A week of firsts and twenty-firsts.

Not much has happened in the past week or so, but here are some choice firsts that are worth sharing. For the most part, all of these firsts involve fun with my friends and my newly-acquired ability to purchase and drink alcohol in the United States, since I finally turned twenty-one about a month ago.

1) Chicken Enchiladas & Margaritas at Los Loros
As the recent reviewers state, "If you need a strong drink in a laid-back atmosphere, Los Loros is a top place to go... The food is cheap and who can complain about $2.50 margaritas (m-w) that knock you off your feet." That was exactly the experience I had... and I think it'll suffice to say that a margarita is not (and never will be) my alcoholic beverage of choice.

Usher at Emory!

2) Usher & Usher's New Look!
Usher, the media mogul and entertainer that Atlanta has claimed as its own talent (even though he's originally from Dallas and grew up in Chattanooga), made a guest appearance on Emory's campus last week. He was here on the behalf of his camp, New Look, which is one of dozens of camps and conferences being held on Emory's campus for part of this summer. Usher's New Look is essentially a non-profit, charity campaign that aids youth and teaches them to harness their talents in sports and entertainment so they can change their community in a socially- and financially-beneficial way. Last year, the camp participants learned about the fundamentals of entrepreneurship and launched a fragrance with the help of experts in the industry. Interestingly enough, it's the alcohol content in cologne that actually makes it so refreshing on your skin.

The Moe's & Joe's Logo

3) Bar-hopping in the Virginia Highlands
After devouring two delicious chocolate-frosted marshmallow brownies (click on the link for the recipe!), my friends and I headed out to the Virginia Highlands this past Tuesday night, to celebrate a close friend's twenty-first birthday. On Tuesdays, Moe's and Joe's serves up $3.25 pitchers of PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) beer, and, like the rest of the twenty-somethings there, we joined in the debauchery and bought a pitcher to share amongst our group of five. Afterwards, we escaped the claustrophobic crowds and relaxed at a more quiet table at Fontaine's across the street.

Not surprisingly, we ran into a lot of current Emory students and recent alums at Moe's and Joe's; but, out of sheer and more unexpected coincidence, we also met a girl who works in the genetics department at Emory, in a lab right next door to one of my friends. We ended up conversing about research and medicine and professional aspirations - funny how all of that catches up to you, whether you're sitting in class on a college campus or at celebrating over drinks at a local bar. Sometimes, even alcohol can't succeed in helping you escape the sobering realities of life after college.

Get busy.

I've been doing so much lately that I haven't had a chance to post a quality blog update. So, here's something - it's not optimal, but, it's better than nothing.

My 21st birthday (June 20):

Le Bon Marché/La Grande Epicerie de Paris
(how I spent my birthday morning)

Spent the first part of my day at the amazing Bon Marché and La Grande Epicerie (the French equivalent of Whole Foods, with a huge selection of gourmet French pastries, desserts, and chocolates in addition), and met up with two people from my study abroad group for a low-key lunch at a nearby café. Afterwards, I explored yet another breath-taking French church (Chappelle Notre Dame de la Médaille Miraculeuse) and visited the Rodin Museum nearby (for free, of course, because students between the ages of 18-25 get free admission to museums in France). Between escaping the intermittent rain showers and making friends with two American college students to take my photo in front of "Le Penseur" (The Thinker) because my camera died on my way to Musée Rodin, it was a pretty decent day...

A picture of me in front of Auguste Rodin's "The Thinker"
(I'm wearing the birthday dress I bought in Paris!)

... but the evening and night were the crème-de-la-crème of my 21st. After stopping by Palais de Tokyo (again, to see the exhibits for free), I met up with a few others at Centre Pompidou to go to Le Soufflé for dinner. For dessert, I had the most amazing, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate soufflé with hot melted chocolate sauce on top. So much better than a regular old birthday cake with sticky frosting.

Earlier during the day, I read in a Parisian newspaper (the Direct Matin, given out daily and free-of-charge to everyone at and outside of métro stations) that there was a free, live concert to reign in the Fête de la Musique; so, without really knowing the exact location of the park where the performance was, my roommate and I headed out, hoping to stumble upon the concert by pure luck... The concert was supposed to start at 10 pm, and we didn't make it out till after 11, so we were pretty sure we would miss the best performances (e.g., Sean Paul and Kelly Rowland). But, fate must have been on our side, because after walking on mostly empty streets rather aimlessly for over almost half an hour, crossing a dimly lit bridge through a park, and transversing a rocky gravel path, we heard the first beats of "Get Busy" in the near distance. I won't go into the minute details, but minus hilariously heart-attack-inducing run-ins with two different French police officers, the concert and the sketchy walk back were the most fun I've ever had on a birthday.

