Finishing from scratch.

Somewhere between not posting, attempting to keep up with grad school and work, and completely forgetting about the existence of this blog, I've gained 21 followers - how awesome.

Two months, two never-before taken whirlwind trips - to Calcutta and NYC - and way too many updates to summarize in one post. In an effort to blog smarter and not harder, here's a very brief recap of choice memories from 2010 thus far:

1) Favorite street side snapshots from abroad:

Missionaries in a foreign field

Trying to change the city's infrastructure is like Chasing Pirates.

2) Favorite places/eats in NYC:
- Westville, between Bleecker and West 4th. Try the veggie burger with bacon on a Portuguese muffin... the best contradiction you'll ever consume.

Red Velvet Cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery

- Mamoun's falafel in Greenwich Village
- And, of course, no NYC trip would be complete without a visit to... the NY Public Library!

3) Noteworthy developments & accomplishments:

Finished with PhD apps... in pre-interview, post-interview, & post-acceptance stages for various schools now.

- Checked a couple things off the iconic "should've done this in college (or just earlier in life)" list: ice skating for the first time, brunch at Rise & Dine with an amazing group of Emory students (see above photo), and dinner at Mary Mac's in Atlanta (the closest I'll get to real Southern food until I visit home again in a few months)

- Last, but not least...

The adorable bridesmaid dress for Nick & Emily's wedding!

"...I just want to say that I believe there are options out there! A take a number option, like they have in a deli."*

From The Wall Street Journal | Health

The Henry Ford of Heart Surgery
In India, a Factory Model for Hospitals Is Cutting Costs and Yielding Profits

One of the best quotes?

"What health care needs is process innovation, not product innovation."
- Dr. Devi Shetty

Also, Holy Taco (in East Atlanta) is my new favorite restaurant option for Mexican food. Much better than standing in a deli line for a chicken quesadilla...

*Quote from the latest episode of The Office. Don't know how many options there will be for health insurance if the vote for the recent bill doesn't go through, though...

An island made of mud (and med students).

Better late than never: An Update from Fall Break

Memphis (a.k.a., my escape from the monotony that ATL has morphed into as of late) - was exactly what I needed: a chance to get away, relax, and recuperate with good food and an even better friend. Not to mention, I was unusually productive during the four days that I spent there.

UT Memphis Medical School

Aside from spending quality time on Mud Island with my friend on the week of her birthday, a few other highlights from my fall beak trip include visiting the UT Health Sciences Center and Medical School (and sitting in on a 2-hour anatomy GI lecture!), meeting some genuinely engaging UT med students, having an amazing meal at Papa Pia's downtown, and dining out at Pei Wei for my first time.

The "Cinderella" carriage

True, I didn't partake in the usual "tourist" activities, aside from my drive-by tour of St. Jude Children's Hospital, my brief encounters with the Memphis trolley line, and a couple glimpses of the Cinderella-like horse-drawn carriages downtown. But I'd trade the comfortable company of an old college friend for all that Memphis jazz any day.

(Techincally, Memphis is the birthplace of rock 'n roll and the "home of the Blues", but I was just using a euphemism to prove a slightly belabored point.)

Oh, and something cool to amaze your friends with your current political and pop knowledge: If you haven't heard, Kalpen Modi (a.k.a. the "Kal Penn" of Harold & Kumar, The Namesake, and the TV Show "House") recently started working at the White House as an associate director in the Office of Public Engagement, formerly known as the Office of Liaison.
And Penn Masala even performed at President Obama's Diwali celebration this week! If you've never heard them sing live or listened to a recording of them, prepare to be blown away by their unique synthesis of Eastern and Western musical elements.

What's mine is yours, and what's past is present.

Yosemite National Park (the first title image for A Lifetime in a Fist*)

I won't have time to update for the next week or two. But, since a couple new friends have started reading my blog recently (a fact that I absolutely adore!), I thought that I'd share links to my six all-time favorite entries - primarily for their benefit, but also out of personal nostalgia.

So, enjoy reading and click away (I tend to overload my entries with hyperlinks to interesting sites/sources). Hopefully you'll be well-entertained, or, at the very least, well-informed!

