Paris, the Most Beautiful City in the World

The River Seine

Some say that Paris is the most beautiful city in the world. I think I might have to agree with that. It may be beautiful, but I don't know if I could live there. It was my dream to live in France and learn French, but I'm naturally a southern girl. No...I don't wear camo, ride horses...and I definitely don't have the accent. What I mean is that I really like the weather in the South of France and in good old Georgia. Also, in Aix, the people take their time. Going to Paris makes me feel like I am back in the States sometimes. After a long week of school, I went with my friend Christine to Paris. Christine and I have been friends for a very long time. I am talking since the 8th grade. We actually had English class together...ironically enough. We both fulfilled our dream of living in France and decided to go to Paris together. How touching! Christine, unlike me, is very well-traveled. Her mom is a flight attendant, so during our high school years, I often told her what I was doing for the weekend. This was how it usually went:

Christine: So, what are you doing for the weekend?

Diep: I'm gonna go hang out with some friends, maybe see a movie. How about you?

Christine: I think I am going to Paris.


And just like that, my life was just not as exciting. But this time, we were going together. WOOT WOOT.   She had tickets to see the Naked and Famous at Trabendo the 14th of November and invited me, so it was a good excuse to see Paris with Christine. I took the TGV with great ease and three hours later, I was in Paris. When I arrived, we had a lot of time. We were going to stay with a friend of Christine's mom. She lived maybe thirty minutes from the center of Paris by metro. It's probably about the same amount of time by car. I was very lucky to have Christine there because I didn't know anything about taking the metro. That day, I was just so tired that the metro map looked like hieroglyphics to me. The weather was terrible too...it was just cold and dark and windy. Once we got to Marie's house, we were ready to go to the concert. That wasn't a very amusing time for us. We were late for the concert! I think we were an hour late, but we had a good listen. The Naked and Famous is an excellent band with an electronic feel, and that's what I like. I had never heard of them before that night, but I was a fan once I heard them live.


Click to listen to "In Rolling Waves" by the Naked and Famous

This isn't my favorite song by them, but my favorite song is really sad and I want whoever to read this to be in a good mood, so enjoy!

Our meet and greet

Christine had been one of the first people to buy tickets, so she had a meet and greet with the Naked and Famous. I was looking forward to it very much because they were just so good live! (The drummer is a hunk too haha). Anyways, I bought their album "Passive Me, Aggressive You." It's actually their first album, but the cover is pretty cool. While Christine and I were waiting for the meet and greet, I dropped my newly bought album and the plastic front cover snapped off. I was pretty mad at myself for not paying attention, but the anger subsided when we got to meet them. They were all very nice and we got to chat about how they were headed to Italy after being in Paris, and I learned that they are from New Zealand. They signed my CD and kissed the broken cover haha. All of the meet and greet fans got autographed posters and we even took a picture with them. After a great end to the night, Christine and I made it back to Marie's house to get some rest. Christine's mom would arrive in the morning.





I was well-rested for the next day and was very happy to see Christine's parents. It had been a long time and they brought Christine goodies from America. I think I remember seeing a box of cheerios? Cereal is expensive in France, so I guess it made perfect sense. That day, we not only had to see Paris, but I had business to attend to. My parents told me that I would be going to Vietnam for Christmas break, so I had to get my visa even though I was only going for about two weeks. Before going to the Vietnamese Embassy, Christine and I got off the Metro at Châtelet Les Halles and walked to the Notre Dame. Notre Dame took my breath away on that sunny day, but there was plenty of cold air. Christine and I took plenty of photos and I went in for the first time ever. I am not a religious person by any means, but seeing cathedrals and marvelous churches is always exciting for me.

Looking like a geek in front of Notre Dame

An inside look...

