Tidbits

Hey folks!

This post is made up of little tidbits from the past week of my life in Paris.

Refund:

We're off the meal plan! So many people complained about the food at St. John's that our program director had to step in. She ended the food contract with St. John's and is providing all of us with reimbursements in cash (to cover rest of our time here) to be delivered via Sciences-Po. The St. John's kids still have to eat the food. It's such a relief to be able to plan when, where, and what I'll be eating.

Fashion Week:

Paris Fashion Week began on Tuesday! Yesterday (Wednesday) I walked around trying to find the supposed TopShop pop-up store in a store called "Colette." (TopShop is a British clothing store that is affordable and very cute). The article I'd read about it online said that there was a special pop-up TopShop being hosted at Colette. I found Colette.. which appeared to be a hip hop music/ guys clothing/ guys shoe store with an Urban Outfitters book section on the first floor, with Hermès scarves and jewelry upstairs, and a restaurant downstairs. I found nothing TopShop related. There were however, a ton of American and Italian tourists with lots of fancy shopping bags. As I walked back across the Louvre Gardens back to my side of the Seine, I passed an incredibly long tent being constructed that read; "Accessory Designers Trade Show." Other than that I haven't seen much Fashion Week activity. The online show schedule has different events happening all over the place, spread throughout the entire city. It doesn't seem to be centralized. I have heard that it's nearly impossible to get in to see a show during the Paris Fashion Week because it is so popular. You have to either know someone, be famous, or be in the industry. Even just being rich isn't always enough to cut it. Seats are in high demand. All I wanted to do was to sit outside and watch all the cool people walking around, but I haven't seen much so far.

Bon Marché:

Yesterday morning before class I ran into Bon Marché (fancy department store with a large fancy grocery store on the bottom á la Harrods) to buy a couple of apples before class. As I was checking out, the cashier-lady laughed and mumbled something in French to me. Instead of saying I didn't understand her, I just smiled and nodded saying "mhmm.." She must've understood that I was foreign because when I left she said "Bonjourno!" So far in my travels I've been mistaken for being Brazilian, Dutch, and Italian. I take it all in pride.

Library Tour:

Yesterday morning we had a "mandatory" library tour from 8am to 9am. I put "mandatory" in quotes because a lot of people stayed in bed and no one took roll. The "tour" took place in a room 4 blocks from the library and was a Power Point presentation on how to check out books and reserve books online. Afterwards I was planning to go back to bed but she said we could follow her to the library and get some free croissants and coffee..so of course most of us followed her. There was a guy there with a camera filming because it turns out this was a grand opening of the new addition to the older library which is across the street. We were the first ones in there, and that place was SO COOL. I literally felt like I was in an Apple store on every floor. There were floating conference rooms and tons of brand new Mac desktops. The floors, walls, and ceilings were all white and the floating conference rooms were stone. There were futuristic looking swivel chairs with little table tops attached, and on one level these chairs were sitting on top of a see-through floor that looked down on the first level. Thank goodness for free food, or I wouldn't have seen it!

Wall Street:

I saw the "Wall Street" Paris premier Tuesday night! Instead of a midnight release (which I'm not sure they do in France) it was an 8:15pm showtime the day before the national release date. We saw it in a gigantic theater with an enormous white screen that felt like something you would see at Universal Studios. There weren't any previews, it felt like we were seeing a sneak peek showing. I loved the movie! It was fresh, by that I mean the director incorporated some new filmmaking styles that I haven't really seen before. It doesn't hurt that I have a huge crush on all of Shia LaBeouf's characters (except in Eagle Eye...ok and not in Even Stevens either).

I plan on relaxing for the rest of the day and then hopefully going to get dinner later with some friends. This Saturday is La Nuit Blanche. I don't entirely get what it's for, but it's free, is geared towards younger people, and is centered around dining, museums, and music. It lasts from 7pm to 7am Sunday morning. I guess lots of places stay open and a few of the metro lines stay open all night as well. We shall see!

Talk to you soon!

Love,

Hillary

Bed Bugs- An Update

Hello friends!

