Tick Tock

In theory, time should be pretty easy to keep track of.  Between watches, clocks, microwaves, computers, and cellphones, we are basically surrounded with timekeepers all the time.  It moves forward at a constant rate, so it should be easy to keep track of, and one would think that after 20 years of life, I would be able to tell how much time has passed in any given interval.  In reality, this skill evades me.  For something that is supposed to be so stable, time is actually really volatile.  At least my perception of it is.  


I remember that one time, in preschool, we had to be quiet for a whole minute and it felt so long! Then we were allowed to talk for a minute and it passed quickly.  Nothing has really changed since then! I may know now that my perception of time changes based on what I am doing, but I still have no control over what a given increment of time feels like.  My guess is that I probably won't be able to any time soon, either. A class always seems to pass much more quickly during a test than during a lecture. The time I spend waiting for something always seems to go faster than the time I spend actually doing that thing. Four months seems like a huge amount of time before it starts, but as I approach the end, it seems like four months may as well have been four days! 


This week, it seems like somebody hit the accelerator on time! On one hand, last Sunday night seems ages away because I have been so busy since then, but on the other hand, I feel like this week passed in the blink of an eye.  They say that time flies when you are having fun, and I guess that must be what is happening here!!  This week, I have discovered new monuments and sites in Paris, explored new areas, and come to love this city even more!!  I have three weeks left here, but if they pass as quickly as this past one did, I feel like I will be back stateside in no time flat! 

This church is less than 5 minutes' walk from my school, but I hadn't been yet, so I stopped in on my way to class! Tuesday, I visited Saint Sulpice, which is the second largest church in Paris (after Notre Dame Cathedral).  It is known for it's uneven towers, which were not actually a design, but happened because they were only able to finish one of the towers before the French Revolution.

On Thursday (aka Thanksgiving), our program organized a dinner for us at a restaurant.  We had pumpkin soup, green beans, potatoes au gratin, turkey, and a chestnut mousse-ish pie with chocolate for dessert.  The french take on Thanksgiving proved to be delicious! After dinner, we headed to Moose, a Canadian bar, so that we could watch the Cowboys play the Dolphins.  It was good to spend Thanksgiving with friends and fellow Americans! 

On Friday, I went to Les Invalides, which is where Napoléon is buried. This is his tomb.  It is kind of hard to tell in this picture, but his tomb is HUGE!!! It is visible from the main floor even though it is on the basement level.  He definitely wanted to make an impression.  

The Invalides are best known for the golden dome.  They served as a hospital for wounded soldiers under Napoléon, and now there are several museums, including his tomb, there.  

Fun Fact #31: There is still a working hospital on the grounds of Les Invalides.  

Saturday, I had work to do.  Fortunately, this meant meeting my friends at the Louvre so that we could each describe and take notes on the painting that we had chosen to write a paper on for art history class.  I surprised myself because I enjoyed sitting and looking at one painting for two hours! A relaxing morning!

My friend Anna and I left the Louvre to go meet two other friends at the Comédie Française to see Molière's "École des femmes."  Three of us are reading it for a literature class we are in, so it was really cool to see how it was acted on stage! Plus the inside of Salle Richelieu (the theater) was beautiful!!

Fun Fact #32: The Comédie Française is one of only a few state-run theaters in France, and it is the only one to have its' own troupe of actors. 

After the play, I went to dinner with Anna and her friend Sarah and then met up with some others to see a movie.  We saw Les Adoptés, directed by Mélanie Laurent, and we all loved it! It was really sad but so well acted! This picture was taken as I walked back to the metro from the theater, after Anna pointed out how cool it looked with the leaves there! 

Fun Fact #33: The water fountain in this picture is one of 67 "Wallace fountains" in Paris.  These fountains were designed by Charles Auguste Lebourg and paid for by Sir Richard Wallace, a philanthropist who wanted Parisians, even poor Parisians, to have access to clean drinking water. 

This morning I got up early to go to Mass at Notre Dame for the first Sunday in Advent! The service was really cool, and the church was as beautiful as ever! 

After church, we explored the various christmas markets in Paris. My personal favorite was the market at La Défense, which is not technically in Paris but is accessible by metro and only 4 stops from my house. It was all decorated and had a definitely "Christmas" feel despite the leaves that are still falling and 50 degree cloudy weather! This is the Christmas Tree in the plaza in front of Notre Dame.  It is huge! 

