You know you're in France when:
You walk down Rue Pascal to get to school.
The 4-year-old you babysit tells you there's no school tomorrow because of a teachers strike.
Your neighbor's dog is named "Gaspard."
Your neighbor's dog is named "Gaspard."
No Earth-shattering updates this week (unlike in EVERY other post, duh), but it was a good one nonetheless. I did well(-enough) on an Italian oral expression exam, mainly thanks to some last-minute practice with my friend Zina, who's from Rome. Right now I'm procrastinating - I need to finish reading this Italian play that we'll be discussing in class tomorrow morning - so in 10 hours. Seems like a lot of time to me.
Laurence had another party Friday night, this time with her softball team. They're a diverse bunch - mostly French, but one woman from Colombia and other from Italy (!), and of all different ages...but all susceptible to the powers of alcohol. Here are Laurence and me after (a couple glasses of wine and) a game of White Elephant, the vicious game of gift-swapping:
(I ended up with the shoes and she ended up with what is not in fact a lampshade but a straw hat...)
Saturday night I went to a crémaillère - a house-warming - for a friend of a (French) friend. It was a really relaxed and nice group of people and I had a great time. One of the people I was talking to informed me that I should consider myself bilingual (trilingual?). I wouldn't say that yet, but I am definitely continuing to make progress, though I rarely go a day without any English, because of the tutoring/babysitting and even things like email and facebook (and this blog).
No photos from the house-warming, but I'll give you these instead: some of my favorites from the past (almost) three and a half months (time flies!)...
It's starting to get cold here - light snow tomorrow maybe?
Stay warm everyone!
xoxo
Alina :)
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Hilarious post. Your description of the "vicious" party, and the photo, will make me smile a long time.
ReplyDeleteYour mom has been "shopping" (not viciously I hope) and I have been staying warm, listening to Nutcracker, and pestering people (as well you know) with emails. We send warm thoughts to you, Papa.
Alina bina, I'm glad you had a "quiet" week for sleep, study and the ocassional crazy party with rotating gifts. I love You Mom.
ReplyDeleteThe rotating gift party sounds awesome for the Xmas season. I want to try one.
ReplyDeleteYou know in Mexico is you can avoid classes because a teachers strike and you get notice the day before and you know it ended because is on the news.
Stay warm.
I couldn't remember whether I had already commented on this, though I read it when you posted it. I love the subway station picture. Something about it seems so not real.
ReplyDeleteAlso I love the angles and the shadows on the stairwell one, and the last one is just precious perfection.
Amore sempre