Can you find the pattern?

Lin, Emma and tequila are responsible for this, if that helps you any.

AND THE THEME IS ... Drumroll please ...

Light. Things that are light, be it light in calories, light in weight, a provider of light, or any other permutation.

I laughed my head off. I loved all of it, even though Lin told me under no circumstances should I eat the popcorn, because apparently it is old. The marshmallows are fair game though, and the airhead is already history :)

For the record, Lin was, shall we say, general, in her description of the items for customs. Not that they would have understood anyway.

Love you both, mysterious packages are great fun!!!

PENN STATE LET ME INNNNNNN!!!

Scene: Me, considering the fact that I need to leave in 10 minutes to go on a party boat tonight with friends, contemplating an outfit. Finishing gchat conversations.

Cue -- Frantic Gennie, via my mom's gmail account -- BE THERE NOOWWWWWW ... WHAT'S YOUR PHONE NUMBER IN FRANCE? Penn State is on the phone and she wants to call you!!!

Me: ... WHAT?! ... [Gives number]

Penn State : Hello, Margaret? Oh right, I wanted to let you know personally that you've been OFFERED A FULL ASSISTANTSHIP!

Excuse me while I have an ecstatic seizure and dance around my apartment screaming. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Probably sounded like SUCH a ditz, but I've never been offered a position in a school that wanted to PAY me. Just saying. OH RIGHT, AND MAYBE BECAUSE YOU JUST OFFERED ME A PLACE IN YOUR PHD PROGRAM AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

OK, I'm fine, I promise. Yay!

Post-script: I missed the party boat. Hahaha, oops :)

Support Public Radio?

If only this graffiti artist knew what NPR means to me ...

To market to market ... (Sunday)

Sunday morning we woke up pretty late, because we'd been out pretty late. So I met up with my friend Mathieu, who lives near Liverpool Street. We wandered the markets of Brick Lane, which is really cool (like the flea markets in Paris, but it seemed like it was even MORE fun). Lots of Bangledeshi and Indian restaurants, and we grabbed lunch at the indoor market on Brick Lane. Mmmm, chicken marsala.

Then we wandered over to the Spitalfields market, and to the Columbia flower market. I really, really like markets.

This sign made me laugh.

This part of London is a strange blend of old and new, modern business construction and dated residential buildings. I really liked it, the character makes it all the more interesting. That rounded building at the vanishing point of this picture is called "the gerkin." Yes, like the pickle.

Jane and I got dinner at a pub practically next door to her hotel, and then went back to Tesco to find dessert. I got Cadbury milk chocolate bars (man, Cadbury is SO good) and she got bourbon cookies. I think all food should have types of alcohol written on it. Naturally I'm not sure what the bourbon in the title was about, unless they were suggesting that these cookies go well with it - they were chocolate cookies with chocolate filling.

Then Jane and I took advantage of our planned 'study time,' since I had lesson planning to do and she needed to read/grade. It turned into girl talk, as one might have expected. Then we finally went to sleep, and I woke us both up at 3h55 to get my life together before my 5h25 train back to Paris Monday morning. From there, straight back to a full day of school.

Phew. French was a little slow to come back, and NATURALLY I caught a cold. Otherwise, I held up better than expected! Great visit, and well worth it -- I loved London, and I was so happy to see Jane!!!

British Museum supplement

This is the British Museum main entrance. It rather reminded me of the Assemblée Nationale in Paris, but I guess it's that Ancient Greek style that the Europeans copied everywhere, so it makes sense.

First things first, the Rosetta stone! Given that I was obsessed with codes and writing in ancient languages my whole childhood, I'm glad I finally got to see this. Pretty crazy to think about how they managed to start deciphering hieroglyphics, all because of this.

I started on the first floor, weaving through lots of Egyptian artifacts, since I decided that was what most interested me (particularly since that's the sort of thing that I think Britain has France beat for).

Before finding my way to the real mummies, I detoured through the Etruscans, the Greeks and the Romans. I thought this collection was pretty cool. I guess I've always been pretty into ancient civilizations, although I had sort of forgotten about them in recent years where my preoccupation has been French historical randomness.

This is a suit of parade armor made from crocodile skin. It was CRAZY to see, and think about how old it is. It comes from the 3rd or 4th century AD, when the Roman Empire made it to Egypt.

This display really cracked me up. The information placard on the inside says "The Greek Drinking Party" (funny, if you think about it in a college setting, and then try to picture what museums dedicated to the ancient American college civilizations will look like someday hahaha) and then proceeds to explain that the word 'symposium' literally translates as 'drinking together.' All of those academic "symposiums" start making a lot more sense, let me tell you!

Back into ancient Egypt, with some pretty wall paintings.

The eye of Horus at the top was a protective symbol, but beyond that my memory is pretty limited.

