Nikita does France... Again

Going back to France... New blog!

2008-06-30T18:00:00.002+02:00

I'm on my way back to France...
check me out at my new blog...

http://oneika-the-traveller.blogspot.com/

Changes...

2006-06-23T16:25:00.000+02:00

As usual, long time no post (insert sheepish grin here)...

But just a quick update. I'm tired, but happy, as I just got back from a 15- day whirlwind tour of Spain, Portugal and Morocco with my boyfriend Sab. Armed only with backpacks and high expectations, we made our way from the very south-eastern corner of France all the way to Madrid, Spain's capital. After a couple of days there, we descended to the Andalusian region and due to relatively shaky planning, spent a night stranded in Cordoba.

...And then onto Morocco for a weeks' stay, where we travelled high up into the Rif Mountains to Chefchaoen, then made our way southward to medina-filled Fez and the loud bazaars of Marrakech, Morocco's tourist capital. After the hustle and bustle (and stomach trouble) of Northern Africa, we made our way back up into the south of Spain, making a 2 day stopover in Sevilla, where we were mystified and captivated when we took in a live flamenco show.

Onward and eastward to southern Portugal, where a brief stopover in Lagos, tourist haven and surfers' paradise, allowed up to relax and recoup. The last stop of our journey found us in Portugal's capital, Lisbon, where we reveled in the beautiful sights and stunning architecture. A day and 22 hours of train later, we returned to French Riviera and familiarity, as Nice was just how we left it: sunny, hot, and beautiful!

Pics soon!

Get Ready to PPPPPPPParty!

2006-05-05T12:52:00.000+02:00

So my new living situation is essentially a dream, especially compared to what I went through with my previous roomie of 7 months. Not to speak ill of the recently departed (she went back home to the U.S. last week) but our... er... different personnalities just didn't mesh and we were more of the "two strangers who co-exist in one very small apartment and hence are civil to each other" variety and not of the "bosom buddies" variety- if you get my drift. My new roomie situation is great, not surprising since me, Maria, Joy and Natalie have been friends since the start of the assistantship and for the most part, are on the same "longueur d'onde" (wave length).

The next coming days will see the birthdays of both Maria and Joy and to celebrate they've decided to throw a party at our (very disorganized and cluttered at the moment) apartment. From the sounds of it, it's shaping up to be quite a big "gala": it has already been decided that us 4 hostesses will all be decked out in dresses and last night's dinner table conversation centered around how many bottles of wine and vodka to buy (the latter of which will be bought in Italy- where cheap alcohol reigns).

And as for how many bodies will be crammed in our place, one can only guess: Maria was more than surprised when a guy we barely know turned to her last night in a bar and said ,"So you going to that party that that's happening on Saturday?"
Maria's reply: "Actually, it's my party".

D'oh!

This weekend shall be interesting...

Moving/ Le "Big Chill"

2006-04-30T12:06:00.000+02:00

So the assistantship is over... my last day of work was the 14th of April and I'm here until June 29th... so with all this free time on my hands and no real plans to travel until June, what's a girl to do???

Chill out on the beach, of course, hence the title of this blog posting! In the span of a few weeks, Nice has become a summer paradise and many a day has been spent lounging on its rocky beaches as the turquoise waves of Mediterranean kiss the shore. The weather has been consistently in the mid-20's (degrees celcius) and the sun has repeatedly greeted us with its presence- much appreciated by all!
Life hasn't been just "play" however... This week saw a lot of departures as assistants leave Nice to go back home to their respective countries. This week also saw "le grand déménagement", as my roomie Ceala (who went back to the States yesterday) and I stuggled to pack everything up and move out of our apartment by April 30th (not an enviable task I admit). Of course, I left packing till the last possible minute but with Sab's help I was able to move the bulk of my shit...er... stuff over to my new "abode" chez my favourite Brit, Maria, where I'll be staying until my big trip in June.

Re: the trip, it's official, I got my ticket last Friday! So from June 9th to 24th me and Sab will be touring Spain, Portugal and Morocco. I'm super excited about the trip, I did the exact trip with my friend Jesse two years ago and it was awesome... I'm particularily excited about going back to explore Morocco a bit more as the last time I went we didn't get to go as far south (to the desert) as we would have liked. Hurrah for the Interrail pass and unlimited train/sea/international/intercontinental travel!!!!!!!!

Let the good times roll!

-Oneika

Almost forgot I had this thing....

2006-04-16T12:54:00.000+02:00

Ok, I admit, I have been a terrible and neglectful blog mother... Does anybody read this thing anymore??? Holla!
But gimme a chance to redeem myself! Wow, it has surely been an interesting few months and random and unexpected changes in events have resulted in much fun and travel indeed! Each passing month has seen another mini-vacation, another change in scenery, and in some cases, another foreign language, so I have truly been blessed. A short recap of months past:

End of January:
-Trip to Paris with Sab, loads of fun despite blistering winds and grey skies
-resultant "gastro" due to too many roadside kebabs that had me in bed for 5 days straight... ugh

February:
-Trip to Rome with my fellow assistants "sisters": 6 girls going crazy in bella Italia's capital! One can only imagine all the drama that ensued!
-La suite: awesome trip to Barcelona with Sab, gorgeous scenery, weather, people...

March:
-Unexpected trip back home to Canada for a week for my grandfather's funeral...

April:
-Visit from MAMA! and...
-Subsequent trip to Athens, Greece!!!! Gyros and Kebabs rule!
-Acceptance to teacher's college! So it looks like it's back to school for me in September...

Tentative plans for May and June... Hopefully a tour of Spain, Portugal, and Morocco with Sab (the original Gupster)???? LOL

So now that I've managed to give my one or two readers up to speed on "mes aventures" I beseech you to take a peep at my photo website (which I'm a lot better at keeping up!). Besides, as they say, a picture's worth a thousand words!
www.flickr.com/photos/oneika

à bientôt!
-Oneika

A Day in St. Tropez

2006-01-18T13:20:00.000+01:00

This past Sunday, me, Kirsten (German assistant), Natalie (English assistant), and Patrick (a Frenchie that we know) went to St. Tropez, refuge for the rich and famous. St. Tropez is a hop, skip, and a jump from Nice (an hour's drive away), but just far enough to forget the hustle, bustle, embouteillages and travaux taking place in Nice and bask in the tranquility and wealth of the city of the upper-crust, virtually a ghost-town in the winter.

My 20 hour trip to Milan, Italy

2006-01-18T12:41:00.000+01:00

So 2 Saturday nights ago, at around 7:30, after a hearty dinner of no-name brand hot-dogs and frozen broccoli, I get a call on my cell phone. It turns out to be Joy, my friend and fellow English assistant. After getting the usual "How are you"'s and other niceties/small talk out of the way she asked me what my plans were for the evening. And that's when the unexpected proposition came: a road trip to Milan for a night/day, with departure of 9pm and a prospective return to Nice the next evening, Sunday. Never wanting to miss out on an adventure, I said yes and hurriedly packed and evening back with all the essentials: lipstick, mascara, eyeliner, and a semi-provocative "clubbing" top. After quickly running some necessary errands, I met Joy, her cousin (who was visiting from the US and was in fact the mastermind of the Milan trip), and Hector (our friend the spanish assistant) and we set out for an adventure abroad, moving onward toward the land of pizza, pasta and all kinds of tasty and fattening goodies. After a few directional mishaps (I was in charge of the map-reading after all *wink wink*) we made it to our final destination around 2 am (5 hours of travel when Milan is only about 3.5 hours away). Ever the adventurers (and party animals), me, Joy and Hector ventured out to a Milanese nightclub. The following day we took a good number of the sites that Milan had to offer, including the Duomo cathedral, the renowned La Scala theatre, and the original painting of the Last Supper (you know, the DaVinci masterpiece depicting Jesus, Judas and the other apostles at the moment that Jesus declares that he's been betrayed). All in all, good times!

I nearly forgot... Bonne Année!!!

2006-01-05T09:54:00.000+01:00

Happy New Year to one and all, here's hoping that 2006 will be a good one!

I'm back!!!

2006-01-05T09:24:00.000+01:00

So I figured that the beginning of 2006 was as good of a time as any to finally update this blog... Whew, it's been a long time since I've updated, unfortunately laziness ( and other sedentary type behaviour) has reared its ugly head (hence the dire lack of posts).... Where do I start??
No better place than where I left off I guess- the trip to Germany was pretty frickin' awesome... Me and Joy had a wonderful time, despite the sub-zero temperatures (it was below zero on most days... quite a switch from the mild weather in Nice), and language barriers (there's nothing worst than not speaking the language of a country you're visiting)! Berlin is a huge, bustling metropolis which is finally succeeding in overcoming its sordid past. We had the opportunity to discover the city's treasures and historical sites through the aid of our Australian tour guide, who took us and about 20 others on a (free!) 4-hour walking tour of Berlin. A visit to the remaining fragments of the Berlin wall was definitely a must, and we were not disappointed... Quite an unforgettable experience, when you recall just what that wall symbolized... Also not to be forgotten, the German nightlife... let's just say that these people know who to party, Berlin proved to be the best time I've have partying since I've gotten to Europe!
Since a picture's worth a thousand words... 1st pic: me partying it up at a nightclub in Berlin.. Why am I in a cage? Don't ask!! lol 2nd pic: me and Joy in aforementioned nightclub 3rd pic: me in front of one of the remaining parts of the Berlin wall.

I'm leaving on a jet plane... Again

2005-11-25T16:17:00.000+01:00

Who woulda thought I'd be on a plane again so soon? Gotta love EasyJet... By this time tomorrow I should be at the airport! Here's hoping there's no turbulence...

Stayed tuned for the next episode, entitled "Oneika does Deutschland"...
;-)

A picture is worth a thousand words.. and they spell "Oneika: out on the town!"

2005-11-23T12:20:00.000+01:00

Just a few more pics of friends et moi... Damn, I'm quite the blog updating machine lately! Pics : Me on a recent trip to a skating rink; Joy, Sab, and Alex when we went last Saturday to a Latin club named El Barrio; Dawn, Me, Joy, and Charlotte at the rink; Me and Jinna at a bar named Checkpoint; Aurélie, Alex, Sab, and Me at the same bar.

Off to Berlin on Saturday! Yay!

Winter is here- Sort of /Off to Berlin I go!

2005-11-22T12:01:00.000+01:00

Before I write anything, let me tell you first off that I'm going to Germany, babbbbby!!!! I leave for Berlin on Saturday, and get back to Nice the following Wednesday!! Me and my friend Joy are going, we were getting the travel itch and the price was right so.... I'll be getting to see another part of Europe that I never seen before, I'm so excited!

But I digress, that wasn't what I meant to write about... While you Canadians are busting out the heavy coats and toques, I'm putting on... an extra sweater. Winter in Nice, as it seems, is more like Fall in Canada: the leaves are just starting to change colour and fall off of the trees and the temperatures are just starting to dip. Admittedly though, I can't even brag, because I, regrettably, as forever frilleuse, that is, forever prone to be cold! Those of you who know me know that I freeze during the summertime, as overzealous bosses turn up the airconditioning so that their various establishments resemble arctic hell and I, cold and miserable, scramble outside to take refuge and defrost in the warm goodness of the summer sun. Ain't no different here in Nice. Sunday night I found myself making the long, cold walk home from a bar with my friend Isaac. Isaac (henceforth referred to as "Big I"- he's 6'7" and strapping) laughed at me as I wrapped my scarf around my head, put on gloves, and cursed the cold weather and the fact that I was naïve enough not to bring a proper winter coat to France. "It's goddamn freezing," I muttered, through chattering teeth. Big I laughed, unable to believe that I, a Canadian, would dare complain about the relatively mild Mediterranean climate. "No," I retorted, "seriously, it's super cold tonight, probably as cold as some places back home, the temperature really dips at night!" Big I, turned to me and smiled. "It's because you're soooo wee!" he blurted in a fake, lilting Scottish accent. I couldn't help laughing myself. Big I is quite literally, twice my size.
A walk past an outdoor thermometer billboard confirmed it: it was a "whopping" 12°C at about 11:30pm. The newspaper for that day confirmed that the high on Sunday afternoon was about 16°C. A glance at BBC World (one of the few English language television stations that we get) revealed that the high in Toronto was about 5°C. Er, guess I shouldn't complain.
*laughs sheepishly*

What the hell am I gonna do in Berlin! (Berlin, according to forecasts, is pretty damn cold, ugh). Pray for me yall! ;-)

Road Trip to Lyon

2005-11-22T10:37:00.000+01:00

During the 10 day nationwide holiday (known as the "Toussaint" or "All Saints Holiday"), I had the immense pleasure of making a road trip to Lyon, another city in France, about 4 hours drive northwest of Nice. There were a few reasons that I decided to go, including:

a) While Lyon is the second largest city in France (Paris, of course, is the largest), I had never been

b) My friend Julianna is living there now (she's doing the same program that I'm doing in Nice) and I haven't seen her since we left Canada in September

c) It's too close to Nice NOT to go

d) Lyon is THE restaurantation capital of France, reknowned for it's amazing cuisine- and yall know how much I lovvvve to eat...

e) I was on vacation, babbbbby!! So why the heck not go!

So for all the the above mentioned reasons, I decided that it was absolutely necessary to go and check the city out. So me, Sab (my favvourite frenchie ;-) ), Alex, and Marcinmoka headed north in Sab's little white Fiat. Lyon is a city of many treasures and it was great seeing Julianna! (and yes, the food was spectacular!) Here are a couple of pics, the first is of me and Julianna, the last two of me and Sab.

How I'm Living/ My Life in Photos

2005-11-17T10:07:00.000+01:00

Bonjour!!!!
Has it been a long time since I've written? For sure. Am I still alive? Most definitely (though dead broke, dare I say). Am I still having the time of my life? Hell yeah!!
Just a few pics to keep you salivating over my life on the French Riviera, where it's still sunny most days and 20° Celcius ( 72° F) in mid-November! Pics are of my apartment and various places around Nice. Dont hate me because I live here!

Guess Who??? (In Italy)

2005-10-18T12:48:00.000+02:00

Me and the ever-so-photogenic Marcin on our day trip to Ventimiglia, Italy a few weeks back. Aren't we (and the landscape, of course) stunning?? ;-) This picture, snapped by my roommate Ceala, was taken somewhere in between my bargaining with the various street merchants and Marcinmoka's haul of Polish vodka and Italian cigarettes.
(Zbrowska forever! haha, RESPEKT!)

Don't talk to strangers/School Daze

2005-10-06T12:40:00.000+02:00

So things have finally picked up, and, just as I feared, starting to prepare for work has left me with little time to practice the fine art of laziness and do frivolous things such as update this blog. Pity. And just in case you didn't get it the first time, I have indeed started my teaching assistant job, which means that I actually have to work (boo!) and put an end to the "fun in the sun" which has quickly become my life in Nice. However, work is nothing but a necessary evil; unfortunately, the swift and unforgiving passage of October 1st (rent day) has left my pockets feeling a little "light" if you know what I mean. But, as luck would have it, I get free internet access at the school that I work at (booya!) so at least I'll be spending a little less money at internet cafes, something that is definitely a fringe benefit!
This past week has been a whirlwind in terms of the various adminstrative headaches suffered in order to get the paperwork together so I could finally get this thing started. In the last few days, I have signed an enormous amount of papers and met an even larger amount of people. On Sunday for example, we had a huge orientation where all the assistants in Nice and the surrounding regions (about 200 of us) attended and attempted (in a mishmash of different languages) to get to know one another. Since the assistants that will be teaching in the region represent about 25 different nationalities and 6 languages (English, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, Russian, German), the whole "getting to know you" thing could get kind of complex:

Me: Hello! Bonjour!
Fellow Assistant (in heavily accented English) : Euh... Hello.
Me (realizing that they don't speak English) : Salut, bonjour! Je m'appelle Oneika, je suis du Canada.
Fellow Assistant (in heavily accented French) : Euh.... Bonjour.... Je ne parle pas bien le français.. doo you... speaka Ingleesh?

FIN (I'm getting good at writing dialogues, eh? ;-) )
***

Good times, lol. But seriously, it was great meeting other people doing the program and quite enriching as well, for obvious reasons. I'm sure I annoyed the Spanish and Italian assistants with my pathetic attempts to speak (my terrible) Spanish and Italian with them. But hey, whatever.

My first day at school (which was today) was super fun, to say the least. Though I was a tad grumpy this morning (I had to be at school before 8am and my school is a 20 minute walk away!), my grimace soon gave way to smiles when I met the students (who had varied and interesting reactions to my being there). Surprisingly enough, they were all very nice, motivated, and had a good level of English. I only attended 2 of the 5 classes I was supposed to see today and both were classes where the students are about the same age as I am (from 19 years old to 23). So I almost felt if I was among friends lol. All in all, the experience was cool, and I got a great schedule (I only work 3 days a week so 4 -day weekend!).

So now, at least, I can actually honestly say that I am gainfully employed. No more laziness/sleeping in/lounging for hours on the beach *sniff sniff, tear*. So get ready for a barrage of work stories/venting (à la shoe salesman Al Bundy from "Married with Children"), cuz I'm positive that I'll have stories a plenty. Since, you know, working part-time, as a teaching assistant on the French Riviera, in a high school located a 15 minute walk away from the Mediterranean sea, is like, sooooo stressful.
;-)

Broken Telephone / Che bella Italia!

2005-09-25T14:48:00.000+02:00

So my phone conversation with my Mom yesterday went something like this:

Me: Hey Mom, guess what?
(much crackling, dead air, and static ensues on phone line as I was too cheap and miserly to spend the extra 20 euros to get a cell phone with good reception. Finally, after what seems like an eternity...)
Mom: What?
Me: I went to Italy yesterday.
(silence...dead air)
Mom: What?
Me: Mom, I went to Italy yesterday.
(more static)
Mom: Whaat?
Me: Mom. Mom.
Mom: What? You went where?
Me: Mom, can you hear me?
Mom (shouting): Yes, I can hear you, can you hear me?
Me (agitated): Ummm... kinda. Are you talking really loudly, I can barely hear you.
Mom (talking really loudly): Yes, I'm shouting! Where did you go?
Me: To Italy. Yesterday.
***crackle crackle***
Mom: You went to Italy? Wow! When did you go?
Me: What?
Mom: When?
Me: Whaat? Oh... yesterday. On Friday.
Mom: So you went to Italy yesterday.
Me: Yup.
Mom: Oh.... Cool! I can hear you much better now. So what were you saying?

FIN
***
Ummm... so yeah, for those of you who didn't quite get that (like you, Mom!), a short recap. On Friday, me, my roommate, and Mr. Marcinmoka himself (whose photoblog is, like, sooooo not a "blog" blog *wink* ) went to Italy and back- well, technically. Ventimiglia, Italy is 45 mins from Nice on the train and is mostly known for its cheap liquor and cheap food and bric-a-brack market (Toronto peeps- think Kensington Market). Most notably, Ventimiglia is a haven for cheap designer knockoffs like counterfeit Louis Vuitton handbags and vinyl shoes that vaguely ressemble Manolo Blahniks or a pair of Jimmy Choos. And so we went. And saw. And conquered. And I came out of the whole deal with a bagful of cheap fruits and a very functional brown scarf that I purchased for a mere 2 euros. Sweeeet. And to top it off, I ate gelato. In Italy.
Ah, la bella Italia!

Io parlo Italiano / Hollywood in Europa

2005-09-20T11:41:00.000+02:00

So, some of you may remember when I bragged (er, told you) about having satellite tv in my new apartment. Well. What I neglected to realize at the time is that, more specifically, I have Italian satellite tv (which I guess makes some sort of sense since the owner of the apartment that me and C rent is Italian and resides in Bergamo, Italy). Which means that, of the 500+ channels that we have, about 75% of them are regrettably in Italian, a language which I can only remotely understand. Of the other 25%, about 24.999% are in languages that not only I cannot understand, but can barely identify (like Polish, German, Arabic, and a plethora of others that may include Trekkie for all I know). There are about 6 French stations and 4 English ones. Unfortunately, I'm too shallow to appreciate the English ones as they are all "serious" news channels like BBC world and CNBC, and something about NASDAQ and stock exchange reports just doesn't tickle my fancy/stir my soul/light my fire. Regrettably, I'm more into programming of the tabloid TV/trash talk show/cheesy soap opera variety. Darn.

But I digress. Being the naturally resourceful ladies that we are, me and C have made do with what we have. So in the last few days, we have watched Indian music videos, a Bulgarian concert, Egytian news telecasts, and even a little bit of the now infamous Al-Jazeera network. But we've really had our fill of Italian tv. Not surprising, since there are such a wide variety of Italian channels to choose from. I can now count from 1 to 100 in Italian and have increased my Italian vocabulary from a scant 10 words to about 30. Last night and the night before, we sat transfixed in front of the television as the "Miss Italia" beauty pageant unfolded. That's right folks, the pageant was about 7 hours long and had to be shown on two nights. We watched about 4 of those hours. Mamma mia. But more interesting was the guest judge that they had on. It was none other than Mr. Bruce Willis himself- you know, of Demi Moore / Ashton Kutcher fame. I almost didn't believe it was him, until they showed a 2 minute montage of his various movie roles. How odd. Wonder how he got that gig. Though, with the bevy of beauties to choose from, don't be surprised if you see Bruce with a pretty little Maria/Anna/Claudia on his arm at the "Die Hard 26" movie premiere. Lord knows that Bruce (and Demi, for that matter) has a penchant for dating younger people....
But the appearance of an American celebrity on European television was definitely weird. Maybe it's just me, but something about it just seemed kinda mismatched, like eating pickles with yogurt or something. What's more, a few nights back I spotted none other than songstress Mariah Carey on "Star Academy" (France's version of American Idol). Madame Carey, who was actually referred to as La Grande Diva on the show, made a guest appearance as the hopefuls sang (in poor English) her songs. Hilarious.

These sudden (and incongruous) appearances of Hollywood types on European tv makes me wonder who'll turn up next, and in what capacity. Maybe Puff Daddy (er, P. Diddy) Coombs as a competitor in a televised Swedish pie-eating contest?

French Women Don't Get Fat / Studies in Gluttony

2005-09-18T14:45:00.000+02:00

#1 Reason as to my stomach told me 'thank you' this morning: I ate a whole baguette smothered with camembert cheese (and it was damn good, down to the last morsel, thank you very much). Ahhh, the sweet mystery of the French diet. I don't know how these people stay slim when so many carb-laden goodies comprise such a large part of their alimentation. Dr. Atkins must be rolling in his grave. Though the French must be doing something right. Or at least, something "right enough", since I distinctly remember that a few months back a French lady uncovered the "French paradox" in her book "French Women Don't Get Fat". Surely she made some good coin off of the sales (especially since the book was specially marketed to diet-crazed North Americans). She probably bought an abundance of cheese, bread, and wine with the revenues... ;-)
So back to my near religious experience with the baguette this hallowed Sunday morning. Yesterday (Saturday), in preparation for the 'big day', I went out to my local Monoprix (kinda like a smaller French version of Wal-mart?) and bought myself a block of camembert cheese (not too stinky, but just stinky enough). After scoping out a few bakeries in the area, I finally came upon the winning baguette; just the right color and texture (you know, not too doughy, but not too crusty)- still warm from the oven. Even though the plan was to buy the baguette en route to the Internet cafe, I couldn't pass up the opportunity of having warm bread and camembert cheese! So I rushed back to the apartment and ate the whole thing (though I initially thought to save half for dinner). And boy was it mmmm mmmm good lol. I could get used to this...

So... life in Nice is good. In other news, later on this evening I'm going to the movies; I'm supposed to be seeing "Les Poupées Russes" (The Russian Dolls), which is actually the sequel to "L'Auberge Espagnole" (The Spanish Apartment). It's about- well, actually, never mind, I'm too lazy too write any plot synopses lol. Though, Audrey Tatou, the girl from "Amélie", stars in both films. But whatever.
Anyway... gotta go as my stomach is growling, so I'm off to eat the fourth croissant in a four-pack of croissants that I bought... yesterday.

And, uh, no, my pants aren't getting tighter, they just... er... shrunk in the washer and dryer. But thanks for asking.
;-)

From "Sans Domicile Fixe" to "Locataire"!!

2005-09-15T21:50:00.000+02:00

So in the last episode of "Oneika does France", our heroine found herself in a bit of a conundrum... staying at a (very spartan) hotel (hostel) whilst living out of a (battered)suitcase, subsisting on (60 cent) croissants and (no name brand) water... pounding the (hard and unforgiving) pavement, looking (day after day) for (decent and reasonably priced) lodging... her (limited and modest) cash flow dwindling by the minute...

