Jour 2- Rendez-vous avec "penny-pal" Alexie!

Holy Jet-lag!

First of all, I did not sleep well. I woke up many times at different hours, until I finally woke up at 6 a.m. to the sweet sounds of French screams and rejoices from above. What party was crackin a 6 a.m.? We'll never know, but much appreciated!

The continental b-fast at the hotel etait manificat! I enjoyed having boiled egges, cheese, ham, cereal, crackers galore, and more cheese at 9 a.m. French b-fast gets the body rollin and makes the tummy satisfied!

After le petit dejeuner, we had a housing orientation meeting at the API centre which lasted what seemed a decade--really that's what it feels like when your so jet-lagged. Apres, we took a tour of the metro. A positive about the metro: its fast, convenient, and will just about take you anywhere around the center of Paris. A negative: confusion, confusion and more confusion with a little bit of danger b/c all of the pick-pocketers creepily roaming about.

After we ha da lunch break were i ravaged a delicious panni au fromage et du jambon (cheese and ham, and then back for more info sessions. Help!

Then the fun began. Instead of taking a tour on the Bateau Mouche on the Seine River, Jordan and I wanted to meet up with her pen-pal named Alexie Perez-Sobrino. After searching for him at 4 of the 10 chatelet metro openings, we finally met! He is a French male, 20 yrs old, who speaks good English and knows the city like the back of his hand. We walked to the Latin Quartier where it houses the oldest buildings, shops, and restaurants in Paris. It's a very happening place! We decided to go to a bar named Cafe Latin where the three of us sat down and ordered a bottle of white wine.

A little thing to know about me, I am not fond of wine. I try and drink it but I just cant develop a taste for it. I am determined during my 5 and a 1/2 month stay here to like the beverage. When Alexie ordered the wine (the French know their wine), I fell instantly in-love! It was the best white wine I've ever tried.

We talked about ourselves for a while--our interests, what we do, etc.--and then moved to the more important things to discuss in life--how to say swear words in French. This conversation infused with translations from english to french on paper (for me to keep on hand) lasted for the duration of our stay. It was hysterical. So funny, that we were causing a scene and one of the bar owners came over (a tall Black male with a Jamaican vibe) to chat. We discussed Amsterdam, and how it is necessary to travel there. Believe me, it's on my list of things to do!

We were having so much fun, and the guy liked us to much, they gave us another round of wine on the house! We chatted all night until the bar closed. We said a demain (see you tomorrow), they gave us their business card to come back (which we will), and were on our way home!

Such a fun night, I hope the nights continue to be this exciting!

Au revoir for now!