Last weekend, my ALP class took a field trip (yes, I can still go on those, and I'm 21!) to the Doutre: the part of Angers on the other side of the Maine river. The term "Doutre" comes from "d'outre mer," meaning "other side of the water." Historically, it was the Protestant region of the city, because they, as well as the outcasts, were pushed to the outskirts by the Catholics. There are some beautiful churches there, like L'Eglise de la Trinité and Abbaye Ronceray, as well as l'Hôtel des Pénitents, a refuge for women in need and repentant women from "sullied" backgrounds. I really enjoyed our tour of l'Hôpital St-Jean, which is actually an extremely old hospital built with money donated by Henry II when he began to feel remorse for having allowed his men to assassinate his friend, the archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Beckett. The hospital is now the home of Le Chant du Monde - the series of tapestries designed by Jean Lurçat as his response to the Tapestries of the Apocalypse (on display at the Chateau). They are really fantastic pieces of art, even if their subject matter is rather bizarre. He designed them in the 1950s after his experience fighting in World War II and during the birth of the Cold War nuclear crisis, so his perception of the apocolypse awaiting the Earth was one of nuclear holocaust. (He was also an atheist, so his interpretation has little to do with biblical accounts and everything to do with humanism and new ageism.) I thought his interpretations, the symbolism, and especially the artwork itself were quite impressive, even if I don't necessarily agree with his outlook. You should definitely look up some images if you get the chance, although to get the full effect, you really have to be standing in front of the floor to ceiling woven masterpiece. It still amazes me that a tapestry can be planned with that much intricate detail and then woven on a loom upside-down, so that the weaver doesn't see his progress until the product is finished!
Sunday, I decided to take the afternoon to visit the Chateau d'Angers, since the first Sunday of the month is free admission day for everyone. Unfortunately, it was bitterly cold, and the wind was blowing fiercely, so I didn't stay long. All the same, it was an amazing experience, standing on top of the ramparts overlooking the Maine, imagining what it must have been like to be a soldier looking out on the hills and trees of the Loire valley stretching to the horizon, without the roads and townhouses and cell phone towers blocking the view. I still can't believe that parts of that castle date back 800 years. And to think that there are things still older than that in this world. We really are but specks of dust in the wind.
Anyway, it was just too cold to stick around at the castle, so I started walking back. I happened to run across a flea market on a side street, so I made a little detour to explore and ran into some friends from school who informed me that I had to go check out the car show at the end of the street. So I did...and seriously...oh my goodness...I have never seen that much money parked in one place before. Jaguars, Ferraris, Porsches, a Lotus, Vipers, antique roadsters -- you name it, it was there, and in fantastic, oh-so-drivable condition. Maybe God will have a sports car waiting in my mansion in heaven. Until then, though, I had to content myself with touching that jet black Ferrari and that bright red Lotus, and snapping some pictures, like these:
And then I went home and tried to thaw out.
I realized that I also had to fill out my official class registration paper to turn in Wednesday, so I worked on that. Turned out I needed two signatures: one from the head of each department I'm taking classes in. I tracked down one of them through e-mail, but the other one just responded to my request to meet with him by referring me to his office hours posted on his door (which I'd already seen). Of course, his 45 minutes of office hours on Tuesday conflicted with one of my classes, so I emailed him back and asked for other options. He told me to come on Wednesday during his office hours, which happened to be right after my last class, at 4:45: 30 minutes before the office where I had to turn in the completed paper would close. Fantastic. So I show up, right? And is he there? Nope. All of the other ten students who were there waiting with me were in the same predicament. So, someone found out that we could just slide the papers under his door and he'd take care of them at some point. I just rolled my eyes, shoved mine under the door, and muttered something about the educational system here. I just can't figure it out.