Atlanta Skyline (the previous title image for my once colorless blog)

Descriptions & Links to (Re)commendable Favorites [in chronological order]:

1. Humble beginnings (food, photos, and musical talent)

2. Pure debauchery in the form of personal commentary

3. 5 things that make me happy (more music, food, and artistry)

4. One entry, among many, from my travels in Paris

5. Money, savings, and more (tips, a movie rec, and a book rec)

6. Latest but not last or least (music rec, food fav, and health care)


*Original Yosemite National Park photo taken by my dad; click the photo to view it in its optimal quality.

Getting used to [my] Entourage.

In my meticulous quest to be fully prepared at all times, I often find myself drowning in a deluge of organizational applications and items - handwritten assignments and meetings in my planner, reminders and notes on the "stickies" on my laptop screen, and color-coded to-do lists and events on my beloved iCal.

A screenshot of my iCal for the month of September

While the advent of increased technology offers a number of brilliant benefits for those who in need of tools to balance their student or professional life (or, in my case, both), having too many different resources to check can become a bit unnerving and even counterproductive. You're bound to miss something important in the process of trying to simultaneously keep up with so much - it's inevitable. If only there were a way to streamline everything and have just one source for all your appointments and obligations - without walking around with a CrackBerry glued to your fingertips at all times.

For e-mail, a simplifier of sorts already exists: a few months ago, having three e-mail accounts became so much that I started using POP mail filters to have all my e-mail forwarded to one account. (If you're a Gmail user - or if you have almost any account - you can use this feature to simplify the number of e-mail accounts you have to keep up with on a regular basis.)

Unfortunately, a fourth, Microsoft Exchange-based graduate e-mail account - one that requires my daily attention, has extremely limited features on a Mac OS, and doesn't support the use of POP filters - was recently added to the technological mix. My new solution? Microsoft Entourage for Macs. It provides me the option to import e-mail accounts and organize practically every facet of my life.

It might take some time to get used to my Entourage, and I'd still like to find a way to import all the events and to-do lists tasks from my iCal so everything would be in one perfectly color-coded place; but the mere existence of a Microsoft-based program that has so many great organizational and e-mail features and runs so smoothly on Mac is enough to completely make my day (literally). I'm not a spokesperson for the company and I haven't even begun to learn all the odds and ends of the program, but it definitely has the potential to transform my general downpour of daily details and tasks into a more manageable trickle.

A pleasant update since the last post: With the help of my mom, I discovered the existence of soy nut butter, in its original, honey, and chocolate glory, and, more importantly, its lack of allergic-reaction inducing qualities (no peanuts, nuts, dairy, or gluten).

It's simple, really.

With grad school classes currently in full-swing and work starting soon, I haven't had many free moments to really "live" in my apartment - to cook a "real" meal (one that doesn't just entail microwaving or heating a package) or to properly entertain friends (unless it involves just sitting around on a random assortment of furniture & talking until the boredom becomes too much).

But now, I finally have cookware and grown-up, dishwasher-safe dishes (as opposed to the flimsy, brightly-colored dorm dishes I used to eat on) and more reasons to shed the college-student habits of my former life. And that's where my fascination with RealSimple.com comes in. (Admittedly, I bummed these cooking supplies and dishes from my older brother's house - with his permission, of course - but that's besides the point.)

My favorite source for handfuls of deliciousness & life finesse.

Some of my top picks from the site:

• 24 Great Snacks
• 28 Uses for Everyday Items
• What's the Worst that Could Happen?
  

And the best part is, you don't need to have boatloads of free time or the culinary skill of Martha Stewart to successfully implement most of the showcased ideas.

On a somewhat-related but completely personal note, I recently discovered that I am (and probably have been, for some time) allergic to peanuts, which is disappointing on a number of levels. I've known the fact that allergies can develop later in adulthood for years, especially since I developed a tree nut allergy in college. But, in part due to my false sense of invincibility and mostly due to my unfaltering love for eating anything and everything with peanut butter, I always hoped, that when it came to peanuts, I would be an outlier (<-- read Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell if you ever get a chance - it's filled with inspirational take-home points about success and society, but it's written in a refreshingly non-traditional way).

It's so much harder to let go of things when you know exactly what you're missing out on. The same goes from people. Tonight, I'll make sure to take 5 for everyone and everything that I miss about them.*

*The links in the last sentence will probably only make sense to a select few readers.

A flu, by any other name, would make us retreat.

