Hello to Heidi

January 7th Monday

Today we had decided to go to BHV and Sciences Po. I took my shower and got ready. While Adrienne was in the shower I ran and got us two pain au chocolat (chocolate croissants).

We made our way by metro up to BHV. The purpose of this visit was to get a new converter. We had struggled with Adrienne’s converter that she bought at BHV on Wednesday the 2nd. The instructions were not very clear. Even without the language barrier, it was impossible to decipher which setting the switch needed to be on in order to use it for a 110v machine in a 220v plug. Through some experimenting and a few burnt fuses, I determined that while we thought the switch had to be on 110v, it had to be on 220v. I bought a new converter (the same type as Adrienne’s now that we knew how to work it) and noticed something interesting. There was a neon sticker on the box that said “Attention. Erreur.” Apparently, they had mixed up the instructions and had told you the wrong position of the switch. I felt very happy to see this because it meant that I understood the directions perfectly. They were the ones who had screwed up. Some of my other purchases were a headset for Skype, a black scarf, and a drying rack for laundry. The store was huge and we went on 5 different floors to look at everything we needed.

While leaving the store, I decided to try to call Amanda (TAM student) and see if she wanted to meet up today. She said that she was not going to be around but she would have Heidi (another TAM) call us.

We made our way home to drop off our purchases. We had a large drying rack that I had to maneuver through the metro. It was mildly ridiculous. Eventually we were able to just dump it all in the apartment and get some lunch.

We went to the little store around the corner called the 8 à Huit because it is open from 8am to 8pm. We bought some little prepared sandwiches there. I loved the fact that they were cheaper than the sandwiches in the surrounding cafés. My sandwich had roasted chicken, tomato, bacon and lettuce on it. It was okay. I liked the price more than I enjoyed its taste. It was a very fast solution for hunger. I also bought a little peach tea to drink.

We decided to try Sciences Po and see if anything was open in the afternoon. Alberto had given me some information for a woman named Danielle who could help us with our housing search. We went to see if she was there and found out that she only works from 9:00am until noon. I decided we could either see her the next morning or email her.

Our next stop was Bon Marché to look for some school supplies. This is a large department store. Upon entry it appears very expensive. There are even guards at the door that slink toward you if you pause too long while looking at the list where the shops are. When you make past the guards you can get to the center area that is a sea of white. Each floor has white curtains hanging on it. Then you see the escalator. It has a bright transparent purple on the side studded with large fake jewels. I got such a big kick out of the escalators.

We looked at some of the pretty clothes and Adrienne even found a black beret that she likes. We went to the sous-sol (below the ground floor) to look for notebooks. We eventually found the school supplies stashed in the corner. I bought a plastic folder to hold all of my information as well as a spiral notebook in order to take notes. I need to ask the professors if I can use my computer instead. My handwriting has become very slow.

We received a call from Heidi and decided that we should get together. We would meet near our apartment at the Solférino metro stop. In the meantime, Adrienne and I ran to the Grande Epicerie de Paris. We bought a few different things there. I found some rice noodles that looked very good. We got a sweet and sour sauce to go with it. I’m looking forward to cooking an array of dishes in our little apartment. I get so much more pleasure out of cooking for two than just cooking for one.

We made our way home and bravely walked to save money on metro tickets. Adrienne took our things up to the apartment and I waited for Heidi. While I was waiting, I saw a bookstore across the street with a table of books out front. It had a sign saying €5. I went over to investigate and found some great books. I found one for the Orsay museum as well as the Louvre. They talk a little about the history of each place as well as what kinds of pieces are housed there. There are many colored pictures in it too. I’m pretty excited to read them and know more about some of the paintings and sculptures before I see them again.

As I was paying, my pocket started sending out a pleasant jingle. Heidi was calling me from the metro stop. I went to join her and we made our way up to the apartment. It was so nice to see her again in Paris! We went up and joined Adrienne where we ended up catching up and talking about some random things. Finally we decided we could go to the store and get a few groceries to make dinner. We decided to go to the Franprix that was a few blocks away but would have the cheapest products. Now if you’ve been paying attention, this was my third grocery store today.

On the way there, we past the Basilique St. Clotilde. The statues on the face of this church were amazing. Just as we passed it, the bell tower started letting out a loud bong, bong, bong. It was amazing. I haven’t heard a real bell like that in a really long time. The building was breathtaking the way it was lit up at night. We waited for the ringing to end before continuing on to the Franprix that shared the same street as this great edifice. We ended up getting an amazing array of foods. I was very excited to see how cheap everything is. I’m hoping we can get it together enough to go shopping during the week in order to go there. I even got a bottle of wine for just over one Euro. Watch me wiggle my eyebrows at that.

We carried our bags to the boulangerie on the corner to get two baguettes for dinner. Then the feast began. We had baguettes with pâté, dried sausage, camembert (cheese), chèvre (goat cheese), and boursin (garlic cheese spread). We opened the red wine and tasted it while I was cutting the bread. It was like a punch in the face. It was very strong. Once we started eating the food, the wine tasted much better. It went very well with the meal.

We half a bottle of wine and one and a half baguettes later, we declared ourselves full and started wrapping everything up. I’m excited about the food in our fridge. I was sad to see some of the cheeses that Heidi bought go home with her. We’ll have to have another dinner at her house soon.

We walked up to the river to look around and steal a glance at the Eiffel Tower. Then I walked Heidi to the metro to see her off. Adrienne and I chatted for a while until I forced us to turn out the light. I felt my throat beginning to get sore. I had a feeling that if I didn’t sleep enough I would look like the undead for our orientation.