Ink

   

  Getting a tattoo in Paris was always part of the plan.  In my opinion, there is no better way to memorialize my time in Paris than to get a tattoo.  It almost acts as a mnemonic device because I am always reminded of the wonderful times I had in Paris when I look at it in the mirror.  

     You may be asking why I got an Oak Tree tattooed on my person when I was in Paris.  Well, the Oak Tree means a lot to me because it's similar to the Oaklandish Tree, which is the logo for my hometown.  All of my tattoos have sentimental meaning behind them, so I wanted to make sure the tattoo I got in Paris represented something close to my heart.  Originally I wanted to have this piece done in Oakland but when I got to Paris, I realized that it would mean so much more if I got it in Paris.  By getting this tree, I am connecting my home (Oakland) and my home away from home (Paris).  

    The tree symbolizes other things too: courage, growth, life, and strength--all traits and values I appreciate.  In addition to being totally sexy, this piece of artwork shows other people where I'm from and what I believe in.  

"The Look"

     In Sartre's ontological work Being in Nothingness, he tackles existentialism: the notion that there's a nauseousness that goes along with existence that drives us to create meaning in our lives.  If you don't have any meaning in your life, there's no point, so you might as well kill yourself. We are incomplete without meaning, without value or purpose.  By restoring meaning in life, order is returned to the world that's plagued by the "nothingness" that takes over.  Compared to the other creatures that crawl on the earth, humans have this incredible ability to make decisions and manipulate their fate.  The decisions we make in the present have a great impact on what happens to us in the future.  People are aware of this, therefore, they  have to be for themselves throughout their existence in order to create meaning in life.  

     

     All humans are a type of being, but it is no secret that some people are more successful than others, that's just the reality of our society.  More often than not, however, those people who are successful are making a spectacle of themselves; thus, they are no longer being for them, but are being for others.  What stems from this spectacle, is something Sartre calls the Look.  According to Sartre, the Look is very detrimental to one's state of being.  The Look prevents one from being for oneself because they are too busy being for others.  This results in being objectified by others who see you as a spectacle.

     But is being objectified really that bad? Sartre would give a resounding YES if he was asked that question.  The Look definitely has consequences because there is a tension between what one thinks to be true about oneself and what the look has reduced oneself to be.  This tension tricks people into thinking they have meaning and purpose when they really don't; if one creates all of one's meaning with the expense of others, the "meaning" one has attained isn't genuine. 

la nuit des musées

For once, I did the thing that I decide to do. On May 16th, I actually went to the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle on the museum night. Thanks to my Parisian friend who told me about this event. I went there and waited for an hour to get in. An hour waiting is definitely worth the  waiting though. The museum was founded in 1793 during the French revolution.

So basically it is the museums and cultural institutions remain open late into the night. And it is free for people to visit the place on that night. 

The first La nuit des musees was took place in Berlin 1997. The concept has been very well received, and the number of participating institutions and exhibitions has risen dramatically since then. The number has risen to 125 with over 200000 people taking part in 2007.

Voltarie Candide

In Voltaire's Candide, he said "for as all things have been created for some end, they must necessarily be created for the best end. Observe, for instance, the nose is formed for spectacles, therefore we wear spectacle. The legs are visibly designed for stockings, accordingly we wear stockings. "

I think it is so true that there always a reason for things that exists on the earth. But what are the reasons though? Does the reason of those weaker animals being on the earth is to be eaten by the stronger ones?

People eat meat, vegetables for survival.  People would argue that they don't need to eat meat to survive, though they eat vegetable. So the reason for vegetables to be on the earth is to be eaten by people? If not so, why would we eat vegetables?

It seems to be a universal rule that the stronger creatures are going to destroy the weaker ones. Then what are the reasons for then even to be on the earth at the first place?

An Unexpected French Experience in Washington D.C.

One thing I miss about being in Paris is listening in on people’s conversations. Or should I say attempting to listen. While that sounds rude and intrusive at first glance it was in fact a way to challenge myself on a daily basis. On the metro, on my mile walk to the Alliance, at the dinner table, at the museums; everywhere I went I was challenged to comprehend what was happening around me. I do admit that it was often frustrating, but it was also rewarding and exciting when I picked up on a word here and there. 

