Day 84

WHOA! 21 x 4 = 84...and I turned 21 on Day 84!!!

And what a special birthday it was! I was a little worried that it would be tainted by Friday's events (which are obviously still weighing on me mentally and emotionally), but I was definitely able to have a good time in a safe way.

Unfortunately, the day began by having to wake up at 7. I never thought my birthday would also be the first day of school! But alas, it was. Or, the first day of Module 3, at least.

I got up, got ready, and went down to breakfast. It's so crazy being able to eat chocolate cereal that isn't stale! (Yes, that's a jab at the Seville campus).

The only class I'm in this module is Metaphysics, and I have to miss the last week of it for Will and Mackie's wedding. Luckily, I am a smart and prepared individual (and have a mother who makes me stay on top of things), so I had already discussed this with my professor over email and gotten the approval of administration to finish early. Luckily, Prof. Garrau remembered all this, and right away asked me to talk to her after class about my situation.

The class seems like it's going to be really good. It's actually structured! So weird! The nerd in me (aka every ounce of my being) is excited to be in an actual college course again. Also, the professor is really cool. She's French, so unfortunately she does not wear deodorant, but other than that, I really like her.

The plan we established after class seems like it should be easy enough to handle. The class is divided into two sections: the first on free will, and the second on evil. The midterm is on December 1 and will cover the section on free will. After that, Prof. Garrau will start giving me extra assignments to do during the unit on evil so that I can do the same amount of work as everyone else but finish early.

After Metaphysics, all my friends had other classes to go to, so I worked on updating this blog and opened up my first round of birthday cards. Then, Katie, Tiffany, Gina, Shavonne, Shaq, and I headed out to go shopping! Well, first we went to a Chinese restaurant around the corner because some of them were hungry (I was saving up for macaroons), and then we made our way to the Champs-Elysees.

Camouflage!

Don't ask

Shopping was weird, because we had to go through security just to get in every store. Security was especially high at the Disney store, which was kind of weird. Better safe than sorry, though! I did not mind at all.

Life-sized stormtroopers in the windows!

At H&M, I got a cute little pink coat that was weirdly on sale. I wanted to get something in a neutral color, but y'all know I can't resist anything pink. At least it isn't hot pink like half of the stuff I own. It's a very classy, pale shade! So Parisian.

I knew I wanted to get 21 macaroons from Ladurée, so that was one of our last stops. I couldn't believe how empty the place was! It was pretty nice not having to wait in line outside. I could either get a box of 18 or 24 macaroons, so I got 24 (and took three out for the picture I took later).

We went to the giant Louis Vuitton store like classic tourists, and then made our way back to campus to get ready for dinner. 

Not the best view/picture, but the Eiffel Tower was lit up like the French flag!

Along the way, we came across a little American "specialty foods" store and decided to pop in. I. FOUND. ORIGINAL. GOLDFISH!!!!!!!!!!! They cost six euros, but hey, it was my birthday. And I've been missing them desperately!! 

We were running a little bit late, so I rushed to change into my somewhat ridiculous birthday dress and then headed right back out the door. I had made a reservation for 6 at a restaurant we saw the day before called Les Fondus de la Raclette. I'm assuming y'all know what fondue is, but raclette is basically like a platter of a lot of sliced cheese and some meat, too with a baked potato and a tiny pan. You put the cheese on the pan, put the pan on the stove thing on your table, and then eat the melted cheese with some of the potato (or however you so choose). We got one regular cheese fondue, a cheese fondue with truffle oil (SO GOOD), and two plates of raclette. Ugh! It was amazing. We all loved it! Then, for dessert, we got one little chocolate fondue. We lived up to our reputation as Americans and were loud and took lots of obnoxious pictures.

We were at the restaurant for kind of a long time, but it was sooooooo much food and sooooooooo much fun. When we got back to campus, everyone came to my room to sing happy birthday to me (with my box of macaroons serving as the cake). I shared some macaroons with everyone, and then we all dispersed and got ready for bed. In a lot of ways, it felt more like my 40th birthday than my 21st, but I had a great time regardless.

Many, many thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday!!! It means more than you know.

(PS: I totally forgot to put pictures on my last post!! Added them now! Go reread Day 83 if you've already seeen it!)