There is a dress code, you will not see these citizens walking around in sweatpants and a pajama shirt. Now this may seem like a given, guessing Paris is THE fashion capital of the world but did you know. I am not quite sure of the actual name. Please no foreigner slander. In the Place Vendome, the top fashion houses of Christian Dior, Chanel, Lanvin, Hermès, Louis Vuitton headquarters are located. It is incredible, I feel like I am in some sort of influx of fashion oasis. Listen, pay attention, caring about your style is vital for survival, pay your respect, you are in Paris.
It sucks not to speak the language. I wish I could strangle senior year Chandler for dropping her French 1 course. It is very difficult to do anything if you are american. In case you don’t remember, Europeans don't really like us that much. One lovely day in Paris, it took me three hours to find Orange mobile (a cell provider). Once I landed at the store, I walked in and exhaustively said, “Bonjour! Parlez vous anglais” he responded with “No.” very quickly. I turn to some random french boy and ask him to translate. He proceeded and then the man responded in english. All I am saying is that I am still having problems with my phone.
Fashion school is really fun. I am very, very, very, very, very, grateful for the opportunity to study at Parsons. My professors are seriously legit and honestly feel more like your friends. We have 6 hour classes, divided by lunch and coffee breaks. For drawing and history class, we study at the Louvre. We read our textbooks about the art and then get to see the art in person. The first writing tablets of the world, ancient Greek statues, insane jewelry. The Parsons faculty does an amazing job allowing students to share their own personal experiences and challenges. In one of my classes we talked about our expectations upon arriving as a socratic seminar topic. It feels good to feel like you are learning a lot, especially when you enjoy every single class.
Meeting people who are not a part of the same culture as you is so fun. It feels refreshing, to have a new start and get to know people who are not like me and did not grow up like me. I sometimes feel a bit embarrassed about not being very well versed in the world of cultural diversity, but I am not uncomfortable. There is something egoless about relating to something you have never experienced. I love hearing my peers talk about their home lives. I truly believe I am here to grow through people who are not like me. Not like me! It is so thrilling. My first class I will always remember walking in and hearing people speaking three different languages, French, Spanish, and Mandarin. It is a sort of subtle feeling of sonder.
I love small grocery stores. HEB gives me a panic attack, it takes so long and there is an overwhelming amount of choices and food. In Paris their grocery stores are smaller than any Victoria Secret I have ever been into. Everything is right when you need it in close quarters. It is affordable and fresh. Let us not forget the ABCDEF labelling system that tells you how healthy every item is. It does bring on a certain kind of guilt when I grab something marked with an F. I have been cheffing up since I have been here. I really don’t know what has gotten into me. Possibly all the wine and cheese, but my god it is so easy to make anything good with these kinds of ingredients.
Endless things to do. There is so much to see. One should never eat at the same restaurant, buy the same clothes from the same store, or walk the same road. There are so many decorative details about the city. It can be calm and loud as — at the same time. Back at home there were not so many options to do spontaneous things. Here, the spontaneous things are all around you, you can look anywhere and be drawn into some sort of live entertainment show. Since I have been here I have spent my weekends by the canal, exploring underground bars, dancing at clubs, waking up at the crack of dawn to catch the first metro. Bottom line, there is a lot. No excuse to sit at home, you are always doing something. If you aren't doing something, then you are probably sitting at home feeling guilty about it.
Many more lessons to be continued…
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