MAAAAAH FACE

Winter Break

I've been back two weeks and sorry for my delay in writing this new post, but things have been a bit topsy-turvy these days.

Our trip:
Reims->Paris->Lyon->Reims->Barcelona->Reims

We'll start with Paris. Paris was really a good time. Chelsey and I searched high and low for vegetarian restaurants and we found two. One, on purpose and the other by sheer luck (we we're looking for an English bookstore). We stayed at the Aloha hostel, which isn't too bad. It's located in the lower 15th and we had two Chinese Roommates and two American Roommates. I had been reading reviews for the hostel and had been slightly nervous about going there. Paticularly where people had written "the showers are outside". Since we had been visiting in late December and Paris was undeniably freezing, this was slightly worrisome. But it wasn't bad at all. The showers were in the unheated hallway, and so the air around them was cold, but they actually produced hot water (if you pressed the button long enough), so all ended quite well at that hostel.

I really like the Pompidou, their collection of art is amazing and even though our feet had been rubbed raw by all of our walking, we shuffled through all the exhibits and loved it. Chelsey and I decided we would not visit the Effiel tower, but really loved Pere Lachaise cemetery. We ate lots of crepes, but Chelsey was slightly unsatisfied of her salty crepe to sweet crepe ratio. We drank coffee, but not in cafes; the best starbucks in Paris is next to the Opera, it is enormous and has cushy chairs and chandeliers; I don't even like Starbucks, but it has a wonderful ambiance.

Christmas brunch:
We went to this place called Joe Allen's which served up a stellar American breakfast. . . even though it was ridiculously pricey. . .but, it was Christmas. We met up with two American girls from my school program and it was a lovely morning.

Lyon:
My host parents called us on Saturday, and Chelsey and I visited them on Tuesday evening (Christmas night). I was so happy to see them, and they told me that they feel like I had never left, which makes me so happy and delighted. My heart was skipping beats between joy and joy. My host mum had cooked endless delights for us, a quiche, a dessert with meringue and candied chestnuts, but she wasn't satisfied that we had had enough! She chased us with papillotes. I really love them. They are so nice and welcoming and even though Chelsey didn't speak French, they kept prompting her and including her. Which was nice and wonderful and why we went, because they remember everything and I will never forget their kindness and how everything was perfect. We went bowling one afternoon: I won.

Barcelona:
Bikes! Wonderful cruiser bikes and warm weather were themes of Barcelona. We traveled all over that city happily on bikes and with sweaters (no heavy jackets! :)). It was glorious. I still marvel at the modern work of Gaudi prevalent throughout the entire city, the clash of fun, optimism, and color. Barcelona was a city alive with color and silliness, which was a dramatic change from the gray of France. We tried all the great things that it had to offer. Their thick pudding-like hot chocolate sometimes with espresso and sometimes with chili! I really think it might be one of my new favorite cities in Europe. It has a vibe: a party vibe. We even went and found the 1992 olympic stadium, which was an adventure in itself. I think I shall go back and I'll be sure to ride bikes.

Reims:
We got home and we were tired. Not only were we tired, but we were sick! Chelsey had caught a bug on our crazy overnight train back (12 hours for 43 euros! :)) it was a price saver, and an adventure to boot. But after all our traveling it set up the perfect storm for a cold to set in. Chelsey got sick, and then I followed. We did end up going shopping and eating wonderful delights even though we were fatigued and mucus-y. Bread from the yummiest and more delicious store in Reims, crepes from the stand, and saucy salads.Chelsey left the Saturday after we got back from break, and it was pretty sad. After a month I had gotten used to her being there and having someone to talk to all the time. It was a really good month. I'm so glad she came. We almost missed her train to go to the airport. Never a dull moment with the Blackmon sisters.My photos are: here and Chelsey's photos are: here.

Off on grand adventures

Chelsey and I are off voyaging around France and Spain.

Ok so we are really just going to Reims, Paris and Barcelona.

We probably found two of the only vegetarian restaurants in Paris during our 4 days there.

But we are having lots of randomness and good times.

The lady who rode in our 4 person sleeper train made unimaginable and somewhat unearthly sounds throughout the night.

Updates soon.

Oh and Happy New Year.

