Just Another Day: Bonjour, from Paris

[Originally published in The Tiger on Jan. 28, 2016]

I’ve been in Paris for about a month now. I don’t speak French, I’m 4,138 miles from home, I’m six hours ahead of all of my friends and family, I don’t have an oven, the poor French just can’t say my name (FYI, Kelsey doesn’t translate well to any language in my experience) and Paris is downright expensive. Every day I get a feeling of “Wow, Paris is the most incredible place ever!” but also “Wow, I’m really homesick.” The best way I can describe it is that scene in “Tangled” when Rapunzel leaves her tower, and one second she’s celebrating her new freedom and the next second she’s crying to go back home. And here I am, more than 4,000 miles away from everything that is familiar to me.

I’m still in the process of getting settled. My room is together, I’m learning how the metro system works and I’m learning French; but being in a foreign country is a big adjustment and can be intimidating when you realize you’ve been here for more than a week or two and you’re not getting ready to get on a plane home anytime soon.

I’ll fill you in on a few things that I miss most – Cajun filet chicken biscuits, delivery pizza and (because I just got over bronchitis and pink eye in my first month of being here) Campbell’s chicken noodle soup. It’s also funny how when I’m at home, McDonald’s is a last resort for me. Here though, it’s comforting because it’s so familiar.

This is actually the second time I’ve sat down to write this, because, to be honest, I’m still gathering my own thoughts about this whole experience. I’ve traveled more than some, but a lot less than others. One thing I have learned though is that your expectations are rarely
met –– in good ways and in bad. Things tend to either surpass our expectations, or they fall short. Things don’t always go as planned, and sometimes things downright suck. But honestly, even the things that suck are part of what makes these experiences so great.

For me, it kind of sucks being 4,000 miles away from Bojangles.’ It kind of sucks having to go to a doctor that you have trouble communicating your symptoms with. It kind of sucks being half a day away from my friends and family. But at the same time, I’m in a city many people dream about and never see. I get the chance to climb to the top of 850-year-old cathedrals that took 200 years to build. I get to stand in front of priceless paintings and sculptures of artists like Van Gogh and Da Vinci. I get to go to a school in a building that is a national monument commemorating the 200-year anniversary of the French Revolution, and I get to plan trips to other countries that can be done in a weekend. I get to learn how to really and truly stand on my own two feet in a country where I don’t even speak the language, and where I have to learn how to figure things out on my own.

I don’t really know what to expect for the next four months, but I know it’s going to be the adventure of a lifetime.

It’s intimidating, definitely – but what great adventure isn’t?

Till next time, Tigers.

-Kelsey