France Pt. III – Saint-Etienne: Returning to the dorm life

During my stay in St. Etienne, the university was kind enough to toss me into one of their cozy dorms. Surprisingly, I embraced this idea since I have been cooped up in my own one bedroom apartment by myself for far too long. At any rate, here I am… and it isn’t too painful. Below I listed a few more comments and observations regarding my stay in France, and I also posted a few pictures of the mountainous terrain that is: St. Etienne.

1. The dorm has its own bar. It is called the Cercle. It opens every night and has 50 cent beer. Fascinating how this works. Can you imagine such things at Perry Hall in Erie?

2. I walk to work each day, uphill both ways. Well… it's a bitch anyway… it takes about 25 mins and it’s no flat Florida, I tell you that! These are some bitchin’ hills. I swear that if I were to take a spill, I would go down like Chris Farley in Black Sheep.

3. Everything closes by 8:30PM in this town and on Sunday they close at noon. Well… at least my end of town (and that includes the buses). I really don’t know what these people are thinking. If there economy is in the dumpster, they really should consider some part-time work. And hey… try a 7-11 or something 24hrs, for God’s sake! By the way, I’m running for mayor.

4. Converse All Stars are super trendy here… and they also cost at least 3 times as much as they do in the States. Can you imagine paying $90+ for some Chuck Taylor’s? Believe it. And… 30 dollar Levis go for well over a hundred here too. Hence why I had to buy cheap, tight, European, “I’m never going to have kids” jeans.

5. Burping. I was warned of this phenomenon before I left from a French co-worker. Apparently this is just as offensive as farting in France. I was sitting in on a French stats class and kid let out a barely audible belch, and the class erupted in laughter. Given, maturity is not one of their attributes, but this was abnormal.

6. French know fast food. The name of the establishment is Quick, which is ironic, because both of my experiences there have been the exact opposite. French customer service is incredibly lacking… however the French do have excellent cheese, and they put it on their burgers. So yes… Quick is Quite good Quality.

7. During one of the weeks of my stay… I had the privilege of sharing the same floor as 3 visiting Romanian girls. During this week, I got almost no sleep. They were here to party and were amazingly annoying. Now, I’m not a “stick in the mud” but one of these girls had a laugh like you wouldn’t believe.

8. This doesn’t directly have to do with France, but while I was in Rome I bought a bottle of the traditional Italian liquor: Grappa. This is without a doubt the worst tasting and smelling alcohol on the planet. I didn’t even skimp… bought a moderate-level brand in a fancy bottle. However, I would rather gargle Banker’s Club than drink this crap!