H1N1, a.k.a. the "swine" flu, is really nothing to freak out about. Just wash your hands, quit picking your nose so much, and keep your distance from others, especially if they're sick. And if you do have a fever or start feeling ill, skip the crazy Labor Day raves this weekend and stay at home instead, because the surest way to recovery is resting more and drinking lots of fluids. Seriously, what's new?



(And if, for some reason, you don't agree with my advice, hopefully you'll at least believe the CDC's credible health information.)

Whether you're staying in because a) you're already sick, b) you don't want to get sick, or c) you're somewhat of a social recluse and you actually read my blog, here are a few of my most-recent favorite things and a couple reading recs that might keep you occupied for the time being:

Boyce Avenue
I've been listening to their covers (and original songs) for almost two years, but I'm sure there are still tons of people who have never heard of them before. They're pretty mainstream as far as music goes, but that doesn't mean they're any less talented or entertaining than most popular artists on the charts right now.

• My favorite cover/acoustic medley of theirs (doesn't have the most views on YouTube, but I like it best, nonetheless)
  
• An original of theirs, Change Your Mind.
  

Chipotle Hummus with Sundried Tomatoes
Unless you're allergic to chickpeas (sorry, friend), there's something terribly wrong with your taste buds if you don't appreciate the amazing flavors in this recipe.

2 lengthy but insightful and well-written articles on patient care in the American health care system:


One lazy autumn afternoon, when you're semi-stealthily siphoning free Wi-Fi from a local coffee establishment and you happen to have some free time on your hands, start reading one of these articles. You'll not only be able to maintain a semblance of intellect & academic superiority, but you might also learn something that's new, interesting, and useful - a critical reader's trifecta.

• "How American Health Care Killed My Father" (David Goldhill, The Atlantic, Sept. 2009)

• "The Checklist" (Atul Gawande, The New Yorker, December 2007 - not as recent, but still worth the read)

... or, if you really don't have the time, and you still want to feign being knowledgeable about current health care issues in casual conversation, just read David Brooks' recent article in the NY Times, "Let's Get Fundamental".

In other, more personal news, I officially received my college degree about a week ago. I walked across campus in the sticky summer heat and picked up my diploma from the cramped registrar's office. Sadly, it was anti-climactic - no enthusiastic applause, cheering crowds, or pomp and circumstance of any sort, for that matter. At least my name was spelled correctly, though, and the lady behind the desk gave me a 3-second smile and a lukewarm "Congratulations on graduating." Not like it cost me $120,000 and 4 years of my life or anything...

Post-script/Update: If reading pages upon pages isn't your cup of tea, here's a documentary that Bill Moyers recently featured, based on Maggie Mahar's book, Money Driven Medicine: The Real Reason Health Care Costs So Much. Granted, one of my grad school professors showed a clip from it in class so it's not nearly as edge-y or controversial as Michael Moore's Sick-O, but it still does the trick and manages to hold a viewer's attention.

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.

Reverse cultural shock.

Five or so weeks in Paris can completely change your outlook on life in the States - like I wrote once before, the real cultural shock hits after you get home from a foreign country. The following are observations in point:

Paris is a city where...
... people spend more hours on the important things in life: eating and enjoying their meals with friends, relaxing in parks and at neighborhood cafés, and walking instead of driving to purchase warm baguettes and pains au chocolat that are baked fresh daily from the local boulangerie.

Atlanta is a city where...
... people waste a lot of hours on unimportant things and then rush through the rest of life: speeding through the drive-thru of fast-food establishments, grabbing artificially-sweet-calorie-filled custard danishes and cups of coffee to go, and then sitting in traffic while commuting to work in their cars.

Paris is a city where...
... if you're a woman and you exist, men hit on you on every street corner, metro stop, café, store front, etc., etc... and sometimes keep following you for blocks, until they get a chance to hit on you.

Atlanta is a city where...
...if you're a woman and you dress provocatively in public, men glance over but don't say anything at all, because saying something remotely offensive might constitute a sexual harassment lawsuit.

The three things that I miss most about Paris:

The métro

Despite its initially claustrophobic-inducing qualities, its lack of air conditioning, and its gritty-watch-where-you're-sitting atmosphere, it's an unbelievably efficient and all-around relaxing commute once you get the hang of things. Even at its most crowded, sardine-packed times, you get the sense that you're only truly Parisian if you can handle the everyday idiosyncrasies of the métro to navigate your way through the city.

