Le CPE est dans la poubelle!

Just got finished watching the 8 o’clock news w/ Mme, during which Villepin talked about the now-FINISHED CPE that he fought so hard for...

Earlier today Alex told me that the CPE was finally done with, that despite the earlier presidential “go-ahead, but reformulate,” the law that’s had everyone out in the streets for the past two months was officially canned. When I got home, Mme. asked if I’d “heard the news” and in response to my “Oui!” she explained that it wasn’t over yet... that this morning one of the kids had arrived late because protesters were swarming the tracks near Homme de Fer early this morning, after the announcement of the CPE’s final descent. Why? Because the fight, they claimed, wasn’t over... with raised eyebrows and a shaking head, Mme explained that they were now calling for the booting of Villepin from office, as well as the repeal of the CPE’s predecessor, the CNE (Contrat Nouvelle Embauche), which initially passed without the fuss that the CPE riled up.

“Ça n’arrête jamais!” (“It never stops!”) I exclaimed, with Mme.’s habitual “Non, mais attend... maintenant qu’ils ont ce qu’ils voulait, il faut arrêter... mais non...” (“No, but wait [which is a very Mme.-like expression]... now that they have what they wanted, they should stop... but no...”). And so we agreed to meet back up after dinner to check out what the news had to offer.

Before going in to the details revealed by the news, can I just say how impressed I am that, first, people of all ages actually follow politics and take to the streets when they don’t like what’s going on... second, that they stay in the streets and gain more support the longer the government holds out... and third, that they succeed in toppling the government’s initial plans, even when it looked like Villepin had all the big-wigs on his side. Some say France is afraid of change and doesn’t know how to accept what’s inevitable in order to continue on in the society. There may be some truth to this, as well as to the argument that they go somewhat overboard (like the continuation of protests even after they got what they were fighting for). But on the other hand, it is simply UNBELIEVABLE, in my American-trained mind, that the country’s people can come together like that and actually bring about governmental changes. Yes, things are different here, things are considerably more nationalised, and the country is a lot smaller than the grand ol’ US. But nonetheless, it’s been rather eye-opening to see things in action here and watch a different kind of politics unfold.

What struck me about tonight’s news report was Villepin’s appearance in the news studio, talking directly to the news reporter. Just them, at the desk, the Prime Minister talking to the news castor and not directly to the camera or to a huge crowd of people waiting for him to “perform” – as is often the case – a previously-prepared speech. It was the first time I’d heard Villepin actually defend himself “in person”, and you know, I was impressed (seems to be the sentiment of the evening). After reading all sorts of pamphlets and opinions against the man and his CPE agenda, after hearing hundreds of students chanting “Down with Villepin! Put him in jail!”... there he was, talking about his agenda, and the first thing that crossed my mind was the stark contrast between him and, say, Bush. Or so many other American politicians, that read their speeches, that reserve their emotions, that fill the air with vagueries and vascillate so as not to upset either side.

Given, I was listening to the report in French and probably didn’t catch all the nuances. But it was pretty obvious that Villepin is a man who knows how to talk. Who knows how to debate. There he was, with only a small slip of paper on the desk in front of him, facing the questions of a news castor, and, with intense eyes and an impassioned air, he explained why he’d come up with the CPE, what the problems were with the country’s 27% unemployment rate for those under 26, and that he would continue to work towards a solution even though his CPE has now been shot down. Yes, he could have been lying, yes he probably didn’t reveal his entire agenda, yes he talked over the newcastor a good amount of the time and didn’t answer some of the questions. But by god, he seemed to have a belief, he seemed to be passionate, and he certainly spoke damn well – naturally, that is, not in the manner of a formulated speech. As Mme. said, “When he talks, it sounds good... but it doesn’t work that easily.” Very true. The CPE was supposed to help insure the security of the youth by providing them with more jobs. Instead it became, as Villepin put it, the symbol of insecurity, of precarity. Because, while it did try to address a huge national problem, it wasn’t the right solution (not to say there is a “right” solution in all of this jumble).

I’ve definitely found myself laying some heavy critique on the U.S. after learning about various European policies, even though I know I’m not all that well-versed in either’s political agendas and can’t offer a truly informed opinions. Tonight’s “impression” was probably laced with some of this “Ah, the European way...” haze. But really, it’s been quite the experience living through all this, despite my naiveté. More and more I wonder just how the US manages to be a single country... while I’m certainly not a Bush fan, I can’t even imagine what the job of “President of the United States” even means. How does one go about making decisions that will influence millions of people throughout 50 wide-spread states? That’s just the problem... one CAN’T address all those millions at the same time. The US government definitely seems much farther away from its people than the French government and its republic... but it makes sense in terms of size and unity. Never could I imagine students marching in universities and high schools across the country and fomenting change on a national level after two months of striking. Our country’s just not built in such a way that that could happen. We’re just too goddamn big. And then, of course, there’s the whole values business, with capitalism leading the way, each to his own, and so on and so forth...

