Bienvenue A Lyon

I'm in Lyon! So I have been really busy the past few days which is why i haven't been updating my blog as much.

Things I have done:
-Open a French bank account.
-Get a French cell phone.
-Buy a monthly tram/metro pass (I have been getting on trains without buying tickets lately and I was getting paranoid that I might get caught soon and pay a crazy fee)
-Explore Lyon with other UC students. (Went to a bar that turned into a club as the night passed and danced until 1am which is apparently when everything closes. Also went through all of downtown Lyon and ate at a few restaurants and cafes. Sat by the river and drank a little bit of wine. Went to a market and bought some cheese, baguette, nutella, tomatoes, nectarines, orangina, and ham and had a "pique-nique". It has also been pretty hot for a few days so we used an umbrella.)

-Climbed the FAT hill in Lyon to get to the Cathedral at the top. The view was amazing and we saw some Roman ruins on the way up. The Cathedral is lit up at night so if you look at it from the river, it looks like the castle in Disneyland. There is also a mini eiffel tower next to it known as the Tower of Italy.

-Got a free hairdryer, umbrella, and jacket from a stash of ex-study abroad student left-overs.

Things I have to do:
-Buy a student discount travel card so I can travel through France for up to 50% off.
-Get my Carte de Sejour so I can leave the country and get back in.
-Move into my apartment.
-Practice my French.
-Try a Salade Lyonnaise.

Okay funny story of the day:
So im sitting on a bench in the park with another girl from Davis (Tina). We are waiting for a friend who is going to meet us up in a few minutes. I'm just looking ahead and this guy approaches me. Not bad looking, quite tall. He's physically fit and is dressed normally. Nothing really attractive/unattractive about him. But he asks me if i speak French and I say "oui, un peu". So he starts asking me in French "Why are you so beautiful"? At first I didn't really understand so I just looked confused. Tina whips out from behind me and replys in French "Because we are Chinese girls". I was just like WHAT?!?! NOW I'M REALLY CONFUSED. haha it was just such a random thing to say. But i asked him to repeat and this time, i understood him better and realized the guy was hitting on me...My first hit from a Frenchmen. I honestly can say I was a little flattered, but the whole time, the movie "Taken" was just playing in my head over and over, so normally, I was very cautious. All of a sudden, I see my friend Elliot. Tina decides to ditch me with Mr. Strange Man and heads over to Elliot. Next thing he asks me is if i would like to go get some coffee with him. I decline of course and I just expect him to walk away. but nope, he asks "pourquoi"? Now I was a little taken back. Was a no still a no in this country or did you need a reason now? But i just kept playing it dumb and said i had something to do but didn't know how to say it in French. I was deathly afraid that this guy was a sex trafficker of some sort and was going to take me away and get me addicted to drugs (hollywood movies really get to me sometimes). But thankfully, he left me alone and I was able to rejoin Tina and Elliot.

GOD:
All I can say is thank You for keeping me safe.

Beaucoup des Marches (A Lot of Steps)

346345241 ... I can't even count them anymore. Today was literally the day of the never ending stair cases. This is just one of the many (and I mean MANY!!) staircases that I had to climb:

It's a lot higher than it looks. Parisians must have legs of iron. On a lighter note, I was able to see the Musee D'Orsay today. There were paintings from Gauguin, Monet, Van Gogh, etc. The works had a depth of intensity thats hard to describe. When you look at one of their paintings for the first time, you look, but you don't really see. And then you take a second glance and you notice something you didn't notice before. Perhaps a women in the far left. The color gray all of a sudden becomes a mixture of black, white, blue, pink, red, yellow. One famous painting that was really captivating was "L'Origine du Monde" (The origin of the world). It is a very famous and well known painting of a woman: to be specific, it was of a woman's private parts. It wasn't pervy or disgusting. It was just ... wow. I believe the title added a whole new level of depth to it. She was the chicken, and we are her eggs. 

I also went to Montmartre today and went to see the Sacre Coeur, also known as the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ. It is a cathedral that sits on top of the mountain, which is also the highest point in Paris. The cathedral is covered in statues and paintings of Jesus. I ended up donating 2 Euros to the church in exchange for a candle. I set mine before my Saviors feet and said a prayer. I was in a building made for Jesus Christ. A building that took many generations to complete. There was no place better to thank Jesus for sacrificing his life so that I could find salvation. 

OH!! Guess where I also went :)! The cafe that was used in the movie "Amelie". The name is Cafe Des Deux Moulins. The inside is exactly the same! Close by was also, of course, the Moulin Rouge.

Okay, well being my last day in Paris, I splurged a little and went to a cafe to eat lunch with my cousin and my classmate Elliot. Sat outside to get that French feel going. Three course meal for only 19 Euros. It would have been 14,90 Euros if I didn't order a stupid coke (really cheap for a ham and melon appetizer, steak with homemade seasoned potato wedges, and a fruit mixture in a green tea and peppermint sauce). The coke was 4,10 euros! Thats like a 6 dollar coke back in the states. Last night my uncle also made escargot (snails) for dinner. It was accompanied with bread and wine. DELICIOUS. Not gonna lie. You gotta try it.

And to end the day with something cute, I was walking along a busy road and saw a cat sleeping on a scooter. Yes, it is real.