The Return: A trip to Lyon

Last weekend I went back to Lyon for the first time in four years! It was a whirlwind. I went with a few of my friends and we had a great time. We took the train to get into Paris then onto Lyon. The tickets weren't very expensive because it was a trip we had planned way in advance!

We got into the city around 1 and looked for my friend Laura who had flown in from London to meet us. Tanya and I looked around for her for about 5 minutes and then we hatched a plan of epic proportions. We would call her on the loudspeaker. Because who doesn't want to be called on a loudspeaker in a foreign train station. It was brilliant. But we then realized that it would be a tad difficult to find the plan where the loudspeakiness comes from. Just when we thought we were getting near to the epicenter of loudspeaking, my phone rang. It was Laura. We told her our plan and she still wanted us to call her on the speaker. We didn't. We reunited and then headed over to the house we would be staying at for the weekend.

The Northeastern students in Lyon live like kings. I mean seriously. Their apartments are so nicely furnished in the same tradition as my most favorite place in the world: Ikea. We ate at a fun little joint where we got a barrel of french fries.

Then the night began. The Lumière is an amazing celebration of light, Lyon et art. It is a spectacular way to see the city illuminated with all good things and each building kissed with beautiful combinations of color and light. I am in love and I think it will be my goal to go every year. I just love Lyon. I've put some photos up (on flickr) because I don't think my descriptions could do the immense beauty of the installations justice. The rain, cold, and crowds couldn't hold us back from enjoying such an amazing sight. One thing I love about the Lumière is the participation of the city. In the windows all over the city there are candles put on the windowsills to celebrate the promise made to the Virgin Mary during the black plague.

I got to see one of my host families. The third and last of my host families in Lyon, they were definitely a very cool group. I was really nervous. Tanya and Laura could here it in my voice as I told them what my plans were for Sunday afternoon. I was sweaty palms and all. I was going over to have lunch for my host mum's birthday. I was really excited, but really nervous.I got there and I was pretty much shaking, my hands were all clumsy and I felt stupid. But I'm always a mess about things like this. But I soon relaxed, my voice falling in cadence with the comfortable feeling of familiarity. I had told my host mum I was a vegetarian (something I had agonized over the week before), but I'm glad I did. We ate a delicious little buffet with a wonderful cheese plate after and then my little birthday present to my host mum: cookies!I had made two of my top three cookies: turkish hats and chocolate chip cookies. We couldn't find Kisses in France so instead we used fondue chips. It really works and looks really cute. Though the cookies might need to be renamed because they ressembled less and less turkish hats and by that I mean not at all.

I spent the afternoon lazing around with my host family, watching a movie and playing with my host sister's baby! It was a really good time. They are really good people.

I went back to find my friends who had moved into the Auberge de Jeunesse and we then decided to go get dinner. We had found a friend. A fellow traveller who had just decided to go off on her own and see a bit of Lyon. She told us that she had been on a "cheap ticket frenzy" and this is where she had ended up. She was nice and we ended up eating at this hilarious Italian place. I forgot how much Lyon is centered around pork. It was the first time in France that I had had a problem finding food.

The next morning we got up and set off to finish our last mission. To find me a dress for the Christmas Ball. I had found a backup dress but I didn't really want to wear it. So we looked. And looked. We didn't really find anything spectacular. So I knew where we had to go. The Gap. There is always something at the Gap. I am totally a Gap person or maybe Gap Corporation person. But I like their clothes. I like that they don't have a brand on them and that they are somewhat plain. I dig it.

I found two dresses. I bought both. I'm wearing one to the Ball and one to my first interview.

One was even in purple.

The weekend ended in a bar in Paris with margaritas, chips, and salsa. Badass. It was even happy hour. Even more badass.

A Road Trip: Toussaint

We (me + 3 other girls) had the day after halloween off and so we decided to do what any other sensible person living in Europe would do. We went on vacation. After looking at several destinations and modes of transportation, we decided to rent a car. I wanted to rent a Panda. If only because I think that a car called a Panda is the most hilarious thing in the world. I mean think of the marketing: step into my speedy, sexy new . . . panda? Or want a ride in something slow, predictable and apt to munching on bamboo, well we have just the car for you. . . a panda! The panda didn't work out much to my chagrin, but we did get an awesome Megane.

