First Week: Success!

Classes officially start tomorrow, so it is the end of complete free time :( But this has been an absolutely awesome first week in Paris! Lots of sightseeing and really getting to know the way around Paris. The weather has really been in our favor, and perfect for going out during the day and at night.

Two days ago, we went over to the Notre Dame to just hang out, get some pictures, and eat some dinner. We didn't get to go in because it was the evening and closing, so saving that for another time!

Claudia, Irina and I in front of the Notre Dame! 

Yesterday, we went to the Luxembourg Gardens to walk around and hang out (we do that a lot, just hang out at different places. Its the thing to do in Paris, very Parisian!) 

Les Jardins!

Finally, at the gardens yesterday after one week of being in Paris, I had my first crepe. It is a delicious French food, much like a flat pancake that you can enjoy either sweet (which is what I did yesterday) or with different meats and cheeses. 

My first Paris Crepe! 

Today, we went over to Sacre Coeur, which is a huge church on top of a hill. The top is the second tallest lookout point in Paris, and after climbing 300 stairs (on a spiral staircase, ouch!) we saw breathtaking views of the city. 

Sacre Coeur! 

View from the top! 

After wandering around in the area a little bit, we ventured over to the Centre Pompidou only to find out its closed on Tuesdays, and apparently so is every other museum in France. New trip for another day! 

My legs and feet are going to be killing in class tomorrow from all this walking/stair climbing, but it has all been so worth it! 

Au revoir pour maitenant,

Feldy 

Sightseeing on the Seine

Sometimes, when you live by yourself in a foreign country, you have to be a little innovative:

This is my "coffee maker". All the other ones were too expensive, and I don't want to buy coffee everyday, so there it is. 

Orientation for school began on Wednesday, and I made one big observation: no matter what country you are in, orientation is boring. Its the truth, it can't be helped. However, it was great to finally meet everyone else in my exchange program. Out of 200 of us, I am the only person from the United States. Everyone else is primarily from Europe, but there are some from South America and Asia as well. Luckily, everyone speaks English really well and to each other, so the language barrier really isn't an issue at all. By the end of the program our goal is to speak French to one another!

Yesterday we did a boat tour on the Seine river that was organized by our program. Basically, this big boat takes you down the river that runs right through Paris and passes a lot of monuments, like the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, and the Notre Dame.

The boat

Evelyn and I on the boat

Some sights from the boat

Notre Dame!

Today, a few girls and myself went over to see the Eiffel Tower and hang out in the little park that is right next to it. 

Eiffel Tower! (yes, I already have a thousand pictures of it)

Girls at the Eiffel Tower

Got my class schedule on Friday, and found out I have no classes Monday or Tuesday! Definitely going to be doing some long weekend traveling throughout the rest of Europe. So for me, class doesn't start til Wednesday next week, so I will definitely be doing some more sightseeing this weekend!

Bon soir,

Feldy 

I can see the Arc from my Arche

The railroad/metro stop is called La Defense-Grande Arche because of this huge Arche that stands right next to the stop:

I can see the Arc De Triomphe, Paris's famous Arc that was built to honor French soldiers, from the stairs of the Arche in my area:

Look closely! You can see it right in the middle!

So this evening, I decided to wander over to the Arc De Triomphe to get some pictures (I decided not to go up today, I'll save that for another day)

Arc De Triomphe!

My Arche from the Arc De Triomphe

I wandered around the Champs Elysees, a famous shopping street in Paris for a little where I discovered this:

This is Abercrombie and Fitch in Paris.

This is the line to get in and take pictures with the models. The French love A&F, I see shirts EVERYWHERE.

Tomorrow, international orientation for my program begins, which is the real reason why I came to Paris. Classes don't start til next Monday though, so still some time to adjust!

Bonne Nuit!
Feldy

Paris: The Scavenger Hunt of Day 1

Today has been one big scavenger hunt. The big hunt of the day: finding wi-fi. I had about 20 minutes of free wi-fi where I wrote this really long, detailed blog post about my flight and adventures in, and due to the pathetic internet, it completely deleted.

