#IranElection

What a week...and it's only Wednesday! So I started summer session 2 weeks ago and each session is only 3 weeks long. BUT somebody at my school decided that the last week of 1st session and the first week of 2nd session should overlap. Yeah so i'm in class all day every day this week and it sucks. Not only is there class to attend but also readings and a final exam on Friday. Great.

ON TOP of school stuff the Iranian presidential election happened last Friday. And unless you've been living under a rock then you should know that the election was rigged and there have been mass protests in Iran and around the world this week. I went to two of them here in Paris already.

There's a reason I am so distracted mentally by what's happening right now in Iran. I'm 30 years old and 30 years ago in 1979 was the revolution in Iran. My parents left Iran before the revolution and moved to Canada where I was born and raised with my brother. Had my parents stayed in Iran I would have been born there and possibly grown up there. A vast majority of the protesters are students and people my age as an overwhelming percent of Iranians are under the age of 35. I am under the age of 35. I could be there right now. Who knows what your life would have been like if even one thing was different. There's no way to know if I would have been a protester but I think I would have. I've seen protests before but I have never felt this way about any of them until now. I suppose the thought that that could be me on the streets of Tehran is really stuck in my head and heart right now. I want to be there with them, protesting in the streets for freedom. Obviously I don't want to get shot at or anything like that but I think what they're doing is admirable. I feel a sense of connection to the citizens of Iran even though I wasn't born there and I've never been there. My parents are both from Iran, I am Persian and this is my fight too.

There's not much that I can do right now from my little studio apartment in Paris but to go to the protests that I can go to (they're usually during class so it's hard to get there in time). One thing that has emerged through all this is the use of websites like Twitter, YouTube, Twitpic, Facebook etc. These sites have been essential for the people in Iran to spread videos, news and pictures to the rest of the world. Since I don't have a TV I can't watch any news programs but what i've heard is in the first few days main stream media barely covered the story at all. My sense is now that they are covering it but no one can expect the MSM to show the kinds of footage and photos on TV that are truly at the heart of the protest. It's amazing to see on these sites the raw footage from the heart of the situation. To see students' dorms terrorized, see people injured and dead is unbelievable. I'm grateful that the Internet has allowed others to really see the people of Iran fight for freedom.

I feel a little like a kid caught in the middle, I'm both west and east. I'm Canadian and Persian, and I'm proud of it!

So anyways...this week has been really hard and it's only going to get harder. I think I am mentally breaking down a little. Last night I passed out in the middle of my bed/futon with all the lights still on, window wide open and computer on. I was that exhausted! I still am exhausted but I can't even imagine what it must feel like for the students in Iran right now. I hope that all Iranians stay safe but keep on keeping on!

Here's a link to a video i took of one of the protests in Paris. Already has 300+ views!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itibtJg2NHA

My Staycation

Here are some shots from my Staycation!

Notre Dame Church

Musee d'Orsay

Le Pere Lachaise cemetary

Edith Piaf

Jim Morrison

Chopin

The Louvre

Sunday Funday

Today I decided to get out of the apartment and go for a walk. I thought I'd try to get lost and just explore. Of course when I want to get lost I don't but when I don't want to get lost I do!  Here are some shots from today.

Dear Tourists

This is more like an open letter to the tourists that will flock to Paris this year.  Now please don't get me wrong, I was once you, a tourist to this fine city.  And now that I live here and have been on both sides I want to share a few tips.  

1. We all know you're in a new city and you probably have no clue where you're going. Perfectly acceptable, what is not acceptable is when you pull out your map and stop in the middle of the sidewalk.  Just dead in your tracks! Not cool. When you're driving you wouldn't stop in the middle of the street to look at your map would you?  No, so don't do it on the sidewalk either.  Pull over! And if you don't pull over, don't look at me like i'm the jerk because i bumped in to you! You're the one who stopped dead in your tracks. 

2. You're probably visiting Paris with someone, that's great! But if you roll with a large crew, don't take up the whole sidewalk.  The sidewalks in Paris are small enough as is, sometimes barely big enough for one person to walk on, let alone two in passing.  So think about that when you and your crew are walking down the street, it's ok to walk in pairs or even single file.  We all know you're a tough gang ok? You don't need to own the sidewalk, share the sidewalk please.

3. It's ok to ask for directions! Yes, I know I look scary and mean (moi?!) But if I can help you, I will point you in the right direction, even though most of the time I have no clue! But the point is that most Parisians will actually help you with directions, they're a lot nicer and friendlier than people think. 

4. Yes, I know most North American cities don't have an underground metro system and figuring out the Metro can be tricky at first.  The ticket buying procedure can also be challenging for first timers so please do us all a favor, if you and you're posse could just take up one of the stalls and leave the others open for us who have places to be that would be great, thanks!

5. Don't tip! I know, it sounds crazy especially from those of us North Americans who are used to tipping.  The tip is included here and it's absolutely not necessary for you tip.  IF you want to tip a few coins, like your change that's fine but none of that 15-20% stuff here.  That's a rip off, don't get ripped off.  Do however, tip your bell hop if he brings your bags up.  Don't tip the waiter or the cab driver unless they were awesome.

