The French don't understand Thanksgiving. Not at all. And its very difficult to try to explain the history and tradition behind Thanksgiving in French anyways...
So my Thanksgiving wasn't a holiday at all. It was the first and last time that I will probably ever be required to be somewhere, which was a bit sad, but an indication that I'm living with a different people. I had class on Thanksgiving, a meeting with a corrector to go over a paper, a required class trip to the Musee Carnavalet (very cool in its own right), and I was supposed to have a meeting with my conversation assistant. Luckily my conversation fell through, though not because of the holiday. The whole day was sort of played out as if no one realized it was a holiday to us Americans, which I later figured out was true. The Center had no real idea that Thanksgiving was so important to us, and at the last minute they tried to throw together a little "pot," which translates to "hors d'oeuvres and wine." It was nice of them, but very strange. Instead of turkey at midday, it was canapes.
The original plan for Thanksgiving dinner was to eat leftover chili from the night before and watch Survivor on my laptop. But, since my conversation got cancelled, and my friend Janet's was rescheduled, we decided to do a mini-Thanksgiving dinner. We bought a pre-cooked chicken at the grocery store, and we made some mashed potatoes and mixed vegtables. It was nice to have a semi-traditional Thanksgiving meal.
Initially I was kind of down about the whole Thanksgiving away from home thing, but after the day I was feeling pretty good. I had had a fun day with my classmates, and a great dinner (seriously, my cooking isn't that good, and this was very tasty). I also had a nice talk on the phone with the family. I got passed around to everyone, which was nice because I haven't talked to most of them in a really long time. After all of this I realized that I really have a lot to be thankful for. I'm thankful that I have this incredible opportunity to spend my time in an amazing place, and that instead of being down about it, I should enjoy every minute I've got!
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Poptarts in Paris
So I've been feeling a little bit homesick the last few days. Nothing serious, just kind of realizing that I've been in another country for two months, and that there are some things that are so American that I've sort of been missing. Maybe because Thanksgiving is approaching, and the holidays. I don't know, I just know that I've been desiring something very very American.
With that in mind I went to find the fabled "American Store." People in my program are always talking about this store that sells American things like peanut butter and pancake mix (neither of which you can buy here in regular stores). So, I googled it, and then went searching this afternoon.
The American store is actually called "Thanksgiving" which is a bit ironic considering the time of year, and it's owned by an American couple. It's situated on a narrow side street in the Mirais, one of the older parts of Paris with all the narrow cobbled streets and old buildings. When I finally found it, which took awhile, I stepped inside, and was immediately met with images of things I hadn't thought about in months. Root beer, chili powder, cheerios, they had it all. Of course the prices weren't pretty, because this stuff was shipped overseas, but still. I wandered for awhile, listening in on the conversations (in english), before selecting my treat, a box of poptarts. I spent more than I will ever spend again on poptarts, but when I got home, they were so so so good.
While at the store I asked about Thanksgiving dinner in Paris, but from the sounds of it I should have been asking a month ago. The store has a cajun restaurant attached, but they have apparently been booked for weeks. And the lady didn't know any other places doing thanksgiving. I'm not sure what we'll do yet, because we don't have an oven where we live, and we have conversations that night anyways, but it will work out.
With that in mind I went to find the fabled "American Store." People in my program are always talking about this store that sells American things like peanut butter and pancake mix (neither of which you can buy here in regular stores). So, I googled it, and then went searching this afternoon.
The American store is actually called "Thanksgiving" which is a bit ironic considering the time of year, and it's owned by an American couple. It's situated on a narrow side street in the Mirais, one of the older parts of Paris with all the narrow cobbled streets and old buildings. When I finally found it, which took awhile, I stepped inside, and was immediately met with images of things I hadn't thought about in months. Root beer, chili powder, cheerios, they had it all. Of course the prices weren't pretty, because this stuff was shipped overseas, but still. I wandered for awhile, listening in on the conversations (in english), before selecting my treat, a box of poptarts. I spent more than I will ever spend again on poptarts, but when I got home, they were so so so good.
While at the store I asked about Thanksgiving dinner in Paris, but from the sounds of it I should have been asking a month ago. The store has a cajun restaurant attached, but they have apparently been booked for weeks. And the lady didn't know any other places doing thanksgiving. I'm not sure what we'll do yet, because we don't have an oven where we live, and we have conversations that night anyways, but it will work out.
