Would you rather have a toilet or friends?

...I choose friends. Emily and I were talking today and came to the conclusion that even though our foyer has some great amenities--it's bright, clean, new, and we have our own bathrooms--it's not very hospitable. No one who works here has told us ANYTHING. Not how to use our key to get into the foyer (Obviously we figured it out on our own by now). Not that breakfast is, in fact, available on the weekends. Not that our sheets are cleaned for us every couple of weeks. And not that we had to get our tickets for our dinners. We went to the office today and we weren't even on the list! No one seems to know we're living here. I wonder that if we hadn't ever asked, and just waited for the tickets in our mailboxes, we never would have been able to eat dinner here. Other people in the Goucher program are meeting lots of people in their foyers and are in homey, relaxed, amicable environments and sometimes Charonne just feels cold and shut off. I know part of it is that I have to do my part to go out and meet other students, but it seems like it's easier elsewhere. I choose friends over a toilet.

In other world news:

Today was pretty good! We had another class this morning, by a different man named Mathieu. He seems very nice but speaks like a true French person: lots of "uhhhs" in the middle of sentences and phrases and it's hard to differentiate one word from the next because they all meld together. I have to work so hard to listen and understand. He speaks aggressively, too. It's not as fluid and lovely-sounding as some other people I've heard, but it's interesting to get another view. He spoke to us about French government and the history of the Republic and the party system, which turned into a conversation about immigration and discrimination laws. I love this material! History and government were always my things in high school, so I was really interested. I learned that laws in Paris are absolutely universal throughout the country. For example, you can't have the death penalty in Brittany and not in Montpellier. Or have it in Paris but not in Normandy. It's the same law EVERYWHERE. I think that's just wonderful! Mathieu is teaching more classes of ours and we'll have to each give a presentation at some point.

After, Gilbert took us to an Indian place for lunch. It was 100% vegetarian. lately I've really been craving meat, and when I eat Indian food, I generally only eat meat dishes. I think meat is an important component of my diet and I really have hardly eaten it here. I've been craving it a lot! As much as I want to save money on food, I'm afraid I'm not getting enough of the right foods in my diet, and I think it's worth it to spend a little more to get a good meal that's more than just a sandwich for lunch or an apple for breakfast. I didn't enjoy my lunch very much--two samosas, which tasted fine, but weren't satisfying--but oh, well. I had already planned my next dessert expedition. After lunch we walked around a new area for us, along the Canal. It was pretty but boy, was it windy today! I dressed up a little in an outfit I might not normally wear, but I felt pretty good about it, minus all the wind. Does that even make sense?

Emily and I paid for and obtained our fridge today! I'm so excited to be able to buy food and store it. It's in her room since she'll be here for the whole year, and I think we're going to go food shopping tomorrow. :) It was funny taking it back to her room because she lives on the 5th floor and the girl we bought it from lives on the 6th floor. We were all ready to take the elevator down a floor but the elevators on odd numbered floors only go to odd numbered floors, and the same for even. So we had to take the narrow, winding dungeon-like spiral staircase, and it was quite the adventure.

And then....we went out to dinner! Because of my insane craving for meat and the disappointment that was lunch, we went out to an Indian restaurant. It was AMAZING! Expensive, yes, but sooo worth the money. I had chicken and lamb and even quail! And Nan, and we were automatically given some (delicious) rose wine. The restaurant was in the 14th, which we're not familiar with. But the area seemed animated and vibrant, so I'd like to go back. We sat for over two hours and ate delicious food and talked about all sorts of things, and I absolutely loved it. :) I recommend "Restaurant Vallee du Kashmir" to anyone looking for great Indian food. Now I'm stuffed and more than ready to go to bed. Tomorrow is probably a little more of the same. Hopefully the wind and cold weather will hold off!