...out of their car window last night--I can only say this: I don't do numbers that fast. Lol, it might have been more flattering if it hadn't been so cold outside and the fact that Mary recognized the kids from her lycée!
I must be looking and acting more French these days--as we were walking past Notre Dame yesterday (yes, the one in Paris--more on this phenomenon later) a group of young adult tourists (probably from Britain) asked me to take their pictures. The request was accompanied by all kinds of gestures and camera clicking noises--hysterical. They didn't seem to catch on to verbal cues, such as "Sure" and "Are you ready?" I finally broke down and told them I wasn't French (after they embarrassed themselves with awkward "merci"s). Peals of laughter.
Apparently the current response for neglecting to speak French whilst in Paris is : I'm an American; I don't understand what you're saying--directly quoted from two dudes trying to avoid someone clipboarding.
Since I was visiting Mary this weekend, we took the opportunity to get up at 5am in order to see Paris for the day. Here's what we did:
-Morning stroll along the Seine
-Seeing the Eiffel tower looking chipper in the mist
-Mass in Notre Dame on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception (now how cool is that?)
-Bulldozing our way through the massive line in order to get to aforesaid Mass
-Visiting with great friends in Paris (the fact that I can say that so flippantly makes me feel like one of the "in"crowd--just sayin')
-Stroll along the Champs Élysée Christmas Markets sipping Vin Chaud (blanc, always blanc)
-Sampling "Le Mont Blanc" dessert at Angelina (a famous salon de thé)
-Getting squashed in the metro (though this isn't new!)
All in all, not bad! Though our train didn't get back until 10... but luckily we spent more hours in the city than on the train, so I'm still grateful. Nice weekend, but now I have to finish the 2 or 3 remaining lessons that I neglected this week. Only two more weeks left to teach and only one week left to plan before Christmas--and WHAT a Christmas we're planning! Can't wait!
Cheers!
~Laura
Life as a Teaching Assistant in France