The stained glass windows

We had to get to the embassy after seeing Notre Dame, so we took the metro and we ended up in the chic neighborhood of the 16th arrondissement. An arrondissement is like a part or quarter and so far, I have only heard this term used in Paris. I guess when you live in Paris, you get used to just saying the number of what part of Paris you are in, but we were in a very lovely part that day. The Vietnamese Embassy looked nothing like the other buildings. It looked old and out of place. When we walked in, to my surprise, it was extremely crowded. Sure there were some Vietnamese people, but most of the people in the line were French. I waited for my chance to speak to the woman and my French was not good enough to explain to her what I needed, so I spoke Vietnamese instead. We were there for maybe forty minutes or so. It didn't take long, but the cost was too much for something I would only be using for two weeks. After that, Christine and I headed back to the center of Paris to find something to eat. After our indecisive searching, we settled for a lovely brasserie with decent prices. I got beef bourguignon (still can't pronounce it) , a demi-peche, and crème brûlée. Demi-peche is peach syrup with blonde beer and it's absolutely delicious. I had never had beef bourginon until that day and it was exquisite. I also had never tried crème brûlée, which was REALLY, REALLY delicious. The best part of all was just sitting there and admiring the ambiance. The glow of the restaurant, the sunset, and the people passing by. Christine and I enjoyed our dinner and took our time like the French do. I really like that mentality...life is just too short to always be in a hurry.

Bridge of lovelocks

Afterwards, it was getting dark, so we just walked. We walked and got to see the bridge of locks. In case you're wondering, this bridge has a bunch of locks on it. It is said that if you go to the bridge with your lover, put a lock on the bridge, and throw the key into the river...you will have everlasting love. I was amazed to see so many locks without keys. Of course, there were lock and key vendors selling locks with their keys to any couple passing by. Christine and I walked across the bridge and ended up at Le Louvre. Le Louvre is gorgeous at night...the pyramid was lit up and we could see more of Paris miles ahead. Christine and I saw a huge ferris wheel and were interested in getting on because we were sure that the view would be incredible. Once we got to the ferris wheel, which was very close to the Champs Elysees, we paid 10 euros each and had the ride of a lifetime. Paris was very much alive that night...and we saw all that was going on from very high up.

Le Louvre

La Roue de Paris

On the ferris wheel

Christine and I chatted on the ferris wheel, but never took our eyes off of the incredible view all around us. I didn't know exactly where to turn. We saw so many lights that moved, and buildings of all shapes and sizes. We had to get off eventually, so we did and continued our walk. Christine got a call from her mom and we would meet her parents on the Champs Elysees next to the Louis Vuitton store. We had to walk past the Christmas market first...which I did not mind. There is a Christmas market in Aix too, but I was curious to see if the Paris market sold anything cool. I saw that there was a booth for Savon de Marseille! In case you're wondering what that is, it's soap. Damn good soap. It originates from Marseille and you can get it in many different scents, but I prefer the original scent which smells faintly of olive oil. In a lot of stores, they will tell you that they sell real Savon de Marseille, but only a few factories in Marseille create this soap in the traditional manner, which is very time-consuming. I buy my savon at a local booth in Aix and the soap is cut up in huge blocks. It's inexpensive and a lot more natural than Irish Spring...and my skin does not feel dry after using Savon de Marseille. I don't know if my soap is as authentic as it gets, but buying the soap in such huge blocks gives me the sense that it's authentic. Also, I live very close to Marseille, so I will take my chances. I hope to go to a soap factory to see how it's made.

SAVON

I found a few Christmas gifts in Paris that night. Once we got to Louis Vuitton, we entered the store just to have a look. We knew we wouldn't be able to afford anything in the store...and I am a big fan of Louis Vuitton. We waited for Christine's parents outside in the cold...and they finally arrived in the rental car. Christine's dad used to be a taxi driver in New York, so I felt safe that he was driving. He told us that we were headed to the Latin Quarter to go to a bar! We drove around the Arc de Triomphe, which is terrifying. Surrounding the arc is a huge roundabout. You have cars going in all different directions and you are not sure how to get out...but the French are skilled drivers. We got to the Latin Quarter, and after debating on which bar to go into, we ended up inside the Piano Bar. The bar was not very big, but the atmosphere felt old-timey. We sat down right next to the piano and enjoyed the atmosphere. The piano was a baby grand piano and the piano player was extremely skilled. He played a lot of newer music with his singer who was from South Africa. She sang very well and had a lot of charisma. It had been a long time since I put my pipes to use in public, so I asked if I could have a go. I picked a song that I knew all too well. "If I Ain't Got You" by Alicia Keys. I must have rehearsed that song a million times in my life! I waited awhile and I got to sing...so...there I was, in a bar in Paris, singing!


