Descent into Franglais

Photo courtesy of Google Images.

Is it possible that I'm actually getting worse at French and English?

I've gotta be honest here. folks. I'm not entirely sure.

The aim of study abroad, at least in my case, is to truly immerse oneself in a culture and in a language. That's why I chose a program in which I could take classes all in French, at a French university, alongside French students.

However, though our classes may be in French, there are still plenty of opportunities to speak English. We speak English most of the time when it's just the Americans, and many of the other international students living in our residence are actually more comfortable speaking English than French (for example, our friend Max who is from Germany but goes to school in the Netherlands prefers to speak English with us. I promised him I would include him in this blog post, so... Here ya go Max.) And then there are the countless number of French people who want to practice their English with us because we're American - something we've found to be pretty inescapable.

Don't get me wrong, though; I'm still speaking more French than ever before, and with less and less anxiety as time goes on. During my first few weeks in France I was terrified anytime I had to make an interaction with a French person. Now I can (usually) speak with the cashiers at the grocery store without completely embarrassing myself. Progress, right? Plus, my comprehension has definitely improved. Sitting through ten hours of classes in French per week will do that.

What all this means is basically that I'm constantly switching back and forth between the two languages, often within the same conversation or even sentence. The result is a phenomenon we like to call franglais (or franglish if you prefer) in which random words from one language will start showing up in the other, especially when there's not a word in that language that directly translates.

Let me give you an example. In France, when meeting a friend or bumping into someone you know in public, you will "faire la bise," which is a customary greeting consisting of two cheek kisses (left then right here, but it varies by region. The number of kisses also varies.) My friend Andrea, who has by now appeared many times in this blog, has an adorable habit of telling us a story in English and then just slipping in that she "faired la bise" with someone. This phrase is, obviously, not English, but nor is it really French, because it's more like a mix of the two. And thus, franglais is born.

Lately it has seemed that we are speaking more franglais than French or English. Every other sentence I throw in a random french word (Do you want to go to la bibliotheque after les cours? What are you eating for dinner ce soir?) sometimes without even realizing it. I'm even starting to make more mistakes in English. And this is not something that happens to me. Ask anyone.

So the answer to the question at the beginning of this post (is it possible that I'm actually getting worse at French and English?) is both yes and no. Am I really getting worse at French? No. Even though I don't feel like it sometimes, I'm improving everyday. Am I really getting worse at English? Maybe. But I'm sure that once I'm back in the States my grammar nazi status with return.

But honestly, it's not a question of whether I'm getting worse at both. It's a question of whether I'm improving my franglais.

And the answer is yes.

I Promise I Do Things Other Than Travel

Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament,

Lately it's been more and more difficult to keep up with blog posts. Since I last wrote, I have visited London for four days, had three days of courses, attended an international dinner party and spent a day in Amsterdam. How on earth could I ever fit all of this into one blog post?! Oh don't worry, reader. I'm gonna try.

Some of you may know that on my list of cities to visit, London probably occupies the first or second spot. It's been my dream to see the city for as long as I can remember, and not just because of the Harry Potter series. Last weekend I finally got to see it for myself with my friend Ginny and another friend from DU, Lizzie, who is studying abroad in England at the University of Lancaster.

It would be impossible to include everything we did while in London, but some of the highlights were seeing the London Eye, Big Ben and Houses of Parliament, visiting Buckingham Palace and taking a stroll through Harrod's (a famous department store). My two favorite activities, however, were the London Dungeon and Shakespeare's Globe.

The London Dungeon is an interactive tour through London's most macabre pieces of history. Actors lead you through a dungeon where each room is a separate event in the city's past, including everything from the plague, to Jack the Ripper, to Sweeney Todd. The tour includes many interactive moments, and the actors try to scare you at every turn.

