::::::::::::::::::::::''Translations by Anna Ciriani Dean.''
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Revision as of 12:57, 3 November 2010
Un mot d’introduction
It’s been more than a month since the students arrived in Toulouse. Now that orientation is over, the students have started their courses at Toulouse’s universities. Everyone has started to get their bearings in the city. In this issue of La Une, we will share our experiences and our discoveries of French life. Some students will share passages of their journaux interculturels (intercultural journals), in which they discuss the differences between the French and Americans. Others will tell you about their adventures in the city or will suggest come good outings. I hope their reflections will help you get to know Toulouse and French life better.
--Karen Kirner, editor
Opera Review: La Boheme
On October 10th, a group of Dickinsonians saw La Bohème, an opera by Giacomo Puccini, at Théâtre du Capitole (the main theater in Toulouse). This moving opera tells the story of four young artists, a beautiful florist and of an escort living in Paris, who are working towards their dreams. The main plot follows the love story of Rodolfo (Teodor Ilincai) and Mimi (Carmen Giannattasio). After love at first sight, they develop a tragically beautiful relationship, as Rodolfo’s jealousy and Mimi’s mysterious illness hinder their future together. Howeverm when Mimi develops a particularly serious cough she realizes that they are actually happier together in spite of everything.
All of the singers in La Bohème worked very well together; they were all very talented. Besides Teodor Ilincai and Carmen Giannattosio, the soprano Jennifer Black embodied the role of Musetta perfectly and her interpretation of “Quando me n’vo” was wonderful. Finally, Dario Solari, the baritone who played Marcello, sang in harmony with Black’s Musetta. For those who haven’t seen it yet, I strongly suggest to go to Théâtre du Capitole!
--Cayla Cantafio
National Days of Patrimony: Family Day at Airbus
The weekend of October 18th was dedicated to Europe’s cultural heritage. Toulouse also celebrated more than 200 years of its history. All the museums and cultural sites were free and open to the public and they organized guided tours to inform people of Toulouse’s heritage. On this day, the biggest aeronautical center in Europe celebrated it’s 40th anniversary and I had the wonderful opportunity to explore it. Airbus organized an open house at the company called “Family Day.” Throughout the day, the Airbus employees could visit the factory with their families and show them how to build a plane. I went early in the morning with my host dad and his son. There were so many people that I thought the entire city of Toulouse was there.
The Airbus factory is located next to the Toulouse airport. The factory takes up an area bigger than the center of Toulouse. In the enormous complex, there are lots of hangars that serve many different functions during the construction process. I visited the building where they test the plane systems and I was able to see the cockpit. The A320 is the most frequently purchased model. Every month, Airbus produces 38 of these planes that then travel to every crossroads of the world. However, the most impressive model was the A380. This plan can seat 525 passengers on two floors and can fit all their baggage on a third floor. There is also a separate compartment for first class passengers that includes all the amenities. It’s the biggest plane in the world! It was incredible to walk underneath it and hear the engines.
The pride of Airbus, the A380.
I also saw the military plane M430 and the Concord, but my favorite plane is the Beluga. The Beluga is used to transport diferents airplane parts as well as other large objects. We witnessed a demonstration on how to load a Beluga. I also watched a video on how to build a plane. Today, the process is a lot more automated than it used to be. We have definitely come a long way since the first airplane to the invention of the A380 Airbus. I find it incredible to see how human ingenuity has developed, allowing us to travel more easily.
Madlen Chipeva with her favorite plane, the Beluga.
--Madlen Chipeva
Excerpt from my Intercultural Journal : Wash Yourself…Or Not?
I have a quirk that I never noticed until I got to Toulouse: wanting to wash my hands all the time. I think my obsession with having clean hands is rooted in my American culture. I think it started in high school when my hands started getting dirty from pens, pencils, etc. In high school, like at Dickinson and even at the Institut Catholique (the Catholic Institute of Toulouse), every bathroom was equipped with sinks and soap. Therefore, my need to keep my hands clean was not hard to satisfy.
In the United States outside of school, there’s an abundance of places where I can wash my hands. Firstly, most restaurants and other stores have bathrooms that are open to the public. Secondly, if you use the bathroom at a friend’s house, their bathrooms are always equipped with a sink and soap. You could say that my little obsession with clean hands wasn’t specific to just me in the USA. There are dispensers with hand sanitizer everywhere. I can thus say that this eccentricity is simply an aspect of my American culture that is reflected in me.
The reason why I find this interesting resides in the fact that people don’t seem to wash their hands as often in France as in the United States, I say this because there usually isn’t soap in public bathrooms and when you use the bathroom at a friend’s house, the little room doesn’t usually have a sink. Thus, I realized that the lack of soap says nothing about French culture except that the French don’t share the same obsession with hygiene that Americans have.