One of the inner sarcophagi, I had never thought about the fact that there would be written inscriptions all over the inside, although it only makes sense!

A REAL MUMMY! There were TONS of them, and many had the CAT scans posted next to the explanatory placards, which made it eerily real ... To think that they were able to preserve people that way is a bit unnerving.

Some more of the 'coffins.'

The King's Library at the end. It was really awesome, a huge hall filled with artifacts from everything. Someday I want a library that looks like this ...

Rule Brittania (Saturday)

Jane's hotel is right near Russel Square, meaning that the British Museum may as well have been next door. That, my friends, was Saturday morning (see supplemental post, because I think I took more pictures there than in the rest of the weekend combined).

On many of the sidewalks, they tell you which way to look, because all of us NORMAL people forget that they drive on the WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD!

As I strolled down Charing Cross to get to Parliament square and see Westminster Abbey (as per Carrie's instructions), I had to get a picture of this. As if the sign isn't funny enough in and of itself, the little piece of paper posted in the window says 'Halal food served here.' As if it needed yet one more thing to make it humorous, it was closed and abandoned. It's a ready-made allegory.

Trafalgar Square was on the way, too. From here I continued on Whitehall. Crashed my way though a protest against the slaughter of Christians in Egypt. That's a new theme. Wish I could have seen the National Gallery, but you can't do everything in a weekend, so I'll save this for another time :)

Years of Agatha Christie and Inspector Lynley with my mom and other British authors made this noteworthy! No idea if the Scotland Yard is actually on this street or not though.

I found Big Ben! And I overcame my hatred of feeling like a tourist and asked someone to get a picture for me (I knew I wouldn't be forgiven if I didn't appear in any of my pictures).

For you Carrie (and the Shillitoes in general) ... You were right, Westminster Abbey is beautiful. I especially loved the really intricately carved ceiling in the 'Lady Chapel' I think it was called?

Jane and I had prearranged our meeting place to be the statue of Abraham Lincoln in Parliament Square. From there we wandered to Covent Garden, to Jane's favorite little tea shop (awesomeness), and then to Neal's Yard, a teensy tiny street with a cute café where we got lunch. Jane had a monster potato, and she was then uncomfortably full for the next several hours, vowing never again to eat potatoes. I teased her extensively - supportively of course :)! Across from the café was a little Psychic shop, which I insisted we visit. Lots of tarot cards and chakra tchotchkes and pretty semiprecious stones and books on horoscopes, fun things like that.

Jane says that I'm ridiculous, but I maintain that it looks like this sign shows directions for Elephant Castle, London Bridge and Waterloo. I still think the ampersand is too far away to qualify as part of the words. Besides, I just think seeing London Bridge and Waterloo, both of which are well-known, on a sign with Elephant Castle is hilarious.

After lunch, Jane and I wandered around the Tate Modern for awhile. I saw Carrie's Banksy book (forgot how AWESOME he is) and it was fun, although not SO awesome that we stayed too long. After all, I love the Louvre and the British Museum, modern art is still not really my thing. Practically next door is the Globe Theater!!! I thought of Burns and Iodice the whole time, although we didn't go inside.

From a little balcony overlooking the Thames in the Tate Modern, Jane and I made sure that we'd have at least ONE picture of the two of us, to document this adventure!

Scenic shot of St Paul as Jane and I were heading home that evening.

Dinner of champions: Jane and I are equally amused by going to grocery stores and constructing meals out of randomness. We went to her nearby Tesco and went crazy. The green cookies on the side are ginger snaps with ginger cream filling, and if I go back I'm packing a suitcase load of them to bring back with me. Also took advantage of readily available and inexpensive cheddar, and chocolate milk, which I haven't even seen in ages!

Saturday night we went to a bar near St. Pancras called The Rocket, that Jane went to with everyone when she studied abroad there three years ago. It was fun, and we had a solid dance party, the likes of which I have not seen in quite some time.

The Americans are coming! (Friday)

This past Friday was four months to the day since I left home and came to France. Four months in a francophone country, and what did I do to celebrate? I ran away to London (for the first time)!

After having lunch near Gare du Nord with Kristen (whose semester in Paris has now officially come to an end), I snapped a quick partial shot of the station's exterior.

And of my Eurostar, as well. So relieved I didn't get stuck in the tunnel ... I should add that apparently I've become French enough to cut it close on my train boarding times - I neglected to account for going through customs and filling out papers for them and such (LUCKILY Friday afternoon is a dead zone and I flew through)! Taking the Eurostar is not unlike participating in NASCAR ... I swear we banked some of our turns on a 45° angle!

Welcome to St. Pancras (NOT pancreas!), in London!

King's Cross station, of Harry Potter (and general) fame, is just across the street.

