Mary-Est-En-France

Grenoble, Sassenage

The last day of classes in the CUEF – at last! I left the house for the first time this summer feeling excited and well rested. It was hard to believe that this would be the last time I would see my professors or classmates. In my grammar class we stuck to our schedule and did a Friday lab activity. We listened to a song Laisse tombé about a guy who gets in a bar fight only to lose his jacket, shoes, and pants. When we finished the lab we went back to the classroom to talk about French idioms together. When the end of class arrived, we gave a signed card to Louise and told her thank you before leaving to add each other on Facebook and Instagram in the hallway.

Sadly, the art visual class was not as sweet. We worked on a sheet about movies and had to act our scenes until the last minute of class. I was happy to be done with it. The professor treated us like children and it made me feel really disrespected. I was irritated by her desire to classify everything by race and gender. The first thing she pointed out about a movie was the race of its main characters, even when it was unrelated to the storyline.

I agreed to meet up at 2pm with a few other folks to head back to the waterfalls we had visited our first week here. On my way I picked up a little pizza at the patisserie near my house and a few sweet treats to eat at the falls. I grabbed a few items from home and a bottle of wine from Carrefour, then headed out to the train station.

Our trip ended up including just Ruby, Cécilia, Jamie, and I. We rode the tram and hopped on the bus to the Sassenage falls, arriving about 40 minutes after leaving the train station. To get to the mountain you have to walk through a tiny country village. We learned on our first walk through that the neighborhood church has survived since the 12th century.

The hike up to the sunny rocks was a little strenuous, but it was worth it. We sat down on our towels and enjoyed a gorgeous picnic lunch beside the flowing water, enjoying the cool breeze that it created. We climbed into the river and sat on the rocks, putting our feet in the water to cool down. It was really an amazing experience. I enjoyed getting to talk with new friends. I think it was only something I could have done on a trip like this. Going to another country and being stranded people people for a summer really bonds you together.

That night the sky was grey with clouds, we were worried it would rain. This was one of our last chances to go out dancing together as a group before the trip ended. I watched the window throughout dinner. We had a course of tomatoes with cheese and oil, which was followed by noodles with meat sauce. Luckily, the rain did hold off.

At about 9pm, I met up with Roy, Jillian, Clarissa, and Tara at Monoprix. We walked together to the wine bar, Tord Boyeaux. I love it there because there are so many amazing flavors of wine available. Tara and I started off by sharing a bottle of pear wine, which was sadly disappointing. Because everyone was enjoying the wine, we decided to go in on the 3 bottles of wine and a saucisson deal. We got blackberry, blueberry, and raspberry to split among the five of us. I cracked up when they brought out our saucisson because I didn’t expect it to actually be a thing. I was really thankful for the bread that came along with it as I got hungry. The bar played American music all night and we all enjoyed dancing (& occasionally doing wall-sits). As the night went on, more and more UM students arrived so it got to be a good sized party.

Around midnight we headed out to the other bars. I had had enough to drink so I headed to Barbarousse with Jillian, Clarissa, Tara, and Daniel. Roy, one of the CUEF girls, and Jasmine went to 365 together before meeting up with us. As always, we had some weird experience with the locals in the bars. We were having a good time when a huge group of men walked in wearing masks. One of the girls tried to take pictures with them, which I knew would be a bad idea. They followed her the rest of the night and I consistently had to shove one of the guys with us between her and them. I was thankful to have them with us. Despite that, we all got to dance along to YMCA, Allez Allez Allez, and our other favorites.

I left as the rain started with Clarissa, Jasmine, and Natalie. I walked them to the tram before turning back to my place. It was a really fun night.

Grenoble

I woke up in a sweat. No nightmares, just the heat wave. The French call it the Canicule, which I think sounds really menacing and a lot more accurate emotionally. I decided as I drank my boiling hot coffee this morning that if I were to write a memoir about my time here, it would have to be called “nothing here is ever cold.” Even the iced coffee is warm to some degree.