In any case, I couldn’t agree more that living abroad is that clichéd “eye-opening” experience. Text books and news reports, novels and films can only do so much to paint a picture of something fundamentally “different.” You don’t actually feel that difference until you’re steeping in it. And even if you don’t understand it, even if you don’t necessarily agree with it, it opens up doors into new ways of thinking and seeing that you never new existed. I never really identified with being “American” until coming here. And realizing just how much I HAVE been influenced by American life and mentality, as hodgepodge as it is.

I wouldn’t say my patriotism has suddenly taken off, nor that any anti-American sentiments have increased... but I can say that seeing the US from outside the fish bowl has certainly sparked a greater understanding of what it means to come from the sprawling American land of red, white, and blue (as opposed to the many smaller countries – France in

Gretchen whirlwind and future plans

Suddenly Gretchen is gone, the CPE is finished (though potentially not the protests...) and I’m supposed to start thinking of homework and finals again, not to mention the two week jaunt around France that begins come Friday morning. Uff. “La vie quotidienne” (daily life) simply doesn’t exist here. I’d say it’d be difficult to count more than two weeks spent here that passed with a similar daily schedule and some sort of basic routine.

Life here seems to be constructed in various linked capsules, each with their own interior world. From the first weeks of going out nightly with the LC crew and trying to settle in to a seemingly restrictive host-family situation... to discovering Strasbourg with new found German friendship in the form of Martina... to Amsterdam adventures with Derek (a suddenly-really-good-friend for a condensed period time), London and Ireland with Ariana... to grêves throughout Strasbourg, cancelling of classes, Martina’s friends visiting, and life feeling very non-school oriented... to slightly awkward Lebanese salsa dancing advances... to Gretchen arriving, summer plans solidifying, past life mingling with present to create something totally new... and now, with a month and a half to go, I foresee a good three or four “capsules” left to savor in the form of Paris with a now-distant LC group (trying not to worry that it’ll be weird), France travels with Martina, suddenly-finals-for-which-I-am-sorely-unmotivated/unprepared, and simultaneous preparations to leave for summer travels....

So much has happened in the past while that I doubt I’m up to explaining it all or that any reader is necessarily content to read through it all. Hence, I will pull out the ever-useful bullet point, and try to condense life down to a series of potentially unrelated summaries...

 Gretchen arrived on Wednesday afternoon, which happened to be a second day of closed-campus due to CPE-related striking. The weather was not in the least welcoming... it definitely offered some spring time SNOW drizzle in the morning hours in preparation for her arrival, seemingly forgetting about the beautifully warm sunny days it had previously bestowed us with. Thankfully, however, sun was re-instated the next day and lasted through Saturday evening, whiched proved perfect for Strasbourg site-seeing and even a trip to Germany’s black-forested Baden Baden.

 Food was a primary focus during Gretchen’s stay (to be expected when having a veritable chef staying with you... fyi to those who may not know Gretchen: She is a fellow Lewis & Clarkie, a good friend and former apartment-mate from last semester, and a veritable magician in the realm of baked goods and other kitchen-related delights...). After putting forth some euros to eat a couple veritable french/alsacian restaurant dinners (Alsace’s regional speciality of Tarte Flambée and the tried and true traditional French crêpe), the tables eagerly turned and we took donned the chef’s attire. After Gretchen’s exciting purchase of two french cookbooks, we decided on two recipes from the Tartes/Quiches/Savory Cakes book and made a mess of Martina’s small kitchen in whipping up some delicious creations. Palm Sunday brought more crêpes home-made style (again at Martina’s), and upon Gretchen’s leaving, I received my first (early) birthday present of a lovely french cookbook all to my own... written specifically for children eager to discover and learn the joys of cooking, filled with colorful pictures, useful descriptions, and indespensible vocabulary lists. In other words, the absolute perfect cookbook for me. Gretchen gets mucho brownie points... and I need to find some way to hide this book before finals!

