Sounds

Things you hear in France (notably at our apartment):

- Smiling kids saying 'el-low!
- Disproportionately loud motorbikes/scooters
- Creaky floorboards (everywhere)
- Cathedral bells ringing
- Trains and trams whooshing on tracks.
- Water boiling in a tea kettle (impossible to have too many hot beverages!)
- Funny European ring tunes.
- Heels walking on cobble stone.
- Music that sounds like it's been bounced around in a tin can.
- Road construction literally right outside the door. This morning, it seemed like someone was banging on the door with a jackhammer (in reality, they were just drilling holes in concrete).
- Lots of speaker messages from riding on trains and trams. The trains have this really urgent sounding alert they play right be for departure. It sounds like a game show tension noise.
- Mosquitoes buzzing near your ears (wouldn't have guessed that, would ya?)
- Loud cheering and booing if you are watching anything to do with sports.
- "C'est pas grave" One of the most common french expressions. Means "Oh, no big deal.. it's not serious." Walking down the street you can actually pick this phrase out of conversations.
There are more like this, but I should save them for a post about things french people say.


Things you don't hear in France (that I miss):

-My cell phone ringing (my heart breaks)
-"AAAAAAAA Gig'em Aggies, Whooop"
-American radio stations

In case anyone was wondering, the soccer game was great!