Allez hop, on mange!!!

FOOD!!! Miam miam!!! How could I come to France, write a blog, and not talk about food? Well, I can't; I couldn't!!! It's physically impossible.

Needless to say, the food here in France is DELICIOUS! I don't know what I'm going to do when I get back home... I will say, however, that it's a little bit harder to find vegetarian food. I don't quite understand that. You'd think the French would have caught on by now. Well, I guess you can't have your cake and eat it too. In their defense, however, I will say that they go to great lengths to maintain the integrity of their food. You can go to open-air markets, or to the local grocery store for your produce. They make sure (unlike in the U.S.) that the food has not been genetically engineered (if it has, they seller has to mark it as such), and that's awesome in and of itself. They also have organic food (biologique ou bio) which is even more delicious!!! The French really take pride in their food!!!

I've mentioned this in another blog, but I eat with a French family four times a week. They live a little outside the centre ville, so it's always a fun, albeit cold walk to dinner. Nonetheless, I love the opportunity to eat with a French family because I learn so much about the culture from people who really live it everyday. The mother of the family serves us traditional French foods, and special foods from the region as well- it's great. But what I love the most about the entire thing (the reason I keep going back) is the fact that dinner in the French family is an art form. From the presentation of the food to the conversations we have; everything is controlled and, most importantly, thoroughly enjoyed.

• Appetizer: we usually talk about our day. How our classes went, and what we learned. They'll make a comment or two on how our French is improving, or maybe through in a new vocab word that we will take note of for future reference. At the beginning, we talked about our family and the kinds of things that we liked to do at home to pass the time. Now, we talk about how we continue these activities while in France. It's nice.
• Main course: This is where we lose all pretense and really go for it. We talk about religion, politics, and all those things that I was raised never to mention at the table. We've talked about the inauguration and what that means for the United States, we've covered the growing Chinese economy and how they will soon dominate the world market, we've talked about tragedies at American universities and in other countries. We leave no stone unturned and every opinion is welcomed (as long as it can be thoroughly defended!).
• Salad and cheese: We usually continue with the main course conversation, but start to bring it down a little bit. We make our final points, and hope that we haven't stepped on too many toes; although, that would be a necessary casualty of getting our point across.
• Dessert: This is where we move into safe territory. We talk about our homework, our plans for the night, our plans for the weekend, or anything that comes to mind really. It's a good way to make sure there are no hard feelings. They even give us chocolate to make sure that we keep coming back- haha.

And, yes, we do eat four course meals four times a week- and they think the Americans eat a lot!!!

But as you can see, dinner is more than just a time to eat. It's a chance to express yourself, and this self-expression usually takes about an hour to an hour and a half. It's never rushed, and we always leave feeling like we've had a wonderful time.

The least you need to know:

1. French food is GREAT!!! DUH!!!
2. Dinner table conversaiton is like a dance- intricate, beautiful, and entertaining.
3. Yes, four courses!!! Count 'em!!!
   

A propos de la politique...

I guess the next big thing to talk about is politics. I know that a lot of the French have been waiting for Bush to pack his bags, and to be honest, I have too. BUSH IS NOT A GOOD CONSERVATIVE. Government spending has never been more out of control, the war in Iraq is a mess, and I'm sure we can find a few other problems with the administration. I just need to get that off of my chest, and also to show all the left-wingers out there that there are conservatives who are just as upset as they are.

Of course, I consider myself a conservative (in case you hadn't guessed), but I think I might be rethinking some of my politics. Now, let's not be crazy and think I'm going all liberal... but libertarian might not be that far off (I don't think I'm a very good one I might add). I'm still not for big government because I think that's absolutely ridiculous, but I'm starting to by into the French idea of la vie public contre la vie privée. Here in France, there is a clear distinction between the two.

***Quick digression: I eat with a French family 4 times a week, and I've discussed some of these issues with them.***

So, for instance, although the mother and father of my family don't agree with gay marriage, they don't feel like it's their place to make a political decision on how others should live their lives. Another huge difference to be mentioned is the complete separation between Church and State (the French call that laïcité). I think that we Americans should work on having a more defined definition between the two as well.While watching the inauguration of Obama, they found nothing more hilarious than the prayer at the beginning and in the middle of the ceremony. Again, they place religion in the private sphere and French politicians just don't acknowledge that part of their lives while working. And though I consider myself a devout Catholic, I still think that this might be a good deal for all parties involved.