If I Ain't Got You by Alicia Keys

Christine and I at the bar

Christine and I went back to Marie's that night and then went to a club in Paris. Choosing a club is hard, but being in a terrible club is harder. We picked a club that the young people of Paris go to with great reviews. I don't even remember the name of the club, but I just have this picture.

Yes, it was on a boat, which is a cool concept, but the inside of the club was bizarre. The club was set up as if there was a concert going on. There was a stage with the turntables and it played electronic music. The DJs seemed to be playing the same song and when we were trying to dance, we got shoved by people who were trying to get to the front as if it was an actual concert. The club was pretty lame, so we headed out after waiting forever to get our coats back. We then had to figure out how to get home using the night bus system. We got ourselves to Gare de Lyon and found the bus station to get us to Marie's. The metro was closed, which surprises me because Paris is such a huge city. I believe it was a Saturday night too, so it was all the more reason to have a 24 hour metro. In Barcelona, the metro system runs 24 hours on Saturdays. Christine and I eventually got to Marie's and slept in the living room.

The next morning, we all said our goodbyes to Marie and thanked her for her kindness. It was very nice of her to let us stay. Christine and her parents had a train to catch to go to Clermont-Ferrand that morning, so I was dropped off at the metro nearby. My train for Aix wouldn't depart until the next day, so I had more time to enjoy the wonders of Paris. I learned how to use the metro that day and found a hostel very close to Gare de Lyon, so that I would be on time for my train the next day. After I refreshed myself, I was off to the 13th arrondissement to look for some pho. Pho is this delicious Vietnamese noodle soup that is pretty well-known nowadays. I've had a lot of pho in my life, but no pho can ever come close to my mom's pho, which is always made with love. The process of making the soup is very tedious though. I hope to one day make pho just as well as my mom, but in Paris that day...my mom wasn't there to make me pho, so I set off to find some myself. I walked around the 13th arrondissement for a long time and stumbled upon the Museum of Natural History. I was extremely curious, so I went in to observe. There were so many fossils and bones. It's a beautifully built museum and I spent an hour in there just walking through. All of the written information about what I was looking at was in French and I was not advanced enough to read it all, but it was worth a shot.

The Paris Museum of Natural History

After getting out of the museum, I walked forever, but I couldn't seem to find an abundance of Vietnamese restaurants, which is why people go to the 13th arrondissement. I made it back to Gare de Lyon to find something to eat a little closer. I settled for some Chinese and had a nice conversation with the woman who worked there. I made it back to the hostel for a good night's sleep. I had a bad experience with bed bugs at a hostel in Barcelona, so I was not so sure about this one. The hostel I stayed at is called Hostel Blue Planet. I paid 20 euros for the night. This hostel did not have bed bugs, but I did see bugs on the floor of the bathroom. Once you turned on the light, they scurried away and hid somewhere. They were not in the actual bedroom though. It was questionable whether or not the sheets were clean, so that was an uncomfortable thought. The hostel did not have wifi, which is weird...considering the century we are in. I didn't sleep to well that night and I regretted not bringing ear plugs. People constantly ran up and down the stairs, and while I was trying to sleep, a person knocked on my door. There was only one key for each room, so the girls had to knock to get in.

 I introduced myself and I learned that they were studying in Brussels, Belgium. They didn't speak any French, so we just spoke English to one another. I tried going to sleep again and around 2 AM, another person knocked on my door. She was an older woman with blonde hair. She spoke English to meet at first with a very heavy French accent. I responded to her in French and she was extremely relieved that I spoke French, and we had a very nice conversation. She had an obsession with Michael Jackson, so she had his face as her Macbook wallpaper. She even asked me which photo of Michael Jackson I preferred, because she had two photos to choose from. She took a very long time in the bathroom after our conversation. I think maybe an hour and a half...she was a bit of a neat freak and she liked natural products. Her white-collared shirt was organic and she showed a lot of enthusiasm for her eco-friendly lifestyle. She was a journalist and the last thing she wrote about was Africa, and she even went there. She wrote about war, so I asked her if that was dangerous. She replied yes, but it was her job. We eventually went to bed and I woke up tired in the morning. I took a shower and left early for my train. I hate being late! I arrived so early that the lady at the help desk even said I was too early. I found a wifi signal in the stuffy waiting room and just surfed the web until my train came. The train eventually came, and I must have slept most of the way home, which takes only three hours.. Once I got back to Aix, I knew that I was home again.

