First (extremely long) Note from Paris

Bonjour!

So I named my blog "faire du leche-vitrine" which means "window-shopping" in French. Maybe it's because I am actually window shopping everywhere I walk in Paris because all the streets are lined with amazing stores (there is definitely a Dior right next to my school building). But, no, that's not the real reason, there is actually a deeper meaning to my blog's name! (kind of).

So, a "vitrine" in English is a "window display" and "lecher" means "to lick". So window-shopping (faire du leche-vitrine) in French directly translates into "licking the display" (which I actually find very appropriate). However, to me, the entirety of Paris is a darn huge window display and it's so easy for me to become completely engrossed in my surroundings. Metaphorically speaking, I am licking the huge window display that is Paris. Even if I'm walking down a random street here, I feel as though there is so much to see and so much opportunity for me to grow culturally, simply by looking. I would say it's comparable to when Harry Potter first visited Diagon Alley: 

"Harry wished he had eight more eyes. He turned his head in every direction as they walked up the street, trying to look at everything at once: the shops, the things outside them, the people doing their shopping." 

I also wish I had eight more eyes and that I could remember everything I see. I'm hoping that this blog will motivate me to explore Paris more and try to capture it as much as possible. 

Anyways, let me lead you on a tour of my life for the past few weeks starting from Day One: 

The super heavy green door that opens into.... 

...a shady alley way that is actually my dorm!! 

our dinky shared Parisian room...

Haha. I thought it was hilarious that our dorm's refrigerator has a "No Cheese" sign. It reminded me of the "No Durians" sign they have in Singapore... But yes, French people really do love their cheese! 

I think the stereotype that Paris is full of French windows, iron-wrought balconies, and beautiful trees lining the streets is actually very true. Sometimes, I feel like I'm on a film set. 

At the end of our first week, our entire program went on a field trip to Normandy, in which we visited the German and American cemeteries from WWI, the beach where the Americans landed (aka the iconic scene from Saving Private Ryan), as well as some very quaint towns. (I'm going to be stealing some pictures from Jerry because my camera died there haha) 

The American cemetery was hauntingly beautiful.  

On a lighter note, we got to visit the small, country side towns within Normandy such as Honfleur and Caen. We were lucky because they were having a huge outdoor farmers market in Honfleur. Also, Honfleur's cobble stone roads, old houses, harbors, and outdoors eating truly epitomized a quaint French countryside town (although Honfleur is pretty big). 

 The iconic Honlfeur harbor with the famous timbered houses (above). 

(Right) I forgot that there was also live music...from a man in a Scottish kilt at the head of a boat...playing the Star Wars theme song! hahaha

All of us lined up at the harbor! 

One of the first places we "visited" in Paris was Le Jardin du Luxembourg, which is only a ten minute walk from our dorm. I'm so amazed that Parisians have the opportunity to just leisurely read, sunbathe, walk their dogs, take a nap, or jog in such a beautiful, historic, (spiderless) PUBLIC PARK. Why don't our public parks look like this!!! There are these (really heavy) green chairs everywhere around the park and people can move them around and arrange them to talk to friends, find the perfect tanning spot, or to gather for a game of chess. I love running here in the mornings because all the chairs are empty and I like to imagine why the chairs were arranged that way and what the people sitting there were doing the day before... Does that make sense? It does in my mind... anyways... 

For example, I would see a lone chair the next morning......but I would probably never guess there was a woman sitting there with a stroller propped next to her....

Sigh. I thought I could actually cover my last month in one post... Sadly, the impossible doesn't actually become possible just because I'm in Paris. So...TO BE CONTINUED...