We've Arrived!! July 2

 July 2nd...

It's been a long 24 hours or so.  I left my house to head to the airport a little before 2 PM yesterday since we were flying out of Cincinnati (thanks, Delta, for a direct flight to Paris!).  TSA lines were long, the flight was long, and so was customs when we arrived.  But, the view was awfully nice early this morning. 

                 

  

From the time we touched down in Paris at 9 AM local time (3 AM EST), it took about 4 hours for us to clear customs, meet up with our tour group, and make it to my apartment.  Thankfully, our ground team in Paris with the study abroad program, WorldStrides, secured my accommodations.  It's the perfect little studio apartment that reminds me of the first place I lived in grad school at UK. It's right in the heart of things and close to the Metro...and the Notre Dame!  Speaking of the Notre Dame, check out the progress on the renovations.

After getting settled, I had three main goals for today -- find some groceries, find our classroom where we'll meet (almost) every day, and ride the Metro a time or two.  

I was starving by the time I got here, so food came first! I found a grocery store not to far from my apartment (and thanks to Dr. Brady, knew to bring my own bags!).  But, that's about all I knew.  I tried to pick out some foods that looked familiar...and some that were new.  I plan to eat breakfast and dinner in most days, and then eat lunch out before my afternoon adventures.  If you know me, you know I'm an early bird by nature, so not starting dinner until 7 or 8 at night and then having class the next day at 8 AM....not doable on the regular.  Saving dinners out for special occasions! I also am not quite sure how to use the microwave...so, doing my best to figure that out for dinner as we speak (which seems to be some sort of shepherd's pie). 

  I was intrigued by the "nutrition rating" system on some of the packaged foods -- and hope I'll learn more about that while I'm here.  

As I thought about the trip, I was most nervous about the Metro.  Sure, I've ridden the Metro in major US cities like DC, NYC, and Chicago, but somehow this felt different.  Lea, one of the WorldStrides team that met us at the airport today, suggested "Citymapper" to help us get around.  After a failed attempt getting Google Maps to work right, I downloaded Citymapper and it worked so well.  Thanks, Lea! 

My challenge with the Metro today was not the Metro itself -- but, rather knowing which way to go when I got OFF the Metro!  Anyone who knows me knows that I am incredibly directionally challenged -- so I spent a lot of time walking in circles, but ultimately found my way to our classroom building (and scored some awesome fresh cherries at a fruit stand across the street).  

I'm tired tonight...so here's to a good night's rest before tomorrow's adventures! We're doing orientation to the class, a cruise on the Seine River, and a welcome dinner with the whole group.  Stay tuned for more fun then.