You have to say it the French way, like “Pah-ree.” Otherwise the title sounds lame. You have to get the rhyme in there!
Welcome to Kim’s Travelogue Blog!
Follow me on my adventures in Paris, where I will live for 7 weeks to study abroad! Here, I will share all my lovely/scary/fun experiences with you via stories, photos, and videos. Are you excited? I sure am!
While studying abroad in Paris, I wanted to make the trip as unforgettable as possible. Here is my *secret* video project commemorating my stay in France 🙂 #yolo
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Ahhh! I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted… finals, you know? And then I had to pack immediately after, and then fly home, and now I’m feeling super jet-lagged back home… basically a lot has been going on and I haven’t had much computer time recently!
But now that I’m home and still on summer break, I’ll have plenty of time to catch up on my posts, yay! So please do enjoy:
MUSEUM WEEKEND: PART 1!
Long story short, for whatever reason, I didn’t get to go to any art museums until near the end of my program. In fact, I felt so deprived that I dedicated an entire weekend to just visiting museums… five, to be exact.
Just a little background information on myself: I have about 3 years of art history coursework under my belt and I’ve learned a good amount about pieces ranging from the cave paintings in Lascaux (the first documented art) to contemporary Maywa Denki (google them – super cool!) So basically: I freak out whenever I recognize an artist/art piece from class and Paris was definitely the perfect place for this to occur, as you will see in the photos to come 🙂
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to visit all of the museums (I’d probably need years to accomplish this feat) but I was able to visit some of the more well-known ones. Here’s a quick overview of the five that I visited!
I’m having a really hard time believing that I have already been here for a month… where has the time gone? My days are really long here and time seems to move slower, but my schedule has been so packed that my conception of time is one huge blur. On the other hand, I feel like I’ve lived here all my life – isn’t that strange?
It’s been a month and I can confidently say that I have adapted to the French lifestyle. I can feel my French language skills improving and it makes me so happy! The other day, I had my first no-hesitation conversation with a mailman at the post office. I felt so accomplished in that moment – I spoke all French, no awkward pauses, completely understood what he was saying… it was such a rewarding experience!
Anyway, I’m in the mood to make another list. Here are 7 Random Things that I’ve learned from Living in Paris for a Month!
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TRUE STORY: My friends and I tried to get dinner one day at about 6pm and nothing was open. We hungrily walked through several blocks of Paris looking for a place to eat and had no success – most places didn’t open until 7 at the earliest. After living here for a month, I’ve learned that it is pretty normal to eat dinner late by American standards. I usually eat my dinner between 8-10 now… it’s going to be tricky to readjust when I go home!
Eating practices in France are very different than in the US and it is super common to stay at a restaurant for 2-3+ hours at a time. When I first came here, servers would give me a confused look when I would ask for the check less than an hour into the meal… it’s like it’s obligatory to stay more than an hour. I didn’t realize that it was normal to stay for a long time until I noticed other people doing it… Really, you could stay as long as you’d like, even if it’s for the full day, as long as you’re a paying customer. I’ve gotten into the habit of going to a café for dinner at about 8ish and then staying for several hours afterwards to study, and they’ve never tried to kick me out – it’s great!
Having a car is not a necessity in Paris because there are so so so many different modes of transportation that are all pretty reliable. (Let’s be real here, driving in Paris isn’t for the faint hearted!) My favorite mode of transportation? Biking! Paris is so biker friendly: there’s an inexpensive rent-a-bike service called Velib that’s stationed basically everywhere, it only costs you 1 euro ($1.12) for the first hour, the city is full of dedicated bike lanes, and the streets are super wide and smooth! What better way to get from point A to point B than to bike through this beautiful city?
As part of my program, I was required to sign up for an alert service that emails me every time something potentially dangerous happens in Paris. 99% of those emails are alerts on strikes, whether it’s the taxi drivers, the health workers, or some other irritated group of society… someone’s always on strike in France. My inbox is full of almost-daily strike updates – must be the French spirit of rebellion!
