Paris in the rain, amusing moments, and epic burgers

Autumn has arrived early and suddenly in Paris. This week's weather contrasts incredibly with the warmth and cloudless sunshine of last week; chilly air and a thick layer of clouds have replaced those bright reminders of summer. The cold, driving rain on Monday didn't exactly make for a great start to the week. The sidewalks of Parisian side streets are already almost too narrow to allow two people to walk side-by-side, but once you add umbrellas into that mix, it becomes nearly impossible to move quickly from point A to point B, or in our case, from one building to another. (The French students blocking the doors to the outside didn't make things any easier.) The walk from my first class to my second class left me with soaked shoes, pants wet below the knee, damp sleeves, and hair that looked decidedly less sleek. Woody Allen may love Paris in the rain (as evidenced by numerous lines to that effect in "Midnight in Paris"), but... I'll take it sunny, please.

Fortunately, it hasn't rained since Monday despite the seemingly constant threat of the heavy clouds. Instead, it's just been chilly - each day it has worked its way up to about 60 degrees, but without the sun, this feels quite cold. I find myself frowning at my closet each morning as I reconsider my packing decisions of a month ago. I expected the warm weather to linger longer, hence my now superfluous supply of sandals and tank tops.

At the same time, this change in the weather seems somewhat appropriate. I've now been in Paris for three weeks and am finally starting to feel more at home. I am thrilled to report that I now have that much-elusive bank card as well as a 100% functional iPhone, so I finally feel integrated in terms of basic necessities. I've continued to make geographical connections in my head so that it's easier to walk to and from school, sometimes with minor detours that have yet to make me lost. I figured out how to print in the school library - no small feat; it took me 20 minutes! (5 minutes trying to log into the school computer + 5 minutes trying to log into my email = 10 minutes wasted because the keyboards are so different here, then 10 minutes of figuring out the actual printer.)

All of my professors have shown up this week, so I've had a more normal schedule. Mondays are going to be my worst day just because I have four hours of class in French - with only 15 minutes between the two classes, and those 15 minutes are entirely spent traveling from one building to the other. I can understand both of those professors pretty well, but four hours is a very long time to be in class, especially when it's not in English. I felt completely wiped out when I got home on Monday afternoon. I have a feeling my Tuesday class in French will also be okay because my professor is a native Spanish speaker (yay!!!). The only class that remains a cause for concern is bankruptcy. Today we didn't have the problem of noise coming through open windows, but even sitting closer to the front of the room and being able to hear properly, I couldn't make out more than 50% of what my professor was saying because she spoke so quickly. I am fortunately not alone in that problem; I think even the American students who speak French much, much better than I do are having trouble. We are lucky in that the French law students are not competitive in the way that American law students often are; apparently, there is a very nice girl in our class who is willing to share her extensive notes with us. They will be our saving grace!

As I've walked around Paris this week, I've had a number of moments when I've wished that I had a camera ready in hand. This is a city where individual people make you curious about their stories. For instance, I saw a woman in Monoprix (an extreme approximate for Target) who came in at lunch time to buy... a lacy bra. That's literally it. Doesn't that make you wonder where she was going? (I mean... this is Paris, and if you want to buy a bra... there are many, many places to go other than Monoprix during lunch time.) Moments before, I'd seen a man in his 70's wearing hot peach loafers with a shirt and blazer that were a vibrant shade of purple. He wins the prize for most daring outfit I've seen on a man. Earlier on my walk to school, I'd passed a woman sitting outside a cafe with her tiny dog seated in the chair on the opposite side of the table.

Here's another thing that made me laugh this morning. These are vending machines outside a pharmacy (since most aren't open 24 hours here).  I am enlarging this one so you can get a better sense of what's inside. If you look carefully in the middle of the machine at left, you'll be able to make out a brand familiar the world over: Durex. Yes, ladies and gents, on that third shelf down, you can buy no fewer than five flavors/scents of personal lubricant. Go France!!!

Switching gears a bit...

Those of you who follow me on Facebook may also have seen my picture of our epic burger experience yesterday. A group of us trekked from school to find one of the few food trucks in Paris called the Cantine California. It's owned by a guy who's half French and half American, and yesterday it was parked a few blocks north of the Rue de Rivoli (which runs along the north side of the Louvre and Jardin des Tuileries - a very touristy street). We got a variety of burgers; mine was called the Obama and featured gouda, guacamole, and chipotle mayo. We all crowded around our small table and struggled not to inhale these burgers - this was easily one of the best I've ever had, anywhere. We couldn't stop talking about them all afternoon!

P.S. Anthony Bourdain has eaten at this food truck, which may make this the first time I've ever eaten the same food as him. I hope to continue this trend in Paris.