Visits and Encounters

Hi again!

Today I promised to tell you about the previous week and describe the people I have met. I added some photos to this update. You will have another post with the pictures of Annecy, because the internet connection isn't working that well at the moment, so I will not even try to add them now. This text will start with the events of the last week. After that I will tell you about the people I have met here. I don't know anybody that well yet, but I have encountered a lot of new faces. Thus, I will only offer for you to read the best encounters and the general way of this country. 

To the East of Lyon

Stairs, Old Lyon

Because I arrived in Lyon a week ago, my intention was to spend the weekend exploring the city. However, things turned. I saw a poster on the university notice board about a trip to Annecy. I was not planning to participate at first, but finally on Friday I went to register for the trip.

So, on Saturday morning I sat in a crowded bus next to a Vietnamese girl on the road to the Alps. We arrived at Annecy at eleven o'clock. Our bus stopped at Lac d'Annecy, or Annecy lake. At the other side of the lake rose the snow-capped mountains, which were reflected in the clear water. Soon we continued our trip with a pleasant-voiced French woman, who was our guide of the day, or at least for the next two hours. She spoke very slowly and clearly, so it was easy to understand her.

During the tour we climbed up to the Château d'Annecy Castle, which had stunning views of the city below. We also went in to the Eglise St-Maurice-church, and visited the Palais de l'île island in the middle of the river Thiou. The building, that was located at the island,  had previously served at the same time as a prison and as a court. That must have been quite convenient, since it didn't take that much time after the judgement to get the the convicted behind the bars.

After the guided tour we went to eat with a multinational group. I was with a couple of Russians and a Bulgarian, a Japanese and a German girl. We had about three hours of free time. The aim was to take a little tour around the city after lunch. Unfortunately everything didn't go as planned. We all decided to take a three course "Formula", or a menu. The restaurant, to which we went, was full of people. So it took a long time to get food, and we spent all our spare time at the restaurant. Luckily the food was good and we managed to get to know each other. But because it took so long time at the restaurant, we could only see the old town of Annecy. The journey back to Lyon went perfectly, because I spent half of the time sleeping. 

Getting to Know Lyon

Place Bellecourt

Today I woke up early in the morning so that I could arrived in time at the Lutheran mass, which was to begin at 10.30am. I arrived at the church in good time and had time to read about the local ceremony    out of the booklet that was  handed to me. I was at the right place at the right time, because just on this particular Sunday there was a lunch served for the parishioners after the Mass. So I got to know the rest of the people at the church, most of whom had grey hair. I spent a lovely afternoon in their company.

In a typical French style the lunch took a long time. I left from the church at 3pm. I decided to kill two birds with one stone and to visit the old town of Lyon on the same trip. This part of the city with its four-floor buildings shrouding the narrow streets, is the number one attraction of Lyon, and not without reason. The area is very attractive, although it is constantly populated by the tourist masses. I popped in the majestic Cathédrale St-Jean: the heart of the old town. The white church had risen to Lyon, already in the 1000-1200 centuries. 

Cathédrale St-Jean

At around six o'clock I went jogging when the dusk was already descending. I ran up the steep slope to the Fourvière Hill. On top of this hill you can find the crown of Lyon, the Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière. This church can be seen already from a distance, so when you are coming to Lyon it is almost impossible not to notice it. However, it took almost a week before I got anywhere near it, and I still didn't dare to go inside the basilica with my jogging clothes on, so I thought I'd save the visit for later. Next to the basilica stands the Eiffel Tower-like miniature. It is the landmark of Lyon and a symbol of secularism. Its peak is the highest point in Lyon, but, unfortunately, the tower is closed for the public.

Getting to Know the People in Lyon

Like I said, I've already met a number of new people, but I do not know anyone very well yet. Luckily I have to spend a surprisingly lot of  time with the locals, even though I thought that it would be harder to get to know them than other exchange students. The French, at least here, have been very friendly and lovely. They are asking a lot of questions, and ask questions that are simple enough, so that I am able to answer. Although I have been here only for a week, I realize that my language skills (or at least my speaking skills) have evolved a lot.

At the beginning of the week, however, it was more difficult, because I did not know anyone yet. Monday's meeting with law students did not help me meet new people, because after the meeting everybody went to their own directions and we didn't exchange any contact information. I felt like I was all alone here in Lyon.

