So la France is currently in an uproar over the retirement reforms the government is trying to put in place, and as such there have been strikes, school blockades, and demonstrations ("manifesations") bordering on riots all over the country. So far I haven't been too affected, except seeing and hearing large masses of people parading through the streets holding signs and making lots of noise. Oh and the students at my high school blocked the entrance last Tuesday with garbage bins. Most classes had to be cancelled, it was my second day of teaching and I barely did anything! We're getting a little worried though since the Toussaint holidays are coming up in a week, and for now the train system is on strike, with about 1 in 3 trains running as per usual...even the petrol workers are striking, so it could be difficult for motorists to get gas. Things are only going to get worse before they get better, the French stop at nothing to get their way, and unions resort to rallying youth and students to tout their cause since they cause the most uproar and, often, destruction. I have a feeling there are a lot more blockades to come...We took a few photos today of the demonstration taking place downtown. A big kerfuffle!
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| These pictures were actually taken courtesy of Rachel and Julia...for some reason I didn't think I'd need my camera that day |
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| One big angry parade! |
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| yeah drums! |
You would think that living in a foreign country would give you plenty of opportunities to meet locals. Unfortunately, not so. Apart from the teachers I work with, I essentially know no French people...or have yet to meet any. (My students don't count). It's not quite as simple as finding a group of French youth my age and saying "hey, want to grab a drink and speak some French?" Speaking with my roommate and other assistants, everyone seems to be having the same issue. I'm lucky in that I get to speak French everyday with Kerstin, however it's not the same as practicing the language with a native speaker. You pick up so much more vocabulary and expressions from someone who's native tongue is French. I'm really happy with my level of French, I can carry on conversations no problem, even when speaking about complex subjects. I've been told by many French native speakers that my French is excellent, that my English accent is very slight, etc etc. However, there's still a lot to learn. So, in an attempt to fight back against this lack of finding French friends, Kerstin and I headed to the University of Nancy to put up some flyers to find a "tandem", essentially a conversation partner, usually a student who is learning English. You set up a date/time once or twice a week to swap conversation in your respective languages. So far I've gotten 2 responses from a couple of students at the university who are interested, so I'm super excited to meet them and start parler en français!
And finally...
Having given up on my idea of joining a gym, I decided to look into classes at the local MJC. I noticed in the registration booklet that they offered an open class for "Trapeze et tissu aerienne", which is fancy Cirque du Soleil terms for Static Trapeze and Aerial Silk. For those of you who have no clue what I'm talking about, here are 2 video links that should give you a good idea:
I decided to try it out. Being deprived of gymnastics and fitness (for the moment) and always eager to try something new, I went to my first "class" last week. It was in a gymnastics studio (which made me so happy...nothing like seeing the familiar floor, mats, bars, beams and vault to make you feel "at home"!) They pulled out various trapezes and silks tied from the ceiling at different heights and we started warm up. The teacher, Sylvia, is a trained circus artist and, in my humble opinion, is freaking amazing. There were only about 8 of us, some like me were just beginners and others had done circus arts classes for years. Since this was an "open" class there was no structure to it, more like self-learning with an instructor there for guidance. Sylvia showed me the basics of trapeze, and said once I could master that I could move on to more difficult moves. What she didn't know was that I'm a trained gymnast, and had her moves down in no time (not to brag or anything.) It took some work and some courage (and a lot of hand-related pain) but I was hanging upsidedown by my knees in no time and swinging myself upright onto the bar, then standing up and holding various poses. It's only a slight beginning, but I was proud of myself! Even Sylvia seemed impressed. Some of the other girls helped me out and showed me some things I could work towards. The silks are much harder and require a lot more body strength. Sylvia taught me how to do a "grenouille" (a frog), which was a "basic" move, but I found it very difficult and needed help through it. Lots to work on! Anyways, I had a lot of fun and really enjoyed the class, and liked how I could take it upon myself to learn and try as much or little as I liked. I also forgot how much I love being upsidedown...a life of gymnastics leaves you with a yearning to move your body in completely unnatural ways, something I miss very much. My mother can testify to the hours I used to spend as a child doing handstands everywhere I went...in the house, in the yard, outside of restaurants while waiting for meals to arrive (seriously.) I have this theory that being upsidedown not only lengthens your life, but makes you smarter. Your heart always has to work to pump blood to your brain, so why not make life easier for your ticker and spend time with your feet in the air? More blood to the brain, less work on the heart...win win for everyone! Plus, it feels amazing. I had a great time just hooking my legs on the trapeze bar and letting my body hang limp towards the ground below. I can't wait for the next class! PLUS I met 2 really nice French girls (see, getting involved = meeting people!) and one spent an exchange year in Montreal during university and took classes at the circus school. She was quite thrilled that I was Canadian and could tell me all about her travels in my beloved home country.
Well all my classes are still going great, I love all the students. I had a group of Secondes on Friday at 8am (yuck) that were the most amazing students ever - their level of English was very advanced, (most of the students were ABIBAC, a program where they'll take the French BAC exam and the German Abitur for their last year of school. The program is quite intense and focuses very specifically on English and German) and they were all enthusiastic to speak and participate. And were SO well behaved. If I knew I could always have students like that, I would have no problem becoming a high school teacher. However, we don't live in an ideal world, so I'll stick with being an ESL teacher for immigrants, since they're always well behaved :)
Whew another long post! Pictures of strikes to come soon :)
YAY! The aerial silks class sounds so cool, Britt! I always thought gymnastics seemed like a cool sport when I was little (and it still is today), but I was too scared to try.
ReplyDeleteBut I feel you on the meeting French people thing, as we have obviously discussed. But yay! That's a good idea to go to the university and make a posting. :) I hope it works out well and that you come out with a couple of French friends!