Small Wins

Photo c/o Pinterest

I completely underestimated culture shock. I really didn't even understand the concept until now. I assumed that Parisian life couldn't be that different from any other city life. I had been to Europe before. I grew up in Los Angeles and then went to college in Baltimore and adapted with ease; how bad could this adjustment be?
False.
My time so far has been much different than I would have expected. Yes, my family couldn't be nicer. Yes, my friend lives a 10 minute walk away. Yes, my school is close. However, it is the little differences that put the shock in culture shock. In order to make up for these, I have been trying to count the small wins.

Navigo, the bath, the cellular bricks

Small win: any act/interaction/event/sighting/etc... that in some-way-shape-or-form brightens your mood and boosts your self-esteem. Things such as: finding a place with coffee to-go, getting a french cell phone (see photo of said-brick), buying new sneakers (which I somehow, and unfortunately, left at home) for 25 euros, getting a Navigo (metro pass) and navigating the metro, or finding out the shower was fixed today so I don't have to take a bath* in a closet (see photo).

Trying to remind myself of this...

All of these small wins add up and help make this transition a bit easier. I'm looking forward to when the small mishaps and misadventures stick out, instead of the small wins. Until then, I am enjoying orientation and trying to figure out ma nouvelle vie á Paris.

*Fun fact about the bath: I bathed in it the first night only to discover the drain opens up and empties onto the floor.The water then goes down a hole in the ground. The rest of the night I was expecting a knock on the door from an angry frenchmen whose apartment I had flooded. Fortunately, no such incident!