Our question of the day in Louise’s class was whether or not we thought it was possible to travel without money. In my own opinion, no it is not possible. I don’t think I would feel secure enough to couch surf especially if I didn’t know the language in another country. I certainly wouldn’t want to sleep in parks or beg for money. However, it seems much more feasible for men who don’t have to worry about harassment from strangers on the street.

In art, we finally got to move on from comic books. Instead, we talked about film. The project for the day was to go around and do a poll on an assigned question. My question was “have you fallen asleep during a movie before?”. 65% of people said yes. After we finished presenting our results, we watched a video on the Cannes film festival. I was frustrated because other students in the class refuse to speak French during class. They speak in English directly to the professor. I think that is such a waste of the experience. It irritates me because we are not allowed to do that in language classes at UM and I would like to be held to a higher standard while I am in the country.

After Ryan’s class a group of us headed back to the campus store. I got myself a t-shirt and bunch of cool stickers for people. I’m excited to hand them out.

Well, it was time to get to work on our final project. Ruby and I went over to the French Coffee Shop to work. I got a smoothie and surprise, surprise it was NOT cold. I just really really crave an iced coffee. Just coffee and ice. It is not that hard France. Our project is focusing on the registers of familiarity that words concerning identity in France. We’ll be doing interviews for our paper over the weekend.

Dinner is always my favorite part of the day. Janine always calls me to the kitchen from down the hall, “Marie?” I say, “Oui?” and she says, “À table!” It’s very cute. Tonight we had sweet melon and cheese for our first plate, gnocchi with tomato sauce for the second, a creamy Italian cheese that followed, and we finished with some cherries.

As we ate we talked about the market for fake designer items in Italy and the strict rules that Italy is imposing to stamp out the venders of those products. We talked about car production in the US decreasing as plants move to Mexico. We talked about the economic depression in Detroit and Flint caused by the movement of car companies. They asked which car brands are popular and I had to say that French cars are not very desired because people support Ford and GM. Gilbert was able to name each of the five great lakes which was impressive because he’s never seen them. I told them how much I miss the “clime” in the US. I said that every store is freezing, the hospitals, the cars, homes, and offices. They were shocked and asked if people often get sick because they find that air conditioning gives them a sore throat. I thought that was interesting, I don’t think I’ve ever had a problem with that. Janine said that the French don’t have air conditioning because they are conscious of the environment and was to save the Earth for later generations. I said that the same attitude doesn’t really exist in the US because many people don’t believe in or understand man made climate change. Both Gilbert and Janine were disappointed and said that Trump was also a huge problem because he was rolling back protections on national forests.

I’m thankful that I can have these conversations with them. This is really the kind of cultural exchange I wanted.

Grenoble

Well, today it was 40 C. I didn’t know that I could feel the heat melting my brain, but I soon learned that. The entire day was miserably hot, making it difficult to sleep and function. This heat wave is supposed to be the worst that France has ever seen. I’m not sure I can say I am lucky to experience it. Old cars are not allowed on the streets, public transport is free, and people are actually using fans.

Our grammar class started the morning off with a listening lab. The class got to hear a story about a blind man who hitch-hiked across the world. We resumed our theme of immigration and travel after finishing the lab. We talked about the reasons people can be displaced like environmental crisis, war, economic opportunities, needing to follow family, etc. Each of our groups presented on an artist who had immigrated to France. My group shared the story of Atiq Rahimi, a novelist from Afghanistan who fled war and violence.

I’m so thankful that our art class will be ending soon. I think my brain may actually be melting. The professor treats us like children, asking every sentence if we understand what she’s saying. We continued to talk about comic books in class, going over the popular series Astèrix. Books detail the adventures of a band of Gauls fighting against the Romans for their land. After a gruelingly boring two hours, we were released.

My stomach was growling after class and I knew exactly what I wanted – pizza. Jillian and I marched down to centre-ville to find a little Italian place. I love that there’s a strong Italian community here because the food is just outstanding. We were joined by Jamie and Lauren for lunch a little later on. I got a mushroom and ham pizza that was to die for. I don’t think I’ve ever had mushrooms that were as flavorful.

