this is one of the greatest cities in the world. when i move in to new cities, i will compare it to this. its a high standard to meet.

good bye paris. it was nice knowing you.

my france experience is complete. i had frog legs. it tasted decent. kinda bland, like white fish. fitting end to a great year.

-i learned french, at least a little bit. i could get by and have a average conversation.

-i learned a bunch of varieties of cheese.

-i learned that a lot of places are the same. a lot of places just felt the same. florence felt like lyon, paris feels like nyc, some of the outer neighborhoods in paris feel like some of the neighborhoods in chicago. i’d like to adventure to asia or something to see if it still holds true. now, more important is the people in the places i go.

-i’ve learned time moves really really fast. i shouldn’t waste so much lounging around. at least not lounging around by myself

-if there’s something to be done, start right away.

-it’s best to be home, its the most comfortable.

-at the same time, its good to get out of your comfort zone. basically, this year has been like that and i feel a little more confident after it all.

i came in to this year not expecting anything. i wanted a year in europe and i got it. actually going through it though was a fun ride but could never be repeated. it will stay with me forever, as my mom keeps reminding me.

-mom and dad for funding

-will, mad, and kris for best support group in paris

-sophie for helping me with my french application

-sean, kaysee, and sarah for the skype calls from time to time

-kayla for the tons of comments

-paris teachers for having patience with my rough french

-neighbors for the wifi

-any one who visited to see what i was doing. blogs are kinda self centered, but i just tried show people what we do here.

number of post: 148

total views: 7,675

number of tags: 99

number of images uploaded: 883

total time in paris: 10 months, 3 weeks, 1 day, 18 hours and 26 minutes

total number of flights: 24

number of countries visited: 7

number of cities visited: 18

average metro use a day: 2.7

average distance walked per day: 13.4 blocks

visits to grocery store: 1.4 per week

number of crepes devoured: 57

number of cheeses tasted: 19

times stepped in dog poo: 3

average time of a conversation in french before i quit and try english: 4 minutes

number of all-nighters: 9

number of nights staying up watching american sports: 25

number of times riding the night bus: 11

number of times catching the morning 5:30 metro: 4

times a french strike screwed me over or nearly did: 6

skype calls: 281

on a scale of 1 to 10, my time in paris: 8

on a scale of 1 to 10, how excited for going home: 1,000,0o0

-new international friends. its been fun getting to know these people as our school basically runs an open door in its fourth year with students from all over the globe. its been fun them laughing at my french and i laughing at their english

-the common sites. notre dame, opera garnier, champs elysees, trocadero. every week i ride past the eiffel tower on the metro and every time i make sure to get to the window and stare in awe.

-80 cents baguettes.

-cheese

-amazing cheese parties

-good cheap wine

-public transportation. metro that runs past 1am on weekends and night bus that makes homw possible from anywhere in the city.

-european countries. unlike states and little sub cultures, europe has complete culture shocks when you hop boarders. from language to food to people and sites.

-rich history.

-learning and getting along in with a new language

-life in the city. everything is either just a 5 min walk away or a 15 min metro ride. and there’s always stuff to do

-skype calls from friends and family, excited to hear my adventures but me just as excited to hear whats going on back at home.

-crepes. especially from rue mouffetard

-thinking, “damn, i live in paris.”

-simplicity. being a foreigner is the worst, i dont know how my parents immigrated but i have a whole new respect for them.

-road trips.

-midwest plains, rocky mountains, florida beaches, and california hills

-food: chicago deep dish pizza, portillos hot dogs, burritos, mamas home cooking, ca sushi, in and out burgers, greasy chicago gyros, healthy slo gyros, dunkin doughnuts. am i forgetting anything?

-home

-family: mom dad brother, aunt uncle, cousins who i haven’t seen in forever.

-friends

-my sports teams

-sports in general

-campus life

-college life

-classes i fully understand

-administrative processes i completely understand

-costco

-catching up on GOOD tv shows and movies

-pretty much everything

-gasoline stations.

-suburbs

-mowing the lawn.

-hearing peoples crazy pyramid/get rich schemes

-traffic jams

-midwest humidity

-road construction

its hard to come up with anymore since its been so long…

-commuting to school. 10 min walk to the metro station, then a 20 min ride and another 10 walk from the station to school.

-the dirty euro. why did it have to go down 30 cents and be at an all time low when i’m leaving europe.

-prices in the city. urban life usually is expensive and paris is one of the more pricier cities in europe.

-gypsies. enough said.

-not having a studio as an arch student. its sucks not having work space to build a model or people around to bounce ideas off of.

-my tiny apartment. i have to go to the hallway to use the toilet. i’ve been locked out once.

-tourists. they just flock the city and didnt have to deal with our harsh winter and get to enjoy this perfect little paris. and they make lines at museums unbearable.

-overpriced fast food. now i know i shouldn’t be going to mcdonalds or kfc, but when you need something quick it should be cheap. where’s the euro menu? i think since it’s an import, its overpriced.

-french administrative processes. no more hopping office to office and waiting for mail to come to sign and send back.

-bars/clubs. overpriced and painfully awkward. let’s some house parties. apartment parties are too small.

-dog poo. not many people clean up.

-cigarettes. everyone and their mother smokes.

-classes in french. “i think i get it. wait, what?”

-homework in french. i sucks when you’re done and then you have to spend an hour translating.

-lack of sports. there’s only soccer here, ugh. and i have to stay up till 5am watching my teams. double ugh.