I spoke to some of my new colleagues and learned that at the end of collège (middle school), students apply to several lycées throughout the city. Most ended up at mine because it was their only offer for high school. Many of the students have disciplinary issues and absenteeism isn’t uncommon. There are no sports teams or other rallying points for school pride. All of this is in contrast to the posh public lycée located a few blocks away, where the city’s top students attend. They are preparing to enter the most prestigious universities in France and take a very rigorous curriculum. There are, however, some students with wider worldviews than I imagined. While most of the questions about America center on celebrities (“Do you know Chris Brown?” “Have you ever been to Hollywood?”) or my personal life (“Are you married?” “Would like a French girlfriend?”), some have focused on broader issues. “What is your opinion on the continued US involvement in Iraq?” “Does your state have the death penalty? When was the last time it was used?” I try to present not only my own personal views, but also include other opinions that may exist so students can see that these are not one-sided debates for the US.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
School Days (Part II)
School Days (Part I)
Aside: From now on, the posts will be more thematic rather than directly chronological in nature. I want this to be a place for updates and reflection, not necessarily a day-to-day diary.
Since my time in Nancy, I’ve met a lot of students at my lycée by observing some of the English teachers. One striking division is between genders. The school’s secretarial and accountancy training programs are primarily (>80%) female, while the printing press program is overwhelmingly male. Some of the courses I’ve observed have been single-gender female courses with the rest being a mixed group, always with more female students. The young women at this school seem to be quite passive about their educations – it takes a lot of encouragement and prodding from the teachers to get a simple answer out of them. In contrast to this environment, most of the young men shout out several answers in rapid-fire succession. While it may take them awhile to hit upon the correct response, the energy level is completely different.
Another interesting bit of demographic data is that these students are very diverse with respect to ethnicity and national origin. Several have parents who come from North or Western Africa or other member nations of the European Union. When I asked if any had relatives living outside of the département (administrative district of France: check out Wikipedia!), many replied that they had aunts, uncles, cousins, and other extended family that had chosen to emigrate to the United States or Canada.
Their English skills, for the most part, are not that great. A lycée professionel (vocational school) tends to attract students weaker in foreign languages (and possibly other academic subjects) than a lycée general (general high school). But they are all very nice and have made me feel very welcome. The teachers have also been wonderful. Part of my luck is that V is a young, dynamique teacher who likes to interact with her colleagues in the break room. It’s still a bit strange to suddenly be a “Monsieur” after years of being a student!
Livin La Vida Dorm Room
I’ll take a few pics of the room this weekend when I have some downtime to clean, but in general it is very nice. It’s larger than the room I lived at for most of my college education and comes equipped with a bed, an armoire, a desk, a sink, and some extra storage space. We have a common bathroom for over 9 people: 3 urinals, 3 stalls, and 1 long sink. One of the stalls is marked “Hors de service” (Out of service) and another is declared “Privé” (Private). All of the other assistants from America, England, Germany, Nicaraugua, and France are very nice. I’ve become good friends with E, a laid-back Nebraskan, and K, a polite Tennessean who studied German linguistics. E lives across the hall from me, and we make the journey to K’s apartment in town where she makes delicious meals (we bring wine and bread). Right outside of my window is a gorgeous lawn, which is usually occupied by one of two groups. First are the lycéens (high schoolers) smoking and making out on the grass. We also have a flock of corbeaux (ravens) that hunt for dead things in the grass and glare at passerby. Two people have already said that they’ll be teaching “The Raven” this year…
Friday, September 25, 2009
Technical Difficulties
De Paris À Nancy
At the station, I drank an Orangina soda and looked around for V, the English teacher was coming to pick me up. She was indeed there with 15 high school girls – her class for that hour. After the short walk to the lycée (high school), they tried to ask my questions like “Where are you from?” “How tall are you?” “Do you know any celebrities?” Though they had been taking English for at least 4 years, many could not manage with these simple questions. It will be quite an interesting year!
Then, V showed me around the school and took me to a local shopping mall so that I could buy a sandwich. She was very welcoming and willing to share any information that I asked of her. When we returned to the lycée, she had a French class to teach, so I hung out with the assistant principal. She is hilarious and loves to pepper her conversation with well-placed sarcasm. We had an hour-long discussion in French about the different solutions to social problems our two countries had implemented. A very interesting conversation, but a tiring one.