Reflecting on my time in Paris, I can recall one time in which I felt very overwhelmed with the French language. My host family was hosting a dinner for their close friends about two or three weeks into my stay with them. They prepared appetizers as well as four or five other courses. They even got out the fancy dishes and tablecloth. I remember thinking this dinner would never begin as the time was already well past 9:00. I grew even more starving as I awaited for the arrival of their friends. 

They finally arrived, a husband and wife with their son, and we began the meal. This was a time in which French was more frustrating than rewarding. I say that because the meal lasted until past midnight and there were 6 people speaking french and sometimes in multiple conversations. While I enjoyed the challenge, it was mentally exhausting trying to follow all of these conversations. However, I did enjoy just being a part of the meal and watching the rest of them interact with each other. I truly felt immersed in the French language and culture that night as I was able to see these families talk, laugh and enjoy the presence of one another.

The reason that I brought the topic of listening in on french conversations up is because of an experience I had about a week ago. While on my short trip to Virginia to visit my brother, we took a day trip to Washington D.C. After we did all the touristy things we went to dinner at the popular Shake Shack restaurant. During the course of dinner, I overheard a french conversation at the table next to ours. After our meal I actually ended up talking in french to one of the women from the table. My mom was trying to make conversation with this woman and she eventually said that she couldn’t understand English very well. I then proceeded to translate for my mom and speak to this woman. She was from Africa but currently resided in Switzerland with her family. She was in America to drop two of her daughters off at an international camp. We talked for about 20 minutes about various things such as my time in Paris and her family. She also told me how she thinks French is actually a tougher language to learn than English and how her daughters were having a hard time with writing in French. It was a very rewarding and refreshing experience. I hope to have more encounters like this so that I can continue to improve my french speaking abilities!

Leaving my mark on the Pompidou

     The Pompidou is full of amazing artwork from top to bottom; some questionable, some beautiful, and some that you can't even understand.  So when Bob told us to choose one piece of artwork for our chronique that week, I had no clue which one to choose.  According to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, art is "something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful or that expresses important ideas or feelings."  Can one really put a definition on art though?  More often than not, when something is assigned a label there are certain restrictions and limitations that go along with it.  For that reason, art can't be defined as being one thing, which is exactly what is evident at the Pompidou. 

     While there were many pieces that caught my eye at the Pompidou, only one moved me like no other.  It's called "Cafe Little Boy" by Jean-Luc Vilmouth.  What makes this piece so spectacular is the heart-warming story behind it. Upon doing some background research on the piece, I discovered that Vilmouth got his inspiration for the piece from the bombing of Hiroshima.  The bomb was nicknamed, "Little Boy," and it completely destroyed Fukoromachi, a primary school in Hiroshima.  All that remained after the bomb was a single wall, on which the survivors wrote messages to their beloved families and friends who were taken by the bomb. 

     Vilmouth took that concept and transformed it into a bitter-sweet art installation in the Pompidou.  Today, people can leave their own colorful message or drawing on the walls.  As you can see from the pictures, the walls are completely covered with drawings to the point where it resembles a colorful, fluffy cloud.  To the left, you can see my drawing of a tree that I used to leave my semi-permanent mark on the Pompidou.  On the wall to the left, there's a numberless clock that has a continuous second hand, but minute and hour hands that remain on the time the bomb fell.  This is a detail most people overlook because, unfortunately, the majority of the museum's visitors don't know the full story behind the piece.  

     This is sad because people can't fully understand the loss and beauty that goes along with it.  Had I not done my research, I would have just assumed that this was one of those typical interactive art pieces one finds in contemporary museums.  However, "Cafe Little Boy" is clearly much more than that. 

The Arcades Project

Walter Benjamin’s “The Arcades Project” describes the arcades, covered passageways, that were popping up everywhere throughout Paris at the beginning of the 1800s. 300 arcades used to be present in Paris, now there are only 30 in existence in the first and second arrondissements. Benjamin worked on “The Arcades Project” for a long span of time, from 1927-1940, and was never actually completed. The arcades were filled with shops, restaurants and such; they symbolized a shift into a society fixated on consuming products. 