 Probably second on the priority list after num-nums was the planning of summer travel. Gretchen and I will be travel buddies for over half the summer’s European adventures, and thus it was very fortunate she could come and visit so that we could finally, easily begin to lay out the groundwork and itinerary for our trip. The day after our inital planning I learned that, due to CPE-induced university closures, our finals were being pushed back a week... which then sent the two of us back to the drawing boards, as I am no longer free to pick up and leave Strasbourg until after May 25 (as opposed to the 19th). As it is, the week-long delay didn’t make a huge dent in our plans, and we are currently foreseeing Norway, Copenhagen pit-stop (where Gretchen is currently studying), Budapest, whirlwind Italy, Southern France, and Spain.

Come early July we will split ways and she will explore more of France’s offerings (which I will have already done) and, after stopping to perhaps do a load of laundry and catch a moments pause back in Strasbourg, I’ll head up to Germany territory to visit Martina’s stomping grounds (around Munich), from which point I’ll hop a plane to Ireland for a week of traditional music/dance camp, followed by another seven days of Western Ireland solitary explorations. Another plane will take me to the finale – a few days in Prague, where Martina may end up joining me – and then back to Strasbourg to gather my belongings from chez Mme (she’s kindly invited my baggage to stay on while I’m on my traipsings), and hop a final loooong plane that will take me back home in early August.

Of course that’s still all to be finalized. But it’s certainly more concrete than the nightly nervous/excited ponderings I was fraught with back a few weeks. Suffice it to say, Gretchen and I are both more of the “yes, I need an itinerary and some concrete plans” types than the free-wheeling “pick up and go somewhere when I feel the whim” backpackers that often make their way around Europe. But hey, what can we say? We’re now devout disciples of the guru that is Rick Steves, the American European-travel-expert that writes helpful and witty travel guides on all of Europe, along side staring in his very own “Rick Steves’ Through the Back Door” travel show (Check him out at: www.ricksteves.com).

 And just so you don’t think all I do in Strasbourg is plan for the time when I will be leaving this beautiful city... sometimes I do actually leave to see near-bye attractions! Okay, truth be told, I haven’t seen much of Alsace beyond the first group trip the LC kids took to Colmar and Munster. This really should change. HOWEVER, Gretchen and I DID make it to Germany’s neighboring Black Forest for a Saturday day trip, during which we decided to opt out on sampling true Black Forest cake in favor of some Rick Steves’ recommended gelato (this executive decision was made after Grechen and I both discovered that neither of was really a fan of Black Forest cake to begin with and would rather enjoy something typical than get a slice of cake just to say we ate Black Forest in the Black Forest).

Gelato aside, we did get a small glimpse of the Black Forest’s beauty in an early afternoon hike up Baden Baden’s forested hills to “Altes Schloss” or “Old Castle (?)”, the ruins of a had-been castle that is now available for unsupervised exploration up its many staircases, through its dark corners, and even up to the highest look-out tower. Besides some hand-rail reinforcements and a few fenced off areas, the castle is pretty much up for grabs. And me, with my “over-protective American background” was gasping every time I saw a low-ledge or a steep incline and imagined what fate could befall an unsupervised child (I’ve learned, since coming to France, that America is known as one of the most worrisome cultures in regards to its children. Here, things aren’t child-proofed, even in an apartment – like mine – that serves as a day care five days a week. The children are expected to know better. To be little adults. But that’s a whole other story I dare not launch into at this point...).

After finding our way back to central Baden Baden, our tired legs and sun-swept spirits were quite ready to indulge in what the city is known – and named – for: its baths. Martina explained that “Baden Baden” is a german redundancy essentially translating out to be “Bathing Bathing.” According to my host mom, it’s a top resort spot, particularly for scads of Japanese folks who come to Germany specifically for its two baths/spas: the traditional Roman and the more modern Cara Calla, which happens to be cheaper. 14 euros at this second spa got us three hours of water works bliss in the form of heated pools both indoor and outdoor, steam rooms, heat/sun lamps, aromatherapy saunas, and – what neither of us were expecting – our first “roman” experience on the top floor of the establishement, where swimsuits were “interdit” (not allowed).

This top floor, specifically devoted to a wide variety of sauna experiences (some which included out door huts, meaning walking around under the trees in fully “natural” attire), was actually where we ended up spending the majority of our time, experiencing everything from wet saunas to dry saunas to freezing baths, hot water jacuzzis, and the takes-your-breath-away (literally) bucket of ice cold water that douses you with glacial swear-inducing cascades at the tug of a rope. On top of all the water wonders was the liberating and perspective-giving experience of being stark naked amist a whole bunch of other nudists of every shape, size, age, and nationality. A hundred times healthier than most of the advertisement/pornography nudes that fill countless minds with unachievable “ideals,” I’m now of the mindset that roman baths should be routine therapy for those with body image discrepancies (i.e. just about every teenager on up through a good deal of adulthood).

