Mes Cours

I have been so busy dealing with stuff for my classes that I haven’t had a chance to tell you about them yet! Yes, I am taking classes over here, despite the fact that most of my posts suggest that I am on an extended European vacances.

The reason that I haven’t been so enthusiastic to write about my classes is that they have been giving me a lot of frustration over the past two weeks. As it turns out, finding classes and registering for school have been the most difficult aspects of adjusting to life in France. Living with the host families was difficult at first but at least I have been able to fall into a routine and develop some sense of normalcy. So not the case with my classes so far…. Thinking about it, this has proved to be the worst culture shock I’ve experienced so far in France.

Unfortunately, it is not even the classes themselves that are giving me trouble. The whole process of picking classes, signing up for classes, and registering in the French university is really starting to wear me down. I didn’t think it was going to be this hard. Plus it doesn’t help when I show up to get my student ID card at Paris 12 and I am told, along with another student from my program : “Mais vous n’existez pas!” (“But you don’t exist!”). Thankfully, I think I made some progress yesterday. I turned in a big packet of information so hopefully j’existe maitenant!

I still have the feeling that I am waiting for everything to fall into place and get going, forgetting that this is my second week of classes already at Reid Hall. I have two classes at Reid Hall with other students in my program. The best part of the classes: field trips! For my class Installation: Lieux et espaces dans l’art contemporain, we have to go to an assigned museum every week and write reflections in a little journal (papers come later in the semester). For my other Reid Hall class, Lieux de mémoire: Paris et la littérature, we have walking tours every other week along with regular class sessions. My third class is a cours mixte, a regular French university course with once a month sessions at Reid Hall with the professor, making it easier for us American students to know what is going on! My fourth class is at Paris 12 (outside of Paris, about an hour commute from my house by metro) and I will be all by myself. I was hoping to take a political geography course but it didn’t start until October 19. So instead, I will be taking an L3 (third year) philosophy course….in French….by myself…….oh god.

Pourquoi la philo? Well, plain and simple, it works for my major back at Hamilton. For my government major, I need a political theory course and this French university course fills that requirement. I had a hard time finding classes that will count towards my major over here and this is the only government credit I will be getting from my semester abroad. I bought a magnétophone so that I can enregistrer (record) all my classes. At least it will give me an excuse to talk to the other kids in my class. I’m going to need a study group…pronto.

Alors, I must get to bed. I have a rendez-vous at 6h30 au matin for a weekend excursion aux Chateaux de la Loire!

Bonne nuit