After lunch, Jillian and I headed back to my place to plan for Italy. The trip is coming up more quickly than I thought. I discovered that my ticket home is a day earlier than I had thought, which was really really frustrating and disappointing. Now I have to spend a night in Paris before hopping on the plane back to Detroit. I suppose it was better to find out now rather than the day I missed my flight.

Having received the devastating news Jillian and I trudged through the heat to Miranda’s office for a cheese tasting with the rest of the class. By the time everyone arrived, the wheels of cheese sat in sad puddles. A chef went through and described where each wheel was from, but I felt like my brain was melting so I didn’t catch much. When he finally finished his speech, we all hopped in line for our cheese plates and wine. Thank goodness each table got a fat pitcher of freezing cold water. It was so refreshing. Upon finishing all our cheeses Roy, Clarissa, Jillian, Eva, Daniel, and I scampered down the street for some ice cream. I got mango and raspberry.

I spent the evening hours writing a presentation for class the next day. We had to talk about a linguistic experience that we had had recently. I talked about traveling to Italy and how I didn’t know the language and how difficult that was for me.

I was still overly full from cheese and ice cream by the time dinner arrived. We started with a plate of cold meats and pickles which was followed by fried potatoes and salad. For dessert I got to have a little peach fruit cup. We talked about what I was looking forward to in Italy, the difficulties of traveling, and the difficulty levels in my classes.

Grenoble

This morning heat poured in from my window, the canicule commenced. I swallowed my overly hot coffee as quickly as possible and had a quick peach before hitting the road. Today, the tram were running on the wrong track due to the construction, but I got to the university without much of an issue.

Today in grammar we went over our reading comprehension test. I definitely misunderstood some things, but it was good to figure out and go over as a class. Joyce and I presented our slam poem and we got some good laughs. It was a relief to get it over with. Our subject for the last week of class is the refugee crisis. We’re reading stories about refugees around the world and the conditions they’re living in.

Out art class took a trip to the middles ages museum to see a temporary exhibit on comics. The artist being featured created several volumes of water colors and graphic novels in the mountains near Grenoble. They were gorgeous. It was neat being able to see work that was completed nearby by a local individual.

We had to head back across town to the university for Ryan’s class. Today’s topic was the differentiation in language between plurals and singulars.

After class I headed out to do some homework at a local coffee shop with Clarissa, Roy, and Daniel. Despite the venue’s claim that they had clime (air conditioning), it had to be over 80 in the shop. We all sat there sweating as we talked and did our work. Because the end of the semester is approaching we are all rushing to finish final projects and papers for Ryan’s class. It is a huge hassle. I wish I could spend more time enjoying the town and less trying to do work.

After going home for the night I started a load of laundry and my homework. I realized I should probably add a note so I don’t forget. Here, many families are really protective of the washers and dryers. They don’t usually allow their host students to use them. Most students here have there laundry done twice a week by their host parents and returned to them after being pressed. I am the only one in the program who is allowed to do their own laundry. Isn’t that strange?

Dinner was interesting tonight. We had seasoned chicken with a side of a fried vegetable that I haven’t seen before. It’s a product from northern France, apparently. For dessert we had little flans. I was happy to see that there were little jokes on the top of the lids, similarly to the little caramel candies sold here. During the meal we talked about the weather in Michigan, the geography of the state, and the host students they had had from there. I also got to hear their thoughts on Canadian accents. Apparently, even the French find them hard to understand.

Grenoble

Wow! Our last week of CUEF classes started Monday. I feel both relieved and sad to know that it will be ending soon. I haven’t really enjoyed the classes very much, but I think it has been an interesting experience.

Of course, because it is the end of the program, the professors are rushing to get grades in for all of us so they can assign us a level for a certificate. Today in the grammar class students presented their slam poetry on humorous weather in their hometowns. Presentations were followed by a reading comprehension test on French artists who sing in English. I really hated it because I felt like it was poorly organized. Oh well.

Our art class trudged onward with a discussion of French comics. We learned new vocabulary together and got to see some popular French comics. The professor talked about the immense popularity of comics in France and said they are regarded as more intellectual works. I think this contrasts with the US, where comics are seen as a nerdy past-time for nerdy young people. I don’t think that comics get as much respect as an art form back home, which is sad.

Thankfully, we didn’t have any UM classes for the day. Many of us decided to go out for lunch. I was sad because a lot of the Italian places were closed and I hoped to get pizza for lunch. Instead, we went back to the dumpling place. This time, I got green tea mochi (an Asian ice cream treat) and lamb pot stickers. It was much more enjoyable this time.

After lunch I was absolutely exhausted. I think I finally crashed after the travel-filled weekend. I spent the afternoon replying to emails, catching up on work, and watching YouTube.

For dinner we had one of my favorite simple dishes. We started with tomatoes and cheese with a oil and vinegar dressing. Our main dish was a stew with peas, onions, and ham (tastes so refreshing). We tried some new cheeses after the main course. I realized I can tell the difference between cru and pasteurized cheeses now, wild! For dessert we had a little peach fruit cup.

Grenoble, Vizille

After my experiences the night before, I decided I deserved to sleep in before heading out for the day. When I did wake up, I rushed to meet my friends at the second largest market in Grenoble (Marché de L’Estacade). It was nothing like the markets we had experienced before, but it made me really want one like it at home. The vendors were set up under and overpass, some with semi-permanent booths. The posts of the market were painted with bright yellows and beautiful flowers. We saw sausages, cheeses, Thai food, fresh fruits, beautiful vegetables, and frozen fish. I was amazed by the diversity of products, the quality, and the low prices. I picked up peaches, bananas, goat cheese, bread, and olives for under 10 euros.

Clarissa, Jillian, and I met at the market to pick out lunch before we had a picnic at the Château de Vizille. We stopped for coffee along the way and found the 40 minute trip across Grenoble incredibly simple. I was surprised to learn that public transport would take us more than 40 minutes outside the center of town, completely for free with our tram pass. As we traveled through the countryside we were able to enjoy mountains, herds of sheep, and adorable little houses.

We arrived in the village of Vizille, hopped off the bus, and marched into the grounds of the chateau. It was breath taking. There were waterfalls surrounded by blooming flowers, butterflies, and packs of little ducks waddling around the grounds. We settled down in the shade next to one of the many streams to enjoy our picnic. It was a perfect little lunch, very satisfying. When we finished off the bag of cherries we headed off down one of the paths for a lap around the grounds. We enjoyed gorgeous planned gardens full of roses and a series of waterfalls.

Of course, we couldn’t forget that the Château de Vazille hosts the nation’s museum on the French revolution. The museum rests in the chateau because of the village’s history as one of the starting points for the riots that led to the French revolution and the destruction of the French monarchy. We got into the museum for free and spent an hour and a half wandering through halls filled with massive oils paintings and incredibly detailed sculptures. The special exhibit focused on a graphic novel depicting the events of the French revolution. I learned that the French have a certain affinity for comic books, more so than people in the United States.

We left the museum with about an hour and a half to enjoy the grounds before the next bus stopped by, so we decided to search for peacocks that some of our classmates had mentioned. It turns out we walked in the complete wrong direction at first, but it allowed us to see more of the park. It was interesting to see that they gave poney rides out to little kids who came by. We finally did find the peacocks at the back of the park near an animal reserve. There were two beautiful males and several females that were laying eggs.

I was surprised during the visit by the general attitude of the public while we were there. Many people just came by and treated the grounds like an average park. They had lawn games with them, some had a picnic, and others simply napped on a blanket.

Our bus ride back seemed like it went by in the blink of an eye. I fell asleep and enjoyed a 40 minute nap. When we got back to Grenoble, Jillian and I went back to my apartment to try to plan our trip for the next weekend to Marseille and Avignon. Sadly, we discovered it would be over 200 euros to go for two days. Trains were at awful times, food would be added on to the price, and the heat would be over 90 degrees making for miserable sight seeing. We decided it would be better to save our money for the upcoming trip to Italy and perhaps go to Annecy for a swim instead.

For dinner that night Gilbert, Janine, and I had a great meal. We started with melons and slices of charcuterie. Our main course was pasta stuffed with veggies with a light cheese sauce. Janine was feeling full, but Gilbert and I each had a fruit cup.

Grenoble, Lyon

The bus for Lyon left at 8:30 in the morning. I hurried from my apartment to the bakery down the street to get baked good for the ride. Luckily, the tram was functioning so I was able to get to the station without any difficulty. The ride was about an hour and a half, so I took a light snooze after watching the mountains disappear behind us.

Our first stop of the day was a guided tour of a former state prison facility. Montluc opened in 1921 and originally served as a military prison. However, due to the lack of wars following WWI, it sat empty for a long period of time. When the Nazis invaded France, the prison served as a holding ground for members of the French resistance, communists, and Jews. After the war, the prison was converted for use by the general public. Walls in the prison separated the male and female prisoners. Eventually, the facility held only women. In France, women are allowed to keep babies with them inside prison up to 18 months. Because France does not allow male guards in women’s facilities due to the high rate of abuse perpetrated by male guards on female inmates, some children do not see men for the first year and a half of their lives. The prison was closed in 2009 when Lyon closed two other facilities to build a new building that was up to date on prisoner conditions.

Many of my classmates did not care for the tour, however I really appreciated because of my time in the Prisoner Creative Arts Project. It was shocking to me that people were forced to occupy that building until 2009. Cells weren’t big enough to fit a full bed inside. There were no toilets, no sinks in cells. There were only tiny windows, no furniture was provided until the late 1990s, and no common places for socialize. Essentially every cell was solitary confinement. I was surprised to see that women and men were in the same facility and that in many places in France they still do remain in the same facility. We got to see where resistance fighters were imprisoned during WWII, one of them Jean Moulin who was eventually tortured to death by the Nazis. I was saddened by the general conditions and couldn’t help but think of how the women, children, and men who were imprisoned there must have suffered on a daily basis.

Following our tour, we were allowed to split into smaller groups for the day. We had about six hours of free time, so I really wanted to maximize what I got to do. Brenna, Jillian, and I started the day off with a nice lunch. Though it was incredibly windy and sometimes rainy, it was enjoyable to sit on the patio and watched people walk by with their dogs. I had duck with figs on top, a salad, and cheesy potatoes with my meal. I also enjoyed a great panaché.

From the restaurant in Vieux Lyon, we hiked to the La Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière. It was grueling, but I was all the more happy to reach the top. The chapel was breath taking. The amount of detail in the gold work, the mosaics, and the paintings was simply incredible. While there we saw the main church, a small prayer chapel, and the catacombes below (which host a series of moderately creepy versions of the Virgin Mary from around the world).

Next on our list was the Roman ruins. Much of this part of France is covered in Roman ruins due to their occupation of Gaul. The ruins we saw included columns, walls, and entire theaters where bands were warming up for a concert they would give later that night. I thought it was wonderful that the structures were still being used for their original purpose.

The Gallo-Roman Museum of Lyon-Fourvière sat directly next to the ruins, so of course we had to go in. We got to see a lot of items that were discovered throughout the city, similarly to the museum that I had visited in Grenoble. There were vases, tools, jewelry, mosaics, and more. The temporary exhibit was on toys throughout the ages. It features balls, sculptures, and went all the way through to modern video games.

Brenna was getting tired, so we all stopped for a snack. I grabbed one of my favorite desserts, the tarte-aux-fraises (strawberry tart).

After replenishing our energy, we walked across the street to the massive church in the square. I was surprised to find that it was the Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste! A beautiful cobble stone square sat in front of it, complete with a wonderful fountain depicting saints completing miracles. The interior of the church rivaled Notre Dame de Paris. The ceilings were incredibly high, the stained glass windows beautifully intricate, and the treasures were priceless. I was so thrilled to discover two of my favorite people in French history (Henri IV and Marie de Médicis) were married in that church! Jillian discovered that it was commissioned by St. Louis, the holy king of France. It was a wonderful stop on our trip.