Benjamin writes about these arcades, long after most of them were destroyed through the reconstruction of the city. He wrote about them long after their height of popularity and use largely to revisit a time of the past. He uses the image and feelings fixated to one wandering the arcades in the 19th century in order to inspire and motivate the 20th century. A book review in The New York Times titled “Art/Architecture; The Passages of Paris And of Benjamin's Mind” describes this: “For Benjamin, the 20th century is trapped inside the previous century's dream. By interpreting the dream, he hopes to rouse his contemporaries from their collective slumber. The arcade is where the dream was manufactured. Like the factories that produced the wares sold there, the arcade was an industrial machine. It relied on display, advertising, newspapers and the other new technologies of consumer manipulation.” 

The arcades were a safe haven for flâneurs; they were able to wander through the arcades. It was an escape mechanism, one could go to the arcades and use that time to think and dream. The 20th century was filled with WWI, the Great Depression, WWII and other crises. Perhaps Benjamin wanted to revitalize the 20th century by reminding society of a time where dreams were abundant; a way to enlighten the people of his time. 

An excerpt from “The Arcades Project:”

“Thus appear the arcades-first entry in the field of iron construction; thus appear the world exhibitions, whose link to the entertainment industry is significant. Also included in this order of phenomena is the experience of the flâneur, who abandons himself to the phantasmagorias of the marketplace. Corresponding to these phantasmagorias of the market, where people appear only as types, are the phantasmagorias of the interior, which are constituted by man's imperious need to leave the imprint of his private individual existence on the rooms he inhabits. As for the phantasmagoria of civilization itself, it found its champion in Haussmann and its manifest expression in his transformations of Paris.”

We can still use Benjamin’s words that described this dreamlike state of the 19th century to inspire those in the 21 century. Even though the arcades are few today, we can still live like the flâneurs who frequented them. Are there places in Paris in which you felt like a flâneur? Conscious of your surroundings and an observer of society? 

Centre Pompidou

Yves Klein

I didn't get why some of the modern arts in Pompidou is so popular, for example, there is this painting with only blue paints on it. It's literally a paint only covered with blue paints.  So after coming back from Pompidou, I did some research on this guy Yves Klein with his blue painting.

Yves Klein was born Nice, he was an important post-war European artist.  He leads the French artistic movement of Nouveau realisme with other artists. Nouveau realisme refers to the new ways of perceiving the real. It was an inspiration to minimal art as well as pop art.

In his exhibition "Proposted Monochrome, Epoca Blu"(Proposition Monochrome; Blue Epoch) had a great success. It featured 11 identical blue canvases, using ultramarine pigment.

In Art market Yves Klein's painting was among the top five sellers at Christie's Post-War and Contemporary Art sale in 2006. He's monochromatic blue painting sold for $4,720,000 and the monochromatic gold sold for $21,000,000. It is crazy that people will buy a blue canvas for that much money. Some times I don't get the art world.

Even I did some researches for art, I still don't fully understand how art world works. I only got one conclusion, which is everyone can be an artist, you just need to be born at the right period.

how to smelling better?

The word perfume came from the Latin Perfumare, meaning "to smoke through". The perfumes were made more than 4000 years ago. They were discovered in an ancient perfumery, people discovered at least 60 stills, mixing bowls, funnels, and perfume bottles. In ancient times people used herbs and spices as well as flowers.

Perfumes were used hide bad body smells, and make people smell attractive. It was important before bathing was a common activity. It was said that Louis XIV only took 3 baths in his life. So they need to use lots of perfume to cover the bad smells. It was at the time of the Renaissance that perfumes became particularly  popular in Europe, and it is Catherine de Medicis, who is introduced a fashion for perfumes into France.

There is a list of common terms of perfume classification. Parfum, which has 20% of perfume oil. Usually it will last about 8 hours a day. Eau de Parfum, typically it has 10%~15% of perfume oil, usually it last 4 hours. Eau de Toilette, 5%~10% of perfume oil. Eau de Cologne is around 5% of perfume oil. When you are trying to buy perfume, this is one of the most important things. Depends on how long you want your perfume last. If you want to get a perfume last for a long time, the sales tell you the perfume you want will last all day, don't ever believe that. Only parfum could last really long time, and they usually only sell it in the perfume factory.

Before you buy a perfume, TRY it on you. Perfume will smell different on everyone, depends on the skin type. And it will also smell different from paper. So TRY it on, then walk around for about 20 minutes. If you still like the smell then buy it. Because when you put it right on you, it is the head notes. It will evaporate quickly, then you will smell the middle notes. It compounds main body of a perfume. And the base note, it key notes of how long the perfume will last. It will also influence the top and middle notes.

Next time when you buy perfume, figure out which type the perfume is. And TRY it on before you buy it.

Coulée verte René-Dumont

On my first day of school in Paris my host mom walked with me to the metro at Gare de Lyon, pointing out some of the highlights of my new neighborhood along the way. As we walked under a stone and brick archway she pointed out that there was a beautiful walking path that had been constructed on an old railway line. I had heard of the walkway, and in learning it was just a short walk down the street from my apartment I made it my goal to visit it as soon as I had the chance.

A few weeks into the trip the weather was finally nice, the flowers were blooming, and we had an afternoon off. That day I went home early, grabbed a book to read, and explored the elevated path. I took the time to take pictures of the scenery (pictured below) and got to enjoy the beautiful day reading my book (Paris in Love by: Eloisa James—A memoir composed of anecdotes about romance novelist Eloisa James’s year in Paris with her husband and two children.) Being a few stories above the busy Parisian streets felt like a retreat, yet at the same time I felt immersed in the Parisian way of life. There were young adults picnicking and drinking champagne with their friends, couples conversing on park benches, and runners getting in their daily bit of exercise.

Throughout the rest of my time in Paris I made several trips to the elevated walkway, and I walked under it nearly everyday. Below the arches there are a number of businesses including cafes, art galleries, and shops. The area is a tranquil escape in the 12^th arrondissement that became a source of comfort and relaxation during my stay, and I would recommend a walk on Coulée verte René-Dumont to anyone looking for a little reprieve from the sounds and crowds of the city.

Le Pont

One of my favorite bridge in Pairs, is Pont Alexandre III. It is a bridge built between 1896 and 1900.  It is named after Tsar Alexander III, who had concluded the Franco Russian Alliance in 1892. I tis part of the preparation works for the Universal Exhibition World's Fair of 1900, alone with the Grand Palais and Petit Palais. I can not only see the Grand Palais, Petit Palais, the Invalide, but also the Effel Tower.

There are four gold sculptures at the corner of the bridge. On the right side of the Seine , there are the " Fame of the Sciences" and the "Fame of the Arts".  On the other side, there is the "Fame of Commerce" and the "Fame of Industry". At the center of the bridge, there is a sculpture Nymphs.  The "Nymphs of the Seine" has a relief of the arms of France, and faces the "Nymphs of the Neva" with the arms of Imperial Russia.

The bridge connects the Invalides and Champs-Elysees. After seeing all the military stuff from the Invalides, walking through the park and standing on the bridge,  looking around the view around the bridge, it brings peace.

I think it's the magic of this city. No matter where I go, it can always clams me down.

Rousseau: Second Discourse

This piece by Rousseau was originally written for an essay competition, the question for which was "What is the origin of inequality among men, and is it authorized by the natural law?"

As you probably remember, we had quite the debate about this piece during class at Shila's house. In this discourse, Rousseau gives the title of founder of society to the first person who claimed some property as their own. Rousseau says it was this person, who played on the gullibility of people, who first gave society some sort of structure.

Rousseau points out the basic needs of humans- food, sleep, sex, some sort of shelter; all of these needs are solely for self- preservation. He then begins to explain that the root of change was man fighting for self preservation, needing to feel superior in order to survive. Survival was different in different circumstances, and people who needed similar things began to group together, in which case a very skeletal language system would have been made. In groups, human progression increased rapidly: tools, villages, and languages were made. This knowledge allowed for the idea of property to further develop with homes and families. Sex roles developed as man struggled to become superior and continue to flourish.

With all of these changes, Rousseau states that emotions, specifically love and jealousy developed which lead to the creation of the idea of inequality.

One of the statements near the end of this discourse says something along the lines of, if every man were applying themselves to only one man tasks then all men would be free and healthy. He says that is is only the need of help from others that oppression developed.

