- The sun rises around two hours later (8:45 AM) than in New Jersey (7 AM). No one has yet delivered a completely satisfactory explanation as to why this bizarre phenomenon occurs.
- Breakfast almost always consists of a baguette and a croissant with coffee. Tons of carbs, and totally worth it. :)
- All the buildings (with a few exceptions) are built in the same style. This is charming at first, but actually kind of weird after a while...
- EVERYONE says "Bonjour" to you when you enter their establishment! Overly-friendly? I think not! :D
- That cathedral is 800 years old... AKA, over twice the age of our nation? No big deal.
- That cathedral is actually Gothic. No, not Princeton-Gothic. *Actually* Gothic.
- The acoustic in the aforementioned cathedrals? AMAZING.
- If you order just "water" ("de l'eau") at a restaurant, you may be charged 4 euros. FOUR EUROS. For water in a bottle. (is that even possible?!) Gotta love them carafes...
- Don't be surprised to encounter gargantuan stone arches covered in carved Latin inscriptions in the center of random intersections. These things happen in Paris.
- MACAROOOOOONS. :D
-Crêpes (which rhymes with "schleps") are delicious and wondrous and come in all sorts of delectable assortments that can be bought cheaply at stands around the city. America should adopt this convention post-haste, in my opinion.
- Baguettes - as in, full-length baguettes - can be bought for less than 1 euro. This is a beautiful fact.
- "Vegetarianism" seems to not really be a "thing"... unless the French count herrings as vegetables?
- IL Y EN A BEAUCOUP DE VIN. C'EST FORMIDABLE.
- Did I mention that most people speak French in France? And that they're far less snobby about speaking English than everyone in the States had convinced me...
- "Franglish" is just as amusing as "Engrish," in a more European way. :) (And I'm sure we're just as bad with French, here in the USA...)
- France is NOT a welcoming place for asthmatics. >:(
- The Eiffel Tower is exactly as stunning in real life as one would imagine it to be!
Tara Naoko Ohrtman
Princeton University 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment