Le Premier Jour: Paris

I'm alive! Stop worrying!

First comes first. My flight was different than any other flight I've taken. The plane was really wide, but not very long. A Boeing 767 and it wasn't anywhere near full! I had a whole row to myself and despite the sleeping pill I took I didn't sleep. I think this has something to do with the ginormous amount of tension I had in my stomach and my constant subconscious desire to always defy the way all the things of this world work- like my sleeping pill which is "supposed" to help me sleep.

I knew that I was on an international flight when a multitude of monks/priests (I'm still not quite sure what they were) boarded the plane. There were probably ten of them, wearing long black robes that went to the ground that had pleats from the knee down. All but one of these priests were wearing hats that resembled a cross between a beret and a yarmulke. The one who didn't wear a hat had his whole head shaved except for a line of hair that went in a circle around his head. I have absolutely never seen anything like it and I think it would be considered an "extreme" hairstyle under the BYU honor code. Can monks have extreme hairstyles?


My first view of France.

Getting off of the plane took Forever! I was waiting in one of the two lines that was not moving and was willing to do pretty much anything to speed up this process. I saw a bag in a overhead bin that had not been claimed and heard a french woman at the front of the plane complaining about how someone had taken her bag. I asked her if it was hers and got it from the overhead bin. When I had the bag 2 feet from the ground a flight attendant began yelling at me. "Non Mademoiselle! You will hurt yourself!" Thinking I was in trouble I froze with the bag in the middle of the air and then slowly passed it off to the flight attendant. He then started rambling off about how girls are obviously much stronger now. I "debarque" the plane and looked for one of the buses that would serve as a shuttle to the airport. I started walking towards one and I heard some people behind me say--> "Let's follow the strong girl" which I got a big kick out of, of course.
After the flight I searched high and low for the 7 other girls from my program who were supposed to share a shuttle with me. I had ordered and paid for the shuttle 3 days before the program so that we'd have no problem getting to our hotel. Turns out that the SLC airport had had a lot of problems that day and four of the girls were detained (no worries they were put on direct flights later). I know this doesn't add up. I'm not sure why 2 of the other girls weren't there but they are here now so all is well I guess.

After finding the hotel called "L'Etap de la Porte d'Orleans", I faced my fears by speaking to the concierge and got a key to the room where we were supposed to keep our bags until our rooms had opened up (it was probably 10 am in the morning- 2 am Utah time so our rooms were not yet available). So Jessica (the only other girl on my flight) and I took our bags upstairs and ran into 9 other study abroad students, one of which is my roommate Jamie. Jamie immediately ran and hugged me. She said "It is SO good to see your face. Can you believe we're really here?" It was really sweet. She is an amazing roommate already.

After putting our bags in our room, we quickly went out to see the city. My first day in Paris was so eventful! I saw the Eiffel Tower, L'Arc de Triomphe, crossed La Seine, Les Champs Elysees, and I rode the infamous Paris metro. I tried not to be too touristy and take a bunch of pictures, but no worries, I didn't let any of the picturesque moments get away from me. Just as we got on Les Champs Elysees some of the girls wanted to get a picture in front of a fountain. I didn't really care for it, plus I had no idea what it was so I offered to take the picture for them. Just as I reached out for the camera I felt something fall on my shirt. I gasped and looked down, knowing that I had let one of the rats of Paris get the best of me on my first day. How disappointing. :( The funny part is that just as I was telling Jamie that a bird had got me on the front of my shirt, Jamie reached up to run her fingers through her hair... she'd gotten one too. Pauvre Jamie

After the horrid pigeon did his duty.

At the Eiffel Tower

At the Arc de Triomphe (sorry I can't remember most of these names in English). The boy in the background is Ryan.. somehow he is in the back of a bunch of my pictures?

