This spring we'll be bringing you posts from a few Pioneers that are studying abroad this semester. Center Quinn Rosenthal '14 is currently in Nantes, France and this is his second installation. Read his first one here.
Well, let me first share the triumph that I have found the best sandwich in Nantes, the Grand Américain frites steak mayonnaise at the Machata Friterie. Of course, you have to go pretty far down an alley to find this place, its just a tiny window in the wall and there's usually several dudes with no teeth hanging around outside in hoods and sunglasses. So this monstrosity consists of a baguette, immense and delicious even by French standards, mayo, which is also surprisingly good in France, as many hamburger patties as they can shove in there, and a mountain of the best French fries you've ever tasted, yes, the fries are on the sandwich, its a game changer. Oh yeah, and then they grill it. And its four euros, which is not bad, especially considering you'll be full for about two days, or at least a lesser man would be. In general, French food is obviously awesome, but I don't love all of it. The things they do do undeniably well though, that I've discovered thus far, are bread, cheese, dessert, fries, and add to the list, sausage.
Other stories: many have already heard about my Super Bowl adventure. All the american students from my program hang out a lot at this Irish pub called Fleming's, its kind of become our place. I made nice with the Canadian and British bartenders, and when I ran into one of them in the weight room, he said he would keep the place open late on Super Bowl Sunday so we Americans could watch. I didn't know until I got there at midnight on Sunday for the 12:30 AM kickoff that its actually illegal to keep your bar open past 2 in the morning in Nantes, as the bartender closed the blinds and explained to us that if the police knocked on the door, we all had to go hide in the cellar where they kept all the kegs. Luckily, this was unnecessary, although the game didn't end until 5AM. I had a great time, broing out with all the other anglophones, there were only two other Americans (I was the only guy in my program with enough 'Merica in me to stay out that late on a Sunday night) but also some English, Australians, and a couple random die hard French 49er fans. It was a great time, everybody was speaking English, buying drinks for each other, ogling at Beyonce, I took a nap during the infamous power outage, I'd definitely missed football. However I didn't end up going to bed till about 5:30 that night, and I had french class at 9 the next morning. But I made it through, I felt like I was doing Grinnell, hell, America, proud that Monday.
What else? I've now taken two weekend vacations. The first was to Bordeaux, with some good friends from my program. We didn't do much touristy stuff, although we did get a nice tour around beautiful downtown Bordeaux. That weekend was more about wine tasting, relaxing after a whirlwind first couple weeks in France, and taking stock of just how lucky we are to have this opportunity to see the world with all its unique experiences. The second was a day trip with the program to Mont St. Michel, a 7th century monastery on a tidal island on the Norman coast. It lives up to its billing as one of the most beautiful sights in France, and you definitely felt the weight of being in one of the oldest churches in the world. I also ruined my shoes getting stuck in quicksand on the beach when the tide was rolling in, what can you do? After that we had a nice afternoon in the quaint beach town of St. Malo, where I again got stranded by the tide on a rock and had to swim back. There also just so happened to be a French carnival going on there that day so I was definitely not mad about a lunch of fresh fried sugar dough and cotton candy.
I wish I had more to say about the academic side of things. My classes are all interesting, taught in French and from a French perspective, and I'm getting along pretty well in them, except for maybe Medieval Heresy, my only class at the real French university. But, to be honest, in true French fashion, I haven't really been called upon to care about school that much yet. That is, except for my teaching internship. I'm still not sure why I signed up for it, or why I was given 10-14 year olds when I asked to be a language assistant at the college, but its really grown on me. My class of 10 year olds is actually my favorite. They're super interested in me and really easy to teach, and damned if I didn't feel it when I willed one of those little guys to say: "I...em...een...zee...riving...rroom." Because you know what that is? That's a complete sentence. Those little things that you didn't even know could get you so jacked.
A tout a l'heure!
Quinn
