French and... Catholic?

It's true that Catholicism is a more of a hegemony in France rather than its dominant taskforce. It's true that France is known for its separation of church and state, for its imposed secularism that outlaws Muslim women from wearing hijabs, etc. France still observes Catholic holidays like the Assumption and Pentecost, but we'll let that hypocrisy go for now...

Anyways, since the beginning of my time in France I have been frequenting the different churches and cathedrals of Paris.  It's never difficult to find a Catholic church in France-- it's like trying to find a Starbucks in downtown Chicago. They're everywhere!

The following are the churches that are significant to my time in France.  I wanted to blogpost this subject because : 1. it will give you an insight to my overall experience, and 2. it explains some hidden insights about Catholicism in France-- stay tuned!

The Cathedral of Notre Dame of Paris:
Yes, I love going to this famous cathedral! No, even for as many times as I've been there, I've never seen Quasimodo...
That being said, I love going back to Notre Dame because of the tourists. Sometimes I get annoyed by the crowds, so I weave my way through to mass acting like a local.   But when I get past the crowds, I always take a moment to cherish the fact that I'm there with people from all over the world.  And they're all in awe at this monument!  It's incredible to wonder how many millions and billions of people have experienced Notre Dame of Paris.  It's a fun awkward to be at mass with hundreds of people that don't speak your native language (or French), and that after having mumbled through the parts of mass side by side you turn to give your neighbors peace and you're not sure what language to use. 

Cathedrale in the Montparnesse quartier:
I found this cathedrale because it's in the hussle and bussle of the Montparnesse neighborhood nearby.  The neatest thing about this cathedral is the Sunday night youth mass.  This mass is filled with Parisian youth, from high school kids to young working adults, who come to mass in solidarity with one another. And it's a busy mass!  It's the 20 somethings that are the altar servers, that set up for mass, that sing, etc.  This mass is evidence of a different kind of French youth, a youth that are deciding for themselves to go to mass... even when their peers and their parents don't.

Church in my quartier:
The family parish.  I like this church because it's fosters a family-oriented community. It's neat that there are always activities going on, geared toward the different age groups.  This church really has the feeling of a home parish, something that you can't really find at the cathedrals.  I felt right at home with this community.

La Catho:
One of the places that I take classes is called "L'Institut Catholique" or "La Catho" for short.  Although you don't have to be Catholic to go to this school, many of the majors are geared towards theology studies and a seminary is there as well.  My classes are in the International/ Cultural exchange part of the college (the strictly secular part).  Nonetheless, I got involved with the Catholic youth group & made a lot of wonderful French friends.  This group was a home away from home for me: together we did service, ate lunch, went to mass, and just had a place to belong on our college campus.

In summary: France has so many churches & cathedrals, and everyone has its unique community and unique feel.  From my surveying of these four very different churches, I conclude that Catholicism isn't done with France, and France isn't done with Catholicism. 

Every meal is better in courses

Living with a host family, I get to experience "French cuisine" in its most natural state.  No escargot, no cute French waitors-- I get to see the eating culture in an "unpackaged" sense.

And, let me tell you, every meal is a big deal.

Breakfast: The French breakfast is in general very sweet-- if you think of the classic French breakfast, you probably will think of croissants, pain au chocolat, more pastries.... etc.  I usually stick to cereal and fruits.  Nonetheless, breakfast is in courses.

A typical French breakfast for Jess:
Entree: toast with jam
Plat: plain yogurt with cereal
Dessert: apple or other fruit

Lunch: I eat lunch on my own, so my favorite lunch is to go to a bakery.  Often bakeries have excellent sandwiches (sandwiches on a baguette, of course).

A typical French lunch for Jess:

Plat:  Baguette sandwich
Dessert: Pastry

Snack: So I'm a snacker. French people don't usually snack, so this is just a Jess thing.  Nonetheless, I try to make my snack choices conform with the culture.

A typical French snack for Jess:

Morning: dried fruit
Afternoon: Banana-Nutella crepe
Evening: Granola bars (more like a distant relative of a American granola bar)

Dinner: I'll describe a typical dinner with my host family. Note: since lunch is usually the 'meaty' meal of the day, dinner is intended to be lighter on the tummy.  It is usually eaten a lot later than American dinners: we usually eat around 8pm.

A typical French dinner for Jess:

Entree: (optional) Salad
Plat: Cooked veggies, either in quiche, or with a sauce, etc.
Plat de fromage: Cheese plate
Dessert: Fruit, or occasionally, a pie or cake

*** Note: I don't actually eat all of this, every day. This is a rough outline, veering on the maximum!

Et volia la cuisine francaise !