Of course, I came home and mentioned to Mme that I’d been “upstairs” and she just about flipped... “Non... non... tu n’es pas allée... non... en haut??!! Avec tous les hommes?! Tous nus? Non... c’est pas vrai... Oh, j’ai jamais fait ça... Jamais!!” (“No... no... you didn’t go... no... upstairs??!! With all the men? All naked? No... it’s not true... Oh, I never do that... never!”). At the end of it all, I got the tiniest impression that her words were laced with a dash of admiration. Just another thing to add to her list of things that makes me “different” (and of which I have to admit I am rather proud... like the fact that I haven’t, contrary to her utter disbelief, eaten at MacDonald’s since arriving in France. Nor back in the US, for that matter).


Okay. So much for my bullet points. I think I’ll stop there, considering I’ve been chosing to do everything but my homework in the past, oh, MONTH, and that if I must insist on this path of procrastination, the least I could do is spent some time organizing for Friday’s morning departure and perhaps stocking up on some good nights of sleep.

À plus!

Alsacian History and more (WARNING: this is going to be a long story...)

For anyone who’s interested in a little French geography and some Alsacian history / Pour n’importe qui s’intéressant à un petit bout de la géographie française et quelque histoire d’Alsace.

(i.e. Melia’s studying for Thursday’s test in her “Civilisation Française” class / i.e. Melia est en train d’étudier pour son examen jeudi dans son cours de Civilisation Française)

NOTE: Originally I was going to write this in both French and English to offer a little bilinguilism (and get in some good french pracitice). Alas, I didn’t foresee my “overview” becoming the rather lengthy document to follow (I should know by now that when I start writing on a topic of interest, it’s a lost cause). Hence, my bilingual plan has not yet seen the light and considering Gretchen is set to show up in a few hours and I have plenty of other things on my plate... it’s not going to happen. Apologies to anyone hoping to read about French history in its mother language.

FRANCE :

POPULATION: 62 million (about the same as England’s)

MAINLAND GEOGRAPHY:

Five main rivers... from most northern to most southern, La Seine, La Loire, and La Garonne run horizontally, where as Le Rhône (mid-France) and Le Rhin (bordering germany) flow vertically.

Mountain ranges...

Centralized location: France borders six other Western European countries (Spain to the south west, Italy to the south east, Switzerland and Germany to the east, and Belgium to the north), and its coastal frontiers run along the English Channel to the north, the Atlantique to the west, and the Mediterranean to the south.

ORGANISATION:

France’s make-up varies widely in both its geographic landscape and the cultural pockets that are associated with its various regions. The country’s division into regions actually didn’t happen until rather late in the game by pre-Chirac socialist President François Mittérand’s order in 1982. However, many of the officially recognized regions reflect cultural and geographic pockets already established for centuries, from Alsace in the east with its germanic roots to the Celtic-stronghold of Brittany in the north west to the sunny once-Italian island of Corsica. The main “hexigone” of France boasts 22 regions, with an additional four overseas regions (la Guadeloupe, Guyane, Martinique, et Réunion) bringing the total to 26.

One step down from France’s “regions” come its departments, established back during the revolutionary days. Departments are reigned over by the conseil général, which, like most other governmental bodies in France, is directly elected by the french people. Préfets head up both departments and regions in France, a political move put in place by Napoléon back in his illustrious ruling days.

Departments can be differentiated by the perceptive eye by the final two numbers of license plates issued in the area. Strasbourg, for example, holds the Bas-Rhin number of 67. The Rhône gets the lucky 69, and Ile de France, due to Paris’s density, calls for multiple double-digit sets to cover its eight zones. Overseas territories get three final distinguishing digits, and recently acquired Corsica gets 2A and 2B to differentiate its northern and southern departments. The departments were originally issued their number alphabetically (Ain gets 01, Yonne 89), thus any new acquisitions or density increases call for random add-ons at the end (the last five of Ile de France’s number sets range from 91 to 95, as they were created after the original alphebetized numbering).

Smaller than departments come “communes” or cities, though sometimes smaller villages are grouped together under a single “commune.” All of France (including its overseas constituents) boasts 26 million communes, with a mayor (“maire”) from each making up the ruling conseil municipale. Each level of goverment (regional, departmental, and municipal) has a legislative, executive, and judiciary branch. And unlike the U.S.’s indirect system and electoral college set-up, the french vote directly five different times to elect national, regional, departmental (general), and municipal goverment officials (I realize that’s only four categories, but I wrote down “five elections”... my notes seem to have left out the fifth governmental player).

