Confessions of My Ethnocentric Self

Sometimes you have to get away from a place in order to understand why you value it. This week, I felt the full force of wanting things to go the way they do “back home” in the states. I wanted a pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks, a real pillow to sleep on, a man to act like a gentleman even if it’s all pretense, tap water, a store to be open after 18:00, space, grass, oh yes and a real taco. My ethnocentricity has made a grand entrance this week, but is leaving the party soon I hope. I am not so frustrated as I am distracted. Fortunately, I like so many things here that it overrides the bad aspects. I don’t miss home too badly, I just miss getting to talk to my family and friends. Home means so much to me. I love traveling and visiting new and beautiful places, but I can't help but love knowing that I will always get to "go home". I have had the opportunity to realize how much I prefer where I come from. There are many delights here that make me "ooh and ahh" but it's not home.

However, the days seem to fly by here, so there is not a lot of time to be homesick. There is so much to see that I can barely fit it all in. I almost have every single week-end booked! I feel like I am on a perpetual vacation, apart from stressful class. Every day I see something beautiful I have never seen before. I can’t imagine growing up in a place like France where almost everything aesthetically appeals to your senses.

This week-end, Miranda, Katie and I went to Angers and Rennes. Well, Katie came with us to Rennes and Miranda and I went to Angers today. Rennes is about one and a half hours away and Angers is about half an hour away. All the museums were free this week-end because it was some kind of patrimony week-end. I got to see loads of art at the two Musees des Beaux Arts; walk through the Palais du Parliament of Bretagne; eat baguette and croissant; and just bum around in yet another stunning French city. I happened upon a Monet and a Peter Paul-Rubens while in the Musee des Beaux Arts in Angers. That was cool. The Bretagne region of France is a pretty distinct region of France. The people seem to be a bit more hearty and outgoing than in Nantes. This is a generalization but I think there is some kind of Germanic, Gaelic, I don’t know, influence. I will have to bone up on some history I guess. Angers was gorgeous. Old chateaus and cathedrals were the highlights of the day trip.

It’s a bit more difficult language-wise at present because there are now tons of Americans swarming the residence where I live. I can speak English whenever I want. Often I want to just because it’s easy, so I have to force myself rather than be forced, to speak French. People on the streets here love to practice their English as well so it makes things difficult. I actually have been complemented a bit on my French this week, which I find hilarious, but I take what I can get. I think it’s the sheer fact that they know I am an English-speaker and they are pleased that I am trying. I like this about Nantes. The people here are very helpful with foreigners. I think there is a tendency with English speakers as compared to say, Spanish speakers, to be shy about saying things in French. We tend to be a bit more afraid of making mistakes. I am surprisingly not very afraid to speak on the streets, I just have a hard time in class when it comes to discussing movies or art. I don’t have a large enough vocabulary yet. I comprehend so much more than I ever did before. It's absolutely incredible how the force and necessity of communication, creates knowledge. Human beings love to express themselves. The best way to learn a language is to be forced to act upon your desire to express your feelings. Human beings love talking. We do it so well in every culture. I find that I want to be included in the discussions, jokes and small-talk here, so I am driven to understand as much as possible.