Last week we had a really awkward "blind date" with a bunch of French students. USAC set it up, and we showed up, and they showed up, and there were snacks and nervous mingling...but we all walked away with phone numbers and email addresses and new friends :) I met two English majors, Flavie and Charlotte, who invited me and a couple of my friends to their apartment for "les apéros," or drinks, games, music, and friends, tomorrow night. I think it will be really beneficial to hang out with French teenagers, especially those who speak English, so we can learn French and learn exactly what the different slang terms mean. I just read an article for my Cultural Studies class, though, that says that French slang is not a social or class identifier like it is in the US, but more of a language of familiarity: Sarkozy uses slang when he talks in intimate settings, as do petty criminals and my host mum. It's a strange concept, that slang is for everyone, but it also helps to keep foreigners out--the obsession the French have with protecting their culture extends to their language, too, and thus, learning all the French slang that's out there is absolutely impossible! That doesn't mean I've stopped trying, though :) I've even started writing in my diary in French--it helps incredibly.
Last Wednesday we went to karaoke--what a fun time :) It didn't start until 11 (after the football game, of course!) but when it did get started, it was incredible! There were some serious singers there, people who got up time and time again to sing songs in French and in English. It was a great way to meet more French people--that's like our mantra for every day. "Today I will meet French people!"
My friend's host mum gave me a bike to ride, so it's been taking me only 15 minutes to get to school instead of almost 45. That means I can sleep later! Haha :) I still haven't mastered the roundabout on bike--I always get off and push it across the crosswalks--but I'm getting used to riding my bike in traffic. On bigger roads, there's even a bike lane! I've seen some postcards parodying the French denotation of road lanes--there's one for cars, one for bikes, one for handicapped people who wheel themselves, one for handicapped people who are pushed by other people, one for walkers, one for pregnant women, and one for porcupines on leashes. It's pretty clever, but it's a great system: and it's nice knowing that cars are aware of your presence!
A couple days ago I received an email from one of our exchange students that we've kept in touch with. She emailed me train times, prices, and hostels where we can stay in the town that's directly between my school and hers. It was so great hearing from her, and the town we're visiting is right on the beach. I'm so glad that she went to all that effort just to see me again--the French are so intent on keeping friendships alive. I'm finally getting used to giving "bisous," cheek-kisses, so I'll be able to greet her properly :)
I'm about to go eat lunch (though it's only 5 in the morning back home--what can I say, I'm an early bird!) Our cafeteria is called "La Vague" (the wave) because it's got a cascading metal roof that does look just like a giant metallic wave. Lunch every day is only 2E85 and you can get a meat and two veggies, a salad, or a burger (bunless, as is the French norm :P) and fries. There's also a briocherie off to the side where you can buy sandwiches of all kinds, quiches, and even baguettes smothered in Nutella [drool]. I would marry Nutella if it weren't an inanimate object that I would rather consume. Oh, Nutella. <3
I hope that all is well in the states and that no one's bank has collapsed or house has been foreclosed--now is a great time to be out of the country, but in three months, it's going to be a terrible time to come back in! I just hope that the dollar stays relatively steady against the Euro....a student's budget is nothing in the States, and it's 0.68-nothing in Europe. Here's to hoping I'm not too broke to make it back!
No comments:
Post a Comment