The food

Simply put, it's fresh, it's French, and it's fantastic. Every meal I had seemed like the best meal I'd ever had - above is a picture of the amazing four-cheese pasta we had at a restaurant that we stumbled upon during our escapades in Montmartre.

The weather

Compared to the sweltering summer heat and humidity of Atlanta, summer in Paris was a haven of temperate afternoons and relatively cool evenings. Although the weather patterns were somewhat unpredictable and the rainstorms were often unexpected, at least the sun never burnt you to a crisp the moment you walked outside.

Paris isn't perpetually perfect, and Atlanta isn't absolutely abominable, but it'll just take awhile longer for me to really adjust to being back. Though, I think my Parisian perspectives on most of the aforementioned things will always influence my decisions here in the States.


In other miscellaneous news, Dr. Pauline Chen's latest article in the NY Times ("When Doctors Make Mistakes") propelled me to start researching public health practicums that focus on physician-in-training and patient outcomes. I remember reading her book, Final Exam, when it first came out about two years ago - it was incredibly honest and well-written, and I definitely recommend it to anyone who's considering medical school or any reader who just wants to better understand patient care from the physician perspective.

Fin.

La dernière semaine/The last week:

I meant to post updates on my last week awhile ago, but I got miserably sick as soon as I returned to the States - hence, here's the entry about my 5th and last week in Paris, finally, two weeks after the fact.

Some major highlights from the week include sitting on the sidewalk of Rue des Rosiers and eating "The World's Best Falafel" from Chez Hanna on Tuesday afternoon and celebrating the last day of neuroscience classes by having my last Parisian gelato (stratiacella et mangue) and then shopping for French books, presents, and clothes to take advantage of all the discounts during the Soldes (insane sales and bargains that all the stores throughout France have during a select period of the summer) on Thursday. Our entire group had a pretty fancy farewell dinner that same night, at Café Viaduc, where I indulged in my first burger made of foie gras and my last mousse au chocolat. Afterwards, a few of us spent one last night outside of our dorms at Cité Universitaire, laying in the grass and staring at the night sky, before getting busted by campus security for having alcohol on campus and lamenting the death of Michael Jackson - some things never change, whether you're in the Atlanta, Georgia or in Paris, France.

I spent Friday resting up for Saturday (Solidays concerts!) and finishing off the last things on my to-do list for Paris: finally finding a French version of the Unbearable Lightness of Being (La légèreté insupportable de l'être), spending hours reading the book and sipping the best and most authentic chocolat chaud in Paris (a sinfully rich, dark chocolate concoction with heaps of fresh whipped cream, known as "L'Africain") with my brunch omelette at the famed Café Angelina, and then relaxing at the Jardin du Luxembourg before having one last crêpe dinner at Rouge Pomme. If you click on the link for "L'Africain", you'll find a post about Café Angelina's hot chocolate, as well as the recipe for the drink, compliments of an Australian blogger who can actually be followed on Technorati!

Solidays concert program design

I won't go into too much detail about my experiences at Solidays on Saturday, but I think it'll suffice to say that I've never been surrounded by so much energy - the crowds (think Bonnaroo, but with even less regulations and thousands of Europeans), the musicians (5 stages of concerts at this immense camping festival venue in Parc Boulogne of Paris), and the cause (Solidarité for SIDA/AIDS awareness) definitely created an amazingly memorable atmosphere and a fantastic finish to my time in Paris. I didn't last long enough to hear Girl Talk perform at 4:30 a.m. the next morning, but Stephanie Mckay and La Phaze are just two of probably a dozen or so incredibly entertaining talents that I heard during my eventful afternoon/evening at Solidays.

A few of us in front of Fontaine St. Michel (at the beginning of the trip)

After reconvening with a few friends at the St. Michel fountain (ending the trip like it began) and being entertained by street performers/break dancers there, I had my last cup of Parisian chocolat chaud at a small café, right after midnight, and took the last métro back to Cité.

I don't have any brilliant phrases to succinctly sum up the time I spent in Paris, and I can't even begin to find the words to name all the things I loved and will miss now that I've left. What I do know is that I had an absolutely amazing five weeks in France and I'll definitely be going back again some time in the near future, maybe for a public health internship next summer or a graduate semester abroad. I miss Chipotle burritos, barbecue ribs with hot sauce (e.g., Fat Matt's), and Bruster's ice cream sundaes, among all the other random foods and food-related memories with friends that make America so awesome, and it'll be good to get back to those things once I recover from being sick. Happy 4th of July, everyone!

