Observations on la vie Française

Bonsoir mes amis!

Unfortunately I’ve been so busy as of late that my web presence has been a bit lacking- for that I apologize!

On Sunday, I made an exciting dent in my bucket list!! A bunch of us international students took a day trip to the nearby Château Chenonceau, which was absolutely gorgeous! Thanks to the brilliant “Stuff You Missed in History Class” podcasts, I’ve learned so much about Catherine de’ Medici, so it was amazing to see somewhere she actually resided! (For those of you in need of a brief brush-up in the history department, the château was given by Catherine’s husband, King Henry II, to his mistress el supremo Diane de Poitiers…Catherine was less than thrilled but snatched it back after Henry’s demise… a good historical cat fight ;) ). The castle was built across the Cher River (which also passes through Tours) and served as a dividing line and hospital ward during the Second World War. I am living in the perfect place to study history!!

I started some of my classes this week, which has honestly been extremely challenging. Living in France has made me cast away all pre-conceived notions of how administration ought to operate. For international students, there’s no registration, per se. The first week is more of a chance to sample courses. At this point I’m attempting to sort out classes, as getting my hands on course listings and times is challenging. Syllabuses and office hours are entirely non-existent. Other things to know about university in France: email is not a preferred method of communication. I can’t even count how many times I’ve marched back and forth between home and the Fac to get a hold of somebody! I’ve certainly taken the resources we have in Canada for granted. Also, I’m thankful that in Canada we don’t have four-hour lectures commencing at 8AM. Non merci. But, being France, our classes appear to have ample smoke breaks (never fear, dear readers, caffeine will always be my drug of choice ;) ). On that note, I have discovered the miraculous invention that is the coffee vending machine. For the mere price of .50€, I can instantaneously acquire a scalding hot shot of espresso. Hip, hip, hooray J

Something else I really ought to mention in my observations is that I love how the tax is included in the prices here. It makes things so much simpler and prices often come to even numbers. Furthermore, tips are already included in the cost of menu items, which saves a lot of hassle. What does amuse me, however, is that there is no such thing as a separate check. You get one bill and everybody chips in what they owe. One night we did ask for a split bill, and we got our entire check divided equally five ways! Eating out in France is an perfecly delicious exploration of gastronomy, as there is such an abundance of fresh and different foods to taste and everything is surprisingly affordable! Nobody can make cheese, quiche, or éclairs quite like the French! 

Gros bisous! :)

Z <3

Culture Shock & La Vie Simple!

Hello all!

Today has been a very exciting and satisfying day as I have purchased a bike! I’m very proud of how simply I’ve been living since I’ve arrived in France. I estimate that in the past week I have walked between 2 and 3 hours a day! Now that I have a bike I can get to campus in about fifteen minutes and I love that I have an economical way to travel around the city and get some exercise. The bus passes are quite a bit more expensive here than in Waterloo and the buses run even less infrequently so I want to take advantage of my new bike for as long as the weather holds out!

I’ve been really surprised by how much English music is played in France! I think I had this sort of romantic notion of leisurely French music in a café so I was a tad shocked to turn on the radio and hear the likes of “Call Me Maybe.” I was also surprised to hear that there are French people who actually enjoy listening to Nickelback. Quel horreur! Nevertheless, I walk everywhere with my Ipod and try to listen to as much French radio as possible to improve my comprehension. Unfortunately every time I try to speak French I get responses in English so I really need to try harder.

What I find the most difficult is time and numbers. I find it challenging to translate and calculate numbers on the spot. Once you get past soixante (60) it involves both mathematics and language. For example, quatre-vingt dix-huit would be four 20s plus 18, so 98. Never mind trying to say dates and such (this shall make studying history rather interesting and frustrating, I think). French is a very fast language and I don’t think my mental processes are quick enough yet to keep up. Also, the twenty-four hour clock definitely takes some getting used so my sense of time is rather muddled. Time is even harder to grasp in the sense that everything closes for about two hours at lunchtime! I don’t have a regular lunch, eating when I feel hungry, and I think most people in Canada eat lunch as an on-the-go meal, at their desks and such. So my concept of lunch is largely incompatible here, as it’s logistically impossible to run errands at midday.

On the note of cultural similarities and differences, I definitely find the French “bisous” or cheek kisses quite bizarre. In all facets of life here I have observed that the French have a largely disparate sense of space than North Americans do. Their hotel rooms are less spacious, their cars are more compact…everything seems smaller.  So I think personal sense of space is also a part of that, as a kiss would be a very intimate greeting in North America.

I can’t begin to explain my obsession with pain au chocolat. It has become my breakfast ritual to devour…err….multiple…chocolate croissants slathered with Nutella (why? because I can).  To buy a pastry in Canada is an extra special treat, so the abundance of boulangeries and pâtisseries on every street corner is like living in a miraculous wonderland. It is the prospect of inhabiting a world where baseball ceases to exist that reminds me why I could never live here permanently ;).  That said, there are so many things I miss about my ‘home and native land’ and I will certainly have so much more appreciation for Canada upon my return!