La Fête de la Musique (June 21):

Short and sweet, I rather serendipitously stumbled upon some really great musical talents and amateur performers throughout the course of the day (like Versión Originale and beat-boxer/rappers outside of Eglise Saint-Eustache), and then hit up the massively popular venue of Denfert-Rochereau to hear more popular French musicians like Alexis HK. It was really great discovering new local artists and just being part of such a huge, collective music event. Then had a late dinner with my roommate at Rouge Pomme, a restaurant near my dorm at Cité Universitaire, where the food was as delectable as the adorable French waiter.

The flyer for the Denfert-Rochereau concert

My cadeau/present to all you faithful readers: the link to the new Girl Talk album, for a pay-what-you-can price! Thought I'd share, since I'm a maven and not a connector (read Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point and you'll understand)... and since I'm going to hear them perform tomorrow night in Paris, as part of the Solidays concert series (for AIDS awareness) this weekend!

Updates on week 5/the last week in Paris are soon to come... expect copious amounts of description on purchases for the annual Soldes d'été (when stores all over Paris offer amazing sales for shoppers) and summaries of the must-see/must-do things that I finished off of my Parisian wishlist.

Et si s'aimer ce n'était pas regarder dans la même direction...

... mais fermer les yeux et voir la même chose.
- Quote in one of the ads posted in a métro car on the RER B

Belated updates from Week 4:

Monet's Gardens in Giverny

Sorry, I've been a bit M.I.A. lately. Here are a few brief and noteworthy recaps from this past week (a.k.a., the week of my 21st birthday & the amazing Fête de la Musique!)

On Monday, after classes, I saw my first movie (Sunshine Cleaning, with Amy Adams) in a French movie theater. Even though the film was in English, it was definitely a different experience because the French viewers in the audience didn't always react as expected to moments of irony or particularly comedic scenes. Wouldn't really recommend the film to anyone, though...

On Tuesday, I was thanked for the creation and subsequent success of Slumdog Millionaire. While I was getting dinner at the cafeteria on Cité Universitaire's campus, a jovial, middle-aged French man came up to me in the dessert aisle and struck up a hilarious conversation, in French, of course. After announcing his disappointment because "il n'y a pas de mousse chocolat!"/there wasn't any chocolate mousse left, he asked me if I was Indian. I responded a bit hesitantly, because I didn't understand why he was talking to me - and then, in rapid-fire French (i.e., what sounded like gibberish to me) he exclaimed something about "Slumdog". At first, I started blankly at him, with a confused look on my face, and then he asked, more slowly, "Tu n'as pas vu cette film?" (Haven't you seen that movie?). I realized he was talking about Slumdog Millionaire, so I said, "Oh, oui, Slumdog Millionaire." And, then he said that it was a fantastic and moving film, and he thanked me for the movie. Great end to an otherwise uneventful day.

What I do when I'm bored in class (which happens often... click on it for the best view)

On Wednesday, I bought a cute new dress from a boutique near our classroom location. The place, called MiM, is apparently a UK chain that recently expanded to international markets in Belgium, France, and Ireland.

Thursday afternoon was spent muddling around Palais de la Découverte with the rest of my study abroad group and then buying some cool artsy postcards (a new collection that was just released in Paris) from a newstand near a métro stop on the way back to my dorm. I'll try and post pictures soon, if I can get my camera to come alive again...

A bee in a flower in Monet's garden in Giverny

On Friday, our group took a trip to Giverny, where Monet's gardens (the classic water gardens with lily ponds and amazing floral scenery) and home are located. The entire area was incredibly picturesque, so much so that every photo I took looked as though I used Photoshop to enhance the graphics. We had a huge lunch at a really nice restaurant (Les Nympheas/The Lilies), and then I had my first pain aux raisins (instead of my usual pain au chocolat) from the boulangerie near my dorm. The best part, though, was ending up at the Seine after dinner that same night and celebrating my 21st birthday precisely at midnight. We met a few French business students who had studied abroad in the U.S. - all the people we met were genuinely interesting, witty, and charming, and we had a great time with them - and, exactly when the clock struck minuit, they all sang "Happy Birthday" to me in French and English. Everyone decided I should try something new and fun on my birthday, so one of the guys in the French group playfully pulled me over to the part of the river bank where musicians were performing and Parisians were dancing. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it), he was gay and a really good dancer. Those two facts may or may not be inter-connected...

Dancing by the Seine on my 21st

... recaps of the rest of the weekend (complete with entertaining stories about birthday escapades and Fête de la Musique events) are to come...

In the meantime, here's a fantastic and classy music video to keep you entertained! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1_CLW-NNwc

Post-script: It's been brought to my attention that the link probably won't work if you're not in France... so just YouTube "Ok Go A Million Ways" and watch the first music video that comes up in the search results!