The Apartment
(Picture: Jardins des Tuileries)

We got the apartment! It’s perfect: three separate bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom; it’s massive… wooden floors throughout… only 10min by metro from uni… I am so happy! It is such a relief. I will be sharing with Mathilde and her friend Barbara. The only downside to the apartment is that it is unfurnished, so I’ve spent some time at Ikea and other furniture stores choosing a bed, desk etc… but it works out to be worth it in the long run! We are moving in on Saturday, and I don’t think the WiFi network has been set up yet, so it may be a while until my next post… although I will try to use the WiFi at uni.
Otherwise, things have been going well. As part of the orientation program, I have been taking classes on French language and civilisation each week, as well as classes on the ‘methodology’ at Sciences Po – how to write essays, how to format oral presentations, etc. They have quite a rigid system here and I’ve been told to expect a lot of work. Sciences Po is considered to be the best university in France for political science and international relations, so I shouldn’t complain! Sciences Po (short hand for the Institute of Political Studies) is the starting point for many French politicians, including the current president (Jacques Chirac) and current prime minister (Dominic de Villepin). The next French presidential elections are in May 2007, so there will be many debates and conferences held at uni – I look forward to seeing some of the heavyweights in French politics in action.
I haven’t had that much time for sightseeing here, although I have been making an effort to walk around different parts of Paris after uni. The weather has been beautiful, and in the late afternoon it is really lovely. It still feels very surreal when I think that I am living here now. Last Saturday I went to a party with Mathilde, which was a lot of fun. It was my first French house party, and I was the only non-French person there… so it was interesting! It was hard for me to follow conversations due to the noise etc, but I got by. The theme of the party was ‘the 1990s’, so they played a lot of great music. Mathilde and I caught the first train home and only got back at 7am… which is another of the reasons why I didn’t do any sightseeing last weekend! Life here as an international student is a lot of fun, and I think it will be even better once I have moved into the new apartment which is a lot closer to everything. The area is lovely, we have everything we need in walking distance, including several small bakeries… I look forward to buying my baguette in the morning!

Paris (picture: Sacre Coeur)

My first ten days in Paris. It doesn’t quite feel like I am living here yet… it is all a bit surreal. In some ways it is exactly like I imagined, but I had no actual idea of what Paris would be like. It’s hard to get an objective picture from what you see on travel shows and in ‘Amelie’!
The major sights (Eiffel Tower etc) have been more or less exactly like what you see on postcards. The Eiffel is quite amazing, we had a picnic on the Champs-des-Mars (lawns in front of Eiffel Tower) on Monday evening as part of the orientation program, which was lovely. The walk through the Jardins des Tuileries to the Louvre is also beautiful. What you don’t see in the postcards are the hordes of tourists (not as bad as Rome though), and the numerous shady people trying to part you with your money in many different ways. If you are ever approached by a young girl who asks if you speak English… just say ‘Non’! Particularly if she’s not wearing shoes! I learnt very quickly that these girls are from Eastern Europe and there is always some elaborate story about being a refugee etc etc. At first I felt sympathy for them, but after the fourth one I started to get a bit annoyed.
In what ways is Paris different to what I imagined? Firstly, not everyone is super-chic and stylish. Perhaps because I have been spending most of my time in the areas where lots of students live, where people dress more casually. I haven’t visited Rue du Faubourg St-Honoré yet, which is famous for all the big fashion houses! Secondly, there are a lot of homeless people. And odd people in general. Every day I see someone sleeping on a park bench/at the station, I have seen several people drunk on the streets at 10am. There are a lot of beggars particularly around the metro stations. The metro stations are a whole other story: the metro system in Paris is very efficient (trains every 3 minutes) and very comprehensive. You are never more than 5 minutes walk from a metro station. However, the stations can be a bit dodgy at night. Peak hour is terrible, because there are heaps of people and no proper ventilation.
Finally, what has surprised me is the diversity of the population. France has a history of immigration from its colonies, particularly in northern and western Africa. This is reflected in the demography of the population. There are now second and third generations of immigrants who seem to have integrated quite well. However this is in Paris, not in the suburbs, where there are less opportunities are more dissatisfaction and tension in the immigrant communities. There are multiple debates raging around the issues of immigration and integration and it’s hard to talk about it without making bug generalisations, so I won’t go into it all now, but it is really different to Australia.
Anyway, moving on… My orientation at Sciences Po (Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris; Institute of Political Studies Paris) began on Monday. The first three days were filled with different activities, and next week French classes begin. The French classes run for about 4 weeks, right up to when normal classes start on the 9th of October. The French classes are about the history and civilisation of France as well as the language. I am managing quite well in French, I find that I understand almost everything when people are speaking to me. However it is difficult to respond! I find it quite frustrating to be listening to a conversation on an interesting topic, and wanting to give my opinion, but by the time I have formed the sentences in my head it is too late! I’m sure this will change with more time. I have really enjoyed my extended holiday, so I don’t want to go back to class! There will be 18 hours of class per week (14 hours of French and 4 hours of ‘methodology’, eg. how to structure essays), which is more than I ever had at Melbourne Uni!!!
There are about 400 international students taking part in the orientation program, of which about 100 are American. The European countries are well represented too. There is one other girl (Mel) here from Melbourne Uni, I assume there are at least a few other Australians but I haven’t met them yet. I have met a nice group of Italians who I have spent most of my time with. We have had some introductory talks on Sciences Po and the way everything works – choosing subjects etc.
I am still looking for an apartment. It seems like Mathilde (the French girl I am living with at the moment) has found a great place in the 15th arrondissement, about 15min from uni by metro, with 3 bedrooms. I really hope it works out! Fingers crossed! We will share with another friend of hers. It would be fantastic for my French!!

