Parislog 67
October 6, 2006

Last night, I went to my first French class appointment. I cannot believe how nervous I was. We all had to wait outside the doors until the designated minute of opening and then it was all about showing the ID. After we got through the first door, we waited in the courtyard for the next set of instructions. The courtyard of the elementary school was all cement with funny little circles of Astroturf around the base of the few trees in the yard. All the people were waiting either in groups of people who knew each other or singles just staring around them because they knew no one.

Finally, they had everyone through the door and now we were escorted in groups of 25 to classrooms for our test. Down the old halls we walked. The front edge of the wooden stairs was worn through. The walls were paneled and had glass windows running along the upper half. We walked into a classroom of rows of desks, each one for two people. It was very tidy and orderly. There was work on the wall showing some history lessons underway.

I was really nervous about the whole thing. I guess no one likes much to be judged for any reason, good or bad. We had our tests and our instructions and those who knew nothing at all were sent off somewhere else as obvious level 1.

After all the paperwork was done then the instructor began the oral testing. Each person had to go up and talk to him in French so that he could estimate where you might belong. I was at the beginning of the second row and by the time he got to me, I had finished the written part of the test. I looked around and couldn’t see anyone else done. I thought that maybe that was a good sign. I really wanted to get placed highly. You know, ego. So we talked and at the end he said I was either a 2+ or a 3 out of 5 levels. I was heartbroken. I wanted to be a for sure, at least 3.

I know it is silly.

Parislog 66
October 5, 2006

I had a guest for quite a few days and that is why I have been so quiet. I wore my feet out taking her on tours of the city. It was interesting for me though because she is very into photography and I got to do the city in the way that I enjoy.

The first day was all about keeping her awake to get her past the jetlag. It brought back all the memories and feelings of that fist day when I got here and had no idea of what I was doing and how I might get to the other side. I remember when the body was no longer willing to let me force it to stay awake and I kept falling into micro-sleeps. I don’t have any idea how I made it through that first day except to stay moving and that was what I did to D*.

We must have walked around 5 miles a day and up and down all the metro stairs. She was shocked at what a work out this city was with all the stairs. I myself love that aspect. I don’t have to use a gym.

Sometime between walks on the first day, D* went to take a shower and I was not thinking to much about it until she came out of the shower. I was on the phone talking when she turned the corner into the room wearing the bath rug. I nearly fell off the chair. It hadn’t crossed my mind in the tour of the apartment to say where the towels were. This wasn’t a fluffy rug. The thing feels more like plastic than cloth and D* is really tall as so she wasn’t getting much out of it.

I finally got around to going up the Eiffel Tower. This was an amazing experience. I see it every day from my window and love it sparkling away every night, just for me. Most of my friends here seem to have serious vertigo and therefore not interested in climbing up but D* was willing to take the risk. I wanted to time it so that we would be up there by the time that the sun began to set. I didn’t realize that there would be a line of 45 minutes however so I cut it a little closer than I wanted in order to case out the place for good angles. We did manage to make it in time anyway even though it was a rush to get the photos. It was also raining a little of and on but managed to give us a sunset anyway. It was pretty stunning. We even went up to the third level in the glass walled elevator. I don’t have any vertigo myself but must say that it was a little disorienting going up that final leg. Exciting, really.

We also went on a tour of the sewers of Paris on the last day. This is another thing that I wanted to do since before I got here. Can I just say that it stinks? I know. No big surprise but it really is the working sewer system that you see and it has smell-o-vision. It was fun though. It took at least an hour to stop smelling it after we came out. One curious fact, they clean the tunnels out with huge metal balls, sized for the particular tunnel and it rolls through forcing everything out in front of it. The one on display looked very Indiana Jones.