A Day in the life...

As the days have started to take some form of routine, and I organise and colour code my 'emploi du temps', I feel I can describe a day in the life of me in France. I've now decided which classes I'm going to take and they include: (roughly translated) theory of cinema and images; theory of Laban notation in dance; French modern literature (modern being 19th century); History and Aesthetics of theatre and dance; and for some strange reason...Russian. I had my first Russian lesson today and absolutely loved it despite being thrown in the deep end having missed last week's seminar. My friend had decided to study Russian and I've always wanted to learn it plus I felt it was a better language to learn alongside improving my French as it isn't similar in any way unlike, for example, Spanish or Italian. Therefore, hopefully I won't get confused! 

So a day in the life...

First I'd like to welcome you to my humble abode, which is gradually starting to look like a home...

This morning I left my apartment at the relatively early hour of 9 o clock, ready to jump on the tram to university. My Tuesday lectures are at the Bron campus of Lyon 2 which is a 30 minute tram ride away. However, at 9 o clock on a weekday morning, one cannot simply 'jump' on the tram. You have to press the button to open the doors as a crammed pack of miserable faces stare at you in disgust at the prospect of you even attempting to get onto this particular tram. I've made the mistake in the past of thinking "Oh I'll just get the next one..." only to find every tram for the next few hours is just as crowded. So I plough onto the tram, elbows at the ready and find myself a 'me sized' corner to huddle in, preferably by the door for optimum ventilation. I've been on busy tubes in London, but this cuts the mustard. Perhaps it wouldn't even be that bad if everybody made sure to shower and deodorize in the morning, but those important necessities obviously pass French people by...(I'm massively generalizing here, I love the French.) 

Then something happened on the tram that was a snapshot, which I mentally captured, of something that was crazy good to watch. Basically, someone walking or perhaps even a cyclist must have crossed infront of the tram, causing the tram driver to break and thus forcing every standing person on the tram to fall at a perfect 45 degree angle, in a sort of Michael Jackson Smooth Criminal move that most could probably never recreate. Believe me, it wasn't just your average domino style stumble. It's moments like these on the sweaty, smelly, sardine packed tram that don't make it seem so bad. Another plus side is the fact I find something new to look at along the journey every day, such as these beaut paintings on the sides of buildings...

Or even just outside my apartment...

"La vie c'est pas du Kiwi"...of course.

se fixer 1 (=s’installer) to settle ◆ il s’est fixé à Lyon he settled in Lyon...

...this made me smile when I stumbled across it during one of my many frantic dictionary searches. Having been in Lyon for over a week now, I am starting to settle in this beautiful city. Everytime I cross one of the many bridges as we stroll back from a couple of civilised drinks in vieux Lyon, I cannot help but feel a little bit smug that I am now living, although temporarily, in such an amazing city. This week has felt at times like more of an emotional bungee jump than a rollercoaster ride but as long as I keep myself busy, I find myself feeling more content with life in Lyon.

Freshers week at University Lyon 2 or ‘la période d’intégration’ as they call it has been a mixture of stress, confusion, enjoyment and introductions. The battle for a working internet connection continues, improving my French IT jargon along the way. It may seem sad but it doesn’t help the feeling of being homesick when cut off from the world because of a stupid Internet connection. The stress also came with the search for our Uni timetables as they make it as difficult as possible to find out when and where you should be at a class. However, as this week comes to a very hungover but relaxing end, I’ve increased my ‘friend list’ in Lyon by about 50 % and decreased my amount of brain cells and liver strength by the same amount.

I was also introduced to the amazing bike system in Lyon and am no longer a VeloV virgin. I must admit I’m still confused as to which side of the road to cycle on and whether I should be on the road or the pavement and what to do down a one way street and if I should stop at traffic lights or not? I would just follow all the other savvy Lyonnais cyclists but they don’t seem to know what they’re doing either…

Yesterday I went on the best bike ride, and I know it sounds clichéd but it felt so good to go exploring alone with the wind in my hair and the excitement of not knowing what’s around the next corner. I cycled on a massive fly-over that crosses the railway track as the sun was setting and this shuffled itself onto my ipod to accompany. It's hard to escape the clichés in France, but it was just one of those ‘yes!’ moments, you know?

Je suis arrivée!

Hurrah! I said I would start my blog as soon as I arrived in Lyon. However, it is now 3 days into my 9 months here in France and I have only just managed to start scribbling. This is mainly due to the fact that the Internet has not been working but after many conversations with Madame at the reception desk and a scary phone call in French to the internet service provider, I was told to switch it off and back on again...quelle surprise it worked.

You may be questioning the name of this blog. Well, as my best friend and fellow blogger Rose said, it's quite difficult to find a name that is both 'hilarious and thought-provoking'. "Est-ce que je peux quitter la table?" was a phrase I used to use regularly at the dinner table, being the pretentious, smart-arse kid I was. While I may start to indulge myself in more convoluted conversations in French, I will of course always remember to ask "Est-ce que je peux quitter la table?".

It is probably just as well I didn't start this blog yesterday as I feel today has been the true début of my stay here in Lyon. The first couple of days were difficult as to be expected. The only people I had any sort of substantial conversation with were the lady in the mobile phone shop and the man in the Tabac. You have to start worrying when the only people you can call your 'friends' are shopkeepers and university administrators. There were aspects of my first couple of days which I really enjoyed, in particular discovering that Camembert is cheaper to buy than Edam/Emmental (see glorious results below in last night's dinner) and that Bonne Maman jam (the good stuff) is a mere €1.50! I also ventured into central Lyon in search of a kettle for a good brew and had to plough into the abyss of Carrefour. It was a little bit like Primark... on Oxford St... on a Saturday...at Christmas. Having lost a few limbs, and my dignity everytime a different item fell out of my broken shopping basket, I bought a lovely new bin and toilet brush.

So I woke up this morning feeling fresh and ready to roll for my 'réunion d'accueil' where, incidentally I met some lovely people. I decided to walk to the university instead of taking the tram. It turned out only to be a 20 minute walk and an enjoyable one at that. I had the dulcet tones of this playing in my ears as I strolled in the 27 degree heat with the feeling that I was a step closer to being settled in Lyon and a stride away from "Est-ce que je peux quitter la table?"...

The view down Avenue Berthelot.

yum