Bonjour! 

I have been in Paris for about a week, attending a four week program for high school students.  I am studying French culture and art history.  The school will turn back into a girls boarding school in the winter, but right now it is filled with many Americans and students from other countries such as England, Mexico, and Brazil.   Some of the girls in my program live in France and are taking classes to improve their English. My culture course is one of the courses taught entirely in French by a French resident.  My art history teacher works at the Louvre during the school year.  

    
As I discover the city with my friends and teachers, I have been able to observe many Parisians and notice differences in their approach to life compared to Americans.  As my history teacher would say, “America is a beautiful country.”  I love the USA, but I'd like to share with you some really positive things I've noticed about the French way of life. 

The French people seem a lot more relaxed, acting as though they have all the time in the world. I witnessed a few that seemed to enjoy sitting outside of a bistro and staring at passersby for hours.  Additionally, I see lots of families, couples and individuals relaxing in the Luxembourg Gardens located near my school.   In America we are always in a rush... finding a taxi, getting to an appointment, or running late for school.  

Unlike America, they also don't seem to mind spending time alone.  I see many people eating by themselves. In America when we go out to a restaurant, we are interested in our own conversation and only with the other people at our table. We don’t care who else is in the same room with us.   Most Americans have a constant need to not be alone.  When we go out to a restaurant, we must go with at least one friend because we fear others thinking we are lonely or have no one to hang out with.

Besides some social differences, French people enjoy great cuisine and make eating, well, an art.   Although my eating habits have changed, I have discovered new delicacies. For example, I eat a lot of bread for breakfast since I've been here because it's fresh and delicious like most of the food.  What I buy for lunch at a simple crepe stand or fruit stand is just as good as any fine restaurant back in the States. To satisfy my ‘sweet tooth’ there is a gelato stand in close proximity to my school. Even though the line is always long, I couldn't resist going there three days out of the last seven as their gelato is more addicting than my favorite Hagen Daz ice cream.   

Although the French are known for their deserts, they do have a healthy approach to eating.   They enjoy their food and don't seem to be nervous about getting fat from eating one ice cream or a slice of bread.  Oddly, I have not seen one gym, but every French person I have seen looks slim and fit. What then is their secret to fitness?  Walking!  I have walked or taken a metro everywhere I have gone and, although I now have some calluses on my feet that I didn't have before, I feel I am staying fit without using a gym membership to run thirty minutes on the treadmill.  In addition to walking I see French men and women all over Paris enjoying running, but they don’t have to display huge gaping arm muscles or a six pack to prove they are in great physical shape.  This gives me reason to believe that by eating well and staying active, but not overeating, it is possible to stay fit and healthy for our whole life.

There is a lot of pressure in America to be skinny. However, I learned so far from stay here that it is also important to eat good food and have reasonable physical activity.  My new attitude is “If dessert comes with it, then it shouldn't be a big deal.” You too should adopt this and remember the French "joie de vivre" and enjoy yourself fully the next time your at a restaurant