Pour les gens qui je connais aux États-Unis

Ugh. I am absolutely and utterly exhausted. But I’m here none-the-less.

Paris is an amazing city; already I’ve found myself a cell phone, gotten lost navigating the city and metro, and spent the greater portion of an hour exploring a cheese shop down the street. And I’ve spoken quite a bit of French. Maybe I can do this after all…

I decided, though, as I was struggling to stay awake on the RER (think commuter rail) from Charles de Gaulle to the metro, that if I have some sort of opportunity in Paris I don’t think I’d like to live directly in the city. Just outside of the 20 diverse arrondissements stand quaint little houses, covered in ivy vines, blessed with backyards. I’d rather live there and commute to the city than live in some gorgeous apartment overlooking an alley that emanates with the aroma of piss 24/7. Unless, of course, I was ridiculously wealthy – in that case I’d move to the first or second (think of it like the best sections of Beacon Hill and the South End – ridiculously overpriced but historic and gorgeous). Eh, we’ll see… I have a whole summer to figure out what comes next. I mean, I already miss my friends & family, I’m not sure I can stay longer than anticipated, no matter how much of an adventure that would be.

But really, last week I was a student. Now, I’m moving to France. Hopefully by next week, I’ll be working in the Riviera. I get to spend a significant amount of time in Paris, St. Tropez, Ramatuelle – and who the hell knows where else (I’ve got mini vacations stirring up in my head… peut être Galway or Dublin, London, Malaga & Madrid, Italy, Greece, Cairo?). What more could I really want?

Thinking of you all tous les temps ~