When we last left off with my bed bug problem I had just woken up from a nap with bites. It ended up amounting to 6 bites, including on one my eyelid.

I changed mattresses and changed sheets but woke up the next morning with 4 more bites. After that I bought a sleeping bag (from Au Vieux Campeur) that I've been sleeping in on top of my covers, and haven't been bit again since that second time. Yesterday morning a specialist and the dorm manager-guy (I don't know his title) were in here to check it out, but I was in a library tour and haven't yet heard the verdict. My refund request (for sheets and sleeping bag) was rejected because they said I'd been offered to sleep in an empty room and had turned it down, wanting to switch mattresses instead. It's true that the dorm manager-guy offered for me to sleep in an empty room, but that sounded A) scary, B) unnecessary, and C) like a hassle. Plus, that wouldn't have solved the problem of my bed bugs quickly, which would have left it possible for my roommate to get them as well.

When I met with him that afternoon, I showed him the bites along my arms and his first response was to look at me skeptically and say: "Bed bug bites usually come in threes.." He then proceeded to pull up google and he googled "bed bug bites." What we found didn't say anything about them coming in threes, and the pictures looked exactly like my bites. He assured me that he would get it taken care of immediately. I asked him if that meant that night, and he said no, because everyone had gone home. This was Thursday at 4pm. It was then that I asked to be allowed to switch mattresses and he told me I could just sleep in an empty room if I wanted. I preferred to sleep in my own room. Monday evening I received an e-mail from the dorm manager-guy that told me he was sending in someone to look at the problem Wednesday morning, but that he doubted it was bed bugs. He also asked me to not say anything about the possibility of bed bugs to my other dorm-mates so that I wouldn't scare people.

Here was my response:

Jean-Christophe,

Sure, Wednesday morning is fine. I appreciate your taking this matter seriously. Although to be honest Jean-Christophe, I don't know how you have any authority to be able to say that it "does not seem likely that it's bed bugs." After two nights getting bitten (including the new mattess), I've purchased a sleeping bag to protect myself. It's working so far. Could you please put me in contact with your supervisor? I intend to request a refund for costs incurred due to the bugs.

You are absolutely right, bed bugs are a serious matter and I don't intend to keep this knowledge to myself if, perhaps, someone asks me why I have switched mattresses and am sleeping in a sleeping bag. This is something other students should be aware of.

P.S. There was a cockroach on our floor this morning- in the hallway. Just thought you may want to know.

Thank you,

Hillary

I have a meeting with him tomorrow afternoon, maybe then I'll be told the verdict. Until then, I continue to sleep in my sleeping bag.

Love,

Hillary

I Am Gordon Ramsey..In My Dreams

Last night I went to a jazz club on a street famous for it's jazz scene called Rue des Lombards. The bar was called "Le Baiser Salé." Here's a picture of the inside:

Just kidding, that's Gordon Ramsey's restaurant in Tokyo (the guy from Hell's Kitchen). I really want to go to one of his restaurants one day. Anyway, here's what it actually looked like:

I didn't take this picture I found it on google..but this is basically what it looked like outside except darker and way more crowded. Pretty cool, huh?

I tried google translating it in French and all I got was the word kiss, but translating it from Portuguese gives me "The Salty Kiss." I tried portuguese because I think the singer was Brazilian and I think he was singing partly in portuguese last night. The show was at 10 and we decided around 9 that we wanted to go there (we'd walked down the road to find the best bang for our buck). So, we sat down and ordered a drink and tried to ignore the cold. It was so crowded that we were as close to the street as possible and thus weren't under the heat lamps. Around 9:45 we waited in line to pay our 20 Euro cover and go sit upstairs where the show would be.