Fortunately there is the internet. I chatted on facebook with my friends and agreed to go to Paris for the last weekend of the month (ie, next weekend) to meet a French friend of mine. At the same time I will meet with my Finnish friend, who is now on an exchange in Paris. Through the internet I also found out that the reformed church had meetings for young adults and students on Tuesday evenings. So I decided to go there.

Before the evening I was on a lecture of the human rights course that I had chosen at the university. The twenty-member group consisted mainly of local students. If it had been a group of Finnish law, no one would probably have said anything to anyone that they didn't already know beforehand. At least not to the new girl sitting alone in the corner. Here everything is quite the opposite. All the local students know each other and come to greet the newcomer. You can ask for help from anybody and you receive an overflowingly helpful advice. For example, when I asked of a student where the hall for my next lecture was located, he didn't just advise me on how to get there, but guided me to the spot.

Viex Lyon, the Old Town

Although I am Lutheran, if you plan to meet young Christians here, you must participate in other church groups' student activities, because Lutheran Church doesn't offer a lot of activities for young people here. "France is a very Catholic country, and Lyon is the cradle of Catholicism in France," as a young man put it at the reformed church's student activities. Tuesday evening went by nicely and I got to practice my French language skills by talking with the locals. First we watched a couple of videoclips and then read a rather difficult French text. After reading the text we discussed the subject. I mean the others were discussing and I was mostly just listening. To be honest I have to admit that I probably didn't understand half of the things they were saying, but it was still really nice to be involved in and listen. I was also invited to come the next time. At the end of the evening a girl took me back to the residence by her car.

On Wednesday I had the day off. I already told earlier, what I did during the day. Because I still felt myself lonely, I decided to go to the evening of another Christian student association, Agape Campus. It is an ecumenical organisation and the purpose is to help young people to grow personally in faith. At the evening there were Christians of different denominations and different nationalities, although the majority of the students were French. The topic of the evening was "What is the difference between the promise given by God and a promise given by the man?" The speaker was a middle-aged man, whose speech was very very clear. I understood the teaching almost entirely.

I also got to know other young people. In particular I talked with a medical student. She hadn't lived all her life in France, though she had lived here for quite some time. She told me that her father did't still speak French that well, but that her mother had learned the language. The girl was really nice and seemed to get along with all the people in the room.

On Thursday's lecture, I finally met another exchange student properly. This Canadian boy didn't know anybody yet that well either. Since I didn't understand his native French accent, ​​we talked with each other in English. Because I didn't understand the lecture that well either, the Canadian promised to send me his notes, which was really nice of him. He was also my first facebook-friend in Lyon.

Later in the evening in the kitchen of our residence I exchanged a few words in French with a sweet Japanese girl. Maybe I will meet her again later and I can talk some more. In addition, I talked in English with a Korean, who studied tourism and administration. He was very pleased that someone spoke with him in English, because he didn't speak French very well, and not that many people here speak English fluently.  It was nice to talk with him in English, because I was able to speak much more easily than in French.

On Saturday on the trip to Annecy I became acquainted with a Vietnamese girl on the  outward journey and with  a Polish girl on the way back. Because these two girls had a lot in common, although they came from so different countries and cultures, I will first tell about their similarities. Both had come to France to learn better the language and were very talkative. They had both lived in France for quite some time and in various different parts of the country. In addition, both were now living in the outskirts of Lyon. The Polish girl gave me lots of advice. She told me, for example, what kind of the oral examinations in France normally are, because we don't normally have those in Finland. The Vietnamese girl told me that she has several younger brothers, who were way longer than she was. It didn't come to me as a great surprise, because the girl herself was perhaps 145cm in hight, thus even far shorter than me!

On the trip I also got to know better a Russian girl, who lives in the same residence with me. I also met her friends, and I went to eat lunch with them. Particularly sympathetic was a German girl, who is from nearby Salzburg and enjoys hiking. She knew a lot of Finnish metal bands, including Nightwish, of course.

Today I went to the Lutheran mass. The most of the people there were more than middle-aged, but they all were really wonderful. At least three people came to me before the mass to explain to me how the things progress during the mass, even though I tried to assure them, that it was almost identical to what I was accustomed to in Finland.After the mass I stayed for a lunch with the rest of the people. We ate a delicious three-course lunch, and I talked briefly with a couple of young persons of almost my own age. At the table, however, I sat next to a couple of the older men. Another one of them spoke very clearly. I talked quite a lot with him. Among other things I told him, that Finland wasn't a neutral area during ​​the Second World War, but  that we fought with the Germans against the Russians.The man also told me about his own colorful background. His father was from Senegal, and his mother was a talented concert pianist. This old lady was also at the lunch. I could still have very well imagined her playing in front of a great audience in a concert hall with her plain, slender figure, long black and grey dress and stylishly gray-hair, which was combed elegantly in a bun.

In the same table with me there was also a lawyer, who was probably retired or at least retiring soon, with whom I discussed a bit about the differences between the law education in Finland and France. In addition to me there were also other foreign people in the room, including a Japanese woman with a cute 3-year-old daughter and a Spanish woman, who also was the church treasurer. Moreover, the priest of the church had a German background. He said that he knew one Finnish priest, who is visiting in Lyon from time to time. He took up my e-mail address in order to give it to a Finnish priest.

Old Lyon as seen from the other side of the river

Summa summarum

Oops, I wrote a lot of text! I thank you for your company, if you managed to read the text through. If you didn't and are just reading this summary, I understand very well. Please, feel free to comment or ask about the things I wrote or about something completely different. I also hope that you will tell me, if you have any wishes of what you liked me to tell or to which thing you would like me to focus on my blog. At least one blog post I am going to dedicate to food, I can already promise that to you, but please, feel free to suggest something else as well!

Bienvenue à Lyon

After my first week, which has been filled with things to do, you can finally read my feelings about Lyon. I arrived here last Sunday, and almost the whole week has passed while I have been putting things in order. You see, it takes a surprisingly long time to get through the network of French bureaucracy. I have not yet had time to properly explore the sights of the city, let alone take photos, because the time has passed while running around the city. Today, however, I had a little time to look around. However, I wasn't looking around in Lyon, but in Annecy, which is located near the border of Switzerland and Italy. But more on that later. Today I will write about the feelings I have had during the first week. Tomorrow I will try to tell about the events of the rest of the week and to tell about the people I have met here.

An Avalanche of Red Tape

It was a beautiful and sunny day. I arrived in Lyon between eleven and twelve am. I found my residence Maison Saint-Laurent easily with the help of a map that I had with be. The problem was simply that I could not get in, because nobody came to open when I rang the doorbell. Eventually, the door was opened by an Asian girl who lived in the house and I got inside. After a while a receptionist came also to the lobby, but she didn't have any information that I was to come to the residence that day. Because of an error that had been made at the office, I wasn't expected to arrive before the next day. However, in the end everything was arranged and I got a flat already on a Sunday. Except the keys, which I only got the next day.

Monday morning began with a tour at the residence. Pleasant surprise was that bedsheets were on the house, as well as a kettle and a saucepan, though I had to pay a deposit for the last two. During the tour it was also checked that everything worked in my flat. One of the light bulbs had died, so the receptionist promised that it would be replaced. So far, that has not happened. Knowing the speed of the French culture, I'll wait for a week and if it has not been changed by that time, I'm going to ask again.

In addition to that I had already paid for a security deposit and a guaranty, sent to the residence the inscription papers of my new university, a copy of my passport, a confirmation that I accepted the house rules, and a couple of other housing-related papers, I was told that I had to get an insurance for my flat, and bring a paper that would prove that I had chosen courses of the university. I also needed to sign the house rules again. Course selection paper was fortunately easy to obtain from the university, but home insurance caused more headaches. Since I did not want to open a bank account in France, I was sent to the office of Swiss Life branch. So I marched to office on Tuesday. There I was told that they did not do this type of insurance contracts. However, I got a new address and I went there on Wednesday at 12:30 pm. Tip: if you go to France, do not even try to go to any office at between 12.30 to 13.30 pm. They are not open. "Siesta and Fiesta," as the Spanish put it, is also known here.

Because I didn't get in immediately, I made a little tour around. I saw universities Lyon 1 and Lyon 2 and some other buildings. In that area there wasn't that much other things to see. I returned to the insurance office after an hour, and luckily I obtained the insurance.

At School

On Monday afternoon I had an info session, that our coordinators had organised for the international law students at my new university, Université Catholique de Lyon. Apart from myself, there were new students  from Australia, Austria, and Canada. They had also come to Lyon only for the second semester. In addition, there were also Spanish students, but they had arrived at Lyon already in the autumn.