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!

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).

The Joy of Less.*

Street painter outside of Centre Pompidou... The French love President Oh-bah-ma.

My weekends officially start on Thursday nights, since we don't have classes on Fridays. Last Friday, our study abroad group had a planned excursion to Versailles, preceded by an incredibly filling and delicious lunch (on Emory's dime) at the Bouillon Racine - salad, canard (duck), creamy mashed potatoes, amazing French bread, and a gigantic crème brûlée. I asked the waiter for chocolat chaud (hot chocolate), and he almost had a heart attack, because it's an extreme faux-pas to request hot chocolate during lunch time, especially at a fancy restaurant like the Racine. Then, he interrogated me to make absolutely sure that I knew what I was getting myself into - "Chocolat chaud? You are sure?!?! You want chocolat chaud now? At this time of day?!?!" When he finally brought me the deliciously sweet concoction, he emphasized how it was especially made for me and that I would have to enjoy every last sip of it. I drank it down to the very last drop. Janet Folger would have been proud.

I first learned about Versailles (and all the French royalty, the French Revolution, etc.) in my 8th grade French class, and was really looking forward to the trip to the estate... but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. Perhaps it was because the tour guide (a nice old lady) took forever to explain every little thing down to each minute detail, or maybe because I came in with so much prior knowledge about French history that the castle itself didn't tell me any more than I already knew from class and the books I had read.

View from the escalator of the museum (President Obama and his wife went through this exact corridor the next day!)

On Saturday, I spent the day at Centre Pompidou, explored the area and the Paris Museum of Modern Art, and finally learned how to use a camera. My favorite pictures from the day are interspersed, somewhat arbitrarily, amongst the paragraphs of this entry. Centre Pompidou wasn't on the official itinerary for the trip, as my friend Sam and I decided to check it out on our own, but it was most definitely a great (and free) way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon.

The side view of Centre Pompidou (The exposed colored pipes are not only decorative, but also functional, apparently.)

It turns out that tourist attractions aren't always exactly what they're cut out to be in guidebooks, especially when you're visiting a foreign place for something more than superficiality and sight-seeing, but moreso to actually experience the culture first-hand. More often than not, the best part of being abroad is truly spending time like a local - sitting on the crowded metro as your personal space is invaded by countless strangers, walking around the streets of Paris with a huge baguette sticking out of your purse, and spending entire weekend afternoons at small cafés, with a book in one hand and a steaming cup of chocolat chaud in the other, watching as city-goers pass by on the sidewalk. I don't have a cell phone, a car, or a TV here, but sometimes, less is so much more.

*Title deliberately taken from Pico Iyer's latest post in the NY Times' Happy Days blog - a definite must-read.

Look, Ma, I can take my own pictures now!

Highlights from Week 1 & 2 in Paris:

I've begun to realize that there's not enough time to post detailed daily updates on what I've been doing in Paris... hence, the following represents a consolidation of all the best parts of my trip, starting from my first weekend and ending with the close to Week 2.

Last Saturday was spent at Notre Dame, the BHV (Bazaar de l'Hotel de Ville), shopping around a bit, watching the French Open outside of l'Hôtel de Ville (City Hall in Paris), and then relaxing in the amazing atmosphere and view of Notre Dame (saw a flame thrower!) and l'Ile de France at night - an innumerable amount of wine, hilarity, live music, and conversations in foreign languages on the banks surrounding the Seine river. Recuperation and relaxation followed on Sunday.

Walking towards Le Tour Eiffel

Monday through Thursday consisted of the usual - pain au chocolat almost every day, classes for about 3 or 4 hours each day, and realizing that every meal we ate in Paris was the best we'd ever had. The best parts of the week were the Le Tour Eiffel on Monday afternoon (finally learned how to take pictures with my camera - see above and below!), eating dinner at a Michelin-rated Thai restaurant in Place D'Italie on Monday night, and watching the Federer vs. Monfils French Open game in front of l'Hôtel de Ville on Wednesday evening.

The view from Le Tour Eiffel

A shot of the city from the highest tier of Le Tour

Weekend 2 updates are soon to come. À Bientôt.

Art, religion, and disbelief.

