With the bad weather, today was especially slow. For most of the people in the class, the week finally caught up with them. I was the first one up (by about 4 hours) and when I discovered that it was cold, raining, and that very little was open, decided this morning would be a good time to continue reading Pillars of the Earth. For anyone who hasn't read it, it's a novel about the building of a medieval cathedral in England. It's based on a real cathedral, but I don't remember which. Still, I though it was relevant to my studies and figured a little extra excitement about what I'm seeing couldn't hurt.
Tomorrow I'm off to Chartres cathedral all day. We're taking a bus pretty early, so that we'll be there in time to really see it before our tours for the day. I know we are also getting a stained-glass demonstration, which sounds like it will be absolutely amazing! Even the journals for the class, which are assigned everyday on various subjects, are actually interesting to write. I have to keep reminding myself that this is a class, and not just a vacation of a lifetime. It's insane that my university will be giving me credits toward my degree for taking field trips to cathedrals and living in Paris for five weeks!

Well, tomorrow is an early morning, so I'll be getting to bed shortly. Since most people have stopped eating dinner out because it's expensive, we have many more dishes to do this weekend! I think we get new towels and linens tomorrow. Not sure yet what the situation is. It's all very exciting though! Today was the first day we sort of lounged. We had a great time sitting at a cafe for a late lunch today and watching the Italy and New Zealand World Cup game. The excitement from every goal, no matter which team's, is such that even the waiters stop and watch!

Anyways, I'm sure I will have a lot to say about Chartres tomorrow, if I'm not too tired when I get back, so bonsoir for today! I'm glad so many people are enjoying reading about my adventures! It's fun to share them!

Yesterday was a slower day. Looked up trains to Aachen and Rouen, but finding no luck, decided on visiting St. Denis Basilica instead. I took the metro up there (long ride!) and it wasn't as crowded as I had expected for a Saturday. Sat on the steps to the altar and sketched for a bit. Three separate times I was approached by someone who attempted to converse with me and look at what I was drawing. It's really quite embarrassing to have to admit that you're a foreigner who doesn't speak the language. And I got asked directions again on the metro. Twice. Wasn't a good day for interactions...
St. Denis, however was beautiful, with the light shining through the stained glass. There was a concert going on right outside, so I could hear the music too. After the church, I caught a bite to eat in a boulangerie (is that how you spell it?) and ordered some really amazing olive bread! It was rather intimidating ordering though, because it was the middle of the after-work rush hour and I was terrified I would freeze and order the wrong thing and end up getting toast with salmon or something. I did get two extra chocolate croissants, but I think that was just because they were closing soon. I didn't mind. :)
No plans yet for today. Below are the photos for yesterday. I attempted to morph two photos to get the stained glass and church together, but it looked rather quasi, and was too big to upload, so maybe I'll put it up another time. I also let myself do some precision, obsessive sketching, and then once seeing how little I had gotten done, did a much looser sketch of some of the vaulting. Another drawing is from the other day, drawn from memory on the train back from the church, so it's rough. Getting better at loosening up, though. I'll definitely have to keep at that this week! The other photo is really amazing wood work from the choir seats.

Yesterday and today have been pretty jam packed with awesome stuff! Yesterday we visited the Museum of the Middle Ages in the morning, that had an unbelievable array of Medieval works as well as the Roman baths attached. I got to see the famous Lady and the Unicorn tapestries, which, albeit only after being explained, were fascinating! The whole museum is a Medieval house that was the Paris townhouse for the Abbots of the famous church, Cluny, who were closely associated with the Papacy. The building itself was possibly even more interesting to me. I was just in awe by it. Honestly, think Beauty and the Beast architecture mixed with Snow White architecture, mixed with Hunchback of Notre Dame architecture and you have the house the Museum is in. Haha, everything I see here makes me want to be an artist for Disney! It's amazing how sophisticated the animation and research put in is and how much we just take it for granted in the final presentation.
After the Middle Ages Museum we got a private tour of the Sorbonne. Although our guide did not speak English, and our professor attempted to translate for us, the tour was really cool. We were able to see all the spaces usually reserved for high-profile affairs and a lecture hall that is now used for important meetings and press conferences and such. We also got a long history of the University and it made me think that maybe the U.S. needs a lesson from France in valuing education. I think it made all of us wish we were studying there! Even the part of the building reserved for classes and students today is a big courtyard from the 17th century. How amazing!

Today was a bit shorter in terms of class time than yesterday. We didn't start until later because our appointment with the museum director today wasn't until the afternoon. I had planned on doing something on my own this morning (my roommates got in at 3 in the morning, so I figured they would be sleeping for quite a while) but I only woke up around 10! I guess the jet lag, combined with lack of sleep all week finally caught up to me! The museum was a good start to the the day, though. It was the Museum of French Architecture and was just seriously unbelievable. Most of the collection consists of casts of famous Medieval monuments, namely churches, and their facades or statues. There are also models of important French buildings from the Renaissance until this year, and upstairs are many, many rooms of copies of Medieval murals. The castings of Romanesque and Gothic architecture were phenomenal. To be able to see it all together in one place was so much more powerful. Of course, my background knowledge and the fact that I love architecture might have helped my enjoyment. I noticed others with glazed-over eyes through most of the tour.

After the museum, which is on the hill overlooking the Eiffel Tower, some of us got crepes and sat halfway down the hill, where we could watch performers, see the Eiffel Tower, and watch the enormous television screen that is showing all the word cup games. The spirit around Paris because of the World Cup is tremendous! You see people with jerseys, hats, flags, face paint, or anything all over the place! On the Metro this morning, a woman in a business suit with a briefcase had a Germany flag painted on her cheek. After a lovely afternoon on the grass and the steps, we decided the week was over and we all have retired for the night. We all ate dinner on our own, since many people had come to realize what dinner and lunch and breakfast out can cost in a week. My roommates are out "clubbing" for tonight again.

Tomorrow, I might take a train to Aachen, Germany, and see the cathedral and historic district there. Either that or I'll stay in Paris and see more of what won't be covered in class. I will have four more weeks of class and a week and a half after that to see Paris though! I supposed it depends on how easy it will be find a hotel and a train...still, I love that I have the option to jet over to Germany for the weekend. Europe is so amazing!

Sorry for the lack of real photos recently. Finally got my camera charger and will be shooting again starting tomorrow! In the mean time, I've been sketching as much as possible.  Both of these aren't finished yet, but they at least show what I've been seeing...

Mind boggling

Ok, back to posting. Yesterday was a bit of a hectic, but really amazing day. Didn't get to write much because I had to prepare for my 10 minute oral presentation for today, which was supposed to be on Friday and was moved up on Monday. I pretty much always dislike going first and try to avoid it, but being forced to was good for one reason: I don't have to worry about it for the rest of the month.

Anyways, yesterday we started out at an old Roman 1st century amphitheatre ruin. Thankfully it was the same place I went to sit on my own before class started, so I didn't have trouble getting there. We have a lecture there and then moved to the Roman baths and checking out the Rue Saint Jacques, and other old original streets. We didn't get to go into the Roman baths, so I have to put that on my checklist, but we did get to go into the archaeological crypt of Notre Dame, which were as unbelievable as I remembered them to be from when I was ten. I can tell I'm officially an art history dork, because even the smell of the old stones was exciting! I have also come to realize that I totally love the miniature models of famous places like the ones architects build. Hmm, put that into my job search criteria. :) After a lecture in the crypt we had a student presentation and another lecture on Notre Dame, and specifically the facade of the church. It was pretty unreal. I felt like I was just looking at a REALLY BIG textbook illustration of what we were studying. I'm still not able to conceptualize that these sites are the real thing. After class ended, we all went into the church and gaped and then I went back to do work and we went shopping for groceries.

Today was seriously amazing too! I can't believe the breadth of famous, amazing, historical monuments in this city. Imagine what it would be like to grow up in the same city as Notre Dame, St. Denis, St. Chapelle, the Louvre, etc. Like, say what?!?! Sorry, off topic...
We went to St. Denis first thing this morning. It was incredible. We all traveled the metro with the french grad student helping with the class, and we were looking around for the basilica as we exited from the subway. Suddenly, we turn one corner, and BAM. Oh my, there's a ridiculously famous church where like half of France's kings are buried. No big deal. Haha. It was as inspiring as when I learned about it in class. It's so easy to just expect a Medieval Benedictine monk to walk out at any minute.
My presentation was on the choir of St. Denis, and I was the first of three today. It didn't go all that well, but I guess I didn't do terribly either. Oh well. We didn't finished with lecture and presentations until about 12:30, and we were all pretty tired. I had planned on staying after for a little while to sit and sketch out parts of the church, because I want scenes to be able to include in my animation portfolio for this internship with Disney I've been looking at, but my professor already had something planned we had to leave for.