Z <3

Nowhere Else I'd Rather Be!

Salut tout le monde!

Today was both a challenging and rewarding day. I’ve probably spoken more French today than ever in my life and I admit I did start to get so frustrated that I bordered on tears. I find that the majority of the other international students study languages and/or are European, meaning that I feel I am at an incredible disadvantage, having grown up in a completely Anglophone community with a limited opportunity to acquire foreign language abilities. That said, I certainly believe that my French has improved significantly in the last week or so (especially after a few verres du vin ;) ), and I am so thankful that the French are so patient, welcoming, and helpful.  Merci à tout!

For anybody reading considering studying abroad, here is my advice: buy a pedometer and track your steps at home and in your new country. You’ll soon discover that you walk exponentially more, which is fabulous, as it’s basically a carte blanche to devour any and all pastries or cheese.  On that note, a few more things I’ve noticed about food here (in case you haven’t noticed a trend, food is kind of the center of my universe).  Cocktails are crazy expensive here! The drink of choice is certainly beer and wine (et aussi le sangria, c’est celui que je préfère ;) as cocktails range from 7 to 11 Euros! ($8-13 Canadian!). Non merci. Wine is also an acquired taste, but when in France….! Also, the coffees are très petits! No extra large double-doubles here!  The French manage to make even the most trivial of things sound sophisticated. I like it.

I’ve had more of a chance to walk around the city and it is gorgeous! We are lacking so much history in Canada and I was incredibly inspired by what I saw today. The Basilica of St. Martin was so impressive and serene that I almost converted to Catholicism then and there. And this is only the start of my journey! Many of the streets and bridges are also named after famous events and people, which is a cute little historical tidbit on my daily meanders around the city :) My daily explorations have confirmed that I have chosen the perfect field of study and that that history is my passion and what I want to pursue. I intend to soak up anything I can about the history of everything. 

Despite my daily struggles with culture shock (is there ever a time when the bank is ACTUALLY open?!?), I'm loving every day & am so glad to be here. Cheers to another wonderful day, and all that are to come!

Z <3

Euro Bucket List!

As many of you probably know, I’m a really big believer in bucket lists. Here is my bucket list while I am living in Europe! I mightn't get through it all, but it’s sort of a wish list of things to do & see!

• ·      Ride the TGV- 
• ·      Eat macarons in France
• ·      See la Tour Eiffel and L’Arc de Triomphe in Paris
• ·      Become bilingual
• ·      Visit Mont St. Michel
• ·      Visit Corsica
• ·      See a real castle (No, the Château Laurier does not count!)
• ·      Watch the French Open
• ·      Travel to other European countries (top of the list is the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Greece and Austria, but I'm not picky!!)
• ·      Ski in the Alps
• ·      Visit Versailles
• ·      Bathe in the hot springs in Iceland

Z <3

A Bit of This & That

Bonjour all!

What a week! Unfortunately I don't have too many photos to share today as this week has been a blur and I've been more concerned about having somewhere to live and something to eat. That said, hopefully this week I'll have more chances to be a bit of a tourist ;)

This week has been challenging but also very rewarding. As much of many of you know that I am very good at pretending to speak French, thus far I've realized I have a lot to learn! This week I've had to set up a bank account, a phone plan, and move in! Aside from the language barrier, French bureaucracy is a nightmare. France is certainly more of a leisurely country. Oh, you would like a bank account? Well, the bank is closed for 2 hours for lunch. Ah, you're here! Come back tomorrow for a rendezvous. Oh, you now have a bank account and want your money? C'est dommage, the bank is now closed. Come back tomorrow. It doesn't help that the rules change every time you visit, either. That said, I find I am understanding all the words but not when strung together. I am going to be incredibly more tolerant back in Canada when people try to speak English- speaking in a foreign language is not easy!!!

I've found the culture very interesting. Each morning I've been going to the local patisseries and boulangeries (pics to come!) to buy fresh-from-the-oven baguetttes and pain au chocolat. Here, they eat Nutella like we eat peanut butter. I even saw Nutella paninis! However, I've yet to find anywhere like a Second Cup or Tim Hortons where you can get a coffee to-go. I'm not sure the French do on-the-go. Their lifestyle is much slower paced than ours! In restaurants or bars, you can sit for hours and must press them for the bill- there's no quick in-and-out!

I believe I have discovered the secret as to why French women don't get fat. Many people walk or bike to get where they have to go and the cities are very walkable. I've done an incredible amount of walking here, and French culture is considerably less dependant on automobiles than in Canada. My next challenge is to find a cheap bike while here to get around!

Nevertheless, despite the challenges, I love France and Tours (pronounced "Tour"- I know, I made that mistake too!). It's been a blast meeting all the other international students, going for a picnic in the park or sitting out at the Place Plumereau! Despite the emotional and physical drain, I'm excited every morning to see what I am going to do next :)

A bientôt,
Z <3