Friday, November 21, 2008
La Defense
After class ended yesterday, early at 12:15, Benna and I decided to go check out the Arc de la Defense. The Arc is relatively new, and it lies in a direct line with the Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elysees, and Louvre. The arc itself is really cool. It's massive and very square and modern-looking. The district it is in is also very modern, and I just read that 14 or so of the 20 most important companies in France have their headquarters there. All of the buildings are skyscraperish, and very new looking. It was a bit strange to be up there, when the rest of France is so old-looking. They were setting up a Christmas Market there too, so we might have to head back in that direction in the near future.
Benna and I also walked along from La Defense to the Arc de Triomphe, a nice walk in itself. The Arc de la Defense is actually not in Paris, but in the banlieuex (suburbs). So it was fun to walk into the city of Paris, and to the Arc de Triomphe. I guess this was Napoleon's intention in building the Arc in the first place. Too bad they never walked through triumphantly?
Benna and I also walked along from La Defense to the Arc de Triomphe, a nice walk in itself. The Arc de la Defense is actually not in Paris, but in the banlieuex (suburbs). So it was fun to walk into the city of Paris, and to the Arc de Triomphe. I guess this was Napoleon's intention in building the Arc in the first place. Too bad they never walked through triumphantly?
Dublin
I flew to Dublin on Wednesday the 12th for three nights. I got in at 2:00 pm, and was at my hostel by 3:00. My hostel was in a perfect location, just a block from the River Liffey, and a block in the other direction from Trinity College. The first night I was tired from traveling, and walking all over London, so I took myself out for another round of fish and chips, and then I saw the new Bond film. It was a nice relaxing night, something I needed in the midst of all my exploring. And it was nice to see the Bond film in English, before it was released in the States.
The next day I spent exploring the city of Dublin. I started out at Trinity College. I had read that was gorgeous and old, but honestly the upkeep wasn't that great. The buildings are hundreds of years old, but it didn't really feel like it, and the gardening didn't really add to the mood. Maybe because I am biased about my own school? I then walked along Grafton Street, which is the main shopping thoroughfare. It was nice, but after Harrod's, nothing. I took myself to the Temple Bar area next. Temple Bar is part of the historic part of Dublin. It has been through some hard times, but now the city of Dublin is trying to bring it back as a new artsy quarter. It also has a lot of pubs, which are fun to look at because the painting is colorful, and the signs are funny. The next natural stop on my trip was Dublin Castle. It was strange. It had rainbow colored painting on it, and the main square had turned into a parking lot. Next I checked out Christ Church Cathedral. I got tricked into paying three euro to get in, but I guess it was worth it. The cathedral didn't compare at all to anything I've seen in France, but the crypt was really cool. It was also nice to compare the different architecture styles. In an ironic turn, I went on a tour of the Guiness Factory next. The tour is really fun. You pay a set price, and then they let you loose in the storehouse building. The building is many floors, and each floor has displays of different aspects of Guiness' work. The tour explains the brewing process, how to taste beer, advertising, and storage. At the end of the tour you find yourself at the top of the storehouse, in the Gravity Bar. The bar has a 360 degree view of the city of Dublin, and is one of the highest points in Dublin. You also get a complimentary pint of the brew, which to the probable disappointment of my Uncle Chip, I didn't like at all. That night I relaxed in the hostel with a nice Australian girl I met, mostly discussing the differences between our countries, and talking about our travels.
On my second full day I decided that I'd exhausted a large chunk of the sightseeing in Dublin, so I paid to go on a bus tour of the Wicklow Mountains. The tour started at the tourism office in Dublin and the driver took us all around. We started by going up one of the nearer mountains so that we could get a good view of the city. It was breathtaking. We were served complimentary coffee to enjoy our view with. The next couple of hours were highlighted by stopping at cool sights and getting off the bus to check them out. I saw mountains, lakes, and waterfalls. It was all gorgeous and absolutely breathtaking. We stopped in a small town for lunch, and then went to Glendalough. Glendalough was a celtic center of worship. There were several churches there, and now it is a large cemetary. Glendalough also has some very gorgeous paths that lead to more lakes and waterfalls. It was fabulous, and a great day. After Glendalough we started to head back towards Dublin, stopping at some sights where the film Braveheart was filmed. I'm so glad that I did the tour, because I would not have had a chance to see anything so gorgeous.
