Bisous

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When two people meet for the first time (usually girl/guy or girl/girl) they give each other what's called bisous (pronounced bee-zoos). It's pretty much touching left cheek to left cheek and kissing, then repeating it for the right cheek. You don't kiss the person, but you make the kiss sound and motion. Bisous are also done as a greeting between two people who know each other well. In this case, they are even done by two guys.

As a non-French person, this is very awkward for me. I never know if a girl I'm introduced to will expect this or what. Usually, they will initiate it. It's still pretty uncomfortable. In one instance, we ran into one of the teachers Lauren works with at one of her schools. She introduced me to her and the woman leaned in to give me the bisous. The first one went off with no problem, but when we switched to the right cheek for the kiss, something went awry. I don't know if it was my fault - being utterly inexperienced - or hers, but instead of our cheeks touching, it was almost the corners of our mouths that touched. Either way, we got way too close to actually giving each other a real kiss. After she left, I told Lauren about it and of course blamed it on her teacher trying to get some American action. After all, she was young and pretty cute.

As I've said before, this is done as an introduction between a girl and a guy or two girls. I'm not really sure of the etiquette between two guys being introduced. But, to save myself from the possibility of kissing another guy, whenever I am introduced to someone new I immediately stick out my hand to shake.

Just Our Luck

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Well, after last week's disappointment at the soccer game being canceled, we decided to try it again. So last night, we made the trek back out to the stadium to try and catch the last home game before I have to leave to come home in three weeks. Take a wild guess. That's right kids, the game was canceled AGAIN!!!!!!! What the hell? Once I can understand, but twice? We got off the bus and were looking stunned at the completely blacked-out stadium. Some drunk Frenchie saw our confusion and slurred something at us and laughed hysterically as he was walking by. I can only speculate that he said "the game was canceled you silly American jackasses." We were pissed.

Wide Open

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We went to Lauren's bank today because she had to deposit two checks. The bank is right in the middle of the city. In the entryway to the bank, there was a guy just standing there. As we walked by him, my nose detected something that seemed a bit off. I asked Lauren "Does it smell like weed to you?" She agreed, and I looked back at the dude. Sure enough, he was smoking a joint in front of the bank in the middle of the day in the crowded city. Crazy Frenchies.

Football

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Saturday morning Stephanie, one of Lauren's friends from UT who is doing the same thing she is, came to visit. We had planned to go to a soccer match that night. I found out that Grenoble had a team, so I wanted to check it out. We took the bus out to the stadium only to find a note tacked to the ticket office that said the match had been canceled.

We had nothing to do, and Lauren's roommates were having a vegetarian potluck dinner for like 15 of their friends. So, we didn't want to go back to the apartment. We walked to the movie theater, but all of the movies had already started. We ended up walking around the city for like two hours. Then we went to a bar and sat for about an hour. When we left, Lauren stole the Heineken glass I was using. Nice.

So, we ended up back at the apartment around 10:30 and all of the people we didn't know were still here, so we retreated to the room and watched 'Napoleon Dynamite' on Lauren's computer.

One hell of a night.

The Most Delicious Food in France

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As I've said before, the food here in France isn't that great. Some things are good, they have some pretty good cheeses, but on the most part the food is sketchy. There is, however, an exception to this rule. To be fair though, the food to which I'm referring isn't even French in origin, it's Turkish. Anyway, they have a lot of ethnic sandwich stores that sell Kebabs. I tried one the last time I was in France and remember it being pretty good. So, I wanted to try one again to see if my memory was accurate. Well, I have to say that they are the most tantalizing food in all of Europe. Let me describe what a Kebab is. It's comprised of a pocket of bread, similar to a pita, but a different type of bread, with lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and shredded spiced lamb. I know what you're thinking: Lamb? Yes, lamb. It is wonderful! I've eaten three this week alone. I can't get enough. It's like a drug. If you ever visit France (I don't know if they have them in other countries) then you need to try one out.