My professor bought us tickets for a boat ride on the Seine for the afternoon, and left us to sit and relax on the boat. It was fun, but I could hardly stay awake! After, I went back to nap and a few of us went shopping (I'm in the mall next to us everyday for another thing I forgot or don't have!) and I picked up a cell phone. My phone card was a number on a my receipt, and since no one really speaks French, I'll have to ask the grad student tomorrow how to set it up on the phone. Not that I mind, because he's really cute and very sweet! Hehe...

Ok, well, that'll have kept you reading for a while so I'll stop. Had a three hour dinner tonight and came back to the room to read my assignment for tomorrow. Now going to write on today's prompt. This is the most I've written or drawn or thought in over a month, and I must admit, it feels really good!

Off to the Museum of the Middle Ages and Sorbonne tomorrow! Given the last two days, will probably be a blast! Good night everyone!

Well, I probably should have been taking notes, but...

New Room

Moving in day!
This morning I had the bright idea, based on years of summer camp bunking/dorming experience, that I would head over to the hotel around 11, when I would check out of the present hotel. That way I could get the bed I want and settle in. Well, the maid started bugging me to leave just after 10, so I checked out and walked across the street to the new hotel. It felt slightly ridiculous, but it was certainly convenient. As I approach the main desk, the lady behind the counter says are you with Rutgers? Well, after I finally understood what she was saying, it was very simple checking in. And what do you know, my roomies were in the main lobby waiting for the elevator. So much for my genius plan.
Anyways, my roomies seem fine and sane. We'll see. One of them did have a glass of wine at 1:30 in the afternoon. In the hotel room. Just before going to take a nap...whatever. I'm rooming with I think the only non-humanities majors. The two know each other so they are sharing a room with a double bed. I'm taking the pull-out couch (which btw pulls out only about 6 inches. it's a single bed...weird.) At orientation before the program the girls from last year said the rooms were really crowded. Umm, they should stay in some of the places I have! Decide for yourself though, photos below.
Tonight I have orientation and then a dinner with the group. Hope the restaurant has a vegetarian option, since about 70% of the places I've looked at on the street don't have anything without meat except maybe one appetizer. Whatevs. Class tomorrow. Gotta go finish my reading...

Excuse the awful pics. My camera died, and I am temporarily left with my computer. If anyone is wondering, the photos are flipped to be correct. Wouldn't want to offend anyone (cough*cough)...

Spent the day outside today. After waking up well into the day (I definitely needed the sleep!) and leisurely getting ready, I decided I'd visit the Arenes des Lutece, a park with a Roman 2nd century amphitheatre. Needless to say it was really amazing, and it didn't seem to be a tourist hot spot. Brought my sketch book and tried to loosen up after a year of drawing almost never. The weather was perfect, and so I spend a while wandering through an antique street market on my way to and from the garden. I bought 100 old stamps to decorate the non-class journal I bought for the trip. Close to my hotel, I couldn't resist and bought myself a fantastic crepe for lunch! It was slightly disheartening, though, that after ordering in French, the man selling the crepes asked me where I was from...in English.

I found what looks like a really cool vegetarian French restaurant across the Seine from where I'm staying. I had planned to try it tonight, but the new shoes I was wearing cut my walking tolerance a bit short. I think I might try lunch tomorrow, if the new hotel will take my luggage early. Tomorrow is the last day on my own for a month, and I will definitely miss the freedom! I didn't even bring my watch with me today. It's wonderful to have some time totally to myself. Don't worry, I still miss everyone at home (maybe...). As I always say on fun vacations: You think I'm coming home the end of July, but really I'm gonna to go ahead and move here! :)

Here are the photos for the day. Just sketches with either oil pastels, charcoal, or pen.  The only difference between the last two is that I added pen to the second. This was a decision made after a man came over and asked to see my work and I think was actually disappointed, so I stepped back and tried something rash for me: mixing media. Please, tell me whether you think my decision was a success or not! Feedback is always helpful...