Arriving in Lyon, finding an apartment in Lyon, getting lost in Lyon…it’s all part of France’s master plan to make me exhausted! Quite frankly however, France has not kicked my butt yet, I have realized after a few days that though I am not France savvy just yet, I am quickly learning that in order to be “France savvy”, one has to persevere.
This week especially, more than any other period in my life, has been full of me giving all that I’ve got, keepin’ on keepin’ on.
In this letter I hope to explain what I have been going through ;)
Oh and for those of you who don’t want to waste your time lost in my ramblings, here is the brief meltdown: I don’t have internet yet in my apartment, but hopefully by next week I’ll have it, along with a cell phone number. (In France you can get your TV, your internet, and your phone all hooked up together for a small price. It’s pretty cool : )
Oh, and I have an address:
Jessica Jones
2 Rue du Diapason A212
Lyon, 69003 France
That’s right, I live on Tuning Fork Street ; )
Oh, and I have a Skype!! Search for me:
Jessica Jones of Cabot, Arkansas or Jessicaleeambassadrice
Now, for those of you want a glimpse into my life---read on!
I left Tours after my language training last Friday to come to Lyon. I packed up all of my luggage, cursing at how much I (and Sarah Ann Mason, it’s all Sarah’s fault!) packed all along the way, and finally I arrived to greet the welcoming face of Marie-José, my host counselor, my “marraine”, that is, my God-mother. She calls me her God-daughter and kisses me tenderly on both cheeks. We have grown to like each other very much, and I have realized just how tender a “real” kiss on the cheek really is. For those of you who don’t know, there are different levels of kisses. When you don’t know someone in France, you either shake their hand or you kiss their cheeks, well, you just exchange cheeks really. The next step up is when you continue just exchanging cheeks, but you let the exchange linger a little longer. The next step up from that is when you actually kiss a cheek, and then after that you kiss a cheek a little more tenderly, and then to complete the full on exchange of how glad you are to see someone, you kiss cheeks tenderly more than two times. This is what I have gathered. I haven’t yet been cheek-kissed more than two times except from Marie-José, and that is because she is "ma marraine” and she takes care of me : )
When I arrived in Lyon, I stayed with Marie-José and her adorable husband Jacques, who is obsessed with playing tennis and watching sports. He is a classy sort of fella who mumbles a little when he talks, who dresses nicely (mostly in LaCrosse), and who drinks a glass of Bourbon before dinner for good digestion. I call him Monsieur Jock and he calls me Mademoiselle Jessica. He knows some English, and sometimes when we talk he picks out uncommonly spoken French words and asks me to translate them into English. For example, “breed” of dog = "une race” en français. Dogs have races. Heehee, Mah you will be glad to know that our precious dachshund Jasper has been the topic of discussion at least once ; )
Jacques is the principal of a public high school; Marie is the director of a private middle school, created for underprivileged youth; she is a Rotarienne. They live outside of the city and I have to take a Tramway to get to their house.
After two nights at Marie-José’s house, I moved into the Hotel Simplon, situated on the Presqu’île of Lyon (the near island-almost an island). A fellow Rotarian of my host club, Croix-Rousse (Red Cross), owns the hotel and she lodged me with a “Rotarian discount”, which means that I only had to pay half, and breakfast was included. Alix’s hotel was very homey, very comfortable…and she had decorated the whole joint in cherries! Everything was red or yellow covered in “cerises” (cherries), with “cerise” written all over it. Alix even wore cherry patterns! It was pretty adorable and she is an adorable little lady. (Thomas, her cherry obsession reminded me of your ancient Coca-Cola obsession!) Marie-José pepped me up before I left for the hotel by telling me how adorable Alix is, and truthfully when I got there I had a hard time talking to her because she is very stand-offish, very different from Marie-José. Let’s just say that she is very French! Yet, as time went on, I realized how much she cared for me by her little actions. For example, she invited me to lunch once and we ate something that I hope to reproduce because it was AMAZING! Fresh, raw salmon, mixed together with a ton of lemon juice and dill. Salmon Tartarre. It was so delicious, so simple, and so refreshing. I think that in the future when I have people over for dinner parties or whatever, I will try and always make this dish ; )
During my stay at the hotel, each and every day I woke up very early, was always the first one to breakfast, and then I ventured out alone in my new city, unknown and intriguing. I was trying to find an apartment, and boy was I trying. I came home exhausted after 10-12 hour days of walking around and getting turned down. It was draining and discouraging. I didn’t have much money either, so I ate little and kept a water bottle with me at all times, refilling it frequently. I was wind burned, sunburned, cold wind burned, river wind burned (by two rivers!), and I was washing my clothes by hand in the hotel sink. When I got back to the hotel each night, I relished in watching TV because for an entire month in Tours I was not allowed to sit in the living room at my host family’s house. Ha! And I don’t even watch much TV to begin with! I watched “Men in Black, “The Fifth Element”, and some cutesy French film about a close-knit family going on vacation and how both the mom and dad have an affair, and both didn’t know that they had the same exact story—affairs with the locals. (Justin, when I was watching “Men in Black”, I cracked up because when the mistreated housewife says “shoogur watur”, the translation was just not the same! And then I missed you brother, just a little ;]).
Also, the news stations are a little different too, here they have the normal streaming CNN-esque news, but they also have many stations that broadcast special stories in length, sort of like 20/20. They have an Oprah feel to them, very heart-wrenching and tender…I was watching a news report about a Grecian man who had lost his four generation-old family home because of the raging fires in Greece. At first I thought that they were just going to talk about the fires and drop it at that, but no, it was like they wanted your sympathy, and they got mine. I stood there in front of the TV, glued and teary-eyed.
Anyway, to continue… on the third day I finally found a student residence in a safe neighborhood with easy access to the metro system. It is an apartment with a “coin-cuisine”, which is a half kitchen with a sink, a half fridge, and a stovetop with two ranges. It also has a separate bathroom with a small shower, and it is “meublé”, which means that it is furnished-with a bed/couch, a kitchen table, a desk, a pantry, a nice big shelf, and some drawers. All of the pieces of furniture match too : ) The carpet is “moquette”, which means that if something happens to it, if I spill something or drop candle wax on it, all they have to do is pull up one square and then install another (Sarah that should interest you!). I also have a big window that opens up to a pretty little garden-like resting spot…or for the French-a smoking spot.
It sure beats the other two places that I checked out.
The first: 12 m² with a futon, a toilet without a door, a suspended, drop-down table top, a sink and two cabinets and a closet with a door that when opened hits you in the face while you are using the bathroom. Not to mention that it is on the 9th floor of a building without an elevator (and with all of my luggage!). It was horrendous. Marie-José joked about how I would always have breakfast in bed, in a bed that wasn’t even long enough for me, a 5”8’-er. It was a joke. (Katie it made me think of your old place and how your bathroom didn’t have a door! But that’s long gone for you know, you home-owner you!).
The second: 17m ² with a little more leg room and a separate bathroom (with a door!), but it was on the first floor near the entrance way where everyone would pass by. It was also in a section of town where I didn’t feel comfortable, and it was also right in front of the Tramway line. It just wasn’t working! It was a good thing that I wasn’t completely hopeless by that time; otherwise I probably would have taken it. Luckily, I persevered.
I am presently happy in my 22m² squared, best-priced and best-situated, apartment ; ) It is near Place Bir-Hakeim, a nice little park where many children pass the day by playing ball or racing on their little scooters, and I love sitting there and watching them. I am convinced that little French toddlers are the cutest of toddlers, especially when they are really small. I enjoy listening to them trying to say words, the only words that they know, because I sort of relate to them ; ) I was on the tramway the other day and this old lady started taking to a woman and her little tot. All the little one could talk about, all he was limited to talk about was how much he likes his veggies, and how much he likes the garden next to his house. Then he continued to talk really loud and tell the whole load of people on the tramway his entire address. It was hilarious! (Melissa, I sort of wish I lived with a family like the one you lived with in France! I can’t get that little tyke’s curly hair and cute little face out of my head!).
I also live one crosswalk away from a supermarket, and that makes it easy for me to carry all my goods home! As some of you may know, one of my favorite past times it to go to the supermarket and create recipes in my head as I shop. It is completely satisfying here in France to walk around searching out the super cheap French cheeses, French mustards, French breads, and French beverages. I am in love with the sparkling waters and juices that Europe has to offer! Before, I thought Orangina was good! Now, I have an abundance of assortments : )
Washing laundry here is expensive! It’s like 3 Euros for one load, which is like two loads American. It sucks too because I have to haul my big laundry bag down Cours Gambetta (the main street by my house) to get to "la lingerie”, the laundry mat. But it’s cool—I am through with washing my clothes by hand in my sink!!
My current task is to decorate! I must decorate! I went to IKEA yesterday and picked up a few things, although, I must admit, a big part of me went to eat the Swedish meatballs in the creamy sauce and in the lingnonberry sauce. I did eat them as a matter of fact, and I thought of home, Beau, Thomas, my Swede family, Anne, Sarah, Miss Jo, road trips, and Conway. I am soooo grateful to have an IKEA here, but it sort of makes me mad also, because I love the lighting section and I am forcing myself not to buy a cool lamp because I already have one and I can’t afford to carry it home when I leave. Ha, and also bedding and pillows! Hey Mason, I opened up all of my sock and hose plastic baggies and I thoroughly enjoyed all of the cutesy little notes you wrote all over them ; ) It took me back to a time when we were stuffing an entire year into three suitcases…thank you ; )
As for “the gastronomic capital of France, Lyon keeps to its title. As Lyon is a cosmopolitan city (much like Paris in fact), there are tons of Kebab, Indian, Chinese, and Moroccan restaurants. I live in a truly multi-ethnic environment where when walking down a road I see (and hear!) (and smell!) equal numbers of French, Italians, Germans, Armenians, Africans, Indians, Chinese, British, Japanese, etc… I anticipate making a lot of friends here who are as foreign as me!
I mention that I “smell” these people because NOONE hardly wears deodorant here. I have pondered this many times, in elevators, in the metro, in the shopping line while standing next to a real stinker. Do they not have the money to buy a spray can of deodorant that costs 1.50 €? Is it the fact that the French climate is generally not as scorching hot as say Arkansas's weather? Regardless, the French walk everywhere, and walking produces perspiration. I realize that pheromones are supposed to be sexy and they release one’s natural essence, but when a natural eau-of-stench is released, it’s a total turn-off for me. Furthermore, France has been nicknamed the “perfume capital of the world”, and that holds true in my opinion. If they are not stinking physically, they are reeking of perfume.
And truthfully, I’d rather die from eau de toilette than from eau-de-BO ; )
Hmmm, that might sound rude to read, but honest, if you were here, you’d understand. All too well!
Also, to continue with French stereotypes…some French women shave, some don’t. A lot of the ones who don’t are foreign. Furthermore, I think I understand why some women don’t shave—it is darn near impossible to maneuver in an apartment-size shower here! Period. When they can’t resort to the sink, when they don’t have time for the sink, they skip it, it’s that simple.
As for me being a “foreigner” among the city folk…I find that being foreign is not such a foreign concept for the Lyonnais to grasp. Lyon is full of travelers, foreign students, and foreigners interning and/or working. I don’t feel out of place and my accent is not a problem. I have always held to the idea that accents are unique, and here in Lyon, the idea still stands. I’m fine with having an accent : )
True story: One night in Tours, I went out with my two Dutch housemates, Phillip and Hein-Jan, and with the daughters of my host lady. An old man sitting near our table asked me if I was from the Québec region because I sounded French-Canadian! I laughed and told him where I came from, which was all I really could do because he was drunk and I thought he was hitting on me. Later that night while walking home, I thought to myself that my summer in Québec must have had a profound influence on my French pronunciation…and I think that is stellar! Who would have thought that merely a month’s worth of immersion would have had such an effect on me!? Hmmm. (Anna-Kate, did you ever encounter that in Québec?).
Yesterday I also had an accident in my apartment. While I was decorating, my flip-down pantry door fell and almost knocked me to the floor. I have a goose-egg the size of a large button and it hurts really badly today. It’s cool though, nothing a little Tylenol won’t fix. Or ice cream. I joke that I almost had a concussion because that was the first thing that went through my head, not the pain, not the event, it was the fact that if I had a “real” accident I wouldn’t know what the crap to do! For an American, the first thing you think of is “911”! Luckily, I know now what to do!
The same day Marie-José’s son Jerôme invited me to his housewarming party or in French “le pendaison de crémaillère”-the hanging of the trammel (some part of the chimney I think). It’s a rather weird expression in my opinion. I had fun at the party. His apartment is amazing! Very modern, very masculine, very industrial-metallic. It has a great ambiance. Jerôme is very nice to me, but sometimes I feel like he thinks that I don’t understand at all. He just hasn’t been around me enough!! He actually works for IKEA, shipping their goods to and fro. He is like 32, but he looks 26. I have noted that he is very close to Marie-José and Jacques and his brother. They were all there at the party, and all his friends from grade school, middle school, high school, college, and career where there as well. After the party I mentioned to Jacques that I didn’t have the same kind of upbringing, and I don’t have many of my friends from a very young age. But then I realized that it doesn’t matter. How many people can say that they still talk to people that they graduated HS with, really? I can at this point of my life; I can say that for at least four really close friends and two semi-close friends. That makes me happy : )
Last Friday I gave my first speech to my sponsoring Rotary club. We meet at noon-15, but as the French are always late we really meet at like noon-45. (Dr. Bailey, I had a conversation with a few Africans in Tours, and I mentioned how you told me that there is a “French time” and an “African time”, and how both equal tardiness! Needless to say, we had a few laughs!). I was the first one present aside from the Rotarian of the club who organizes the meetings, who dresses very polished-metro, with an unbuttoned shirt collar that shows off all of his manly chest hair! I was even one minute late and I was running to find the place, freakin’ out because I was going to be late. I got there to see an empty room. We meet in a fancy hotel, and we eat well. Friday’s lunch: ratatouille with a poached egg and round thinly-sliced salami as the appetizer, shrimp au gratin and buttered rice as the entrée, and for the dessert: a trilogy of crèmes brûlées. Délicieux!