Basically, I've come to the point where it's not that I don't care about social issues; rather, I feel like I don't have the authority to make those kinds of decisions for those around me. Of course, I can still choose to live a semi-traditional, conservative life, but I can't expect that from people who have different backgrounds and outlooks than me. I feel that this is a big step for me, and I guess this sort of separation makes me a libertarian (though I still want public schools, health clinics, and other things). I mean, let's be honest, as long as you're not messing with my funds, I'm good.

Oh, and let's not forget about marijuana. Of course, I'm not a smoker (of anything), but if the States were to legalize pot, think of all the money we could make from taxing it!!! I think it's a great idea. Granted, I hate smoking, the smoke in the air, the stench it leaves behind, and the stupidity that usually ensues, but I'll suffer stupidity if I can make some money from it. It's not my brain, after all. I know that's not how the usual argument runs, but I'm not the average guy.

The trip to France isn't what got me thinking about all of this. Actually, this last election cycle and all the campaigning had me thinking about the future of our country and the direction I want it to go in. I don't think the Democrats have all of the answers (or the majority of them, for that matter), but I don't think the Republicans have done all that well at leading the country. The war in Iraq was a horrible idea. The Republicans should have called Bush out on it. Forget partisanship!!! (I'm not for an immediate withdrawal though, because we've destroyed their way of life and we need to re-establish some sense of stability before leaving- just to clarify). So, the French didn't make me change my politics, but I think they do the best job of expressing what I've been trying to find all this time.

There's a lot of thinking left to be done about the subject, but I think I'm growing as a person. In my opinion, that's what college is all about- growing as a person, tolerating other perspectives, and thinking critically. Oh, and another thing- I don't like that people consider being open-minded with being liberal. That's not at all what it means. Being open-minded is the willingness to accept that there are people who live differently from you, have different values than you, or have a different worldview. It does not mean that you have to agree with these values, views, or lifestyles. You can very easily know about the differences and still think that they are not the best way to live one's life!!! There, now that that's all clarified, let's review.

The least you need to know:

1. A new president; a new era.
2. Libertarian? Yes? No? Maybe so.
3. Let's all try to be a little more open-minded ( but still maintain the definition of words... some things aren't open to interpretation).
   

En France, enfin!!!

So, I finally decided that I actually would try to keep a blog to immortalize all my adventures here in France for myself, my family, and my friends!!! I've been waiting for this trip for quite some time. In fact, when I first went to France, I told myself that I would come back. After about 5 years or so, here I am- FINALLY!!!

Now, where is "here" exactly? Well, I'm in a small town called Aix-en-Provence!!! It's a rather chic town, and a little expensive as well. I LOVE it, though. I'm study with the Vandy program, and I'm making a lot of French friends (for future visits, of course!) I'm living in an aparte with 5 other people. It's cool because this is the first time I've ever lived in a city all by myself. I'm cooking, going out, studying, and being responsible (Mom and Dad should be proud!) It's also really cool to see that my French is good enough to survive here... the next test will be my trip to Paris. I can fool them, then I can fool the WORLD!!!

Classes are good. I'm taking some cultural classes. The one that interests me the most is Political Ecology (which should make all the environmentalists out there very happy- I'm expanding my horizons!!!) I don't really know that much about the subject, so I figured tackling new things is what college is all about. I'm also looking for an internship to get out of the ever-present Vanderbubble. And, of course, I'm trying to join the university choir, because, let's be honest, a guy's gotta sing.

I think I've pretty much covered all the preliminary things. I'll probably post some more stuff in the next couple of days to get everyone up to speed, but here's the least you need to know:

1. France is fun- you should visit.
2. I'm adjusting quickly and doing well (not too homesick).
3. The classes are fun, the people are nice, and the food is wicked AWESOME!!!
4. I have never had so much wine in my life...
   
5. Did I mention that France is fun?