Le Musée d'Art Contemporain

Sunday, I went to the Musée d'Art Contemporain (Museum of Contemporary Art), and I have to say, the art was not the only thing I found confusing. Since there's a tram stop named "Musée d'Art Contemporain," I didn't bother looking up directions on how exactly to get there; I figured it would be obvious from the tram. Not exactly. I followed the street signs (large white arrows labeled "Musée d'Art Contemporain") which led me on a 15 minute tour of the surrounding blocks. However, I eventually discovered yellow arrows spray painted on the ground leading to the museum. To be clear, these arrows were not as conspicuous as you might expect yellow spray painted arrows to be.

When I finally got to the museum and met up with my friends, we discovered that there was essentially nothing besides dark, long, and slightly creepy hallways on the first and second floors. The presence of so many security cameras was puzzling.

However, we finally found the art when we got to the third floor! I particularly liked these hanging neon shapes (houses?). It was interesting to see all this weird, conceptual, very modern art displayed in an old stone building. You could also walk around on the rooftop courtyard, where I found a French moose!

  

Finding this guy made all the confused wandering totally worth it! Un élan français!

À bientôt!

L'Autobus

I admit, I always thought people looked a little silly running after the bus. But now, I am one of them. The most direct route from my homestay to campus is bus line 34, but the problem is the 34 only comes every half hour or so. So if I just miss the bus, I have to wait at the bus stop for like at least half an hour, which is boring and unproductive. So, in the past week, I’ve sprinted (or at least done that awkward power walking thing where you’re almost running and you probably look more ridiculous than if you just went ahead and ran) to catch the bus like at least three times. Plus you have to wave down the bus here, or it will not stop, even if there are people standing at the bus stop. Some French people have the casual high-sign to the driver down pat, but I feel like I'm not smooth enough for that to work for me, so I always do at least two awkward arm jerks – and that’s when I’m already waiting at the stop. So when I run for the bus, I'm usually also waving vigorously, which makes me feel extra ridiculous! I'm just not very graceful with my backpack flopping around as I fumble for my bus pass, and my shoe flies off (not that that’s happened…).

Anyways, now that I, too, am one of those people who runs after the bus while flailing both arms to flag it down, I am now less inclined to think they we look silly when they we run after the bus. Although the UCSD shuttle comes every ten minutes, so I still think it’s not really necessary to break into a full sprint in that case. Just saying. Not judging.

Also, I can’t believe I’ve been in France now for over a month! Whaaaaat!

À bientôt!

Des Pâtes dans une Boîte, le Jardin Public, et la Tour Pey-Berland

Pasta in a box. What more needs to be said?! Ever since I saw other EAP students with this mysterious pasta-in-a-box, I have been dying to try it. The novelty! I realized I was not alone when I was discussing what to do last Friday with my friends, and I was like, "OMG, we should get that pasta that comes in a box!" and they instantly both knew what I was talking about and agreed. So we had a picnic in the Jardin Public (Public Gardens) with the famous box-pasta. I got a "petit cup" with pesto. It was pretty good! And the box was indeed very convenient. The wonders of French cuisine!!!

The Jardin Public was huge and very pretty. There are a lot of grassy areas and small ponds. There's also a carousel and a playground for little kids. Well, okay, we're all in college, and we still went on the seesaw. But those pictures will not be posted...

After walking around the Jardin Public, we took the tram a few stops to the Tour Pey-Berland, which was built as the bell tower for the Cathédrale St-André in the 1400's. Today, you can climb 232 steps to get to two levels of viewing areas at the top. And it's free if you're either under 18 or 18-25 and a legal resident of France! So we all made sure to bring our passports or photocopies to show our visas, but then they didn't even check and just waved us through.

The staircase leading up the tower is made of these really cool spiraling stone steps. It's very narrow and steep though, so letting people who were going down pass us made me a little nervous. Once we got up to the first level though, the view was amazing! You can see the cathedral that's right next to the tower, and pretty much all of Bordeaux. When you get up to the very top, the steps get really narrow, and even I had to duck to go through the tiny door to the second viewing area. The view from the very top is even more amazing! You can see for miles, and the architecture of the tower at the top is really cool too. There are gargoyles and these interesting designs on the triangular part of the top of the tower. And you can see the statue at the very top looks like it's peering down at you!

In other news, I'm still figuring out my classes. I went to a literature class today; it sounds like it will be intense but interesting. It was a two hour class, and when the professor gave us a break halfway through, she announced that this was a "five minute break, so don't come back in fifteen minutes. If you're going to smoke a cigarette, make it a half a cigarette." And my friend from EAP and I just looked at each other and were like, okay... that is not something you would hear back in California!

