Classes are underway and I think I picked some good classes. It is a little overwhelming and exhausting to think in French all the time, but I am sure as the weeks go by I will get used to it. I am taking Spoken French, The Birth of Democracy in France, Contemporary France, and European Painters: Post-Impressionists until WWII (focusing on the avant garde). Right now my brain is just tired but I still think I made the right choice to take all French classes.

Yesterday, I was able to meet up with Astrid. For those of you who don't know, I met her last summer and her father was the exchange student of my Auntie Becca when they were in school. She is French and goes to French schools, so Wednesday she has a day off (some have a half a day I am not sure actually what she had). She picked me up at the NYU campus, I showed her around, and we took the metro and a bus back to her house. They live in a beautiful apartment in a suburb that is technically just outside Paris city limits. Her mom made a lovely lunch and the four of us had lunch together, including pate and a great macaron cake. It was really delicious and so nice of them to have me over. They were excited that I spoke French and were very impressed, even though I know I made some mistakes. They all speak English as well but only to me when I was confused. I have plans to see them again for lunch at some point and maybe have a few outings together. I am so glad I made this connection and now I have French people to go to if I need anything.

Last night I also got to go to the opera. Every semester, NYU arranges for each student to have one free trip to either a ballet or opera. I chose an opera because 1) I like the opera and 2) I wanted to be nice to the kids who didn't know any French and would have been lost because the opera was in French. It is a rather obscure opera called Fra Diavolo. It is rarely performed becuase it is so random, but it is actually based on a true story of a highwayman who was captured by Napoleon's soldiers. It wasn't one of those amazing, mind-blowing performances, but the opera was fun and all the singers did a very nice job. The opera house itself, the Opera Comique is actually a beautiful space. On all the walls there is beautiful gold colored moldings and painted murals. The entired top of the house is made of mosaic tiles which is pretty amazing if you think about how much work went into it. I still hope to be able to see a ballet or opera at Opera Garnier (the one made famous in Phantom of the Opera) and they have student tickets, so that should be doable.

That's it for now! I look forward to the weekend!

A bientot