Hah, and that was before my history class on Wednesday, when the prof started talking about this "examen blanc" that was coming up this week. Wait...what "examen blanc"? When? Over what? *sigh* "Examen blanc" means "practice test" - so basically, it's just like the final exam, except the grade doesn't count. This class is validated only by "dissertation," or "written essay," which is written according to strict French methodology during a four hour block of time on one of two essay questions covering material from the semester's study. Mmhmm. Exciting. I'm pretty sure I'm going to flunk it, considering the fact that I'm not familiar with the correct "methodology" of writing these things (and no one will tell me what it is so I can learn it), and I'm struggling to make sense of all of the French history from 1815-1914, much less how to write about it in French. Anyway, Dr. Bailey keeps telling me to relax, do my best, and we'll sort it all out...I just wish it were that easy. Since no one will tell me how to prepare, and it's impossible to know everything, I find myself hard-pressed to find the motivation to study. I mean, where would I start, and where would I stop? It's discouraging just to think about it. Even so, I think I've decided that the best course of action is to just make a plan for myself: something concrete that I can use study, even if it isn't comprehensive. It's better than nothing! At least the work in my translation classes is going well. I earned a compliment and a very good grade from my third-year Theme professor for my practice test translation in his class. If I can do even nearly that well on the real test, I'll be really happy! Plus, I just really like my translation classes...I'm always learning something new and interesting about words or about the meanings we put behind them because of our culture or our outlook on life. There is so much more hidden inside a word than just a literal translation. Words and the ways we structure them reveal a way of looking at life. I'll try to find some examples in my work this week for you. One thing I have found interesting though is how much richer the vocabulary in French seems to an English speaker. It is easy to overtranslate French verbs into English. Take for example, "suffire" which means "to suffice, or to be enough." In everyday spoken French, you would say "ça suffit" to mean "that's enough." And you would be tempted to translate the phrase as "that suffices" in English...but alas, it's an over-translation. Another thing I've learned is that translation enriches my English vocabulary! I love that, since there are a lot of words that I have either lost or haven't learned. And the more I speak French, and then switch back to English, the more I realize that we don't speak with a very rich vocabulary at all. It's a wonder any foreigners can understand anything we say when we use "get" in every other sentence instead of a verb with a specific meaning. (I got lost = je me suis perdue = I lost myself) Much more specific.
Anyway...language tangent complete...and on to other events of the week. Towards the middle of the week, I started craving some philosophical discussions with someone (in English!) so Drew and I sat down on Google Chat and had a long debate about Christianity and politics, and I laid out some questions I've been turning over in my mind based on the observations I've been making about culture and society here. I've been storing up so much to think about, from capitalism/socialism, to perspectives on daily life, marriage and children, morality, economy, environmental issues, racism, politics, national history and past decisions of ancestors that bring shame - you name it, I've probably got an idea about it floating around up there somewhere. Just ask me sometime if you want to talk. I'm definitely up for some challenging conversation (or just interesting and informative conversation, if you don't want to debate anything). I honestly don't know enough to really debate; I just want to keep discovering: to keep asking questions to figure out why things are they way they are, and perhaps how they should be instead. (and where I fit in it all)
And...I wrapped up the week with a fantastic, relaxing weekend with friends in Nantes, at Clemence's family's house. (Thank you again for opening your home to us!) We had some of the best pizza I've ever had in my life (I never knew you could put apples on pizza), I learned a bit of a French drinking song from some acquaintances of hers that came over, we watched plenty of hilarious youtube videos and Disney movies in French, and stuffed ourselves with cookies and popcorn and Pringles. It was the perfect sleepover weekend, and just what I needed to feel at home, too. :) We watched La Belle et La Bête (Beauty and the Beast), La Petite Sirène 2 (The Little Mermaid 2), Aladdin, and The Mask - all in French - and Shrek in English with French subtitles. And yes, The Mask was just as bizarre in French as it was in English. Oh, and I tasted this:
And before you think I've been drinking hard vodka...that's not at all what that is. It's a carbonated beverage - yes, soda - with a tiny bit of alcohol (4.5% by volume) that tastes more like blue popsicles and Robitussin than alcohol. Not exactly my cup of tea, but interesting all the same. The sparkling cider we had, on the other hand...mmm, wow. Delicious.
Annnnnnnyway, it's about time that I wrap this up, since it's getting late and I should get some sleep. (Btw, I do find it rather awesome that there is only a 6 hour time difference between here and the U.S. for this week, because France doesn't change to Daylight Savings Time until this weekend. Take advantage of it!) ;) Have a great Monday, everyone, and remember that it's blessed because He created it. :) Peace!
1 comment:
Ah, I finally got to read this one. :) I actually knew what you were talking with Henry ii. Audrey and I were just reading about Eleanor.
Post a Comment