Notre premier jour de classe

I had my long-anticipated first day of classes yesterday. The other girls in the program were flying in yesterday, and so, we decided to meet at the University at 4pm instead of having a full day of class. The place was easy enough to find--12 Rue Vavin in the 6th arrondissement--nearby the Jardin de Luxembourg and the Boulevard de Montparnasse, and I got there just in time for the commencement of our class: Le flâneur à Paris 2010.

Professor Clark handed out our syllabi, and briefly reviewed the texts and walks planned for each day. Our schedule is not as full as I (or, perhaps, you) expected it to be: we meet for two hours of class Monday through Thursday, usually in the early afternoon, and then have walks or museum visits most days after class for a few hours. Fridays and weekends are free, as are most evenings, with the exception of nights when we go to see "spectacles" or shows. All in all, we have a lot of free time. Hmmm... What to do...

This week, our readings and walks start with the "Flâneur de l'Ancien Régime" and readings from les Tableaux Parisiens of Louis Sébastien Mercier, a sort of early anthropologist who walked around Paris at night, and, well, watched people. Creeper or anthropologist? I wonder.

This means that I have my first *dun dun dunnn* homework assignment of the summer. Not only that, but it has a great (and very "Clarkish," I might add. Does anyone remember the Enlightenment French porn tableaux? Yup. All Clark.) cover:



***

Also, inside joke numéro deux: