Raindrops on Roses...

Let me just list a few of my favorite things I've discovered since being here:

1. Monoprix: It's like a Super Target about about 1 gazillion times better. The clothes are trés chic and the selection of food is great and I go there about 3 times a day just to get a giant bottle of 0.20 euro water and nutella.

2. Butter: French butter tastes sweeter, fattier, lighter, and makes everything it touches just that much more delicious. My host mom and I were watching chefs make some dish where it's salt, pepper, garlic, parsley and a ton of butter that you just rub all over fish or beef or anything and it turns out like bliss.

3. Roquefort Cheese: This is blue cheese. This is blue cheese but better for reasons I only wish I could articulate. I put it on bread, salad, or just eat it by itself it is amazing.

3.5. Roquefort Cheese + Orange Marmalade: + Warm Baguette = OH MY GOODNESS SO DELICIOUS!!

4. "F for Fake": Orson Wells' Documentary about a french painter who's sold hundreds of Picasso, Renoir, and Matisse Forgeries and the man, Clifford Irving, who wrote his biography and then the fake biography of Howard Hughs. The French loved it... America Hated it... and I think it's brilliant.

5. Macroons: Yes I know, I already discovered this. But today I had a coffee flavored one. It completely changed my life.

6. Speculoos: My teddy-graham flavored peanut butter that I've begun to eat with pretzel sticks. Another life changer.

7. My Museums and Monuments Class: It's taught entirely in french, which is a little exhausting for me, but today we went to the Lourve and just talked about Neoclassic and Romantic art and I was astounded. I want to go back every day and just look at the paintings and I don't even care anymore how many people are in this section of the Louvre because I feel inspired. Classes like this make me wish I were an Art History major.

8. French Shoes: It's the soldes right now, France has 2 nationwide sales, and this is the last week meaning everything is on sale and the shoes are just so tempting. My host mom laughed "pourquoi est-ce que tous les americainnes veulent les chausseurs francais?!" (Why do all the american girls want french shoes?") and my answer was because they are amazing quality and quite beautiful. They're all timeless and while I've been restraining myself all month, I may just give in a purchase a pair.

9. French Microwaveable Meals: These are amazing. I had Porc with Mushroom Sauce and Mashed Potatoes and it was absolutely delicious. Yesterday I had chicken risotto. Everything tastes so fresh and amazing, and these aren't frozen, just refrigerated, and if we had these in America, I would never need learn to cook.

10. French Yogurt: Pronounced Yah-OO-rt. So creamy, so delicious, so incredible. I might faint.

I don't even want to know how many of the above are food items. I've also rediscovered certain discoveries, like baguettes still warm from the boulangerie, or how easy the metro is (even if the darned thing closes so early). Also, the Eiffel Tour and Arc de Triomphe still amaze me and I think they are just one of those things that will always be amazing no matter how often you see it.

A few upcoming excursions to look forward to hearing about:
- Tomorrow I am seeing a film screening with the french director. I believe the film is actually in English, but I'm just looking forward to the whole "I'm watching Un Film" in France experience.
- We're having a day trip to L’abbaye de Royaumont tomorrow. I hear it's supposed to be great and I can't wait to discover why!
- Saturday or Sunday (hopefully Sunday, a girl needs some time to recuperate!) my friends and I are going to check out Versailles. Again, free admission because we're awesome Art Students, and I've never been so I'm excited to be, once again, absolutely amazed.

PS: One of my friends pointed out to me my use of "absolutely" and I will just say that this is a translation thing. My host mom always says "Absolutement" and I've begun to say this as well and now it's embedded in my brain.

No pictures this time, I've been a little under the weather and haven't been discovering much more than Monoprix's selection of amazing foods (and class...of course I'm going to class). But this weekend seems rather promising in terms of landscape. I won't let you down!