Michelle and I stopped by La Comédie Française on Friday night, looking for a show to see that weekend. There were two playing, but Michelle was looking for a comedy that would be relatively easy to understand (it is quite difficult to follow French plays, with not only the language barrier but the subtle jokes thrown in as well). Since we both agreed that we should keep looking for something that really caught our eye, we popped next door into the gift shop and saw this dress in the window:
It could’ve been the purple that caught my eye, or the mere fact that I love period clothing, I don’t know. But seeing it on display there made me want to try it on and run around in the theatre, pretending I was part of the company.
I made a mental note to see Cyrano de Bergerac while here in France, as the main character hails from my region of France. I was reminded by seeing the souvenir t-shirts with quotes from the book. I was tempted to get something to bring back to Aiguillon, but I decided everything was a bit more pricey than I’d’ve liked, so I moved on.
We enjoyed imagining in which apartments we’d like to live and how much they’d cost each. For example, there was one that had a view inside the Louvre, and was probably right off Rue de Rivoli. I didn’t check, but I could bet that living there costs about an arm and a leg. Whatever, we decided when we’re rich that we’d live in the Louvre, not around it. We’d probably have to buy it first from the French Government. Don’t know how happy they’d be with the idea.
Paris was decorated with about as much extravagance as I’d expected for a big city- not to say I wasn’t impressed. Almost every street, small side-street, and corner was lined with Christmas lights. I had to wonder how much brighter Paris looked from a plane if you were to fly above it at this point in the season. The most decorative building I’d seen was Le Printemps (above), and I pictured it to look about the same as a Galéries Lafayette on the inside, with probably the same prices. Needless to say, we didn’t go in. Instead we opted for Gap, H & M, Camaieu, and a few other smaller French boutiques lined along our walkway. Michelle was looking for something without artificial fabrics, but she couldn’t find much under 100 Euro that was 100% wool, cashmere, or cotton that she liked (expensive taste may or may not run in the family). I wasn’t looking for clothing at the time but did find a few things I liked. I keep trying to remind myself that the more I buy here, the heavier my suitcases will be and the more fun it will be to lug them around the Paris Metro when the time comes to leave France.
We started planning our Christmas vacation while in Paris. We’ve booked a hotel in Avignon for 3 nights, and Michelle will be coming to stay with me before and after we take the train out east from Aiguillon. I’ve been looking into things like bike rentals, recommended visits, and must-sees in my France on a Budget guide (thank you Evan, it’s come in handy quite often while I’ve been here). We want to go to the lavender fields for sure, but don’t feel too inclined on taking the tourist-guided buses out there from our hotel. Way too pricey, and not the way we want to experience it. We prefer the Rick Steves way of experiencing, by just going out and doing it yourself or maybe 1 other friend and hosting a TV show about it. Although, we won’t be doing the latter. Yet.
I thought it was a bit of a shame we wouldn’t be in Avignon during the summer when the renowned theatre festival would be going on. True, I have the option of staying later over the summer to see it, but the whole not-working-thing would probably keep me from doing that. Also, I’m pretty eager to see my family and friends. David (the assistant in Nérac) suggested I stay at least for a week longer to visit Greece with his friend Regina (assistant in La Réole). It does sound tempting, but I also have to save up for my plane ticket/rent when I move back to the States. Where will that be, you might ask? Well, maybe not Michigan right away, if I can find an apartment in Boston first. Tickets would be cheaper, and I could start looking for a job straight off the bat. Why Boston? Because I haven’t gone through with any other applications for grad school other than Emerson. So, it’s Emerson or bust. Plan B? Get a job teaching French in a high school (although I may have to get certified for that first, not too sure about how that works) and audition for shows on the side. Either way, if I do go straight back to Michigan, it won’t be for long. After living on my own for 7 months, I’ll want to keep it that way.
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