Text and photo, Sarah O’Neill
The west coast of Ireland is absolutely magnificent. There are green moutains taht seem to go on forever in the distance that cut through the beautiful countryside. The wildlife is amazing also: there are wild horses taht run acrossgreen fiels, sheep being herded and grazing cows. A visit to Ireland is an incredible vacation.
Photos by Lauren Brennan:
Thank you very much to Kristina Niedermayer, Ellen Aldin and Anna Applebaum for contributing to the first edition of La Une with such enthusiasm and devotion.
A week-end in Bordeaux
by Anna Applebaum
North-west of Toulouse and close to the Atlantic Ocean, Bordeaux was historically a very important port city. The commerce of the port enriched the city and its citizens and the product of that wealth remains visible today. Bordeaux is well known for large houses of white stone, as well as a large cathedral, fortified clock tower and the vestiges of the ramparts of the old port city. However, there is a modern section of Bordeaux as well and it’s quite visually striking to see the old stone houses juxtaposed with modern buildings of glass and steel. Bordeaux feels less cosmopolitan than Toulouse, but perhaps more bourgeois. There are lots of expensive shops like Cartier and Dior and Bordeaux’s population is quite stylishly attired. One of Bordeaux’s most famous attractions are the long pedestrian walkways right alongside the Garonne river, a waterway that passes through Toulouse as well. These “quais” are always filled with people ambling about and meeting friends. All in all, I found Bordeaux to be a beautiful city with many things to see, even if it lacks the quick pulse of life in Toulouse. 
Little reflexion about French
by Kristina Niedermayer
I believe almost all of the women in France are much thinner than women in the United States. When I first arrived in Toulouse, I could not understand how this could be possible because the French eat so much meat and bread! After spending time here, I have learned that french women (and french men as well) eat everything, but they eat in moderation. This concept of moderation is not as prevalent in the United States where there is a certain concentration on “the most.” Almost all americans aspire to drive big cars, live in large houses, and of course, eat large portions of food. I much prefer the French concentration on moderation because it allows for a focus on the quality of food instead of its quantity. The best part of my day is when I come home to my host family to eat delicious food, drink outstanding wine, and enjoy pleasant conversation. Here in France, I can truly enjoy wonderful food because I have am given the opportunity to appreciate its quality.
Piano at the Jacobins
by Ellen Aldin
On September 15, 2011, the group of 14 students in the Dickinson in France program spent the eveningat the clositer of the Church Les Jacobins to see a piano concert. The pianist for the concert was Ronald Brautigam and heplayed 4 Beethoven sonatas : no. 8 in minor (Pathetique), no. 15 in D major (Pastorale), no. 14 in C sharpminor (Clair de Lune), and no. 23 in F minor (Appassionata). This concert was one in the series Piano aux Jacobins, an annual festival for piano everySeptember in the cloister of Les Jacobins.
I have seenseveraloutdoorclassical music concerts, but this one was unique. The spectatorswereseated in the cloister’sgarden or in a small room with the pianist, but everyonecouldsee the pianist. And hewas a dymanic performer. He did not sitstillwhenheplayed ; hemovedhis body with the rhythm of the music. But if the spectatorsgrewtired of watching the pianist for a moment, theycouldeasilytake in the cloisterwithitsgarden, columns, and tower, which lit up at night. Therefore, i twas verydifficult to beboredduring the concert, eventhoughitlasted for threehours.
The classical music demonstrated a range of Beethoven’swork. There was music thatwasloud and soft, slow and fast, minor and major. I am not a classical music critic, but I thoughtthatBrautigamplayedverywell, especiallywith the variety of styles thatheplayedduring the same concert. It seemedlike the othermembers of the audience agreedwith me. At the end of the performance, theyapplauded for several minutes, sometimes in unision (« slow clap ») to express theirwish for an encore and Braugitampleasedthem. Afterhefinished the sonatas, heplayedseveralfamous short piano pieces for an encore.
I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the concert, and I was not the onlymember of the group with the same sentiment. With thebeatiful music in a gorgeous space, it was very easy to enjoy yourself at the Piano aux Jacobins.
Dear students,
La Une is the webjournal of Dickinson in France. In order to provide every month nice and interesting articles, I will need your help and your talent. You can send me your articles and photos in order to be published.
I know you just arrrived in Toulouse. But your very first moments in France, in Toulouse, at your university are going to be very intense and inspiring.
Don’t hesitate to meet me in my office. Together we can find the perfect topic for you and I will be here to help you with the writing part.
See you soon
Alice
Dear students,
The sun stays in the sky longer, the days are hot, exams are ending and the students are leaving Toulouse for their summer plans. We want to thank you for this great year for the Dickinson in France program. It was a pleasure for us to accompany you during your discovery of French culture.
We wish you all good luck and we hope for a safe return safely to your families and that your studies continue smoothly.
It isn’t only the moment to say goodbye to the 2010-2011 students. We are preparing for the arrival of the next batch of students in September 2011. We can’t wait to meet you and to introduce you to the “ville rose.” We hope that you have a great summer and that you take the time to review the French language and to think of what you would like to discover in France.
We’d like to say « thank you and goodbye » to some and « see you soon ! » to others!
— The Dickinson in France team (Sylvie Toux, Laura Raynaud & Karen Kirner)
Dear students,
I would like to thank you for your contributions to La Une during this year on the Dickinson in France program. I am happy to have worked with you on the blog. Thanks to your investment, I am proud of what we produced together.
I would like to give special thanks to the La Une team that worked the entire year to publish this monthly blog. I really appreciated the ideas and energy you brought to the table. Thanks for all of your contributions to La Une and for being persistent in soliciting articles from your classmates.
Thank you to Nicolas Garzon for sharing your love of Toulouse sports teams.
Thank you to Michael Rao for representing the second semester students.
Thank you to Madlen Chipeva for sharing your love for photography by documenting our class trips.
Thank you to Qichan Qian for pushing us to discover restaurants in Toulouse and in France.
Thank you toAnna Ciriani Dean for translating La Une each month.
I hope that the work invested in this blog was as enriching for you as it was for me.
Thank you for a great year with Dickinson in France !
–Karen Kirner, editor
These past four months were an opportunity for me to be a part of the Dickinson in France team and to observe and participate in the center’s daily functioning. But in particular, this period was an opportunity to meet lots of people, to question how to deal with the specificities of many cultures in an academic context. When I came to France to study five years ago, the prospect of becoming an independent Toulouse student instead of a vacationing tourist in Paris did not just scare me. It intrigued me. And this intrigue contributes without a doubt to motivating people to go beyond their horizons, to outdo themselves, but especially to rediscover themselves. The Dickinson students that I met in Toulouse all share the desire to discover French culture and to share their own culture. I appreciated their curiosity and their good humor as well as their ability to analyze and observe and their reactivity to new situations.
Sylvie Toux, Laura Raynaud and Karen Kirner, the association’s team, gave me the warmest of welcomes. I want to thank them for making every aspect of my internship pleasant. They work hard to enrich the Toulouse program from both an academic and a cultural point of view.
Let’s be less serious: I also discovered the mountains thanks to the center and slipping in the Pyrenees snow at -5°C was just as memorable as unexpectedly meeting Jean-Luc, a writer who lived in Cameroon at 35°C during the 60’s and who came back to live in his country of origin. The often repeated French saying “it’s a small world” is actually true.
Thanks to technological advances in communication in the world, we can leave, but we can also come back. You can leave the United States to discover France. And go back to the United States. You can leave Cameroon to study in France. Or you can come back to France after having worked in Cameroon. Or you can definitively settle down in France after leaving your home country. All of these moves, across the Atlantic or elsewhere, make the world as connected as it is today. But it’s the desire to go abroad to look at our own culture from a different angle, without completely losing it, that founds interculturalism. In short, my internship in the multicultural environment that is Dickinson in France is coming to an end, but I am happy to have learned so much about myself and others.
–Jessica N’koumba N’koumba
The team of students working on La Une took advantage of our time together during the excursion in Provence to ask their classmates questions about their experience in Toulouse. Here are some reflexions on the end of the semester or year in “La Ville Rose” :
Photo de Anna Geiserman.
There is no doubt that the Dickinson, WashU and Hood students will miss Toulouse. According to one student, Rossen Iankov, “What I’m going to miss is public transport and cafés, but especially the group of American students that shared my experience.” Other students in the program agree with Rossen, saying that they will miss their host families, their friends and the easiness of meeting people in Toulouse.
However, this isn’t a time to be sad, according to a WashU student, Bailey Davidson. “This was one of the best chapters of my life and although I am sad to leave to early, I will always be able to look back at my experience,” she says. Like many other students, she loved discovering the city of Toulouse and she cites Café Populaire, the Garonne river and Hôpital des Graves as her favorite places. Another student, Allison Fricke, thinks her host family’s garden is one of the most peaceful places in the world.
As for food, the American students took advantage of the French meal. A WashU student, Elizabeth Morrow, says, “I ate a lot of unique things in Toulouse. I’m so glad to have tried weird things like turkey heart and calf liver! You can’t make those things as easily in the United States, for sure.” Other students claim that their favorite dishes are ratatouille and duck although some of them still love hamburgers, even in France!
Yet all of the students agree that they will always remember the lessons learned from their experiences. They have had some ridiculous experiences, “especially at the Ramier,” says Allison, as well as some that have given them a new point of view on life. They now know the importance of being open to the world and they all know how to find shelter in a difficult situation or in an unknown place. In particular, they have learned how to appreciate a place and in the United States, they want to take advantage of our beautiful country.
Although the Dickinson in France students are all happy to see their American friends and family, they will surely miss the program. With a bit of luck, they will take their lessons learned and apply them wherever life takes them.
–Michael Rao
Jenna said…
Life lesson learned in France: « There is always a solution. » Whatever the situation, you can always find a solution.
The most surprising food eaten in France: blood sausage. She ate it before knowing that it was made with pig blood and she thought it tasted good, but in a weird way.
Her favorite places: the Jardin des plantes, the lawn next to the Garonne river where you can always sit in the son and take advantage of a beautiful day.
Like everyone, she is going to miss a lot of things when she goes back to the US. The best pastry shops and bakeries that make delicious pain aux chocolat and palm leaf pastries; cafés, place de la Trinité, where there are always performers who sing beautiful songs; and the Sherpa, where she had her first real French crêpe.
Erica said…
Although it’s very difficult to choose a favorite dish because there are so many choices, her favorite dish is warm goat cheese salad with honey.
She will miss the proximity of everything in Toulouse and the city’s beauty. The pink city has become one of her most unforgettable memories.
Gabby said…
She is going to miss:
her host family because she always spent a lot of time with her,
making home-made watermelon jam, going to Bordeaux, etc.,
her neighbor that she went to the museum with to explore the city,
the strike culture that she experienced first semester.
Gabrielle said…
Her best memory in France was dinner at the student parish after Sunday mass.
–Qichan Qian
Most ridiculous moment:
Jen : Running after little ducks in the springtime
Josh : writing a poem for a French girl the first day of class
Leigh: falling off a rental bike (vélôToulouse)
Anna G said : « ne beurer pas la moule » instead of « le moule » (sexual connotation)
Favorite dish :
Leigh: duck confit, quiches
Jen: salty salmon cake
Josh: kebabs, pork and pineapple (that his host mother makes)
Hillary: Nutella crêpes
Anna G: duck flavored with honey
Strangest thing you did:
Anna G: eating blood, pork cheeks, microwavable mustard-flavored rabbit
Leigh: tripe (in Lyon)
Best memory :
Photo de Anna Geiserman.
Anna G: sitting along the Garonne
Jen + Jenna: Tuesdays at the Sherpa restaurant
Leigh: picnicking at the Jardin des Plantes and running a marathon in Paris
Hillary: the ICT Gala, a Nutella and peanut butter crêpe night shared with French and American friends
Leigh and Anna CD: a fun night at the De Danú pub
The group’s last picnic at Prairie des Filtres
Josh: eating a galette du roi (New Year’s cake) along the Garonne, skipping rocks with Jean-Luc during the Pyrenees trip
Leigh: when the students at her internship sang « Pretty Woman », going to her host family’s « castle »
Favorite place:
The Garonne river
SLD (a café on place de la Trinité)
Rue de Metz, where St. Etienne peeps out from between the buildings
Place Wilson
Square Charles de Gaulle
A friend’s roof
What we’re going to miss:
Everything!
The architecture, walking to the Dickinson Center, the Canal du Midi, bakeries, steak, Kebabs, place de la Trinité, being able to walk everywhere, parks, friends, peach Kir, cheap wine, LIDL, the Garonne
What we’re looking forward to in the USA :
Hillary: American ice cream, stores always being open, peanut butter, family
Leigh: Chipotle, the Atlantic ocean, « hanging out »
Jen: driving my car, understanding everything everyone is saying
Explicit culture
Being able to pet animals on the street
Making « small talk » with random people
Brunch
Pancakes
Reese’s
Cheap chewing gum
The fact that the dollar is much cheaper
S’mores, campfires, barbecues, camping
American landscapes
Life lessons :
« don’t worry »
Being more welcoming to strangers
How to drink European coffee
How language and culture define you – being different while also assimilating some aspects of the local culture
How we’ve changed:
Jen: more sustainable and thrifty
Leigh: I cook more vegetables
Anna G: I explore more
We’re not afraid of new things
We appreciate living with other people more
We appreciate the easiness of living on a campus
« Profiter » = take advantage, but in the French sense
Being able to live without our parents
Difficulties :
The language
The French school system
–Anna Ciriani Dean
Now that the end of my stay is approaching, I have started to reflect on what it means to say “au revoir” (goodbye). From a linguistic point of view, I had some difficulty with this expression. No matter what French-English dictionary or travel guide you look in, au revoir is translated as « goodbye », but it seems to me that the full meaning of the word is lost in translation. Au revoir means more than what people say when they leave because they imply that they will see each other again in the future. In fact, almost all expressions used to say goodbye (à tout à l’heure, à la prochaine, à plus tard, à demain, à bientôt) assume that the interlocutors will see each other again. Yes, the French can express finality with the term, adieu, but this word is typically reserved for extreme circumstances, when a person is lying on their death bed (and it would therefore be impossible to see each other again).
On the other hand, the word goodbye in English is a bit ambiguous. In certain circumstances, you say goodbye with a definitive tone to show the end of a relationship or of a social tie, but you usually pronounce it with a less extreme meaning to show recognition of a departure or a physical (and temporary) separation. This way, you can make sense of goodbye through its opposite, and goodbye simply means the opposite of hello.
This nuance in meaning often bothers me and I feel a bit of cognitive dissonance when I say au revoir while leaving a store or a bakery even though I have no intention of coming back. Without being able to express myself like I want to, am I obligates to lie? Do the French consider it a lie, a polite gesture or a sign of optimism?
Although I like to think that the relationships I have founded here and the friendships I’ve made will continue after I leave, I honestly am not sure whether I will be able to keep up long-distance relationships when there is an ocean that separates us. I have no idea when I’ll be able to come back to France. Although I don’t have all the answers, I think I will try to absorb the French mentality when it comes to goodbyes and say au revoir to my friends here, hoping that our life together has not come to an end.
–Hillary Molloy
Dickinson College in Carlisle has an organic farm that produces vegetables for the cafeteria. We don’t have a farm to the same extent, but we have started a small vegetable garden in the past few weeks. At the moment, we only have a small harvest of peas, but we hope that in the next few weeks, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers and green beans will sprout. Our gardener, Mr. Faucher, helps us a lot, as he prepares the earth and shows us how to take care of our little plants. We hope that in the future, Dickinson in France students will also enjoy of the vegetable garden.
During the month of April we benefitted from spring vacation. Our students left Toulouse to discover other parts of France and Europe during this time. Here are a few “post cards” of their adventures:
Over Easter vacation, I crossed three countries: the UK, Germany and Poland.
London
During my stay in this city, the weather was gorgeous and the company was even better. I spent three days with Hillary at her high school friend Andrew’s place. You couldn’t even recognize London because of the weather, which was perfect in preparation for the royal wedding.I was able to spend a lot of time just absorbing the sun in the city’s numerous parks.One of the best moments was walking through the Portobello antique market, looking for bargains to decorate the apartment Hillary and I are sharing next year. But I think I had the most fun, all of the sudden, it started to pour and we had to run like mad because we were wearing mini-skirts and tank tops. A truly authentic experience.
Bremen and Hamburg
Another country, another atmosphere. I visited the Dickinson in Germany students in Bremen for four days. In this city, I realized how French I had become this past year. Like a good Toulousian, I always wanted to cross the street even when the pedestrian light was red. And the Germans looked at me judgmentally. Nobody – and I mean nobody – crossed the street if the light was red, even if there were no cars within 2 miles! I appreciate their respect for the rules, but they exaggerate a little.
I also discovered the German obsession with strange things. During a day trip to Hamburg, I went to a miniature museum, Minitur Wunderland, which displayed incredibly precise models of cities from different countries. Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, the United States…each country was different, down to the last detail. I loved looking at what the little 1-inch figures were doing in each scene. From everyday tasks to simply bizarre obscurities.
At the end of my stay, the Bremen Dickinson center invited me to a Werder Bremen soccer game. Our team lost, but I discovered their passion for this sport and the culture that surrounds it.
Miedzizdroje and Poznan
Last stop: visiting my Polish roommates from last summer. It was my first time in this country, but I fell in love with the language. My friends taught me some words: Djen kuya (thanks), Piekna (beautiful)…
I started my visit at my friend Magdalena’s parents’ house in Miedzizdroje, a small town on the sea in the island part of Poland. Here, I discovered some basics of Polish food: potatoes, waffles and tea. During a very « zimno » (cold) walk on the « molo » (pier), I saw lots of little stands selling « gofry » (waffles). Not just any waffles, but waffles with the most unusual toppings. Out of fear, I limited myself to a waffle with whipped cream and red fruit. Moreover, I noticed that the Polish drink a lot of tea…with even more sugar. Apparently, sugar is very expensive in Poland, but they use a lot of it: three or four spoons per cup of tea. In short, my weekend was not very slimming.
Then, we went to Poznan to see another friend, Milena, at her apartment. Here I had to deal with their currency, the « zloty ». I went shopping with my friend and everything seemed very expensive. In fact, 1 zloty = 0.256320262 Euros. If you think of the exchange rate, though, nothing is really expensive for us, but for them, life is very expensive because they don’t make a lot of money. Besides this shock, I really loved Poznan. The city center is charming and they even built an artificial lake. Furthermore, I went to the World Press Photo exhibition, which showed the best photographs by photojournalists of 2010. These disturbing images made me reflect on all of the catastrophes, natural or not, that can happen in twelve months. I really appreciated the exhibition.
I discovered a lot during this trip, but the world is big and this is just the beginning.
–Anna Ciriani Dean
At the end of March, I spent a weekend at Biarritz and San Sébastien. Upon my arrival, I realized that the Biarritz region really has its own culture. Biarritz is in the heart of Basque Country and lots of people consider themselves more Basque than French. It’s a wonderful city with a charming center and nice golden sand beaches. I understood why it’s a popular destination for celebrities. After a day in Biarritz, we went to San Sébastien in Spain. This city is next to Biarritz and is also part of Basque Country.In San Sébastien, the culture is much more Spanish than French in spite of its proximity (38km) to Biarritz. We spent the day in a tapas bar. The tapas and Sangria were delicious!
