carmen. amazing.

so monday night i got to see Carmen at the Opera-Comique (the original theater where the opera debuted) for FREE. It was...phenomenal. I had never seen a professional opera unless you count the ones at the U and truly it was amazing. Plus Carmen is a pretty sexy show so it's not going to put you to sleep. It turned out to be like 4 hours long though which definitely was apparent the next morning when i woke up sleep deprived---again. It was a great thing to do on a Monday night though...even though I wish the French believed in air conditioning as whole heartedly as Americans...:-P

I went up to Montmartre again last night with a friend who was taking engagement photos for another IES student's brother. The brother wanted to surprise the girlfriend--now fiancee--so she was taking candid photos as he proposed and when she said yes and then right afterwards, as well. Though the whole "proposing in Paris" thing is a bit over-done and overrated...it was still really cute and they were both obviously super happy. AND he didn't do it at the Eiffel Tower so props to him. He did it in the grass at Sacre Coeur. Good choice. Anyways...it was sweet and nice. Not my style at all...but very romantic for those who like that sort of thing.

I stumbled across the Louvre while just walking around with the two Jessicas the other day, which was nice. We didn't have time to go in because we were all expected at dinner with our homestays, but the building itself is really beautiful. I like what the French did with all of their museums...for instance, the Louvre used to be a palace. Les Invalides, which is now the Musee de L'Armee and Napoleon's tomb, used to be a hospital/place for men injured in war. The Musee D'Orsay was a train station. They just like to reduce, reuse, and recycle their buildings and they are all gorgeous and really well kept. I really like how well preserved the city is. However, with the Urbanism movement and the whole Haussman thing, it's getting a bit ho-hum when just walking around "residential" streets because everything seriously looks the same. It's also pretty disorienting to get out of a metro stop almost anywhere in the city because all the street corners look the same. The apartments are all the same and then on every corner there is a cafe with a red awning and black trim. I rarely ever know where I am. It's wonderful and at the same time, sometimes annoying (only when I have somewhere to be and i'm perpetually late...).

I've noticed a couple more things that are a little strange about French people, too. They carry their flower bouquets upside down. I asked one of my professors why and she said it's because it's better for the flowers? But I kinda don't buy it. It just looks silly. I want to take a picture and should have on Mother's Day but I forgot...dang. At restaurants they also won't put food on the table if the napkin is where the plate should go. Sometimes that's hard to remember to take care of before they come out with your food...no silverware rolled up in napkins in France. What else...There are babies everywhere because all costs during pregnancy are paid for and then you get paid by the government to have the kid. So literally there are strollers and toddlers everywhere in France...it makes for some cute photos. Oh yeah, everything is paid for unless you are my Contempory France teacher, who is the quintessential French woman, who had to pay for the telephone she broke when she threw it across the room during labor. And of course she told us the story with the most blasee affect ever...I love her. I will take pictures so everyone can understand and begin to grasp her French-ness. Love it.

I leave for the Riviera tonight. I'm super pumped! We thought for a while it wasn't going to work out but then we pretty much figured it out at the last minute and now we are going to lay on the beach all weekend. We are officially staying in Marseille but we want to ride our bikes into a small town called Cassis during the days because it's not as much of a tourist trap and the goal of this is to get away from big city living for a couple days. I'm so excited!!! I will definitely be adding to my plethera of freckles (which have now spread to my eyelids and lips...cancer here I come). So yes! You all will hear about that on Monday after I come home all toasty and red from the sun. And of course, I will take as many pictures as my camera will allow. I'm super glad I brought 12G of space because I think my count on my camera is up to 800...never taken so many pictures in my life.

Happy Father's Day, Papa! I won't be able to call you on Sunday...so I will say it now. I love you and trying to find a gift for you here is damn near impossible! Bisous (kisses)!


Ann