When I got back to Aix that night

Droit Au But, a Nicki Minaj Song and The Cheetah Girls

My fellow Georgian named Preston invited Alli and I to a football match on the 6th of October. His parents got him tickets as a present and I was honored to be the first person he asked to go. He had four tickets in total. I felt like I won the lottery. This would be my first time attending a for real for real football match. By football, I actually mean soccer. Why do we call American football, football? I find that to be really stupid. The rest of the world calls it football...why can't we? And why do we not use Celsius? Why do we measure in feet? DO YOU UNDERSTAND HOW HARD IT IS FOR US STUDY ABROAD STUDENTS TO SWITCH? (End rant). We had to take the bus to Marseille, then take the metro to Stade Vélodrome. With the help of our Australian friend, Tom, we got there safely. He used to live in Marseille, so he knew his way around. I had never been to Marseille before that, so it put me at ease to know that he knew what he was doing. The weather was awful, but the game was incredible. People in France love their football. They get very serious about their team. In fact, Olympique de Marseille fans were flicking off the Paris Saint-Germain fans. The opposing team's fans were caged off...I assume it was a safety measure. Unfortunately, OM lost last night, but it was still a great experience. I hope to go again sometime. Their slogan is "droit au but," which means right to the goal.

My homie Alli!

                                         

On the bus!

Stade Vélodrome

                               

SO COOL!

Start of the game!

After living in Aix for so long, a gal gets bored and wants a change of scenery. One weekend, Alli and I booked a hostel and went by bus to Nice. The whole time...that awful Nicki Minaj song was stuck in my head.

Yes, this song. Click here if you wish to lose faith in all of humanity.

From Aix to Nice...the ride only took about two and a half hours if I remember correctly. On our way to the Gare, we saw Rue D'Anglais, which is the long beach road. It was an incredible view. After we got off at the Gare/bus station, Alli and I got a map from the office and tried to navigate to the hotel using our brains, the map, and Google Maps. We ended up just following the tram and eventually getting on it. Alli was a genius and saw where we needed to go on the map, so we ended up at the hostel. We were pretty lost and clueless for the most part, but thanks to her wonderful observation, we got there. Before going to any hostel or hotel, I always check TripAdvisor. The hostel we were going to was free of bedbugs and had excellent reviews, so I was excited to see it. I had never stayed in a hostel before, but I felt at ease that it wouldn't break the bank. Alli and I each paid thirty euros for our two nights.

The front of our hostel

The "Chill Out" Room

Alli and I got to the hostel when it was getting dark out, so we couldn't do much that night. We only had one other roommate who was Chinese. She didn't speak any French, but for some reason, I kept speaking French to her. She spoke English really well, so we ended up speaking that so that everyone could understand. Her name was Lin and she is studying in London at the moment. Alli and I wondered what we were going to do that night and we ended up just walking around Nice...at night! Before anyone says anything, it was perfectly safe. We didn't stray into alleys or do anything illogical. We also found our way back to the hostel without any issues.

Nice at night!

Alli and I stopped at a store and I bought some chips and beer. Alli bought this parfait thing and then we got back to the hostel. We took showers and went to this chill out room that the hostel had. There were already people in there. Alli and I plopped down at a table next to them. It wasn't long before they invited us to play a drinking game with them. Luckily, I had two beers with me! The game was something I never understood, so I am not going to try and explain it, but I had two Leffe beers that night. Leffe is a delicious blonde beer from Belgium!

YUM

It turns out that they were all backpackers from Australia and Canada. There might have been one British girl too, but they all spoke English. They were all very nice. We all just sat there playing a drinking game, listening to the Weeknd, and having a good time. Then, the other Americans came! Alli and I met two people from Florida. A girl named Joëlle and her boyfriend who were backpacking through Europe. Alli and I eventually got tired, said our goodbyes, and went to bed. When Alli and I got to our room, a new person had arrived. She was also Chinese! Unfortunately, we never caught her name, but she was awfully nice. She was in Nice for a conference because she was a PhD of some sort. We all chatted for a bit and eventually went to bed. The next morning, Alli and I took the tram to Messena Square. We took so many pictures that day! 