When Rousseau is stating all of this, I think that he means it in a much larger scale. Obviously, now, society can not go back to its original ways as cavemen, but we can all learn to mind our own business. If people didn't mingle around and just worried about themselves then many oppression problems today would not exist (cough marriage equality and racism and religious oppression and sexism cough cough cough). This being said, if people only worried about themselves then there would not be any charity or anything to help those in need.
What would make for a better world? One where everyone is on their own but modern oppression wasn't as prominent, or a world where no one helped each other out? I know its not that simple, but if it was... would you rather...?

Bordeaux

My birthday trip, Yeah!! I went to Bordeaux two days after my birthday! One day I learnt on this trip is that BOOK TICKETS ADVANCE. Since I wasn't sure whether we got that weekend free, I bought my ticket at the last minute, most of the times are not available anymore, and the rest tickets are extremely expensive compare to others.

After 5 hours train ride, the beautiful city Bordeaux is right in front of me. Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in southwestern of France. There are nicknames for the city "La perle d'Aquitaine" means the pearl of Aquitaine and "La Belle Endormie" Sleeping Beauty. Because the old city had black walls due to pollution. But now it is renovated.

Bordeaux is known for their wine. It is home to the world's main wine fair. It has been produced in the region since the 8th century. I remembered some of my friends told me that any wine you had in Bordeaux is good. I thought he was just joking, after went to Bordeaux I believed what he said now.

I stayed in Bordeaux for two days. It is a different city from Pairs. The buildings usually have three floors and they are not fully washed, so there are lots of mix color in Bordeaux; Also comparing to Paris, Bordeaux is less busier. Walking along the river on Sunday is a pleasure. There aren't too much to see in downtown Bordeaux, for next stay it will be better to drive, so that I will be able to visit all the wine chateau, because there are lots more going out outside of downtown Bordeaux.

I got amazing pictures, great good and awesome wine in Bordeaux. Really enjoyed my stay there.

Michel de Carteau: Walking in the City

I think that Michel de Certeau absolutely nails the introduction to his essay "Walking in the City." It states that in his essay, "he presents a theory of the city, or rather and ideal for the city...against ideas of urban planners and managers." In order to do this, Michel de Carteau walks through the city. WALKS. He decides that the most important thing was to see the city as it was, to see what it truly needs, and to look at the city, really look at it, rather than giving a glance over. de Carteau makes a point to separate the "everyday" from the "official."

I believe that this is a monumental statement in and of itself. While looking at cultural differences in general; people in Paris take note to things in much greater detail. They care about the little things. For example, in the US, girls will leave the house in yoga pants and a hoodie with perfect makeup. In Paris, people always had exquisite fashion sense, even if it was a plain blouse, they dressed it up with a fancy necklace.

They also just recognize small things. While a boy in the states might call me "hot", "sexy", or if they are really trying, "beautiful," boys in Paris would comment on my eyes, or freckles. Something specific that is at least a little bit more unique.

The people watching habits in general point out how much more people are appreciated in Paris. I think that this is a powerful message that people (everyday or official) need to be reminded of sometimes.

Those Historical Oar Things

I guess that is the best description I currently have for these these:

I guess they are called "Panneau Historie de Paris" Or "History of Paris Panels," so not really much more unique.
They are actually meant to look like a ship's paddle. This was not to mark Paris as a river founded city, but to give homage to the Latin motto of Paris "Fluctant nec mergitur" which translates to "battered by the waves, but never capsized." I think that this is extremely symbolic of the city. History has repainted Paris time and time again, and the city paddles on.

As we all know, these paddles are placed around the city near historical monuments. They were ordered by Jacques Chirac (the then current mayor) made 767 paddles in 1992,  all surrounding historical monuments.

I thought that after 23 years the paddles look really good, but apparently they want to switch them out for "interactive kiosks"

Rue de Ravioli, I mean Rivoli

It became somewhat of a joke between us, calling Rue de Rivoli Rue de Ravioli. It always seemed that wherever we were, we were crossing this street. It seemed pretty important, so I decided to look it up.

Like many things in Paris, Napoleon is the root of the cause. Rue de Rivoli was named after Napoleon's victory against the Austrians at *surprise* the battle of Rivoli which was fought in January 1797.

