Degustation of the French Nation

I have gotten so used to French daily life. The concept of my current environment has become so ordinary to me. It's a little bit strange. I don't think that I would have thought when I was 10 or 12... or 18 that a trip to Paris would be considered just a little trip. If I shell out 35-40euro I can be in Paris in 90 minutes. One of my old housemates lives there now. I'm gonna be taking a trip probably at the end of the month to visit. I'm really looking forward to going back. For a city with so much hype, Paris really lives up to it. And I've barely seen it yet.

I went to Nantes last week. I could see myself living there for a while. I could see myself living in France for a while actually It's a little more expensive than I am used to. Everything is either a bit more expensive or the same price... but in euro. I think one of the only exceptions is booze, certain kinds anyway. You can get decent wine for 2 euro, good wine for 4 or 5 euro and amazing wine around 8 and up. I've not done much wine purchasing in the states, but I feel pretty confident that I'm right on this. Buying clothes in France is a lesson in price inflation. They don't do sales as often as Americans like to and when they do, it's not too much to get excited about, unless you do some hunting. One of the stores in this mall is having a sold right now... 2 pairs of jeans for 70euro?!?! I could go to Paris, eat a nice meal, see a movie and buy a scarf (or comparable accessory) for that price! So on sale, these jeans are still over 50 bucks each. Silly frenchies!

I've gotten myself mixed in French habitudes. For example as soon as I get done with this, I'm gonna buy myself a baguette and prolly some cheese. (I am runnin low on Brie) I've also developed a taste for red wine (with the help of my host family) Sometimes when I'm walking home and I see snails on a pathway near my house, I think to myself... I've eaten your friends. And I like it. So mostly France has affected me where it counts, where food is concerned. French cuisine is so adventurous. I don't remember the last time I ate something that required me to remove it's head... before biting in. And all this fancy unpasteurized cheese! The french have a very different view of how dairy should exist in your life. They say the smellier the better, an dI have learned how right they are. And terrine and pate! I'm not a big fois gras fan, but if the US caught on to this spreaddable meat thing, sandwich making would get so much faster... perhaps.
I cannot begin to imagine the kinds of withdrawals to come when I can't get my hands on camembert, or a cheap baguette, or a 750g jar of delicious hazelnut spread. Oh man, europe has only inflated my addiction to the good stuff.

There are some things I'll be happy to go back to though. Like cheap deli meat. A life outside the boundaries of the euro. A return to real deodorant. (Only once have I encountered real French BO, but once was quite enough!) Good music. (France likes to play a lotta random spanish or english songs and occasionally makes its own music. About 12% of the time, the french stuff is pretty good. About 80% of the time, it crazy dance music. Though the two are not mutally exclusive, I have not yet come across a good french dance song.)

Ok my tummy's grumbling, which is my cue to go get myself some pain.
Peace