Messena Square on that cloudy day. October 19th, 2013.

That's me on the beach!

Alli and I sitting on a beach made of just rocks.

COOL!

                       

A typical street in Nice.

We had breakfast by the marketplace.

The first thing Alli and I did that day was go to the beach. It wasn't swimming weather, so we just took some photos and then got some breakfast. Nice is quite lively in the morning. People were buying things from the market and I enjoyed people-watching at our table when we were eating breakfast. After we ate, we walked all around Nice the entire day and then ended up at the beach again, but this time...we had bubble tea. So, there we were...sipping bubble tea and laying on a bed of rocks. At first, it hurt to lay there, but it felt like a massage after about five minutes. That night, Alli and I ate at a local restaurant and then went back to the hostel for a good night's sleep. We had to be back in Aix the next day.

Here comes the finale of the post...I went to Barcelona for four days! At the low price of 150 €!!! Included in the price was the bus ride there and back, the hostel stay, and breakfast. George was our tour guide and we left around 6 or 7 AM. By we, I mean me, a Mexican (Israel), a German (Vincent), and a Swedish dude (Phillip). The guys stayed up ALL night, so they were all knocked out on the bus. I was nervous about going to a new country because I am now comfortable around French. They don't exactly speak Spanish in Barcelona. They actually speak Catalan, which is sort of a mixture between Spanish and French. I couldn't understand a thing! We got to Barcelona in the afternoon. It was rather windy. The whole time, I was thinking about the Cheetah Girls 2 movie where they go to Barcelona. Here is the video when they were dancing in the streets. It's not my favorite song by them in that movie, but I think it will help for visualization.


Strut by the Cheetah Girls

This song...on the other hand...was the best song in the movie. HELL YEAH.

Dance with Me by Drew Seely ft. Belinda

La Columna

A typical street in Barcelona

All four of us

After a little tour of Barcelona. We went to the hostel, which was called Ideal Hostel right next the main road aka La Rambla. That night, we had plans to go to hottest club in Barcelona. We went to our friend's rented apartment to pre-game! There were two French people there too, so I started speaking to them in French and they are very nice. We must have spent a few hours just having a good time and talking about anything, really.

The gals

Pierre et moi

When we were ready to go, we walked there. The walk about fifteen minutes and when we arrived at the club, it was packed. That night was the Real Madrid VS. Barcelona game. Barcelona won and the city was alive. We all stood in line and I was busy talking to Israel by the time we got to the front and we were unable to get in. It was a disappointment, but we just headed back to the apartment and then back to the hostel that night. The day after, we went on a tour by bus with George and our group. It was a pretty hot day with a bit of a breeze. I took plenty of photos.

All of Barcelona

That's me!

Basilique de la Sagrada Familia

That night, Erasmus, a foreign exchange program invited everyone out to the Catwalk, which is a nice club in Barcelona. It was my first club experience and I am happy to say that it was in a wonderful city. We walked from the hostel to the club, but our walk had one stop...the beach! The beach in Barcelona is beautiful...and we were there at night. What a life! After everyone got done chillin' at the beach, we walked a little further and got to the club. The look on the outside is modern. Once you get into the club, the stairs lead you to the bathrooms, and then you get to the wonderful dance floor. It was around midnight when we got there...the night life doesn't get started until 2 AM in Barcelona. We just danced and danced until our feet were gonna fall off. It was maybe 5 AM when we left the club and we ended up going to a pub close by. Vincent ended up buying cheap beer from shady street vendors. Some of the beer cans were sort of frozen, which was hilarious! We called it frozen piss. It took us forever to walk home because of our drunkards, but when we did...it was 7 AM. We were all so exhausted!

Israel and I on the beach before the club

The outside of Catwalk

The inside of Catwalk

Our group at the end of the night

It was our last full day in Barcelona when we woke up, so we decided to go to the beach. I met a very nice girl named Maren, who is German. She speaks so many languages! She came with us and we all had a lovely time. Who knew so many hours could pass on a beach when you just sit and talk?