My speech went well, I made a PowerPoint slide-show presentation of Arkansas, and I talked about where I come from, my sponsor club out of Conway, what I studied, what I am studying in Lyon, and what I hope to do in the future. I mentioned how Rotary’s mission for the educational scholarships is to uphold peace and harmony by respecting cultural differences and by looking for resolutions to conflicts. I explained how in the future, I would like to use my French and work for a non-profit organization that helps others and that respects other cultures while doing so.
I wasn’t nervous either, which was great because it was my first French speech in front of a group of Rotarians! Well, that is if you don’t count my scholarship interview back in May 2006, when the panel of Rotarians asked me a question and told me to respond in French!
Okay, I exaggerate. I was freaking out after I finished my speech. I sat down shaking.
I truly had a great first ambassadorial scholarship experience , and I have a very warm group of French humanitarians who have welcomed me : ) In fact, this October they invited me to go with them to Strasbourg to show me the city and to show me their partnership with an Alsatian Rotary club. I am rather excited because: 1) my new and dear friend Nathan is there, and I'll get to see what he sees, and 2) I can’t wait to see what you saw for an entire year Anna-Kate ; )
At the end of this month I HAVE to go to Paris. Darn the luck.
All of the French Rotary ambassadorial scholars “have” to go to Paris for a mandatory French orientation. They are setting us up, they are giving us tours, and they are taking us on a bateau-mouche ride (a riverboat ride) to see all the Parisian sights along the Seine river. I am stoked! I can’t wait to go back! Six years has been long enough I’d say!
This past week I basically restarted living. I searched for an apartment alone (because Marie-José’s middle school started back up), I got a French bank account, French lodging insurance, a student ID card, a transportation card for the metro/tramway/bus/funicular, French rent reduction from two different places, got a place to live, and I did all of that on foot and in 5 days, all by myself and all in French. I have never even done most of that stuff in English! It was rather difficult because if you didn’t have one thing you couldn’t get the other thing, and it took a lot of planning, a lot of lists, and a lot of talking to myself to get myself through it.
The student card is awesome. Throughout the Rhone Province, there are many different Resto-U’s, that is university restaurants…and at these locations students swipe their cards and eat good meals for like 2-4 €. I haven’t done it yet, but I hear that in Lyon we have like 25 locations. (Aurélien, à Grenoble, je peux manger avec ma carte d’étudiante ! Cool, eh ?!).
Also the card gives me many discounts on travel, on museums, on tours, etc…
Furthermore, another card, my Carte 12-25 (my French Train card for 12 to 25 year olds) gives me discounts at the grocery store near where I live, and that means that when I swipe my Carte 12-25, I automatically get “S’miles”, which are points that go towards train tickets; I get credits each and every time I go to the grocery store and I can get a train ticket even cheaper than what the card already gives me. The card only cost like $45 dollars (if I remember correctly) and it lasts for an entire year. So that means that when I go to Strasbourg, I can go cheaper, and when I go to Paris at the end of the month, I can go cheaper. Cooh, huh?
Next week will hopefully not be as stressed as the previous. I will get a cell phone, and the internet, I will go to pre-orientation at the university, and I will finish my CAF and LOCAPASS applications (my two rent reduction applications) and get them turned in.
The French government treats the students well! With the CAF (Caisse d’Allocations Familiales) Monetary Allocations for Families/students), I get money back for rent, like 158 € a month, which means that my rent is not 554€, but instead around 396€, which is ideal! The LOCAPASS reimburses your security deposit, and mine was 700€!! So, I will be reimbursed for that. Well, actually Marie-José will be reimbursed for that. She cut two checks for me to be able to live where I live. She is truly my French Guardian Angel! Without her, I would still be in the hotel, watching English movies in French, and I’d probably be sick from desperation and the elements!
I am blessed.
I start school on the 17th. Ahhh, back into the old swing of things. Except here, I have no idea what to expect! Time will tell. Inevitably, I will return back to my nerd ways and study like crazy, become a “rat de la bibliothèque” once again.
I will end here…I think this has been long enough! I want to thank you for caring about me and praying for me throughout my experiences : )
Anne, Tim, Samantha, Beau, Heien, Christian, Herring, Mary, Aurélien, and whoever else, write me back and tell me about grad school, give me some encouraging words : )
Alyssa, tell me about your first year of HS and all the boys running around circles for you;)
Grams, I bought some jelly the other day and I thought about you and your yummy rhubarb jelly. The jelly I bought isn’t as good though, and it made me want some of yours!!
Papa, tell mom to stop worrying about me, and you stop worrying about me too ! Take care of yourself okay ; )
Mah and Pah, I’m fine.