In the afternoon, I went to a rugby match in San Sébastien : the Biarritz team against the Bayonne team, another city in the French Basque Country. I was with a group of six French people, one American and an Argentinian and we all rooted for the Biarritz team except for two of us who were for Bayonne. Fortunately, Biarritz won and after the game, we went back into the city to celebrate the victory and to eat more tapas. The experience reminded me of soccer games I went to in Argentina. The stadium was full of energy and competitiveness. It was really a great experience to understand the cultural differences of this particular region of Europe!
–Joanna Sprout
Somewhere between its incredible cuisine, the islands’ crystal waters and its ancient and captivating architecture, there was something about Greece that I was not prepared for. In all of my travels, I have never met anybody as helpful as the Greeks. Americans are nice, the French are nice (in general), Spaniards and Italians are nice, but the Greeks are your best friends. The Greeks stop you in the street to ask you if you need something or are looking for something! Free wine, free desserts, free tours, free visits…and it’s all because they want to be generous. The rest of the world could learn something from their attitude. A very well-spent trip.
–Clara Myers
Nice is a small city on the Mediterranean coast. Nice is full of sunlight! I love the yellow, green and red buildings that adorn the cliffs. The flower market emanates lots of perfumes – lavender, herbs, olives, flowers. I think that Nice has the perfect panorama. There are lots of panoramic views around the city. For one day, we bought a bus ticket to go to Monaco. We visited it. We went to the Oceanography Museum, which was founded by Jacques Cousteau. We also stayed at the beach and visited the Palace. I love the French-Italian cuisine of the region. Nice is near Italy. In the Springtime, it’s beautiful in Nice. I love the little streets in the old city. You can even take a ferry to Corsica from Nice! However, Nice is very touristy. I think it’s a bit difficult to be a traveler and not a tourist. Nevertheless, it was a really fun trip!
–Jen Rokoski
Just to reinforce stereotypes: the French never smile, Americans always smile. I’m exaggerating, but it’s partially true. The American smile represents an American attitude that I miss. But is this smile sincere? I’m not so sure.
Start by taking Barack Obama’s smile. It’s impressive how positive it is. Now compare his smile to my smile. It’s the same. Does this smile mean that we’re that optimistic and happy? Not exactly. For me, smiling has become a habit, maybe even a bad habit.
Ever since I’ve had teeth, adults have been telling me to « Say cheese! » when they take a picture of me. Although very positive, this suggestion seems like an order. Smiling is imperative…otherwise you risk recording bad memories in photographs. Even if the day wasn’t very pleasant and the people in the photo weren’t that happy, the photo has to show a « good time », fictitious or not, that we spent together. Smiling is thus the mask behind which Americans hide their true being.
When I was younger, I went through a rebellious phase: I refused to let people take pictures of me with this big, fake smile or I made fun of it by making a silly, unattractive face. But besides that brief period of adolescent disobedience, I have always conformed to the rule. Now I’m the one who orders my subjects to smile.
The situation becomes frustrating when I ask French people to show their teeth to the camera. In a multicultural group, the differences between each person’s smiles become evident. Of course, a lot of French people smile, but the numbers are relatively slim.
I myself have perfected my smile. I execute it with no sign of hesitation. I execute it each time that I catch someone’s eye, that I feel awkward, that I interact with somebody. Executing a smile – because it’s truly a mechanical reaction – has become second nature for me. I use it to express my happiness and my amusement, but also to hide inconvenient feelings, like shame or embarrassment. Smiling is a defense mechanism.
So what about the French? They also want to protect themselves, but their method is different. You can’t force them to smile while 
taking a photo of them. When you catch their eye on the street, they don’t smile back at you to relieve an embarrassing moment that exists when two people meet. They’re always serious. Maybe they think that smiling reveals them to the world, taking away their protection, their mask.
In the theater of life, the French protect themselves with an impenetrable face and Americans with a smiling face. Same reason, different manifestations.
–Anna Ciriani Dean
From March 25th to 28th, 42 students with 19 different nationalities, who go to 20 different European universities, participated in the « Challenge the Best » conference at St Gallen University in Switzerland. I had the opportunity to be one of those 42 students. It’s an annual program organized by St Gallen University’s student union since 2010. This program offers the opportunity to meet the most respected people of our time and to discuss important world issues. The purpose of this conference is to take on the problems of our time, keeping in mind that our generation will be held responsible to solve them. A dialogue forum was established between those who have shaped the world and those who will continue to do so.
Last year, the conference’s theme was global climate change and social order. This year, the topic was focused on human diversity in Europe. Because of the importance of immigration and internal migration in the last few decades, human diversity has reached a significant level. The members of European societies constitute a picturesque mosaic of different origins, languages and cultures. Therefore, it is good to know how we can find potential hidden people in our societies because they can generate considerable advantages for European societies today and in the future. The guests of honor this year were:
Dr Lale Akgun, an expert in political integration in Germany;
Lewis M. Feldstein, the former president of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation that Barack Obama contributed to ;
Dr Eberhard von Koerber, the copresident of the Rome Club;
Prof. Sir James Mirrlees, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics;
Prof. Dr Heinrich Rohrer, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics;
Prof. Dr Daniel Thurer, the president of the German International Law Society.
The conference was organized by the students of St Gallen University. They paid for all of the participants’ transport, housing and meals. The participants had to attend sessions directed by professors. These sessions all had economical, political and social perspectives. Later, the participants were split into six different workshops: conflict, identity, innovation, involvement, organization ability and responsibility and leadership. In these workshops, we had a critical discussion on the statements by the guest speakers and the theses that the students had developed during the seminar. The last day of the conference, there was a debate by public experts that was open to all students at ST Gallen University. Prof. Sir James Mirrlees gave a speech called « Who is my neighbor? Evaluating human diversity ».
St Gallen University will continue this program next year, so if you are interested, you can apply online on the St Gallen University website at the beginning of the year. It’s an unforgettable experience that gave me the opportunity to think not only about my identity, but also about the idea of a collective identity. Meeting other intelligent students and exchanging ideas with well-known experts is very precious because you can discover diverse and deep perspectives.
–Qichan Qian
Victoire is my host sister. She is nineteen years old and in her first year at the Institut Catholique, where she studies law. Living with her has given me an excellent opportunity to understand and observe relationships betweens French children and their parents, especially how they change as the children become young adults like Victoire. At this point in her life, Victoire is trying to separate her identity from her family’s so as to feel like and independent adult. Furthermore, Victoire wants to feel independent because she has already lived independently thanks to her 6-month stay in Australia last year. I think that this battle for independence happens frequently for French young adults because in France, you remain your parent’s child until marriage. In Victoire’s case, however, I think that this battle is particularly difficult because she lives at her parents’ house. I also think that that it’s hard for her to feel independent because some of her friends at the ICT don’t live with their parents anymore, but have their own apartments in Toulouse. I think that Victoire is in a phase where she is trying to fly with her own wings so as not to be considered her parents’, Olivier and Isabelle’s, daughter. After having spent lots of time with her, I can see this desire in her interactions with her parents.
In general, Victoire is very nice and considerate with her parents, especially with her father – when she speaks with him, her tone is sweet and affectionate, like a mother who speaks to her child. I think that she has very intimate ties with him. However, Olivier is a very demanding father – even though he has not explicitly expressed his aspirations for her, he expects a lot from Victoire because he establishes strict rules in the family. Isabelle, Victoire’s mother, also has very precise aspirations for her. For instance, Isabelle wants Victoire to learn Spanish so that she can study abroad with Erasmus next year. She also wants Victoire to maintain her level of English. So she bothers Victoire almost every day so that she finds a job as an au pair this summer in Spain to improve her Spanish. She also advises Victoire to speak English with me by repeating: « It would be good for you to speak English with Elizabeth for just one hour a week because I know you don’t want to lose what you learned in Australia ». All of this pressure makes Victoire frustrated with her parents – one moment she is very nice and interested in interacting with the family, but all of the sudden she becomes hostile and aggressive. Victoire is very expressive when she gets angry – her voice gets louder, her eyebrows rise and fall frenetically and her hands make big gestures. In the beginning, it seems like Victoire loses her temper quickly and gets angry easily, but I think she’s fantastic because she wants to assert her individuality. To prove to her others, but also to herself, that she has her own voice and that she can make her own choices. Victoire fights with her parents when she thinks their advice limit her freedom. Moreover, I find that Victoire gets angry easily because she is constantly confronted with criticism – criticism of her grades, friends and choices. This observation coincides perfectly with the idea that from childhood, young French kids are confronted with their parents’, professors’ and French society’s criticism over and over. Every now and then, I think that Victoire appreciates her parents’ help because their advice means that love her and that they want what’s best for her. However, other times she perceives advice as criticism that suggests that she can’t take care of herself. Therefore, to protect her self-respect from hers parents’ and other people’s criticism, Victoire builds a social armor by always acting on the defense.
–Elizabeth Morrow
What I’ve found during my time in France is that while Americans try to save time, the French make an effort to save resources. In fact, this American tendency explains why Americans are well-known for fast food. In the United States, life takes place at a fast pace to maximize productivity. In support of the notion of « dollarization » that Baudry describes in his book, it seems like Americans assign monetary value to time to « immediately make sense of it » (50). This idea becomes particularly evident in the American expression, time is money, which assimilates time and money because we associate value to our time (in particular a salary). By believing that time is money, Americans think that they can save money by reducing the time necessary to accomplish daily tasks. In the United States, this mentality caused the food industry and the invention of products such as boxed cake (which Jenna’s host mother calls « an American cake ») intended for active women that cannot dedicate a many hours to cooking, but who still want to supply the comfort of a home-made meal. Similarly, Americans often pack a lunch so that they can work at the same time. As a result, portability becomes an attractive sales strategy, which leads to the invention of Gogurt and granola bars.
