I’ve decided to be bohemian and grow my hair out and a beard. It’s day two of the beard and about a week since my last haircut, so we’ll see how long it lasts.

A stranger knocked on my door yesterday. He was well dressed in a suit and tie and he had a name tag on from some place of business. He spoke only French and Amy wasn’t here so I did my best to figure out what he wanted. I could really only get out that I didn’t speak French and that I was American. He said something about the telephone and I’m not sure if he thought it needed repair or was saying I had phoned him about something or if he just wanted to use the phone. He went away after I said no to whatever he wanted with the phone. Very strange though.

Amy and I bought groceries today. It took us two trips because we needed a lot and there is only so much we can carry without a car. We felt weird going to the same shop so we went to two separate stores. Actually, technically it was the same store, ATAC, but in two different locations.

Yesterday, I was really early to my French lesson so I stopped on a bridge over a canal and watched the water flow for several minutes. While I was waiting a lady passed by pushing another lady in a wheelchair. A couple of minutes later I started heading to my lesson. Just over the bridge and down a little path I suddenly saw the handicapped ladies bum in all its glory! She was being held up by the lady who was pushing her, having just finished what must have been a potty break. There they were struggling to get the lady’s pants back up. Ahhhh! I’ve seen little boys and drunks relieving themselves in the city but never this. A naked bum is not exactly what I had imagined myself viewing as I walked through the city that day.

Went shopping today for basic odds and ends. I pretty much have to go shopping with Amy anymore because we don’t have a car so I have to help carry the goods. This totally stinks because 1.) I hate shopping as a general rule 2.) I hate shopping with Amy especially. I hate shopping with Amy because 1.) We argue like cats and dogs and 2.) She loves to shop.

Even though we make out a list of things to buy, Amy still goes down every aisle and looks at everything declaring it’s something she really wants to have. When I tell her she really doesn’t need it she gets mad at me and if I concede to letting her have it she will stare at every conceivable type for hours trying to decide on which one to get.

She went to get envelopes and sat there for several minutes trying to decide on which ones to get. There was one box of a hundred for 1 Euro, while the rest of the boxes were at least 1.5 Euros and above. I figured this out in about 20 seconds while she still sat and pondered which box was best. Now these envelopes weren’t for real mailing we just wanted some to put various papers and budgeted cash into around the house, so style and size mattered not. When I asked why she didn’t just grab that one she was pondering whether she would actually need 100 of them. That’s the stuff that drives me crazy. I’m like it’s the cheapest, who cares if we don’t need them all. She’s the type of girl who has to read the back label of everything. Which can definitely be good in ways, and then times like the envelopes it drives me nuts.

This evening we went to Jill and Pamela’s house. They cooked meatless spaghetti and then the girls made these fake stained glass window hangings while I watched The Empire Strikes Back on VHS. I so have to get it on DVD. I just drool every time we go to Auschaun and I see the box.

On the way back from Jill and Pam’s apartment, while waiting for the tram, we ran into the most interesting people. Two teenage boys were sitting on the bench drinking Jack Daniels. But the interesting ones were a group of three goth-looking girls. They had the long black clothes, the dyed hair, the pale skin the whole goth thing going for them.

Two of them were sitting on each other’s lap kissing each other. Not to the point of making out, but frequent enough to get a good stare from me. To which Amy said let’s move to the other side of the station. The really interesting part is when they got on the tram. One of the goth girls decided to sit upon these little poles that standing tram riders use to hold onto. It has this curved handle part that apparently is wide enough to make a seat. Then she sat in a real seat only to whip out not one, but two hamsters and place them on the handles.

Practically the entire tram is watching these girls and their hamsters including a tram inspector. The inspector came over and told the girls to move to the back of the tram, not because of the hamsters but because they had a bike, and bikes go to the last car of the tram. Guess where me and Amy were? So we got lesbian goth chicks with hamsters up close and personal. They did to ask Amy if she minded, and I got to wonder where these girls came from and where the heck they were going.

Yesterday I went with Amy to the Ostwald Marie and then to our branch of the bank.

The Strasbourg officials sent Amy to the Ostwald officials when we first tried to get her Residence permit because she was living in Ostwald at the time. Now that we have moved to Strasbourg we went back to Ostwald to tell them and to find out what we needed to do. It was funny because the secretary called the clerk in charge of approving the permit and he was like “Oh I’m just looking at the application this very second.” Of course, he wasn’t but it was somewhere on his desk along with a big stack of others. So Amy has made an appointment for next week to talk to the clerk and figure out what she needs to do.

Then we went to our bank. As I mentioned in an earlier post we recently asked a local branch when our bank cards/checks had been mailed and found out that they hadn’t been ordered. Well, the reason for that is our accounts have not been finalized. Banks here are not like American banks where if you have some cash you can open any account you want. Here we started the process a few weeks ago. We have been able to deposit and withdraw any money we wanted but we hadn’t been officially approved yet. Some officer actually looks at the account, checks references with other banks in town (who are more than willing to spill the beans on any bad accounts), and then make a decision about whether they will keep your money or not. So yesterday we signed the final papers and ordered our checks. Oh, and it still costs us 7 Euros a month to keep our money there. Oh, and you have to have a bank account because employers will only pay you by direct deposit here, they don’t give out checks.

Anyway, the subject for today is how I felt through all of that. I am taking private French lessons and though I can say a few things and have learned a lot of verbs, nouns, adjectives and the like it is still a far cry from understanding normal conversation. So when we go to these places I sit and smile and have not a clue as to what anyone is saying. I am basically useless through the whole thing until I have to sign my name somewhere.

I met Jean Claude on the street yesterday. I was coming back from taking some pictures of flowers in Place Kleber and nearly ran into him. He is a member of the church here and speaks about as much English as I do French. It was quite an experience having a conversation. He said the few words he knows in English and I said the few French words I know and we used a whole lot of hand gestures. It was really kind of fun. One of my goals here is to be able to have a real conversation with the French speakers here.

In most places the French seperate their toilettes from their bathrooms. Our apartment is an exception but that is only because its so small. Normally they will have a very small room with just a toilet, and then another room with a bathtub and sink. Which I suppose is very helpful when someone is taking a bath and you have really got to go. It would also be nice to not have a toothbrush right next to where you potty. However, I always get grossed out walking from the toilet to the sink with dirty hands. I try not to think about the door knobs.

Today at about 12:30 Amy called Daniel to ask something and we found out he was heading to the bank to finalize several of the AIMers accounts and wanted to know if we would like to do the same. Once again slow French systems, we’ve had an account for more than two weeks, and have deposited and withdrawn several times, but it’s not a finalized account yet.

Doing this will also give us our bank card as well. Anyway, that means I have to go to that particular branch because that’s where I started opening the account. This is about a 45-minute trek via tram and bus so I have to quickly throw a shirt, socks, and shoes on and run out the door. Amy gives me quick instructions on how to get there, which is two bus stops past the stop we take to Daniels. So I take the tram to the bus two stops past Daniels. Guess what? There isn’t a bank anywhere. On the bus, I noticed a branch of our bank one stop before Daniels. So I walked a half mile or so in that direction. It was closed and Daniel was definitely not there.

Then I decide that maybe it was farther on the other side of the first place I stopped. So walk another mile or so down the road to no avail. Did I mention it was cold and raining? And I didn’t bring my umbrella. So by this point, I am soaked to the bone, have no idea where the bank is, and am terribly late. I get out my map and a letter from the bank with their address and realize that the branch is in Illkirch while I am in Otswald. I find the right street but it is long and I am in no mood to walk up and down it so I walk to Daniels. Tammy treats me to some hot tea and gives me a towel and a dry shirt. Eventually, she drives me to the bank where I am told the lady I need to see is all booked up for the day so I make an appointment for tomorrow.

Four hours and all I get out of it is an appointment to come back. But now I get to make Amy feel guilty since she told me the wrong stop and guilt her into being nice to me for the evening!

Another French thing I thought of is that they don’t do AM and PM everything is on military time. So in the afternoon, I have to do the math in my head when I look at any clock but my watch.

I thought of some other differences. Banks are more security prone. You can usually walk into an entry way, and then you have to press a button to open another door, here you walk into a small space before you get to another door. That door will not open until the door you just walked into is completely shut. So for a moment you are stuck in a little phone booth sized space. Once the one door is shut the other door will either automatically open or in some place the teller has to press a button to let you in.

The roads are definitely different. I think I have mentioned before that they are very small and twist and turn everywhere. A good example is right out my apartment window. The road below is actually about three lanes wide. However, one lane is designated as a parking area and it is always full. That should leave two lanes for traffic except that the lane on the other side of the road is very often filled with parked cars as well. I mean really it’s a lane of traffic, yet people have no problem pulling over and parking there. So this leaves one lane to drive on. Well, my particular section of road curves a bit into a slight “U” shape. Which makes visibility a little difficult. So traffic will often nearly run into itself before one car has to back up a bit and pull over between two illegally parked cars to let the other car pass.

People park like that all the time though. Just today at the grocery store there was a line of cars parked parallel and then when the spots ran out people just parked beside that line of cars so that the first group would not be able to get out. Then on my way home, a lady stopped her car in the middle of another street so she could run into a store and buy something.

The road signs confuse the heck out of me. They are all little minus signs and triangles and diagonal lines. Sometimes the main road has the right of way sometimes the road intersecting with the main road has the right of way. sometimes the right of way just arbitrarily changes.

A couple of other things I have done of late. I had lunch in Place Kleber which is this giant town square kind of thing right next to Homme de Fare (Literally man of iron) which is where all the trams intersect with each other. Anyway, I’m having my sandwich and watching all of the people walk by when this beggar walks up to the group of women sitting across from me. The beggar puts her cup out for handouts and gets nothing so she walks to the group next to me and again gets nothing. She then walks to me and I just shake my head no. The gypsy goes away quietly. About five minutes later, however, she comes back to the first group this time more aggressively. I don’t know what the heck she said but it was pretty forceful and lasted awhile.