6. If you're near the Champs de Mars (the grassy area by the Eiffel Tower) or on the Champs Elysee and some woman comes up to you and asks you if you speak English, say NO.  You'll think they're asking YOU for directions or something but they're not.  They will show you a picture of some kid who is "sick" and "needs surgery".  This is a scam, they will try to get money from you either by your guilt or my stealing it while you're distracted. 

7. Also, if some guy is walking towards you and suddenly bends down to pick up a ring off the ground then comes to you and asks you if you dropped it, say NO.  First of all these guys are idiots, if they are walking towards me and see a ring on the ground IN FRONT of me then how did I drop it?  Did I throw it? No, these are scammers stay away.  

8. If you visit the Montmartre area (the artsy area & near Moulin Rouge & Sacre Coeur church) if some guys want to show you a "trick" with string, say NO and walk away fast.  Their trick is to tie up your hands somehow and while you're mesmerized by their magic they rip you off. 

(None of these things have actually happened to me {knock on wood} but i've seen them)

9. Pointing to order food is perfectly acceptable! Don't be afraid to try to speak French but throwing in a point to the food or the menu won't hurt either.  At least there's no confusion!

10. Meat is not fully cooked here! I got sick one time from a hamburger at a restaurant because i'm not used to meat being so rare.  It's ok to ask for it well done (Bien cuie) It's better to have the meat cooked than be sick after, at least in my opinion it is!

11.  ENJOY Paris!  Eat lots of bread, cheese and chocolate! Drink lots of wine! Go shopping! Explore! Smile! I promise I will try to do more of these things too ok? 

Bon Voyage!

In The Metro

There's one metro station that has this long people mover thing which I love!  We were on it the other night and I took video.  I'm not in the video but you can hear my voice so that counts!

Video includes Ashley, Amy, Leanne, Jenn, Megan, Kasey & my voice!

Protest in Paris

Today as I was out around the Montparnasse area I witnessed my first ever French Protest!  This one however was different than the usual ones you hear about.  Usually you hear about the French protesting job wages or something like that.  This one was about genocide in Sri Lanka.  I couldn't understand what they were chanting but they were loud and they had signs with some horrific images on them.  The line of protesters went on and on.  They were marching down the street where I was waiting for the bus and since the bus wasn't coming anytime soon I decided to snap some photos and I took a video of the protest.  

A few more pictures from Paris

This whole display is made out of chocolate!!

We had a picnic on the Champ de Mars (that's what the grass area by the Eiffel Tower is called in case you were wondering)

A walk in the garden

The other day I thought I would go to the Tuileries gardens and read for class.  I DID read for a little bit but it was too cold to sit any longer.  It was about 40 degrees!! When you move from 10 years in "Sunny" San Diego, 40 degrees is below freezing!  Ok, it wasn't below freezing but it was too cold to just sit there.  So I took a little walk through before heading back home and took some pics...

I got lost today...surprised? Nope!

So today I decided to get out of the house (apartment) so I went to the train station to print out my ticket to London.  I know it's a week early and I know I could've gone the day of and just printed it but I wanted to make sure I have it in hand and there are no problems...plus I needed somewhere to go today.  So I did that and then I decided that I would just stop by the Louvre because I have not seen it yet since i've been here.  So I got off the metro at Louvre stop which I didn't realize let's you out right inside the lobby area!  Neat!  I walked around and then went up the Jardin Tuileries (ps I don't know how to spell any of these places) anyways, I sat a bench and tried to read a chapter for school but it started to drizzle so I got up and started walking towards the pyramid.  I took some pictures (see below) and then just decided to start walking.  I didn't really know where I was going but I was walking along the Seine and I could see the Eiffel Tower in the distance.  Then all of a sudden I was at the bottom of the Champs Elysee!  So I figured since i'm here I might as well walk up the Arc side and then home.  Well, once I got to the Arc I decided that I would go passed my street and go to the other side of the Arc to see what's down those streets.  Well the street I went down there wasn't much there.  A lot of motorcycle shops and men's clothing stores, I decided to call it "Man Street".  haha I crack myself up! Anyways, of course going home from Man Street I decided not to go back the way I came and instead thought I could figure out my way.  Well, eventually I did figure out my way but not before I officially felt lost and started to panic just a little bit.  But eventually I saw the Arc in the distance and I know I live by it so then I found my way home.  Yay me!  The walk was nice but i'm not sure how long it actually took me to do it because I wasn't paying attention to the time, maybe 45 min?  Not sure but it's a nice walk and next time I'm going INSIDE the Louvre!  I've been before but I want to go again.   When I got home my landlady called and she was telling me that the plumber is coming tomorrow because she thinks something is leaking and we started talking and now I know what she does, she's a painter!  And she said she occasionally gets invites to the openings but she doesn't go anymore and she said next time she gets one she's giving it to me! How cool is that?!  Love her!  

Here are pictures from today, there are more up on Facebook if you want to see...

Some pictures from the past two weeks...

This is me & Elie, one of our new french friends

This is Jenn, Me & Cheryl at Jenn's party on Valentine's Day

This is me at my first movie in Paris!  We saw He's Just Not That In To You...or Ce que pensent les hommes

The water fountain at Palais Royal, don't worry I didn't touch the water

At Palais Royal