This week has been super busy but totally wonderful!! I can only hope that the next three pass in a similar fashion!! 


May your week be filled with fun and holiday cheer! 


~SKS~

The Best Laid Plans

Plans are great.  They are excellent organizational tools, helping make sure that everything gets done, ensuring that members of a group are on the same page, and allowing us to make good use of our time.  It is always great when a plan comes together, and even better when a well-laid plan works out. Generally speaking, not having a plan stresses me out, so I generally plan everything.  That being said, I have come to realize that plans are not always better than spontaneity. Sometimes, it can be even more gratifying to live in the present, eschewing planning and choosing instead to do what feels right in the moment.  This does not come easily to me, but I have decided to give it a try.  

Let's not get ahead of ourselves, here.  I know myself too well to say that I would be able to go the entire month I have left here (a little less, actually... time FLIES) without planning ANYTHING, and that is not my idea.  Like I said before, sometimes plans are useful and helpful, and I don't think that a plan is ever exactly a negative thing.  When I first arrived in Paris, I made a list of around a hundred things that I wanted to do in the city before the end of the semester.  I still have about 20 of those things left, and I can just about guarantee that I will be making and executing plans in order to make sure that I am able to do and see everything on my list.  Still, I think that there is something to be said for the surprise and satisfaction that comes from having a really great time doing something you never expected to do, or from doing something when you anticipated doing something different. It is not a feeling I afford myself very often, because I usually don't do things without a plan, but I do actually really enjoy just going through a day, or an evening, with no agenda.  

I was reminded of this over the weekend, when plans fell through but I still ended up having a great time with my friends.  In fact, I got to see and do some things that I may not have known existed otherwise.  This weekend, it was definitely worth it for me to 'go with the flow' and it made me realized that it could be worth it other times too.  As awesome as it will be to check off that last box on the to-do-in-Paris list, it would be a shame to live here for four months without letting myself stumble upon unknown restaurants, cute little stores, or uniquely Parisian experiences.  So for the next 28 days, in addition to outlining and carrying out plans, I will also be making an effort not to come home as soon as that day's last task has been completed, to say yes to friends even when I am tired or not sure exactly what to expect, and essentially just to give myself the opportunity to really get to know Paris in a different way, a way that doesn't (always) include a notecard with a checklist. 

This week, I found out that for my art history class, I will be required to write a paper about a work that is found in the Louvre.  This is the painting that I chose.  It is called "Louis XIII Courroné par la Victoire" or Louis XIII Crowned by Victory.  I'm looking forward to spending time in the Louvre analyzing this piece! For a first art history paper, I guess this situation isn't too shabby! 

Friday, I went to visit the Mémorial de la Shoah, which is the Holocaust memorial in Paris.  One of the more moving features is right at the entrance: walls covered in names of French Jews who were persecuted by the occupying Nazis and Vichy government and either killed or never returned. The understated simplicity of these walls really serves to exaggerate the atrocity that was committed.  The museum focuses on education and factual presentation of these  seemingly unimaginable events.  While it is smaller and less image - based than the Holocaust Museum in D.C., it's message is the same: educate people, spread the word, and make sure people never forget.   

Fun Fact #29: In France, they do not use the word 'Holocaust,' which has roots in the Greek for 'consumed by fire' or 'total destruction.' Instead, they employ the Hebrew word 'Shoah,' which means calamity or catastrophe. 

After visiting the memorial, I wanted to do something a little more lighthearted to end my day.  Since the Centre Pompidou, which is home to the museum of modern and contemporary art, was close by and had yet to be crossed off my list, I decided it was time visited.  This is the view from the staircase of the museum, which is essentially a gerbil-tube like glass structure from which you can see many different great views of Paris! 

This was one of my favorite pieces in the museum.  While there were some that I didn't understand (like the solid black canvas, or the string of christmas lights on a wall, for instance), I thought this was cool, and while I guess I still didn't get why it was "art" I did appreciate the creative thought that went into its' design. It is basically the tape from an old cassette tape over a cube.  A fan blows air onto the cube, and the force of that air then holds up the tape. I think the fact that I was fascinated by this speaks to the fact that I think more like my mother than either of us might care to admit.  :)

On Saturday, I met up with a friend to see some of the things we had yet to do around Paris.  First up was a visit to La Défense, a business district that is only about 4 metro stops from my house and 3 from his. Somehow, neither of us had managed to make it here in the 3 months we have lived in Paris! The most famous building here is La Grande Arche, from the steps of which you can see the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Élysées in the distance.  

