Bonjour!

So after my first full day studying abroad in Paris, France, I decided it was time to write my first blog post!

Like many other abroad students, I am creating a blog so my family and friends can keep tabs on me as I travel throughout Europe, get up to no good and maybe even study a little bit!!

To give a little backstory to this adventure, I have wanted to study in Paris for as long as I can remember. I have never been to Paris before yesterday, nor had I ever been to Europe, but for some reason I always had an attraction to the city of Paris. I know that s a 20-something-year-old moving to Paris and then immediately becoming enamored with the city is a overused cliché, but hey, it’s been less than 48 hours and I’m already head-over-heels.

I left Toronto Pearson airport Saturday evening, and after the small hiccup where I forgot the French translation for pasta (pâtes) during the food service, the flight went off without a hitch. I even watched ‘Eat, Pray, love’ on the plane to set the ‘eat-a lot-and-learn-a lot’ tone for the semester.

I am staying in a flat in the 14ieme arrondissment of Paris above a sushi restaurant, a chocolatier and a boulangerie. This semester I will be staying with another French-studies IES student, Elizabeth, my host mother, Chantal (Mme. Gendilloux) and her little pup named ‘Julienne.’ Chantal always says that Julienne is like bubble gum (cucul) and I just smile and nod because I have no idea what she means by that. Chantal also loves reality television and every night at 8:15, we watch the soap opera ‘La Ville la Plus Belle’ which is set in Marseilles. As Chantal tells us, people from the South of France are notoriously fast speakers so I am not entirely sure what the show is about yet, but I will keep you posted when I find out. 

I am only just beginning to learn the subtleties of the French language and culture, and even as I try to demonstrate my finest French, I still have quite a bit to learn. For instance, this morning I asked Mme. Gendilloux if there were any preservatives or jam (préservatifs) for the toast, to which she just smiled and walked away. I wasn’t entirely sure if this was the correct translation, but it sounded correct enough. After talking with an IES administrator, I quickly learned that conservateur is the correct translation for preservatives whereas préservatifs translates into ‘condom.’ So now I know.

Walking to and from IES abroad center is helping me get to know the local area a little better. To my surprise, I only became lost once today while trying to meet up with some students at a nearby Starbucks, but as my dear friend Casey puts it, I probably should’ve brought a map.

Tomorrow, Chantal is taking Elizabeth and I on a guided car tour of central Paris and on Thursday the IES center is sponsoring a field trip to the Loire Valley where we will be able to see des Châteaux and the death place of Leonardo da Vinci. 

Although I am still a little jet-lagged and overwhelmed, I am looking forward to this semester and all of the wonderful experiences that are sure to follow!

À bientôt!

                                   My new room featuring complimentary Ferrero Rocher and the Deeg
                                                   

                                                                    Julienne the 'cucul'