Walking to the beach

The port

Maren!

My friends chillin' on the beach

That's me!

That night, we would finally get into Opium. We all went as a big group to a very nice bar near the beach for some karaoke! As we were walking to the metro, we took a group picture. It was funny because Israel and I are actually part of ISEP, not Erasmus. IT WAS BETRAYAL. Haha. Opium is one cool club, but I prefer Catwalk. There were plenty of people there when we came in and we danced for a long time, but not as long as the night before. We were even able to get to the VIP section. I have to give Erasmus props for that! Opium had a nice deck next the beach too, so if you were tired from the dancing, it was nice to sit and watch the waves. The weather that night wasn't ideal because it started raining when we walked home. It was a fun time!

Group photo!

The deck

Inside of the club

The next day, it rained and rained. George gave us a few hours to get ready to go. We all checked out of our hostels and left our things in the main room downstairs while we did our last-minute shopping and goodbyes. We were all pretty tired, so our bus ride home was long. One thing I must say...if anyone stays in Barcelona, pick a good hostel. Our hostel had bed bugs. Thank goodness we didn't sleep that much, but still...it's unsettling. It was a lot easier to get rid of them than everyone thinks. I washed my clothes and my backpack in very, very hot water when I got home. That's the only way they will die. The hostel we stayed at was less than ideal...ironically enough haha. I am not too proud to stay in a hostel because I like the atmosphere, but bed bugs are really annoying and the bites are extremely itchy. Other than that, the trip was incredible. The people of Barcelona are so very nice. I hope to go back one day to such a beautiful city, full of beautiful people.

The Point of Study Abroad is to Actually STUDY?!

My lovely school

A normal week for me is from Monday to Thursday. I take a general language course everyday with my awesome professor Nathalie Moreels and my fellow classmates. We all get along really well and I feel as if we all really enjoy class. I have a phonetics course, an art and publicity class, and French press and journalism. I spend about twenty hours a week in class, but get Fridays off so I'm not complaining!

In school, I have a lot of fun with my classmates. We had two birthdays during this stretch of time from the time we started to our vacation week at the end of October. One birthday was Lauren's, but I was sick that day, so I was unable to attend. I will now awkwardly post pictures of an event I didn't attend, but I was there in spirit.

Yes, they sell Lay's chips in France

A toast!

This pretty girl is my friend Lauren from California.

Our professor's birthday was the other birthday. We all chipped in to buy one of her favorite perfumes. We all were just hanging out, snacking, and celebrating for an hour during class.

Our lovely teacher making her wishes

St. Tropez cakes

My lovely classmates

A toast to health!

A prof and a prof

Our prof wondering where we found the perfume

My favorite class would have to be the general French language course. We have this class four times a week, so every school day with the same professor. At the beginning of the week, this class lasts for two hours. By the end of the week, the class stretches out to be three hours long. Our professor allows breaks to get coffee and go to the bathroom. This class covers French reading, writing, listening comprehension, and my favorite...grammar! There are some parts of French grammar that annoy me, but my favorite thing about French grammar is learning verbs. I like learning about tenses, moods, and how to conjugate them. By learning another language, my English grammar has greatly improved as well. I think learning another language is extremely beneficial for anyone. 

I also really like art and publicity. Our professor, Mme Thirion is funny and she is really into art. She tells us about the history of art and how it is used in ads from a long time ago to today. Here are some ads I like that she has shown us in class:

Orangina ad by Villemot

Ad for rat poison...the last supper they'll have!

Mon Savon ad by Savignac

French class in French is a lot harder than French class in English...that's for sure. I know that I am supposed to make mistakes an struggle with my French...but I am hoping very much that I get better and better. I already see many improvements. I am not as scared to speak French to actual French people as I was before. I know that if I give it my best shot, then they will most likely understand me. If I don't try, then I'll never be able to make any improvements in my French. I really enjoy French class for the most part. There are some times when I just don't understand something, but with the help of my professor and my classmates, I eventually understand. I like where I am learning French. In the Spring, I hope to take the DELF exam here. Instead of taking it in the States, I'd like to take it here to feel qualified enough to be a teacher in the future. But for now, I am preparing for the big day!