Not only does this street commemorate a historic battle, but it was the start of some change in Paris' phenotype. The new street cut Paris right down the middle. The street was very wide, which was a first for the city. Furthermore, the street split Paris into two parts- 1 being modern housing, and 2 being historical buildings and monuments.

Many more streets were "born" to connect Rue de Rivoli with other main roads, making it a pivotal part of the city, and explains why we always seemed to be on Rue de Rivoli.

Just for a fun fact- Ravioli got its name in Venice during the 14th century.

Shouldn't that be obvious?

When I returned to my swimming instructor position, many of the children had a lot of questions about where I had been and what I had seen. It made me happy to reminisce about our time in Paris. I can still almost make myself believe that it wasn't real sometimes. One little girl asked me, simply, "why is Paris called Paris?" and I had no answer. So here it is:

Paris was originally founded  in the third century B.C. E. by a group of Celtics called the Parisii. These people lived during the iron age, and collected in Gaul near the Seine. Around the roman era (~52BCE), the Parisii aided against Julius Caesar in the rising of Vercingetorix.
The major city for the Parisii was Oppidum which was located on Lutetia. This later became Fallia Lugdunensis (a Roman provence), and eventually Paris (obviously named after the people).

When I started to think about this, I was really mind blown. So many layers of history can be seen currently in the physical city, but it is difficult to imagine it being influence by people so early back. It seems like almost every leader/"phase" of the city left its own little mark. In my opinion, this is one of the things that makes Paris so incredibly special.

I did indeed read Candide (That rhymes, right?)

Candide is a book first published by the philosopher Voltaire (pen name of François-Marie Arouet) in 1759. Incase you aren't aware, the novel is a satire, revealing the wrongs in the optimistic viewpoint that many people had during this time period. The main character, named Candide, faces many hardships throughout his life, more than truly imaginable.
The novel begins when Candide is exiled for kissing Cunégonde, and he begins traveling the world. Along the way, Candide suffers many horrors, killing, rape, flogging, natural disasters, betrayal, disease, yet he is still told that "this is the best of all possible worlds." 
This idea of "this is the best of all possible worlds" was an idea promoted mostly by Leibniz during this time period. This idea was pushed because the idea of an imperfect God was not something that people during this time period accepted. Ill doing on earth, then, was simply part of God's greater plan. Evil did not exist, only a grand map of how things should be in the end.
Voltaire continually degrades this idea throughout his novel through the ill fates that the optimists (Pangloss, and at the beginning, Candide) face. These hardships do not contribute to the greater good, yet they are still happening.  
Above all of this, the greatest irony for me was that the largest flaw Pangloss had was basing his beliefs solely off of philosophical ideas rather than facts that can be depicted more than once. This point by Voltaire must have been extremely difficult to write as it is necessary to break down this false idea and uncover its false roots while maintaining his own credibility as a philosopher.     
Whatever he did must have worked; Candide definitely stirred the waters and even got itself banned. 

Never Forget

            I haven't done plenty of things since I was born, but I didn't expect to hike over a mountain during the last weeks of the program. That was one of the things that made the trip special. There couldn't be any expectation as to how these trips would've turned out had certain unlucky things not have happened to our group. But, those were just minor inconveniences that were quickly corrected and without incident.

            During the last group trip at Marseilles the air was different around us. With the school quarter winding down to its last days we knew that our time in France was fast approaching it's end. It didn't really feel like it was the very last big thing until we got back to Paris. There couldn't have been a doubt in anyones mind that we were nearing the end.

            Without a shadow of a doubt the Marseilles trip was pretty good. After all I had seen a bunch of what Paris had to offer, but obviously not everything that was possible to see was seen. And being able to go to the very south of France was also pretty good to be able to see and experience a different France than that of the capital, Paris. Marseilles is a quaint little port town that is a popular vacation spot for Parisians looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city and I experienced just why they do so. It really felt like it was summer in May with the incredible heat that caused me to purchase some flip-flops and slather my body in sunscreen. There wasn't anything keeping me from enjoying myself at Marseilles lest my experience be diminished in some way. And I do believe that this experience as a whole has been nothing short of a fantastic time that nobody will easily forget.

