Hey I'm a freshman in the GLS program this fall! I'm starting out in NYC though, but I wanted to ask if you have any tips or information about the GLS program on general?
Hi! I'm in the Core program, not GLS, so I won't be able to give you much specific information about that, but I can tell you that our curriculum (for the first semester it's identical to GLS) was really reading intensive, and you should figure out sooner rather than later the classes where you really need read every detail vs. the classes where you can just skim, so that you won't be drowning in material. Cultural Foundations was a summary of arts and lit from Mesopotamia onward, and Social Foundations was similar but focused on philosophy, at least that was what we did in Paris! If you have any specific questions I will try my best to answer them!
If someone asked me what the biggest pieces of advice I could give about living in Paris, were, this is what I’d tell them. Some of this is what you’ll read on any study abroad survival guide, but really, there’s a reason that some advice is repeated so often- it’s good. Follow it. Especially 1 and 2 in this case. Anyways, this is what helped me survive in and learn to love the city (not that Paris is hard to love!) and I hope that anyone incoming students find them helpful!
1.) Make French friends. Really. I know it can be daunting, but the very best way to see the city is to meet people who know the city. (Not to mention that the best way to learn a language is to practice with native speakers!) I had a few friends who studied in Paris and all of my best adventures were with them. It’s easy to get trapped in the NYU/ American bubble, but try to get out of it as much as possible. Hang out at the Sorbonne library, look into any NYU planned meet-ups with French students, find events in the city. (I found that the app Couchsurfing was helpful to find events). You will regret it if you spend your year only hanging out with Americans!
2.) Get out of the dorms. My biggest regret was not completing the Paris bucket list I made in the beginning of the year. While I had many unplanned adventures and discovered so much that Pinterest didn’t tell me about, i was a little sorry that I hadn’t seen some of the things I’d planned on. My biggest excuse? Laziness. It’s so easy to get sucked into the routine of class, dorm, Netflix, and spend more time in your bed than in the city. You’re only in Paris for one year, and the city has so much to offer. Someone told me that Paris is underrated, because the sights labeled as must-sees are overrated. Once you’ve seen the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame, get out and discover what the guidebooks don’t tell you!
3.) Get Free Mobile. I don’t know if everyone will agree on this, but 50 GB of 4G and unlimited texting and calling in the EU for $20 a month? Sign me up again, please.
4.) Stay on top of class readings. Okay, this is kind of a given, but there are a lot of professors (I probably can’t name names here) that really make sure their students are keeping up. If you don’t want to be called on at 9 am to summarize a paper you never read or get a D on a quiz because Sparknotes didn’t cover all of the minute details of The Odyssey, do yourself a favor and just read the materials.
5.) HEMA. If you don’t know what this is now, find out once you get to Paris. I bought everything here, from peanut butter and chia seeds to stationery and kitchen supplies to Polaroid film. Everything is crazy cheap (aside from Polaroid film, everything listed above was under $10, and most was under $5). The stores are all over the place, but there’s one at Italie Deux, a shopping mall about 15 minutes away by foot or bus from the Montsouris Residence. My favorite HEMA was on Rue de Rivoli, and was a gorgeous 20 minute walk from campus.
I completed my freshman year at NYUP last year and 100% did not keep up this blog like I thought I would. However, I know that last fall as an incoming freshman I was clueless about life in Paris and would have appreciated any tips i could find on the internet. This week, I’ll post some advice about the residence halls, grocery shopping, phone plans, etc., that I hope people will find useful. Bon voyage!
Over winter break, I traveled to Germany, Ireland, and Spain, and I’m FINALLY going to post about it, I guess.
So this was actually not the first stop of my Ireland trip, but my photos from Dublin weren’t nearly as impressive. I took the bus from Dublin to Killarney with the intention of spending a day exploring Killarney National Park before continuing on to Galway. (Killarney was part 1.5, then?)
I couldn’t have had better weather in Killarney. I actually made it the entire week in Ireland without seeing a drop of rain, but Killarney was completely illuminated by sun, so much that I regretted not bringing my sunglasses! I spent the first afternoon exploring the town- which, in January, isn’t exactly packed with tourists (I had an 8-bed dorm to myslef in my hostel) - and spent a little time walking around the part of the park nearest to where I was staying (Ross Castle). Most of the attractions within the park were closed for the season, but that didn’t mean that the park itself was a waste of time. It’s been so long since I’ve really been surrounded by nature.