Later and take care,
Jess, your Franglophone
PS. For all of you who are going to come and visit me, I CAN’T WAIT!! I can’t wait to be your translator and your tour guide! I can’t wait to meet you at the train station and hug you long time! I can’t wait to show you how the metro works, and most especially I can’t wait to see the expressions on your faces : )
This week especially, more than any other period in my life, has been full of me giving all that I’ve got, keepin’ on keepin’ on.
In this letter I hope to explain what I have been going through ;)
Oh and for those of you who don’t want to waste your time lost in my ramblings, here is the brief meltdown: I don’t have internet yet in my apartment, but hopefully by next week I’ll have it, along with a cell phone number. (In France you can get your TV, your internet, and your phone all hooked up together for a small price. It’s pretty cool : )
Oh, and I have an address:
Jessica Jones
2 Rue du Diapason A212
Lyon, 69003 France
That’s right, I live on Tuning Fork Street ; )
Oh, and I have a Skype!! Search for me:
Jessica Jones of Cabot, Arkansas or Jessicaleeambassadrice
Now, for those of you want a glimpse into my life---read on!
I left Tours after my language training last Friday to come to Lyon. I packed up all of my luggage, cursing at how much I (and Sarah Ann Mason, it’s all Sarah’s fault!) packed all along the way, and finally I arrived to greet the welcoming face of Marie-José, my host counselor, my “marraine”, that is, my God-mother. She calls me her God-daughter and kisses me tenderly on both cheeks. We have grown to like each other very much, and I have realized just how tender a “real” kiss on the cheek really is. For those of you who don’t know, there are different levels of kisses. When you don’t know someone in France, you either shake their hand or you kiss their cheeks, well, you just exchange cheeks really. The next step up is when you continue just exchanging cheeks, but you let the exchange linger a little longer. The next step up from that is when you actually kiss a cheek, and then after that you kiss a cheek a little more tenderly, and then to complete the full on exchange of how glad you are to see someone, you kiss cheeks tenderly more than two times. This is what I have gathered. I haven’t yet been cheek-kissed more than two times except from Marie-José, and that is because she is "ma marraine” and she takes care of me : )
When I arrived in Lyon, I stayed with Marie-José and her adorable husband Jacques, who is obsessed with playing tennis and watching sports. He is a classy sort of fella who mumbles a little when he talks, who dresses nicely (mostly in LaCrosse), and who drinks a glass of Bourbon before dinner for good digestion. I call him Monsieur Jock and he calls me Mademoiselle Jessica. He knows some English, and sometimes when we talk he picks out uncommonly spoken French words and asks me to translate them into English. For example, “breed” of dog = "une race” en français. Dogs have races. Heehee, Mah you will be glad to know that our precious dachshund Jasper has been the topic of discussion at least once ; )
Jacques is the principal of a public high school; Marie is the director of a private middle school, created for underprivileged youth; she is a Rotarienne. They live outside of the city and I have to take a Tramway to get to their house.
After two nights at Marie-José’s house, I moved into the Hotel Simplon, situated on the Presqu’île of Lyon (the near island-almost an island). A fellow Rotarian of my host club, Croix-Rousse (Red Cross), owns the hotel and she lodged me with a “Rotarian discount”, which means that I only had to pay half, and breakfast was included. Alix’s hotel was very homey, very comfortable…and she had decorated the whole joint in cherries! Everything was red or yellow covered in “cerises” (cherries), with “cerise” written all over it. Alix even wore cherry patterns! It was pretty adorable and she is an adorable little lady. (Thomas, her cherry obsession reminded me of your ancient Coca-Cola obsession!) Marie-José pepped me up before I left for the hotel by telling me how adorable Alix is, and truthfully when I got there I had a hard time talking to her because she is very stand-offish, very different from Marie-José. Let’s just say that she is very French! Yet, as time went on, I realized how much she cared for me by her little actions. For example, she invited me to lunch once and we ate something that I hope to reproduce because it was AMAZING! Fresh, raw salmon, mixed together with a ton of lemon juice and dill. Salmon Tartarre. It was so delicious, so simple, and so refreshing. I think that in the future when I have people over for dinner parties or whatever, I will try and always make this dish ; )
During my stay at the hotel, each and every day I woke up very early, was always the first one to breakfast, and then I ventured out alone in my new city, unknown and intriguing. I was trying to find an apartment, and boy was I trying. I came home exhausted after 10-12 hour days of walking around and getting turned down. It was draining and discouraging. I didn’t have much money either, so I ate little and kept a water bottle with me at all times, refilling it frequently. I was wind burned, sunburned, cold wind burned, river wind burned (by two rivers!), and I was washing my clothes by hand in the hotel sink. When I got back to the hotel each night, I relished in watching TV because for an entire month in Tours I was not allowed to sit in the living room at my host family’s house. Ha! And I don’t even watch much TV to begin with! I watched “Men in Black, “The Fifth Element”, and some cutesy French film about a close-knit family going on vacation and how both the mom and dad have an affair, and both didn’t know that they had the same exact story—affairs with the locals. (Justin, when I was watching “Men in Black”, I cracked up because when the mistreated housewife says “shoogur watur”, the translation was just not the same! And then I missed you brother, just a little ;]).