Shakespeare's Globe

During the plague segment, we were led into a room where there was a "corpse" lying on a table. A nurse was explaining the attributes of the plague to us when, suddenly, the lights went out. When they went back on, guess where she was standing? Yep. Right in front of me, growling into my face. If there had been a window in there it would have shattered from my screaming. And that happened to me twice.

Visiting Shakespeare's Globe, while equally informative, was not quite as terror-inducing. This theater is not actually the theater in which Shakespeare's plays were first presented, but is modeled exactly after the original and stands just 500 meters away from its initial location. The project was begun by an American actor named Sam Wanamaker and was funded solely by private donation.

Me and Ginny in front of the London Eye.

Visitors can attend a play there (by Shakespeare or otherwise) for only £5 if they are willing to stand on the floor near the stage. During Shakespeare's heyday, these patrons were called Groundlings. The weekend we were there, the Globe was showing "A Comedy of Errors," but unfortunately we didn't have time to go, so maybe I'll go to a play in their indoor theater when I am there with my parents during Christmas.

My first trip to London was amazing, but even four full days wasn't enough, so I'm glad to be going back with my parents when they are here in December.

Last week was also the Soirée Plat International, an annual dinner held by Club Ulysse at my university. Each student brings a dish from their home country to share with everyone, so there is basically a buffet of different foods from all around the world. At first we couldn't think of anything truly American to bring (hamburgers are originally German, apparently) but we finally decided on an Apple Pie. Our marraine, Valérie, lent us her oven and helped us bake it! It was a hit at the party and was gone very quickly. Kind of funny that the first time I ever baked an Apple Pie was in France.

My next adventure last week (aside from a bit of a cooking experiment on Friday, which turned out surprisingly well) was a day trip to Amsterdam with Club Ulysse on Saturday. There I met up with Emily and Ginny, who were staying the weekend with a friend.

We left from Lille around 6:30 AM, so I slept during most of the four hour ride there. After arriving I walked to the center city with some other students from Lille 3, perused a flower market, sampled some Dutch cheese and took in the beauty of the city. Around noon I met up with Emily and Ginny to continue our day.

First we visited one of Amsterdam's famed coffee shops, and then went to take a boat tour of the city. This was the perfect way to see Amsterdam because we were safe from the rain in our enclosed boat and got to see many sights that would have been too far away by foot. And, after the tour, it has become more and more clear to me that I'm simply in love with canaled cities. If I visited Venice I might die.

When we'd finished the tour we grabbed lunch at an Italian restaurant (in the Netherlands... owned by a German company... #globalism) and then headed to Amsterdam's shopping streets to have a look around. I didn't find anything I liked (don't worry, Mom. No weed-themed sweatshirts for this girl.) but I enjoyed just wandering the streets during my last few hours.

Shots from the boat tour.

Our last activity of the day was a trip to the Anne Frank house just to see it from the outside (because the line to go in stretches literally two city blocks), but when we arrived we were disappointed to find that it was under construction. We did get to see the sign designating it the Anne Frank house, but unfortunately didn't get to experience it in any other way. By that time it was almost time for me to catch my bus back to Lille, so we wandered back through the city to the central station and said goodbye.

It is still amazing to me that I can be within three different countries in the span of a week. I am so lucky to have been able to travel so much already, and I've only been here for just under two months! The next two will certainly hold more travels, though maybe not quite so many. This weekend I'm looking forward to staying in Lille and enjoying all that my city has to offer.

I Almost Studied Last Weekend...

...but then I traveled instead.

Since I'll be heading to London for four days tomorrow (!!!!) I thought I should finally write a post about Bruges and Paris last weekend (happy now Brennan?).

One of the many canals in Bruges (spelled Brugge in Dutch).

On Saturday last weekend I took a day trip to Bruges, Belgium with a student association at my university called Club Ulysse. The club organizes trips throughout the semester for relatively cheap (the Bruges trip was €20), and it's a great way to meet French students and other international students.

We left the university at around 8AM on Saturday and arrived in Bruges within about an hour and fifteen. After a few quick pictures we were set free to enjoy the day as we pleased.

Most of the day was spent wandering the streets and just taking in the beauty of the city. Bruges is known locally as the "Venice of the North" because of its beautiful network of canals. There are boat tour companies stationed on nearly every corner, and the city itself is a maze of bridges traversing canal after canal.

After walking for a while (and indulging in a famous Belgian waffle) we decided to get lunch at a nearby friterie (french fry shop), where I tried some traditional Belgian beef stew, called Stoofvlees in Dutch, and of course some Belgian frites.

Once we'd finished lunch we moved on to the more important part of the afternoon: the beer. Our friend Nicolas, who is half-Belgian, took us to a bar called the World of Beer and gave us recommendations of what to try. Upon walking into the bar, the first thing you see is a massive wall of beer (Dad, you would have loved it). I tried a beer called Hop, which was very good. The bar's bathroom also featured a sink with a built-in aquarium.

The rest of the day was spent wandering a bit more, taking lots of photos, and finally buying some Belgian chocolate. I snagged one more Belgian waffle before we boarded the bus and headed back to Lille around 6:30PM.

The travel adventures continued on Sunday, when I visited Paris for the first time with my friend Ginny. Her uncle was there for work, so we met with him on Sunday morning and he became our personal tour guide for the day.

Though Ginny and Howard had both been to Paris before (and in Howard's case many times), they indulged me by taking me to most of Paris' most recognizable landmarks. After a quick espresso near the train station (look how European I am Mom), we took the metro to Howard's "neighborhood" and he showed us the university he works with (L'Université Paris-Sorbonne) and the surrounding streets.

Walking along the Seine.

We eventually ended up at the Notre Dame de Paris, but decided not to go in because the line was too long. I made sure to snap some photos of the outside for good measure, but I'm sure I'll visit again when my parents come in December.

Next we took some time to walk along the Seine and peruse the street vendors. It was unusually warm and the views of the river were stunning. I also purchased a small map of Paris from one of the street vendors as my souvenir for the day. I'm planning to hang it on my almost-bare walls here at Triolo.

Playing model. When in Paris, right?

After spending some time admiring the Seine, we began the trek toward the Eiffel Tower in hopes of stopping at a bar or café along the way for a well-deserved glass of wine, but unfortunately none were to be found until we were nearly to the tower.

Once we had enjoyed our drinks we continued on to the Eiffel Tower. I honestly don't know what to say about it other than that it's MUCH bigger in person. We decided not to go up because of my irrational fear of stairs (which is called bathmophobia, in case anyone was wondering), and because I wanted to save some things for when my parents come in December.

We took some time to relax on the grass near the tower before hopping back on the metro to visit L'Arc de Triomphe! We, once again, didn't go inside but I got the obligatory tourist photo standing in front.

Next we made our way to Montmartre to have some dinner and take in the view from the Sacre Coeur. We ate at a small café near the basilica and then made our way up the hill once it got dark to see the lights from above. By that time we were all a bit tired from all the walking, so after some ice cream and a while sitting on the hill, Howard accompanied Ginny and I back to the train station where we caught the last train back to Lille around 10:30PM. I may have fallen asleep on the train in the middle of sending a text. Ginny may have taken a picture. I don't wanna talk about it.

Tomorrow I'm off to London to continue my travels, but I promise it hasn't all been traveling! I've also been attending my classes and events through my university. This week I attended a salsa class at Club Ulysse, met with my partner for the Tandem speaking program, and went out for dinner and drinks for Ginny's birthday! I am getting more and more comfortable with French each day, and have started reading and writing in French regularly for my courses. 

I have a few trips planned for the upcoming weeks, but otherwise I am looking forward to staying in Lille and spending time with the friends I have made. I'll be sure to keep updating as often as I can on my adventures and experiences here.

Until then, bisous!

Eiffel Tower (plus random tourist man).

Notre Dame.