However, for the French, saving on food is not enough. Consubstantiation (or what is described in anthropology as the act of eating together) seems like a fundamental part of French culture.
A week ago, one of my classes at the Mirail was canceled, so I spent the morning at home for the first time. When I woke up, nobody was home and I thought it was going to be a calm morning. However, while I was working in my room, I started to hear something around 11.30. « Jo! », cried Madame du Pradel from the kitchen. Mixing up my days of the week, I remembered that my host sister, Joséphine, didn’t have class Wednesday morning and therefore, it didn’t seem exceptional that she was home. A few moments later, she added: « Foucauld! ». Because he had been sick a few days earlier, I imagined he had decided to stay home to rest. Finally, she called: « Timothé! Mayeul! » and at that moment, I stopped searching for explanations. I don’t know why it took me three weeks to realize that everybody comes home to have lunch. Later that day, I told Joséphine about my observation, who told me that she comes home every day at 11.30 and goes back to school at 1.20. I had always wondered why school days are so long, but now everything has become clearer. When I talked to a French friend about this, he told me that he also always goes home, except for Wednesday when his parents aren’t there. Yet I couldn’t imagine how an entire city shut down for two hours every afternoon to have lunch at home with their family. I had gotten used to relatively slow French dinners and, in fact, I prefer them to American meals where everyone typically seems to be distracted and in a hurry. At Dickinson, I find it impossible to put my worries on hold during a meal and therefore, I am often too worried to be completely at ease. In France, I have no sense of time during dinner and therefore, I can appreciate the calm atmosphere.
Evidently, lunch and dinner are rather long family affairs for the French, who do not feel like skimping on food or family time. According to my friend Dorian: « the Toulouse identity also includes the idea of taking advantage of life. By that I mean that people are a little less in a hurry, that they love to take their time ». Thus, it seems that Toulousians would be even less inclined to sacrifice pleasure to reduce the length of daily tasks. Finally, I admire this attitude more than I can express. I waste too much time dwelling on the past and waiting for the future and therefore, I cannot stand the American tendency to save time.
While Americans prefer saving time and the French prefer to take advantage of life and not hurry, the opposite is true when it comes to resources. In general, I think that Americans waste more water, energy and food than the French. At Dickinson, an institution that claims to support sustainability, I know a lot of students who regularly take showers that last between 15 and (in some extreme cases) fifty minutes because they love to rest and relax under hot water. Similarly, I’ve also seen people taste several main dishes before finding one they want to eat. Finally, they throw away all of their leftovers to show their self restraint. What is more, it is relatively normal for Americans not to turn off all of the lights before leaving their house to give the impression that somebody is home so as to scare away any robbers. On the other hand, the French seem extremely conscious of their consumption. To give a few examples, they take very efficient showers (and to my knowledge, they resist the desire to sing), they always turn off the lights when they leave a room, they finish all of the food on their plate during a meal, they air their clothes dry, their toilets require little water and they often go into town on foot or by bike. Furthermore, my host family uses (and reuses) sturdy paper plates instead of throwing out disposable ones. This way, the French differ from Americans when it comes to the environment.
Although this American carelessness seems a bit mysterious (and in fact, after a while, I find it a source of shame), I learned that this conscientious attitude has historical origins. Evidently, the French became thriftier after the Second World War, when their resources were seriously limited. Because there still are a lot of people in France that grew up during the war, this worried attitude continues today.
–Hillary Molloy
The semester I spent in Brazil was great, but I missed a certain intellectualism. I read a lot of books and I kept up with the news, but the Brazilians I lived with didn’t want to get involved in my intellectual conversations. One day, at the beginning of my stay in Brazil, I tried to talk about the elections with my host mother. Faux pas. She reeled off a lot of false things about corruption within the Worker’s Party, she criticized the social politics that help the poor and then she pointed out that we shouldn’t talk about things like religion or politics. That was the last time I tried to talk politics to my host family or to Brazilians that I wasn’t very close with.
Intellectually, I arrived in Toulouse with a craving to satisfy my appetite in a culture known for its intellectualism. In Français & Américains, l’autre rive, Baudry asserts that « the French have been conditioned to value only intellectual knowledge, to believe that they already know and to devalue practical abilities. » (Baudry, 101). As an intellectual with not many practical abilities, I was excited at the idea of living with people similar to me. I was not let down; intellectualism manifests itself in many aspects of daily life.
First of all, in France, table discussions are lively. My host father, Bernard, wants to talk about current events every day. We talk and we argue. When Bernard claims that the United States will declare war against China in the next 20 years, I don’t hesitate to contradict him. Fortunately, nobody gets offended. I also observe this phenomenon at the Institut d’Études Politiques, where I feel more comfortable talking about politics with students other than Dickinsonians.
I am used to trying to speak with everyone, but most Americans do not want to talk about politics with foreigners. In the United States, the ideological difference between Republicans and Democrats is bigger than the one between the UMP and the PS. The value gap is so big in the United States that a lot of young American families take the political convictions of a city’s inhabitants into account before moving. Therefore, you can imagine why foreigners at Dickinson don’t want to talk about politics with me; they are afraid I will judge them if we do not agree.
At the IEP, the students’ attitude is quite different. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, I have lunch with students in their first and second year. At the cafeteria, I ask them their opinion about French politics. Maybe my curiosity is badly seen in France, but it doesn’t bother the young people I meet at the IEP. When we have lunch, everyone stops and tries to explain their opinion on French politics. When I told Madame Lebreton about this experience, she exclaimed: « Of course ! People with no opinion are boring. » I love this attitude.
Watching French public television, I see an even more interesting dynamic. France 2 has a show called « Semaine Critique » (Criticism Weekly), during which three authors come on set. However, it’s not an interview with Oprah. The authors face four commentators and intellectuals who either attack or praise their books, interrupt each other and hit their fists on the table. Nevertheless, what interests me isn’t just the style of the conversation, but also the content. « Semaine Critique » reveals aspects of the French mentality in comparison to the American mentality. The content of the conversation exemplifies a phenomenon that Pascal Baudry explains in Français & Américains, l’autre rive:
The American culture is binary. A proposal is either true or false. Americans are very uneasy with nuances of grey – whereas the French swims easily and even delights in an ocean of ambiguity that he contributes to upkeep. (Baudry 36)
The first time I watched « Semaine Critique », the famous author Alexandre Jardin was talking about his book, Des gens très bien (Very good people). The book tells the story of his grandfather, Jean Jardin, who was the director of Pierre Laval’s cabinet during the Vichy government during the Second World War. If it had been an American show, the question would have simply been « Thumbs up or thumbs down? ». In this French show, they examined the complexity of the man and of his job. In fact, the author criticized his grandfather more than the commentators, who retorted that Jardin was crazy to condemn his grandfather without considering the historical background of his life. However, the debate between the commentators didn’t focus on the question of good or bad.
All cultures are full of traits that result from their history. Yet it is difficult to pinpoint their origins and to follow the evolution of the differences between populations. For what concerns intellectualism in France, the Enlightenment is situated in the center of French history. Ever since this time period, during which Voltaire, Montesquieu and their contemporaries sought after the development of reason introduced by Descartes, the French have celebrated intelligence and « esprit » (the mind) more than any other people. I first learned that intellectualism and « esprit » were a way to impress others in French high society while watching Ridicule for a French class at Dickinson. This French historical fiction film, released in 1996 and directed by Patrice Leconte, presents Louis XIV’s court in Versailles, a court where the king listened to men who demonstrated a certain « esprit ». Ridicule showed me that intelligence has been celebrated in France since the monarchy. But why do the French seem more comfortable with moral incertitude? Why do Americans ask so many questions in black and white? How can a French author be criticized for his own criticism of his grandfather, a Vichy politician? Of course, deep intellectualism contributes to the acceptance of complexity and a moral grey zone. And yet, there are other causes. In my next section, I will discuss the French conception of history and I will see how it is related to pessimism and to the acceptance of unsteady morality.
–Josh Handelsman
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to attend the seminar on the chronicle La sinistrose, une maladie française (Gloom, a French ailment) which appeared in « Le Figaro » on January 5th, 2011. Nevertheless, I have reflected a lot on French pessimism since I arrived in Toulouse. There are many possible explanations. Baudry describes one theory :
The systematically negative and critical point of view results from a belief in rarity, often present in old countries that have lived through raids, food shortage and famine and where a defensive, rural standpoint has been forged over the centuries. As the nursery rhyme says « The neighbor has bread, but it’s not for us. » (Baudry, 104)
I agree that times of suffering in the history of France have fueled this pessimism. However, I would like to examine the concept of history and how it influences pessimism and the acceptance of moral ambiguity more in depth.
Last week, while studying at the Arsenal library, I stumbled upon a book published in 2004 and written by Therry Wolton called
« A short psychoanalysis of France ». Never trusting this type of social analysis, I took it and read the introduction and the first few chapters. According to the author, France suffers from a pessimism or national depression because the French try to live in the shadow of many historical factors. First of all, he asserts that the decline of the French culture and of the French State’s influence has affected the population. In addition, the occupation and the Vichy government during the Second World War still torments them in spite of Charles de Gaulle and other people’s efforts to make them think that France had resisted. I am skeptical about the attempt to psychoanalyze populations, but I found that the book revealed an important phenomenon concerning how the French and Americans view history.