The second morning in Killarney, I checked out of my hostel (I had to call the the assistance phone number, because nobody was at the front desk- apparently Killarney hibernates in the winter.) At the urging from everyone from the hostel staff to a smoothie shop worker, I rented a bike to explore the park, which was one of the best decisions I made that trip. I made it to the ethereal, labyrinth-like Muckross Abbey in record time, where I met an Australian tourist also on bike. We pedaled to the Muckross House (under construction) and parted ways there, but not before she told me that she’d already been to Torc Waterfall (next on my list of sights to see) and hadn’t found it too impressive.
With this and the fact that I can see waterfalls in my hometown in mind, I debated whether or not I wanted to make the loop through the park to see the waterfall. I had until 5 pm to return my bike, and it was only 1:30. I recalled that I’d desperately wanted to see the Gap of Dunloe, not too far from Killarney, but as I didn’t have a car, it wouldn’t have been possible. However, after whipping out Google Maps, I discovered that it didn’t seem far away by bike at all- only about an hour and a half. so, I hopped back on my bike and ventured forth.
I am not an experienced biker. 1.5 hours didn’t sound long at the time, but once I actually made it about halfway, I began to realize how mistaken I’d been. However, I made it to the Gap of Dunloe and saw some amazing scenery on the way. And, once I finally made it, I ran into some Indian students from Dublin who offered me a ride back into the city, so all’s well that ends well, right?
Once back in Killarney, I had a bit of time to kill before my bus to Galway, and I ended up being dragged into an ice cream shop by an over-eager employee who force fed me samples until I finally bought a couple scoops. (Hey, I’m not complaining) he and his two coworkers ended up being some of the loveliest people I met in Ireland, and I’m so glad I got the chance to chat before leaving.
It’s slowly beginning to dawn on me that my time in Paris is drawing to a close, so I’ve been trying to pack in as much Paris as possible on the weekends and after class.
Luckily, Paris is full of inspiration and beauty no matter where you go. From peering into the windows of the bakeries to hidden streets in otherwise grey neighborhoods. (This one is the Rue Cremieux in the 12th!)
This morning, my friend and I braved the rain to make the trek to Les Puces, the Paris flea market. It was well worth it- the rain mostly stopped once we arrived and we had the market very nearly to ourselves. The place is huge, with several different markets boasting a huge array of wild treasures. We didn’t take anything home, but looking through the baskets of old black and white photographs made me wish I’d brought a few extra euros.
The practice started in the late 1990s, when somebody decided to leave a lipstick kiss on the tomb. Since then lipstick kisses and hearts have been joined by a rash of red graffiti containing expressions of love, such as: “Wilde child we remember you”, “Keep looking at the stars” and “Real beauty ends where intellect begins”. Kissing Oscar’s tomb on the Paris tourist circuit has become a cult pastime.
A fine of €9,000 ($12,000) was imposed on anyone caught kissing or damaging the historical monument, but it had no effect. It was hard to catch people in the act, and most culprits were tourists who were long gone before the police could bring them to court. Appeals from Wilde’s grandson Merlin Holland to stop the practice also fell on deaf ears. A plaque asking fans to respect the tomb instead of defacing it went in vain.
Meanwhile, those greasy red lipstick stains seeped into the stone making it harder and harder to clean. Every cleaning eroded a layer of stone rendering it even more porous, so the next cleaning had to go even deeper and wear away the stone even more.
19.2.17// When your friends come to visit and bring a professional camera along...
I have a routine, I’ll be honest. I don’t exactly get out and explore the places of Paris that I don’t regularly come in contact with, mainly because many of them are simply too far away from the Montsouris Residence. While I know the Latin Quarter, the Marais, and the 13th Arrondissement well, the others remain a mystery. I was fortunate to be able to see a bit more over break while I was staying in Montmartre, but between classes, homework, and the lack of enthusiasm for forty minute metro trips, I haven’t been out as much as I’d like.
This is why I was so excited to find out that two friends who are also currently in Europe were planning a visit to Paris last weekend. They had a list of (mostly touristy) must-sees and dos, and it occurred to me that I didn’t take the opportunity to be a tourist enough. Naturally, I jumped into their agenda and acted as their tour guide, and we enjoyed a beautiful Saturday of photoshoots, crepes, and hitting up all of Paris’s landmarks, and I was surprised at how much I hadn’t yet checked off of my Paris bucket list. While I love the feeling of slowly becoming a “local” in Paris, sometimes I forget to just take that jumping photo in front of the Eiffel Tower as well!
I tried to inconspicuously follow an Irish girl and her Italian friends as we biked around the island, but when she noticed me, she invited me along and we had an amazing adventure on the cliffs, getting lost in cow pastures, and finally finding this beautiful little cove, the Wormhole.