Deux Jours a Paris (Two Days in Paris)

DAY 1:

I spent the day exploring Paris on my own. It is truly one of the best cities to get lost in (I got lost trying to get to the eiffel tower. It sounds hard to do since the eiffel tower is so large, but of course being me, i went the opposite direction towards Parc Monceau). My first stop was L'arc de Triomphe. All I can really say is wow. Yes you see it in the pictures and in the movies, but it is nothing like seeing it in real life. The details on the building are amazing. Actually, the details on all the buildings in Paris are amazing. You can't help but admire the beauty and wonder just how much time or how much man power was put into creating something so beautiful. The  eiffel tower of course, was also mind blowing. When i actually saw it, my jaw just dropped because it popped out of nowhere. One minute, im looking for a way to cross the river and next minute, POW, there it is. Tall, beautiful, majestic (if i could make up a beautiful song, i would have). Standing next to something so grand and so magnificent just reminds you how of small and insignificant you are in the world. These pictures don't really do any justice, but they will have to suffice:

To see those two sites took me a good 3 hours. I took many detours and turned whichever way the wind carried me. Thats the great thing about Paris, you just go. No particular place or schedule, because everything is worth seeing. I was extremely tempted to sit at a cafe and get some food, but i actually wasn't very hungry and wanted to save my euros for perhaps a nice dinner. All together, i only spent 9,60euros that day.

Things I learned:

-Everyone is on vacation in Paris during August. Most of the shops are closed.

-Nudity is common place. It is in the advertisements, the architecture, and even on magazine stands in front of shops. There is no real effort to hide it because it is not looked at as a risqué kind of thing.

-Apparently i look french because at least three french people asked me something and all i could say was "desole, je ne parle pas francais".

-The French are very friendly, everyone says bonjour, pardon, and au revoir.    

DAY 2:

Alex, my cousin, took me around Paris today. He took me on a typical Parisian walk while passing through famous sites. We chatted the day away and just enjoyed the scenery. I had a really good time. We went to the Notre Dame, the building of St. Michel, The bridge of Alexander the Third, and the Louvre. We also went to see a gift that the Egyptians gave to France:

Did you know that the glass pyramids at the Louvre was built by Chinese architects? Crazyness. Well, today was a rainy day, but it didn't stop me from enjoying myself. After a while, the clouds cleared up anyways. Paris is a place that looks perfect in any weather. It still looks romantic (as cliche as it sounds) whether it is a stormy day or a sunny day. Lets just say there is not such thing as a bad day in Paris. Would i live here? HECK YES. OHOHOH I have to show you guys a picture. In America, we have water fountains, in Paris, they have water spouts that you have to manually turn!!

Thats why Europeans are skinny (though they are getting fatter now that Mcdonalds is common place), they have to work, even for their water! 

One more thing to note, Alex took me to eat ice cream today. It was the most delicious ice cream i have ever tasted. I got the cacao amer et cafe (bitter chocolate and coffee) flavor while he got the poire et mangue (pear and mango) flavor. I'm quite sad i didn't get the pear after i tried his but i throughly enjoyed mine. If your a chocolate lover, the bitter chocolate will not disappoint. 

GOD:

What else can I say? I am truly blessed to be able to experience this. It has been about two weeks since i have been to church now and I was really missing it. I thank Alex for taking me to see the Notre Dame. The outside itself looks like it took a century to get all the details finished. The inside looks like it must have taken two. The painted windows, the sculptures of the Virgin Mary and Jesus. It was a very humbling place. It was a good place to pray. I prayed for God to help me keep him close to my heart, and that i never forget that He is number one. I also said thanks for all the blessings that I have received and continue to receive to this day. When you look around, everything is what God has given you. I would strongly suggest just taking a moment out of your day to soak it in. To realize how, by God's grace, you have arrived where you are. It might make you want to cry, or pray, or yell out in joy. 

I love You. 

OTHER RANDOM PICS:

Aller a la Plage! (go to the beach)

RANDOMNESS:

Today was absolutely fantastic. My cousins took me to a beach (about 2 hours from paris). It was beautiful. The sun was out, the water was the perfect temperature. And you know what? In America, most people bring home a seashell as a souvenir. In France, you can bring home dinner!! we went looking for "les coquilles" (shells) but they are all still alive and you can bring them home and cook them. we collected enough for two meals---->

It was a long drive to the beach but it was well worth it. Except I was attacked by a crab. I thought i was stepping on another shell and tried to pick it up with my foot. Turned out i was trying to pick up a crab claw and it pinched me. My foot bled for a while too. I'm going to eat a lot of crab now to get back at them. Anywho, I thought i should take a picture of my family for everyone to see. The little girl i'm with is my niece. She is teaching me how to speak French :). She is crazy adorable and is always laughing.

The guy jumping in the air is my cousin too. I think if he went to America, chinese girls would flock to him. He's pretty handsome and suave and really smart (engineering with an emphasis in aeronauticals). OH! and people in France are not afraid to wear speedos. left and right, fat and skinny, young and old...all of them wear speedos!

Lets see, I also went to eat "moules et frites" (aka mussels and fries) today. I got mine Provençal style with olives and tomatoes. The broth was delicious. Creamy and sweet. I also had my first taste of Belgian beer today. Man oh man are Americans missing out. If we had this kinda beer in America, i would drink it a lot more.

GOD:

I was able to read a very interesting article today through my friend Colby. It talked about what "kind" of person you are. Theres 4 types and a major/minor for each type. It is titled the "Biblical Basis of the Heart Motive". If you are trying to understand yourself and are trying to get a better understanding of how to get closer to God, i would highly recommend it. It is about a ten minute read. I realized i am a Love Major with a Love Minor type. 

"Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God and knoweth God ... Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us."

~1 John 4:7, 11-12~

Well, bon nuit mes amis. I am tired. it was a very long day. and to all my friends and family stuck in California: