Sorry. Internet is hard to come by here on the weekends as the Alliance Francaise is closed. It looks like the blog is going to be a weekday thing until I find another solution.
Speaking of weekends, there were a few fun activities that happened this past weekend. I saw my first protest here in France. It was for the "sans-papiers," which is basically illegal immigrants. I couldn't understand what they were chanting, but there was a whole lot of yellling (and it happened to be right by my apartment at the Bastille). Also at the Bastille on Saturday was the finish line of the "marche pour Jesus," which was a two or so kilometer march by French evangelicals. Very interesting. They ended it at the Bastille with a gospel concert featuring four of France's most acclaimed gospel artists (the fact that France has acclaimed gospel artists was a surprise for me). It was pretty good stuff -- a lot like a gospel concert would be in the States. However, most of the songs were in French. There were a few that vascillated between French and English (like the "Behold he comes...riding on the clouds" song). I thought it was funny when they sang the English because it was all in a French accent ("Bee-hol he cahms, riding on zee claudes..."). And another interesting moment: one artists started chanting "Jesus pour France! Jesus pour France!" which was the first time I had heard that Jesus was a francophile. Sunday night brought an excellent choral concert; the choir of the Reformed temple nearby the Bastille sang some works from Bach. It really was fantastic.
This morning brought my first class. The class has about ten people in it from a bunch of different countries (USA, Canada, Japan, Brazil, Mexico, Korea, etc.), which is cool. Everyone is really nice. Lundborgs, you may find it interesting that there's a person from Austin in the class. When we went around the room saying our name and our nationality, she said "Je m'appelle Laura. Je suis de Texas!" Nice. The Canadian lady, Gizelle, is really awesome; we had coffee at the break and talked about how over our heads the class was. A few people in there are REALLY good already. I am probably the worst at speaking. However, having a challenging class is exactly what I wanted; so, it's actually exciting. I already feel like I'm going to learn a lot, especially after six weeks. At the beginning of class, the teacher basically gave me a five minute summary of four different verb tenses that I didn't know before. That might illustrate (1) how behind everyone I am and (2) how quickly they're going. If I don't sound like a bonified Frenchman by the time I get back, then I quit.
Okay, homework to do, a paper to work on, groceries to purchase, etc. Thanks for all the comments. I love the rousing dialogue about pole-dancing (and don't forget the bad rapping).
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8 comments:
Good morning from Kentucky - even if it is 3 a.m. in Paris. Always anxious to check new posts from France and Spain. I knew I'd get there someday. (;)
Love, g
Hey Dan,
You couldn't possibly have picked a better location to rent your flat. Sounds like you're right in the thick of all the action. After hearing the frenchmen singing in English, you should feel better about your French!
Oh and point 3) they KNEW you are capable of the challenge so they put you in that class!
Love you, Donna
Talk about being at the heart of city... you'll get to see all the action! How cool. It's interesting that illegal immigration, a hot button topic for US politicians, is an issue in France too.
I would imagine you're excited about getting started with classes, etc. Can't wait to hear the update
love you
Blair
How come every time I post a comment, I end up talking about my parents? Anyway, they were in Paris this past weekend and keep raving about wonderful it is. Apparently they really want to take Jon and I to Paris when we visit... next week! So there really is a chance that we could hook up for a croissant or two. That would be stellar!
Glad to hear you're doing well. :)
you know, I read recently about an incredible rising movement by evangelicals in france...pretty amazing stuff. It did my heart good knowing that people are praying for and fighting for paris/france, especially after living there and seeing firsthand how absent any regard for God is sometimes. Did you go to church this weekend? remind me if you'd like directions to Emmanuel International Church, it's great and they have a college group too!
Yeah, Texas! When you said the part about "Je m'appelle Laura", it reminded me of a Friends episode when Joey is auditioning for a part in a play where he needs to speak French (which he doesn't) bwhahahaha funny funny
I'm so glad you're having such a great time!
Kate, I love that things always remind you of a Friends episode.
Drita, hit me with info on when/where etc. you're going to be if you come to Paris. My email is always an option to contact me (at least on weekdays) and if you find a way to make a phone call in Europe, my phone number is: 06 78 14 11 72. Let's get together!
Donna/Blair, yea pretty awesome location for the apartment. Most of my classmates live closer to the Alliance, but honestly I would way rather take a metro everyday and live by the Bastille. Such a cool area. And the Collonade de Juillet (where the Bastille used to be) is beautiful.
Leah, yea I did go to church this past Sunday, but I decided to go to a Catholic one on Isle-de-Saint-Louis. It was magnificient; though I didn't cath all of the service, the priest did make a fantastic point about the earthly trinity of "le foi, l'esperance, et le charite." Pretty cool. Hit me with the info on the international church just in case though.
::GASP:: you went to a Catholic church?! I'm shocked! :)
The 'rents (yup, referring to my parents... again) said mass at Notre Dame was unbelievable. They went to a Gregorian chant mass and can't stop talking about it.
Will email or call when I know if we'll be making the trip to Paris or not.
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