Also, the news stations are a little different too, here they have the normal streaming CNN-esque news, but they also have many stations that broadcast special stories in length, sort of like 20/20. They have an Oprah feel to them, very heart-wrenching and tender…I was watching a news report about a Grecian man who had lost his four generation-old family home because of the raging fires in Greece. At first I thought that they were just going to talk about the fires and drop it at that, but no, it was like they wanted your sympathy, and they got mine. I stood there in front of the TV, glued and teary-eyed.
Anyway, to continue… on the third day I finally found a student residence in a safe neighborhood with easy access to the metro system. It is an apartment with a “coin-cuisine”, which is a half kitchen with a sink, a half fridge, and a stovetop with two ranges. It also has a separate bathroom with a small shower, and it is “meublé”, which means that it is furnished-with a bed/couch, a kitchen table, a desk, a pantry, a nice big shelf, and some drawers. All of the pieces of furniture match too : ) The carpet is “moquette”, which means that if something happens to it, if I spill something or drop candle wax on it, all they have to do is pull up one square and then install another (Sarah that should interest you!). I also have a big window that opens up to a pretty little garden-like resting spot…or for the French-a smoking spot.
It sure beats the other two places that I checked out.
The first: 12 m² with a futon, a toilet without a door, a suspended, drop-down table top, a sink and two cabinets and a closet with a door that when opened hits you in the face while you are using the bathroom. Not to mention that it is on the 9th floor of a building without an elevator (and with all of my luggage!). It was horrendous. Marie-José joked about how I would always have breakfast in bed, in a bed that wasn’t even long enough for me, a 5”8’-er. It was a joke. (Katie it made me think of your old place and how your bathroom didn’t have a door! But that’s long gone for you know, you home-owner you!).
The second: 17m ² with a little more leg room and a separate bathroom (with a door!), but it was on the first floor near the entrance way where everyone would pass by. It was also in a section of town where I didn’t feel comfortable, and it was also right in front of the Tramway line. It just wasn’t working! It was a good thing that I wasn’t completely hopeless by that time; otherwise I probably would have taken it. Luckily, I persevered.
I am presently happy in my 22m² squared, best-priced and best-situated, apartment ; ) It is near Place Bir-Hakeim, a nice little park where many children pass the day by playing ball or racing on their little scooters, and I love sitting there and watching them. I am convinced that little French toddlers are the cutest of toddlers, especially when they are really small. I enjoy listening to them trying to say words, the only words that they know, because I sort of relate to them ; ) I was on the tramway the other day and this old lady started taking to a woman and her little tot. All the little one could talk about, all he was limited to talk about was how much he likes his veggies, and how much he likes the garden next to his house. Then he continued to talk really loud and tell the whole load of people on the tramway his entire address. It was hilarious! (Melissa, I sort of wish I lived with a family like the one you lived with in France! I can’t get that little tyke’s curly hair and cute little face out of my head!).
I also live one crosswalk away from a supermarket, and that makes it easy for me to carry all my goods home! As some of you may know, one of my favorite past times it to go to the supermarket and create recipes in my head as I shop. It is completely satisfying here in France to walk around searching out the super cheap French cheeses, French mustards, French breads, and French beverages. I am in love with the sparkling waters and juices that Europe has to offer! Before, I thought Orangina was good! Now, I have an abundance of assortments : )
Washing laundry here is expensive! It’s like 3 Euros for one load, which is like two loads American. It sucks too because I have to haul my big laundry bag down Cours Gambetta (the main street by my house) to get to "la lingerie”, the laundry mat. But it’s cool—I am through with washing my clothes by hand in my sink!!
My current task is to decorate! I must decorate! I went to IKEA yesterday and picked up a few things, although, I must admit, a big part of me went to eat the Swedish meatballs in the creamy sauce and in the lingnonberry sauce. I did eat them as a matter of fact, and I thought of home, Beau, Thomas, my Swede family, Anne, Sarah, Miss Jo, road trips, and Conway. I am soooo grateful to have an IKEA here, but it sort of makes me mad also, because I love the lighting section and I am forcing myself not to buy a cool lamp because I already have one and I can’t afford to carry it home when I leave. Ha, and also bedding and pillows! Hey Mason, I opened up all of my sock and hose plastic baggies and I thoroughly enjoyed all of the cutesy little notes you wrote all over them ; ) It took me back to a time when we were stuffing an entire year into three suitcases…thank you ; )
As for “the gastronomic capital of France, Lyon keeps to its title. As Lyon is a cosmopolitan city (much like Paris in fact), there are tons of Kebab, Indian, Chinese, and Moroccan restaurants. I live in a truly multi-ethnic environment where when walking down a road I see (and hear!) (and smell!) equal numbers of French, Italians, Germans, Armenians, Africans, Indians, Chinese, British, Japanese, etc… I anticipate making a lot of friends here who are as foreign as me!
