I am still getting over this jet lag situation and didn’t fall asleep until sometime after 4am Thursday the 29th, which then caused me to sleep through my 8am alarm and wake up at 11:30am. I was supposed to meet with some French grad students at 10am so clearly that ship sailed without me. I hope they won’t be too upset. I’ve already emailed Carmela so she can let them know that jet lag caused me to oversleep and I didn’t intentionally blow them off! (Fingers crossed they still want to meet up sometime soon!)
So as I missed my Planetarium date I decided to wander around my new neighborhood. Through this wandering I have two theories: either globalization has kicked in to overdrive or Paris truly is a separate entity from the rest of France. (I’m thinking it’s the latter.) I would like to note that t-shirts, sandals, flip flops (okay I only saw a few pairs but still!), shorts (without tights!), capris, multi colored dresses, big, colorful patterned tops and bottoms, and so on are all being worn here. And when I say color I mean oranges, reds, bright blues, greens, purples….we’re talking vibrant colors! You know the famous “We aren’t in Kansas anymore” quote? Well let me just say, I’m not in Paris anymore. I probably stick out like a sore thumb with all my black, white and gray. (Or maybe they think I’m Parisian?! Haha…probably not but a girl can dream.) Anyway, I am blown away by the array of color here. Another major difference in Dijon from Paris is that when I speak in French here people respond in French. This is a very nice change because à Paris people would hear a slight accent (or difference in intonation) and switch right to English (or whatever language they thought your accent was from). Another cultural contrast from Paris is that the Dijonnais smile, and they smile often. Gasp! Haha But in all seriousness, there is just more of a friendly vibe here. The people of Dijon have less than amicable feelings toward Paris…. one person even referred to living there as suffering. (I personally don’t believe one could suffer in Paris but it can be a challenge to live there, especially as a foreigner.) I kind of feel like I am cheating on Paris with Dijon as I fell in love with the City of Light during my first visit there in 2005; however, there is something tremendously endearing about the “city-meets-provincial” aspect of Dijon. I know that Paris will always be one of my favorites (it’s too beautiful not to be) but I am very happy to have been placed in Dijon for this experience.
Leaving the States a little over a week before my work start date was a fantastic decision. It has given me ample time to (start) adapting to the time change, explore the city a bit, and get a head start on administrative stuff. While this first week has definitely had its ups and downs I am thankful for it. I know I’ve said it before but I really am so very excited to be here for 8 months-it’s a dream come true to spend an extended period of time living in Europe. I feel like a little sponge and I intend to soak up as much as possible!
Word of the Post: un éponge -- sponge (that’s what I plan to be here! Told you it wouldn’t be another fruit ;) )
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