I
really like the Cité Universitaire, my new home in Paris.
In addition to being home to approximately 10 000 students, most of whom are international, which by its very nature makes this a cool place, there are also lots of other neat services offered here. Today I took advantage of what may perhaps be my favorite: l'Espace Langues (Language Spaces). A whole section of the Cité U library is devoted to language learning, which I think is just great. Besides having books, films, and interactive software, they offer conversation groups for intermediate and advanced learners. I took the chance today to sign up for both Spanish and Italian conversation groups. Unfortunately, the Italian group has yet to officially form and begin meeting, but it turns out that the first Spanish conversation group meeting would be held only a few hours after I made my way to the library. I happily signed up and, at 7pm, found myself in the Maison du Brésil (Brazil House), where the Spanish group was meeting. (Just
to keep things straight, my house, that very Oxford-esque building, is called the Fondation Deutsch de la Meurthe and it, unlike many of the houses, has no affiliation with any specific nationality. The Fondation Deutsch de la Meurthe was the first residence built for the Cité Universitaire, a project founded in the 1920s in the aftermath of World War 
I to try to unite people and facilitate cross-cultural communication and understanding in the heart of France.)
I spent an hour chatting with several Brazilians, a Portuguese woman, an Italian, and a Spaniard (who led the group) about life in Paris and in our home countries, comparatively. The most interesting part of the experience was that I could not fall back on my English when I couldn't find just the right word or expression. I could of course revert to French, but unlike any other learning conversation class, I no longer had the freedom to slip into my native tongue when things got too tough. It was really a challenge and a lot of fun! I even went to dinner with someone from class at the Cité U cafeteria afterward and continued a Spanish-French conversation for an extra hour. I do think I'm going to like living here quite a bit!
really like the Cité Universitaire, my new home in Paris.
In addition to being home to approximately 10 000 students, most of whom are international, which by its very nature makes this a cool place, there are also lots of other neat services offered here. Today I took advantage of what may perhaps be my favorite: l'Espace Langues (Language Spaces). A whole section of the Cité U library is devoted to language learning, which I think is just great. Besides having books, films, and interactive software, they offer conversation groups for intermediate and advanced learners. I took the chance today to sign up for both Spanish and Italian conversation groups. Unfortunately, the Italian group has yet to officially form and begin meeting, but it turns out that the first Spanish conversation group meeting would be held only a few hours after I made my way to the library. I happily signed up and, at 7pm, found myself in the Maison du Brésil (Brazil House), where the Spanish group was meeting. (Just
to keep things straight, my house, that very Oxford-esque building, is called the Fondation Deutsch de la Meurthe and it, unlike many of the houses, has no affiliation with any specific nationality. The Fondation Deutsch de la Meurthe was the first residence built for the Cité Universitaire, a project founded in the 1920s in the aftermath of World War 
I to try to unite people and facilitate cross-cultural communication and understanding in the heart of France.)I spent an hour chatting with several Brazilians, a Portuguese woman, an Italian, and a Spaniard (who led the group) about life in Paris and in our home countries, comparatively. The most interesting part of the experience was that I could not fall back on my English when I couldn't find just the right word or expression. I could of course revert to French, but unlike any other learning conversation class, I no longer had the freedom to slip into my native tongue when things got too tough. It was really a challenge and a lot of fun! I even went to dinner with someone from class at the Cité U cafeteria afterward and continued a Spanish-French conversation for an extra hour. I do think I'm going to like living here quite a bit!
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