Day 5, finally, as promised. A little lengthy, again, but definitely worth the read.


Day 5: "A blessing in disguise."*

First Friday in Paris - no classes. Instead, a trip to the Louvre (picked up pain chocolat on the way at a croissanterie), which was intriguing and overwhelming and tiring. Had lunch at a sandwich shop on the street near the Louvre (Rue de Rivoli, also the location of the famous Chez Angelina/Angelina's Place, a restaurant that serves the best hot chocolate in Paris, according to countless guidebooks and the Parisian man who gave us recommendations when we were in a café near the Seine, sipping our hot chocolate a few days before). The picture above was taken at one of the exhibits in the Louvre.

Lunch was interesting. Not the food, but the ordering. While ordering and waiting for my sandwich to be grilled, the Indian guy at the counter kept hitting on me (with his French words, his English questions, his creepy eyes...) At first, I made a cardinal "American" mistake and answered his question - in Paris, actually turning, making eye contact, and responding to the question of a man who is interested in you is code for, "Oh, I'm in love with you, too," - even if the question is something as simple as, "Where are you from?" Then, he asked me more questions in English and gave me more compliments in French (while my friends were all standing there, waiting, half-laughing inside because of the awkward predicament I was in, and half-concerned that I wouldn't be able to get myself out of this awkwardness) - "So, what part of India are you from? You speak French well. You're very pretty. What's your name?"

To all of that, I gave a resounding, "It's okay, I would just like my sandwich please."

SCORE. On my first Friday in France, I mastered the Parisian art of ignoring a man who hits on you in a public place.

Part 2 - the second half of the day.

After the Louvre, we were supposed to celebrate the birthday of a girl in our study abroad group, but three of us got separated from the group. We ended up at Montmatre, though, just as planned, and ate a dinner of four-cheese pasta at a quaint little restaurant at the top of a steep hill, after climbing a number of steps (it wasn't until later that we realized the hill was leading up to Sacre-Coeur, of all places). We kept climbing up the stairs after dinner and stumbled upon the church - they were having services when we entered, and it was absolutely breath-taking. There's no way to describe how intensely different it was from everything outside of it, how unbelievable it was to enter such a beautiful, peaceful, and pristine place after having trampsed around from one metro station to another and rushing through traffic-filled city streets.

The three of us outside of Sacre-Coeur

But the night was just beginning... on the hill outside of Sacre-Coeur, overlooking the entire arrondisement of Paris, were at least a hundred Parisians and tourists, picnicking, drinking wine and beer and everything in between, eating ice cream, listening to the live musicians perform - a complete contrast to what was going on inside the church. We walked around the area for awhile, bought a bottle of red wine (I tried the very last sip, since, according to the two friends I was with - "the last sip is the best"), and then explored the Red Light District of Montmatre, discovered hilariously entertaining musicians performing American songs (and tourists drunkenly singing every word of those songs) at Le Chat Noir and stopped by the Moulin Rouge - all part of our original plan with the group that we had split up from. Then, we picked up some mango ice cream and went back home, hanging out, talking, and listening to music till 5 am. We never did find the rest of our group, but getting separated from them was definitely a blessing in disguise, because we stumbled upon better things and ended up having a great time, all things considered.

*Quote from a friend after three of us were split from the group and went exploring on our own instead.

Paris, je t'aime, rain or shine.

Day 2: "Don't go home with a French man if he asks you, 'Would you like to see my stamp collection?'"*Orientation at the classroom location, having my first pain chocolat (buttery croissant with fresh chocolate chips baked in - see Google picture above), then getting drenched in the classic summer rain storms of Paris to buy and eat my first Croque-Monsieur (delicious ham and cheese on amazing French bread, grilled to perfection), all followed by a very windy and chilly boat ride on the Seine. Then, a short stop at a small cafe for hot chocolate (the best I've ever had in my entire life - the French serve hot chocolate with a steaming cup of whole milk in one pitcher and a smaller side pitcher of thick, sweet, melted chocolate, which you mix together with pure sugar for a perfect cup of comfort) and a whirlwind of recommendations of things to do while in France, from a very enthusiastic and helpful Parisian local who sat at a nearby table. A few more blocks of walking and a couple metro rides to get back, and then a two-hour long series of asking directions and transfering on the metro (in heels and formal attire) before finally arriving to have a 3-course dinner at Le Grand Colbert, the famous restaurant featured in Something's Gotta Give. Basically, just soaking it all in, literally and figuratively.

*Modified quote from the professional who led our Paris orientation

You could be happy.*

5 Random Things that Make Me Happy...
... because writing out 100 things would take too long, and no one would want to read all of them. But mostly because grand endings and amazing new beginnings call for a little bit of nostalgia.

1. 1 psuedo-made-up word: imeem. It's the concept of YouTube (by the public for the pubilc) combined with the intuition and originality of Pandora - a.k.a., a music lover's heaven. It's where I found Elliott Smith's cover of Jimmy Eat World's "Half Right", one of my all-time-favorite songs, and Leona Lewis's cover of Snow Patrol's "Run".
2. Discovering new music. Recent favorites: Adele, Laura Izibor (I found her and her songs before VH1 did... her song, "Shine" was in the credits for the movie The Nanny Diaries about 2 years ago), and acoustic versions/covers of popular songs (sometimes they sound better than the originals - like the piano version of "Pokerface" and Lily Allen's cover of "Womanizer").

3. Celebrating noteworthy occassions with friends and food. Some memorable and delicious places from this year (and previous years): Baraonda, Chow Baby, Fogo de Chao, and Sun Dial (they have a live jazz trio on Wednesday nights!).
4. Finding answers to questions. If there's a problem, I like figuring out a solution. If there's a blank crossword puzzle, I have this unstoppable urge to write in all the correct answers... "soupcon" was definitely a soupcon.
5. Doing (or making) nice things for other people. There's an argument that no one's truly altruistic and all of us just do nice things because charitable acts make us feel better about ourselves. Sometimes, it's what you do, not why you do it - if it makes me happy to make you happy, why question the motives? (See photo collage below as an example. Also, if you have access and/or a subscription to The New Yorker - or Google Scholar - check out "The Gift" by Ian Parker, from August 2, 2004. The first time I read the article was in high school, but it's still just as mind-boggling today as it was then.)

*Purposeful reference to Snow Patrol.

Biscuits with butter bring bliss.

Recently, Alabama (my hometown, specifically) was in an article of the NY Times - surprisingly, for something positive: biscuits. Not just any biscuits, but buttermilk biscuits that taste homemade and "Parker-style yeast rolls [dipped] in real butter."

From fluffy buttermilk biscuits for breakfast to yeast rolls with lunch and cheddar biscuits served at dinner, biscuits (and rolls) have become a staple of American cuisine, and not just in the South.With graduation coming up in less than a month, I've started thinking about my favorite memories of college, and how most (if not all) of those memories involve food, friends, and family, or some combination of those things. That being written, here are my top three biscuit-related picks for graduation weekend brunch: (hopefully, they'll include family and/or friends, as well.)

1. The Flying Biscuit: My all-time favorite order is the turkey meatloaf, with horseradish cream sauce, served with pudge (mashed potatoes with sundried tomatoes, basil, and olive oil). It doesn't hurt that you also get the best biscuit ever with cranberry apple butter on the side. It's pretty crowded on the weekends, but it's totally worth the wait.

2. Bobby & June's Kountry Kitchen: Don't let the cute misspelling fool you - this place has cuisine with a kick (or should I have written, "kuisine with a kick"?). It's probably one of the only places in Atlanta that you can get a Southern-style breakfast with eggs, bacon, and sausage (and biscuits, of course), and then come back for lunch to have BBQ with a homemade chili sauce tang.

3. Java Jive: I've never been here in person, but apparently, this restaurant ties with the Flying Biscuit for the best homemade biscuits - plus, they have a nice ambiance, complete with great jazz and 1950s decor.

The weather has been really weird in Atlanta the past few weeks - I can't really tell if it's winter weather or starting to become summer, because the temperatures have been fluctuating so much. But, as the Russian author Anton Chekhov** once wrote, "People don't notice whether it's winter or summer when they're happy." And, as soon as I get biscuits, I'll be too happy to pay any mind to the weather.

*Photo taken by S. Arora; from an impromptu celebratory dinner at Panera - i.e., food, friends, and great memories.
** I've been reading Chekhov for my English class; an explanation for the seemingly random insertion of a quote by a Russian author.

P.S. This post was written on my new MacBook =) I branched out a bit and got a case that's not black or white (part of my unofficial campaign to put more color in my life).