I don't look like a hippie anymore!

I have been here nearly four months now. You would think that I would be able to speak rather fluently, right? Well, this is true, some of the time, for example, I can get myself through any situation at the train station, or ask teachers about exams...but there was one scenario I had not encountered until today, and honestly, I was DREADING it.

The day finally came where I needed a haircut. My hair was getting so long and scraggly that it could knot itself without being touched. I avoided getting a haircut for so long, I even decided to cut my own fringe. That was a complete and total fail. It just looked like I took a pair of scissors and blindly chopped away...which, essentially, is what I did.

The reason I was so afraid of going to the hairdresser was that I do not have the vocabulary to describe exactly what I want. One wrong word and I could have been sporting a very unflattering flapper's bob. However, today I took the step, and made an appointment.

I went into the center of town to a place that has reasonable prices, and seemed pretty reputable. When I got inside, it was almost as if I forgot the entirety of the French language. The woman seemed to sense my nervousness and handed me some books with hairstyles in them. I leafed through them, and when I was ready, I pointed to a picture, tried to explain that I wanted it a bit longer than the photo, and mimed and pointed to my hair quite a bit. I also attempted to apologise for the scraggliness, but I think that got lost in translation. I also completely lied and said 'a friend' cut my hair because I was super embarrassed about it.

So I took a deep breath, and let her snip away. At the end, she dried my hair, and I was incredibly surprised. My miming/basic French seemed to actually work! My new French hair cut is super cute!

Now, I have a new set of vocabulary from my trip to the hairdressers: Degrader--to layer, bayalage--highlights, frange--bangs. I'll be ready to go for the next time!

Check out my new look on my flickr account!