French restaurants always seem to have amazing salads on the menu, and I am doing my best to copy them at home.
I went to several concerts this week at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, one of the most iconic Parisian concert halls, located close to the Seine (the river that flows through the heart of Paris) in the 8th arrondissement (an arrondissement is a district of a city, something like the boroughs of New York City). My favorite concert was Werther, a tragic opera by Jules Massanet, who was one of the most important French composers in the late 19th century.
I got to perform in the Salle Cortot, one of the most famous and iconic recital halls in Paris, with my violinist friend. We played a piece of music that one of our other friends, a composer, wrote!
I have a subscription to Le Monde (literally “The World”), which is the biggest French newspaper. It’s a great source of all kinds of news about not only what’s going on in France but also internationally. French people often know a lot about international current events, which is something I admire and am trying to copy. I’m also starting a book by Annie Ernaux, a French writer who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2022.
I’ll admit that I haven’t played any sports at all since I’ve been here. However, there’s a basketball court in the Parc Montsouris, right across the street from where I live. There’s also an enormous lawn behind my building where people sometimes play frisbee.