Example of Strasbourg’s situation:
Commune: Strasbourg
Départment: Bas-Rhin
Région: Alsace
Territoire: France métropolitaine

FRANCE OUTRE-MER:

Before the segmentation down to regions, departments, and communes however, comes the distinction of territories. Even though France went through a period of “decolonisation” after WWII just like other Western colonizing countries, it still managed to hold on to various departments and territories abroad, from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean, to Polynesia and even the very eastern tip of Canada. Thus French territories are broken down into “la France Métropolitaine” (or “the Hexagone”, which approximates the shape of France’s main European residence), and “la France d’Outre Mer.” This second category is broken down even farther into “Departments Outre-Mer” and “Territoires Outre-Mer.” Those overseas holdings considered “departments” have fully-fledged french status: they have a french passport, French is the official language, they can move to France sans immigration problems (though once there they might run into other issues, such as unemployment)... they are French, whether or not they’ve ever seen “the Hexagone” or not. Our professor likened the situation to the U.S.’s Hawaii.

D.O.M. --> Départments Outre-Mer (Overseas Departments). Considered to be fully fledged french departments, the five overseas DOMs have the same rights, the same rules, the same social security, etc. as the hexagone’s citizens.
Ex. La Réunion (island east of Madagascar), Guadalupe, Martinique (both Caribbean islands)

T.O.M. --> Territoires Outre-Mer (Overseas Territories). These are different in that they exercise more autonomy, but still have some political and economic dependence on France (I’m not certain as to the specifics).
Ex. Guyane (east of Venezuela in South America)


ALSACE:

HISTORY:

Alsace is set apart from the rest of France by its oscillating heritage, during which it changed hands between France and Germany FIVE TIMES within the last four centuries. The following is a brief documentation of these changes and the circumstances that brought them about.

Change #1 – Into the Hands of the French:

During medieval times, Alsace was a fairly autonomous region, with Colmar and Strasbourg ruling themselves as free imperial cities. However, when the Thirty Year’s War (religious war, 1618-1648) came along, Alsace’s primarily protestant cities appealed to France for protection against the Catholics. At the war’s conclusion, the signing of the Peace of Westphalia declared Alsace a French protectorate and then province. However, when the dictating Louis XIV came to the thrown he not only re-outlawed Protestantism, he also invaded Strasbourg by force and took complete control for France. During the period that followed, both Germanic and French cultures coexisted side by side for a good time, without too much hassle. The region was decidedly bilingual and a cultural melange was the norm. It was during theis time that German Goethe studied at the University of Strasbourg.

However, once the revolution hit, the notion of French unification was suddenly number one on the agenda. Thus, a period of intense “Francification” swept the nation, hitting Alsace and consequently outlawing the German language and other Germanic influences (similar francification initiatives hit Brittany, where the celtic language and culture was suppressed).

Change #2 – France loses to Bismark:

After the revolution, France was in need of a leader but eschewed the idea of returning to monachal rule. Thus, when Napolean swept in with his grandious ideas of conquering an empire, he was rather welcomed... up until he lost pretty badly at the Battle of Waterloo, marking the end of the First Empire. But wait... if there’s a “first”, there must be a second to follow, right? Indeed, after a brief return to monachy, 1848 brought about the socialist proletariat revolution, after which the country installed a system of presidential elections by universal suffrage. The winning candidate? Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, the nephew of their previous emperor.

The new Napoleon, however, was not satisfied with this “mere presidency” idea. Perhaps discontented to live in the shadow of his uncle (or simply endowed with the same “notions of grandeur” genes), he ditched the presidency by means of a Coup d’état of his own government, declaring himself Emperor Napolean III in December of 1852. From there, he riled up armies and headed out to make war and stake his claim in new lands. Unfortunately, Prussian leader Bismarck had similar goals and wasn’t about the let this new Napolean snatch away any territory of his. The two butted heads (and armies) in Sedan, in the Voges mountain range, and Bismarck came out victorious. The result? Alsace, east of the Voges, was lost to Germany in 1870. In face of a region now almost completely frenchified, Bismark and his crew turned the tables 180 degrees and began an intense “germanification” of the area, reinforcing the German language, changing the names of the streets and towns (which remain today), and instituting Germanic culture throughtout the region.

For the next 40 odd years, Alsace found itself in a period of growth and prosperity. In the hopes to keep its newly annexed territory relatively happy, the germanic rule offered the region a good amount of independence, as well as a number of economic and cultural “gifts” in the shape of new roads, buildings, universities, and banks. The University of Strasbourg was a german creation, many of the famous buildings in the area were german-built, and the first banks of France were actually the vestiges of German banks remaining in Alsace when the region switched back over to French rule. All in all, life was pretty good in German Alsace during this period.