I mention that I “smell” these people because NOONE hardly wears deodorant here. I have pondered this many times, in elevators, in the metro, in the shopping line while standing next to a real stinker. Do they not have the money to buy a spray can of deodorant that costs 1.50 €? Is it the fact that the French climate is generally not as scorching hot as say Arkansas's weather? Regardless, the French walk everywhere, and walking produces perspiration. I realize that pheromones are supposed to be sexy and they release one’s natural essence, but when a natural eau-of-stench is released, it’s a total turn-off for me. Furthermore, France has been nicknamed the “perfume capital of the world”, and that holds true in my opinion. If they are not stinking physically, they are reeking of perfume.
And truthfully, I’d rather die from eau de toilette than from eau-de-BO ; )
Hmmm, that might sound rude to read, but honest, if you were here, you’d understand. All too well!
Also, to continue with French stereotypes…some French women shave, some don’t. A lot of the ones who don’t are foreign. Furthermore, I think I understand why some women don’t shave—it is darn near impossible to maneuver in an apartment-size shower here! Period. When they can’t resort to the sink, when they don’t have time for the sink, they skip it, it’s that simple.
As for me being a “foreigner” among the city folk…I find that being foreign is not such a foreign concept for the Lyonnais to grasp. Lyon is full of travelers, foreign students, and foreigners interning and/or working. I don’t feel out of place and my accent is not a problem. I have always held to the idea that accents are unique, and here in Lyon, the idea still stands. I’m fine with having an accent : )
True story: One night in Tours, I went out with my two Dutch housemates, Phillip and Hein-Jan, and with the daughters of my host lady. An old man sitting near our table asked me if I was from the Québec region because I sounded French-Canadian! I laughed and told him where I came from, which was all I really could do because he was drunk and I thought he was hitting on me. Later that night while walking home, I thought to myself that my summer in Québec must have had a profound influence on my French pronunciation…and I think that is stellar! Who would have thought that merely a month’s worth of immersion would have had such an effect on me!? Hmmm. (Anna-Kate, did you ever encounter that in Québec?).
Yesterday I also had an accident in my apartment. While I was decorating, my flip-down pantry door fell and almost knocked me to the floor. I have a goose-egg the size of a large button and it hurts really badly today. It’s cool though, nothing a little Tylenol won’t fix. Or ice cream. I joke that I almost had a concussion because that was the first thing that went through my head, not the pain, not the event, it was the fact that if I had a “real” accident I wouldn’t know what the crap to do! For an American, the first thing you think of is “911”! Luckily, I know now what to do!
The same day Marie-José’s son Jerôme invited me to his housewarming party or in French “le pendaison de crémaillère”-the hanging of the trammel (some part of the chimney I think). It’s a rather weird expression in my opinion. I had fun at the party. His apartment is amazing! Very modern, very masculine, very industrial-metallic. It has a great ambiance. Jerôme is very nice to me, but sometimes I feel like he thinks that I don’t understand at all. He just hasn’t been around me enough!! He actually works for IKEA, shipping their goods to and fro. He is like 32, but he looks 26. I have noted that he is very close to Marie-José and Jacques and his brother. They were all there at the party, and all his friends from grade school, middle school, high school, college, and career where there as well. After the party I mentioned to Jacques that I didn’t have the same kind of upbringing, and I don’t have many of my friends from a very young age. But then I realized that it doesn’t matter. How many people can say that they still talk to people that they graduated HS with, really? I can at this point of my life; I can say that for at least four really close friends and two semi-close friends. That makes me happy : )
Last Friday I gave my first speech to my sponsoring Rotary club. We meet at noon-15, but as the French are always late we really meet at like noon-45. (Dr. Bailey, I had a conversation with a few Africans in Tours, and I mentioned how you told me that there is a “French time” and an “African time”, and how both equal tardiness! Needless to say, we had a few laughs!). I was the first one present aside from the Rotarian of the club who organizes the meetings, who dresses very polished-metro, with an unbuttoned shirt collar that shows off all of his manly chest hair! I was even one minute late and I was running to find the place, freakin’ out because I was going to be late. I got there to see an empty room. We meet in a fancy hotel, and we eat well. Friday’s lunch: ratatouille with a poached egg and round thinly-sliced salami as the appetizer, shrimp au gratin and buttered rice as the entrée, and for the dessert: a trilogy of crèmes brûlées. Délicieux!