Finally, she gave up and moved to the next group. They tried to ignore her, but she went up to one girl and tapped her on the shoulder and again talked very forcefully and demanded money. They repeatedly said no and she came over to me. She said something and pointed to a sign of which all I could understand was Merci (thank you) but it must have said some other begging things. I again gave her a firm head shake no and ignored her.

Last night we went to an American-friendly pub. The English department where Amy works was meeting with a bunch of English students so they could practice their English. It was very funny because I got into a heated discussion with two Frenchmen, and a very British colleague of Amys over US politics. None of it was anti American or hateful, but it was very lively and quite fun.

Like the man in Pulp Fiction says, we’ve got all the same stuff here as you do in the US but it’s the little differences that make it unique. Also like Pulp Fiction, I have seen the French drown their french fries in mayonnaise.

The French love their bread. You can find regular loaves of bread in the grocery store, but no one buys them except for children. If you want a sandwich you buy a baguette. If you look hard enough you can buy a baguette in the States, but you have to look.

For the uneducated in bread, a baguette is a very long thin piece of French bread. It looks like the bread you get a Subway sandwich on, but usually longer. The funny thing about it is that it pretty much dries out in one day, so you have to buy them every day. Luckily you can find a boulangerie on just about every corner. Those are little bread shops that sell all types of baguettes and lots of breaded pastries and things like doughnuts. It’s such an odd thing for an American to see. Literally, there are these little bread shops everywhere. But that’s the French, they want their baguette and maybe a little dessert all the time. Then there are the patisseries which are just dessert shops. They have some of the same things as the boulangerie but their desserts are much more intricate.

To complete my subject the French are mad about cheese as well. In a typical American grocery store, you will find a small section of cheese. Usually, they carry about four different types of cheese in bricks, sliced or shredded. Here the cheese takes us an entire aisle in most places. They have all kinds of cheeses I have never heard of but am bound to try.

Some other little differences…In the city, you don’t speak to anyone on the street or acknowledge them in any way. In the States, I would often make eye contact with someone walking down the road and say hello or nod my head or smile. Here that doesn’t happen. Yet when you go to a store you have to start the conversation with “bonjour” or “bonsoir” (good day, good night), and when you leave you say “a revoir” or “bonjour-nee” or “Bon soiree” (basically goodbye) It is considered highly rude if you do not.

Cashiers at grocery stores or big Walmart kind of stores all have comfortable chairs. No standing all day on your feet like in the States.

There aren’t bills smaller than a 5. Anything smaller is a coin. So you build a lot of change quickly and it’s not just like nickels and dimes it could be a 2 Euro or 1 Euro piece.

Alright, I tire for now…

We finally got an internet connection. We actually signed up 2 weeks ago and even got the modem and software about a week ago, but we’ve had to wait on the phone company to push the button to get us the DSL connection. so every day Amy and I have tried to sign on with complete disappointment until today.

Unfortunately, I did not keep a manual journal of my adventures so I will have to go from memory, which is routinely bad.

The apartment is pretty nice. It is quite small. There is one main room which is slightly bigger than an average apartment living room. We bought a click clack which is like a nice futon, so it doubles as a couch and bed. We have a coffee table, a nightstand and a desk in it. All of which is not cramped at all. Then there is a very small kitchen. It holds a sink, 2 cabinets, a little pantry, a dorm fridge, and a giant toaster oven. We also have a full bath. It has taken a little getting used to since we were used to a nice two-bedroom house. It is inexpensive for its location in France. We are in the heart of downtown Strasbourg, and only a 5-minute walk from Amy’s school.

I have taken some pictures which I will post in the next day or two.

I am still thoroughly enjoying France. We live in northern France in a part known as Alsace. From what I hear it is a very different part of France than Paris and South France. There is a lot of German influence since it’s so close to the border. Plus Strasbourg is “the capital of Europe” and holds the Parliament for the European Union. So there are lots of different cultures here. So it is nothing to here French, German, English, and other languages while walking around. There are quite a few Jews and Asians living here as well, and a rather large Muslim population.

I am a little sheltered. The majority of the church speaks English and there are several Americans as well. Also, Amy’s department is English so all of them speak my language as well. So it is very much not an immersion into French culture. I think that has made my time here a much better experience.

Yesterday was a good day. I had to go to French class in Ilkirch (a suburb of Strasbourg) and Amy had other things to do. So I navigated my way by myself there and back. I even stopped by Auschan which is like a Walmart on my way back. It’s such a simple thing, and a trip I have made many times with Amy, but it felt empowering to do it on my own! It’s like I am a child in many ways because of the cultural and language differences, so all the little steps are a big deal. Even buying a loaf of bread was huge for me today.

I think I will stop here and write another blog in a minute to break them up a little.