Greetings, all, from Bordeaux! I've been here for just over two weeks, and I am already in love with my new city. The first week I was here was filled with orientation meetings at the University of Bordeaux 3, tours of the city, and history classes on the Aquitaine region and Bordeaux itself. During this week, I learned about the importance of Bordeaux as a port town during the 17th and 18th century for the exchange of agricultural products, the transport of slaves from Western Africa to Europe to North America, and of course, the production and transport of the famous Bordeaux wine. Although there is an extremely modern and efficient tram system that links all parts of the city, I've also done a lot of walking, which has enabled me to slowly learn my way around on foot. I think Bordeaux is the perfect size; big enough that there will always be new places and cafes to explore, yet small enough that I'll (hopefully) never get too lost. On a day when the sun is shining and the sky is clear, my favorite thing to do is to walk across the Pont de Pierre and marvel at the sparkling Garonne River, the majestic 18th century wine merchant homes along the quais and the imposing bell tower of St. Michel.
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| View from Pont de Pierre of the quais. Bordeaux was named "port de la lune" for the way the Garonne River curves to resemble a crescent moon. |
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Pont de Pierre
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My host family, Valerie and Hubert Chaperon and their two sons, Tanguy and Marius, have been incredibly welcoming and warm since I arrived and living with them makes me feel right at home. The highlight of my day is eating dinner with them, since they laugh and joke and tease each other just like my own family. They also truly savor mealtimes, sitting and talking for at least an hour, sometimes more (of course, there's the soup/salad course, the main course, the cheese course and the dessert course, so there's more time to talk). They also love maps, so we've spent hours pouring over their huge map of the world mounted on the wall by the kitchen table, picking out notable locations like Bethesda, Maryland and Middlebury, Vermont. One night Valerie bought a gateau de roi ("king's cake," a speciality here in Bordeaux that tastes like a cake made of Challah) for dessert. In every cake a small toy is hidden, and whoever gets the piece with the toy gets to wear the gold paper crown that comes with the cake. I picked the magic piece, so now I have a real life souvenir of the excellence of French patisseries!
Last week was the beginning of classes at the University, which was another interesting cultural experience. In my first lecture class, I was shocked at the behavior of the French students; when the professor begins to lecture, they don't stop chatting with their friends, cruising Facebook, or texting on their cellphones. In fact, the noise level in the room seemed no different from when before the professor arrived. I think part of the reason for this is that university admission in France is free for the first year, so there are many students who don't want to be there and act like it. The professors can't make them be quiet, so they don't try. But, the French students do take beautiful notes--those who are paying attention. They open up their chic little pencil cases, choose two or three pens of different colors and their mini rulers, and proceed to color code and organize their notes in a way that I, struggling mightily to listen and write at the same time, can only gape at. Needless to say, there are many French students who do take their studies very seriously, and I've really liked all the professors I've had so far. Bordeaux 3 is certainly a far cry from Middlebury's idyllic campus, but I'm slowly learning my way around, and I think it will be a very valuable experience to participate directly in the French educational system since it's so different from our own.
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| Classic Bordeaux architecture. The buildings on the right have been recently cleaned, the one on the left, obviously not. This gives the buildings a "piano key" look between black and white. |
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| Musicians on the quais along the Garonne River |
And finally, an observation on the subject of the popular American stereotype about the French: they're snobby. I arrived in France prepared to expect the worst; unfriendly looks, pushing and shoving, and a general attitude scorn towards me, obviously an American. While I certainly did attract some unpleasant looks while trying to navigate my two oversized suitcases along the impossibly narrow aisles of the TGV train and then again against a heavy tide of Bordelaise running to catch the train just as I was trying to make my way off of it, I have also encountered some incredibly kind souls who have made my adjustment to life here so much easier. For one, there was the young man on the TGV who saw that I was clearly lost and frazzled trying to find my proper seat who helped me find my seat and then hosted my justunder50pounds suitcases onto the rack above--something I never could have done myself. Then there is Julie Claire, the woman who works at the bank where I've opened an account, who is so friendly and warm, and doesn't just care about my bank account number but also asks me about how things are going at the University and gives me suggestions of places to visit in France. And then there are the countless souls on the tram who if they accidentally bump your foot or step on your toe, turn around with a shy smile and say "pardon." And yesterday, I witnessed perhaps the most heartwarming moment of my time here when I walked by a man playing the accordion on Rue de l'Intendance, one of the swankiest shopping streets in Bordeaux. His dish for money in front of him was empty, but just as I was passing by, an older man walked by, reached in his pocket for change, and dropped it in the dish, with a smile and the words, "Vive la musique."
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| A bottle of Bordeaux made entirely of chocolate! |
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| Les mascarons, carved stone masks, very prevalent in Bordeaux architecture |
I hope this finds you all enjoying a healthy and happy January, wherever you are. And for the next meal that you eat, do like the French do and take the time to really enjoy it and the people you eat with. Thanks for reading, and check back again soon! Vive la musique!