So, I'll sum things up, make it short and sweet, and add on a little more to what I said originally. 

I left Philadelphia at around 6:30pm Sunday evening. After a 7 hour flight, where I attempted to sleep (didn't work) and sat next to a smelly but polite Rastafarian man, I arrived in Paris at around 8am (time here). After making my way out of the airport, I looked for the RER lines (Paris’s version of the regional rail). Upon finding them, I discovered that you had to pay either credit or coins. Well, my debit cards weren’t reading, and I only had euro bills, so after a few jumps between some food places, about 45 minutes later I finally had my train ticket. (First food purchase: a croissant ofc!)

On the train and on my way, it was a pretty painless ride other than the fact I looked like an American with my northface backpack, Gap shorts, and two huge suitcases. But whatever I wasn’t mugged and after almost getting caught in the metro ticket door opener in the next station, I pretty much switched trains smoothly.

Then the fiasco began: I got to my train station in the business district and had no idea where to go from there. None. I definitely did not realize it was a HUGE station with about three adjoining malls. After the information desk led me basically to one of the shadiest parts ofcthe station, I managed to find some taxi drivers who actually knew what they were talking about, and I was on my way.

And boy, it is gorgeous here. I was a little apprehensive about living in the business district. But these buildings are tall, sleek, clean, and they all look so great together. There are outdoor escalators to get people around (I don’t know how the French stay thin), and my campus is smack in the middle of all of it. Behind the buildings, are student apartments that all have a classic Parisian apartment look to them. Pictures below! 

After settling into my apartment, it became time for a nice nap, and then it was off to get things done. I discovered an AWESOME convenience store called Monoprix: think H&M meets Target meets a grocery store. This place has everything so I got all my apartment stuff there, and have been there already 3 times today.

In the mall, I discovered a wifi hotspot for the first time (finally!) after having no connection to the outside world for about 14 hours. After wandering around a bit more, and going wi-fi hotspot hopping (including a Starbucks), I had a nice glass of white wine at a little bistro nearby and then walked around the apartment area a bit, which has lots of little parks for Parisian children (it’s the cutest thing, French speaking children) and then back to the apartment for the night, where I FINALLY got my internet to work, but partially involves holding my Ethernet cable in the wall.

Now its time to settle into my room and maybe attempt to unpack, and then passing out for another busy day tomorrow. Whew that was a long post! I promise, they won’t all be this long (this is probably my last long one).

Bon Soir!
Feldy 

The Paris Blog

Move over Jay Z and Kanye: it'll be Rachel in Paris soon.

In exactly 6 days, I will be flying on a US Airways flight over the Atlantic Ocean, preparing to touch down at the Charles De Gaulle Airport in the wonderful city of Paris, France. And I will not be flying back home for four months.

I am absolutely nervous, scared, and unbelievably excited.

What am I doing in France for so long? I will be studying abroad for a semester at the Ecole Superieure du Commerce Exterieur, a small business university in the business district of Paris. It is a short metro ride northeast of the Eiffel tower, which is convenient because the university moves halfway during my semester there.

I will be living in an one bedroom studio apartment, all by myself. I will also be flying over to France all by myself (no, this will not end up being like the movie Taken. I get told that it will be everyday).

This blog is primarily going to be my way to let everyone back in the States know what I am up too. I'll  upload the pictures to Facebook, but look here too for more pictures or links related to my roaming around Paris and the rest of France/Europe. "Feldy Takes France" seemed fitting as a blog title, because its a combo of my last name, with the fact that my frantic self will soon be documenting my adventures exploring the streets of Paris.

Right now in this week before I leave, I am working full time, packing, and attempting to move out. My room therefore is a jumbled mess, and I think my roommate might kick me out before I actually am supposed to leave (don't kick me out, please :) ). Get ready for actually interesting (hopefully) posts when I finally land in the city of baguettes, cheese, and wine! (and art, museums, music, history, coffee, etc).

Au Revoir!
Feldy