it is weird, but my favorite class this semester is my Social History of the United States in the Twentieth Century. My professor is French, but he is an expert on Chicago. I've never been to that city, but it seems cool. The only bummer, is he uses it for virtually every example. I wish he would talk abotu DC or LA or some city I know about... But at least he is talking about the US. What makes that class even better is the fact that there are only a few Americans. I think we counted five total. So it is great, because just by chance of birth, I have an automatic leg up in that subject. I guess it is kind of like the antidote to my Monday mornings.
I've also come to realize that I am going to enter into the public service. I'm not sure how, or when, or if I am going to do something first, but becoming a politician I really see in my future. Which brings me to my next point. I have had an embarrassingly lack of exposure to the news since I've been here. But that all changed yesterday when I realized I could download the video podcast for NBC Nightly News. All it means is that every morning, the previous night's news is automatically downloaded onto my Computer for me to watch when I have twenty free minutes. So I have watched the news for the last two days.
All in all though, this American pride thing I have going on is making me feel really guilty. I know that I am clinging to my culture as a safety blanket. I am not immersing myself completely into the French culture. I have the option of watching the news in French or in English and I choose English. I could either read Le Monde or the LA Times. I choose the LA Times because it is easier. I could travel around the country on the weekends if I wanted to. But I choose to stay in Paris because it is a place I am familiar with.
I don't want to leave Paris in May saying "man I wish I spent more time getting to know the country and not focusing so much on America" , but at the same time, America is the land that my family is in, the coutnry where I was born, and the only country I have ever really known. I know how the government works, on both a state and Federal level. I could tell you how the court system is organized. And most of this stuff is not stuff I've studied, but stuff I've picked up in my twenty years there.
It probably just takes some getting used to, but I'll choose our Capitol Building to l'Assemblée Nationale any day.
Monday, October 11, 2010
I still can't get over how incredible this apartment is. I know I posted the link to my photo album on facebook, but it doesn't really do it justice. Last night we had a few of our friends over for dinner. I cooked in our kitchen. It was a really simple dinner, with homemade bruschetta and then some gnocchi and pesto. No one seemed to get food poisoning so all was good. It was really nice being able to have people over.
Today I had my exposé. I honestly have absolutely no idea how it went. Victor, my partner, did most of the research so he did most of the explaining. I spoke for maybe two minutes, while he spoke for about fifteen to twenty. It may have been the fact that I didn't really understand most of what he said, but I couldn't really help when we were answering questions either. But the important thing is it is done! Almost... We were presenting at the very end of class, so we didn't have time for the questions. The students are supposed to ask us more questions next week.
And just like that, thanks to this stupid course, my sense of finally feeling at home in this concrete jungle vanished. I know, I know, it is only one course and it is literally two hours of my week. But honestly, for those who haven't done what I am doing it is really hard to imagine exactly what it feels like. Even before I got to this country, I couldn't imagine that I would feel the way I am. My moods have yet to stablize fully.
Moving into the apartment definitely helped. The fact that Aliya is here is awesome. She and I get along great. She is really easy going and laid back, which goes quite well with... well, me. Now here is something that will shock my family... I have learned to enjoy cleaning. It may be an outlet for my need to be in control of something, but organizing, doing the dishes, washing my clothes, making my bed, all of these things help me cope with this country. Last night, when my partner was stressing me out about the project (until midnight, literally) I had to go take a break and do all the dishes. And this was after I cooked. But I WANTED to do them. I think it also has something to do with the fact that no one is forcing/requiring/even really asking me to do them.
But right now, I felt like writing this blog because for the first time since being in the apartment, I'm homesick. This is a huge step forward, because that means I haven't been homesick since Friday. So that means Saturday and Sunday I was good. Which was true. But this course... And what is even worse, is that I went to my professor for help last thursday. I didn't really know what the assignments she wanted us to do were, so I just asked what they were. She was really nice and met with me thirty minutes before a class she was teaching.
In our little meeting, she told me about the revue d'acutalité which is basically taking a major legal decision and analysing it in a comparative framework, the étude de jurisprudence which is a five or six page paper analyzing an historic case or legal institution, and the memoire which is our final. The memoire is a fifteen to twenty page paper on any subject we choose. Basically we have to demonstrate the fact that we can effectively compare legal systems between different families of law, or different institutions within the same family.
All of this has to be finished before I leave for break. So between now and December 17, all of this needs to be done. That is on top of the Press Review and Final paper I have to do for my French Defense Policy, the group project and debate I have to do in my Professions Politiques course, and the midterm and final paper in my Social History of the United States course.
The good news is that I have a lot to look forward to, outside of school. I know I've written it before, but I need to remind myself that am going to Scotland on Thursday, my friend Anni is coming to Paris to see Michael Bublé in concert and spend a long weekend, and my brother is coming for Thanksgiving. From then it's only two weeks until I can go home.
That all being said, I no longer look forward to corssing off the days on my calendar like I did before.
Today I had my exposé. I honestly have absolutely no idea how it went. Victor, my partner, did most of the research so he did most of the explaining. I spoke for maybe two minutes, while he spoke for about fifteen to twenty. It may have been the fact that I didn't really understand most of what he said, but I couldn't really help when we were answering questions either. But the important thing is it is done! Almost... We were presenting at the very end of class, so we didn't have time for the questions. The students are supposed to ask us more questions next week.
And just like that, thanks to this stupid course, my sense of finally feeling at home in this concrete jungle vanished. I know, I know, it is only one course and it is literally two hours of my week. But honestly, for those who haven't done what I am doing it is really hard to imagine exactly what it feels like. Even before I got to this country, I couldn't imagine that I would feel the way I am. My moods have yet to stablize fully.
Moving into the apartment definitely helped. The fact that Aliya is here is awesome. She and I get along great. She is really easy going and laid back, which goes quite well with... well, me. Now here is something that will shock my family... I have learned to enjoy cleaning. It may be an outlet for my need to be in control of something, but organizing, doing the dishes, washing my clothes, making my bed, all of these things help me cope with this country. Last night, when my partner was stressing me out about the project (until midnight, literally) I had to go take a break and do all the dishes. And this was after I cooked. But I WANTED to do them. I think it also has something to do with the fact that no one is forcing/requiring/even really asking me to do them.
But right now, I felt like writing this blog because for the first time since being in the apartment, I'm homesick. This is a huge step forward, because that means I haven't been homesick since Friday. So that means Saturday and Sunday I was good. Which was true. But this course... And what is even worse, is that I went to my professor for help last thursday. I didn't really know what the assignments she wanted us to do were, so I just asked what they were. She was really nice and met with me thirty minutes before a class she was teaching.
In our little meeting, she told me about the revue d'acutalité which is basically taking a major legal decision and analysing it in a comparative framework, the étude de jurisprudence which is a five or six page paper analyzing an historic case or legal institution, and the memoire which is our final. The memoire is a fifteen to twenty page paper on any subject we choose. Basically we have to demonstrate the fact that we can effectively compare legal systems between different families of law, or different institutions within the same family.
All of this has to be finished before I leave for break. So between now and December 17, all of this needs to be done. That is on top of the Press Review and Final paper I have to do for my French Defense Policy, the group project and debate I have to do in my Professions Politiques course, and the midterm and final paper in my Social History of the United States course.
The good news is that I have a lot to look forward to, outside of school. I know I've written it before, but I need to remind myself that am going to Scotland on Thursday, my friend Anni is coming to Paris to see Michael Bublé in concert and spend a long weekend, and my brother is coming for Thanksgiving. From then it's only two weeks until I can go home.
That all being said, I no longer look forward to corssing off the days on my calendar like I did before.
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