I’ll be home for Christmas, you can count on me

I'm currently sitting in my hotel room amazed by how life à Dijon became so normal, so quickly.  I already feel such a strong loyalty for "la ville de moutarde" that it’s quite hard to imagine how I’ll be feeling in May. But I don’t want to think about May just yet…

So, yes, I’m writing this post from my airport hotel but it took a bit to get here!  I had to leave my flat at 11:20am to get on the 11:30am bus so I would beat the lunchtime rush and be able to fit myself and luggage on the bus! Successful but it lead to lots of waiting time at the gare. (I bought some French tabloids to pass the time: funny and good practice!)  My train left Dijon at 1:20pm and arrived at Paris-Gare de Lyon at 3:11pm. Yes, exactly 3:11pm is when the train came to a complete stop.  How do I know this?  Well, when I was looking at my train ticket I thought to myself that 3:11pm is such a random/specific arrival time to put- it can’t be that exact!  Lo and behold there was a clock at Gare de Lyon showing the hour, minute, and SECONDS…so yes, SNCF (national train company) knows what’s up.  (I will never doubt you again, SNCF. Unless you go on strike- then all bets are off!)  I quickly found the Air France airport shuttle stop (thank you to whichever side of the family gave me fabulous memory/sense of direction) and only had to wait about 15 minutes for it to arrive.  (Air France shuttle plug….TAKE IT. I know I said this in one of my first posts but seriously worth every euro: quicker than the RER and you don’t have to drag your luggage up and down metro stairs!)  So, I took the shuttle to Terminale 1 to check out where Lufthansa is and was even able to check in ahead of time so now I just have to check my luggage and I'll be on my way! Yay, efficiency!  From Terminale 1 I took the airport shuttle to Terminale 3 to catch a different shuttle to my hotel for the night. (Lots of shuttles, clearly.)  On the airport shuttle I had this bizarre, existential moment where I caught my reflection and it hit me that this is my real life and I really do live in France, on my own, like other everyday French people. (Ok their French is better but you catch my drift!)  It was weird, but cool.  Finally I arrived at my hotel 6 hours after leaving my flat!  The hotel isn't anything spectacular but for one night it’s just what's needed.  I had to eat dinner in the hotel restaurant because there’s nothing around here…it was strange.  21,50 euros for an awkward, luke-warm buffet and a less than stellar Kir (Clearly I’ve been spoiled by Kir in Dijon!) all by myself.   Oh well, I wasn’t expecting an amazing meal and this just makes me all the more excited for American food! Om nom nom!

Tomorrow morning I’m waking up bright and early at 3:30am to be at breakfast at 4:30am and taking the 5am shuttle to CDG.  My first flight from Paris to Frankfurt leaves at 7:50am so I want to make sure I have plenty of time!  Then, should everything go smoothly, I will land in Frankfurt at 9:20am and my flight from Frankfurt leaves for Boston at 12pm. (These times are all Euro-times...I should land in Boston around 2pm US/EST, though.)  I’m a bit excited for my almost 3 hour layover in Frankfurt tomorrow as it brings back memories of my first international travel experience!

So there you go, a play by play of my voyage home!  But it's now time for bed considering I need to be up in 4 1/2 hours.  America-bound tomorrow- wahoo! J

Word of the Post: la ville de moutarde -- city of mustard (I just typed that for fun....I'm not positive it's an official nickname haha)

Europocalypse?

I had the intention of keeping blog posts to topics about my life and personal experiences but I feel it is important to touch on the subject of the current Euro Zone crisis. (It was only a matter of time- the Inernational Relations major in me has been constantly reading/consumed by the BBC, Le Monde, and CNN trying to keep up with this situation.  I have even taken to watching live broadcast of the UK's House of Commons but that's a different story!)

For the past month or so the media has been intensely reporting on what seems like the impending “end” of the Euro.  Now the BBC and CNN tend to have a more negative outlook and claim the Euro currency, as well as the European Union (EU), may crumble entirely but I think it’s still too soon to tell.

The major issues at hand are the Euro currency crisis and the UK's growing movement to distance itself, and create a path, to potentially leave the European Union.

Here are a few sites to catch you up to speed:

On the Euro crisis' potential outcomes:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16098582#TWEET42055

(*the Euro officially hit it’s lowest exchange rate today since this January: 1,00€ = $1.30)

On the most recent EU summit:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16093316

On the European anger towards the UK:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16114902

Q&A on the summit and debit crisis:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16057252

Genral overview:

http://globalspin.blogs.time.com/2011/12/13/as-the-crisis-refuses-to-calm-scenarios-of-euro-collapse-appear/

Now, I know a lot is going on in the States but keep in mind that the EU’s economy does effect our American economy so it’s important to keep up to date with how our neighbors are doing!  It’s a crazy time to be in Europe and a bit unsettling to think the EU currently stands on such shaky ground.  (You can feel the tension rising!)  While these troubles have been continuously growing this year here’s to hoping Europe can come together and work through this in the coming months!  I'll keep you posted, my faithful readers, but really I encourage you to check out the links above!

Me at the EU head quarters in Brussels, Belgium
October 2011

Word of the Post:  la crise – crisis (The economic crisis is simply refered to as “la crise”) 

US of A!

I cannot believe I will be flying home in exactly a week…where did the time go?!  So much has happened in these past three months and as I’m finally feeling settled it’s a bit strange to grasp that I am going on a vacation to the United States.  For me vacations have always consisted of countdowns to various European cities and getting excited to try new foods, see historic sites, visit museums and so on.  Now, living in Europe, I am counting down until I land in Boston, MA and can smell Dunkin’ Donuts, watch my favorite sports teams, eat Mom’s homemade buffalo chicken, and see familiar friends, family, and places. And I know that while I am able to visit these places I will be flying back to France after two weeks.  This is definitely one of the more bizarre moments thus far in my trans-Atlantic life.

