Je suis arrivée!

It probably makes most sense to just start at the beginning. I had a flight from Chicago, then one from Chicago to Paris. They were, as expected, long and boring. However what made them even longer and more boring was the fact that we did not, as I was expecting, have a small screen right in front of our face. Instead the TVs were mounted along the ceiling, and the in-flight entertainment was lacking. But I had my friend Austin sitting next to me, and two other Carleton students behind in seats across the aisle behind us. Overall, it was not a horrible experience.

             
And then we were in France. Jet-lagged, confused, and carrying a lot of luggage, but in France nonetheless. After a long taxi ride with a friendly taxi driver who was very excited that we were in France to speak his language, we arrived at CUPA, the building where we’ll be having all of our classes. After having trouble figuring out how to open the door, we made it. The small walk way to the actual building is beautiful and has leaves, making it look very spring-ey.

The beautifully decorated door we struggled to open

As people trickled in, we went in groups to walk around the neighborhood before our host families arrived. After getting a croque monsieur from a Sandwicherie down the street, we went to the Luxembourg gardens to sit down and eat. The gardens are barely a two minute walk from CUPA. They are huge, and the fresh green everywhere was a nice change from the snow and mush of Minnesota.

The Luxembourg Palace with flowers, lawn, and small pond in front of it

And then came time to go to my home for the next ten weeks with my host family. It was a little different for me, because the family of someone else on the program, who lives close to me, had extended family over that weekend, so she stayed at my host family’s house the first night. This was actually super helpful. We were both so jet-lagged that it was nice to be to share the conversation, and if there was something we didn't know how to say, we could ask the other person. So if you happen to read this Grace, thanks for being awesome in a situation that neither of us could really control.

I'll probably talk more about where I live, Issy Les Moulineaux, later, but basically, it's a suburb just below Paris. It's the last (or first) stop on its metro line. But to say it's a suburb evokes thoughts of rows of identical houses and public schools and grocery stores. This is not at all the case. I do live in a house instead of an apartment, but it's not huge with extra rooms you don't use. And each morning and afternoon when I walk to and from the metro there are plenty of cars as well as pedestrians all around. There are boulangeries (bread stores), fromageries (cheese stores), and plenty of other shops lining the street that makes it feel like it's in Paris. But it's a lot quieter at night, which is a definite plus.

I had a wonderful day to rest and get caught up on sleep on Sunday, then Monday, classes started. Kind of. I have one class on Mondays and Wednesdays, and two classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. And nothing starts before 11. I'm sure the work will still be not super easy, but we definitely have time to explore the city. Nevertheless, I'm hoping to get up every morning before class to explore different parts of different neighborhoods. I'm only here for ten weeks, and I can't waste a second of it.

On Monday, as a group after class, we took a boat ride on the Seine. It was super touristy, but we are still pretty much tourists. And then some of us went to get a crepe (yay for first French crepe!) and it was absolutely delicious. Since I've said so many words so far, here are some pictures. I'll let the words (and captions) do the talking.

The view of Notre Dame from the Seine

The view of La Tour Eiffel from the Seine

La Sorbonne, the French university my professors teach at

On Tuesday, I had my other two classes, which are Art History and Representations of Islam in France. Both are with French professors from the Sorbonne, and both are incredibly engaging, interesting, and fascinating. I cannot wait to learn all they have to teach me. We also did more touristy things like see the Obelisk at the Place de la Concorde.

Walked the Champs Elysees, saw the Arc de Triomphe, climbed the 284 stair spiral stair case to the top, and looked over Paris from that incredible view.

Montmartre in the distance

La Tour Eiffel as seen from the top of the Arc de Triomphe

I think this is probably enough for now. Believe it or not, this isn't even all of what I've done so far. But there will be plenty of time for more posts about what I do, where I go, what I eat, and what it's like living in a foreign in country. Until then, I hope you've enjoyed my first post from Paris, and please let me know what you think!

A bientot!