France, Finally!

The long awaited summer has finally started! Even after two days, I am having trouble writing this in English. I am completely and utterly immersed in all things French.

First, for those who do not have the patience to read this all the way though, France is amazing. It is absolutely nothing what I thought it would be, but wonderful nonetheless.

Now, for those who have a bit more time or interest to spare.

Unlike Chicago or Miami, Paris is a very enclosed city. The city area pretty much consists of Paris. The immediate surrounding area is countryside. Looking down from the plane, I saw only rolling hills and scattered houses. This is true for all of the “cities” in France. They are no bigger than a medium sized suburb of Chicago, it seems (besides Paris, of course). I am living right now in a “suburb” of the city of Langy, about 30 minutes east of Paris. Chanteloup en Brie, the “town” I live in, is actually more like a neighborhood, consisting of about 50 people at the most. I went running today, and after 10 minutes down one rue I was in another “town”. Funny, huh?

Chanteloup en Brie really is charming, though. It is situated dans un bois, that is, in the forest. The house of the De Cespedes family is big. 4 floors (one main floor, and the rest consist of bedrooms and baths, sometimes located between floors) reflect the traditional French architecture. The yard is literally walled in, with an automated gate at the front. It is a HUGE yard, at least an acre of forest. They have almost finished constructing a guesthouse in the back, where future au pairs will live. If I’m lucky, I’ll move in by the end of the summer!

The family is so nice! Geraldine, the mere, is so much more than the family picture I received can tell. She is gorgeous! In her mid thirties, she is very kind, caring, and very intelligent. She can speak conversational English, which has helped me out a little in the past few days. The pere, Arnaud, is also wonderful in all the same ways. They make good parents!

The 3 children, Antoine (12), Philippine (9), and Arthur (5), have the personalities for people twice their age. They are very active, and love to play. I think this will be a fun summer with them. Right now, they are in school until June, so I have the days to myself.

I have a small room (I think one of the kids’ old rooms, seeing as it is covered in cartoon cricket wallpaper, and decorated with Winnie the Pooh and Micky Mouse stuffed animals). I have plenty of space to store my things, and a bed that is, quite literally, just my size.

Today, first day post- flight, I woke up at 7am sharp, and went down stairs to have some coffee. I found OATMEAL, YES! The French call it ‘Quaker Oat’ (it sounds so much more sophisticated that way). Then, after the kids were off to school with Margarite (House hold helper #1: does cleaning and cooking and looks after kids, including driving them to school), exhaustion hit me. I slept for 2 hours, swimming in and out of bizarre dreams, exciting adventures which you can read about in my dream blog. Then, I got up and watched the Office on my computer. I ate, ( une sandwich avec un yogur apricot) ran, and showered, et voila! The kids were home. Did I mention that school goes from 9-5pm? Plus Homework? Household Help #2, the tutor, comes and helps them to do this. The parents get home from work around 7, the same time the kids eat dinner. The first thing they told me was, oh, you can eat later if you want! As if it was atrocious that the kids ate so early.

Other than that, I am learning a lot of French. Even in two short days, I can tell I have made a huge improvement. I think that because everything I see is in French, and the kids and house hold helpers only speak French, and the parents insist on only speaking French (they see it as an aide to my education), I have no choice but to BECOME French! I have taken to carrying around my dictionary and notebook and writing down new words. The kids are very helpful as well. I surprise myself sometimes; I can’t believe that, in just 6 months of little preparation, I am this fluent. Wow, go me.

A few funny moments to note:

The first day, I got so tired by the end that I couldn’t understand anything. However, due to the usage of some English words in the French language, you could understand what they were talking about, generally.

“Blu bah bu sha flu ra Chewing gum huje tau gouge oui newaux” + holding up a pack of chewing gum = Wanna piece?

“Jusqu et chu mange huh oui quell Delicious Pickle bluh blue blippy” + licking the lips = I like Delicious Pickles (a brand I found in their fridge). I thought it was hysterical… did that 5 year old just say Delicious Pickles?

I gave each of des enfants a game. By far the biggest hit is Slamwich. The 5 year old LOVES it! Given, he is not playing it right, and I just let him win, but it is so funny to watch. Whenever a card is put down, he slaps it and yells “SANDWICH!”. I tried to explain that it is “Slamwich,” because of the Slam, but he insists it is “Sandwich” Because in french, it is a Sandwich. No english Slamwich for Arthur.

And now, for your daily dose of cultural enhancement:

Allo? – How the French answer the phone
21:00 – The average hour in which the French avez le diner
1 – the number of exercisers I saw on my run, who was smoking and running at the same time.
Bonne Nuit- Good night, when the kids kiss everyone in the house good night.