Change #3 – WWI ends and France reclaims its Alsacian lands:

1918. Germany has lost the war and victorious France snatches back its territory east of the Voges. Except this time around, extra complications arise. After all, where were the Alsacians during the first world war? In the German army. In enemy lines. Thus, in order to try and shake any potential patriotism to the former enemy, France revisits its post-Revolutionary plan: RE-FRANCIFICATION. The German language is again forbidden, French becomes obligatory, etc. etc. etc. This continues for 20 or so years until WWII hits. And the misery begins.

Change #4 – WWII and Nazi Occupation:

Come 1940, France surrenders to a stronger Nazi German army, and Nazi occupation begins. Alsace, being the closest to Germany, is completely taken over by Nazi troops. While some folks managed to evacuate to western France before the occupation takes place, the rest are forced to succumb to Nazi control. Unlike the previous German rule, which showered the region with cultural and economic advancements, the Nazi take over brings destruction, the only “gifts” offered during this time being the establishment of the only two concentration camps to reside on French soil (Schirmeck and Struthof, both in Bas-Rhin). The University of Strasbourg is taken over and turned into the Nazi training Reich University. Many Alsacians are forced to attend Nazi schools. Others are deported to concentration camps. And others are incorporated into the German forces to fight not against their fellow frenchman (too risky) but instead are sent to the Russian front. 150,000 Alsacians were sent off to fight in Stalingrad, Leningrad, etc. 80,000 returned (a little less than 50%).

Change #5 – Liberation and return to French rule

1945 brings an Allied victory and the return of a broken Alsace to France. Reconciliation between France and Germany begins, as does the reconstruction of Europe as a whole. Instead of continuing with the previous trend of francification in the Alsacian region, a new path is taken in hopes of reducing border tensions and building international connections. Thus, in 1946, with the forming of the Conseil d’Europe, Strasbourg is chosen to become its governmental head quarters, developping a European identity instead of returning to francification.

ALSACIAN CULTURE & IDENTITY:

At present, Alsace remains a distinct mixture of German and French influence, with Strasbourg and some of the other larger cities adding a distinct international community to the mix. The “internationalization” of the area has brought both positive and negative responses from the community. True Alsacians are now dwindelling in number against the waves of immigration, both from the rest of France and the world at large. Fearing globalization, scared to lose their roots, many Alsacians have chosen the path of “reclosure,” holding on to their Alsacian identities with extreme pride and vehemently opposed to increased immigration. The rest of France’s ridicule of the Alsacian accent (layered with a jilting german influence considered rather “moche” or ugly) probably doesn’t help the situation. Their political tendency? Extreme right, or Le Front National (headed by Le Pin back in the last round of presidential electrions).

In Bischeim, a community just north of Strasbourg, a full 30% of the votes went for Le Pin during the last election, which is quite a lot, considering the French spread their votes out among a number of different parties (quite different from the US’s primarily Democratic/Republican split, even though the various parties tend to be slanted to the right or the left in varying degrees). Wanting to guard their identity and their history, many Alsacians are guilty of pretty heavy racism (I’ve certainly noticed some undertones with my host mom – half Alsacien – who uses the terms “us” and “them” quite freely, is in favor of Sarcozy’s proposed “Selective Immigration” and against her daughter’s “foreign” “uneducated” boyfriend).

Advice from my Civilization Française professor (who himself is a culture mutt, originally from Indian but having taught in universities across the globe): Alsacians can be some of the friendliest folks out there if you show interest in their culture and heritage. Just, whatever you do, STAY AWAY FROM POLITICS unless you want to tred on some very sensitive ground.

GEORGRAPHY:

Alsace is the smallest of the 22 regions within metropolitan France. Within Alsace, the land is split up into two departements, Le Bas-Rhin “The Lower Rhin” and Le Haut-Rhin “The Upper Rhin”... counter-intuitive as it may be, the Bas-Rhin covers the northern part of the region, whereas the Haut-Rhin is found to the south. Rather than attributing “high” and “low” to cardinal directions, the names refer to the terrain: Le Bas-Rhin to the north is made up of lower-lying areas, whereas Le Haut-Rhin gets into higher elevation where it overlaps with Les Voges mountain range.

The population of Alsace is around 2 million, with a density of around 200 habitents/km2. The three major Alsacian cities are Strasbourg in the north (Bas-Rhin) and Mulhouse and Colmar in the south (Haut-Rhin).