Just on the first day I had some very interesting interactions with the french men, and not just any french men. Les vieux hommes (the old men). The first one that talked to me, chased me across the crosswalk making kissy noise. The next time it happened I was walking with my professor and an old man separated us and told me "Je vous aime beaucoup". My professor started laughing out loud, which didn't help me ignore the man and the last man who owned a restaurant chased me down the street in the Latin Quarter telling me "Aujourd'hui pour vous, c'est gratuit" (Today, for you its free). What did I do to get all this unwanted attention. I am currently being teased by half of my study abroad group. SWELL!

Oh! Le metro is incredible by the way. I felt so smart when I showed everyone in my group how to use their tickets and that they shouldn't go to the machines that say "reserve" because those are for the cartes d'orange only. Just before I left Katy was telling me about how sometimes either herself or Genny would forget their "cartes d'orange" and have to squeeze through the ticket gate together. I had to do this on my first day! One of the girls in our group slid her ticket in upside down, and it didn't work but Jamie slid hers right afterwards and the girl didn't realize that she was using Jamie's ticket to get through. Our professor was on the other side of the gates with a very confused look, but because Katy had told me how to do it I just grabbed my ticket pushed Jamie to the front and we kind of waddled through together. The professor gave me a high five on the other side.

Sur le metro


An amazing orchestra in the hall way of the metro. I was actually tempted to buy their cd. it was that good.

We met up with our whole group at 4:30 and I saw the Notre Dame, L'hotel de ville, l'institu, et le pompi deu (spelling again?). At this time I also saw my first "manifestation" or strike. It wasn't very big but it happened. I guess people strike all the time in France? From what I could tell it was a large group of teachers who were marching in a circle protesting a new law that France made or is trying to make that restricts their researches in some way or another? The posters were really hard to read...

My first real french meal was in the Latin quarter at a restaurant with "classic french food" or at least thats what it was called. I had a salad with goat cheese, entrecote- which is the pork found between the ribs of a pig?, chocolate mousse, and an orangina which was all paid for by the program. C'est chouette, oui? Of course the professor asked us to sit by people in the program that we didn't know very well so I sat at the end of a table of girls (who didn't obey the rules and all knew each other) and the professor sat across from me. Ahhh! I spent way too much time with the professor in the first day. Speaking French with him is kind of frustrating because I'm afraid to mess up, so I stumble all over my French. But my french is already so much better in the first day! Oh and it is also very comforting that a lot of the other students don't speak very well or have pretty bad accents. Not trying to be mean! They haven't taken half as much french as me, they're very brave for coming.

Ma famille- I'm sorry it took me so long to call! You should know that my costco international phone card doesn't really work yet. I'm not sure why.. I got through all of the verizon requirements but when i dial I always get a busy tone and yes I am using the country code. Que faire?

For Val-My first impressions of France/Paris:
It's really pretty and really green! Which of course I love. I've only seen one "crotte" from the dogs on the sidewalk and only three dogs so those rumors of nasty dog remains all over the sidewalks hasn't been true for me thus far. The Eiffel tower is taller than I remembered. EVERYTHING in France is small. The hotel rooms, the showers, the toilettes, the cups, the sinks, the sidewalks, the roads (there is no shoulder to any of the roads, there was a fender bender in the middle of the paris ferrique [spelling?] and the guys just stood in the center of the highway yelling at each other and shaking theirs fists) the pastries, the sandwiches, the drinks, the cars, the chairs, and even the trash cans! and lastly, its true- everyone in France smokes. I coughed and made big disgusted gestures the first couple of times that I passed a smoker, but gave up and sadly don't even cough anymore when I pass them. Eww- thats how much smoke I've inhaled.

The side of the Notre Dame with a rainbow. :)

Its been a long day. I'll post about today.. tomorrow?

Oh lastly- I was writing a list of all the things that I did on my first day last night and a note fell out of my notebook. A note from Ashlyn that I didn't find till then. What an amazing roommate. I love you Ashlyn! Oh and everyone else bien sur.... Vous me manquez!

PS Kates- I have heard 3 girls say "maint-now" already. I guess its a common mispronunciation? haha