The Megane was kickass, a blue beauty with a credit-card looking key. So cool. Though I admired all of the cars I did not get to drive. Why would a licensed and perfectly capable American girl not have to share the workload of driving in Europe? Well let's just thank the stars for never learning how to drive manual. I was the co-pilot and the worthless backseat rider. It was awesome.

The itinerary:
Reims->Luxembourg City->Chateau Bourscheid->Aachen->Brussels->Brugge->Reims

My take on each destination:
Luxembourg City- I don't know why I have never known or heard that the city is in a gorge and is awesome. You hear people say that, "It's a beautiful city" (check); that, "It's a great place for walks/hiking" (check); or that, "It's a great place to get in touch with nature" (check). But somehow people left out: "It's a beautiful multilayered city with amazing nooks and crannies to get lost in, and is maybe one of the most breathtaking views in Europe." No one ever told me. It was a wonderful surprise. Also, the hostel in Luxembourg is AMAZING. It's newly renovated and thanks to my little lonely planet travel guide we got to sleep in their highly stylish bunkbeds. When I say "highly stylish" I am not being sarcastic. They were hot. DINNER WAS Delicious, they had stuffed peppers for vegetarians and even a veggie lasagna. The hostel food was badass. Included b-fast: yum, yum, yum.

Chateau de Bourscheid - We made this stop on the way to Aacken. It was pretty cool. After driving around some foggy winding roads and one of our friends getting attacked by stinging nettles, we arrived at the 1,000 year old castle. Slightly disappointing was the fog that covered the surrounding valley (a valley I'm more than sure is breathtakingly beautiful; especially in the fall when all the leaves are colorful). We got to storm that castle. No one was supervising and so we were allowed to just walk around the area. That was cool. It felt like exploring. For a minute I felt like a real archeologist*.

Aachen - As we walked around the meeting point of Germany, Beligum, and the Netherlands, you really can't help but see the different influences on the city. People were speaking in French, Dutch and German (and as always: English), and we got there on a bustling day, Friday. We were on the lookout for waffles, gingerbread, beer and Charlemange as we walked around and ending up going to this really cool coffeehouse called Leo van den Daele. It was made of a combination of merchant houses put together to produce a rambling multi floor coffeehouse with a lot of crazy antiques. We had strudel, gingerbread, and some other treats all while enjoying some great German beer. We left there in search of food and more drinks and we ran into a dilemma: it was only 4 pm. We would run into this problem all week. Because of the drizzling weather and our early starts, we would check out the sites and be finished around 4-5pm each day. We were always faced with the awkward question of what to do until 7/8pm (dinner time!) without going back to the hostel (most of the time they were a bit out of the way). In Aachen we would this beer place that was amazing. We had our first drink at 4:30 and dinner done by 7:00. We decided to leave and go to the BAD AACHEN. I had never been to a German bad (thermal bath) and was so excited to go. We were really nervous about the bathing suit situation (naked or not) and brought everything with us (bathing suits . . . forgot the towels), but soon realized it's more like a swimming pool deal. Saved! If you ever go to Aachen go to the baths. It was so cool. You could swim outside in the hot-tub like swimming pool without even feeling cold. Or you could sit under steaming waterfalls and relax. It was amazing. They even have a meditation room. A softly lit quiet place to relax in with some chill music. It was one of the highlights.

Brussels- I didn't know what I thought Brussels would be like. Maybe I thought it would be like D.C. slightly sterile with all the important government buildings. But Brussels was lively. It was lively in the most wonderful way. There were lots of people in the Grand Markt and we got to see the Mannekin Pis, the symbol of Brussels and a statue of a little boy peeing. Every once and awhile you would see a comic come to live on the sides of buildings, that mixed with European institutions makes an amazingly quirky city. I dug it. I also dug my fries drowned in my spicy mayo sauce. Oh yes, and restaurants that make paying customers pay for the toilet are -pun intended- crap, I'm looking at you: Roi de l'Espagne.