ECONOMY:

Alsace is one the richest regions in France, and along with Switzerland and Germany, it makes up part of the “Golden Triangle”, one of the Europe’s wealthiest areas (wealth in this case is based on revenues per habitent and foreign investments). So how did a small germanic french region with such a tumultuous history manage to rank with some of Europe’s most well-endowed? Simple: prime location. Alsace is very centralized in terms of its geography and its economic accessibility. Draw a circle 500 miles out from Alsace in all directions, and you’ll encompass London to the north, the majority of France, a tad of Spain, and about half of Italy to the south. You’ll get all of Switzerland, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium, and you’ll even reach over into the beginnings of Eastern Europe and up to base of Scandanavia in Denmark. With Alsace’s eastern border flanking the likes of the Rhin river, north/south transport is simple, and rail access east-west is also a fairly straight shot.

America and Japan are two of the top Alsacian investors.

Alsace also boasts one of the lowest unemployment rates in France (8%, as opposed to the national 10%). One of the reasons for this (and contributing factor in the region’s wealth) is that many “frontaliers” live in Alsace but work across the border, commuting each day into Germany or Switzerland. Thus Alsace doesn’t have to worry about providing jobs for all its inhabitants AND it gets money coming into the country through salaries paid by its neighboring countries.

Alsace’s three economic sectors are agriculture, industry, and services. Within agriculture, the top crops are corn, tobacco, and – of couse – wine (Pino Noir – Alsace’s only red wine –, Tokay Pino Gris, Riesling, Muscat, Gewurtztraminer, Sylvaner, and Crémant d’Alsace, a sparking wine). Within industry, Mulhouse is well-known for its automobile production. A good sector of Alsace’s industry is foreign implanted.

UNIVERSITIES:

Alsace boasts four umbrella universities, in Strasbourg, Colmar, Mulhouse, and the “Université de Haute Alsace.” Of Strasbourg’s 53,000 students, 40,000 attend the main university’s three separate schools: L’Université Louis Pasteur (Science and Medicine), L’Université March Bloch (Humanities and Social Sciences), and L’Université Robert Schuman (Law and Political Science). The city also offers two public “facultés de théologie” (one Protestant, the other Catholic), which are the only public theology universities in an otherwise secular France. This allowance is due to the special detail about Alsace that allows it to maintain a melange of church and state (e.g. ministers, preists and rabbis paid by the state, more religious holidays observed here than elsewhere, Sundays are official “days of rest”, etc.) while the rest of france mandates a separation. The detail: When a 1905 law was past by the then-socialist french government calling for the separation of church and state, Alsace belonged to Germany. When it reintegrated back into France (both times), somehow the law wasn’t applied. Just another thing that sets Alsace miles apart from its French motherland.

Classes cancelled again... and again...

So yesterday we ghettoized international students were assured that our building and our classes (separate thought linked with the university Marc Bloch) would remain open and in place for today, Tuesday April 4, despite a second nationwide strike that was hoping to be bigger than last week's Tuesday strike. Since we're international students who actually pay to come to this program (yes, indeed, education is public - meaning free, unlike in america - through university levels here in the socialist-influenced republic of France), our language teacher assured us that they would keep on going even if the rest of Marc Bloch stopped. The only problem with this plan? Oh, you know, the fact that when the campus is shut down details like LOCKING THE BUILDINGS are put in order to keep out occupying and/or destructive students. And since our building IS indeed a university building, that includes us.

Two weeks ago the buildings were shut down for thursday and friday after the death of a student (drug overdose induced heart attack) in the main Marc Bloch building on wednesday afternoon. Last week the Tuesday grêve (strike) shut down classes for the day. Yesterday we were told that the president's order was that the campus would shut down after noon... but that the international students shouldn't listen to generic announcements, as we were on a different program, a different agenda. Wishful thinking.

We managed to get through the 1pm and 2pm classes today just fine (Union Européene and Phonétique for me), but half way through the 3pm class (during which I was chilling in the foyer for my hour-long break), official-looking university administrators came in to "evacuate" the premises for security reasons. My translation = the march had started downtown, and they wanted to lock everything up snug so no occupations could take place. Who cares if we're a "special case" being international students... the building is still college property and up for occupation if left open. Hence all of us filed out only to hear that classes will be again cancelled tomorrow, and hopefully re-openned on thursday.

