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.

C'est un peu plus qu'une antenne.*

Updates from Week 3:

Monday through Thursday was mostly filled with all of the normal activities - my two classes each day, with the occasional pain au chocolat for breakfast and a crôque monsieur or crêpe for lunch or an afternoon snack. One of our classes had a huge midterm exam on Tuesday morning, which drained most of us, but luckily, someone from Emory's senior class, Nick, was visiting Paris (since three of his frat brothers are on our trip), so a few of us got to look forward to having fun with him.

Most of Tuesday was spent recuperating at Galeries Lafayette in the afternoon (shopping around the district) - I bought purple low-top chucks at H&M, my first personal purchase in Paris (with the exception of food, of course). A picture of them is below. And I got good use out of them on that same day, since Nick and I walked around the area near the Cité Universitaire (where we're living) and explored the scenic park nearby.

My Purple Chucks!

On Wednesday, before classes started, a few of us ventured out into the area near the Châtelet metro stop, since we transfer at that stop every day. We browsed around a few stores and had a quick luch there. In the evening, we went with the rest of Nick's friends to meet up with other study abroad students (different people, different program) under Le Tour Eiffel, for dinner and drinks. The weather was pretty insane - intermittent downpours of rain and huge gusts of wind - definitely turned half our umbrellas inside-out at one time or another (and walking in all the water and dirt broke in my shoes, too). After dinner, we briefly stopped by the Seine and Notre Dame and then headed back a little early to finish our work for classes.

The Peace Memorial and Le Tour (de Gustav) Eiffel

Thursday, though, was the creme-de-la-creme for the week. After classes, a small group of us spent the afternoon at Musée D'Orsay, then went out for a real night out in Paris. On the way to Le Club Mix, we had dinner at a nice restaurant and then most everyone bought wine or beer and we hung out in front of a small church in Montparnasse (there's something just iconically French about drinking in front of churches). Then, we went to the club - no way to put into words how overwhelmingly exhilirating the entire atmosphere was - the music and the intense techno house mixes of the DJ (check out the song "Day 'n' Nite" if you get a chance), the video graphics and lighting, and all the international crowds - it was all absolutely, unbelievably awesome. About five of us stayed the entire night (till 5 AM the next morning) so we could take the first metro back - we almost thought we wouldn't be able to make it, but we survived and it was definitely well-worth it. We looked like zombies by the end of the rave, but it was, hands-down, the most memorable night out I've had thus far in Paris.

On the moving walkway of the metro at 5 am

Friday was much more laid-back and spent recuperating (we didn't get back till almost 6 am, and we all slept most of the day away): having a quick dinner at the cafeteria on campus, and then relaxing on the banks of the Seine and stopping by a French karaoke event in our building upon returning to Cité.

The Glittering Eiffel Tower
(It lights up every hour, on the hour, for five minutes, between 10 pm and 1 am)

Yesterday (Saturday), though, I made up for an uneventful Friday by finally doing some of the random Parisian things on my to-do list: having an éclair chocolat and a sandwich from one of the infamous Pomme de Pain shops all around France, eating dinner at a classy and charming restaurant near Le Tour Eiffel (Le Bosquet) - the place had great ambiance, highly commendable waiters, and an even better culinary expertise. I ate every last bite of my "big" salad and finally got a tarte tatin aux pomme avec glace vanille (we'd wanted to order that at the restaurant the night before, but they were out). Another plus was that the food was decently priced and I got the chance to practice my French with my waiters. I ended the night by spending it around the liveliness of Le Tour Eiffel, surrounded by hundreds of Parisians and tourists, picknicking, drinking wine, just having a blast, celebrating everything and anything.

Convivial crowds surrounding the Eiffel Tower on Saturday night.

I've known this for awhile, and, at this point, I can definitively say that the French are not as rude or disagreeable as the stereotypes make them out to be. True, they don't have (fake) smiles plastered on their faces every time they go out in public, which might lead outsiders to think they're unhappy or unfriendly; but, during my short three week-stay in the city, I've noticed how most, if not all, of the Parisians I've encountered are incredibly helpful and clearly know how to have a good time. Le Tour Eiffel is "un peu plus qu'une antenne" (a little more than just an antenna) and Paris is definitely un peu plus qu'une ville stéréotypique de France (a little more than a stereotypical French city).

*Half of the ad for 1664, the Bud Light of France (will try and take a picture sometime and post it).

First, Break In Spring

Here's a recap of the images, words, and sounds that made my Spring Break more enjoyable - as usual, interesting factoids and copious amounts of commentary are included, too. Officially-speaking, the break's not over yet; but, unofficially, it's pretty much ended since it's time to get back to work again.

Flo & Tiny

"Our best built certainties are but sand-houses and subject to damage from any wind of doubt that blows." ~ Mark Twain

The photographs* below (click on them to view them at their full-size) probably speak for themselves, but the phenomenally-crafted sand sculptures of "Flo" and "Tiny" on Dauphin Island beach were one of the most memorable parts of my Spring Break. Whoever you are, and wherever you are, hundreds (if not thousands) of beach-goers were definitely amazed and entertained by your one-of-a-kind works.

John 3:16

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Sometimes, religion (and religious phrases) , like art, show up in very predictable places - like the bumper stickers on the cars of conservative Alabama towns, the welcome signs outside of Protestant churches, or the Sunday morning broadcasts of church services on local television channels. Other times, though, they show up in the least-expected spots - like the bottom of your bright yellow, plastic Forever 21 shopping bag.

Don Chang and his wife, Jin, immigrants from Korea and the founders of the clothing chain, were apparently "deeply religious" devout Christians. But store managers, customers, and news reporters (like Deborah Kolben of the New York Sun) have their own ideas as to why the Bible passage is quoted on Forever 21's bag. Religion, even in small and seemingly inconspicuous doses, always seems to be up for interpretation and never ceases to stir up controversy and confusion.

"Jai Ho"

"May victory be yours."

Speaking of things that are "up for interpretation", the Pussycat Dolls have recently come out with a cover of A.R. Rahman's song, "Jai Ho" (from the award-winning Slumdog Millionaire film) - the original song won an Oscar for best song; but, the cover, in my opinion, is just an overly-Anglicized pop version of an already Anglicized Bollywood song. As talented and gorgeous as the Pussycat Dolls are, I feel that this cover is one that doesn't really do justice to the true meaning of the original lyrics. It's always difficult to find a perfect medium between staying true to the original traditions and social morays of more conservative Eastern culture when trying to gain popularity with incredibly liberal Western audiences. In this case, what's happened with "Jai Ho" almost exactly reminds me of what the teenage-pop star-character Cora Corman initially did to the song "Way Back Into Love" in the movie Music and Lyrics... except that this is real life, and not the movies.

Since musical preferences are a personal thing, though, I'll just let each listener and/or viewer independently and individually decide what he or she thinks about the song and music video. Maybe some things just take getting used to and you enjoy them more over time - I mean, it's not until you break-in a pair of shoes that they actually start feeling comfortable, right?


*Dauphin Island photographs captured by Dr. S Barik.