Everybody seemed to know someone else at the reunion. In other words somebody from their own country. Only me and a Canadian boy had come alone. At the session I also got my timetable. I got rid of a couple of courses immediately, because they overlapped with other courses. I think I will have enough to do already with the remaining courses.

At the university I also had to take care of several things. Fortunately the coordinators are really friendly. However, the things are not always that organized. They are handled at their own pace, if ever. Compared to the exchange in Britain, you get the feeling that you are patronised a lot more, but in the end you have to do everything by yourself anyways. In Britain things were really well organized, but it didn't feel like paternalism. People here are really sympathetic (if you speak French) guide you to the right place (if you speak French) and tell you what to do (again, if you speak French).

Through small difficulties and by speaking poor French I managed to obtain my student card and got to know local student restaurants. In addition, I began my law studies in French. Courses on human rights went fairly well, although the class was mostly populated by local students, because the professors used a relatively understandable language and spoke rather slowly. I went to introduce myself to them, as the coordinator had emphasised that it was absolutely necessary. Because I'm here only for a short exchange, I agreed with the other professor that I will go next week to agree on the special arrangements for my evaluation.

Even though the human rights courses seem to be going well, the same can not be said of my commercial law course. Although the professor spoke slowly, she used such a vocabulary that I can not say that I would have understood even half of what she was saying. Fortunately, the Canadian exchange student, which I have already mentioned, was on the same course. Because he speaks French as his mother tongue, he had no difficulty in understanding the professor. He promised to lend me his notes. So I think that I'm able to gradually start my studies.

First Days: Hiking and Adventures

Salut!

A Park in Grenoble

It's time to update the blog for the first time from in France. Please note, dear readers, that this text was written a couple of days ago at the hostel in Grenoble. Now, I'm already arrived safely at my campus residence in Lyon, though there were small bends along the way. But about those bends you will hear later. This time, you will have to be satisfied with only reading about my holiday in Grenoble.


Let's get to the point. Instead of unnecessary words you will probably want to rather hear what has REALLY happened here. Because normally a lot of things happen while getting to know a new city, I decided to share with you only a few highlights. Because time is money, I tried to save yours by dividing this text into sections, each with their own headlines, so you may read only the part of which you are interested in.

About the Language


I arrived in Grenoble on Wednesday night. I spent the day in aeroplanes and also at the airport in Stockholm. Because nothing special happened at the airport, I will jump directly to Wednesday evening, when I went to the centre of Grenoble by bus from Grenoble-Isère airport. After climbing to the bus I managed to buy my ticket "à Grenoble" and sat on the bench. I sat there satisfied with my success of finding the right bus until I noticed a blue sticker that was attached to the window next to me. It said that the place in which I was sitting was reserved for the persons with a wheelchair. So, during the whole ride I felt guilty about sitting in this place, even though there wasn't even half a wheelchair in the bus. My pain was even prolonged because a Swedish girl, who was in the bus, had forgotten her skis at the airport and we had to go back and get them with the bus still full of people. At least I learned a new word. Wheelchair, "fauteuil roulant" or the rolling chair.

Stunning views of the city

One can learn new words in many ways. I got to know the next novelty as soon as I arrived at the hostel after using a tram and my own feet. I asked of the nice hostel receptionist about hiking tracks in Grenoble. He told me about the options, and then began to talk about "rockets" with which one could climb up to the mountains even at this time of the year. The curious look on my face revealed very quickly that I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. So he asked me if I knew what "raquettes' s are. When I replied that I did not know, he pointed at his feet and told me that one could walk on the snow with them. So he was talking about snowshoes!

Although I have learned new words, speaking the French language still causes great pain and sometimes even irritation. Speaking is slow and clumsy, and pronunciation horrible. I have to also ask people to repeat the phrases, simply because I do not understand. "Quoi?" (What?) Is my favorite word. In order to avoid repetition I also use the word "comment?" (How?) Still, there has also been some encouraging encounters. In he first evening there were two German girls at my hostel room, who had been on an Erasmus exchange somewhere in France. They encouraged me to speak, even if it is difficult, and said that in the beginning, they hadn't got anything out of their mouths. Now they spoke French very well. With the native French speakers it is more difficult to talk, because they speak so quickly, but I guess that will also get easier through time.

