Milestones!

Great news! This past Thursday, after two blind taste tests and some champagne, I officially graduated from my wine degustation class! What an incredible supplement to my study abroad experience! If you are ever in need of a wine consultation, you know who to call:

Officially-documented expertise!

Also, I have finished my private journal that I've been keeping in French! I can hardly believe it- I still have over a month of memories to record, and the book is full! Mais tant mieux, because that just means that I get to inaugurate another one! :)

Thank you so much, Jule and Chels, for this amazing and pertinent journal!

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<3 How true this is!

American Nostalgia

Though I'm having a splendid time discovering the wonders of France, I will admit that there are some simple pleasures from the States that I definitely miss from time to time. Just to name a few:

Peanut Butter: The French hate peanut butter. On the other hand, they adore mayonnaise.They think peanut butter is fatty (true), and just plain weird. If you have the good fortune to find it in France, you will only be finding a jar about the size of a thimble, or otherwise a slightly larger jar of "organic peanut butter"= crushed peanuts. Although I miss it, I wonder if I will still like this greasy peanut paste when I return to the States...what am I saying, of course I will!

Starbucks: While you can definitely find McDonald's (Macdo) in France, you will not find Starbucks or anything like it! Here, coffees are generally small, or (shall I say) *reasonably* sized, and are almost always served in chinaware. This is because French dining is a social experience! It's about sharing time and conversation with another person, not about getting jacked up on caffeine. It's about the people and the experience, not the beverage. You will never see someone walking in the street or sitting on a bus with a coffee in-hand...unless they're American. With that said, boy do I miss caramel macchiatos and mocha lattes! :P

Driving: I have not driven a car since the beginning of January! Oh la la! I miss the freedom of jumping behind the wheel and cruising to a friend's house, the store, wherever! On the other hand, I love being within walking distance of EVERYTHING in France! My biggest fear is that, upon returning to the US, I might pick up some of the bad driving habits of the French...in fact, last night I even had a driving nightmare!

Singing in English: Since I've signed a language contract vowing to only speak French with everyone in France, it's not often that I get to sing in English...especially with other Americans. In fact, I think the first time was with my host brother's wife (got that?). She was telling me that her students love the song "Don't Worry, Be Happy," and so we sang some of it together. I have to admit that I almost feel embarrassed to sing the song the way it's actually sung, considering the French always butcher the pronunciation...so what do I do? I sing in English with a French accent! "Dunt Whory...Beh Hoppy!"


Weird handshakes: I wish I could say that I've learned some secret provencal handshakes, but they just don't exist! Not even normal handshakes! In France, greetings are all about facial contact, possibly including a touch on the arm as well. I guess I'll just have to invent some secret "bises!"


Petting strangers' dogs: This is not socially acceptable in France, although it is about 9375758 times more tempting, considering the dogs are often not on a leash. If you ask to pet someone's dog, it's as if you're asking to hold their baby. So you just have to look. My one exception, I will say, was this past week in the Parc de la Torse. After I finished jogging, I was standing by the river to stretch, and I noticed someone's dog coming straight towards me. I tried to ignore him, but when he came closer and started nuzzling my legs with his slobbery ball, begging for me to play, I just couldn't resist. I looked around for the owner so I could get permission (or if not, so I wouldn't be seen)...no one in sight. So mystery-dog and I played tug-of-war and fetch for a solid five minutes. It wasn't until then that I thought to look at the parking lot right above us. There, a man was standing in the doorway of his vending trailer, just watching us. It was the owner, of course. At that point, I tried to play it off like the games were all the dog's idea (which they technically were), and just shook my head at him as he tried to give me his ball. I looked up once more, and noticed that the man was not only watching- he was smiling. Whew. I let myself play for a few minutes more, at ease, until I finally said "au revoir" to my park pup friend.

Tips: In France, the tip is almost always included in the bill. I really miss figuring out the tip myself, especially placing a monetary judgment on the waiter/waitress.................................................NOT. (Poisson d'avril!)

Note: Obviously I am excluding the things that really matter and that I truly miss, namely, all of you! But that should go without saying!

You Know You're Becoming French (Aixoise) When...

You can successfully walk on a two cm-wide sidewalk and avoid all of the dog droppings...while texting.

You realize that your quotidian English vocabulary starts to include words like: render, ill at ease, genial, perplexed, inculpable, derange, etc.

You shower every other day...mostly.

You can't go an entire day without eating Nutella on something, or just plain.

You never close doors.

You change plans at the last second...or create plans at the last second, and you actually enjoy this.

You start saying "Pardon" to yourself.

You no longer feel the urge to pee every time you see a fountain.

You know that the difference between Mistral and the mistral is that the first is a poet and the second is a poet's fodder.

SPECULOOS.

You pay more attention to the weather itself than to what the weather men are saying.

You no longer have panic attacks when you ride in a car with a French driver.

You've learned that EVERYTHING tastes better with some "l'huile d'olive"

You can spot a tourist from a kilometer away.

(Speaking of which) You've started referring to distances in meters and American finances in Euros.

You have memorized you host mom's conversation with her 90 yr. old mother every morning and can mouth along with her from another room.

You've ALMOST memorized your French telephone number.

Your evening plans are not complete without "prendre un verre."

You love judging cheese.

You pronounce your own name/sing American songs in a French accent.

You "secretly" think Paris is over-rated.

You have mastered the French wrist flick and spitting sound.

The waitress at the tea salon remembers what you ordered the last time you were there.

You feel the urge to finish every meal with either cheese or fruit.

You fear the monarchy.

You can accurately describe the color of the St. Victoire mountain range...on both sides...at every time of day! 

You express preferences for the attaque, evolution, finale, and persistance.

You "cherche le pain" like it's your job.

You know all the sunniest places and seek them out everyday. :)