Since my room at the other lycée was not ready, I spent the night at the secretary’s home with her and her husband, a primary school teacher. They live in a country home which is more Sleeping Beauty’s castle (complete with spinning wheel) than the cute cottage I was expecting. We had a delicious meal of veal , potatoes, and carrots with a yummy sauce. They and their adult son were very chatty and asked my opinion of many things. I’m afraid my explanations began to become less clear as the night wore on and more wine was drunk by all. My first real day at work is tomorrow, as is the move to my new place.
Paris Day 2
After a quick breakfast at the hotel (baguette with butter, cereal, orange, and milk), I set off for the Musée d’Orsay. The Louvre is closed on Tuesdays and frankly I’m sure I’ll go there with family and friends before I leave. Anyways, I only waited in line for 10 minutes, even though it was noon when I arrived. The museum contains a stunning array of sculptures, painting, and other media. In the impressionist gallery, I took photos that reflected the theme of work. For example, in the following selections, you can see that sometimes women did laundry and took care of the children (Photo 1), but they made plenty of time for just sitting around too (Photos 2 and 3). Men, on the other hand, tried to look busy (Photo 4), but usually just gave up pretending and settled down for a good chat over liquor (Photo 5). I ate a late lunch at a nice overpriced café near the museum – my waiter was very glad that I could order a grilled cheese and ham sandwich (un croque monsieur) in French as most of the tourists could only speak English.
I took the metro home and took an hour and a half nap and Internet break. Paris will still be there in a few months and I would rather savor the experience rather than run around like a madman to make sure that I saw EVERY! SINGLE! SIGHT! before I left.
I went from the metro to Montmartre, Paris’ version of Sin City. The steps were not too hard to ascend for a fit twentysomething (Your Mileage May Vary), and it was fun to see all of the people from the city and abroad enjoying picnics on the hillside. Inside the Sacré-Coeur Cathedral at the top of the hill, the nuns were quite strict. No provocative dress, no talking. While restrictive, these policies led to a better experience for me than at Notre Dame. Furthermore, the nuns had a continuous prayer service going whose meditative prayers and chanting added to the building’s reflective ambiance. I felt much more spiritually connected here and stayed for part of the service.
Back outside, I went down the hill and bought a pizza marguerite (cheese pizza) and an apple to eat at a little park just below the cathedral. Several couples were also there, enjoying the romantic views until a guard chased us out at 8:00 pm when the park closed. Since dusk was falling, I took the metro to the Place Concorde stop and saw the famous sites of Paris illuminated against the night sky. The Place, the Champs-Elysees, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Eiffel Tower were all great, but large crowds at night are not really my thing so I went home before 10 pm.
Notre Dame and the Jardins de Luxembourg
I took a quick stroll to the Jardins de Luxembourg and was overwhelmed with its natural beauty and tranquility (as opposed to Notre Dame’s artifice). Many Parisians were walking along the paths, playing with their children, jogging by the chateau, and above all making out on park benches. If a man and woman sit down at a bench together, chances are they won’t be going anywhere soon. City of Love, indeed. I drank a beer by the lovely pool and strolled along taking pictures of the statues, many of which celebrated Bacchus (Roman god of wine). Whenever I travel, I like to take time to sit in a park and collect my thoughts, especially after a long journey.
By the time I returned to my own neighborhood, everything had closed except the hotel restaurant. I ate a lovely ham and cheese omelet, salad, and chocolate ice cream, with a glass of wine, for 11.50€. Stay tuned for more Paris highlights!
Departure Day Continued
In London, I had to go through British security and run to my next gate for my 45 minute flight to Paris. One young American woman threw a fit when she was told that in the United Kingdom her kind of foundation was indeed considered “liquid” enough to be a safety hazard. Rather than moving it from one bag to another, she argued with the agent for 10 minutes. Then, she proceeded to improperly load her bags on the spinning track, causing further delays. A security officer eventually confronted her and told her that she had no right to be upset and waste people’s time by acting like a brat. I got through with 8 minutes to spare and just made it onto my plane.
The Paris metro system is also efficient, but confusing, especially when you don’t have a great sense of direction to begin with. Furthermore, I was carrying a 20 pound backpack, a 30 pound suitcase, and a 70 pound monstrosity. Thanks to the help of friendly information agents, I got to the correct stop only to spend 20 minutes walking uphill on cobblestones and sweating profusely. I reached my hotel, took a shower, and rested for 45 minutes before heading out again to see the sights.