We got seated as close to the stage as you could get (which I don't think was a good thing). The show wasn't starting until 10:30 so the waitress said if we wanted food we could go to the corner for a crêpe and come back. A few of us left and when I got back, there was a chick in my seat. The friends of mine who'd stayed behind said they'd tried to tell her that I was sitting there but she ignored them. I stood there awkwardly in this teeny tiny super crowded room with nowhere to go because the other 2 friends who had left with me were behind me, and in front of me was the table my friends were sitting at and the bench next to it that I had been sitting on, that was now occupied. I was holding up my friends behind me, who had nowhere to go until I found somewhere to sit. I told her she was in my seat, and she argued with me, telling me that she had been there before. I know she was lying because when I sat down earlier her friend scooted over to make a spot for me, and didn't say a word about me sitting in an occupied seat. Then, when my friends sat down and I was the only person standing up with nowhere to move, literally, and the waitress was looking at this woman trying to figure out what had happened to my seat, the chick pointed to a little white bag sitting on an empty chair and said she could take that and I could sit there. So I KNOW she was lying- that was where she'd been sitting! Ugh. I took my spot, which was situated perfectly so that when I looked straight ahead all I saw was a music stand in front of me holding a big red music folder. But I told myself, all I really need is to be able to hear, not necessarily to see.

The music was good! The best way I can describe it was that it sounded similar to "The Girl From Ipanema" song.. with a little more drums. At one point this guy randomly walked onstage from the crowd (who obviously knew the band) and joined in for one song. He was singing in fast spanish and I was so relieved. Being here and not knowing french has made me realize that I am more fluent in spanish than I thought. (Not to say I'm fluent in spanish by any means, far from it). He left after his song and soon after they had an intermission. It's funny how you can understand so much faster than you can speak. For example, I speak a ridiculously small amount of french, but I understood the vocalist of the band when he said-in french- "We're going to take an intermission for 5 minutes and we'll start again in 20 minutes." (Insert crowd laughter).

Ok but back to the point of this post. So, the seat stealing liar bothered me more than I realized, because I'm pretty sure my dream last night was a manifestation of my rage towards this woman. See what you think:

In my dream I was eating dinner at a restaurant with some people. The waitress came by and someone asked her for her recommendations. At the same time I somehow had the internet open to a page of reviews about the restaurant. All of the reviews said that the restaurant was really good but to never order these two specific items mentioned, because they sucked. Literally every review said that. And lo and behold, those were the two items she recommended. I could tell (as you sometimes can in dreams) that she was doing this to be cruel. All of my friends were nodding and smiling, ignorant of the warning from the reviews. I was not going to let this happen.

"I'm not buying this bullsh*t! Who do you think you are?! Did you think we wouldn't know?! How is it that you are recommending the very two things that are supposed to be horrible at this place?"

She sneered and stayed silent, knowing the jig was up! Without a moment's pause, I turned to the head waitress standing nearby listening and said; "We'd like a new waitress, please." She smiled, nodded, and said; "right away."

This evening I realized that my rant at the waitress is exactly what I could have said to the lady sitting in my chair- minus the part about the menu. I never would have said that, but I think dream me was able to vent her frustrations the Gordon Ramsey way.

Until next time!

Hillary

"Europeanners"

Hey there!

Today's post will be an assortment of unrelated topics, all of which I want to tell you about but none of which are big enough to deserve their own space.

Topic one: The Metro

The metro is one of the best public transit systems I have ever experienced (second only to the Underground). It surpasses the Chicago El system in every way possible. There are stops everywhere and wait times for trains are rarely over 4 minutes- but you'll know how long you'll be waiting thanks to the digital sign that tells you how long until the next train, and then how long until the next train after that. The newer trains have a digital map inside the train cars: On this map there is a small light underneath each stop, the light blinks when you have arrived at that stop, and the light is extinguished once you have passed that stop. Oh and have I mentioned the speed? It's about one minute transit time in between each stop on the metro.

