The results are in...

And the winner is? I guess everyone!

Today we received our placement test scores-- a relatively seriously nerve racking procedure. I expected to place somewhere in the Intermediate level, and low and behold, I did. There are two other NC students in my particular level/class, so in reality I had nothing to be worried about. The tests are extremely accurate, and most everyone was satisfied.

Because of the strike today, the train schedule was very limited. *If you follow the link, that's the station that brings me into Paris. Line B, which I also take, was completely shut down. In other words, today really tested our navigational skills-- something that the world knows is a minor pitfall of mine. We like to say that I'm "directionally challenged." But that's putting it lightly. Luckily, being in a brand new (and foreign!) city has completely forced me to improve on that skill set. Mom & Dad would be proud, I'm getting pretty darn good. Most times, I even take the lead.

In Paris, you have to be quick. That's one of the easiest ways to spot a tourist, which even I can do now. They'll stop, hesitate, take two or three steps in one direction then one or two in the other; they'll whip out a blanket-size map of the metro, clearly lost, and they might even be crying. Well, maybe not crying. (After all, zat is not french.) But you get the point.

Parisians walk swiftly and with purpose. Eighty percent of women do so in heels. And they ALWAYS dressed to the nines. Perhaps I didn't stress that enough... You will never, ever, ever see anyone in sweats or sneakers. Because apparently, "you just never know." This topic aptly requires an entirely separate post, which I will get to once I'm done wallowing in American self-pity. One goal might be to become fluent, but the other may as well be to pass as a true, chic Parisian-- a feat which I've almost conquered on one or two occasions.

I have dinner tonight with the family, which I am absolutely craving after eating just a sandwich all day yesterday. We're entitled to a home cooked meal twice a week, so I chose Tuesdays and Thursdays as my nights with the gang. I can already smell it cooking, and after a long day, I have a feeling tonight's supper is going to taste si delicieux.