À bientôt!

Frozen Yogurt en France!

You cannot imagine my relief when I learned there was a frozen yogurt place here in Bordeaux. I was worried about lasting so long without peanut butter, but that many months without frozen yogurt? I did not even want to think about it. Luckily, downtown Bordeaux has NiceBerry! I admit to being a little disappointed by the Americanized name (in fact, there is almost no French on the sign) and the fact that frozen yogurt is just called "frozen yogurt" here and not "yaourt glacé," but there were definitely French twists on the self-serve style shop that's so ubiquitous in California.

For one, it had this very French café chalkboard sign outside! Classy, classy! And of course, they had the standard French café set up with chairs and tables outside on the sidewalk. And the price was way different. It was 2 euros for 100 grams, which is like 56 euro cents per ounce. I'd rather not think about the conversion to dollars, but suffice it to say this was not Yogurtland's 30¢ per ounce!

The shop was self-serve and had six flavors. There were sample cups too! And one of the women who worked there was greeting everybody and explaining how it worked. Considering the French are not known for their customer service, I was impressed! I ended up getting caramel and "natural," which is their tart flavor. They were pretty good! Not Pinkberry status, but pretty good. The caramel was not too sweet, and the tart was a nice balance of tang and sweet, and the yogurt was thick and creamy. They also had the standard assortment of dry and fruit toppings; I got chocolate chips, sliced almonds, coconut, and strawberries. Délicieux!!!

However, there was one rather unappetizing thing about this frozen yogurt place. After we finished our fro-yo, my friends and I were still sitting outside talking for a while (so French!), when one of the women who worked at the shop started digging through the garbage can next to us and collecting all the spoons from it. We all looked at each other and then slowly down at the spoons resting in our empty cups. Oh geeze... Bringing my own spoon next time...

À bientôt!

Un Match de Rugby!

Last night, I went to my first rugby game! Rugby is extremely popular in southern France; my host family tells me it is even more popular than soccer here. The game was between Union Bordeaux-Bègles and Toulon. Obviously, Union Bordeaux-Bègles is the local team; I guess a few years ago Bordeaux and Bègles combined rugby teams in order to create one elite team. It was kind of last minute; I had just gotten back from going downtown with some friends, when my host family asked me if I wanted to come with them, like 15 minutes before we left. I was pretty exhausted - but pourquoi pas!

For the first half of the match, all I could think was, "This. Game. Has. NO. RULES." Tackling? Allowed. Two players lifting up a third to catch the ball? Allowed. 20 person pile-ups? Play doesn't even stop. Having a huge brawl to get the ball after a penalty? Oh, that's a mêlée.

(And really, what even counts as a penalty in this game?)

Anyways, after I got used to the ridiculous lawlessness, the match was interesting and fun to watch. We had a pretty good view, and my host family explained to me what was going on. The crowd got really excited whenever Union Bordeaux-Bègles was close to scoring, and I clapped and chanted along with them (when I could understand what they were chanting anyways). Sadly, Bordeaux-Bègles lost 16-27, but my host family insisted that was just because Bordeaux-Bègles only recently moved up to the top level of rugby.

I also learned that French people are really bad at doing the wave. Three people bothering to stand up and everyone else sort of limply raising one arm does not a good wave make.

À bientôt!

La Glace!

Yesterday, after class, I went downtown with some friends from EAP, and, after saving a few euros by crashing finding a free barbecue at Université de Bordeaux 2 (where none of us have classes...), we decided to get ice cream. Almost all the ice cream here is labeled "Glace Artisanale" and is in rectangular boxes like gelato, so I'm a little unclear as to whether it's actually gelato or just very European ice cream. But it was hot out, so that mystery was not our first priority.

We went to one of these Glace Artisanale places, and they made the most beautiful ice cream cones ever!!! I ordered a small "cornetto" (Italian! Could it be gelato?!) with coffee and caramel ice cream. What they do is put one flavor in the center and then use a flat scoop to put little petals of the other flavor around it. It looks so cool! And it was delicious! It was a little on the pricier side, but how often does your ice cream look like this??

Le Jardin Botanique

On Saturday, I went to the Jardin Botanique in downtown Bordeaux. On the other side of the Garonne River! It was my first time crossing the river. The other side was so similar to our own world, yet so different...

Anyways, the Botanical Garden was pretty. There were a lot of cool plants and landscaping. There was also like a plant museum there, which is where we found this informational sign. Which cites Wikipedia...

WHAT.

I'm assuming this means I can use Wikipedia in all my papers here...

Le Dîner d'ILP et Bordeaux à la Nuit

The dinner for the end of the Intensive Language Program was really fun! It was at Les Provinces, a restaurant in downtown Bordeaux. The restaurant was pretty nice; I wouldn't say it was super fancy, but for a student on a budget, it was. Let's just say there were two knives! Although, they did say Ikea on them... Anyways, the first course was a salad with toast and goat cheese. Who knew the French put toast in their salad? Also, goat cheese seems to be super popular here; "fromage de chèvre" is everywhere. It's very soft, almost cream cheese-like in texture. It's very good though!

The main course was duck for most people, and salmon for the vegetarians (or "vegetarians"). I'm pretty glad I ordered salmon because the duck wasn't that great and it came with French (literally) fries. And who wants to just eat French fries at a nice restaurant? But the salmon was really good and came with some kind of rice with herbs. There was also red wine with the dinner, and I tried some. A certain cousin of mine was right; I did like red wine more than white or rosé! I still stuck to half a glass though. My table is always the one trading our wine for other tables' water!

For dessert, we had these pastries to the left. They were little chilled pastry balls with cream inside and then hot chocolate sauce and slivered almonds on top. So good!!! The usual dessert in France is like plain yogurt or grapes (despite all the patisseries!). So I was glad to have something with chocolate! Plus they were on these cool square plates - classy, classy!


They even had little cafés for us afterward! Complete with sugar cubes! This was only my second time having French coffee, but I may have to pick the pace because it's really good. I'm sure I'll start drinking coffee again with classes start. I don't know if you can tell from the picture, but the cup is really small, kind of like teacup-sized. Most of the coffee comes in tiny cups here because I think it's usually espresso, not regular coffee. There really are a lot of people who sit in cafes for hours drinking an espresso! Even cheap sandwich/kebab places sell them.

The dinner ended at around 9:30, and afterward, some other students and I went to the Mirroir d'Eau, which is a shallow pool of water (maybe a half-inch deep) across the street from a square with these really pretty stone buildings and a fountain. During the day, there are a lot of young kids running through it, and people splashing each other. But at night, it's much calmer, and all the buildings are lit up and reflected perfectly in the pool. It's so pretty! The pool empties and refills on a schedule, and when it refills it lets out mist, which looks really cool, like something out of a movie. When it's all filled, the reflection is perfectly clear; it's amazing. I definitely want to go downtown some more at night (not too late though!).


À bientôt!

Ma Carte d'Étudiant et Ma Carte TBC

Yesterday, the directors passed out our official student ID cards! That's the green one. We got our TBC cards (the blue ones) the other week, which are cards you load with a monthly or annual subscription for the tram or bus (like a BART Clipper Pass). There are special prices for people younger than 28 years old, so a monthly pass is only 28 euros. When you use the tram and/or bus at least twice a day, it's a pretty good deal!

Now that I have my student ID card, it's like I'm officially a student at the Université de Bordeaux! Sure, I still have no idea what classes I'm taking, but I have an ID card. I even used it to make photocopies today! And the machine was in French!

I think it's still pretty obvious that I'm not French though. For one, whenever I'm with a group of EAP students, it's super obvious that we're Americans because we're all speaking English and wondering what tram stop we're supposed to be getting off at. But then on Monday, I was walking with just one other student and we weren't saying anything, and a girl still came up to us and asked for directions in English. With a French accent. She just knew we were American! Although, that does bring up the question of why on earth she would think we knew where the library was... Then later, a teenage girl, who I think was on a dare from her friends to talk to a stranger, walked up to me and asked if I was British. So I've made it to European status? I suppose that's one step closer...

Tomorrow, there's a dinner for all the EAP students to celebrate the end of the Intensive Language Program, which should be pretty good. At the meeting yesterday, I raised my hand as a "vegetarian" because I didn't want to eat du canard (duck). Apparently a few other people did too, because the director remarked that there were several more vegetarians than usual. "Ça, ce n'est pas normal!"

À bientôt!

Une Journée des Éxperiences Nouvelles

Today, I probably held more money in my hand than I ever have before. Especially since it was in euros, but let's not think about the exchange rate. Then, I handed it over to pay my rent and deposit. Sigh. But for a few moments there, I was really a high roller. Just like the grandfather at the baptism after-party who rejected the flimsy plastic knife and whipped out an old-school pocket knife to cut his ham. Bad***.

