Je suis déjà amoureuse... - I am already in love...

... with FRANCE!!!

The past few days have been hectic, to say the least, but I am having a fantastic time! I'm surprised by how few problems I've encountered so far, almost no troubleshooting except when the cab driver took me to the wrong hotel (but I realized the mistake before I got out of the cab). 

Yesterday I spent FIVE hours waiting for my train in Paris, which sounds horrible, but I met two American girls doing the same thing I'm doing in the south of France. They were really nice and hopefully I'll keep in touch with them. 

After my wait in Paris, I took the TGV (train de grande vitesse AKA "the fast train") down to Dijon. Seeing my ridiculous amount of baggage, this middle-aged French couple helped me get everything on the train. So there, the people of France are nice! The train was like a sanctuary, comfy seats, very quiet and no one in the seat next to me. I fell asleep quite quickly. The couple then helped me take my stuff off the train. Many mercis to them! 

At my hostel, I met two Danish girls, Kristina and Nana, who spoke English really well (I guess they watch a lot of American movies and TV series). I hung out with them for the morning and they showed me the bus system a bit. They were really fun! They told me about some of the people they had met on their backpacking trip, which was cool. Quote of the day from Kristina (about an attractive American boy they had met): "Brown hair, brown eyes, tan. Even his toes looked good and I don't  like feet!"

Kristina and Nana went to wait for their train so I went exploring! First I found an archaeology museum, which was small but pretty neat. It was interesting to see a solely French, in fact solely Bourgogneuse, view of archaeology. Our museums are usually a mix of artifacts from cultures when they were at their high points so this local point of view was pretty cool, and in my opinion, more complete, starting with prehistoric and going through medieval times. It was also housed in a kick ass 11th-13th century abbey. I think I will be seeing a lot of medieval churches here in France... anyway enough art history stuff! From there I wandered around. There was some sort of International music festival going on and they had these weird things, like pipe organs combined with giant music boxes run by people in old-time-y costume. I found the main shopping street and decided I really like French style, and that my falling apart boots will be very easy to replace. Anyway I bought a pretty sweet adaptor (l'adaptateur, my vocab is growing!) and an alarm clock. My other goal was to get a phone today but the people in the store were swamped so I moved on. I don't have anyone to call here anyway!

Tomorrow I go down to Tournus and move into my apartment. One of the English teachers and the principal of the school are meeting me. Gotta love French hospitality!

Now that I've arrived, I've realized the title of the blog is a misnomer. This trip is anything but strange: it is amazing! I'm not sure why I thought it would be scary or awkward, but everything I do and each time I speak French I am so excited about what is to come. I'm sure there will be bad days (probably mostly from loneliness), but c'est la vie. 

Just when I thought I had it all figured out...

Upon re-reading the email I received from an administrator from the high school, I was still puzzled by one sentence. The email had told me about the studio the school had available for me for just 200 euros a month (utilities included!). It sounded like a great deal, at least to start out with. However that one sentence "Tout mois commencé est dû." just didn't translate well. I decided it was a specifically French turn of phrase and googled it... "Any month started will be due in full"? Oh dear, this is terrible! I had planned on arriving the 27th and I'm not really OK with paying 200 euro (300USD) for 4 nights stay. Anyway, I'm currently searching for other options... updates soon!

Le baguette

I've recently become addicted to Flight of the Conchords (the number 4 folk comedy band in New Zealand). For those of you who are familiar with them, you know the deal. For those of you who are not, they are a comedic/musical duo from New Zealand who gained their present popularity first through touring and then through their HBO show. The show is simple but genius, consisting of comedic skits and songs about the two kiwi bandmates' struggle to make it in NYC.

So how does this connect to my Frenchie adventure? Well, I've had one of their songs stuck in my head all day-- its a good introduction to the French stereotype and some basic French vocab. Enjoy!

Step 2: A plane ticket

A one-way ticket outta here... or, more specifically, to Paris! I leave on September 24th. From there I'll take the train down to Dijon, where I've booked a hostel for 2 nights. And by then, fingers crossed, I'll hopefully have found somewhere to live. That's my plan of action... for now.

As I write this I am attempting to watch a French movie called Comedy of Power. I try not to look at the subtitles but c'est impossible! It's a good listening exercise, even if you just read the subtitles and try to dissect the French phrases. It has a warning for coarse language so maybe I can at least pick up a few good curse words. 

Step 1: Get Visa

Today I had my visa appointment. It went pretty smoothly and they told me to come back in a week to pick it up. Now I just need a plane ticket... and a place to live, health insurance, French bank account, lesson plans, French practice... merde!

Sitting in the consulate got me thinking about my last trip to France. I am excited to experience the France outside of Paris (not that Paris isn't awesome-- see photo above!). I think I will post more of my photos as my departure nears.

Idioms.

So the past few weeks I've been thinking: "Diana, I'm pretty sure your entire French vocabulary comes from the book L'Etranger." This means that I know about 50 words for sunshine, heat and brightness along with words such as "maquereau" (pimp), "tirer qlqn" (to shoot someone), and "la tête tranchée" (decapitation-- most likely by guillotine). Due to my limited vocab and my extreme fondness for idioms, I decided to learn some French expressions. 

Here are a few of my favorites:

"C'est pas tes oignons!" 

Literally, "It's not your onions!" but figuratively this somehow translates to "None of your business!" Unless, of course, you are in the onion business; in which case, it may, in fact, be your onions.

"Je suis une vrai girouette."

"I'm a real weathervane" or "I'm indecisive." Clever and awesome mental image!

"À poil"

Weakly translated to English "in hair," but if you're vraiment français "stark naked." Used as a command it means "Take it off!" This one could come in handy...

"Il pleut des cordes"

"It's raining ropes," or, idiomatically, "It's pouring." Although this is strange imagery, I think our version ("It's raining cats and dogs") is much much stranger. 

Une rêve est la moitié d'une réalité. A dream is half of a reality.

Oh la la-- an email:

"Congratulations!  We are very pleased to inform you of your acceptance into the French Teaching Assistantship Program for the 2009-2010 academic year, sponsored by the French Ministry of Education. 

 

You have been placed in the Académie of Dijon.

Blah blah blah... We look forward to hearing from you and félicitations! "

Okay, I guess this all began a few months ago when I applied to teach English in France for next year. Basically the French Ministry of Education hires native English speakers to become teaching assistants on a very low salary, which is perfect since I aspire to be fluent in French and poor (ahem, Art History major). Thus, in September I will be moving to France for eight months. Grad school and "real" life can wait: international adventuring comes first! 

To record my experiences, I've decided to create a blog.

This blog is for you if:

A) You want to see what I'm up to while I am preparing for and living in France.

B) You want to live vicariously through me (I like to think my life is that interesting).

 C) You stalk me.

 D) All of the above.

If you fit into any of the previously mentioned categories, please continue reading. Voila and enjoy!

P.S. French grammar perfectionists-- the error in my title in intentional and due to artistic license. If it makes you feel better, you may refer to it as "Les beaux jours etranges."