The Metro is a funny sort of place. You are allowed on the metro, but your personal space has to walk and meet you at your next destination. On the metro your entire cabin may be serenaded with a man playing a guitar and not asking for money, a couple with a stereo may try to start a rave in your cabin, or a homeless person may board and announce very politely that he is poor and isn't being helped by the State and if you would be so kind he would gratefully accept any donations you may have. People-watching on the metro is really enjoyable. Today I saw a boy about my age on his cell phone leaning against the wall of the train with a very tall open Paprika Lays Potato Chips tube in one hand, and tucked under his arm he was carrying a small laptop- with no case. The other day I saw the coolest looking family. The dad had a handsome face with a bit of stubble and was around 40, he was tall, slender and extremely french looking. He had a tattoo on his neck with someone's name on a banner wrapped around a big flower. It was cool looking. The mom was a bit younger with long blonde hair and a trench, and the daughter, who was around 5, was wearing the cutest little dress with little boots on. I have seen women and men of every ethnicity and of every level of wealth. It's really enjoyable.

Topic two: Au Vieux Campeur

Today I went on a quest to find a sleeping bag (to help with my bed bug problem). After googling "Paris camping stores" and then using google maps, I found where I wanted to go. The only problem was that the blog I found that suggested Au Vieux Campeur warned that, although this chain carries everything an outdoorsman could ever dream of, because of limited real estate in Paris, Au Vieux Campeur had about 50 different boutiques sprinkled around the 6 block radius they had directed me to. All of them carrying different things. I took the metro and walked to the address I got from the internet. At that address was a pharmacy and a few shops, but none of them were the camping store. I went inside one of the shops and asked for directions. In a mix of french and english she said I needed to walk two blocks one direction, take a right, and then walk for 5 more minutes. I walked that direction and almost immediately after turning right on the correct street, passed by an Au Vieux Campeur. Inside this one all they sold was skis, but the doorman directed me to the one with "sacs de couchage" (thanks google translator for telling me the word for sleeping bag!). He told me I need to walk 4 blocks and take a right. In between the ski shop and the corner 4 blocks away, I passed 4 more Au Vieux Campeurs. One sold only goggles and sunglasses, another sold only cold weather gear, the third sold trekking gear, and the 4th sold backpacks. Around the corner I found my sleeping bag store, and after purchasing one (I bought the cheapest one for only 15 euro!) I walked up towards the main road to catch the closest metro. The main road was one block away, but on the way I passed three more of those shops, one which sold swim gear, another which sold wetsuits, and the third which sold snowboards and snowboarding brand clothing. I turned up the main road and walked past another one which sold only hiking boots. I saw a shelf inside with some spray cans and walked in and bought some leather protectant spray for my shoes!

Topic three: Zara

I went into Zara today to try to find a light jacket (the temperature dropped yesterday to the low 50s). I found a really cute coat but they only had 3 larges. I went up to the man at the counter and asked in french "est-ce que vous avez sa plus petit?" (Do you have this more small?) I asked that in french!! I don't think it was a perfect sentence but he understood me! He told me no, and said the store by L'Opera had it. Then he asked me something I completely didn't understand, and I asked him in french if he spoke english. He did not, and neither did the woman at the register. I wanted to ask him if he could have the other store send it to this Zara, since it's only 1 block from my dorm, but I had no way of saying that. Eventually he just gave me the address to the other Zara. Oh well, I almost had it!!

Topic four: The language of a New Yorker

When I worked at Ben & Jerry's for the Tennis U.S. Open a couple summers ago, I got a lesson in how to speak a whole different language. I'm not talking about a foreign language, I mean the language of the inner city. Until a couple weeks ago, I thought that it was a language that could translate to any city, but I'm starting to realize that what I was hearing was unique to New York. Do you want to know how I know this? I know because I met a nice girl from St. John's who lives in our dorm and is a native New Yorker. The second she opens her mouth I am transported back to yesteryear, to my ice cream-scooping days. Last night around 11:30 she came into my room as Yomna and I were watching project runway on my laptop (I bought it from iTunes). She wanted us to watch a scary movie with her but we were already watching our show and didn't want to watch "Devil."

As soon as she walked in I knew that Yomna and I might not be able to finish our episode before the night was through. This girl can talk. I mean, I might say four words and she says five thousand. She can talk for 20 minutes with no interruption from me..except an occasional "mhm." Last night one of the topics she talked about was all the St. John's people who say they are from New York, but then she finds out they're from Connecticut or Massachusetts. She explained that one girl on her program is only eating bread and water because she wants to get a bigger chest and butt.