The next day was my last travel day, but I had intentionally scheduled my flight back to Paris for the evening so that I could explore in the morning and early afternoon. I decided to take the DART train to Bray, which is a town on the sea. It was incredible. The beach was gorgeous, with lots of stones everywhere and no sand. The stones were all really flat because they had been washed down by the ocean. They were perfect for skipping! In Bray there is a sea side walk all along the water, high up some cliffs, that lead to Greystones. I walked part of the path, taking in the beautiful views. It was amazing. When I returned to the beach in Bray I bought my last fish and chips meal, and ate it along the water. I then headed back to Dublin, the airport, and home.
My seventh week vacation was all I wanted it to be. I got to see some cool places, and explore around, taking time off of school. It was fabulous! Now I've got three weeks of class (well two now), and then I have a month off for more travel (Spain, Portugal, Italy!).
PHOTOS:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010310&l=83a50&id=1599570086
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010312&l=79735&id=1599570086
*Note: There are no pictures from Bray. My battery died on my camera at Glendalough... Never fear, I bought a disposable, but I don't know how to get the pictures developed here in France.*
The next day I spent exploring the city of Dublin. I started out at Trinity College. I had read that was gorgeous and old, but honestly the upkeep wasn't that great. The buildings are hundreds of years old, but it didn't really feel like it, and the gardening didn't really add to the mood. Maybe because I am biased about my own school? I then walked along Grafton Street, which is the main shopping thoroughfare. It was nice, but after Harrod's, nothing. I took myself to the Temple Bar area next. Temple Bar is part of the historic part of Dublin. It has been through some hard times, but now the city of Dublin is trying to bring it back as a new artsy quarter. It also has a lot of pubs, which are fun to look at because the painting is colorful, and the signs are funny. The next natural stop on my trip was Dublin Castle. It was strange. It had rainbow colored painting on it, and the main square had turned into a parking lot. Next I checked out Christ Church Cathedral. I got tricked into paying three euro to get in, but I guess it was worth it. The cathedral didn't compare at all to anything I've seen in France, but the crypt was really cool. It was also nice to compare the different architecture styles. In an ironic turn, I went on a tour of the Guiness Factory next. The tour is really fun. You pay a set price, and then they let you loose in the storehouse building. The building is many floors, and each floor has displays of different aspects of Guiness' work. The tour explains the brewing process, how to taste beer, advertising, and storage. At the end of the tour you find yourself at the top of the storehouse, in the Gravity Bar. The bar has a 360 degree view of the city of Dublin, and is one of the highest points in Dublin. You also get a complimentary pint of the brew, which to the probable disappointment of my Uncle Chip, I didn't like at all. That night I relaxed in the hostel with a nice Australian girl I met, mostly discussing the differences between our countries, and talking about our travels.
On my second full day I decided that I'd exhausted a large chunk of the sightseeing in Dublin, so I paid to go on a bus tour of the Wicklow Mountains. The tour started at the tourism office in Dublin and the driver took us all around. We started by going up one of the nearer mountains so that we could get a good view of the city. It was breathtaking. We were served complimentary coffee to enjoy our view with. The next couple of hours were highlighted by stopping at cool sights and getting off the bus to check them out. I saw mountains, lakes, and waterfalls. It was all gorgeous and absolutely breathtaking. We stopped in a small town for lunch, and then went to Glendalough. Glendalough was a celtic center of worship. There were several churches there, and now it is a large cemetary. Glendalough also has some very gorgeous paths that lead to more lakes and waterfalls. It was fabulous, and a great day. After Glendalough we started to head back towards Dublin, stopping at some sights where the film Braveheart was filmed. I'm so glad that I did the tour, because I would not have had a chance to see anything so gorgeous.
The next day was my last travel day, but I had intentionally scheduled my flight back to Paris for the evening so that I could explore in the morning and early afternoon. I decided to take the DART train to Bray, which is a town on the sea. It was incredible. The beach was gorgeous, with lots of stones everywhere and no sand. The stones were all really flat because they had been washed down by the ocean. They were perfect for skipping! In Bray there is a sea side walk all along the water, high up some cliffs, that lead to Greystones. I walked part of the path, taking in the beautiful views. It was amazing. When I returned to the beach in Bray I bought my last fish and chips meal, and ate it along the water. I then headed back to Dublin, the airport, and home.
My seventh week vacation was all I wanted it to be. I got to see some cool places, and explore around, taking time off of school. It was fabulous! Now I've got three weeks of class (well two now), and then I have a month off for more travel (Spain, Portugal, Italy!).