Change for the better

            There is something that could be said about those that don't want to do anything. Those individuals probably won't bother with doing everything necessary for the advancement of their own knowledge. This can't be stressed enough with the advent of such technologies that make knowledge more readily accessible such as the internet, but those with access would more often then not, completely disregard that opportunity that would present itself. However, this unfortunate example is only affected by a select few that choose that path of the blissfully ignorant. That couldn't have been more true regarding a certain few and I would have included myself in that description a while ago. Although, thankfully, I have changed for the better. These people are the few that could be flaneurs be it though asking questions and finding answers or observing rather than seeing. By bringing through the concept of consequence of being a "seeing" person rather than being an "observant" person. I've seen this happen more than once and it's not just because I was in one of the biggest tourist cities in the world, but it's anywhere with lots of visitors that look and end up "oohing" and "ahhing" which should not come as a surprise when these are those that do just see and be easily amazed. There is not another thing that could be said about those individuals other than the fact that they can change their situation by themselves if they only would want to. In light of this fact there aren't any others that could complete that requirement by themselves. The only thing left if for the self-realization of them becoming something that they are not, to become something that is entirely unique on it's own. The power of the freedom of choice is immense.   

To Study Philosophy is to Accept Death

            Everybody should to an eventual acceptance of death. After all, death is a completely natural result of life. As life allows beings to exist in this world so too must death exist in order to provide a release from our lifelong feast which makes up our life. It is in this thought that our acceptance of this necessary eventuality must come to pass in the lives of every living person. Whatsoever is seen as unnatural is just nature taking its due course whether or not medicine believes it to be a natural cause or not. When death takes a hold of of person he or she shouldn't be so surprised that death is approaching the door, rather if they had had their full of what life has to offer it's perceived as a "euphoric" or "sweet release" otherwise it's seen in a different manner. If we lived in a world without death it would be catastrophic for everyone that would've lived in it. Without a way for humans to naturally die there would be problems of overpopulation, food shortages, and otherwise general mayhem. The only way to pass on would be to cause yourself to die that of course if something that people wouldn't be too keen on doing.

            Death is an integral part of our lives. As we are born we are given the gift of life and expected to utilize that gift along with its joys and sorrows to the fullest. But, as soon as we are born we are that much closer to dying and returning to where we started as nothing. We become scared of dying and leaving behind everything because we don't know what's next. After death there is the possibility that the afterlife described by the abrahamic religions was correct or it could be that we are reincarnated into a new existent and will only reach nirvana when we complete the final goal that is set for us to achieve. That reality would be amazing if it were the absolute truth. It's more likely that what awaits us after the grasp of death is absolute nothingness. As a person dies so to do many others die as well death is no special thing and as such there is a thing that we must ascertain to be not special. We know that to be the truth after a certain point in our life, but we typically don't give that topic the amount of attention it deserves. Without this attention there isn't a chance for the acceptance of death.

            People have a hard time accepting death when it affects them personally which brings up the question that ask "why did they have to die?" which is kind of silly because everybody has their time to pass on. Nobody can live forever and long for death when they have done everything that they have desired to do. When you begin to examine the questions of death and the reasons behind it you begin to think philosophically minded questions. Then you begin to ask questions you will search for the answers and sometimes never find them. The philosopher tries to make sense of the questions even if they are always fleeting  

Modernity is Incomplete

            Modernity is a finicky subject to talk about as the definition of "modernity" and "modern" has been muddled and thrown about to suit the needs of a particular group of people. In fact the word "modern" should be used to distinguish the present from the pass, from the Latin root "modernus". We would like to be able to differentiate ourselves in the present from the past and although we may reference the past in a positive manner we acknowledge our ever-expanding progress that does not impede in our appreciation of the past and the present. For this purpose I believe that it's important for us to never concede regarding the progress of our our knowledge. To be held back the past is something that humans in the past have done but have never been able to fully control without taking certain characteristics of how the past handled that specific situation and try to mold it to fit into the current times. We should look towards the past in looking to adapt preemptive measures against those mistakes that were made, then. The application of those measures distinguish ourselves from the past and thus used the word "modern" since the early 12th century.

