elishatakesfrance-blog

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Le Jardin des Plantes- un de mes endroits préférés ici à Montpellier. Il y a plusieurs types de fleurs, arbres, et aussi de gens qui sont ici, et qui ajoute tellement à la beauté et la tranquillité du lieu.

The Jardin des Plantes is one of my favorite places here in Montpellier. There are so many types of flowers, trees, and people that are here and whose presence adds to the beauty and serenity of this site.

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This is where I’m working this month (ACM). I sort and sign off mail, work with the receptionist in “Accueil,” and today I was able to do a translation concerning Brexit and the implications that that would have on the company. It was really nice to be able to use language so directly. I’ve never held an office job like this, but I am so happy for this experience. It’s been incredible so far. I have “les heures flexibles” (flexible hours), so I can come in between 7:30 and 9, have lunch between 11:30 and 2, and leave between 4:30 and six as long as my lunch break is at least 45 minutes long and I work at least seven hours each day. The work environment is bright and exciting- there are always new things to do, and new people to talk to as the “regulars” are going into and coming out of leurs vacances. (En France, on a 5 semaines de vacances- nous aux États-Unis n’avons que 2 chaque année généralement). The receptionist that I have become friends with is a temp herself, so in another week, hopefully I will be able to make friends with the usual receptionist. Everyone here is so encouraging and helpful. The espresso doesn’t hurt either ;)

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I finally once again have wifi, so there’s quite a bit to catch up on. Most importantly, we are all safe and sound in Montpellier, and sooo happy to be here. Although our rooms have no air conditioning, and it is frequently in the nineties during the day, they are all different shades of pink and the beds are crazy comfortable. Who wants to stay in the room anyway though?? Montpellier is already my new favorite city. I’m sure there are going to be some rough days, but for now, all I see are blue skies ahead <3

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The Eiffel Tower is gorgeous. I love it. We’re great friends, and I’m so glad that we were able to reunite. In the picture where my eyes are closed, I apologize, but I remember being genuinely happy when Cassie took that one lol. It’s been another one for the books :)

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Quick excerpt from my Louvre pictures while I have a minute. While the Louvre is enormous, and deserves months to truly take in, we allowed ourselves to be taken in by it for a moment of our day yesterday. Free to students under 26 years old, the Louvre is filled with paintings, sculptures, and exhibits that are among the most elite and highly appraised in the world. These photos were taken from Napoleon III’s “apartment.” His taste is only bested by my boyfriend Patrick’s mother who has more of a knack for decor than I could ever hope to acquire lol. Here there was no angle that wasn’t extravagant and eye-catching. I tried to imagine how their daily goings about would have been, but I don’t feel that my imagination could do it justice.

 Off to our last day of Parisian adventure! 

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Apart from me (photographer life lol) this is the group that I’ve been travelling with. Elizabeth left this morning for Strasbourg, but the rest of us have almost exactly one more day before departing for Montpellier. We don’t know how the train will be, so please pray that we’ll all be able to reach our destinations safely and with our luggage. We’ve all been having such a beautiful time in Paris. One more night here, and we start our mois à Montpellier!

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Rester, c’est exister; mais voyager, c’est vivre.

Gustave Nadaud

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I think that dusk at Paris might be my favorite. That’s when the magic happens, I think. The Sun stays up for so long here that dusk doesn’t hit until about 10 p.m. if not later. The skies become pink, orange, and purple, and the natural beauty becomes just as evident as the manufactured achievements. Last night featured a beautiful walk after dinner, then taking the Metro back. The five of us only encountered one drunk man who (barked?) at us, and then attempted to prevent us from passing. He reminded me a bit of the grumpy bridge keeper on Monty Python, but luckily he was too intoxicated to do anything. We were able to Metro safely and directly back to our neighborhood. It’s funny, just as we become comfortable with our small slice of Paris, we are getting ready to head out to a new city whose intricacies we’ll learn all over again, and I can’t wait.

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Notre Dame was another thinking point of mine today. The Church, as any institution, has its faults, but the passion and love of Christ is evident through so many believers. Tonight I’m praying for a revival of Christianity in France, and that the news of His love and faithfulness will move them even more than the beautiful architecture of their Cathedrals and religious artwork moved me today. C’est tout pour maintenant, à demain.

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For any food fans reading this, today was a day of food. I love how the French take time for their meals, and pride in their foods. The chefs are relentless about using the best ingredients in the best way to create the best possible meals. The return is the sense of community that is hopefully coming to America through the “foodie” movement. Generally, I don’t have the biggest appetite, but we should respect ourselves enough to provide our bodies with the best possible fuel. This fact needs to be made more obvious to a lot of Americans (myself included- I’ve gone through eras in which I’ve lived on Skittles). While we did a lot of sightseeing, which was entirely inspirational and made me want to write every few steps we took, the idea of the food community really stood out in my mind today.

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Here’s a quick look at the neighborhood that we’re staying in. Yesterday particularly, our room was unimaginably hot, so we turned on a small rotating fan to compensate. Much of the night was hot, but alright. This morning, a kind elderly man rang our doorbell. Being the first one up, I unlocked it for him, and he asked us what the sound was. By this point, James had woken up, and we looked at each other in confusion because we had all taken care to be cognizant of the paper-thin walls. The man made a jjjjbbjjjjjdddjjjjj noise, and we realized that he meant our fan! He said that he lived just below us, and had wondered all night what it was. We apologized as much as we could (by this point Amaan had woken up too), and he said that he wasn’t home often, and asked us if we lived there. We told him that we were just students here for four days (hopefully to his relief lol), and he asked us about our program and wished us the best of luck. Now all that we have to do is to figure out how to keep the room a decent temperature for the remainder of our stay without air conditioning or a fan :o

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Ways You Can be Praying for Me

Clarity in keeping God’s purpose my purpose

Positivity/ Appreciation for this amazing opportunity

Consistency in my relationship with God in a time where my schedule has no consistency

Paperwork hassles to get worked through

Growing positive and uplifting relationships with the people I’m working with as well as with those who are in the program with me

I really appreciate the concern and love from you all. I hope you have a gorgeous day! 

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Dinner for the evening chez Les Negociants <3

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The beginning of today consisted of our arrival in Paris, an issue with my debit card that is now thankfully resolved, a bus ride to l’Opera from the airport with our luggage, and a bus driver who was totally comfortable with maintaining a two-inch separation from adjacent vehicles when turning, figuring out the Metro (successfully!), an Orangina and nice conversation/people watching, me lugging a 43.6 pound bag up seven floors (the top floor of the apartment building that we’re staying at thanks to Air B&B). That said, I’m definitely not upset about staying in an adorable micro apartment in the 13th arrondissement near the Latin Quarter with a fairytale spiral staircase.  And so the adventure begins...

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Avant de Quitter les États-Unis

Maintenant, c’est un jour avant mon départ vers Montpellier. Je vais aller avec trois autres camarades qui vont participer au même programme que moi en France. Nous allons travailler à Montpellier pour la durée d’un mois. Je vais travailler pour une compagnie qui s’appelle ACM- Office Public de l’Habitat. Je suppose que je vais travailler un peu comme secrétaire (que je vais travailler avec l’imprimerie, la déchiqueteuse, faire des copies, etc. Je crois que je vais travailler lundi-vendredi 9h-18h, mais je ne sais pas certainement. Vraiment, je ne sais pas si les gens avec qui je travaille vont vouloir me parler, mais je vais essayer persistante à parler avec chacun quand nous avons le temps. Je suis ravie de faire la connaissance de ma famille d’accueil, et je crois que les week-ends, nous allons faire quelque chose ensemble. J’ai déjà communiqué avec la fille de la famille qui va aller aux États-Unis à Louisville pour participer dans la programme. Pour cela, je ne vais pas la rencontrer, mais  peut-être nous pouvons comparer nos expériences après. Je crois que Montpellier va être tellement magnifique, et que pour moi, le temps passerai vitement.