I again ran into frustrations with the Parisian bus system when I waited a good 15 minutes for a bus line that's supposed to come 9 times an hour (you do the math). So I ended up being a bit late for my "langue orale" class where we listened to Jacques Brel's "Le plat pays" to practice our listening skills.
I waited for Alex to finish his "langue orale" class which was after mine, and then we headed off to lunch. I had seen a few girls get this delicious salmon sandwich from the boulangerie down the street -- and so I knew I had to try it. I was not disappointed -- the bread was thicker than a baguette, but had a hard crust, almost like it had been toast, and was covered in sesame seeds. The inside was filled with slices of salmon, lettuce, tomato, and what tasted like a cream cheese spread. Extremely delicious, and all for a mere 4,30 euros. Not too shabby!
We ate in the Jardin du Luxembourg before making our way to the 4e arr. for the group tour of the "Marais quartier". There were about 15 of us who joined Martine and Mme Palmer (who will be teaching an art history class this semester -- I'm not taking it though). It's a beautiful older neighborhood with many churches, restaurants, cafes, and cool shops. We went through the "Eglise Saint Jean Saint Louis" (I think that was the name), and walked through the streets to get to another church which was in the gothique style. All very pretty.
After the tour finished (which had been advertized as lasting 1h30, but ended up being over 2 hours), Katie and I walked to the Ile-Saint-Louis -- which is a tiny island in the middle of the Seine (only about 3 or 4 roads), but Katie had heard they have the best ice cream. So clearly, we had to check it out. I got "un boule" de "chocolat noir" -- and unlike the US, French ice cream scoops are indeed the size of the scoop. Not a lick more. But to my delight, the ice cream was about as thick as fudge, and had a rich dark chocolate flavor. And as much as I wanted more, un boule was probably enough.
On my way home, I had my first experience with a completely packed subway car -- I literally stepped on, and could go no further. Luckily, I only had to wait two stops before switching lines to one that was much emptier -- I'm very proud that I no longer have to look at the map every time I get on a new subway line and that I actually appear to know what I'm doing.
Dinner! Yum yum. Just about my favorite part of the day! Marilu asked if I liked risotto, and I answered "bien sur!". So after an appetizer of chopped fresh tomatoes in olive oil, she presented a bowl of steaming risotto, which was a bit different than I expected, but delicious none the less. There was still broth around the outside of the rice (I'm not sure what she used as broth), and then there were mushrooms, dried tomatos, and lemon zest in it! Very interesting combo, but it really was yummy! Dinner was followed by a piece of my preferred Portugese cheese and bread, and a small pear. And one (or two? They were all in pieces so it was hard to count...of my chocolate chip cookies. Which I'm going to have to start taking to my classmates if there's any chance of me still fitting into my pants at Christmas).
Marilu invited me for an after-dinner promenade around the Champs de Mars which was delightful, and now I'm watching NCIS which is dubbed in French -- the voices are not at all the same which is a bit disconcerting.
Things that still cause me to reflicher: French lack of concern about refridgeration. For example, the leftover quiche remains in the oven (which is off of course), milk isn't put in the fridge until it's about to be consumed, etc. I have yet to get sick, so I'm going to pretend that I don't see it happening....Also, how French kids/teenagers are always better dressed than I am, and I don't think I've seen a single overweight child my entire time here. I think there are more, but I can't remember them right now.
I'm preparing a list of things to do over the weekend which is the "journees du patrimonie" where the government opens up a bunch of their buildings to the public, and visiting everything (those plus the places that are normally open) is free! Pretty cool!
As for the picture(s) of the day -- again, one more serious than the other....I'm convinced that when the French write their signs in English, they never know exactly what they're saying....
A tout a l'heure!
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