...

I don't know. I'll just say that there are definitely differences between the students from St. John's and the NU students. For one, I never see any NU kids outside the building smoking, but it seems like there are always 2 or 3 kids from St. John's smoking outside. And it's always different people so it's not like it's 3 of them that just smoke all night and day. Secondly, we were all warned to be quiet when talking with windows open, or when walking outside the front door down the passageway in between our building and the church building to the door that leads to the street because the sound gets trapped in the passageway and everyone can hear everything you say. It's the St. John's kids who lean out their windows to yell to each other, or who play "kick the water bottle" in the passageway. But I'm straying off topic, I was just so fascinated that two groups of students- and both from good schools- could be so different. Back to the St. John's girl.

At one point she started ranting about one of our RA's (a subject she hits on repeatedly). She told us that she told him earlier yesterday that "he was f*in stupid- I told him right to his face! Everyone hates his f*in a$$." Apparently one of the reasons for this is that the RA walked into a girl's room who was skyping with her parents and started asking her about being Albanian, saying he felt sorry for her country because of the religious division. Apparently he told her that her religion (she's Muslim) is a violent one. Now, I don't know if that's true, which- if it is that is unacceptable- but this is what St. John's girl had to say about it:

"I told him, 'who are you to talk, you're f*in Polish! I could say a lotta things about you. You from the most communist f*in part of town!!' Yo it's mad rude to be like sayin' 'I feel bad for your country' and sh*t. All these Europeanners don't know how to talk to people."

She's engaged to be married next year. She's the one that found the mouse in the refrigerator. "I opened the door and saw the mice ran out the refrigerator! Then later that day I was in the kitchen, and I saw another mice!" Oy ve. She's a really nice girl but I'm worried that her grammar is going to rub off on me if I listen to her talk for too long.

And that's where today's post ends! Bon week-end!

Love always,

Hillary

Goodnight, sweet dreams, and don't let the bed bugs bite!!!

Oy ve,

Not again.

A couple days ago a girl on my floor was complaining that while she's been sleeping she's been getting tons of mosquito bites. They were all over her arms and her face. I doubted they were mosquito bites, but I didn't know what else they could be...other than the mythical bed bug (which I know exists but to me it only existed in super gross conditions..or back in the days of straw mattresses). Oh..what a fool I was.

I just woke up from an hour long nap with 4 to 5 semi-itchy bites along my arms. I know they aren't mosquito bites because the only thing close to a mosquito I've seen in France was a monster mosquito/fly/dragonfly thing floating around my room, and a little green mosquito looking thing. I think it's bed bugs. The maids are supposed to wash our sheets for us every 5 weeks. My plan was to wait for the 5 week mark to get my sheets washed. The problem could be one of 2 things.

It may be due to the fact that these sheets are super hard and aren't cotton. They don't breathe at all, so even though it may be really cold in here at night, I sweat like it's 100 degrees in here without a fan. Even in Bolivia the sheets were cotton. They only gave us one set even though we were told "linens will be provided." If I'd known they meant "we will give you one scratchy old towel and one set of puke pink sheets and we won't clean them for 5 weeks," I'd have brought one or two extra sets. And my cotton twin sheets at home are pretty! The pillow case they gave us doesn't fit on the pillow we were provided, so we can't use it. Thank goodness I brought my tie-dye pillowcase from home so that I could have a little piece of home!

Moving on to the pillow- this pillow is not new. My guess is that it is 3-5 years old. The material inside has formed into clumps. If you lay your head on it, it is flat as an envelope within 30 seconds.

I think the bed bugs are either because I sweat a ton at night due to these sheets made of who knows what, OR because this pillow is ancient.

Sigh. Laundry costs 4 euro (2 to wash 2 to dry). There is no guarantee that I can even get an empty dryer tonight. I don't want to sleep in this bed with these sheets tonight.

Love a very perplexed,

Hillary