As much as I love France and travelling, my time here makes me realize how lucky I am to call America home.  For example, in class this week my students and I were discussing some major differences between Europe and the United States.  I was taken aback by their comments as they see the U.S. as “an open and tolerant” country whereas Europe is so tied down to its past causing its people to hold on to certain passé ideologies. They absolutely love the idea of the American “melting pot” and that our culture has been created on difference, change, and a need to come together.  These are 15 year olds, mind you!  How amazing is that?  While I reminded them that the U.S. faces problems like any country it was a proud moment to hear them speak about my homeland with such admiration. And it, of course, made me all the more excited to visit home!

See you soon, ‘merica!

Word of the Post: à l'aise -- to be comfortable (Essentially how I'll feel when I'm laying on the couch watching Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer!)

Strasbourg: La Capitale de Noël

This past weekend I was able to spend time in Strasbourg, France which is located in the Alsace region.  Alsace has switched between being part of Germany and France over the years due to the wars in Europe so it was so cool to see a part of France with such a cultural identity crisis: the food and drink are a mix between French and German specialties, the signs are in both French and German, and you can hear both languages on spoken in the cafés and on the streets.

To get there we decided to rent a car to and make the 3 hour drive instead of taking the train.  It ended up being only a little bit more expensive than the train but we had so much more flexibility with the car (and the drive was shorter!) so it was totally worth it.  Plus it was fun to see how historical sites are marked on the highways in France with detailed signs. (And we got to drive on the autobahn in Germany but I’ll get to that later.)  We also sang Christmas carols and played silly games to keep us entertained during the drive…typical road trip!

This was our car- it fit SEVEN of us! And is considered to be a large vehicle in Europe.
Did I mention it took DEISEL?! That's how "big" it is! 

We arrived in Strasbourg around 8pm and checked in at the apartment where we were staying for the night and then headed back into the city center.  (Another plus of having the car- no need to deal with bus or tram time limitations!)  We wandered around and took in the beautiful lights and the massive Christmas tree (98 feet tall!).  Since we still hadn’t had dinner we went to a cute place where I ordered Spezi (a German drink) which is Coke and Fanta mixed.  Surprisingly it was delicious!  For dinner I had fried and breaded Camembert on lettuce with tomatoes.  They legit served a wheel of cheese, fried and breaded...where else in the world can you order that for dinner? Only in France.  It was delicious but I could only eat ¼ of the wheel…so filling!  The next day we had an array of breakfast treats from a boulangerie near our apartment and then set out for a day at the world famous markets! (And these markets are France's oldest- dating back to 1570!)  There were 12 different markets in the city and we saw a little over half of them!  My favorites were the French and German themed markets.  I had been to Christmas markets in Paris and Rome in 2009 so I had an idea of what to expect but these topped my expectations! I enjoyed them so much: the atmosphere, all the handmade goods, the ornaments, the pretzels, mulled wine (and hot orange juice in this case!), the yummy chocolates, the street performers...the list could go on and on!  It’s really difficult NOT to feel in a Christmas-y mood while in these markets.  I did a good amount of shopping and a good amount of eating- so many great things I had to try!  One time when I went to get hot chocolate at a stand Papa Noël (Santa Claus) was there to order a coffee and we chatted.  That’s right, I talked to Santa in French. Needless to say I was super pumped about it.  

Papa Noël et moi in Strasbourg!

Aside from the markets I visited Notre-Dame de Strasbourg which is, hands down, one of the most stunning cathedrals I have seen to date.  I was literally awe-struck when I first saw it because it is not only massive but extremely detailed and ornate.  The inside is exactly the same….you just feel so tiny and there is so much rich history it’s overwhelming.  Other than the Vatican I have never felt smaller in a church. (I think façade of Notre-Dame de Strasbourg was more stunning than the Vatican, but St. Peter’s Square is distracting so it’s a tough call.)  While the markets were the main goal for the day (and we saw so many!) I do plan to return to Strasbourg some day.  It offers so much more than Christmas markets so it would be a shame not to see all of its other sites!  (It’s a bike friendly city, too, and has cute canals so I think I’d like to return in the summer and ride a bike around! Someday!!)  Since we were only spending the one day in Alsace once we were done seeing most of the markets we decided we should plan when we would head back to Dijon but then we had the brilliant idea to go to Germany for dinner!  Strasbourg is about 30 minutes from the German border so it wasn’t that out of the way.  We settled on heading to Freiburg, a small city that was on the way back to Dijon.  How fun is that…Germany- just for dinner!  It was a precious little town, with its own Christmas markets so we got to see a bit of authentic, German Christmas markets which is where the whole idea originated!  Not a bad deal!  Also, one of the assistants in our group is from Germany so it was really exciting to have her to show us around her country and give cultural tid bits we would have missed out on had she not been there!  While driving on the autobahn there (yes, there’s really no speed limit!) we practiced German phrases to order food in a restaurant and about restaurant culture. (For example, you have to greet the waiter by saying good evening and when you ask for the check the waiter goes to each person individually with their subtotal and you pay one by one.)  For me, it was especially cool to be back in Germany since it’s the first European country I ever visited and will always have a special spot in my heart!

Me with a Christmas market sign in Freiburg, Germany

It was a whirlwind, jam-packed day and a half that I will cherish forever!  December in Europe is magical- simple as that.


Word(s) of the Post:   Joyeux Noël (French) / Frohe Weihnachten (German)  -- Merry Christmas