Italy
(Picture: Isola Bella, Sicily)

Ok, I know, it’s been ages since I wrote here… I was just too busy to use the internet much! Plus it was quite expensive!
After Rome I spent a few days in Naples, using it as a base to visit the ruins at Pompeii and Herculaneum as well as the beautiful island of Capri. Approaching Capri by ferry is something special – the sheer rock faces rise out of the bluest ocean I have ever seen. I even splashed out on a one hour boat tour of the island, to see all the rock formations, although unfortunately the famous Grotta Azzurra (Blue Grotto) was closed due to rough seas.
After Naples I headed down to the Amalfi coast, where I stayed in a lovely small town in the mountains called Agerola. The view across the ocean was amazing! There were hardly any tourists in this town (it was about 40 min by bus from Amalfi – the most scenic bus route!), and every evening the locals would take a walk down the main street, saying good evening to everyone, eating ice creams, there were old people on their balconies and verandas, young people in the street café… it was really nice and relaxing. I visited Amalfi (I even walked once! 10km downhill!!), Ravello, Positano… all very beautiful small towns. It’s really hard to describe the sheer physical beauty of this area, so you’ll have to visit it yourself!
I then spent one night in Salerno, and visited the very well-preserved ruins at Paestum. I then took a train down to the ‘end of mainland Italy and a ferry to Sicily. I stayed for three nights in the small town of Taormina on the east coast, which is very popular amongst Italians to spend their summer holidays. The beach there (Isola Bella) is spectacular, have a look at the photo!! It was the first time I really relaxed, so it was great.
I had planned to go further south in Sicily (Catania and Syracuse), but unfortunately I couldn’t find accommodation. So, I went straight to Palermo, the largest city on the island. To be honest, Palermo is pretty crappy, but it was probably worse than normal because I arrived just before a big public holiday (Feast of the Assumption) so everything was closed for the week. Palermo is quite dirty and not safe at night. On the plus side, I spent one day at the lovely beach of Cefalù (very crowded though), and I visited an amazing cathedral in nearby Monreale.
I was keen to leave Palermo, I had planned to go to Sardinia but unfortunately the ferry only went once a week, and I didn’t want to hang around. So I coughed up a huge amount for a one-way plan ticket to Milan. I was only there for an evening, it seemed nice, the church there is really amazing.
I then spent four days in the stunning Cinque Terre region, which is along the coast roughly between Genoa and Pisa (north west if Italy). There are five tiny villages perched on sheer cliffs overlooking the ocean, it is really beautiful (again, see the photos!). I stayed in the town of Riomaggiore. I did the famous walk between the villages, I think its about 12km, a lot of uphill and downhill, I was exhausted at the end! But it was a very picturesque walk and I took lots of photos.

Switzerland
On a whim, I decided to go to Switzerland. The original plan was to go to Greece, but since I spent so much time in Italy I didn’t think it was worthwhile to go all that way for one week. Plus Switzerland was on the way to Paris.
I started in the town of Zermatt, in southern Switzerland at the foot of Mount Matterhorn (which I believe is the tallest mountain in Europe). It was very beautiful, of course very different to Italy. The air was fresh and clean, the mountains green and snow-capped… amazing. I took the scenic railway up to Gornergrat, with views of more snow capped mountains and Mount Matterhorn.
I then spent two nights in the small town of Lauterbrunnen in central Switzerland. Lauterbrunnen is nestled in a valley with 72 stunning waterfalls, the view from my room at the hostel was incredible! I took a cable car up to Mount Schiltorn, where a James Bond movie was shot in the 1970s (I think it was ‘Her Majesty’s Secret Service’ or something like that). It is the longest cable car in the world, very steep, and as we kept going higher the temperature kept falling until it was below zero! At the top there was even a light covering of snow on the ground. I was quite excited, it being only the second time I had ever seen snow! However I was freezing, having brought mainly summer clothes – I think I had about five layers on! Although it was cloudy I still got some amazing photos. On the way down I stopped at a few of the small towns on the slopes, including Gimmelwald, which were very picturesque – straight out of ‘Heidi’!
I then spent one night in Lucerne. The afternoon was sunny and I saw most of the town, which is situated next to a beautiful lake. Unfortunately the weather turned and it started raining, I got soaked (even with an umbrella), so the outdoor music festival that was planned for that night was rained out.
I ended my trip with two days in Zurich, where I met up with an Australian girl who I had met in Riomaggiore. I’m glad she was there, because Zurich was a bit boring! Again it was grey and raining, which didn’t really help. I think if it was sunny it would be nice, because there is a huge lake next to the city, and you can rent bikes for free. There was a street festival the one night which was quite good. We even tried a traditional Swiss cheese fondue – I didn’t realise that they actually melt the cheese with white wine and cherry brandy! It was ok, I prefer chocolate fondues though!

Paris
Ashley and I caught a train together to Paris, where I met my friend Mathilde. I am staying with her and her family in the suburbs just outside of the city, which is nice because I am experiencing how it is to live in a normal French family. I am especially enjoying the three and four-course meals!!! And having my own bedroom after all that time in hostels. The weather has been mostly sunny, so I have done a fair bit of walking around the city – I’ve seen the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe (8 lanes of traffic all going around in a circle!!), the outside of the Louvre. Yesterday I went to see Sacre Coeur in the late afternoon, it was very beautiful. I have also met up with a couple of people from Melbourne Uni who are here on exchange, there are four others: a girl (Mel) and a guy going to my uni, and another girl and guy going to a different uni. I have now got a French mobile number (I sent an email out about it), although I still have to set up a bank account etc. But most importantly, I need to find my own apartment! I am hoping to share with some other students. I’ll keep you posted!