It's a Small World After All...

Family and Friends,

Wow, I cannot even begin to tell you how fast time passes when you are having fun/ridiculously busy! Yesterday was quite an adventure! My roommate convinced me to join a group of friends to go to Disneyland Paris. Can I please begin to tell you the amount of pure elation in which we all experienced? Mom and I were trying to remember the last time that we had visited Disneyworld - perhaps 1993-1994? Regardless, too much time had elapsed since the last jovial visit with Mickey.

As a younger child, I had been enamored with the ride “It’s a Small World After All.” During our family ‘93 visit, for some reason the ride did not have a long wait. Utter joy in my eyes! Mom and I rode the ride, then immediately ran back to the nonexistent line in order to experience the ride again. This charade occurred an addition third and fourth time. However, as soon as the ride began to move during our fourth decent into the glittering musical land of harmony, I decided to be a lovely child and burst into tears and attempt to exit the ride. Oh wait… wait, that’s right… once the ride begins, there is no turning back. I am sure that mom was sitting there proudly as her daughter’s sobs coincided with the whimsical tunes of the dancing dolls. Oh the joys of parenthood! That being said, yesterday I promised my friends that not one tear would be shed if we were blessed in having the opportunity to see the dolls. I was also curious as to what I had been so enamored with as a child. Fortunately the line was not too long and I was able to see my true loves… glitter, jovial music, singing and DANCING. What a surprise, nothing has changed… still LOVED it! We were also able to ride Space Mountain (twice), Indiana Jones, Aerosmith roller coaster, and a plethora of other rides.

The tea cups were a riot… Alex is horrendously strong and was able to turn the tea cups with impressive force. Literally, everyone in the line was watching us as we departed from the scene - would we be able to stand after such formidable turning? Success! No one tripped or lost their cookies, but we did get some applause! Oh the joys of Disneyland Paris. Young and old, everyone is jovial - not a care in the world!

On Friday I went to see Alegria - Cirque du Soleil with several of my classmates. Needless to say, it was amazing. The performers were absolutely phenomenal. I loved to watch them excel in their performances - and to see the joy on their faces after a job well done! I also enjoyed our Metro ride! The Metro stopped on a dime - quite unexpectedly - and literally everyone (men and women) went flying! Everyone was chucking and I was apologizing to an older woman because I accidentally stepped on her foot. Somehow we began talking about Le Cordon Bleu and being and Paris, etc. The same at Disneyland. I was making friends with several of the employees behind the cash registers! Everyone is so encouraging when I practice my French skills. I love to learn, make mistakes, and improve because I love meeting new people and building new friendships! I know that the Lord has placed me out here in order to shine for Him and surrender to His will. The road is NOT easy, and can be quite discouraging when I succumb to temptations - but I absolutely must pick myself up, dust myself off, and continue to lean on Him for support, strength and encouragement! I am still dreadfully young and immature, but I am here to GROW and surrender my life into His hands. That is what I am working on right now - I am striving daily to practice what I believe - actions, actions, actions! Not easy, but well worth it! I cannot thank each of you enough for sending such kind and encouraging notes my way. Just knowing that you gave a little of your time in order to think of me, honestly - that is the most rewarding present that I can receive!

On Friday I also learned a valuable lesson in the kitchen - SALT! Unfortunately, I have zero experience with salt, pepper, really any seasoning in general! My leeks were too salty and my sauce was not salty enough. But I was able to learn from my failures! I need to continue to practice my “skills” (or lack there of as of now!) everyday. It can be frustrating always being the last to finish my dishes in class! However, I continue to try my best with a smile and encourage others as we fly through our practical challenges! I want so much to improve! Practice, practice, practice! Everyday is a new day. A new opportunity to live life, to encourage another, to learn from the past! Even though many of my fellow classmates and I do not necessarily share the same nationality, customs or values, we still respect and help each other. It truly is a small, small world! =)

All my love to each of you from Paris,
SB =)

And so it begins...

Family and Friends!

First of all, I am dreadfully sorry for the horrendous delay in time of sending my first note from Paris! It truly lives up to its nickname - The City of Light! The fast pace and high energy radiate from all Parisians - both young and old! (and quite honestly they have been nothing but nice; the stereotype of Parisians being annoyed with Americans has not been apparent in my eyes).

For those of you who do not know - Stephen, my oldest brother, is nine years older than me (makes you wonder… mistake? Just kidding, mom and dad!) Ten years ago, while in college, Eh Steve was truly Mr. Europe! He traveled abroad and became familiar with many European cities and cultures. While in France one summer, he lived with a Parisian family - M and Mme Linyer. The city of Paris is composed of twenty arrondissements. - each having their own "zip code," if you will. (75001, 75002... 75020 - you get the idea!) M and Mme Linyer live in 75016 - VERY nice and safe area of Paris. Since Eh Steve lived here, M Linyer has passed away, and the two sons have grown and gone (though they live in the city). When I was accepted into Le Cordon Bleu, I asked Mme Linyer if she could help me find an apartment or studio to live in while in Paris. Out of the kindness of her heart, she offered to allow me to stay with her. She continues to host students continually. When I first arrived, there were three students there already - Harvard, Yale and Oxford (the real Oxford, England… not Oxford, Ohio!) Since then, they have left and two more have arrived - from Baylor University. They will remain here for another three weeks, then another student will arrive at the end of August/beginning of September. Eclectic mix, no? I am living in the same room as Eh Steve, though after a through cleaning/cleansing/reorganizing process, as well as a touch of glitz, one could hardly question the fact that I have marked my territory. (yes mom and dad, I keep my bathroom clean also!) I love opening my window and being lulled asleep by the Parisian city sounds!