--Leigh Harlow
National Days of Patrimony: The Palais Niel
The national patrimony days are an opportunity to visit places that are usually closed to the public. Every year, the national patrimony days take place over a weekend in September and this year, I took advantage of the opportunity to visit the Palais Niel in Toulouse. The Palais Niel was built in the 19th century to receive the head of the Southern Regional Army, Adolphe Niel. The exterior of the palace is an image of elegance and simplicity. The gardens around it are a masterpiece; especially the hedges are cut and arranges in magnificent geometrical shapes. The sculptures near the hedges add a sense of grace to the garden. The view is picturesque. The interior of the palace is absolutely opulent. I have never seen such elaborate decorations. The furniture was luxurious. The paintings and the sculptures in the palace were wonderful. I felt as if I were in another world. It was like I traveled to the 19th century for the day! I was astounded. We could read articles and books about the palace. You see images of the palace on TV, but nothing is better than seeing the palace with your own eyes. It’s incredible. I was lucky enough to be able to see it since the palace is normally closed to the public except for one weekend per year, during the national patrimony days. It was a great experience and I would recommend it to everyone.
--Makdea Jones
The Palais Niel.
GOAL! My First Brush with Toulousian Soccer
My host brother, Albéric, offered me the chance to go to a soccer match with him in Toulouse. I found his invitation very nice and I really wanted to go, as I had never been to a European soccer game. It was the Toulouse FC versus Saint-Etienne match. Although Toulouse lost 0 to 1 against the visitors, we had a great time at the stadium. There was a humongous crowd of Toulousian supporters. They had painted their faces white and purple, the colors of Toulouse’s team. I was delighted to see all the enthusiasm because people often say that the most popular sport in Toulouse is rugby. I really loved the moment when the team entered the stadium. The crowd sang the official song of Toulouse FC, a song whose words are in Occitan. I was wearing the official team scarf that I had bought and Albéric was wearing his. The official symbol of Toulouse FC is the Occitan cross. I found it very interesting that, even at the soccer stadium, I discovered symbols that we learned about in Mr. Créma’s class. During the match, I felt as though the pride of the violets (purples) wasn’t just pride for their team, but pride for all of Toulouse. The solidarity of coming from the same city and of sharing the same Occitan origins made the supporters that surrounded me so proud and passionate. Having already had the chance to see how Toulouse’s culture plays out in architecture and in art, I loved seeing the same culture be expressed through sports.
--Nicolas Garzon
Ballet Review: A Night of Stravinsky
Last Friday was a night of ballet for some Dickinson students that saw two of Stravinsky’s works, The Firebird and The Rite of Spring. To mark the 100th anniversary of the first ballet, Théâtre du Capitole decided to reproduce the Michel Rahn version. The second, which caused much controversy when it was first performed, was well done with Mauricio Wainrot’s choreography.
The first work, The Firebird, follows a rather simple and traditional plot. While hunting, the prince and his friends stumble upon a magnificent bird, the Firebird. The prince is able to catch it, but he receives a single feather. Then, he runs into some princesses who are the prisoners of an evil magician. When the monsters that guard the princesses arrive, slithering onto the scene like sinister snakes, they catch the prince and his friends and take them to the magician. The magician and his monster were quite appalling enemies and they haunted my dreams the following night. The princesses tried to save the prince, but in the end, the Firebird is the one who is able to lift the spells and kill the magician.
The Rite of Spring is more a series of ceremonies than a plot. Inspired by ancient Russia, the ballet shows the sacrifice of a young pagan girl. The premiere of the ballet in 1913 caused a riot within the audience because of the revolutionary style of the dance. Even in the modern version, the dancers’ movements are rhythmic and often violent and they reflect the primitive action that takes place in the show. I found the way the subject of sacrifice was treated very moving. The audience worried about the unfortunate victim’s fate, which creates huge tension. At the end, I left the theater with a new goal: to go to the ballet more often.
--Emily Walters
Restaurant to Check Out: La faim des haricots
I have no doubt that “La faim des haricots” (The Hunger of the Beans) is our group’s favorite restaurant. Located on rue des Puit verts, near Esquirol Plaza, this vegetarian restaurant offers delicious dishes for lunch and dinner. All of their meals are buffet-style and they offer different combinations at attractive prices. You can choose a formula of two, three or four options: the daily special, salads, salted tarts, desserts and winter soups. The choices are varied and all of them are delicious. You shouldn’t miss the desserts of all-you-can-eat ice cream and every kind of salad, including beetroot feta, rice curry, semolina and fruits and zucchini curry. For 11 euros (a choice of two options), you can have an abundant dinner, not too expensive and incredibly delicious.
--Gabrielle Kushlan
Calendar
15 – 18 Oct: 25th Anniversary of Dickinson in France
19 Oct: Lunch meeting: Information for Paris trip (mandatory)
25 – 26 Oct: Dickinson Center closed
27 – 31 Oct: Excursion to Paris (mandatory)
1 Nov: National holiday: Dickinson Center Closed
6 Nov: Outing to the Marché au Gras in Peáchabou
11 Nov: Gabrielle Betances’ birthday
11 – 12 Nov: National holiday: Dickinson Center Closed
Parles-tu l’argot ?
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