metro types

glitter toms and train stops.

yet another wonderful day in france. school was not until 10:30 today so i had some time to sleep in. oh wait.. hello jet lag. i woke up at six and couldn't get back to sleep so i had time to paint my nails, make a very french lunch for emily and i and catch up on a little reading. we left for the RER at 9:40 and had a nice quiet ride. french people are so quiet! the trains are silent. even little children on the trains are silent. even dogs on the train are silent!

i have discovered there are a few different techniques to riding on the metro/train.

1. the eyes closed method. these people usually have longer to go. they stake out a spot, plant their feet, stand very still and close their eyes. i do not think they are sleeping but i suppose they have done it enough that they probably have this instinct to know exactly when they arrive at their stop, so maybe they are asleep!

2. the ipod no eye contact technique. most people choose this one. almost everyone has some kind of mp3 music playing device, and probably every other person on the metro has headphones in. these people can just focus on their music and have no need to talk to, listen to, or see anyone else. not that anyone is saying anything. nonetheless. some are in their own world to the point where they start to groove. i have tried this technique. its a good one.

3. the read the newspaper type. some people choose to get some reading done on their trip. sometimes when the metro gets especially crowded they hold their paper up higher so as to not take up too much space. this allows for all those of us around them to smell their less-than-pleasant body odor. why thank you, smelly french business men. do not get stuck crammed next to one of these types on long rides. or just learn to hold your breath.

4. the shifty eye i'm suspicious that the person i am sitting next to is not french. i try to avoid speaking english on the train, just so i don't stand out, but whether or not i do, there is always at least one shifty eyed french person who i keep making eye contact with. sometimes they have very nice eyes. but most of the time they don't seem to be liking my american eye contact one bit!

5. the all business get me outta here type. most people in france take the metro. its just convenient. many of the adults here don't even have licenses. just because they take the metro doesn't mean they like it. this type backs on, stands closest to the door and is the first one off. usually these ones are only on for a few stops.

6. the i live on the metro types. i am not sure if that is actually allowed, but some people just look too at home on the grafittied seats. side note: every homeless person i have seen has had a very nice looking sleeping bag to curl up in. even the homeless people are classier here!

there are my observations thus far. i am thinking i will probably end up in the ipod i don't see anyone category. although i really like making eye contact with everyone. oh dear, i could never be french

my day: it was an adventure. school was better than yesterday. after school emily and i tried to go on a walk for our paris walk class but ended up getting super turned around and in the completely wrong place. luckily in france everywhere you go there is something to see so we got a little taste of the louvre while we were "lost". then we made use of our metro skills and got to where we needed to be in about three minutes instead of the who knows how many it would have taken us to walk there. we went to see the notre dame and it was beautiful. the detail is magnificent! the doors on the sides are red! ( i love the doors here!) anyway, we then took a totally new route home which was so fun. dinner was delicious, we ate with the madame, who i discovered DETESTS being called madame. madame is depressing! so now we call her by her name, Nannick. it has been a great day, and we will see what adventures occur tomorrow.