The "lutte" (fight) is never ending here... it's like this country has revolutionary blood that continues to pump when any other nation would have given up ages ago. Now the focus is changed from just the CPE, which was officially signed into law by the president last friday though suspended for pending changes (like reducing the period of possible-to-be-fired-for-any-reason from two years to one, and requiring that firees be told of the reason)... the fight is now against the government as a whole, which is being tauted as anti-socialist and anti-humanitarian. Now the president is embroiled in the mess having signed the law into existance and Sarcozy, presiential hopeful for next year's elections (also to the Right of things, including his preposed "selective immigration" act, which essentially means we'll let you in if your smart and will boost our economy but not if your poor and seeking shelter, etc.) is also about to be pulled in, as he was just put in charge of the discussions with syndicats, unions, etc about revising the law. In other words, just as Villepin's future presidency is now essentially null, some are thinking Sarcozy may be the next to fall if he upsets the people (which is pretty much a definite, as the people are just waiting for the next thing to protest against).

All in all, it's kind of crazy to watch how people take to the streets and to think that, even if good ol' berkeley, people with this much fervor in their demonstrations, etc. would, after a few weeks, be written off as fighting for a lost cause, where as here... taking to the streets and essentially halting much of the country (train travel reduced to 50%, air travel minimized or cancelled, libraries closed, etc.) for various strike days... it all actually DOES make a difference. Maybe not as much as they would like, and maybe they're taking it to an extreme by not willing to compromise... but really, it's a rather amazing to see how the fight has just kept on building... with each defeat or small victory, MORE people go out into the street to fight even harder.

Of course some students are fed up with the striking as much as they are with the government. It's finals period at Marc Bloch and some finals have been cancelled half-way through due to disturbances, some have been undergone in secret so as not to be ruined by demonstrators, and I think the majority have been postponed a full month, as so many days of class were missed a lot of the proposed material was never covered. Some of the international students are scared our finals will get pushed back, but most of us have the feeling they won't be able to do that... frankly, classes are kind of a joke anyway... some are interesting, but taking a final with 2/3 of the proposed information isn't going to really affect anyone. Hence, I'm going with the thought that we'll be finished by may 20 and I can hightail it up to Gretchen's to start our summer ventures up in the Scandanavian regions.

Speaking of Gretchen, she's set to arrive tomorrow around 3 and frankly, I'm almost hoping classes get cancelled for thursday as well so that I can spend more time giving her a whirl-wind tour of Strasbourg instead of, say, studying for thursday evening's test (though, it being on the subject of alsace, perhaps I can do my studying in tandem with showing her the sites...). I'm just hoping rail will be back to normal by tomorrow so that her train in from Bruxelles (where she's visiting Dawson) won't be affected. She'll be chilling until Sunday and then I have a mere four days to get everything ready before leaving for two weeks of france travel (again, hopefully not severly curbed by more striking... but we'll see).

The current itinerary for Easter Break is as follows:
April 14 - April 17: in Paris with the LC & Bryn Mawr group, most of whom I haven't seen for ages...

April 16: Martina is set to arrive and I'm hoping to sneak her into our shi-shi hotel for the night... if that fails, we've agreed to party all night, seeing as how 3:20 the following morning I'll be turning 21...

April 17 - 20: More of Paris with Martina. It'll be her first time! We'll be chilling with my mom's old boyfriend in his Jesuit community in the outskirts of paris for the nights.

April 20 - 24: Heading down to La Rochelle to see the city I've heard so many people say is gorgeous but know very little about. Maybe we'll find away to the sand dunes a bit farther south for a day trip...

April 24 - 28: North to Saint-Malo in the celtic region of Brittany. Gorgeous beaches (though perhaps not temperatures), ancient walled cities/castles, and probably the best cider one could ask for (one of my all-time favorite, however light, alcoholic beverages). Here we're either going to do a hostel or attempt camping with the equipment of an enthusiastic couch surfer who nonetheless can't offer us her couch for more than a night. I think we'll rely on the weather to help us with our decision on that one...

April 28: Eight hour train ride back to Strasbourg.

April 30 - May 1: hopefully spend a couple days and a night researching the Alsacian city of Lapoutroie, with it's own dialect, a whisky museum, goat cheese farm, and beautiful foot-of-the-voges scenery. Will be writing an 8 page report on it for my civilization française class, so i better make it down there...

Whew! Okay, I'll leave off there. One thing all these days off have offered is a chance to do a little work on my own time, with my own pacing. Thus I've been delving into some fascinating Alsacian WWII history on the topic of the evacuated mental hospitals... Alsace was occupied and considered nazi territory during the war after 1940, and it even housed a concentration camp... the university was taken over and one biology/anatomy teacher even took it upon himself to "research" the "soon to be extinct" jewish race, thus ordering "jewish skulls" from various concentration camps for his - and potentially his students - research. Fuck. History does hit you a lot harder when you're standing on the very land it happened on.

Okay, truly going to sign off now. Next entry? Perhaps a little more Alsacian history, to help me with my studies for thursday's potential test.

Salut!