Most of the other assistants are going home (to germany or Great Britain) for Christmas but I'm just gonna stay here and celebrate with Lizette and Santiago (US and Argentina) since we are too far to go home. So as far as the Christmas Decorations here in Moulins...wow....I think its not even worth the effort. I'll post pictures as soon as I get my internet but I tried to post some pics with my dialup and its just not worth it, waiting 45 minutes just for it to glitch out at the end to upload 5 pictures...just know that when i get my dsl you will have a LOT of new stuff to look at :) but contrary to Moulins, the Decorations in Clermont Ferrand are spectacular! On the main place (Place Jaude) there is a HUGE Sapin de Noël (Christmas Tree), and an even bigger Ferris Wheel...and when i say ferris wheel i dont mean some petty county fair crap, i mean a full blown Ferris Wheel...I will post one picture here, but just know that there will be a lot more soon.
So voilà, there you have it, Place de Jaude full blown Noël style... Also this past weekend I went to a Concert in Clermont Ferrand which was AWESOME considering the time I've been in France is definately the longest i've been without seeing a concert in the last four years. I went to see a French singer-songwriter named Tété (click for website) If you want to listen to some extraits, click on Tété on the bottom left of the site, Tracklisting, and then Try out Fils de Cham, Madeleine Bas de Laine, La Relance, Caroline, La Croisée des Chemins...hell the whole album is excellent. Also from another album, absolutely BEAUTIFUL is A La Faveur de L'Automne... I recommend the download to anyone interested in French, or just in good Music. but the words are truly amazing. I might also go see Grand Corps Malade which is the "Slammer." Slam is somewhat like rap, but more resembles poetry. Check out the website here, the track Les Voyages en Train is my personal favorite, he compares peoples love stories with travelling by train... and my other favorite is Toucher L'instant where he talks about poetry and writing's ability to overcome evil and pain. The visual metaphors are amazing in this song...
On a trempé notre plume dans notre envie de changer de vision
De prendre une route parallèle, comme une furtive évasion
On a trempé notre plume et est-ce vraiment une hérésie
De se dire qu'on assume et qu'on écrit de la poésie
Il existe paraît-il, un instant dans l'écriture
Qui oublie la page blanche et efface les ratures
Un véritable état second, une espèce de transe
Qui apparaît mystérieusement et s'envole en silence
Que l'on rape ou que l'on slame, on recherche ce moment
Il allume une flamme qui nous éclaire brièvement
Cette flamme est la preuve, laisse moi t'en faire une démo
Qu'il est possible de combattre le mal par les mots
C'est tout sauf une légende, on espère juste toucher l'instant
Les quelques secondes du poète qui échappent à l'espace-temps
Les moment rares et irréels que la quiétude inonde
Rouda, n'oublie jamais notre parole du bout du monde
On ressent comme une coupure dans la nuit, comme un rêve
On oublie les coups durs de la vie, comme une trêve
C'est un phénomène puissant, je ne te parle pas d'inspiration
Mais d'un souffle plus profond comme une seconde respiration
On voit et on entend l'encre devenir vivante
On goûte et on sent la saveur d'une rime errante
On touche du doigt l'instant qui nous enveloppe de sa puissance
C'est sans cesse la renaissance de l'essence même de nos cinq sens
C'est le moment où on passe de l'autre côté des paysages
On sympathise avec le vent et on tutoie les nuages
Il fait jour en pleine nuit et il fait nuit en plein jour
Profite de cet instant, il ne durera pas toujours
C'est tout sauf une légende, on espère juste toucher l'instant
Les quelques secondes du poète qui échappent à l'espace-temps
Le moment où le voile se lève et la magie s'élance
Là où j'ai croisé Souleymane au bout du sixième silence
Si on a pas atteint le Nirvana, on doit en être au seuil
Pourtant je suis simplement assis là devant ma feuille
Peut-être que cet instant n'existe que dans mon esprit
Et que je suis complètement mythomane lorsque j'écris
Mais laisse moi mon stylo, y'a pas moyen que je m'arrête
J'ai une envie d'écrire comme t'as une envie de cigarette
Et pour m'enlever ce désir je te demanderais de repasser
Car tant que je pourrais écrire je continuerai de penser
Que c'est tout sauf une légende, on espère juste toucher l'instant
Les quelques secondes du poète qui échappent à l'espace-temps
Les moments que l'on redécouvre, que l'on connaît plus ou moins
Tu l'as déjà touché Jacky, j'en suis témoin
On a trempé notre plume dans notre envie de changer de vision
De prendre une route parallèle, comme une furtive évasion
On a trempé notre plume et est-ce vraiment une hérésie
De se dire qu'on assume et qu'on écrit de la poésie.
I also love where he says J'ai une envie d'écrire comme t'as une envie de cigarette. One day im gonna translate all this stuff into english and post it on here... Definately this song though. The only reason i hesistate to go is because i dont think hes coming to clermont ferrand and also, i find it touch to pay 20 euros or more just to go watch someone talk...there isnt really much value in the "Live experience" with Grand Corps Malade.
Getting back to Tété however, the concert was AMAZING the venue was the Coopérative de Mai in Clermont Ferrand where the concert hall wasn´t much bigger than the Georgia Theatre in Athens, so it was pretty intimate, which i really like, i hate huge arenas for concerts. it was great though he talked in between all the songs and had everyone laughing, and at the end he even hushed the crowd and turned off his mic and amp, and sang the last song completely acoustic which was awesome because not one person in the whole venue so much as coughed while he sang. The Song was "La Croisée des Chemins" which is one of my favorites. The guy who opened was pretty awesome. It was some guy from Australia named Jeff Lang who played slide on this dobro type instrument but it was very much NOT australian music at all. it reeked of bluegrass and had a good bit of derek trucks-ish slide action so if course i was glued. so if u get a chance, check out Jeff Lang on the internet. Also the guy couldnt speak french at all which was pretty funny when he tried to talk to the crowd. ok its official im rambling. but just to let you all know im doing really well, ive been living it up on the weekends either here in moulins, or throwing down with the assistants in clermont-ferrand. My classes are going pretty will im definately getting more used to that, and am finding that its not too terribly difficult. There are still moments when i wanna rip out my entrails with a golf club but other than that its pretty straight. as far as speaking french, its starting to get kinda scary...like the english speaking assistants we dont even speak english anymore..its like 100% french now. i definately think in french when im walkin around or layin in bed or what not. It doesnt bother me to read english or hear it, but to speak it or write it seems kinda weird, and i can already tell im gonna have trouble when i come back home getting used to everything again. anyway i will try to update more often with more banal things and not try to cram 3 weeks into one post next time. bye!
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