Life in Lyon

Spring is coming! Last saturday, it was absurdly beautiful outside, and we spent about six hours having an absurdly long picnic in the huge municipal park (complete with a lilypad pond, elephants and a rose garden). Then it got cold again, as cold as it has even been here almost, and now today we are back to a normal early spring beautiful, chilly day. I am very excited to put away my mittens for a while and all the adorable ($$$) clothes in the store windows are making me yearn for warmth.

In other news, the strike continues. I have been teaching and going about my life as usual anyway, without much trouble, except for one appointment at Lyon II, the larger, public university on the banks of the Rhône. They are very committed to the current strike, much more so than the normaliens. I was trying to meet with a professor about my application to the crazy master's program called "Oral and Written Cultures". She was interested in my thesis topic, and I was excited to meet with a potential thesis advisor, but when I got to the school, all the doors were blocked with furniture. Thank you strike, I thought, as I tried my fourth and fifth entry. The professor had given me very specific instructions on how to reach her office from a certain door, and by the time I found my way inside (with the help of an old lady also trying to breach the socialist barricades), I was completely turned around. Add to that the fact that inner corridors were also blocked with huge piles of tables and chairs, and you have a mess. I eventually made my way to her office (via various antics including walking across a dry swimming pool), and though I was fairly late, she still wasn't ready for me so it all worked out.

As far as next year's plans, I am hoping for a scholarship but would also be happy to be a lectrice again. We had a lovely lectrice dinner en ville on Thursday, with a group of 11 foreign language instructors and we gossiped about students, the strike, and life in the residences. It is a really great community, and most of the other lectrices are staying next year, which makes me think it could be fun, especially as I am dead set on getting a "real" apartment somewhere. In the extreme offchance that I am the lucky one person to receive the scholarship from the national library of France for next year, I guess I may move to Paris? but that seems so unlikely I am not really considering it. Anyway, for all of you who haven't come to visit yet, you should have plenty of time.

In other news, my contemporary art class finally started, despite the fact that our prof is technically striking, so we are having cours hors murs (French phrase I find nearly impossible to pronounce correctly, meaning a course taking place outside the university). We met in a square in town, and walked around for two hours, looking at contemporary art in urban settings, discussing the place of contemporary art in the public domain, and taking advantage of a beautiful day. The prof is really knowledgeable and it was a great and interesting class. I saw lots of things that I had no idea existed, and I can't wait to show off my new tourguide skills when my parents come in two weeks!

Until then, I will be hanging out in Lyon, working on grading some essays (one of which is titled, "The importance of seeing prostitutes in empty street"), application essays, etc. We are saying a sad goodbye to a good friend Andrea who is leaving this week for his native Italy, and we are having many a get together (a great oldschool brewery last night, sushi date tonight, american style brunch tomorrow, beer night sunday) and generally enjoying our time as the weather slowly warms...