I used this line to describe the watermelon flavored gelato that I had the other day. Fruit flavors taste like real fruit… Wow!! It sounds somewhat silly to say this, but tell me: in the states, how many times have you tried a grape flavored *something* that actually tasted like grapes? My guess is probably never! In France, ice tea pêche (peach iced tea) actually tastes like peaches, strawberry yogurt tastes like strawberry… you get the point. No artificially sweet and syrupy flavors here, across the board! I LOVE IT!
Tipping servers is not a thing in France like it is in America. In most cases, the service fee is already included in the price on the menu. I really like this because 1) it makes paying a check much easier in a group setting because everyone pays their fair share and you don’t have that one person who always pays extra for the taxes and tip (me) and 2) you pay what you’re expected to pay. It’s honestly so much easier to deal with, we need this in America!
Bathrooms in Paris are so… COOL. I never thought I’d be saying this about a bathroom, haha! Obviously they aren’t all the same, but each bathroom that I’ve been in has something different about it that I find SO COOL, examples being:
– paper towel dispensers that roll out actual cloth towel
– self-disinfecting toilet seats
– genderless bathrooms (and the lines moved so quickly, it was so great)
– self-disinfecting public porter-potties (YES THIS IS A REAL THING AND IT’S AWESOME)
– actual bathrooms, aka individual rooms with toilets
I realize that these are all minor details and it probably seems strange that I notice these things, but I can’t help but wonder how public bathroom norms came to be in the US – who decides what goes in a bathroom and why? There are so many things that can be improved in the typical American public bathroom (see list above) and I find it really interesting to compare and contrast the differences!
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What was the most interesting random thing from this list? Share in the comments below!
New media posts coming soon, promise! Bonne journée mes amis! 🙂
Hello friends!
It’s been a while! Just thought I’d write a quick little update post to let you know what’s up!
This past week has been really hectic with school – I just started the next level of my French language class and it’s exponentially harder than the first one! 
This intensive course load is kicking my butt!
I’ve also come to the realization that I have less than a month left in France so I’ve been trying my best to make the most of it. I took a weekend trip to the French Riviera, particularly Nice and Monaco – oh my gosh so gorgeous! I have a lot of new content planned so expect to see new posts soon!
I must get back to work now – but thanks so much for checking my blog! Promise to post cool things ASAP 🙂
– Kim
So I just finished my first round of finals (yes, I’ve only been here for 2.5 weeks, so intense) and it’s time to celebrate!
And the best way to celebrate? WITH FOOD, of course!
Here’s a photo collage of the Parisian food that I’ve encountered in the past 2 weeks – click the photo for more details! 🙂 Bon appétit my friends!
Great news everyone! I finally figured out the video editing problem and now I can finally post my videos up! Yaaaaaay!
Here is my very first vlog! This episode’s topic: the /mis/adventures of arriving in Paris. Enjoy!
Hello friends!
I’m having a little bit of a hiccup with my video editing program, but hopefully I’ll have everything figured out by the weekend! I have so many videos to share!!
In the meantime, here’s my very first photo post, yay! I’ll be posting many types of media here, from phone pics, to DSLR pics, to videos, to written stories. Variety is the spice of life, no?
Hope you enjoy this collage of phone pics from my first week in Paris! Click the photo for more details!
Hello friends!
So I was editing one of my videos earlier today and I realized that I have not make a post about my program yet! Since you all will be following me on my trip, I figured it would make sense for me to tell you why and what I’m actually doing in Paris… silly me, I got too excited to show you the fun stuff!
So tell me about your program, Kim!
Okay! So the keyword of this section is intense. Every time you see this keyword, read it in a booming Morgan Freeman voice – this is the only appropriate way to read this post 🙂
My program is called the Language and Culture Track (INTENSIVE) *with a lot of emphasis on intensive… like super intensive* through UCEAP (University of California Education Abroad Program). As part of the program, I am taking 2 language classes and 1 culture class over the span of 7 weeks. The two language classes are sequential, which means that I will take the first level for 3.5 weeks and then the second for 3.5 weeks. Intense, right!?