AND EVEN PLATFORM 9 and 3/4s!!!

Who knew these were real?

From playing around in the stations I went directly to the British Library. IT was SO COOL!! Original manuscripts and the like, some highlights being: the original handwritten/illustrated Alice in Wonderland, Mozart's marriage contract, Beethoven's tuning fork which was passed down through many people including Gustav Holst and Ralph Vaughan-Williams, two of the only four remaining copies of the Magna Carta, and a billion other awesome documents. One was particularly amusing, because it was a gift to the Duke of York, and illustrated "Longe Isleland."

I realized that being in an English-speaking country meant I could buy books for my kiddies. Found a great bookstore called Book Warehouse on Southhampton Road, not too far from Jane's hotel! This one is dedicated to Meg, of course!

Terrorism isn't funny, but word selection is. "We're raising your terror level to the second highest, and everyone should be afraid, but we have no intelligence..." Jane and I almost passed out we were laughing so hard.

Jane buys comic cereal. Also, it is tasty.

Reassuring.

Sometimes all it takes is a familiar sight.

Sister Act III: Must see!

Yesterday I went to the Musée du quai Branly to see an exhibit on Teotihuacan civilization (Mexico, ancestors of the Aztecs). I really liked it, and I thought that their account of history everywhere was very engaging.

This is called the Disk of Death. It struck me somehow, I found it very impressive. They often portrayed their gods with their tongues sticking out, as it showed thirst which could only be quenched with sacrifices (not uncommonly the human variety).

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On our way to Gabrielle's house to make fondue for lunch, we passed this sign, which this time I happened to notice. Apparently there's a wine museum ... I need to check THAT out!

Today I had my first after-school group of little kids ... mostly Kindergarteners, with a few first graders, 14 total. They were so sweet, I'm in love with them :)

And a third grader called me "Sister Molly", when she disregarded a strategic comma [I like my sister, Molly, etc.]. The teacher, Nora, and I were dying of laughter, and finally explained why to the class at which point they cracked up too.

This follows on the heels of a first grader informing me that I'm Michael Jackson's mom last week. I didn't even know where to begin on that one!

Pardon my deliquence?

The last few weeks have been ridiculously hectic -- but good hectic, because friends have been coming to visit!!!

First Erin came with her mom and sister, and then Caitlin and Marina got here!!! Unfortunately I haven't been able to spend as much time with anyone as I might have liked since I work a lot and things are just generally busy, but it's great to vent at full speed in my own particular variant of English for a change :)

In the grand tradition of Tuesday nights, I have been promising to make blue bazookas since I found all of the ingredients here. For those that are sadly deprived, bazookas are the Tuesday night drink special of our favorite bar in Binghamton, Tom and Marty's. They come in red, blue, green and purple (plus now I think orange, pink and something else), but blue ones are the BEST. They are typically served in mason jars (yes, THAT classy), but since I only had a few jars we were forced to drink them in glasses. Oh well :)

To make that into the most perfect night, we made bazookas, then met my friends Sydney and Guillaume at my favorite Parisian bar, Café l'Epoque in Pigalle. It's the karaoke bar that I love, and like Tom and Marty's, it's awesome on week nights, and insufferable on the weekends! We split a beer tower (just like home) and sang important karaoke classics, like Mamma Mia, Whitney Houston, Queen, etc. On top of the already stunning amounts of awesomeness, IT STARTED SNOWING!!!

That was one of my favorite nights out yet :)

The night before that we went out to dinner in Saint Michel, to the French restaurant La Cochonaille (Mommy, it's the one we went to in the Latin quarter, where the owner loved you because of your Canadian accent!), because I remembered really liking it when I went there with my mom two years ago. I liked it, and I think Caitlin and Marina did too!

Last night I went to see the Enesco Quartet at the Salle Gaveau with a bunch of friends from orchestra. We all know the second violinist and cellist from orchestra, they're the professional musicians that sit principal in their respective sections. They played a Haydn quartet that was fun (Op. 33, or the 2nd or something I think), a Bartok quartet, and Schubert's Maiden and Death which I really liked. For the encore, they played a transcription of an Enesco piece, which was pretty awesome too.

Every time I see a concert, it makes me want to go home and practice. Unfortunately, the vast majority of concerts are at night, and something tells me people might object to me running home at 1130 pm and busting out my violin. Just a thought. I do want to make playing look as effortless and graceful as other people do though. Gotta work on that.

Caitlin and Marina get back from London (they went to visit Jane!) tonight, so I get a little more friend time!!! Time to go to orchestra ...

I don't believe in coincidences.

My mom told me yesterday how she had seen a piece on George Washington that discussed LaFayette as well on one of the NYT's art blogs.

Here it is.

I loved these installments, and I'm going to be wanting the book when it comes out next October!