A new way of seeing things

Has my second week already come to an end?  Time is flying by!  I started classes at l'Institut Catholique de Paris on Wednesday and am lucky enough to have Mondays AND Tuesdays off.  Can you say 4 day travel weekend?!  I'm currently taking 2 courses in French (phonetics and translation) and then 2 political science courses taught in English.  "Le Catho," as we call it, is located in the Saint Germain-des-Prés area and is right near le Jardin du Luxembourg.  I can't wait until spring when I can hang out in the gardens during the breaks between classes!  Le Catho also has a highly accredited French as a foreign language program, with students from all over the world.  There are people of many different nationalities in my classes, from Korean to Costa Rican, and in many cases our only common language is French.  It has been a great way to practice speaking the language!

Since my last post, we have visited le Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, AND le Château de Versailles- some of my favorites!  Our adorable French guide, Fréderique, shared some incredibly interesting information with us about the various works/locations.  For instance,  le Sacre (coronation) de Napoléon by Jacques-Louis David is the largest painted canvas on display in the entire country of France.  David was asked to paint 2 copies for the emperor, one is on display in le Louvre and the other in Versailles.  They are nearly identical, expect for the color of one particular woman's dress.  The artist was supposedly in love with one of Napoléon's sisters, and in the piece that is now on display in Versailles, he painted her dress pink (while leaving the other women in grey).

Today some of the dorm-mates and I visited le Salon International de l'Agriculture, which is an agricultural convention that was running through the month of February.  As strange as it might sound, it was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced!  There were 7 different pavilions of food, wine, and livestock vendors from various regions in France and several countries from throughout the world!  We spent hours sampling cheeses, beers, meats, and candies from all over the place.  I got to try some delicious escargots and even bought a Belgian waffle avec Nutella... I think this addiction is becoming dangerous :)

Cultural fact: Gum is more expensive than some wine here.  Clearly the French have their priorities in order.

 My friend Emily and I enjoying panne au chocolat at Poilâne, a world famous boulangerie (bakery) near our school!

 Click for a closer view! David's Le Sacre de Napoléon in le Louvre.

 Les escargots sont délicieux!

 API friends at le Château de Versailles, my favorite place to visit in (well, technically right outside of) Paris.

"One's destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things." Henry Miller

Is this real life?!

So I am FINALLY getting settled into life here à Paris.  We (the 20 some students in my program) moved into the Cité Université dorms yesterday morning after 2 nights in a hotel in the heart of the city.  It's definitely been a tiring few days here, but it has been AMAZING!  I've attached some pictures taken from the Bateaux Mouches, which is the boat ride tour along the Seine river where you can see le Tour Eiffel, Notre Dame, etc.  Last night we had a walking tour of Montmartre, the oldest and most famous artist district in Paris.  It is one of the highest areas of the city and le Sacre Coeur (the Sacred Heart) is a beautiful white church at the top of the hill.  You get a gorgeous view from there!!

The carb overload here is deliciously unreal.  I can purchase a baguette sandwich with poulet crudités (grilled chicken, lettuce, tomato, and sliced hard boiled egg) with an Orangina at the Cité café for less than 4 euros, which is a steal over here.  And just as everyone imagines, croissants make a delicious breakfast, but panne au chocolat is even better!  Its basically the same flaky bread of a croissant with bits of chocolate throughout.  I have yet to go to a boulangerie, which is the Parisian bakery, but rest assured that I will be blogging about it just to make your mouths water!

A little about the dorms: Obviously they don't care that it's a co-ed toilette because the toilet paper is PINK!  I have my own room with a large closet and sink, and most of the girls from my program live right on my floor.  The coolest part about the Cité Université is that there are dorms from countries all over the world!  It is absolutely gorgeous here, and I will definitely post pictures when I have time to roam the campus.

Cultural fact: No matter what anyone says, French men are beautiful.  And they have the best hair. And drive mopeds. 

Another fact: Nutella is God's gift to this earth. Combine that with banane et un crêpe and your life will be forever changed.

 Gorgeous view of le Tour near sunset.

 Some of the API girls on the Bataux Mouches.

 Le Sacre Coeur at night!

DELISH French meal: Wine, bread, and a jambon et fromage (ham and cheese) salad.

 Moi with my delicious crêpe!

Explore, dream, discover...

Hi everyone!


So it's a day before my LONG awaited trip, and I couldn't be more excited!  If you know me at all, it's pretty hard to believe that it was physically (and mentally) possible for me to pack 3 months worth of clothes, shoes, etc into 2 suitcases and a backpack, but I did it!  Shout out to Mom for pulling a Tim Gunn and making it work.  The reality of it all still hasn't hit me, but after a full day of traveling tomorrow, I will officially be on French soil!


I'm starting this blog to give my friends and family a glimpse of this unbelievable adventure.  I plan on filling it with pictures and posts of all the cool places I am going and things I am seeing!  I'm hoping that it will be an easy way to update you all on everything that's happening.


I also REALLY want to stay in touch with everyone, so email me (laurenatrani@gmail.com), Skype me (lauren.trani), Facebook me, whatever :)  


Next post will be from across the pond! AHHH!
Au revoir,
Lauren


"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -Mark Twain