Two days ago, Jenn and I visited Galleries Lafayette, which is a huge, beautiful Barneys-esque mall in the 9th arrondisement. I was really excited to shop for French brands, but it turns out most things (even the French ones) are more expensive here than the states.
Afterwards, we went to our orientation site, which was located near the bank of the 4th arrondisement. We had amazingggg gelato and went to pick up our welcome packets at MIJE. I finally got to see Erica and met Garam for the first time :) While Garam was unpacking, Erica, Jenn, and I went to eat at a famous falafel shop, and although it was pretty expensive, it was seriously some of the best falafel I've ever had. Drool.
The girls ended up coming over afterwards, and even though it was only for a short while, it was really refreshing to see some familiar faces around.
best falafel.. ever
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Orientation's been pretty dull, and as much as I'd like to go out and meet people and explore, I've been pretty comfortable hanging out with Jenn, Erica, and Garam. I was such a social butterfly freshman year, and it was so draining. This is also the first semester where I'm free from an internship, so it feels good to just kick back and have some alone time for once. Maybe things will be different once I start classes, who knows?
I had a food scare today! We stepped out to a cafe for lunch, and I was craving American food pretty badly so I ordered a cheeseburger. Low and behold, the French definition of a burger isn't what Americans would consider a traditional burger. It's more like a slab of meat (cooked medium) with lettuce on the bottom and fries on the side. Regardless, I was grateful for the familiarity so I finished it in a good mood. When we got the bill, I was looking at the menu items again, and noticed that my burger said "hamburger au cheval"- cheval...cheval.. CHEVAL?! Cheval means horse in French, and I almost died right there on the spot. My gag reflex kicked in, and I was ready to puke my guts out at the thought of eating a cute pony that could've been my pet. Luckily, some Googling taught me that "hamburger au cheval" literally translates to "hamburger on horseback," which is foodie lingo for "burger with an egg on top." A burger made from horse meat would be called hamburger de cheval. Sweet jesus.
Jenn and I had time to kill, so we walked along the Seine near St.Michel-Notre Dame and enjoyed the beautiful weather and stunning scenery. We walked across the bridge with all of the locks, and I told Jenn that instead of locking my lock, I was going to throw it down the river because the government keeps clipping all the locks off anyways. I'd rather keep it safe from a clipping, thank you very much.
We ended up at the Louvre, which is quite a sight, but didn't go in because the line was tremendously long and we were too tired to explore the place. Instead, we headed to K-Mart, which is a small Korean supermarket that is probably going to end up being the saving grace of our wallets and our culinary woes. The prices were more expensive than New York, but it was such a welcoming sight to enter into. Even saying "안녕하세요" to the Korean employees put a smile on my face. Not to say that I want to go home! France is lovely, and I'm sure I'll fall in love with it soon enough, but adjustment to change has never been one of my strong suits.
Orientation's been pretty dull, and as much as I'd like to go out and meet people and explore, I've been pretty comfortable hanging out with Jenn, Erica, and Garam. I was such a social butterfly freshman year, and it was so draining. This is also the first semester where I'm free from an internship, so it feels good to just kick back and have some alone time for once. Maybe things will be different once I start classes, who knows?
I had a food scare today! We stepped out to a cafe for lunch, and I was craving American food pretty badly so I ordered a cheeseburger. Low and behold, the French definition of a burger isn't what Americans would consider a traditional burger. It's more like a slab of meat (cooked medium) with lettuce on the bottom and fries on the side. Regardless, I was grateful for the familiarity so I finished it in a good mood. When we got the bill, I was looking at the menu items again, and noticed that my burger said "hamburger au cheval"- cheval...cheval.. CHEVAL?! Cheval means horse in French, and I almost died right there on the spot. My gag reflex kicked in, and I was ready to puke my guts out at the thought of eating a cute pony that could've been my pet. Luckily, some Googling taught me that "hamburger au cheval" literally translates to "hamburger on horseback," which is foodie lingo for "burger with an egg on top." A burger made from horse meat would be called hamburger de cheval. Sweet jesus.
Jenn and I had time to kill, so we walked along the Seine near St.Michel-Notre Dame and enjoyed the beautiful weather and stunning scenery. We walked across the bridge with all of the locks, and I told Jenn that instead of locking my lock, I was going to throw it down the river because the government keeps clipping all the locks off anyways. I'd rather keep it safe from a clipping, thank you very much.
We ended up at the Louvre, which is quite a sight, but didn't go in because the line was tremendously long and we were too tired to explore the place. Instead, we headed to K-Mart, which is a small Korean supermarket that is probably going to end up being the saving grace of our wallets and our culinary woes. The prices were more expensive than New York, but it was such a welcoming sight to enter into. Even saying "안녕하세요" to the Korean employees put a smile on my face. Not to say that I want to go home! France is lovely, and I'm sure I'll fall in love with it soon enough, but adjustment to change has never been one of my strong suits.
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