Parisian Paradise

I'll be talking about these last few days soon enough but first, today. And sorry about my last blog - and all its length. We covered a LOT of London, therefore, there was a lot to write about. It's been pretty hot and dry here, today it was 30° Celsius. I've met a few friends, noteably a large group from various parts of Norway, my German neighbor Fiddi and all of her friends, and the administrative bots and café tots I've finally gotten the hang of talking to. I had dinner last night with my Norwegian friends and they invited me to the beach today after their classes ended and lunch at noon. 

I woke up this morning around 9 (oh my gosh the circles under my eyes are fading!) and slowly got ready for the day. I ate a light breakfast, meandered a bit, kept eating some fruit. By about 10 I went out under the tree that's just outside my window and had a mini picnic of fruit, baguette with honey, and orange juice. I let the chapters of Eat, Pray, Love flow around me in unision with the words of the passers-by until I was done with my pic-nic, not really caring about time. Might I mention I haven't worn a watch since I arrived. Nor did I know what day it was until about 30 minutes ago. 

I cleaned my dishes, and walked through campus to a little coffee shop at the Maison d'Etudiant, or Student Office. There, I had a double shot of espresso with sugar because that is what a "big coffee" is here. The French know how it's done. I was supposed to meet Gérard (it's the name his French teacher in Norway gave him and he uses it here because his real name is really difficult to pronounce/ remember. Truth.), Martha, and the others for lunch before going to the beach. Buuuuuuut I was full from eating here and there all morning and didn't want to pay for a full meal and not eat all of it. I waited outside for a bit before going in to get a yogurt, baguette, and a banana hoping I would only have to pay the ,95 euros that it actually cost for all of it. False. Students get a full meal for 3,15 euros flat and that's what I had to pay for my yogurt, mini baguette, and banana. The woman didn't understand what I was saying and thought I was nuts because I wasn't getting a full tray of food. Then she thought I couldn't understand her when she told me to go back and get more food, the gentleman behind me in line started translating what she was saying into English and I told him I understood perfectly, which I did, and I told her I just wanted what I had, but that it should be only the ,95 euros. I had to pay 3,15 in the end. Blasphemy. The US needs to get on it with the value of our dollar. I walked into the seating area of the cafeteria, tray in hand, and saw all of my Norwegian friends leaving as I was trying to find them. 

So I ate by myself. And got weird looks for my weird lunch. And didn't go to the beach. But I walked around town and took some really cool pictures of my really cool new home. 

 You walk through the entrance of the Château de Caen and see this, the Chappel Saint-Georges. 

 And here lies the moat, never having been filled with water. It was just dug for limestone to built the castle itself. Maybe we can pole vault into the castle instead of swimming to it. 

 French Billy Balls! I actually don't know the name of this flower, it's probably a weed, but it's everywhere and I love it. 

 My university! Kind of ugly compared to the rest of the city but who goes to France for the studies anyways? It's the rest of the town we're more interested in - and there's much to see. 

 What's left of the Château after the bombings of WWII. 

This is one of my favorite buildings in Caen. It stands alone right off the University. When the sun hits it just right, it's the perfect shade of summer yellow and the symmetry is magnificent. With French architecture to make your mouth water, who couldn't fall in love with such a parisian paradise? Au Revoir!