Next, we headed to the Musée Rodin.  The museum boasts a fairly large garden in which many of Rodin's original works are displayed.  This sculpture, Le Penseur, is among his most famous works at the museum.  In the background is the dome of the Invalides. 

Saturday was an absolutely GORGEOUS day! Given that we can't expect many more like it, we decided to take advantage of the warm weather and clear skies to go climb the Bell Towers of Notre Dame Cathedral.  We had to wait in line for about an hour, but it was a great day so it wasn't bad.  The views, both of Paris and of parts of the cathedral that are not visible from below, were definitely worth it! 

Fun Fact #30: Quasimodo, who we all know from the Disney film Notre Dame, was actually a character in Victor Hugo's novel "Notre Dame de Paris."

Saturday night, my friends and I wanted to go see a play at La Comédie Française.  They set aside 65 tickets each night and sell them for 5.50 euro starting one hour before the show.  Unfortunately, we were not among the first 65 to arrive.  Our plans fell though, but we had a great night! It was a beautiful night in Paris, and the city is all decorated for Christmas (I know... without Thanksgiving they start even earlier here!).  After dinner, we went to look at the windows of the department stores, which have all been specially decorated for the holidays.  I guess this is a tradition, because the street was packed with people wanting to look at the displays.  This was my personal favorite, at a department store called Printemps. All of the windows for that store were done by Chanel! 

We wanted to look at the lights on the Champs-Élysées, so we made our way to Place de la Concorde so that we could walk all the way up it. In Place de La Concorde, they just put up "La Grande Roue" which is a ferris wheel.  Since it was such a nice night, we went up.  Awesome views of the city!!! This one looks past Place de la Concorde up the Champs Élysées, and off to the left you can see the Grand Palais. 

La Grande Roue itself! 

After getting off the ferris wheel, we walked all the way up the Champs Élysées though one of the biggest Christmas Markets in Paris.  Even though it was almost midnight, there were still lots of people out and about and all the makeshift stores were still open.  While some were cheap touristy shops, some are just temporary extensions of stores that already exist in Paris. 

Finally, we ended up at the Arc De Triomphe, which I had not yet seen at night. Gorgeous! 

All in all, even though some of my plans this weekend didn't work out, it was a pretty great week! I hope that this coming week brings more of the same! 

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Eat lots of pumpkin pie for me!! 

~SKS~

Back from Vacation

It does not seem to matter how long or short a break is, how far away the destination is, whether I travel by plane, train, or car, or how much fun I had; certain things seem to occur every time I come back from vacation.  Firstly, I am always glad to sleep in my own bed.  I know I am not alone in thinking that I fall asleep easier and sleep more soundly at home.  Secondly, any negativity about the trip immediately falls away, and I am left glowing about the wonderful things I did. Even if a negative event really was memorable, then it is turned into a story that starts with "Oh my gosh, remember that one time when... [insert bad situation here]"  and ends with all the involved parties laughing about it.  Thirdly, I appreciate things about my daily life that I hadn't even known I missed while I was away - foods, sounds, smells, and the little things that make me feel at home.  The fourth thing that always happens is that, no matter what, even if I didn't miss any class for my trip, I have the feeling that I have to catch up, and usually (though not always), I actually DO have a much heavier than average workload during the week I come back.  

My return to Paris from my trip to Scotland last weekend elicited all of the above results.  Though my bed in Paris is not exactly the same as my bed at home, I certainly prefer it to the unfamiliar hostel bed, and while I am pretty sure I was fairly upbeat the whole trip, as soon as I was putting my pictures on my computer, I found myself subtly erasing the restaurant that didn't have room to seat us and the worries I had about getting to the airport on time from my memory of the trip (I actually had to think pretty hard just now to even remember those, and the restaurant thing did actually become a joke between me and my friends that weekend).  When I got back to Paris, I appreciated not having to look at a map to get home from the metro, the cheese we had after dinner, and sitting down to watch the news with my host mom.  

My trip made me appreciate coming back to Paris, but the fourth "back from vacation" observation also proved true: I have done more school work this week than I have done in the rest of the semester combined! In this case, I am thinking that I am not just coming back from a trip to Scotland, but coming back to reality after the first two and a half months I have spent in France have been mostly "abroad" with very little "study." I had my first test in a Paris university on Wednesday, and I think it went pretty well, though I did have to ask my teacher how to spell Czechoslovakia in French (Tchécoslovaquie), and they do grade considerably harder, so I am still a bit nervous for the result. I have my first in-class essay on Tuesday, so I have been carefully re-reading Molière's "École des Femmes" in preparation.  I also have a test in my art-history class and a document analysis essay due for my history of the 20th century class on Wednesday.  