About the City

Näkymä hostellin ikkunast

A French woman, who spent one night in the same hostel room with me said that Grenoble is quite similar to other French cities. There is nothing interesting out there. I venture to disagree, although I have to admit that I don't have a strong local knowledge. Still I think that the city of Grenoble, surrounded by mountains, contains a huge beauty and charm. This is confirmed by the very fact that one can see the mountains just by looking out of the hostel room window. Downtown is really flat, just like a pancake. The mountains, however, create a great setting and make the city unique.

A local education centre for future lawyers

Yesterday I was circling all day long in the center of Grenoble. I went to the tourist office to get a route map for the city's main attractions. However, I added to the route a few loops of my own. The centre is traditionally European with its narrow streets and squares that can't be accessed by cars. During summer days I could have rested my feet in one of the many parks, but the weather took its toll, since it's not that tempting to sit on a bench on a cold winter's day. Instead, I sat down for a moment in a couple of stunning churches in order to warm up my limbs.


Perhaps the biggest attraction in the city, the cable car, was unfortunately closed. So there was nothing else to be done than to climb on foot to the Bastille fortress, the ruins of which stand above Grenoble, at the altitude of about half a kilometre. At la Bastille one has a spectacular view of the city and the mountains. Definitely a place worth visiting.


The opportunities for shopping at the city centre are reasonable. However, the shops are all around the centre, so it may take some time, if one wants to find some particular boutique. There are some bigger shopping centers on the outskirts of the city. I didn't go to any of those, so I don't know whether they were any good.

About Hiking

Small obstacles along the way

Since one could see the most important parts of the centre in one day, today I decided to go hiking. Although the man at the hostel's reception had recommended the use of snowshoes, I decided to survive without them, because I don't have these shoes even in Finland. Neither did I want to rent them now while in Grenoble. So I decided to stay on my hiking trip below the snow line.

Beautiful landscape along the way

There were a lot of route options. The day before I I had acquired a map from the tourist office and visited the "Maison de Montagne", or mountain-guiding center to ask for a suitable route. I had asked for a route that would take me about five hours. I started hiking and about half an hour later I had already walked a quarter of the route recommended for me. The mountain guide clearly didn't believe in my capacity or skills. Because I didn't want to shorten my hike to two hours, I designed a new route, which was easy with the map I had received.

Reitit oli merkitty hyvin maastoon

The original route recommended by the mountain guide rose to only about 500 meters, but I added a 937 metre high peak to my own hike and climbed up there. After I had come down I continued my journey through cute small villages. Although the route wasn't that scenic, because it was quite foggy everywhere, at least I did a great deal of sports during the day!  

About the Culture

Näkymä Bastillelta

If you have ever wondered why the French are so slim, even though the country is known for its astonishing food, I finally found the answer. This applies at least to Grenoble. The people here do amazingly lot of sports. While climbing up to the Bastille fortress there were tens of men and women running past in their sports outfits. And you must believe me, when I say that the route certainly wasn't the easiest in the world, because the whole way the rise was quite steep. If something keeps you in shape and burns your extra calories, then it's that hill. But this is not enough. For when I was coming down the stairs I saw a man who was walking up the stairs with wood (or metal) stilts. An incredible performance.

Vesi virtaa vuorilta

Of course I have to also write about the food. It is so sweet. One just can't get bored with the self-made products of the boulangerie-bakeries. Yesterday I ate a lemon pie. Tomorrow I will have a tarte tatin for a dessert and the day after ... Fortunately I have a long time to taste all the sweet products,, so no need to eat them all at once. Savoury dishes are of course a different matter. One can eat them more without a worry. Because this is such a broad subject, I will leave it to be better dealt with in the future. I will probably post an own blog text of this topic, when I'm more familiar with the local selection of food.

Finally, I will still introduce you to one of the most important characters of the French. It is the pride of their own language. This can be seen for example in the fact that all movies are duped French. Today I went to the cinema to see the movie Mission Impossible 4. It was in French, of course. It was funny to watch Tom Cruise speaking French, the little that I understood the language. Even more amusing, however, was to listen to our own son, Samuli Edelmann*, talking in French. This movie jumped immediately to the list, "the films I have to watch in their original version, when I get back to Finland." For your information too, the movie was good. Samuli had an important role to play and he acted very well! So I really recommend that you will go and watch the movie.

*For those who don't know, Samuli Edelmann is a Finnish actor slash singer, and very famous in his own country. I hope that a role in Mission Impossible will be his breakthrough and that he will be seen also in other Hollywood movies in the future.