I also went to an actual French university class for the first time today! The science classes start this week, even though most of the classes start next week or the week after for some reason. It was on topography and GIS. I would say I understood the majority of what the professor said. Not an overwhelming majority, but a majority. Next time, I think I'll sit closer to the front because even though it was a huge amphitheater, the professor didn't use a microphone. She also didn't turn the lights down even though she was using a PowerPoint. But I guess many a professor in the U.S. is guilty of the same thing! I'm not sure if I'll actually end up taking the class yet; I have to check with my adviser at UCSD to see if it would count, but we're encouraged to sit in on a lot of classes to see how it goes.

Today was also the first day there were really other foreign exchange students at the DEFLE besides the students from my program. All last week it was pretty much just us, but today there were at least 100 other students from all over the world because everyone had to take the placement exam. The rest of the week, our classes will still be just us EAP students, but once the regular classes start next week, everyone will be there. Hopefully, I'll get to meet a lot of people from cool places!

À bientôt!

Un Baptême à la Campagne

Yesterday, my host family took me to the baptism of the father's cousin's daughter out in the French countryside. And to the after party! The baptism was about two hours away, and we stopped in the middle to pick up the father's parents. The countryside around Bordeaux is really pretty! It's filled with fields of grapes and corn and sunflowers. The grandparents' house is in the middle of corn and cow fields; it looks like something out of a storybook!

The actual baptism took place in an old stone church in a small town. Of course, the ceremony was in French, so I didn't really understand most of the details, especially with the echoing in the church. It was easy to recognize the main prayers, though, because they have the same cadence. It was interesting to hear them in French, even though I couldn't understand every word.

Afterward, we went to the celebration which was in a rented event room. At first, it was kind of awkward for me because I didn't know anyone besides my host family, and I didn't know how most people were related to them. Plus, there was loud music playing and a lot of people drinking and talking, so it was hard to understand everyone. But everyone was very nice, and asked me the standard where are you from/how long are you here/why are you learning French questions. I met the stepsister of the mother of the baptized baby, who took English in college, and we had a conversation where she spoke to me in English, and I responded in French! It was a little weird to alternate languages but interesting. She spoke very good English! Whoa-I'm-in-France Moment #1: about an hour into the party, I looked around the room, and realized everyone except like three people had left to go outside and smoke. Although, by the end, everyone decided to just ignore the "no smoking indoors" sign...

At the start, there were chips and drinks (quite a lot of drinks) set out as appetizers, and there was a big table of food for dinner across the room. The party started at maybe 7:30 or 8:00, and we didn't eat until after 10:00! I know French people eat late, but I was beginning to think the food was just for display! Luckily, my host family mother finally broke the ice, and I hustled to follow suit. Whoa-I'm-in-France Moment #2: it turned out something I thought was a big cake, was actually an elaborate pile of ham! That white stuff was fat, not frosting! Yikes!

For dessert, there was this cool cake that was made up of a little pastry balls drizzled with caramel. It looked kind of like the picture on the left but shorter (not my photo). Google tells me it is called a Croquembouche and is traditional at French weddings, baptisms, and first communions. The little pastries look kind of like large donut holes, so I was wary at first, but actually they're like pastry shells filled with a kind of chocolate or caramel cream. Délicieux! That cake made wish I'd skipped the dinner so I could just eat the entire cake.

Oh man, was there a lot of alcohol at this party! Gin, spiked punch, martinis, champagne, and, bien sûr, beaucoup, beaucoup de vin! I have to say, this party put a bit of a dent in the idea that French people don't drink to get drunk because there was quite a lot of drunken dancing and singing at this party. One guy was dancing with a plate on his head, and another guy was doing a sort-of handstand at one point. The drinking age in France is 18, but it's really pretty fluid (haha, pun!), especially if you're not in public. It's a little strange to have all these adults constantly offering me more alcohol and telling me to try this and that! "Non, merci" has become my signature catchphrase. I did try a little vin rosé (rosé? pink wine? Not sure what it's called in English); someone told me that if you don't like red or white wine, you'll probably like vin rosé. Still not my thing! However, I tried a couple sips of champagne, and I though that was better. Basically, I just stuck to water.

We didn't leave the party until 1:30 am, and there were still plenty of people dancing and smoking when we left. I was exhausted though! We spent the night at the grandparents' house, and left in the late morning. Their house was huge and really nice; they even had hammock seats hanging from the ceiling outside my room! I suppose you can guess how I kept myself occupied...

Anyways, even though I had trouble communicating, it was really fun to get to go. It was very interesting to see some French customs and to meet so many people, and everyone was so nice and welcoming. And that cake!!!