PHOTOS:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010310&l=83a50&id=1599570086
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010312&l=79735&id=1599570086
*Note: There are no pictures from Bray. My battery died on my camera at Glendalough... Never fear, I bought a disposable, but I don't know how to get the pictures developed here in France.*
London
First, apologies that this took so long. Jumping back to school was a bit of a shock to the system, so I've been focusing on the work and less on the fun.
I flew to London for the first part of my 7th Week Vacation on the 8th. The Center gives all programs a week off every quarter, to allow us to travel a bit and explore Europe and France. The intention of that is to discourage us from skipping classes to travel. Which I guess makes sense, but it's been hard going back into academic mode.
Anyways, my flight to London was on Easyjet which is a budget airline in Europe. I only paid about 50 euro for the flight, which was great. The downer is that you get what you pay for. My flight was delayed about two hours, which was a bit of a disaster because the gate was in a location without any food or restrooms. At one point I went backwards through security to go back to the concourse to use the restroom and buy a snack. Once on the plane everything was fine. I landed at Luton airport at about 4 in the afternoon. I took the Easybus into London proper, which was an hour and twenty minutes. The bus was a bit freaky because they drive on the wrong side of the road. It was definitely unnerving. I arrived in London and headed straight out to my hostel for the night. I stayed at the Globetrotter's Inn, which was in Hammersmith, about a 45 minute tube ride from the city center in London. After so much traveling I was exhausted and fell asleep at about 9 PM.
My first full day in London was Remembrance Sunday, so there were lots of events throughout the city. I started out at the Tower of London on the East side of the city, and I spent the day walking along the Thames seeing all of the major sites. I saw the Tower, the Tower Bridge, Shakespeare's Globe Theater, St. Paul's, the London Eye, Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster. I then met up with my friend Meredyth, who I shared a suite with in Chicago the last two years. She is studying in London at University College for the year, so we spent a lot of time together. Meredyth and I walked to Buckingham Palace. The Queen was home, but we didn't see her. Meredyth then took me to a market where we sort of went shopping, and where we bought dinner. We had fresh oysters, which were delicious and fun to eat! I then had a plate of fresh paella from a Spanish vendor. It made me excited to go to Spain next month! After we headed up and hung out at her place in Camden Town, before I headed home on the tube for the night.
The second day was icky. It poured the whole day, which made it hard to go around and sightsee. I started out the day with big plans to go to Kensington Gardens to find the Peter Pan statue. I decided that the rain wasn't going to stop me, so I bought a coffee and walked in the rain through Kensington Gardens, which were beautiful. I found the Peter Pan statue, and loved it. Peter Pan is one of my favorite kids stories, so it was fun to go see the statue. Afterwards I went to the National Gallery, which is right on Trafalgar Square. The Square was a bit sad because of the rain, but the Gallery was fun. Inside is the National Art Collection, which includes some very beautiful work by Rembrandt. They also have so great Van Gogh stuff, including one of his sunflower canvases. I then tried to find the British Museum on foot, in the rain. It was a bit of a disaster, and a lot further than I thought it was going to be. I really have no perception of distance when I look at a map. I finally found it, and I was soaking wet. So, I took a detour and went in dried off in a Starbucks with a nice coffee. The British Museum was really fun. It has a lot of artificats from ancient civilizations all over the world. It also hosts the Rosetta Stone, which was pretty cool to see in person. The museum also has lots of Ancient Egyptian stuff, including mummies!
My third day was my last full day in London. It was much nicer than the first two days, so I did a lot of backtracking. I started out at Picadilly Circus, which is London's (weak) attempt at a Time's Square. I then walked to Buckingham Palace, for the changing of the guard at noon. It was pretty cool, a marching band came through, and the guard did a lot of stuff that was hard to see because there were so many people there. I then took myself to Notting Hill, for the Portabello Road Market. It was really fun to walk abound the neighborhood. I ended up back in Kensington Gardens, which was much nicer in the sunshine. I walked through the gardens, and found Harrod's, one of the largest department stores in the world. It was amazing. They've gave me a map when I got into the store, and I spent two and a half hours wandering around looking at all sorts of stuff. I accidentally spent some money too... oh well. Meredyth took me for fish and chips for dinner. It was good to have that classic British experience.
The next day I headed to Gatwick Airport to fly to Dublin, Ireland, the second half of my vacation!