Brugge- As Kristyn had read "Brugge is the Venice of the north", we took a canal tour of the city. Thank goodness, in this little picturesque city canal tours are only around 5 euros, unlike their overpriced friend in the south. We got to see a Michaelanglo, touch the coagulated blood of Christ (for a small donation of course), a Benedictine nunnery and eat some waffles. One of our friends, a beer connoisseur of sorts, had one goal: to get to 't Brugs Beertje, a beer haven of more than 300 Belgian beers. 3 of us (one being a designated driver and coincidentally a non-beer drinker) had 4 each. This was purely educational as we felt the need to each have a sip of all 12 beers, a tasting, if you will. We waited all day and got into the bar exactly as the doors opened at 4 pm. Within 10 minutes the place was packed! It was great and we made it home that night safe and sound.

Distanced travel: 1,120 kilometers.

Pictures are here: http://flickr.com/photos/geniusb/sets/72157603045233671/ 

*this is slightly lame, but so true. Ok. it's more than slightly lame. Leave me alone.

London: a series of mumbles and awkward events

I love London. Be it the carefree atmosphere, the prevalence of vegetarian food, or the international spirit, I love it all. London is magical. I didn't know what to expect and really we didn't have anything planned (as we planned the trip on a Friday and left on a Wednesday). This trip spoke to my interest in living the moment, my interest in seeing one of my dear friends, and my interest in seeing a bit more of the world.

We took the TGV from Reims at around 1pm. We were excited as neither of us had ever been to London and didn't know anything about what to see at London besides Buckingham Palace, Platform 9 3/4, and Newton's memorial. But everything worked out. We got into Waterloo Station after experiencing the Chunnel which was dark and had my ears popping at random intervals.

It was a whirlwind. We walked from the Tower of London along the Thames where we saw the likes of Shakespeare's Globe, the Tate Modern (which I'm in love with), and the ugliest building in Britian: the National Theater.

We did a bus tour, and I'm totally glad we did because - like I said - I had no idea what to see, no real scope of where things are or what one does whilst in London. Highlight: I got to see the bank that they used for Gringotts while filming Harry Potter. But I also learned a lot of other practical things, some things about the black plague like the fact that they killed all the cats and in doing so let the rat population thrive. Payback is a bitch, I say, a mighty bloody bitch.

I also got to see one of my dear friends, Misha. It was so good to see her and when we hang together I always feel very comfortable and at ease. She reminds me of the small home that I carry with me always a sense of home I started to carry when I moved to France five years ago.

I saw so much and had such a brilliant time. We went all over and by the night we were so exhausted our feet hurt. But when my feet hurt like that I feel like a million dollars, I feel like I've actually done something and I feel like I got somewhere.

Leaves were changing and rustling about in London. Scraps of red, gold and brown billowed about us in the city and it made it even more magical. I'm a fall baby and I feel natural in the months between September and November. The sun was shining and we only had one day when we were cursing the gray skies that oh-so-northern-France-like weather.

I also never realized how different British English is. I obviously knew that it would be different as in sounds totally different and they spell things in the obviously wrong manner, but I didn't think I wouldn't be able to function like a normal member of the English speaking community. As we were leaving London, Kristyn and I were still flabbergasted about our inability to feel completely at ease and we marveled over the extremely awkward moments that had passed while we were there. For instance , I have never felt so awkward buying a sandwich whilst speaking English. There have been tons of times when I've awkwardly ordered a sandwich in French, but as I got up to the counter to order my take-away sandwich and my white coffee (that's with milk), I totally froze when the woman asked me a question. Also on the bus I almost got us killed; take that as awkward moment number 8,000 of our London trip.

The story:
We had just gotten on a bus headed towards Waterloo station; it was fairly packed and we had our big bag, me- my REI travelpack and Kristyn - her roller carry-on. We were slightly obtuse as we struggled and squished onto the bus. The bus started moving and we went a few stops.  We stopped.  I saw a man push a button on the top of the door to get off.  Then an old man mumbled (read: spoke British English) and I'm pretty sure he asked to get off.  I did the natural thing.  I pressed the button.  As I pressed the button the bus started moving.  The door still opened and we were moving in a big double decker bus BUT WITH THE DOORS OPEN. A stream of curses came out of the bus drivers mouth as the doors closed.  I caught: "YOU BLOODY IDIOTS...DOOR OPEN...ON MY BUS..." But that is about all I did catch because at that point my heart had dropped and I was trembling with a mixture of embarrassment and disbelief.  I realized what had happened as I looked up at the button above the door, clearly marked: emergency button.