We wandered back to the meeting point, completely exhausted. There was still a little time left so I explored the surrounding area, discovering a monument to the Armenian genocide in a nearby park. Beyond it sat a series of fountains that children were playing in, a huge metal bouquet of flowers, and the shining blue waters of the Rhône river.

The ride back to Grenoble seemed to pass in an instant. I was so exhausted that I fell right to sleep. Dinner that night was simple because of the intense heat – no salad, just baked tomatoes stuffed with spiced ground beef and rice. For dessert we had bread and cheese.

I decided that because it was likely my last weekend in Grenoble, I should go out to the concert in the park. I met up with several others in my class and enjoyed talking and dancing with them to a group that sang in 3 different languages. It was a strange night from that point forward. The men behind us were really rowdy and seemed to be inching closer to us every minute. I moved through the crowd to be closer to the men in our group. However, when I did a man came up next to me and grabbed my hair shouting, “You’re beautiful! Your hair is wonderful!” I told him to leave me alone, but he refused to until I put his number in my phone. He and his friend finally left after agreeing that American girls were too beautiful to ignore. I rolled my eyes and went back to enjoying the night with my friends.

When the concert ended at midnight we walked together to a local dancing bar. I’ve decided it’s a gay bar, because I never see straight men or women there. Tara and I split a bottle of raspberry wine and had fun dancing to bad American pop music with everyone else. By 1 am we realized the trams would be stopping soon, so we all left the bar together. Tara was heading another direction than everyone else, so I volunteered to walk her to her tram so she wouldn’t be alone. My house is only about 5 minutes away from the stop so I didn’t think it would be an issue. However, when we reached the stop we realized that the trams weren’t running at all because of construction in the area. It was a 40 minute walk to her house. I asked her to stay with me, but she refused to I decided to walk with her for a few minutes and then to talk on the phone as she walked. When we got up from the stop a man started following us. He repeated asked to add us on social media, for our numbers, and we repeated said no that we wanted him to leave us alone. He continued following and asked in French and then through Google translate if we would have sex with him. I raised my voice at him and told him off in French, finally he slunk away.

We stopped at the next tram stop and I asked her again to walk with me, but she said no. Another group of men came up and sat by us. They asked us to split a cab, to walk with them, or to tell them which way we needed to go. We said no and tried to ignore them, we didn’t want them to know where we were going. The man sitting next to me told me it was smart to avoid men, because “they only want one thing.” He leaned over and asked if I knew what it was and if I would describe it for him. Tara and I loudly said he needed to leave to find his friends. Tara decided she would start walking so we took out our phones and were talking as we walked. I happened to pass a McDonald’s and saw two of our male friends inside. I told them that we had been followed and Tara needed help getting home, that I didn’t feel safe with her being alone. I am so thankful that they ran to find her down the street. They all were able to take a cab together back to her house and she got home safely. I made it back fine and stayed on the phone with my cousin. I was yelled at a few times on the way back, but no one followed me.

I was shocked and am still shocked by the experience. I’ve never had anything like that happen to me. I am so thankful that nothing worse happened.

Grenoble

This morning Joyce and I had the chance to work on our slam poem on weather in Michigan. It’s coming along, but I think it’s become evident that I study history for a reason. I can’t compose in two languages now! I think it’ll be fun to hear everyone’s poems. We have new students in our class from Korea, Singapore, and Vietnam.

In the following class we spent the period examining two important pieces of French art. The first was Liberty Leading the People. It represents the Trois Jours Glorieux following the 1830 French revolution against king Louis-Philippe. You can see royalist soldiers laying dead in the streets, members of different classes in revolt, and the symbol of French republicanism (Marianne) leading the revolutionaries into battle. You’ve probably seen the image before, because it is frequently used on textbooks and in modern art pieces.