UCEAP only organizes the academic portion of the program. The logistical stuff is organized by a company called ACCENT. They are the ones that handle all things related to actually being in France. For example, they host the buildings for our classrooms, housing, study hall, etc. So I’m not actually attending a university in Paris, I’m attending classes organized by the UC system in Paris. My professors are a combination of native French people and UC alum. My “school” is literally an office building with classrooms and a study area in the lobby. I’m really glad that I decided to go with this program because all of my peers are also UC students, so we’ve all had the shared experience of the long flight, jet-lag, culture shock and so on 😛
Schedule wise, I have classes from Monday – Thursday. I have my French language class for 3 hours every day, and my culture class for 2 hours every Tues/Thurs. I start classes at 10:30am everyday and end at 2:00pm on Mon/Wed and 4:30pm on Tues/Thurs, so there’s still plenty of time afterwards to explore (and do homework!)
How do you like it so far?
Oh my goodness. It’s so intense! I’ve only had 2 class sessions so far and it has been really really challenging to say the least. I have about 4 years of French classes under my belt: 3 years from 7th to 9th grade, and then I started over again with 2 quarters in college. So for my program, I got placed into French 3-4…. and boy am I glad that I have some background knowledge to work off of!
When UCEAP added the intensive to the program name, they really weren’t kidding. Just to put things into perspective, my French classes at UCLA were 10 weeks each. Even then, I thought we moved too fast! Here in Paris, French 3 and 4 will be 3.5 weeks each… that’s more than twice as fast as UCLA. So yes, it will be quite a challenge, but I love the language and I’M READY!
My culture class, which I will be taking for the full 7 weeks, is called Tastes of Paris. It’s a food anthropology class, so I’ll be learning about French cuisine as it relates to society. Not quite sure how I feel about it just yet, the topic is interesting but my first homework assignment was 60+ pages of reading for the next day… ouch!
Wow, that seems pretty intense! Will you be able to manage classes and sightseeing and blog posting?
The short answer = yes. It will be a little tricky at times but I am very accustomed to jam packed schedules and I think I’ll adapt just fine (once I get over this jet lag, ugh!) There are many reasons that I’m dedicated to maintaining this blog, the first being that I love sharing my stories/photos/videos. Telling stories is fun and I’m very passionate about photography and making videos so it only seems natural for me to document my trip this way. Twenty years from now, I’ll be able to look back at this blog and remember all the wonderful memories I made in Paris!
The cool part is that I was given a scholarship to do this – awesome right!? Shoutout to the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship! This scholarship is funded by the U.S Department of State, and it was created to help financially constrained students study abroad by offering partial or full scholarships. In return, recipients are asked to complete a follow up project about the experience of studying abroad – this blog is my project! I am beyond thankful for my friends at the Gilman Scholarship for helping me make this trip possible. For more information, check out their website here!
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Overall, the classes seem doable and I like what I’m learning! I’m sure my time in Paris will pass very quickly so here’s to making the most of… well, everything! I hope this post was informative and useful for all you future study abroad students! There are so many different programs out there and I am really glad that I chose mine. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment below! Thanks for reading – new (more fun) content will be up soon! 🙂
UPDATE: I meant to have a video done to follow this post, but alas my laptop decided to act up so I haven’t been able to finish it 😡 I’m using different equipment than usual (didn’t want to lug all my cameras to France) so there have been a few hiccups with compatibility. I have my first exam and a presentation on Monday (yes I’ve literally only been in class for two days) so expect to see the video up Tuesday/Wednesday! Thanks friends!
Check out this sweet pano I took of a Parisian street!
Fun fact: this trip is my first international adventure. Naturally, anything that is different from my usual SoCal life stands out like a sore thumb – here’s a short list of 10 things that I noticed in my first 24 hours here!
1. French people are SO mean.
I feel compelled to include this one in my list, simply because so many people have told me this… and it’s NOT TRUE. The French people that I have encountered so far have been so kind to me, I’ve lost count of how many people have helped me since my arrival. For example, my airport shuttle got canceled last minute (I’ll save this story for a future post), and so I had to rely on public transportation to get to my school. Long story short, it was a *dreadful* 4 hours of additional travel in which many a passerby offered me a helping hand. One person even walked with me for 3 blocks while carrying part of my luggage to help me find where I needed to be. Parisians are generally so nice!