The notable difference here is that, even though I am "back" from my vacation to Scotland, I am still at least partially on vacation in Paris. I know that when I get home, I will fall asleep in my real bed thinking about the great semester I had, and any negativity or stress I experienced will magically melt away, allowing me to conserve nothing but the best memories of the trip.  I might as well not have the negative thoughts to begin with! Plus, it would be pretty tough to get too down about my workload when I can see the top of the Eiffel Tower as I work, and my study breaks this weekend consisted of visits to the Musée d'Orsay, Cité des Sciences, and a soccer game at Stade de France.  I'm not saying the work is easy, but studies are the reason I get to be here in the first place, and even the most stressful week I could have in Paris is better than a week NOT in Paris, so you won't hear me complaining (unless you are my parents, in which case I may have already vented a little bit... oops! Thank you guys for listening and being supportive, no matter what.  I couldn't ask for a better family!) 

Now for the pictures! 

Friday, which was a day off for everyone here as it was Veteran's Day, just like in the States, I went to visit the Musée D'Orsay during the day.  No pictures are allowed in the exhibits, but it is a really spectacular museum.  I loved the setup and the building as much as I loved the art inside it! 

Fun Fact #27: The Musée d'Orsay was actually a train station until the trains became too long for its platforms in the late 1930's.  It was not actually opened as a museum until 1986.  

It was a rather cloudy day, but the outside of the museum still looks like the train station, complete with clocks, and the names of destinations etched into the side! 

I needed to go buy some books for my history class at a bookstore about a mile away, so I decided to take a stroll along the river instead of taking the metro.  Always a good choice in Paris! This city makes even the mundane look artistic. Booksellers along the river with a view of the Louvre in the background. 

Friday night, I was able to go to the US vs. France soccer game at the Stade de France with two friends from Tufts! The US lost 1 - 0, but it was fun to see the stadium and it was a pretty interesting game.  We also happened to run into a TA of mine from Tufts.  He was seated in our section of the stands, visiting France for a bit before heading to Lebanon.  Proving how small the world can be! 

Fun Fact #28: At the Stade de France, they didn't sell alcohol.  I guess this makes sense if you don't want fans getting out of hand.  However, they did sell non-alcoholic beer.  When we were on our way home, we encountered some other American students, one of whom apologized for his state of mind, claiming that he was drunk after having one too many beers at the game. Clearly, he is not a fan of reading the fine print!

On Saturday, I visited a really cool exhibit about Les Gaulois at the Cité des Sciences museum.  Last summer, I was digging on a site inhabited by the Gauls, so this exhibit was particularly interesting to me.  It was made more fun by the fact that I was able to go see it with two of my friends from the dig that I had not yet caught up with! It was a really great time! 

Today, I have been particularly boring, trying to get my paper written for my history class.  This means lots of reading and re-reading and searching for the english translations of documents just to be sure I understand (hey, they were translated from German in the first place, so the French version isn't the original either).  It was so nice out though, so I decided to set up on the little balcony outside my room in the sun.  The benefits of being outside with the added bonus of wifi and indoor plumbing at my disposal. Not a bad way to spend a day!

Anyway, I gotta get back to work! Hope your week is magnifique! (I know it's cheesy... just roll with it!) 

~SKS~

Graveyards, Ghosts, and Getaways

Wow! I have been incredibly busy since my last post! Luckily, most of what has been keeping me busy is fun! Last Tuesday, the 1st of November, we did not have school since it was All Saints' Day.  As many museums, stores, and sites in Paris were closed (some for the holiday, others are just closed every Tuesday) friends and I took the opportunity to visit Paris' famous cemeteries.  Given that laying chrysanthemums on graves is an All Saints' tradition here in France, we knew that cemeteries would be open.  In fact, we were even able to visit one that is ONLY open on November 1st.  

Then, I headed to Edinburgh, Scotland, with two friends for the weekend! We sure packed a lot into the short time we had there! A ghost tour of the city, Edinburgh Castle, a visit with Peter, my friend from UChicago Summer School in 2007 who now goes to St. Andrews, souvenir shopping, climbing Arthur's Seat, the birthplace of Harry Potter, museums, and pub visits left all of us exhausted but happy upon our return to Paris last night.  Scottish hospitality was really as warm as stereotypes say it is! It was a great trip and another reminder of how lucky I am to have such cool opportunities to study and travel abroad! 