Adventures with Mum: top 10

Oh la la. The city of Lights. Bienvenue a Paris!

So the semester started off as quite a vacation.  My mom and I flew around Paris, seeing the sights, sipping wine, eating good cheese, cliche cliche in the absolute best sense. We couldn't have done it better even if we were following the most popular guidebook's Paris bucket list for tourists.  So, here's the Me & Mum's top 10 of our adventure in Paris:  (Note that they're not in order-- the numbering is for keeping track!)

10: Eiffel tower
So the absolute most touristy thing you can do in Paris is to see the Eiffel Tower.  No matter how much you want to challenge the stereotypes, the Eiffel Tower is worth every euro.  Mom and I first caught a glimpse of the Parisian ornament coming around a corner out of the metro. We were like: Hey! Hey look! there it is! Wow, that is really impressive!

A glimpse of the tower at twilight in royal illini colors

The stained glass windows at Sainte-Chapelle

 9: Sainte-Chapelle

The Sainte Chapelle is on the Ile-de-Cite, very near the Notre Dame in the center of Paris.  The Stained glass window are sooo beautiful--each 'column' of windows tells a different section of the bible. 

8: eating crepes walking down the Champs-Elysees

At the Arc de Triomphe

We figured that we'd walk the famous boulevard up to the Arc de Triomphe to see what all the rave was about.  Lots of designer stores, including America's best such as Abercrombie, the Gap, the Disney store and McDonald's.  For the most part it was just your typical designer district, but overall a worthwhile walk because the Arc is impressive, the exercise necessary and the crepes were delicieux.


7: kid chasing birds in the park

An "aww cute" moment: right by Notre Dame there was a little kid running around in circles chasing the flock of pidgeons.  The funniest part was that the pidgeons would barely get out of the kid's way--they were totally unphased by the little kid.  The kid kept shuffling around trying to scare the birds to no avail whatsoever--it was adorable.

French kids in general are so cute--they're all p-coats and bows, and cute French accents :).

Kids on strike... a normal day in Paris.

6: joined a manifestation
In one of the Paris guidebooks, they joke that in Paris there are at least 365 strikes a year.  Well, Mom & I just happened upon this 'parade-like' activity on one of the main streets.  Of course, after reading the picket signs we realized that it was no parade, it was actually a strike, or manifestation, as the French call it.  We didn't march along with them, but we did get some pictures of the kid picketers who were striking for more teachers in their schools.

Let's check our progress on our Paris bucket list of things to do: see a strike? Check.


 5: Sipping coffee at a cafe along the Seine
Before Saturday night mass, Mom & I had some time to spare so we spent our leisure time the Parisian way by sipping coffee and chatting at a cafe overlooking the Seine.  It was at a good people-watching spot: right across from Notre Dame! 

Mom in front of Notre Dame.

4: mass at Notre Dame
On Saturday night, Mom & I went to mass at the Notre Dame.  It was so neat to share this experience with people from all over the world.  It was beautiful, they played the organs. The only thing missing was Quasimodo.


3: A walking tour & a Parisian sunset overlooking the Champs de Mars
After spending our Friday afternoon exploring the commercial, northern half of Paris called la rive droite, Mom and I made our way to the historic highlights along the river: the Palais de Louvre (Louvre museum), le jardin des Tulleries (Tulip garden), and the Champs de Mars (a parc with ferris wheel).

Us in front of the Louvre!

We didn't go in to visit the Mona Lisa, but in our own way took in the glorious Parisian feel of history-meets-modern.  We took a leisurely stroll in the Tulip garden, enjoying the lovely weather in a nice park, and at the end of our stroll, we watched the sunset on the Champs de Mars with the Eiffel tower in full-view.

A Parisian sunset.

2:Dinner with the family
On Thursday night, Mom & I got to meet my Parisian host family! We went out for dinner on the Boulevard of Crepes, where every door leads to a crepe restaurant (I forget the actual name of the street).  My family is sweet, and they speak English well so we were able to have a wonderful conversation in "Franglish" (a mixture of French and English!).

The bastille of Sacre-Coeur

1: Sacre coeur
Our favorite experience was our visit to Sacre-coeur.  The bastille is set on a high point, so it had a beautiful view.  The church itself was so extraordinary: the architecture was beautifully intricate both inside and out.  We had perfect blue-sky weather to accompany our visit of the church and the quaint neighborhood surrounding it.  There's a powerful peace around the church that magically isn't diminished by the flocks of tourists-- definitely a wonderful memory.

All in all, a good mom & daughter trip!

Mom & I at Sacre-coeur, enjoying the beautiful view of Paris!