Mon temps à l'étranger: One month in :)

Bonjour tout le monde! I have

officially been living in Paris for one month and I can say that I depend on public transportation to get me around, I must put on layers of clothing before stepping out of the house, and getting sick on a weekend is horrible because all the stores/pharmacies in the city are closed on Sundays. With that being said, Paris has been all that I've dreamt of and more. I love it! And hooray I haven't been pick pocketed or anything of that sort yet(hopefully never)!

Now that more has time has gone by, I can really assess my classes and well, I can say that they are a challenge, but they are very interesting. The professors here are great too, very engaging and friendly. I also am taking a course at the Sorbonne called "Media and Language Techniques". This course is the most intimidating for me because I am amongst genuine Parisian students and faculty, and the professor for this course speaks so fast and does not utilise power points at all! I am always writing down my notes as fast as I can, however, sometimes it is difficult since I am not really sure about everything she is saying. Since the class is held only once a week, I can say that it is manageable, but still very very intimidating for me!

As I briefly mentioned before, I fell sick about a week ago and it was very different experience than I would have had at home. I had a fever, headaches, sore throat, achy limbs and the sniffles. Luckily, I packed Advil with me before I left to Paris and that is what helped me the most because on the day when I fell sick, it was a Sunday, and all pharmacies in Paris were closed. By Monday, I was too sick to get out of bed to buy medicine, so I just stayed in my homestay hoping that rest would make me get better sooner. Usually in Claremont or at home, I have access to a Target store for any and all my needs, and of course my lovely mom and friends to bring me comfort food like homemade chicken soup. This was my first time being sick away from family and friends and it made me sad. I missed their presence and never realized how much comfort one gets from home, and how much faster one recovers.

On my free time, I have been able to visit more famous landmarks of Paris, like the Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris. It was so beautifully detailed everywhere, I could have spent an hour or so just admiring the façade. In addition, I visited the Louvre museum and got to see the Mona Lisa too! This is the most popular painting in the whole museum, for it is the only one with a crowd of people waiting to get a photo. In terms of food and cafes, I think I found one of the best and richest hot chocolate I have ever tasted at a cafe called "Angelina". Although a cup of this hot chocolate cost about 8 euros, I must say it was definitely worth it! :)

Well next week is my spring break and I have planned a trip with my new friends to Amsterdam, Berlin and Prague. I leave this Friday and I am so excited to explore more of Europe! It all seems so surreal. A while back I was dreaming about visiting Paris, and now I am here and exploring other parts of Europe I never thought I would have the chance to.