PHOTOS:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010304&l=f9abf&id=1599570086
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010307&l=763b8&id=1599570086
I flew to London for the first part of my 7th Week Vacation on the 8th. The Center gives all programs a week off every quarter, to allow us to travel a bit and explore Europe and France. The intention of that is to discourage us from skipping classes to travel. Which I guess makes sense, but it's been hard going back into academic mode.
Anyways, my flight to London was on Easyjet which is a budget airline in Europe. I only paid about 50 euro for the flight, which was great. The downer is that you get what you pay for. My flight was delayed about two hours, which was a bit of a disaster because the gate was in a location without any food or restrooms. At one point I went backwards through security to go back to the concourse to use the restroom and buy a snack. Once on the plane everything was fine. I landed at Luton airport at about 4 in the afternoon. I took the Easybus into London proper, which was an hour and twenty minutes. The bus was a bit freaky because they drive on the wrong side of the road. It was definitely unnerving. I arrived in London and headed straight out to my hostel for the night. I stayed at the Globetrotter's Inn, which was in Hammersmith, about a 45 minute tube ride from the city center in London. After so much traveling I was exhausted and fell asleep at about 9 PM.
My first full day in London was Remembrance Sunday, so there were lots of events throughout the city. I started out at the Tower of London on the East side of the city, and I spent the day walking along the Thames seeing all of the major sites. I saw the Tower, the Tower Bridge, Shakespeare's Globe Theater, St. Paul's, the London Eye, Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster. I then met up with my friend Meredyth, who I shared a suite with in Chicago the last two years. She is studying in London at University College for the year, so we spent a lot of time together. Meredyth and I walked to Buckingham Palace. The Queen was home, but we didn't see her. Meredyth then took me to a market where we sort of went shopping, and where we bought dinner. We had fresh oysters, which were delicious and fun to eat! I then had a plate of fresh paella from a Spanish vendor. It made me excited to go to Spain next month! After we headed up and hung out at her place in Camden Town, before I headed home on the tube for the night.
The second day was icky. It poured the whole day, which made it hard to go around and sightsee. I started out the day with big plans to go to Kensington Gardens to find the Peter Pan statue. I decided that the rain wasn't going to stop me, so I bought a coffee and walked in the rain through Kensington Gardens, which were beautiful. I found the Peter Pan statue, and loved it. Peter Pan is one of my favorite kids stories, so it was fun to go see the statue. Afterwards I went to the National Gallery, which is right on Trafalgar Square. The Square was a bit sad because of the rain, but the Gallery was fun. Inside is the National Art Collection, which includes some very beautiful work by Rembrandt. They also have so great Van Gogh stuff, including one of his sunflower canvases. I then tried to find the British Museum on foot, in the rain. It was a bit of a disaster, and a lot further than I thought it was going to be. I really have no perception of distance when I look at a map. I finally found it, and I was soaking wet. So, I took a detour and went in dried off in a Starbucks with a nice coffee. The British Museum was really fun. It has a lot of artificats from ancient civilizations all over the world. It also hosts the Rosetta Stone, which was pretty cool to see in person. The museum also has lots of Ancient Egyptian stuff, including mummies!
My third day was my last full day in London. It was much nicer than the first two days, so I did a lot of backtracking. I started out at Picadilly Circus, which is London's (weak) attempt at a Time's Square. I then walked to Buckingham Palace, for the changing of the guard at noon. It was pretty cool, a marching band came through, and the guard did a lot of stuff that was hard to see because there were so many people there. I then took myself to Notting Hill, for the Portabello Road Market. It was really fun to walk abound the neighborhood. I ended up back in Kensington Gardens, which was much nicer in the sunshine. I walked through the gardens, and found Harrod's, one of the largest department stores in the world. It was amazing. They've gave me a map when I got into the store, and I spent two and a half hours wandering around looking at all sorts of stuff. I accidentally spent some money too... oh well. Meredyth took me for fish and chips for dinner. It was good to have that classic British experience.
The next day I headed to Gatwick Airport to fly to Dublin, Ireland, the second half of my vacation!
PHOTOS:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010304&l=f9abf&id=1599570086
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010307&l=763b8&id=1599570086
Friday, November 7, 2008
7th Week Vacation...
...officially started 10 minutes ago when Sylvie at the UChicago Center e-mailed me to confirm that she had received a copy of my final dissertation for Civ-2. Which means that I now have over a week off.