I arrived on May 23rd… a few weeks after graduation. I LOVED seeing family and friends for one last time at the party which we hosted to celebrated the glorious marriage of Eh Steve and Suz! It was such a wonderful time to visit - and Michael (my other brother) was able to come too!!! My classes did not begin until June 11th, so I had ample time to explore the city. During the first week, I literally walked around the entire city - becoming familiar (or at least trying to) with the streets/routes to school/city life in general. During the week before class, Ryan, one of my dad's partner's sons, came to visit Paris. His arrival was truly a gift from God! I was becoming slightly impatient for classes to being, but when Ry came, we were able to visit the "touristy" sites of Paris, as well as enjoying many laughs and pictures galore! The stories from his visit would clearly require a novel; an absolutely hilarious novel at that! I promise, I will spare you the details in order to prevent an obnoxiously long email! Several days later, my classes began (June 11, 2007!) I cannot even begin to describe how much I ADORE school! I am enrolled in Le Grand Diplome - basic, intermediate and superior levels of both cuisine and pastry. Classes involve both demos (the Chef will demonstrate a certain dish) and practicals (the students make the same dish in the kitchen). I LOVE all of my Chefs!!! As a student, one responds, "oui, Chef" ALWAYS. I clearly need the most help compared to all of my classmates, since I have ZERO experience in the kitchen, but I adore the challenges. Several of my Chefs have laughed about how I am constantly smiling while I cook (or at least attempt to make something relatively edible!) On my first day, we were cutting veggies and mine were… well, slightly large. Chef came over and I was grinning from ear to ear with my enormous cuts (ok, not enormous, but not nearly as small as they should be!) and he just chuckled because he knew how hard I am trying and how I am not getting discouraged. I LOVE IT! Everything is new, everything is challenging - all I can do is try my best and be happy with the result! The picture that I attached is with one of the younger Chefs. At Le Cordon Bleu, we have the normal panel of Chefs who teach classes. Sometimes the school brings in sous-chefs (normally younger) from Michelin-star rated restaurants (best of the best) of Paris. Chef helped me with the chicken, and the picture which I attached is the final result. I also slightly cut my finger and he helped me with the band-aid… I mean, granted, I want to cook my love into the food that I prepare, but I do not think that people would be too thrilled with the idea of literally me being in the food! I believe that you all would concur with this statement (at least, I would hope so!) But anyway, I am pictured in my uniform after a hot and intense three hour class - happy as a clam with the ending result! I typically have six or nine hour-long days at school, with an occasional three-hour day. I do not mind the hours or the work - it is terribly challenging, but I love it! I love communicating with the Chefs in French (thankfully I have been practicing my French like there's no tomorrow!) I adore meeting new people and improving my skills. And like I said before, Parisians have been nothing but kind! I appreciate the fact the my classes are taught in French because I am able to improve my comprehension daily. The basic and intermediate classes have translators (whom I adore also - as well as the administration and staff - I have fun making friends with everyone!) However, in my superior classes (which begin in six months), no translators are present. Though quite honestly now, God has blessed me in improving both my comprehension and ability to communicate at such a rapid speed. I forget that I am the one with the accent now, but I appreciate the fact that I am able to learn and improve my skills daily.

In my first week, I filed my first fish (difficult, but FUN!), cooked an entire chicken, made several types of sauces (very French), shortbread treats, rice, and learned many types of vegetable cuts. I am practicing like crazy when I come home at night, as well as reviewing my notes, studying the anatomy of animals and memorizing a glossary of MANY terms. I cannot complain. I am so grateful to be here at this time in my life - I am young (by far one of the youngest in my classes), learning how to cook, as well as living in a big city, growing and maturing (though young at heart is essential for life!) One can be young only once, but immature forever, no? The majority of students are Korean, with an occasional American and Canadian. I promise not to ramble on, but I did want to at least let everyone know that I am settled into my life here, and that I am really, truly loving everything. Yes, I know that there will be horribly discouraging days, but it is absolutely essential that I continue to try my best, smile, and encourage the other students, Chefs, and my "Parisian family." This is the reason why I am here! And I highly doubt that I will end up cutting my hair like Audrey Hepburn in the movie "Sabrina." (Actually, the movie poster is hanging on one of the walls at Le Cordon Bleu, seeing as that was the school in which Sabrina learns to cook!) But I promise to send updates and continue to take pictures! I apologize for the novel of an email - in the future I will try to send more pictures instead, since a picture does speak a thousand words!) I am also going to try and make a blog on the internet - I will send you the link (when I make one) and then you can check that as frequent (or infrequent!) as you please! Time for bed soon, as tomorrow will come soon! I am confident that tomorrow will prove to be a great day for a competition! (Suz, I could not resist!)

All my love to each of you from Paris,
SB =)