Lots of pictures this week so bear with me! 

Basilique de St. Denis is the burial place of many of the French Kings and Queens and was our first stop on our cemetery tour on All Saint's Day. 

Cimetière de Montmartre was the next stop.  By this point it was raining pretty solidly, but we figured we were already outside.  This is one of the 3 big cemeteries in Paris (the others are Père Lachaise and Cimetière de Montparnasse, and the rain got to us before we got to them).

Fun Fact #23: In France, Chrysanthemums are the flower they use for graves.  In late October, they are on sale in most groceries in preparation for All Saints' Day, which many people use as an opportunity to visit graves of loved ones and lay flowers there.  

After Cimetière de Montmartre, we visited Cimetière de St. Vincent and then headed to lunch to get warm and dry.  Then, we headed to Cimetière du Calvaire (above), which is next to Église St. Pierre de Montmartre with a view of the Basilique du Sacré Coeur in the background.  This cemetery is only open to the public one day a year.  There are 87 tombs there, and many are so old that you can't even read them! 

The next stop was Cimetière de Picpus, which is known as being the site of mass graves for the victims of the French Revolution, but also has the grave of LaFayette, the military hero of the US Revolution and the French Revolution.  He is buried here with his wife.  

Fun Fact #24: The D.A.R. maintain the grave of LaFayette.  They were given permission by the french government to fly the American flag over his tomb. 

The Ghost Tour that we took of Edinburgh on our first night took us to Calton Hill Cemetery, where we saw this monument to the American Civil War, which was constructed to help the Scotsmen who died fighting for the Union find their way home. 

Fun Fact #25: This is the only monument outside of the United States that is dedicated to our Civil War. 

Saturday morning, we visited Edinburgh Castle, which has some great views over the city! There were many small museums and exhibitions inside the castle, most famously the Crown Jewels of Scotland and the Stone of Scone (aka the Stone of Destiny). 

Many cannons here, but none that we could paint. 

The Castle was not one building, like I tend to think of when I hear the word "Castle."  It was more like a walled complex of smaller buildings.  One of the older ones is St. Margaret's Chapel.  As you can see, we got really lucky with our weather while we were in Scotland! Sun every day! 

Saturday afternoon, I met up with Peter.  We took a walk to parts of the city that I had not seen and then took in part of a soccer game at The Standing Order Pub.  It was great to catch up! 

As Remembrance Day (Vetrans' Day) is coming up, The Walter Scott Memorial lawn was decorated with small wooden crosses.  Each one had a name of a Scottish servicemen and a poppy.  

Fun Fact #26: Poppies are a tradition on Vetrans' Day.  The Scots seem to celebrate for most of November, sporting poppies on their lapels for the month, rather than just taking the day for convocations and ceremonies, like we do in the States.  

A highlight of my trip was climbing Arthur's Seat early on Sunday morning.  The 45 min. hike was not super easy, but it was totally doable, even with our backpacks on (we had to check out of our hostel before leaving). The views were phenomenal (here you see the Firth of Fourth)!

Finally, before we left, we had to fulfill childhood dreams and pay homage to sites that helped author J.K. Rowling shape the Harry Potter series.  This is a tombstone in Greyfriars Kirkyard gave her the inspiration for the name 'Tom Riddle' (aka Voldemort).

Around the corner from the graveyard is a café called The Elephant House. Rowling wrote much of Harry Potter from the back room of the café, which overlooks the castle.  It was peaceful and calm.  I could see why she chose to write there! The Cafe had several articles about Rowling and Harry Potter on the walls, but had maintained its original elephant theme, rather than focusing on that, which I thought was pretty cool.  The bathroom walls, however, were covered with Potter fans' expressions of thanks, praise, and criticism of the author and the books.  The funniest was the remark above the toilet: "Flush twice for the Ministry of Magic" (if you haven't read the books then you may not get the reference).  

After that we were headed to the airport and back to Paris! It was a short visit, but we made great use of our time and got to do essentially everything we wanted to.  Scotland was great, but as I had feared, rather than crossing that destination off my list for the future, I now feel that another visit to other parts of the country is more necessary than ever! 

Anyway, thanks for reading and Happy November! 

~SKS~