Enough of the melodrama lol. But what's a girl to do?? Luckily, my dear friends, in the space of a day I have managed to go from homeless (sans domicile fixe) to a full-fledged renter (locataire)! My roommate C got to Nice on Wednesday and by Thursday afternoon we were signing the papers on the (more than decent, semi-reasonably priced) apartment! It's small though, and only has one bedroom, so we're turning the living room into a bedroom... However, what the apartment lacks in size, it makes up for in location and character! It's downtown, only a 10 minute walk from the Mediterranean sea, is newly and completely renovated, has an oh-so-french terrace/balcony, and is equipped with free satellite tv... booyah!! So as you can imagine, I'm pleased as punch and feel soooo adult, you know, since I have my own apartment and all lol.
So excuse me while I go home and gloat (to myself, in the dark).
;-)

J'arrive! / (Mis)adventures in France

2005-09-11T15:02:00.000+02:00

WARNING: this will be a LONG post... lol, so skim if you like!!
So I'm here! It's my 3rd day here and I'm in an internet cafe, but needless to say that after 20+ hours of transcontinental travel I'm finally in Nice, safe and sound. But of course, it being me, my arrival and subsequent "settling in" to my new life in Nice did not come without a few minor "glitches"... So most of you know that after an arduous search for lodging that I had finally found a studio apartment in a residence for students and young workers in Nice... yeah, well that didn't work out. Long story short, the place turned out not only to be located VERRRRRY far from the downtown core of Nice (which I had initially thought, it's actually located in the far eastern part of Nice), but it was also located in an "unsavoury" (aka kinda ghetto!!!!) part of town. The icing on the cake?? This residence should have really been called a "Roach Motel" for reasons that I won't elaborate on!! YUCK!!! Those of you who know me well know of my deathly fear of six-legged vermin so I wasn't about to stay in that place any longer than I had to!!! So after numerous and desperate phone calls home to Mom to complain/freak out/vent/get motherly advice, much hand-wringing, and after one horrid night in that place (sleeping with all the lights on and with one eye open LOL), I vacated the premises and moved myself and my two heavy suitcases all the way across town (on the public transit, to boot!) where I'm now staying in a hotel, LOL. Oh la la. Tomorrow I have to go back to that place to see how much of my money I can get back so wish me luck!! Luckily, I don't count on staying in the hotel for too long; I've been in contact with an American girl who will be teaching English at high schools (like me) and we'll be looking for an apartment together. She gets here on Wednesday!
Anyway, despite my "interesting" initiation to life in Nice, things are wonderful... The weather is gorgeous and the people in Nice are, well, very... nice lol. Some of the French people I've been talking to ask me if I'm from Quebec, don't realize I speak English, and tell me that I'm quite charming(LOL LOL LOL). As for getting to know people, I met up with another English assistant yesterday and she showed me around town (she moved to Nice a few weeks back with her French boyfriend). We walked along the beach boardwalk and sat down at an outdoor cafe, good times! Later on this evening I'm meeting up for drinks with another Canadian girl; she has actually been here for a few weeks, I think, teaching English at the local university. So should be fun!
Anyway, I'm off to the beach in a bit to enjoy the sea and the good weather! I'll write again soon, and feel free to write me and leave comments!! I love hearing from you guys!

I'm leaving on a jet plane...

2005-09-08T07:22:00.000+02:00

So after much procrastination, I've finally decided to jump onto the blogging bandwagon so as to keep family and friends abreast of the "goings on" en France, where I'll be an English teaching assistant in a French high school. Thanks to my mom and a couple of good friends (big shout out to J-Dawg and Juney!!), I'm packed and ready to go. Somehow I managed to pack most of my life into 2 medium-sized suitcases, but only after much huffing, puffing, and sitting on top of said suitcases (in an effort to flatten all that was inside, of course! lol). I board the plane in a few short hours... admittedly, this trip will be brutal as I am just realizing that I'll be traveling a for a loooooong time before I get to my final destination... I fly out from Toronto at 2:00pm today (Thursday) and don't get to Nice until Friday afternoon. My itinerary is daunting: I fly from Toronto to New York City, change planes, fly from NYC to Paris, then take a train from Paris to Marseille, then get off that train and then take another one from Marseille to Nice, my new home. Eek! Anyway, gotta go, I'm going to do a last minute luggage check. Next time I post I'll be in France! Wish me luck!