We also examined The Raft of the Medusa by Théodore Géricault. It represents a real shipwreck that occurred off the coast of France. When the ship capsized the officers fled the scene in lifeboats, leaving poor crew members to die. Over 150 men remained on the ship. Some managed to create a small raft and were adrift with only rum to consume for 12 days. Members of the crew turned to cannibalism during that period and by the time the men were rescued only 15 remained. The artist was criticized for the graphic nature of the work and that he chose to have a black man wave the flag that brought the men salvation from a passing ship.

Today was our trip to the Chartreuse distillery, which meant that the entire UM cohort had to rush to find a bus across town and get lunch in less than an hour. This week the tram stopped working between 9am and 4pm, so they’ve replaced the transport with a bus. However, it is a lot less convenient and is a lot slower. Many of us were late and a few weren’t able to find food, but we all made it on the bus which arrived 30 minutes later than expected. The distillery sits on top of a mountain near the monastery that has existed for centuries. We were told by the guide that only 2 people in the world know the recipe for the Chartreuse liquors, which was just incredible to me. It takes someone 5 years to be completely trained in the art of tasting and controlling the liquor making process, as they use a mixture of 130 spices and herbes. The distillery boasts that they have the longest cellar for liquor distillation in the world. (It was huge, dank, and creepy.) The casks were made of oak from the 1800s, as they find that the older the wood the better. People climb inside them to do maintenance from time to time. We were not allowed to take photos in the cellar, but I wish I could show you the piles of sugar that coated the outside of barrels. It had very obviously built up over decades of use. Our group got to taste both types of the liquor after our tour, green and yellow. Green is 55% alcohol and yellow is 45%. I preferred the yellow.

We returned to Grenoble after our tasting, had some time to relax, and then it was time for dinner. Tonight we started with ripe melon and Spanish cheeses. It was an interesting mix. Our main plate was a Greek dish that seemed similar to lasagna, but was less cheesy. Our after dinner snacks include pasteurized cheese and a pear fruit cup. Over dinner we talked about the differences between France and Italy. Gilbert’s mom was from Italy so he got really into the conversation. He told me that the Italians are really “too Catholic” and wear black all the time to show their devote nature. He argued they use big hand gestures, speak loudly, and are a lot more passionate than the French. Both Janine and Gilbert thought it was funny that the restaurant owner in Italy did not like our group of Americans and raised her voice at us. They told me that Italians prefer the French to Americans.

A group of us wanted to go out tonight, but we got an email from the US State Department that we should stay in because of rioting connected to the Algeria game. I didn’t think anything of it, but as I type I can hear yelling and cheering. There were fireworks over my building, window breaking, and trumpets blaring. I’m glad we played it safe. The trams aren’t even operational tonight because the tracks will be covered with people celebrating.

Grenoble

In our grammar class we went over slam poems and rap. We watched French artists and discussed the creation of “l’argot” or slang. I didn’t know this, but when a lot of slang terms are created they reverse the spelling or popular words to make a new one. There’s a specific type of slang called “verlan” which is a reversal of the word for inverse or “l’envers.”

Our visual art class took a trip to the Grenoble art museum to look at some famous pieces. We had a guided tour through the museum and a tiny bit of free time to explore after the tour ended. I was impressed by the size and the diversity of works in the collection. There were pieces by Matisse, Picasso, and some American abstract artists. The oldest item in the building was a 12th century portrait of Saint Lucy, who you can pray to if you have bad eyesight.

Because the majority of our class had gone to the art museum, Ryan moved our UM class to the Jardin aux plantes. I ate lunch there before class with Tara, Jaime, Ruby, and Clarissa. Our topic for the day was the feminization of the French language. While we don’t often think about gendered words in English, they’re everywhere in French. As more women enter the workforce and take higher positions, the French must consider how their language can change to reflect women’s changing role in society. Should new gender neutral words be created like “police officer” or “firefighter” in the place of “policeman” and “fireman?” Or should the French adopt words that indicate a woman filling a specific role?