Going to London Tomorrow

This is very exciting and will be excellent to get away from all the unfun stuff that we have to do at home. It's pretty painful all this house business.

 I still haven't written about Nice and the Cote d'Azur. I will, I will make myself! Check out photos on flickr.

 Oh I got a phone that really kicks ass today. It cost me 1 euro and it is the sickest phone I have ever owned. It even plays music and records video.  I haggled down the price of my memory card for it. From 60 euro to 33 euro. That would never fly in the states.

YAY LONDON!

The Grand Adventure: Part 1

On Thursday September 6, we arrived in France. After my 9h flight I had to wait 4 hours for Kristyn at Charles de Gaulle Airport. It was interesting to say the least. After getting off my plane, I was herded over to where everyone else going. It was a mess. Everyone was crowding around the carousel and I couldn’t even see the bags come out. I waited for about a half hour before it cleared up a bit and I could grab my bags, but other people kept jumping in my way. I quickly learned that it would be survival of the fittest and I was ready to evolve to the next level of my trip. After surviving the bags and loading them successfully on my chariot, I went to find terminal 1. Terminal 1 is not connected to Terminal 2 and so it took a while to get there. I had to walk a pretty long way (maybe a half hour) to find where I had to unload my chariot and take a interterminal train to Terminal 1. It was hilarious. I looked pretty pathetic as I struggled with all my bags, but I made it.

After arriving at Terminal 1, I found another chariot and loaded up. I found where I thought Kristyn was going to arrive and waited. I waited about a half hour until she came out. It felt so good that our plan worked out. We had planned to meet at her baggage claim, but since the baggage claim in CDG is inside of the airport, I had to wait outside of that for her. I was nervous that she wouldn’t be able to find me. After talking to a few people I had figured out that I was standing where everyone came out so I figured she would figure it out and thankfully she did. We had arrived in France.

Kristyn’s work friends had told her they would meet us at CDG and so we waited about ten minutes until they came gallantly up to where we were standing. They were slightly astonished at all the bags that we had (I had told Kristyn to warn them about all of the bags that we had). We squeezed into the little beemer that had come to get us and after throwing a few bags on our laps . . . we were off. Finally let of out the airport bubble; breathing French air.

Kristyn’s work friends took us out for a sandwich a la baguette and then dropped us off at the RER train stop (the French commuter rail). They carried out bags out to the quai and then Helped us load them onto the train. We each had 2 large bags (me: two rolling duffels and Kristyn: two large roller suitcases),then each a carry-on (me: a huge backpack and Kristyn: a roller bag), and then each a personal item (me: a messenger bag and Kristyn: a tote bag). We looked like hell. I hadn’t slept much on my flight and had been saddened to only get to watch Shrek 3 and then some other movie about women’s bball. This all translates into bad movies and not a lot of sleep. We rode the RER to the Gare de Nord. To get off there Kristyn jumped off the train and I would start throwing the bags off to her. After that I would go grab a chariot, we looked for elevators whenever we could.

Then we got to the metro. Oh the metro. You see, the Garde de L'Est just couldn't - just couldn't - be connected to the RER. Instead we had to venture into the dark mists of the Paris Metro. Where grafitti is prevelent and the hustle and bustle of daily life takes place. Obviously not somewhere two girls with a bagillion pounds of luggage should be. Obviously. We got to the stairs and realized that there was no way we could get all the bags down in one trip. I had vertigo just thinking of trying to take my bags down the steep steps. Luckily, we had some people to help us out. Random folks would just grab our bags and help us out. It was slightly terrifying but ever so helpful. I almost died everytime someone would grab my laptop bag to take it down the stairs. I was like "Noo. . . but thank you?"

The last stairs that we had to take had an escalator and so we loaded up on it and got up. I almost fell off as my bag tipped over on me and then I had to kick it off the escalator. There was a bit of clogging. As we came up to the city level we saw that the Gare de L'Est was across the street. Our hearts lifted and dropped at the same time.

A weekend.

I just got back from the most excellent weekend, ever. There was adventure, yard sales, polaroids bought for a song, and lots of belly laughter. Nothing compares to good friends and good times. It's true. The weekend was perfect in almost every way.