            Taking these main points into account I must stress the importance of the "exhalation of the present" in which we accelerate our own present time in this manner. Living in the present can be a more practical application of what it means to be modern. Otherwise, looking towards the future we may not be so cautious of what is happening right now. But modernity itself does not seem to be a misapplication of the things which make others seem avant-garde, rather it's something solely unique. Sometimes in order to progress in other areas of science you must revolt against the normality of the times in which becoming more modern as one might think. The essence of modernity in this case could be the progress that was achieved and afterwards they might not necessarily be modern anymore. Whenever the people of the current times advance past their own understanding of modernity into something more we might allow ourselves to call that post-modernity. I don't think that we are ever in a post-modern period of science, but that doesn't mean that certain aspects of our lives can be post-modern and others modern.

            We seem to be constantly trying to evolve beyond our definitions of modern and post-modern while simultaneously trying to erase those aspects that make up our culture. That is not to say that which makes up our culture is the sole result of modernity in action. Accepting the modernity while completing our goals of constant innovation and revolution is the necessary ingredient to our long lasting culture. Due to our consistencies with the aspects of modernity we can know exactly how much it takes for modern things to bloom. And as such we are careful of where we are extending our vast modern thinking towards, and rightfully so for if we put forth these ideals and concrete things forwards without much to speak for we cannot say that the project of modernity is anywhere near completion.

Paris, tu me manques...

As I sit here and write this, my dog lays on my lap, he sleeps, he is warm, it's cold today in Brazil because it's winter, yet not even close to Chicago's winter.

My friends from high school are about to come over soon, we'll order a pizza then watch a shitty movie and talk... We won't drink wine, we won't eat fromage or charcuterie... We won't discuss politics, or philosophy, we'll probably gossip, talk about boys, or what items they want to purchase soon.

It's a different life, one that I always felt myself distant from even when I was still 100% Brazilian. Now I barely consider myself that, I'm so different from all of them. Even my host mom in Paris, who has had many Brazilians throughout the years, has said that I'm not Brazilian.

Here I feel that my life has stopped, it's paused because here I have to conform with the culture, with the people, and their lack of interest on the things that I'm interested on, I have to keep my real opinions to myself most of the time, and especially my disgust with some of their actions. I love them, but we have grown apart, I feel like I'm the same, yet I'm not. I think I was always a stranger here, now I have had the opportunity to find myself, I experienced other things, and that did change me a bit, but I'm still the same in many ways, I was always disgusted with too much materialism, or gossip.

In Paris, with my friends, I had different conversations, I was myself, I was busy living, wanting to discover new things, discover what I liked and what I didn't like. Here, it's all too familiar, there's nothing more to discover. I'm bored. I miss Paris everyday.

To distract myself I have decided to read, I've been reading to get away from my reality a bit, I thought that by reading Hemingway's A Moveable Feast, I would be transported back to Paris, but that was not a good thing. I missed it even more, but it did help me cop with what I was feeling. I came across many quotes that talked to me. 
One of them was this one, and it's almost about my life:

“By then I knew that everything good and bad left an emptiness when it stopped. But if it was bad, the emptiness filled up by itself. If it was good you could only fill it by finding something better.” 
― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

I never really understood why when I left Chicago I felt a bit empty, because I knew that wasn't the city I wanted to live in, to me that was the bad, and Paris of course, the good, the difference of course is that I will never be able to fill the emptiness Paris left me with. 

Marseille stories

Oh Marseille...

So different from Paris, yet French nonetheless.

I personally hated Marseille, but it’s because it has nothing to really offer me. I’m not a fan of the beach, I don’t like too much sun, and it didn’t look like a French city at all. It could pass as a city in the north of Brazil or Spain, yet I had a lot of fun there, i went Kayaking, I saw the Calanques, was too scared to die anywhere else that wasn’t Paris, so did not go mountain climbing, but had fun.

I can see why the Parisians hate people from Marseille, I almost agree and I was only there for a few days. I think it’s the sun that might make people a bit weird, in Brazil we have the same fight between two big cities, Sao Paulo and Rio, Rio has too much soon, so people tend to be lazy and more relaxed, they go to the beach too much, while in Sao Paulo people read more, they tend to be more passionate about food, there are many great restaurants and not just sea food.

I can see the parallel between Paris and Marseille.

But what can I say? I’m a Paris kissass...