After classes finally finished up for the day, we decided we needed some ice cream. We all usually go to a little place near the Jardin de ville that’s called “Glace dauphiné,” but we thought it was time to branch out. Cecilia suggested we go to a place nearby that is supposed to be the best in Grenoble. It ended up being a small family operation just a block or two over, but the ice cream was really good. They had more flavors of sorbet that I hadn’t tried yet. I ended up treating myself to two scoops, one that was poppy seed flavored and one that was pear. I thought they were incredibly refreshing, but I think I still prefer our usual place. Everyone else decided to head home, but Clarissa and I ate our cones together in the Jardin de ville before departing.

Dinner with Janine and Gilbert was a treat as always. We had the salad of tomatoes and mozzarella cheese with vinegar and oil for our first plate. The main dish was seared salmon and creamy spinach. For dessert we had adorable little flans that came in tiny cups. I was really impressed that Gilbert could cook salmon so well, he has range. That day, Janine got her hair cut and we were all saying how nice it looked. I cracked up because Gilbert turned to me and said “Oh your hairdresser does a nice job. She knows how to cut hair to compliment a long face.”

This week is pretty unique because a lot of French families are on vacation now. The French get 5 weeks of paid vacation each year, so many of them take it during the summer months. Knowing this, the city of Grenoble hosts an annual concert series in the Jardin de ville called the “Cabaret Frappé” where 3 artists from different genres preform each night. Huge crowds gather in the park to drink and hang out. Umich students went together last night and grabbed a beer together. I thought the set up was amazing. I definitely expected a very minimal set up, but this looked like it could be on TV. The park was completely packed with people for the event. Entire families were there to enjoy the festivities. I’m really happy that I went.

Grenoble

It was listening lab day in my grammar course this morning. We listened to and analyzed some French slam poems about race and religion. The French really do not have a multicultural society they way we do in America. They believe that citizens are French first and their individual identities are less important than identifying as French. We talked about tensions between the Muslim and Jewish communities in France, as well.

After going over some more vocab in the visual art class we got to preform little skits with a partner based on a painting. Jillian and I did a skit on American Gothic. It was really fun. I acted out the part of the husband who wanted to watch the wheat grow and she was the angry wife who let the pigs escape.

After class we had all planned to go to a restaurant near my place called Ferme à Dede, which is known for good French cuisine. I was really excited to go because I pass it every day and think about eating there. However, there ended up being a lot of confusion due to changing plans for the week. Brenna and I went, Hayden and Jamie followed later on. I went with the plat du jour, which was roast duck with peppers and a salad. It was pretty good, but I was a little disappointed after all the hype that the restaurant had received.

We sprinted across town, got our project approved by our professor, and then decided it was time for some ice cream. I got a new flavor and loved it. I have no clue what it is called, because it was in Italian.

As we were eating we wandered over to the nearby jardin de ville where some of our classmates were working and hanging out. I ended up sitting and chatting for over an hour. We talked about life on UM’s campus, problems with race in our high schools, and religious intolerance in the US. It was nice to have a chance to share my experiences with my host family with other students and to hear about their experiences. It is hard to believe the program is nearing its end.

We started with bread dipped in fried eggs. Janine was surprised to hear that Americans eat eggs for breakfast because she considers them “too heavy.” I told her that a lot of Americans like to have something sweet for breakfast like pancakes or cereal. We ended up spending most of the dinner talking about eating habits in France and America and how they differed. Essentially, my host parents felt that Americans eat too much meat and sugar leading to higher rates of diabetes. They were worried because a lot of younger French and Japanese people are apparently adopting more American eating habits and gaining a lot of weight. They explained that that was why the French government started putting health warnings on foods with added fats and sugars. For our second plate we had green beans with fried potatoes. Our conversation moved on to healthcare in the US. They told me that in France there is beginning to be a shortage of doctors because too many are retiring and not being replaced. I said that in the US our healthcare system also needed to be updated. Gilbert was really curious about how people paid for medical attention. He was shocked to hear that people paid for it themselves and sometimes loose their homes because of debt incurred by expensive surgeries. I explained that the country is really divided on the issue of whether or not we want socialized health programs and they seemed amazed that there was even a question. We continued our meal with bread and cheese while they chattered about the benefits they had received through their health system.