Les Cours au DEFLE

This past week and next week, all the EAP students are taking intensive language classes at the DEFLE (center for foreign exchange students). Right now, it's just us at the DEFLE, but when the school year starts, the DEFLE offers classes for all foreign exchange students at the Université de Bordeaux. They offer French classes as well as other subjects, like history and political science, and they're geared toward foreign students. I might take a class or two there, but I don't know yet.

We have class everyday from 8:30-12:30, except on Friday we had double class: 8:30am to 6:30pm! I was exhausted! We have another test tomorrow (Monday) to determine our French level again and what types of classes we should take, i.e. more at the DEFLE or more at the regular university. I don't really know why they're having us take the second test halfway through the intensive language program instead of at the end...

The first half of our day, we have general French, and luckily our teacher is very laid back. On Friday, we watched a movie and played French games! It was so cool to play Scrabble and Taboo in French!!! I would like to try Bananagrams en français too!

For the second half of class, my class had grammar this past week. Doing grammar for 2 hours is a little tedious! But it's not too bad. And one of the benefits of being in one of the higher classes seems to be hardly having any homework! Ouais! This week, we're going to have F.O.U. ("fou" means "crazy" in French so the acronym is kind of a joke), which stands for something I don't remember, but it's information on the French university system and how French classes are structured.

Souhaitez-moi bonne chance pour mon examen demain!

Le Château Malagar et Le Vignoble de Raymond-Lafon

The view from le Château Malagar! Yesterday, after intensive language classes in the morning, all the EAP students went on an excursion there and then to the Raymond-Lafond vineyard for tours and a wine tasting. It was really cool to see the countryside around Bordeaux, especially all the vineyards that the region is so famous for.

First, we went to the Château Malagar, which is where the famous French author François Mauriac would go to write because he was inspired by the countryside. The area around the château is gorgeous; there are vineyards and old châteaus as far as you can see. Everyone was ooing and ahhing over the ivy covering the château! The whole estate was incredible; there's a huge vegetable garden, a lawn the size of a football field, and a terrace that looks out over the surrounding vineyards. The inside of the house was really pretty too, and the guided tour was pretty interesting.

When we first got there though, most people (including me) weren't totally clear on who Mauriac was and why we were visiting this particular château. What? This isn't the wine tasting? Wait, are you serious, man? We went into a little side gallery first, and I could tell from all the books that he must have been a writer, but I kept looking for the name Malagar instead! Actually, Malagar is the name of the estate. The guide said it was derived from a phrase that means nothing can grow there, but that was a little confusing since it's surrounded by vineyards...

After the guided tour, we walked around the grounds for about half an hour. It sprinkled a little, but luckily it didn't start to really rain. We took in the view on the terrace and posed for the obligatory pictures with the Bordeaux vineyards in the background and next to the ivy wall. I actually took this photo of grapes at the Château Malagar instead of at the vineyard! Later, I would find out that they use the rotted ones to make wine... Appetizing...

After we were done walking around, we got back on the bus and drove over to the Raymond-Lafon château and vineyard which produces Sauternes wine. The man who owns the vineyard showed us around the grounds and talked to us about the types of grapes he grows, how they make the wine, and the history of the vineyard. The grape vines are so old, the roots go down 30 feet! The Raymond-Lafon vineyard makes very expensive and fancy wine; every individual grape vine only produces about one glass each year because they're so selective when they harvest the grapes. It's next to the most famous vineyard in France (Châteaux d'Yquem, I think). The French talk about famous wines like celebrities sometimes!

The vineyard also had an "exotic garden," which I think referred to the plants, but everyone was distracted by the black swan swimming around in the pond there. When everyone gathered around the pond to watch it and take pictures, it started honking and preening itself. I guess it's used to the attention!

Afterwards, we went inside for a wine tasting. The man from the vineyard showed us how to swirl the wine and smell it before tasting it. It was a very sweet white wine (vin blanc). It was good, but one thing I've learned here in Bordeaux is that wine is not really my thing... Still, it was very cool to be able to try such a prestigious wine, especially in France!

We also got to see the cellar/storage area where they keep all the barrels and bottles of wines,which was neat. It was quite a comprehensive tour of the château and the wine making process. Very Bordeaux!

In other news, I'm now in a homestay! And, thank goodness, out of the dorms! I live in Bègles now, which is a suburb of Bordeaux. In my head, I like to call it Bagel Town, even though I don't think they even have bagels in France. When I was on the phone with Bank of America (for like an hour!), the woman I spoke with called it Bagels, France too! Anyways, more on that coming soon...