After a busy night out celebrating and watching fireworks for Bastille Day, I arrived in Tuscany Saturday morning just in time for the post-wedding brunch with my family. The villa our family was staying at was located right near the medieval town of Casole D’Elsa. Before dinner, my parents took my sister, two cousins, aunt, … Continue reading »
During our lovely trip to the Eiffel Tower this past week I learned what a funicular actually is. A funicular is basically an elevator/train combo that moves diagonally via some tracks and some cables, and one such machine took us from the base of the tower to the first platform. Previously, my only encounter with […]
I started identifying and came out as a transgender male in July of 2010 and have been identifying as gay for the past two years as well, so naturally I like to know the rights of the LGBT community of the country I’ll be living in for a month so I did a little bit of research. I was satisfied to discover that France is actually one of the most accepting countries in the world, even more so than my own in some ways. To start with, sexual activity between members of the same sex has been legal in France since 1791 and has only been legal in the United States since 2003. There have been anti-discrimination laws for employment in all of France since 1985 while America is still making these laws state by state. There are still 16 states that have no state level protection for LGBT employees, while the level of protection and type varies in the rest of the states. Same sex marriage was legalized nationwide in France in 2013. Same sex marriage was being legalized on a state by state basis in America until 2015, when it was legalized nationwide. Moving onto transgender centered rights, French citizens have had the right to change their legal gender since 1992, but sex reassignment surgery was required to do so. This has since been changed to allow citizens to legally change their gender without having medically transitioned since 2012. In America, it still varies from state to state. Currently, 18 states do not require a sex reassignment surgery or any amounts of hormone therapy in order to change your gender on legal documents. 28 states require surgery and/or being on hormones for a certain amount of time in order to legally change your gender. In the United States there are still 4 states with a complete ban on legal gender changes. Being transgender has been declassified as an illness since 2009 in France and since 2012 in America. Transitioning medically in France with hormone therapy and surgeries is completely free for citizens who use public “official” teams of doctors who specialize in treating transgender patients, but the downside is that the wait for them can be very long. There is also the option to transition with private companies which can be a faster process but this does require some payment from the patient. Transitioning privately is still partially covered by Sécurité Sociale in France. Hormone therapy and surgeries are only partially covered in America and the amount of coverage (if any, as it isn’t legally required for health care companies to cover treatments for transgender people) varies from company to company. I have not yet started hormone therapy or even begun to seek out potential surgeons for when I medically transition, but I do know that I will have to pay for most of it out of pocket. After doing this research and familiarizing myself with the country that I’m in, I feel overall safer and more accepted. French laws have given LGBT people equal rights for a longer time than the United States and in my opinion the laws have been better than the laws in the US. I especially like that the laws are nationwide in France as opposed to the US where the laws are state by state.
Being queer in Paris Read More »
I have clinical depression. I take good meds for it so I don’t normally show major symptoms. However, every now and then I still get what I call “the sads.” Basically I become more fatigued, more irritable, and more anxious. It’s a great combination. Yesterday I woke up with a serious case of the sads. It … Continue reading “There’s a Difference Between “Alone” and “Lonely””
There’s a Difference Between “Alone” and “Lonely” Read More »
Europeans think Americans are loud, obnoxious and annoying, and to an extent that is true. I was able to understand their reasoning behind those statements on Bastille Day. In America, the 4th of July is a day for people to scream “USA USA USA” at the top of their lungs. Living about 30 minutes from … Continue reading Independence Day(s) →
Independence Day(s) Read More »
I am not a huge fan of contemporary architecture. To me, it usually seems cold, unwelcoming, and unforgiving of error. Much of Paris’s 12th Arrondissement is extremely modern, with lots of glass, iron, and clean lines; so I was surprised at how much I liked it. The answer to making… Read more“Making Modern Spaces Livable”
Making Modern Spaces Livable Read More »
While reflecting on our trip to Bercy, I remember being surprised by the stark exterior of the Bibliothèque nationale de France (National Library of France). As someone who gravitates toward classical architecture rather than super modern architecture, I did not initially like the look of the library. Designing the buildings that comprise the library to […]
Finding Beauty in Modern Architecture Read More »
Paris is a city from the future, probably. Turns out all the cool stuff is exactly where I haven’t been for the last week and a half, and I’m just a little spicy about that.I mean, look at the middle of the National Library here-I look wistfully into t…
Libraries and also the Future Read More »
I love the Olympic Games. I wait in eager anticipation for the next Games to come, and when they do I try to soak them in as much as possible. From the Opening Ceremony to the sporting events to interviews to the Closing Ceremony, I enjoy it all. It is so fun to watch all […]
There is a hamburger bun under that egg, and a pretty tasty burger with cheese and unidentifiable sauce and accent meat. Of course, the French choose to Frenchify the hamburger, a food item that combines German, British, and American cuisine. It’s why they put cheese on the top of their ham sandwiches and serve their […]