What am I going to do with a whole week of no obligations (including no homework!)? That's easy...
Tomorrow at 2:00pm I am flying to LONDON. I'm going over the channel to visit a friend from Chicago who is spending the year there. I'm still working out exactly what I'm going to do while I'm there, but I have three solid days of sight-seeing (not counting tomorrow and the day I leave). I do want to go to the Tower of London, and the Natural History Museum. And I want to see Big Ben and the Peter Pan statue in Hyde Park (I think it's there at least).
Then Wednesday morning I am flying to DUBLIN in Ireland. I've always wanted to go to Ireland, and I have a friend from High School who is there for the semester. Figure I could mix a visit in with some tourism! I'm going to play Dublin by ear too, see how exhausted I get in London, and then just sort of figure it out as I go along.
I get back to Paris on Saturday evening, which leaves a nice long day to relax and probably catch up on my TV. And then three more weeks of classes (Civ-3) and then I'm on Winter Break. I'm not sure exactly what is planned for those three weeks, but I know that two of the three weekends are three days long, so we might throw in a trip to Amsterdam or Eurodisney... or both? It sort of depends on how much money we spend during 7th Week. Hopefully not too much? Although I have left room in my bag... just in case ;-)
Anyways, I'll be back in a week with lots of stories (hopefully) and lots and lots of pictures. I'm actually thinking I might start compiling a slide show for when I get back... maybe do a little presentation or something? We'll see when March comes around (it also depends on how many thousands of pictures I have...)
Au revoir!
-Nora
What am I going to do with a whole week of no obligations (including no homework!)? That's easy...
Tomorrow at 2:00pm I am flying to LONDON. I'm going over the channel to visit a friend from Chicago who is spending the year there. I'm still working out exactly what I'm going to do while I'm there, but I have three solid days of sight-seeing (not counting tomorrow and the day I leave). I do want to go to the Tower of London, and the Natural History Museum. And I want to see Big Ben and the Peter Pan statue in Hyde Park (I think it's there at least).
Then Wednesday morning I am flying to DUBLIN in Ireland. I've always wanted to go to Ireland, and I have a friend from High School who is there for the semester. Figure I could mix a visit in with some tourism! I'm going to play Dublin by ear too, see how exhausted I get in London, and then just sort of figure it out as I go along.
I get back to Paris on Saturday evening, which leaves a nice long day to relax and probably catch up on my TV. And then three more weeks of classes (Civ-3) and then I'm on Winter Break. I'm not sure exactly what is planned for those three weeks, but I know that two of the three weekends are three days long, so we might throw in a trip to Amsterdam or Eurodisney... or both? It sort of depends on how much money we spend during 7th Week. Hopefully not too much? Although I have left room in my bag... just in case ;-)
Anyways, I'll be back in a week with lots of stories (hopefully) and lots and lots of pictures. I'm actually thinking I might start compiling a slide show for when I get back... maybe do a little presentation or something? We'll see when March comes around (it also depends on how many thousands of pictures I have...)
Au revoir!
-Nora
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Election Day In Paris
I think its safe to say that even though Tuesday was the date of the American election, most of the French people were quite invested in it. We've all gotten used to explaining to French people that we are for Obama (or for McCain as it is). I thought the approval rating of President Bush in the US was low, I haven't met a single French person who thinks well of him.
For election day the plan was to sleep early, and then wake up in the middle of the night for the poll closings. My friend Meredyth from school was visiting from London, and we were determined to stay up as long as we needed to. Turns out I went to bed at 7 am, but it was totally worth it.
The first attempt we made to have a true election experience was to go down by the Opera to see if we could get into Harry's Bar. Harry's Bar is the oldest American Bar in Paris, and every four years they do a straw poll vote to try to predict the winner. They've only been wrong twice since 1924, the first time with Jimmy Carter, and the second was in 2004 when Bush was re-elected. For the record, they were not wrong this year. Obama won their straw poll by a landslide. The history of the straw poll goes back to the 1920s when the American ex-pats convened in Harry's Bar to actually vote. The results were wired to the States and added to the tally.
When we got to Harry's Bar we were more than a little surprised by what we found. The entire street was closed off, and filled with people. French people, Americans, young, old. It seemed like all of Paris came out to patiently wait out the night for the results. It was sort of a lost cause for us though. We wanted a place with a TV, so we could see the analysis and the incoming votes. We hung around outside Harry's Bar for awhile, but then headed back to my building.
We ended up sitting with a laptop and MSNBC in my friend Benna's room. It was a bit makeshift, but exactly what we wanted. At about 5 am our time, when the polls closed in California, and there were enough electoral votes in to declare a winner we were all definitely ready for it. The thing about watching the analysis is that you see how its turning just as soon as certain places close. When they declared Ohio for Obama, I knew it was over, but we still had to wait it out.
There were definitely tears shed, and a moment when the window was thrown open and OBAMAAAAA was shouted out into the Parisian night. We stayed up for McCain's concession speech (it was very gracious, I respect him), and then for Obama's victory speech. A note about the gathering in Grant Park in Chicago... if I had been at school in Chicago, you better believe I would have been there. It's a little bitersweet this Paris thing. I missed a moment that I will never in my life get to experience again, yet I am in one of the coolest places in the world. And I keep talking to my friends and hearing how great it was... so then I explain Harry's Bar to them. It's not really the same, but still.
The night ended at about 7 am for me, and I snatched an hour and a half of sleep before sleepwalking to school and sitting through classes. French class consisted of a bottle of champagne and my French teacher halting all learning to just discuss the election. It was pretty cool of her (especially because until that point no one really liked her). I zombie-walked my way to my English Conversation, only to spend two and a half hours discussing the election with them as well.
I guess I was running on the pride I have for my country right now... I managed to stay up till almost midnight last night, running on an hour and a half of sleep over a period of 41 hours. All I know is that the next two and a half months are going to be long long long.
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I found this on youtube, it's a video done up at Harry's Bar. You can see the atmosphere, it was really fun.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVk474XKETU
For election day the plan was to sleep early, and then wake up in the middle of the night for the poll closings. My friend Meredyth from school was visiting from London, and we were determined to stay up as long as we needed to. Turns out I went to bed at 7 am, but it was totally worth it.
The first attempt we made to have a true election experience was to go down by the Opera to see if we could get into Harry's Bar. Harry's Bar is the oldest American Bar in Paris, and every four years they do a straw poll vote to try to predict the winner. They've only been wrong twice since 1924, the first time with Jimmy Carter, and the second was in 2004 when Bush was re-elected. For the record, they were not wrong this year. Obama won their straw poll by a landslide. The history of the straw poll goes back to the 1920s when the American ex-pats convened in Harry's Bar to actually vote. The results were wired to the States and added to the tally.
When we got to Harry's Bar we were more than a little surprised by what we found. The entire street was closed off, and filled with people. French people, Americans, young, old. It seemed like all of Paris came out to patiently wait out the night for the results. It was sort of a lost cause for us though. We wanted a place with a TV, so we could see the analysis and the incoming votes. We hung around outside Harry's Bar for awhile, but then headed back to my building.
We ended up sitting with a laptop and MSNBC in my friend Benna's room. It was a bit makeshift, but exactly what we wanted. At about 5 am our time, when the polls closed in California, and there were enough electoral votes in to declare a winner we were all definitely ready for it. The thing about watching the analysis is that you see how its turning just as soon as certain places close. When they declared Ohio for Obama, I knew it was over, but we still had to wait it out.
There were definitely tears shed, and a moment when the window was thrown open and OBAMAAAAA was shouted out into the Parisian night. We stayed up for McCain's concession speech (it was very gracious, I respect him), and then for Obama's victory speech. A note about the gathering in Grant Park in Chicago... if I had been at school in Chicago, you better believe I would have been there. It's a little bitersweet this Paris thing. I missed a moment that I will never in my life get to experience again, yet I am in one of the coolest places in the world. And I keep talking to my friends and hearing how great it was... so then I explain Harry's Bar to them. It's not really the same, but still.
The night ended at about 7 am for me, and I snatched an hour and a half of sleep before sleepwalking to school and sitting through classes. French class consisted of a bottle of champagne and my French teacher halting all learning to just discuss the election. It was pretty cool of her (especially because until that point no one really liked her). I zombie-walked my way to my English Conversation, only to spend two and a half hours discussing the election with them as well.
I guess I was running on the pride I have for my country right now... I managed to stay up till almost midnight last night, running on an hour and a half of sleep over a period of 41 hours. All I know is that the next two and a half months are going to be long long long.
-----------------------------
I found this on youtube, it's a video done up at Harry's Bar. You can see the atmosphere, it was really fun.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVk474XKETU
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