SNOW!

Another cool thing about Paris: it's impossible to have a bad day. I had a really long and tiring day yesterday - further complicated by a commute from hell - but the sheer number of small triumphs that kept popping up made it, well, kind of awesome.

Why yesterday could have been a bad day:
Normally, I don't have class until 1pm, but because yesterday was our first day of class, my day began at 9AM. Afraid of being late for the first day of classes (especially since I had no idea *where* classes were - my dorm and the Paris center are in 2 different districts), I didn't really sleep the night before. Then I kind of forgot to eat breakfast; as most of you may know, a hungry Danica is a very grumpy Danica. We had a general meet-and-greet set for noon, at which I thought we were going to be fed (nope). Also, this is my reading for the first week of school (not counting the books sitting on my shelf):


As you can see, my packet is a hefty little sucker. Note that there are 2 photocopied pages per A4 page and that each page is double-sided. I thought it was a week and half's worth of reading... then realized that, no, we're getting another packet for next week. When we left to head back to the dorm - that is, during rush hour - there was some massive train delay on the RER. I was absolutely wiped and famished by the time I got back... and found out that my Microsoft Office had crashed.

All the small - and not so small - things that made yesterday awesome:
Although we weren't exactly *fed* during the welcome reception, we were given some delicious gallete du roi (I think I spelled that correctly? Wiki has some info on king cake). It was pretty much the equivalent of eating a flaky stick of butter filled with almond paste.

Also, I am SO EXCITED for class! My first class this quarter, "Art, Revolution, and Urban Life in Paris, Moscow, and St. Petersburg," has a TON of Benjamin-related reading. As some of you may know, I have an unhealthy obsession with Walter Benjamin; my B.A. is, in fact, on Benjamin's work. I get to read lots of stuff I love for both my class AND my B.A. One of our assignments is to wander the Paris arcades; expect a lot of cool photos in the near future!

I have a working lamp - apparently, my frantic bulb waving worked!

And, of course, Paris is beautiful in the snow:

Yeah, I was too lazy to step outside. It was cold. But you can see my reflection!

With all the snow around, I just needed to find something warm to drink. So I ventured to the first floor vending machine and got a delightful little cup of cappuccino:
Nothing beats feeling like it's Christmas... when it's January =)

So I guess that was a post about little joys and finding happiness where you least expect it. Yeah, yeah, that was a little corny, but Paris has rekindled my faith in fairy tales and magic.

xoxo,
D