Yesterday, we visited the headquarters of BNP-Paribas. It is one of the largest banks in all of France, with over 2200 locations and even more branches in Europe and the rest of the world. We took a tour of some of the offices and saw where hundreds of employees do nothing all day but monitor the various world stock and currency markets. It was quite an operation, like what you would imagine the headquarters of large banks like Chase or Bank of America look like in the United States.
The headquarters is in a historical building in the center of the city near the Louvre and the Opéra. During the French Revolution, the building served as the mayor's office in Paris. During this era, Napoleon Bonaparte was married to his first wife Josephine in this very building. The room is ornate and open to visitors, and below I have uploaded a picture of the original marriage certificate on display in the room.
Last night, some friends and I went out of the streets near the Seine River to see the large festivities. The high school students of Paris finished the Bac (final exit) exams yesterday, and the streets were packed with teenagers celebrating the end of this very stressful time in a French student's life. With the strike of the metro beginning at midnight, it was difficult to get home. After wandering through the streets trying to find the correct stop, I found the Noctilien (night bus) line that lead to my house. It was quite the trek between finding the correction street station, waiting 30 minutes for a bus, and walking 15 minutes from the nearest stop to my apartment. Needless to say, I won't want to do that again, but at least now I am prepared.
Today, with the strike of the metro that I mentioned in my last post, it was a transportation challenge to get the 5.7 kilometers from my house to school. I considered walking, but I realized I was far too exhausted to make it all that way before spending 2.5 hours in class. I found the nearest bus, transfered once, and finally arrived near school after an hour commute in traffic. We started the first class with our second government teacher, who specializes in the European Union. He seems a little more serious and intense than our last professor, and we have two tests and an oral presentation during the final 5 sessions of the class remaining.
After class and lunch, we visited the Assemblée Nationale, which is the French government equivalent of the House of Representatives. This house is much more powerful than the Senate in France, and it is located in a separate building across town called the Palais Bourbon.
We took a tour of the building and learned some interesting things about how the Assemblée works. We also sat in on a session of debate, which is very similar to sitting in the Chamber of the House of Reps. in Washington, DC...except they speak in French. It was great to be able to see part of the heart of the French political system today, and it put what we have been learning into reality. We also got to see the Minister of Finance Christine Lagarde speak on the floor, she's a big deal.
Tonight, I had dinner with just my host mother. It was a delicious steak haché (hamburger) and grilled Mediterranean veggies (tomatoes, potatoes, cucumbers, onions, and peppers). I can definitely feel my french improving, as I understand all that my host mother says to me and as I am able to converse with her more and more on my own. Since she is gone some nights working for Air France, she told me that I can have a friend or two over for dinner in July when she is home for the duration of my last two weeks.
I'm off to Lisboa tomorrow! We are catching our flight directly from class, so it may be a tight schedule. Not sure if I will bring my computer, but this may be the last post until I return on Sunday evening. It's looking to be a great weekend in Portugal!
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