2. French cars are really oddly shaped…
Have you ever seen a video of a snake eating a mouse? If you haven’t, imagine this: thin snake eats fat mouse, fat mouse body creates round lump in thin snake body. Now apply this image of a lumpy snake to a car and that’s what French cars look like to me. Contrary to the generally compact (as in low to the ground) cars I see in California, these French cars have really high and round ceilings. I can’t help but imagine a bunch of full snakes slithering down the road (see photo above!)
3. I thought LA traffic was really bad… then I came to Paris.
It takes serious guts to drive around in Paris. I was very surprised by how exponentially aggressive the traffic is here. There are a lot of one-way streets, angry drivers, brave pedestrians, narrow lanes, and tons of impatient honking. It’s amazing how many car-related incidents you witness by just walking down the street. For example, yesterday I saw a woman fiercely body-block a semi-truck so that she could cross the street. She literally stood in front of it and defiantly made a stop gesture as if to say, “no giant truck that can run me over, you shall not pass,” and then she kept walking across the street. Seriously, who does that?
4. Paris is a very practical and efficient city!
I don’t know about you all, but practical and thoughtfully designed products excite me! For example, the toilet flusher in the airport restrooms are located on the floor so that you don’t need to touch the grimy germ-ridden handle. The street crossing signals are GREEN when it’s safe to walk (because obviously GREEN means GO) and the school desks have little grooves on the side so that your writing utensils won’t roll away when you leave them on your desk. These minor details may be small in the grand scheme of things, but they are so useful, and they make life so much better!
5. Tap water can taste great!
Anyone that’s ever been to LA knows that the tap water is disgusting, and it isn’t much better where I’m from in San Diego. Yesterday at my orientation, I was super dehydrated from my flight, so I desperately drank the water from the sink… and let me tell you, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the tap water. It tastes just like the bottled stuff I get from Costco! You go Paris, way to filter your water!
6. Hot water is a really valuable resource!
I learned that most Parisians heat a certain amount of water at night to use for the next day. Unlike California, where you can pretty much get hot water at any time of day, Parisians live with a limited amount each day. That means that once you use all your hot water for the day, you have to wait until the next day for the water to heat again. This is because resources generally are more expensive in France, and it is much more friendly on the wallet to heat water at night time. There is definitely a huge benefit to a system like this, because it makes me more conscious of how much water I’m using daily. I feel like this sort of system would be very beneficial for California, especially during this drought season!
7. The sun stays out until 10pm!?
Long live long days! It’s so nice to have longer days because then you have more time to be outside and explore before things get creepy. I fell victim to jet lag earlier and woke up from a nap at about 10ish pm, and the sun was just starting to set. What a pleasant surprise! Now I feel like there’s so much time for me to be productive during the day… I’m definitely going to make the most out of the daylight to explore the city!
8. Sales are government operated!?
According to the interwebs, sales only happen twice a year in Paris: once in the summer and once after Christmas. I’m not quite sure why it works that way, but it has something to do with government control over sale times. Since sales are so rare, shopping during sale month is supposedly very chaotic – think of the American equivalent as Black Friday shopping. I am really interested to see how rambunctious it gets during the summer sale season, which starts in about a week… wish me luck!
9. “Eye contact is an invitation for intercourse.”
I am directly quoting my academic program coordinator here, no joke! Intercourse can have multiple different meanings… all of which are appropriate in this interpretation. Basically, it’s an invitation for someone to approach you. It’s very different from American culture where looking someone in the eye, for example in passing, is just a simple gesture of acknowledgement. Here in France, eye contact has a loaded meaning. Moral of the story: avoid looking at eyes to prevent unwanted attention!
10. Uber is illegal in France!?
Whaaaat!? Uber, aka the less expensive taxi service, is illegal in France!? Why? As I understand it, it’s illegal in France to provide any kind of taxi transportation service without a taxi-licensed vehicle. Apparently, you can get fined up to 40,000 euros for using Uber (1 euro = ~$1.12, you do the math!) It has become such a big issue here that the taxi drivers have gone on strike (which is why my shuttle got canceled!) Who knew?
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So there you have it, my list of 10 things I’ve learned from living in Paris for 24 hours. What was the most surprising to you? Leave a comment below, I’d love to hear your thoughts! 🙂
- Kim's - Travelogue Blog 