My speech went well, I made a PowerPoint slide-show presentation of Arkansas, and I talked about where I come from, my sponsor club out of Conway, what I studied, what I am studying in Lyon, and what I hope to do in the future. I mentioned how Rotary’s mission for the educational scholarships is to uphold peace and harmony by respecting cultural differences and by looking for resolutions to conflicts. I explained how in the future, I would like to use my French and work for a non-profit organization that helps others and that respects other cultures while doing so.
I wasn’t nervous either, which was great because it was my first French speech in front of a group of Rotarians! Well, that is if you don’t count my scholarship interview back in May 2006, when the panel of Rotarians asked me a question and told me to respond in French!
Okay, I exaggerate. I was freaking out after I finished my speech. I sat down shaking.
I truly had a great first ambassadorial scholarship experience , and I have a very warm group of French humanitarians who have welcomed me : ) In fact, this October they invited me to go with them to Strasbourg to show me the city and to show me their partnership with an Alsatian Rotary club. I am rather excited because: 1) my new and dear friend Nathan is there, and I'll get to see what he sees, and 2) I can’t wait to see what you saw for an entire year Anna-Kate ; )
At the end of this month I HAVE to go to Paris. Darn the luck.
All of the French Rotary ambassadorial scholars “have” to go to Paris for a mandatory French orientation. They are setting us up, they are giving us tours, and they are taking us on a bateau-mouche ride (a riverboat ride) to see all the Parisian sights along the Seine river. I am stoked! I can’t wait to go back! Six years has been long enough I’d say!
This past week I basically restarted living. I searched for an apartment alone (because Marie-José’s middle school started back up), I got a French bank account, French lodging insurance, a student ID card, a transportation card for the metro/tramway/bus/funicular, French rent reduction from two different places, got a place to live, and I did all of that on foot and in 5 days, all by myself and all in French. I have never even done most of that stuff in English! It was rather difficult because if you didn’t have one thing you couldn’t get the other thing, and it took a lot of planning, a lot of lists, and a lot of talking to myself to get myself through it.
The student card is awesome. Throughout the Rhone Province, there are many different Resto-U’s, that is university restaurants…and at these locations students swipe their cards and eat good meals for like 2-4 €. I haven’t done it yet, but I hear that in Lyon we have like 25 locations. (Aurélien, à Grenoble, je peux manger avec ma carte d’étudiante ! Cool, eh ?!).
Also the card gives me many discounts on travel, on museums, on tours, etc…
Furthermore, another card, my Carte 12-25 (my French Train card for 12 to 25 year olds) gives me discounts at the grocery store near where I live, and that means that when I swipe my Carte 12-25, I automatically get “S’miles”, which are points that go towards train tickets; I get credits each and every time I go to the grocery store and I can get a train ticket even cheaper than what the card already gives me. The card only cost like $45 dollars (if I remember correctly) and it lasts for an entire year. So that means that when I go to Strasbourg, I can go cheaper, and when I go to Paris at the end of the month, I can go cheaper. Cooh, huh?
Next week will hopefully not be as stressed as the previous. I will get a cell phone, and the internet, I will go to pre-orientation at the university, and I will finish my CAF and LOCAPASS applications (my two rent reduction applications) and get them turned in.
The French government treats the students well! With the CAF (Caisse d’Allocations Familiales) Monetary Allocations for Families/students), I get money back for rent, like 158 € a month, which means that my rent is not 554€, but instead around 396€, which is ideal! The LOCAPASS reimburses your security deposit, and mine was 700€!! So, I will be reimbursed for that. Well, actually Marie-José will be reimbursed for that. She cut two checks for me to be able to live where I live. She is truly my French Guardian Angel! Without her, I would still be in the hotel, watching English movies in French, and I’d probably be sick from desperation and the elements!
I am blessed.
I start school on the 17th. Ahhh, back into the old swing of things. Except here, I have no idea what to expect! Time will tell. Inevitably, I will return back to my nerd ways and study like crazy, become a “rat de la bibliothèque” once again.
I will end here…I think this has been long enough! I want to thank you for caring about me and praying for me throughout my experiences : )
Anne, Tim, Samantha, Beau, Heien, Christian, Herring, Mary, Aurélien, and whoever else, write me back and tell me about grad school, give me some encouraging words : )
Alyssa, tell me about your first year of HS and all the boys running around circles for you;)
Grams, I bought some jelly the other day and I thought about you and your yummy rhubarb jelly. The jelly I bought isn’t as good though, and it made me want some of yours!!
Papa, tell mom to stop worrying about me, and you stop worrying about me too ! Take care of yourself okay ; )
Mah and Pah, I’m fine.
Later and take care,
Jess, your Franglophone
PS. For all of you who are going to come and visit me, I CAN’T WAIT!! I can’t wait to be your translator and your tour guide! I can’t wait to meet you at the train station and hug you long time! I can’t wait to show you how the metro works, and most especially I can’t wait to see the expressions on your faces : )