A young American is bombarded by history when he starts school. He learns the history of his city, of his state and then of the great United States. During the first few years, everything the young American learns seems positive; Christopher Columbus, pilgrims and revolutionaries are present as indisputable heroes. It’s only in high school that he discovers some of the complexity and moral ambiguity of these characters. However, American political culture continues to reinforce the positivism of our elementary school classes. Politicians speak of « American Exceptionalism » and don’t dare argue against the idea – or even the fact – that the United States are the best country in world history. They ignore the sins and most Americans have an impressive ability to review history as they please. Although there are reasons to be depressed in the United States, the nation’s decline and a pessimism about our position haven’t reached them yet.
This review of national history seems impossible in France. Although schools present a heroic image of the country, France’s sins and failures are too recent to ignore. As the author explains, the occupation of France still affects the French. Even though they did not collaborate with Vichy or with the Nazis, they are still regretful for not having fought. It is difficult to support a heroic view of your country if you or your parents lived during such a shameful time.
I do not want to give the impression that I have something against France for having been occupied by the Germans. The difference between the United States and France during this time period was geography, not courage. Still, our conception of history has an impact on our conception of today’s world. The French conception is full of contradictions, heroism and shame. Although this contributes to the people’s pessimism, at least one element of enviable honesty exists that does not exist in the United States. Furthermore, French history influences the way that the population perceives moral issues. Whereas the United States have always been isolated from wars and occupations thanks to their geographic distance, France has proved an ability in what concerns good and bad for every man in the first half of the XXth century. Maybe this intimacy with ambiguity explains the aforementioned grey morality that the French accept more easily than Americans. Thus, we can imagine why the commentators on « La Semaine Critique » were able to discuss such a polemical topic as Jean Jardin’s, a man who collaborated with the Germans, without forgetting this man’s complexity
– Josh Handelsman
A martenitza in a tree.
Every year on March 1st, Bulgaria celebrates the spring with a small black and white accessory. On this day, the young and old alike give each other a “martenica” to wish each other happiness and good luck. It’s a celebration of Grandmother March, who brings flowers and sunshine in the spring. Well…this time, I played the role of Grandmother March by bringing this typical Bulgarian tradition to Toulouse.
Legend says that in 681, the founder of ancient Bulgaria, Asparoukh, sent a message to his brothers telling them he had found a free land. He tied the message to a falcon’s foot with a white string. However, the bird was injured by enemy archers’ arrows on the way. The message was delivered, but the animal’s blood had tinted the string red. From this moment on, the two colors became symbols of tradition and Bulgarian culture.
White symbolizes purity and hope and red symbolizes life. These are the two main colors used to make a “martenica.” They say that the “martenica” brings happiness, good health and luck to those who receive it. That’s why every year on March 1st, everyone offers and receives a “martenica.” Tradition is to wear it until you see the first spring bird, such as a swallow or a stork, or until you see spring flowers on trees. Then you hang it on a tree to show that spring has arrived.
– Madlen Chipeva
At the end of February and the beginning of March, we had our winter vacation. Many of our students went off to discover other parts of France and Europe. Here are a few “postcards” that they sent us of their adventures:
Dear readers,
Postcard from Seville
I am writing you this letter a week and a half after returning from Seville, which gave me some time to reflect on everything we did. It was a very short visit, about two days, between a two-day visit to Lisbon and a three-day visit to Barcelona. If you didn’t know already, Seville is a small picturesque city in the south of Spain. It became rich after the Spanish conquered American colonies – there is even a tower called “El torre del oro”. As a result, a big cathedral, the biggest gothic cathedral in the world, is located right in the center of the city and inside, there is the tomb of Christopher Columbus, our dear explorer (who crossed the ocean blue in 1492).
The city’s charm mostly comes from the orange trees planted along the streets and in small Sevillian courts. After Ilya climbed a tree to pick an orange, we discovered that the oranges have the same sour flavor as lemons even though they look like oranges. The other defining aspect of Seville is Mudejar architecture. You can see the Islamic influence on Sevillian architecture: big gardens, arab motifs on the buildings and colored mosaics. The cathedral is a mix of styles: gothic and Mudejar, a word introduced to us by Michael. We visited a Mudejar-style palace, the Alcazar, which faces the cathedral. Its big gardens and its elaborate decorations create a luxurious ambiance that was very impressive. In spite of the rain, the orange trees and the buildings were magnificent enough for Anna to take beautiful photos.
Because Seville is a typical Spanish city, we were able to take advantage of Spanish culture. Therefore, we went to see a flamenco performance. Bailey would agree that it was so moving that we couldn’t even blink out of fear of missing a moment. Our meals were always the most important part of our day, so we chose our restaurants carefully – always tapas. We really liked Las Coloniales and we checked out three different restaurants. In short, we had a great time and we learned a few historical facts about Seville and a few Spanish words.
Adios, amigos !
–Allison Fricke
Marseille…la mer
Anna scatters salt in Marseille
Marseille…the sea! Marseille is truly a large city. You can get lost amid the identical buildings and cars drive around without following road rules. Still, there are some charming districts, majestic monuments and the docks. I have to say that my favorite part of Marseille was the sea. I felt like I had switched seasons, like I had been reborn like the spring.
In fact, I had a precise objective in coming to Marseille. The Japanese artist that made a salt installation at the last exhibition organized at the Espace Ecureuil wanted the public to throw his salt into the air and into the water at the end of the exhibition. Under the pretense that my parents were there and that my Dad has a friend who could put us up, I was able to fulfill his wishes.
Although it was cold, I took off my shoes and I ran on the beach for a half hour at least. The sea made me forget the winter. It washed me of all of my worries. In Toulouse, we have the Garonne river, but it isn’t the same. The power and beauty of such a large expanse of water, the Mediterranean sea, calms the spirit. It’s like an oasis in a big city. I would love to live on the seaside: there’s a living calm that rolls with its waves.
–Anna Ciriani Dean
Lisbon completely stole my heart.
Lisbon as seen by Anna Geiserman
The vibrant colors of the buildings, the red roofs, the wild cats and peacocks, the fado music…the adorable, antiquated trams, the sparkling water, the seafood, the beautifully elaborate wall tiles…the graffiti, the hilly streets, the language, the pasteis (crisp pastry on the outside, creamy, warm custard on the inside)….
There are also some incredible sights not to go unseen. Castelo de São Jorge is an enormous but charming hilltop citadel, dating back to the sixth century BC, with breathtaking views of the entire city. Torre de Belém is a gorgeous limestone fortified tower on the water, and Mosteiro dos Jéronimos with its two-story cloisters is magnificent. Bairro Alto is an extremely vivacious quarter at night, and the Alfama quarter is a wonderful place to get lost in, with tiny streets and beautifully exhausted buildings which probably haven’t seen refurbishment in decades.
I immediately felt at home in Lisbon. It was very easy to navigate, the people were very friendly and allowed us tourists to be inconspicuous, and the pace of life was relaxed and even soothing. But there’s more: The charm of this city is that it doesn’t impose itself on its visitors. Its influence is extremely subtle and there’s something very refreshing about that. I will definitely return to Lisbon, if not just for the pasteis!
–Anna Geiserman
Hello from Barcelona !
Erica in front of the Chocolate Museum in Barcelona
This city has such a big reputation that I had to see it, and I wasn’t let down ! Look at me in front of the Chocolate Museum, probably my favorite museum in Barcelona. It was really beautiful while I was there and I recommend this city to everyone!
–Erica Munoz-Fitch
Vacation in London
I went to London over vacation. I had a really good vacation there. I visited Kings Crossing Platform 9 3/4, London Tower, Westminster Abbey, and a lot more wonderful places. I also picnicked in Hyde Park with my friends. However, what I liked the most during my trip were London’s phone booths. I love London! It’s a great city!
–Gabby Betances
¡ Hola !
Barcelona as seen by Jen
Last weekend, I visited Barcelona, three and a half hours from Toulouse by car. Unfortunately, it rained all day Saturday, but my friend and I had a great time in this city! Friday, we discovered the Gothic district, which is located near Las Ramblas, a big boulevard full of shops, restaurants and markets. If you want to go to Barcelona, you have to try the churros with hot chocolate! Friday night, we saw the Magic Fountain of Montjuic. The fountains look like they are dancing with the music and the colors. All of Sunday, we explored Gaudi’s architecture. His buildings are very complex. I was surprised by the variety of colors and mosaics. Sagrada Familia is captivating. Its stained glass windows look like rainbows. At the end of my trip, I realized that the city needed sun, for sure!
–Jennifer Rokoski
An « April fish » is a prank people play on their acquaintances and friends on April 1st. For children, it consists in sticking a paper fish on people’s backs to make fun of them.
« April fish! » is the exclamation you make once your prank is discovered, or when you reveal that the story you just told them is fake.
Where does the tradition come from in France?
They say that until 1564, the new year began on April 1st. This year, King Charles IX decided to change the calendar. The year would start on January 1st from then on.
January 1st, 1565, everyone wished one another a happy new year, gave each other gifts like at the beginning of the year. But when April 1st arrived, some practical jokers had the idea to give each other gifts anyway, as it was the date when they used to give them. Because they were practical jokers and it wasn’t actually new year’s day, the presents were fake, jokes, and worthless.
From that day on, they say that each year on April 1st, everyone, big and small, got used to doing practical jokes.
Because fishing is prohibited in France at the beginning of April, because it is the spawning period for fish (when they lay eggs), a few people came up with the idea to play jokes on fisherman by throwing herrings into the river. After doing that, they may have exclaimed, “April fish!” and the tradition stuck.
Today, we don’t put herrings in rivers, but we stick small paper fish on people’s backs as discreetly as possible so that they walk around with “April fish” on their backs all day, which makes everyone else laugh.
Some even say that the “April fish” because became a “fish” because the moon exits the Pisces zodiac sign at the end of April.
(http://www.momes.net/dictionnaire/p/poissondavril.html)
1) Les chaussettes de l’archi-duchesse sont-elles sèches ou archi-sèches?
Are the arch-duchess’s socks dry or arch-dry ?
2) Si ces six saucissons-ci sont six cents sous, alors ces six saucissons-ci sont trop chers.
If these six sausages are six cents under, then these six sausages are too expensive.
3) C’est l’histoire d’un vendeur de foie dans la ville de Foix, qui me dit une fois, « ma foi, plus jamais je ne serai vendeur de foie dans la ville de Foix ».
This is a story of a liver merchant in Foix, who once said, “My goodness, never will I ever sell liver in Foix”.
Pluf, pluf Pluf, pluf
Ça sera toi it will be you
Que je choisirai that I choose
Au bout de trois after three
Un, deux, trois ! one two three !
Je fais de la purée I am making puree
Pour mes petits cochons for my little pigs
Pour 1, pour 2, pour 3,… for 1, for 2, for 3
pour neuf, bœuf ! for nine, beef !
–Anna Ciriani Dean
carrément – absolutely. « C’est carrément faux. » It’s absolutely false.
faire gaffe – be careful, pay attention. « Quand tu vas à Rome, fais gaffe à ton sac. » When you go to Rome, pay attention to your bag.
flic – the police, cops. «Je pense qu’il y a une manifestation parce qu’il y a des flics partout en ville. » I think there’s a protest because there are cops all over the city.
fringues – clothes. «J’en ai marre de ces vieilles fringues. » I’m sick of these old clothes (rags).
Thanks to Anna Ciriani Dean for translating the March issue of La Une.
Atonal music and a tortured dance style characterize “Medea”, the contemporary opera described as “schizophrenic” that just played at the Capitol Theater. This drama presents the story of Medea, an ancient Greek sorceress banned from her hometown on charge of the murder of her own brother. Distanced from her homeland and now repudiated by her husband Jason and isolated from her children, Medea has lost everything. The audience follows her descent into madness that leads up to the murder of Jason’s new bride and her children.
The opera is sung for only one voice, Medea’s, which is accompanied by a chorus and a baroque orchestra. The soprano Caroline Stein embodies the role of Medea with finesse and sensibility, lending her moving voice to the history of this abandoned and desperate woman. The audience truly feels as if it is in Medea’s head, which can be a bit frightening. This production is very well done and captivating. Capitole Theater often offers high quality performances and tickets are only 10 euros for students 15 minutes before curtain. “Profitez-en!” (Take advantage of this opportunity!).
–Gabrielle Kushlan
When I first felt the plane take off, I was relieved. The ground beneath the windows was the same and the passengers around me were speaking the same language, but I knew that we were flying over France.
I then imagined the luxury of the city, the smell of the Garonne and the taste of chocolate. Everything I had already tasted and seen. All of my memories then flashed across my eyes while my head pressed against the seat behind me. My host family, my friends and the city of Toulouse were already close. The Sherpa, place du Capitole, my bed…
I had missed all of this and the feeling of being in my city comforted me.
I did not hate London – well the opposite: my best friends work there and they even came to pick me up at Victoria Station.
My friends live in the beautiful Farringdon district. All of Friday, I was able to walk from their apartment to all of the tourist sites that the city offers, to see Saint Paul Cathedral, Tower Bridge and other districts of the city. I sat on the edge of the Thames, I ate fish and chips and I discovered parts of London that are incomparable to anything else in the world. Furthermore, we went to the England-Italy rugby match. It was the best professional sports game I’ve ever seen, including American football, basketball and even soccer.
The atmosphere of everything we did was wonderful. Yes, life in England is much more expensive than in France, but I would suggest for you to go and discover what I had the chance to see.
However, London is not Toulouse ; that is to say that the comfort we have here, or at least that I have in this small city, does not exist in London. It’s a complicated city and I very much missed the simplicity of Toulouse. I can breath and know that I belong in Toulouse.
–Michael Rao
M. Garrigues montre au premier groupe comment découper les légumes.
Saturday February 5th, the students shared an experience with the Fondation Espace Ecureuil pour l’art contemporain, where I’m doing my internship this semester. In the context of the exhibition called Reliefs, the foundation organized a special visit to Gérard Garrigues kitchen a the Moaï restaurant at the natural history museum (Muséum). While one group visited the exhibition at the foundation, the other attended part of Gérard Garrigues creation process, a veritable artistic performance. My groupe started at the kitchen, where he showed us the art of cutting vegetables and crushing spices. He gave us a warm welcome, always with a smile on his face. He wanted to create a bit of suspense by not showing us how he was going to finish his work of art. The second group was going to see the final process, but without knowing the names of the vegetables or of the spices that he showed the first group. His goal, in fact, was to create a sort of enigma and to prompt an exchange between the two groups to discover the full process.
After this culinary experience, my group went to the Espace Ecureuil to visit the exhibition. At this point, I had the privilege to give my first official guided tour. I was more at ease because I knew all of the people in the group, which helped calm my nerves. For this visit, I wanted to involve to public as much as possible so that they find the answers to the works of art themselves. It was a bit difficult at the beginning because the public expected that I give them an explanation immediately, but slowly but surely, the students started to respond to my questions without hesitation. I think that once they understood that I accepted all answers, they felt more at ease. I am happy to have had this first “mediation” experience because I feel reassured as an intern. I am proud that I was finally able to build a conversation with the students instead of bombarding them with information and reestablished interpretations.
Le deuxième groupe regarde le celeri rave préparé en forme de semoule.
What I loved the mos was when a small boy that had joined the group with his mother started to ask questions. Children really let go of all of their inhibitions and embarrassment. He asked without hesitation whether there were cows behind Marina Pirot’s wall of milk and Sylvie Corroler, the director of the foundation, answered that yes, they were there. But the child was not satisfied with this short answer, He got closer to the wall and stared at it with critical eyes. He obviouslt found a flaw in Mrs. Corroler’s reply because he asked why the cows weren’t making any noise and why the holes from which the milk flows were higher than the cows themselves. We managed to give him a satisfying answer, but I think we learned that we should never lie to a child if we don’t have an immediate answer to his questions. Children are incredibly thorough critical thinkers…
En fin de soirrée nous avons mangé le repas ensemble.
In the evening, we finally had the chance to see Gérard Garrigues’ final work of art. I noticed that the meal seemed staged. For the customers to appreciate the food, the environment also needs to be suitable: a room with simple, but elegant tables, arranged in a comfortable manner, with soft and calming lights. The complete opposite of the well-lit, industrial kitchen we had seen beforehand. And on this stage, actors (the waiters and the chef) worked to make sure that the meal proceeded without any accidents. But the most surprising was the transformation of the food from the gross product to the final work of art. We enjoyed a meal served on square plates and including a cream of beat soup, a Jerusalem artichoke-foie gras turnover, vegetable tagine (parsnip, black carrots, chestnut squash, celeriac, turnips) and a dessert (Clementine transparence with cocoa espuma).
–Anna Ciriani Dean
A French friend of mine told me about the best restaurant plan in Toulouse. It’s a card called “le passeport dîneur” that has existed for 15 years. This year, 45 good Toulouse restaurants became affiliated with it. You can dine in each restaurant, which offers one free meal (the dining passport) and one purchased meal (of equal or lesser value than the offered meal). The card is valid for one year each day of the week except for Valentine’s day and it costs 45 euros. The point of the card is to introduce people to restaurants in Toulouse. You only need to make a reservation before arriving and present the passport when you pay. The rules are really simple and easy to understand. The affiliated restaurants are pretty diverse and include Indian, French and Asian food. Plus, they are always high quality. Thus, this card is really essential during our stay in Toulouse. With the dining passport, you can take advantage of the best and spend less (sharing the price of a meal with a friend).
You can buy it online or by appointment. The website is http://www.dineur.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=65
–Qichan Qian
Friday night at the Capitole Theater, we saw a classical ballet called « The Three Musketeers ». The experience started when we entered the theater; the theater itself was very elegant and the stage decorations allowed us to travel in a fantasy. A very big map of France and England, which resembled ancient 16th century maps, placed the audience in the time period of the famous Musketeers. The romantic-style orchestra musicalso gave the performance a mystic dimension. All of these elements contributed to the feeling that we were in the world of the Three Musketeers.
This two-act ballet is an adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ well-known novel of the same title. It’s the story of three of Louis XIII’s brave musketeers and of their friend d’Artagnan. There was a rivalry between Cardinal Richelieu’s guards and the Three Musketeers during the 16th century. Capitole Theater’s talented dancers presented the tragedy of this story in a choreographic interpretation by André Prokovsky. Although all of the scenes were spectacular and well-done, the strongest moment was the pas de deux between Constance Bonacieux et D’Artagnan. All of the movement was very precise and elegant and at the end, the audience applauded at length, showing that they didn’t want the evening to end.
–Joanna Sprout
The Dickinson Center undergoes a lot of change in January : we came back from vacation to dive back into academic life, exams for last semester’s students and welcoming new students. Indeed, a lot of first semester students take their exams right before their departure from the ville rose (pink city). We want to say “goodbye” to the first semester students and we wish them good experiences in the future (either if they’re returning to the States or if they’re starting a new semester abroad). We ask the students that are staying the entire year to evaluate their first semester and to reflect on their plans and wishes to take advantage of their second semester in France.
Welcome to the second semester students! We hope you enjoy your discovery of the ville rose. If you talk to the first semester students, you’ll know that a semester goes by quickly! Starting now, think about how you want to take advantage of your time in Toulouse. We can’t wait to share this experience abroad with you. The Dickinson en France team hopes this year will be a time of academic fulfillment, personal development and discovery for each of you.
–The Dickinson en France team
I can’t believe my first semester in Toulouse is already over. Toulouse was one of the best experiences of my life. I loved learning about French culture, food and people. I have a new perspective on life because of this study abroad program and I now feel like a more independent woman. I can’t wait to start second semester. I hope it’ll be even more enriching than the first.
–Gabby Betances
I can’t believe my semester abroad went by so fast. I only have one more week left in Toulouse, nº 31 Haute-Garonne, Midi-Pyrénées, France. I remember my arrival at Blagnac airport very well. During my first two weeks in the ville rose (pink city), I always felt like a tourist or a foreigner. But, slowly but surely, I learned and I reacted.
I now feel completely integrated in Toulouse. This semester, every time I came back from a trip, it was like coming home. The other Dickinson students, whom I didn’t know at all when I arrived at the Dickinson Center the first time, are now among my best friends. I would say I know Toulouse as well as I know Chicago (where I’ve been living for 18 years) or St. Louis (where I’ve been studying for the past two years). Throughout the semester, I went to the Opéra du Capitole, I saw Toulouse FC et du Stade Toulousain games, I went to the Saint Aubin market, I had dinner with the Saint-Pierre des Chartreux student parish, and I went to a Salon de Vins et Territoires at the Parc d’Expositions. I am going to miss a lot of things, such as: nights having drinks at Place Saint-Pierre with American, French and Erasmus students, the beautiful view of the Garonne river by Pont Neuf, the pleasure of taking walks (by my host family’s house, on rue Bayard, boulevard Alsace-Lorraine and along the Canal du Midi. But what I’m going to miss the most are the people in Toulouse. They’re proud of their Occitan heritage, of their beautiful city, of their joy and of all of the region’s wonders. I had the privilege of sharing these wonders with them for a few months and there are no words to express my gratitude.
–Nicolas Garzon
Here is some information I would have liked to know when I got to Toulouse :
–Gabrielle Kushlan
Americans tend to try to be the best. Competition is a big factor in our culture. In order to reach the maximum of my abilities, I’ve elaborated a simple method: take detailed notes, study meticulously, absorb every word the professors spew out during class and then throw them back up on a piece of paper the day of the exam. You just have to sit down for hours and hours every day to integrate the day’s lesson. A simple formula, right? You give the professors what they want and you get a huge reward: good grades.
From the perspective of a professional perfectionist, I strongly suggest you not be one in Toulouse. Why? It’s like selling your soul to the Devil. Once the cycle starts, you can’t stop it. I started the semester with good grades, being efficient every day, every hour, every minute. In the beginning, I had to time to balance my studies with my free time, but my discovery of Toulouse stopped at the end of October, when I started to feel the weight of what I was doing. And bam! It was the end of the semester and I hadn’t visited all of Toulouse or the surrounding area, I had become a monk. Instead of discovering French culture, I had discovered the pages of books, my computer…my entire IKEA-styled room.
My grades. Yes, I’m proud of my grades. I worked hard for them. But I see that my classmate got bad grades and doesn’t see any problem in them. Plus, he’s not ashamed. The French, I think, don’t judge people’s grades. Nobody hides their results. Success is a collective matter: it’s not a competition, they’re not here to show that they’re more intelligent than the others, but they’re here to get by with the minimal amount of effort.
The minimal amount of effort? What’s that? It’s a way of life that you have to balance with perfectionism. Between the two, you’ll find average success that allows you to fill your life not only with your studies. Students here are used to mediocre grades and they’re happy. Therefore, don’t be too American and learn something from the French, as crazy as they may seem. This semester, the professional perfectionist is going on sabbatical and is working in moderation.
–Anna Ciriani Dean
My internship at the Dickinson Center in France was a very enriching experience both at the professional and the personal level. In fact, I was able to observe a friendly place that allows for unforgettable encounters during these six weeks.
I was lucky to meet foreign students with whom I got along well. They helped me discover American culture and shared their experience with me. This internship was a chance for an intercultural exchange with the students who made me want to know more about the United States and visit their country when I can.
What is more, I’m very happy to have participated in their traditional Thanksgiving meal, which I would never have experiences without Dickinson.
This internship also allowed me to discover Toulouse’s bus lines! Although I have already been living here for a year, I had never really had to use the bus to get around. And the Center’s unclear location was an opportunity for me to get my bearings and use the different bus lines that I knew very little of beforehand.
I would like to thank Mme Sylvie Toux, Mme Laura Raynaud and Mlle Karen Kirner to have given me the opportunity to do my internship at their association.
This internship will always be very memorable!
–Dounia Kouraichi
We all gathered at the Dickinson Center Thursday, November 25th, to celebrate Thanksgiving. It’s a very special occasion for all of us, as it was like we were at home in the United States. I imagine that I’m not the only one used to spending Thanksgiving vacation with my family. It was really nice to be able to be together in a country that doesn’t know about this tradition. The French students in my classes were surprised that we get a day off in the United States.
The evening started in the basement of the Dickinson Center. The atmosphere was very pleasant; we drank champagne and made conversation while waiting for the meal. Then, we went upstairs and we found two tables set for dinner. We all filled our plates with lots of food: there were turkey, green beans, mashed potatoes and other typical American dishes. There were also a few guests among us; some of us had invited their friends and family. At the end of the meal, we enjoyed delicious desserts prepared by the students.
–Nicolas Garzon
The La Une team wanted to know how Americans experience Thanksgiving in France. Two members of our team, Anna Ciriani Dean et Qichan Qian, took advantage of the evening to discuss with the guests. Here is how we lived this holiday in Toulouse.
QUESTIONS :
What feelings does the idea of spending Thanksgiving in France evoke for you?
What does your host family think of Thanksgiving?
Why is it important to celebrate Thanksgiving as Americans in France?
What does Thanksgiving mean to you?
What aspects of American culture does Thanksgiving evoke?
If Thanksgiving existed in France, what would the French eat?
How would the French celebrate such a holiday?
ANSWERS :
Makeda Jones : “It’s a new experience. It’s the first time I’ve celebrated Thanksgiving aways from my family. My host mom loves Thanksgiving. Although it’s not a French holiday, she’s already been to the United States. My host sister also loves Thanksgiving because she thinks that the idea behind it is great.”
Cayla Cantafio: “It’s a nice experience for me, especially with my grandparents visiting”
Leigh Harlow: Thanksgiving is an “important holiday” to “celebrate the people that are significant in my life” like “my family and my friends.”
Alex Drapac: It’s important to celebrate it “with the French to show the importance of our American culture.” It’s a “family reunion,” “the significance of the meal” is important.
Becky Payne: “They would eat “cassoulet or blanquette” if Thanksgiving were a French holiday. “There’s no way to know, we haven’t experienced any big holidays in France yet” that are as important as Thanksgiving to make a comparison.
Gabby Betances: They would eat “duck, filet, sausage, cheese…”
Yana Schick: For me, Thanksgiving means “Food! Big plates of food! My family isn’t very traditional,” but I think that French culture is similar because we get together and eat a lot…we spend time with our family,” which is a tradition in both cultures.
Mme Raynaud: “You can’t ignore Thanksgiving…it’s a part of American identity. It’s a sad moment here because you aren’t with your family; but we get together with our family here,” the students and the Dickinson team.
Mme Toux: When I was in the United States for Thanksgiving, I was “miserable” because I was “a foreigner. The streets are empty, you feel alone and you understand that it’s an important family holiday like Christmas in France. It’s really what brings Americans together…a moment of sharing.”
Sam Richardson: Thanksgiving is an “opportunity to be with the people who are important in your life and to eat American food, which is often difficult to do in France. It’s weird because it’s so important in the US. The French don’t care because it means nothing to them.”
Sarah Wright: “Thanksgiving shows the similarities between the two cultures: you spend time with the family, you share a meal…the only difference is that the French eat cheese and drink wine.”
Sarah Wright : « la fête de Thanksgiving montre des similarités entre les deux cultures : on passe du temps avec la famille, on partage un repas…la seule différence est qu’on mange du fromage et que l’on boit du vin ».
At the beginning of the school year, I was sure that I was going to make good friends. The first week of classes at the ICT, I met a lot of people. I tried to open up to others and not to withdraw into Dickinson’s small American community. I wanted to meet people quickly so as not to feel alone and so as to discover French youth. Therefore, I started to have lunch at the cafeteria with my French friends from the first week and I made an effort to integrate into their group by separating myself from my Dickinson friends.
At first, this approach worked well: I felt like my relationship with my French friends were progressing normally. But at a certain point, it became impossible for me to deepen my relationships and to establish a stronger bond with people. My conversations about French culture and the difference between France and the United States proved interesting, but insufficient to nourish my friendships. I tried to talk about more personal topics that had nothing to do with politics, culture, language, etc. In the United States, a relationship progresses like this: you confide in your friends more and more, you eventually let your guard down et you understands them on a more intimate level. Obviously my friends here weren’t ready for this progression because their reaction to certain details of my life wasn’t very warm.
The fact that they weren’t comfortable made me re-evaluate how social life works in France. I had taken a bad approach based on my American habits. For now, it seems to me that friendships in France stay superficial for a long time. For instance, when I had dinner with a French friend, we only talked about the subtleties that make languages interesting. Similarly, when I went to a friend’s house, we had fun playing Monopoly, but we never really talked about ourselves. Every reference to our personal history, to what defines us besides our nationality was touched upon fleetingly. It seems to me that the French prefer to keep their “self” out of sight for a long time.
Plus, they’re never the ones to take the initiative: they’re satisfied seeing their friends at the cafeteria, but they don’t see each other often on weekends. Their social life doesn’t seem very developed to me. At Dickinson, I always make sure not to isolate myself from the world or to shut myself in my room. I always spend time with my friends, which maybe seems less important here because they don’t need social reassurance. What do they do all alone? Or with their parents? Their homework, of course, but what about when they’re relaxing? One of the things I’ve discovered about myself is that perpetual solitude makes me sad and a bit depressed. I am normally a very independent person, but people are social creatures, they need ties to others. For this reason, I don’t understand how the French can separate themselves fro, the world for so long. Their separation limits the progression of their relationships at a deeper level.
This superficiality and separation bothers me at the moment, but maybe they’ll yield good results in the future. I hope that their present superficiality will lead to an even deeper relationship than in the United States when they lower their defences. And I hope that they won’t try to keep their distance anymore, that they’ll want to share more moments outside the ICT with me.
Does the slowness of the friendship process help build stronger relationships? I don’t know. I only know that I have a lot of work to do before I understand the mysterious social life of the French.
–Anna Ciriani Dean
It’s often easy to forget the importance of language in our lives. Now that I’ve been in France for about three months, I’m starting to get used to my life here. Among other things, it’s become a lot easier for le to get around the city, to go grocery shopping and to ask questions. During a weekend in Paris with two English-speaking friends, I started to deeply appreciate the advantages of knowing a second language.
After two trips two Paris, one with Dickinson (with other students who speak French) and another with American friends (who don’t know the language), I started to notice a big difference between the two trips. During the two trips, we did the same type of activities: we visited main tourist sites, in particular the Louvre and Notre Dame, we took the metro, and we ate at restaurants. The biggest difference between the two trips was the use of language. I always had to explain things to my American friends, whereas everyone on the Dickinson Center trip was able to be independent in Paris, to read signs, to ask people questions on the street. This autonomy was largely due to our comprehension of the French language. Therefore, although Paris is a very welcoming city for non-French speakers, the ability to speak French in Paris completely changes your experience.
There is no need to say that my trip to Paris with Dickinson was more relaxing. But the second stay also had its merits : I realized that it’s very useful to speak multiple languages. In particular, speaking the language of the country you’re in helps you immerse yourself in the culture and understand it better.
–Robert Wise
When I arrived in France, I laid down a mission to discover as many French specialties as possible. On my own, I’ve discovered French pastries, cheeses, wines, vegetables, fruits and crêpes. My host family has exposed me to rabbit, kidneys, foie gras, duck and countless sausages. There is no shortage of delicious food. Even “malbouffe” (unhealthy foods), such as Master Crumble (muesli) and kebab are better than their American equivalents.
A strange difference between American and French eating becomes evident when people make their decisions. In the United States, you go into a sandwich shop, you choose different garnishes and the person behind the counter makes your sandwich for you. It’s your sandwich, you decide which ingredients go in it, in accordance with Burger King’s slogan : « Have it your way ». In a restaurant, people make all kinds of crazy requests. More cheese, cooked, no onions, or with French fries instead of salad. Every time, the waiter will gracefully bend to your every wish and will make the changes you want. On the one hand, people can order the food they want, on the other lots of clients take advantage of the system and make their orders too complicated.
France doesn’t follow the same client-satisfaction rules. In a sandwich shop, your choices are pre-established. You just have to choose from the provided list. A restaurant may offer you some choices, but there is relatively little to choose from and very little flexibility. A specific request will draw strange looks. If you explain what you want in detail, the waiter will nod and think for a moment, but no actual change will be made.
I think that this cultural difference has evolved from the perception of « expert ». In America, « the client is always right », while in France, the chef is the culinary expert and no client can appropriate that power. Fortunately for me and the other clients, the food is always a surprise. I’m happy to leave the responsibility of creating delicious dishes to French experts.
–Kim Vaccaro
I had the privilege to go to London for a short weekend. My high-school friends are studying abroad in London, so I had a good reason to go meet up with them. London is a great city. Although I’ve already visited the city, there are always things to do. The first morning, I went to Covent Gardens to have waffles as my friend had recommended. After our little snack, we went to Abbey Road. I’m a huge Beatles fan, so I couldn’t pass up the chance to cross this legendary road. I also went to see the Globe Theatre, London Tower and Buckingham Palace. All of these visits were very touristy, but I was happy that my friend knew the city well. It was an authentic experience.
I noticed that my time in Toulouse had a great impact on me because my immediate instinct was to speak French when I entered a store. I also saw Muslim women wearing burkas. My first reaction was that it’s illegal here! But then I remembered I wasn’t in France. It was itneresting to observe.
After my visit, I was happy to get back to Toulouse. It’s a city that I love and know well now.
–Sarah Wright
Like Chinese students, French students take notes during class. Eating and drinking is forbidden in class for French students. Students can’t ask questions right away if they don’ understand what the professor is saying. Normally, they have to wait until the end of class to ask their questions. Furthermore, French students come to class five to ten minutes early because if they’re late, the professor won’t let them come into the classroom. Nonetheless, it’s normal for the professor to be five minutes late. None of these rules exist in the United States.
What is more, it’s possible for classes to be cancelled or postponed without notifying the students ; they’re the ones who have to enquire at the school’s administration office. This seems a little ridiculous because in American universities, the professor always sends an e-mail to the students if the course is moved or cancelled. Plus, each class only takes place once a week, so each class session in France is longer than in the United States. Usually, a class in France lasts three hours with a ten minute break in between. Professors who teach in the big « amphithéâtres » (lecture halls) often don’t give regular homework. There is only one exam at the end of each semester. Each student has to study the course, read the recommended book and review their notes. Therefore, it’s easier to fail the class if you don’t work because you don’t have a lot of homework and the professor doesn’t verify that you’ve read the book.
The first and second year courses are larger than the ones at Dickinson. There are about two-hundred students per class. The students are very active. During the break, the students who are in the activities association go into classrooms and dance or do other things that the other students find funny. Once, I saw students dressed as cheerleaders dance and sing in a classroom. Even the professor watched them! It was wonderful and funny. Things like that never happen in a class in the US.
Outside of the classroom, French students love to party. The Mondus association is a student club that organizes parties open to all the students. There’s a party almost every day! Normally, French students go out Thursday, Friday and Saturday night. They love to go to bars or discotheques. Place Saint-Pierre, which is along the Garonne river, is their favorite place. During the weekend, there are always lots of students who go there with their friends because the best bars are there. In addition, American students prefer loud music like the kind you hear in nightclubs because they love dancing. The way students have fun in France and the United States isn’t the same. All the parties in the United States are loud and people drink a lot and dance to disco music, but French students prefer to go to calm bars where they can talk to their friends.
— Qichan Qian
Dance is a vital part of the Hispanic culture. My mother says that I learned to dance before I learned to walk. Everyone dances with each other at family reunions, but most of the traditional dances are between two partners. I was very happy when I heard that my French university had funded an event in a dance club in Toulouse. Culturally speaking, dance can be sensual in the Hispanic tradition, but it’s very different in the United States, where there are rarely any fixed steps. Young Americans today « grind », which is a type of dance that requires the partners to be very close. Nevertheless, traditional Dominican dances like « merenge » or « bachata » are also done with a partner, but in a different way. During my experience in a dance club in Toulouse, I noticed that the DJ mostly played techno music with fun strobe lights flashing to the beat. But when I looked at people, they weren’t close to one another. The way they dance in clubs is interesting because it allows me to observe globalization. For instance, everyone in the club danced to Lady Gaga, an eccentric American artist. Most people knew the words better than I did. In the United States, most music played in clubs and on the radio isn’t as multicultural as in France. It seems to me that the French have a different, more multicultural taste in music, which shows how the French population has gotten used to globalization through the music industry. In the United States, this phenomenon is slower and Americans still have a lot to learn about the French.
–Gabrielle Betances
I do parkour in the United States, which is an outdoor sport for which you only use your body to overcome obstacles (like walls, barriers, everything you can find in a city). Parkour is more like urban gymnastics and is better known in Europe than in the US. In fact, it was first developed in France. Before arriving in France (for the first time), I did some research on the people who do parkour in Toulouse and I found a group called “Street Jump.” I then sent a message to one of its members. When I first met the guy I had contacted and then the group of people who do parkour like me, I was a little uncomfortable because I didn’t know anybody, and I had only arrived in Toulouse a week earlier. Furthermore, I wasn’t sure about their level and I considered myself a beginner. Luckily, the group with whom I started to train wasn’t the one I had originally found, but a less professional, bigger and more diverse group (level- and age-wise). This group is called the Association pour la Promotion de l’Art du Déplacement (APAD), Association for the Promotion of the Art of Moving. Everybody was very nice and encouraging, especially the session instructors, whom I made friends with right away.
I noticed that the training happens differently here than in the United States. Here, we practice more complicated sequences, whereas in the US we repeat simple movements to master them. There’s definitely a mix. And yet, during the sessions in Toulouse, one of the instructors shows a sequence then everyone, either alone or in pairs, tries to repeat it, refining it more and more and raising their level of expertise.
During most sessions, which take place every Saturday from 2 to 4 pm at Paul Sabatier University, I’m the only girl who participates, and I think I surprise the boys with my energy and my level.
–Yana Schick
Located at 46 Rue du Taur, near Place du Capitole, the Sheroa is a well-known crêperie that is often populated with students. The décor is very nice and I like the surroundings a lot. The walls are decorated with artwork. There are lots of types of salads and salted and sweet crêpes. I love the Island Salad and especially the chocolate crêpe. I go there regularly with my friends on Sunday morning.. It’s a good place to spend time and relax over the weekend. The food is really inexpensive. There are lots of choices of salads, crêpes and ice cream. Plus, the tea menu is also very varied. The only problem is the wait. We once went on a Friday night and there were too many people. On the other hand, the people who work there are very warm, so it’s worth the wait. “This restaurant falls asleep slowly on its laurels and puts its clients asleep, as it’s a charming little place.”
–Qichan Qian
Gosse, môme, gamin (nm) – child
Crevé (adj) – tired, exhausted
Galérer (v) – to work hard
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