i just got finished with dinner with mme jeanson, her brother olivier, and his friend from argentina (talk about an international table!). though we all speak english perfectly well, olivier insisted we speak french.
well, crap. i can't have a conversation like that. it's like a constant test for me to speak in french. my shoulders get all tense (in fact, i just now untensed them) and i can't really say anything meaningful. i also have no confidence. i felt like the little kid at the table, especially because when the two jeansons spoke to me, they'd either speak really slowly, retarded french for me or give up and translate in english.
it's heartbreaking for me to not be able to crack a joke, or get my opinion across, or even ask a question. it makes me feel stupid and really bad about myself.
but, even when we slipped into english, i felt like a kid. i'm not grown up yet; i can't have grown up conversations yet, can i? i don't even know what the hell adults talk about, but here i am, hitting 21 in less than a month. is that when i learn how to talk about grown up things? will someone just give me a script?
the dinner wasn't as bad as i make it sound. i actually had a grand time...we talked about the drinking age, shared a couple drinking games, talked about how you NEED to speak english...tons of things. we ate for something like an hour, so you can imagine that we had lots of conversation.
oh, but the drinking thing. they pointed out that it was a very american thing to get SO drunk. i never realized that. i thought that everyone had their big drinking time, no matter where they were in the world. maybe our binge drinking is the result of that "forbidden fruit" thing.
20 November, 2007
london.
that blog title is inspired by the fabulous london eatery, "eat." that's seriously its name. it has mostly pre-made, packaged food (sandwiches, wraps, salads...you know the drill), which we were very hesitant about at first. turns out, the food there was delicious! i had a turkey/cranberry sandwich there and it was a piece of thanksgiving deliciousness in my mouth. "pret a manger" was pretty similar to eat (actually, i think it was the exact same stuff) but we avoided that one at first because the name of it is in french, and we were having a decidedly unfrench weekend.
the metros have been on strike since last tuesday or wednesday, so we had to wake up early to get to gare du nord to catch our 8 am train. after wandering around for half an hour in the dark and freezing cold, mal, chris and i found a cab and got to gare du nord WAY early. oh, well. we got through security quickly and got TWO stamps on our passport! that's an advantage to riding the eurostar: passport stamps. when we fly between EU countries, we don't have to get stamped :-(
anyway, the train left on time and we settled into the 2.5 hour-long ride. i switched back my clock (1 hour time difference between paris and london) and we all made funny jokes about getting train lag. ha, we're a riot.
i should probably mention that this was a communications study trip (both undergrad and grad students), so we were led by a few professors. once we got there, we got our first experience of professor doyle's excellent guiding skills. when i say excellent, i actually mean pretty awful. he's a really awkward guy and clearly not a leader, but he's nice and has good intentions, so i can't hate too much. he led us to the british library, right outside the train station, with all of us still dragging our bags. we were all irritated that we were doing this extra walking, especially since we were scheduled to go to the british library on saturday. but, no matter. we walked down to the celtic hotel, where we were to spend our next 4 days.
no, it wasn't a gorgeous hotel. i'd say it was a mix between a hostel and a hotel, actually. chris, mal, maddy and i shared a teeny room with four single beds and a sink in it (if you saw my house over the summer, it was like that...actually, yeah, pretty much that size minus the toilet/closet part). there was a shared bathroom and shower downstairs. the greatest part, though, was that we got a full english breakfast every morning: eggs, sausage, ham, hash browns, a mushroom and a tomato. when the housekeeper first told us what it entailed, we were kinda like, "omfg. nobody can eat that much food." but how wrong we were! i had the full english every morning and, of course, i finished it (except the mushroom...gross). and the housekeepers were these adorable fat and old women (and one old guy) who were incredibly sweet and helpful.
speaking of food...the english weren't skinny as a stick the same way the french are. in london, i was average sized, versus in paris, where i'm fat (no, i'm not just fishing for compliments...seriously, i'm larger than a big percent of the girls here). it was refreshing.
anyway, back to the london timeline. thursday morning, a few of us broke off from the group and wandered around london with no final destination. it was relaxing not having a go-go-go day, where we could just walk the streets slowly and get acquainted with the city. it was bizarre, but i felt comfortable in london almost instantly. maybe it was just cuz i spoke the language...but no, it was something more than that. the people there were just friendly and helpful, and to top it off it was a sunny, lovely day when we arrived.
at 330 we went to the bbc television centre for a tour. this turned out to be my favorite part of the trip. we watched them work in the newsroom (ooo how my newspapery heart wanted to be back in that) and saw some of the studios they film in. at the end, he called for volunteers to read the news/play on a game show. i volunteered for the game show (duh) and totally pwnd my competitors (would you expect anything less?).
mal, maddy and i went to a cute candy shop off oxford street thursday night (mrs klibber's candy shop or something equally quaint). when we asked the guy how long it had been opened, we were disappointed when he proudly said, "oh, about four weeks!" lol we went to a pub/restaurant he recommended for dinner just down the street. i ordered--what else--fish and chips. mmmmmmmm great choice. we were gonna go to a pub after that but were too tuckered out, so we just bought some bacardi breezers and wine and headed back to the hotel. stupid us, we didn't have a can opener, so we spent 10 minutes trying to weasel off the blasted caps. when maddy finally got one off, we screamed with joy. we were so laughy it was like we were already drunk...lol. good night.
friday was jam packed. we started out with a talk with an editor from the guardian, which i loved because hey, that's what i do, but everyone else found rather dull. then we walked to the london museum, but were bored because i swear it was a museum for CHILDREN. there was an exhibit on the london fires and there was a bucket. "pick up the bucket. how does it feel? how does it smell?" god, i dunno, it smells like a freaking bucket.
globe theater, up next. i enjoyed this much more than i thought i would, because i'm not much of a shakespeare connoisseur. it was fun daydreaming and imagining myself back in shakespeare's day, sitting in the gentlemen's room (of course i have enough money for that...remember? i'm dreaming) and watching "a midsummer night's dream" in my huge dress, corset pulled tight.
oh, right, after that i went to the tate modern! that ruled...on opposite day. modern art is retarded. no, no, no, don't tell me i "don't get it." one painting was a canvas that someone literally THREW paint on. another was a canvas pulled tight with a slash in it. THAT'S NOT ART. i did that like 13 years ago. there was also a video of a naked woman washing herself in the corner. that's porn.
following that great cultural experience was the bbc radio taping of "buy me up tv," a radio sitcom. i'd never seen/heard a radio sitcom before, so i was intrigued. i had a lot of fun--the people were funny and the story line was easy to follow. you know who was there? that one guy from who's line is it anyway...no, not drew carey, not the tall guy, not the bald guy, but the other guy...greg proops. man, he's a riot.
it was late by the time we finished, so we just grabbed a meal (quick, but not cheap..8 pounds>$16. i realized that maybe i CAN afford expensive dishes) and went home.
ah, here we are at saturday. this is getting long, eh? ah, no matter. we headed to the british library around 10 am and had another "great" tour. lol actually, only the organization was awful; the professors were very knowledgeable about all the old texts (mostly religious) that we saw and i quite enjoyed everything they taught us. it made me want to take a religious studies class again.
after that was through, we hopped on a red double decker bus (tourists!) and dashed around the city. buckingham palace was not as grand as i expected it to be, but i bet the inside is wonderful. saturday we mostly just rode the bus around the city and saturday night we wandered oxford street some more.
saturday night=dinner in soho. i got to mingle with some of my coworkers, so that was cool. (that was a joke...like i'm a hooker...get it?) we went into a licensed sex shop (where do you apply for that license?) and giggled at everything. so mature. because english food isn't exactly delectable, we treated ourselves to an italian meal, complete with a bottle of wine and a dessert :-) i'm not thinking about how expensive that was in dollars.
we went to a couple pubs in soho, but wanted to catch the tube home (and didn't wanna spend money to get into a club), so we got back early and stayed up late talking. those sorts of nights are my favorite, anyway.
sunday morning we were supposed to go to the british library, but decided to skip out on that and see hyde park/harrod's instead. hyde park was vast and i wish it wasn't so damn COLD there, because i didn't enjoy it fully. despite the chilly temperatures (it must have been 1 or 2 degrees celcius), bunches of people were still running. they must be effing mad.
before noon, we headed over to harrod's, which is the biggest department store i've ever seen. it was only open from 12-6 on sunday, so people were lined up out the door at 11:50. as soon as the doors opened, we made our way to a café (and then to another, better café) and ordered some tea. ooo and i got some shortbread...scrumptious. now that we had energy, we made it to the christmas floor, which was draped with ornaments of every kind and tons of other christmas decorations. it satisfied my day-after-thanksgiving, crazy-shopping urges (though i didn't buy much).
we had to be back at the hotel by 4 to walk to the train station and catch the chunnel home at 530. fatigued and hungry, we flopped down on the train, set our clocks to paris time, and made more train lag jokes. we got to gare du nord around 9 pm, took a couple packed metros (yes, they're still striking...) and a cab, and i finally made it home around 10 pm. i opened my door to a clean room and a freshly made bed. there is NOTHING better than that. mme jeanson treats me too well :-D
the metros have been on strike since last tuesday or wednesday, so we had to wake up early to get to gare du nord to catch our 8 am train. after wandering around for half an hour in the dark and freezing cold, mal, chris and i found a cab and got to gare du nord WAY early. oh, well. we got through security quickly and got TWO stamps on our passport! that's an advantage to riding the eurostar: passport stamps. when we fly between EU countries, we don't have to get stamped :-(
anyway, the train left on time and we settled into the 2.5 hour-long ride. i switched back my clock (1 hour time difference between paris and london) and we all made funny jokes about getting train lag. ha, we're a riot.
i should probably mention that this was a communications study trip (both undergrad and grad students), so we were led by a few professors. once we got there, we got our first experience of professor doyle's excellent guiding skills. when i say excellent, i actually mean pretty awful. he's a really awkward guy and clearly not a leader, but he's nice and has good intentions, so i can't hate too much. he led us to the british library, right outside the train station, with all of us still dragging our bags. we were all irritated that we were doing this extra walking, especially since we were scheduled to go to the british library on saturday. but, no matter. we walked down to the celtic hotel, where we were to spend our next 4 days.
no, it wasn't a gorgeous hotel. i'd say it was a mix between a hostel and a hotel, actually. chris, mal, maddy and i shared a teeny room with four single beds and a sink in it (if you saw my house over the summer, it was like that...actually, yeah, pretty much that size minus the toilet/closet part). there was a shared bathroom and shower downstairs. the greatest part, though, was that we got a full english breakfast every morning: eggs, sausage, ham, hash browns, a mushroom and a tomato. when the housekeeper first told us what it entailed, we were kinda like, "omfg. nobody can eat that much food." but how wrong we were! i had the full english every morning and, of course, i finished it (except the mushroom...gross). and the housekeepers were these adorable fat and old women (and one old guy) who were incredibly sweet and helpful.
speaking of food...the english weren't skinny as a stick the same way the french are. in london, i was average sized, versus in paris, where i'm fat (no, i'm not just fishing for compliments...seriously, i'm larger than a big percent of the girls here). it was refreshing.
anyway, back to the london timeline. thursday morning, a few of us broke off from the group and wandered around london with no final destination. it was relaxing not having a go-go-go day, where we could just walk the streets slowly and get acquainted with the city. it was bizarre, but i felt comfortable in london almost instantly. maybe it was just cuz i spoke the language...but no, it was something more than that. the people there were just friendly and helpful, and to top it off it was a sunny, lovely day when we arrived.
at 330 we went to the bbc television centre for a tour. this turned out to be my favorite part of the trip. we watched them work in the newsroom (ooo how my newspapery heart wanted to be back in that) and saw some of the studios they film in. at the end, he called for volunteers to read the news/play on a game show. i volunteered for the game show (duh) and totally pwnd my competitors (would you expect anything less?).
mal, maddy and i went to a cute candy shop off oxford street thursday night (mrs klibber's candy shop or something equally quaint). when we asked the guy how long it had been opened, we were disappointed when he proudly said, "oh, about four weeks!" lol we went to a pub/restaurant he recommended for dinner just down the street. i ordered--what else--fish and chips. mmmmmmmm great choice. we were gonna go to a pub after that but were too tuckered out, so we just bought some bacardi breezers and wine and headed back to the hotel. stupid us, we didn't have a can opener, so we spent 10 minutes trying to weasel off the blasted caps. when maddy finally got one off, we screamed with joy. we were so laughy it was like we were already drunk...lol. good night.
friday was jam packed. we started out with a talk with an editor from the guardian, which i loved because hey, that's what i do, but everyone else found rather dull. then we walked to the london museum, but were bored because i swear it was a museum for CHILDREN. there was an exhibit on the london fires and there was a bucket. "pick up the bucket. how does it feel? how does it smell?" god, i dunno, it smells like a freaking bucket.
globe theater, up next. i enjoyed this much more than i thought i would, because i'm not much of a shakespeare connoisseur. it was fun daydreaming and imagining myself back in shakespeare's day, sitting in the gentlemen's room (of course i have enough money for that...remember? i'm dreaming) and watching "a midsummer night's dream" in my huge dress, corset pulled tight.
oh, right, after that i went to the tate modern! that ruled...on opposite day. modern art is retarded. no, no, no, don't tell me i "don't get it." one painting was a canvas that someone literally THREW paint on. another was a canvas pulled tight with a slash in it. THAT'S NOT ART. i did that like 13 years ago. there was also a video of a naked woman washing herself in the corner. that's porn.
following that great cultural experience was the bbc radio taping of "buy me up tv," a radio sitcom. i'd never seen/heard a radio sitcom before, so i was intrigued. i had a lot of fun--the people were funny and the story line was easy to follow. you know who was there? that one guy from who's line is it anyway...no, not drew carey, not the tall guy, not the bald guy, but the other guy...greg proops. man, he's a riot.
it was late by the time we finished, so we just grabbed a meal (quick, but not cheap..8 pounds>$16. i realized that maybe i CAN afford expensive dishes) and went home.
ah, here we are at saturday. this is getting long, eh? ah, no matter. we headed to the british library around 10 am and had another "great" tour. lol actually, only the organization was awful; the professors were very knowledgeable about all the old texts (mostly religious) that we saw and i quite enjoyed everything they taught us. it made me want to take a religious studies class again.
after that was through, we hopped on a red double decker bus (tourists!) and dashed around the city. buckingham palace was not as grand as i expected it to be, but i bet the inside is wonderful. saturday we mostly just rode the bus around the city and saturday night we wandered oxford street some more.
saturday night=dinner in soho. i got to mingle with some of my coworkers, so that was cool. (that was a joke...like i'm a hooker...get it?) we went into a licensed sex shop (where do you apply for that license?) and giggled at everything. so mature. because english food isn't exactly delectable, we treated ourselves to an italian meal, complete with a bottle of wine and a dessert :-) i'm not thinking about how expensive that was in dollars.
we went to a couple pubs in soho, but wanted to catch the tube home (and didn't wanna spend money to get into a club), so we got back early and stayed up late talking. those sorts of nights are my favorite, anyway.
sunday morning we were supposed to go to the british library, but decided to skip out on that and see hyde park/harrod's instead. hyde park was vast and i wish it wasn't so damn COLD there, because i didn't enjoy it fully. despite the chilly temperatures (it must have been 1 or 2 degrees celcius), bunches of people were still running. they must be effing mad.
before noon, we headed over to harrod's, which is the biggest department store i've ever seen. it was only open from 12-6 on sunday, so people were lined up out the door at 11:50. as soon as the doors opened, we made our way to a café (and then to another, better café) and ordered some tea. ooo and i got some shortbread...scrumptious. now that we had energy, we made it to the christmas floor, which was draped with ornaments of every kind and tons of other christmas decorations. it satisfied my day-after-thanksgiving, crazy-shopping urges (though i didn't buy much).
we had to be back at the hotel by 4 to walk to the train station and catch the chunnel home at 530. fatigued and hungry, we flopped down on the train, set our clocks to paris time, and made more train lag jokes. we got to gare du nord around 9 pm, took a couple packed metros (yes, they're still striking...) and a cab, and i finally made it home around 10 pm. i opened my door to a clean room and a freshly made bed. there is NOTHING better than that. mme jeanson treats me too well :-D
18 November, 2007
i bloody miss london
i'm too tired to give you guys the full london updates right now (plus, i dont have my pictures uploaded yet, and i use those as an outline for what i want to write about), but i'll just give you the highlights.
--i forgot how easy it is to be in a country where i speak the native tongue fluently. i haven't been in a place where i know what every sign says in 2.5 months. i felt like being extra chatty with the brits (who were quite friendly and seemed to enjoy my talkativeness). i wonder if i'll be more outgoing/jokey with strangers when i go home, just because i can.
--london was fully dressed in christmas attire! oxford street--the big shopping avenue--was decked out in lights draped over the store windows and across the street, with the phrase, "have an enchanted christmas" written in lights. in that kind of bright environment, it's hard not to. paris needs to catch up with this christmas thing. i've begun by putting christmas music on my ipod (okay, so thanksgiving hasn't come yet...shoot me).
--my fave part of london: a tour we took of the bbc television centre. i think. though i loved the city itself, and all the people who were in it. bah, i can't pick.
here's a side note that's not about london at all: it's cold in my room, i turned the heater on (which i might have done wrong, because i've never used it and there are no directions). now it smells like the heater does when you turn it on for the first time. christmas must be fast approaching.
--i forgot how easy it is to be in a country where i speak the native tongue fluently. i haven't been in a place where i know what every sign says in 2.5 months. i felt like being extra chatty with the brits (who were quite friendly and seemed to enjoy my talkativeness). i wonder if i'll be more outgoing/jokey with strangers when i go home, just because i can.
--london was fully dressed in christmas attire! oxford street--the big shopping avenue--was decked out in lights draped over the store windows and across the street, with the phrase, "have an enchanted christmas" written in lights. in that kind of bright environment, it's hard not to. paris needs to catch up with this christmas thing. i've begun by putting christmas music on my ipod (okay, so thanksgiving hasn't come yet...shoot me).
--my fave part of london: a tour we took of the bbc television centre. i think. though i loved the city itself, and all the people who were in it. bah, i can't pick.
here's a side note that's not about london at all: it's cold in my room, i turned the heater on (which i might have done wrong, because i've never used it and there are no directions). now it smells like the heater does when you turn it on for the first time. christmas must be fast approaching.
14 November, 2007
the housing search continues
or, "100TH POST PARTY!!!!"
already 100 posts? wow. i've only been in france for 75 days...that's more than a blog a day. oh, except i should minus the first few entries because those were from before i left. anyway, grab a drink and enjoy the 100TH POST PARTY!!!!
i wish i had something more exciting to tell you, like that i suddenly fell upon 100,000 euros or that my prince charming climbed up to my window despite the fiery protests of the dragon guarding my castle (okay, that's a little excessive), but i've got nothing. in fact, this post is largely the result of procrastination, and it's pretty much about nothing (maybe you've noticed that already).
i've been looking for more apartments to rent. i love reading people's descriptions of their apartments/themselves.
Everyone who lives here is a student and takes it "fairly seriously" yet they still like to go out on weekends and some weekdays. why did you put "fairly seriously" in quotes? is that like an inside joke in your house because you really don't study at all? also...you go out on some weekdays. that fact, plus the "fairly seriously" thing, makes me think you, sir, aren't all that serious about school at all.
$660 awesome room in sorority house!!! like OMFG!
already 100 posts? wow. i've only been in france for 75 days...that's more than a blog a day. oh, except i should minus the first few entries because those were from before i left. anyway, grab a drink and enjoy the 100TH POST PARTY!!!!
i wish i had something more exciting to tell you, like that i suddenly fell upon 100,000 euros or that my prince charming climbed up to my window despite the fiery protests of the dragon guarding my castle (okay, that's a little excessive), but i've got nothing. in fact, this post is largely the result of procrastination, and it's pretty much about nothing (maybe you've noticed that already).
i've been looking for more apartments to rent. i love reading people's descriptions of their apartments/themselves.
Everyone who lives here is a student and takes it "fairly seriously" yet they still like to go out on weekends and some weekdays. why did you put "fairly seriously" in quotes? is that like an inside joke in your house because you really don't study at all? also...you go out on some weekdays. that fact, plus the "fairly seriously" thing, makes me think you, sir, aren't all that serious about school at all.
$660 awesome room in sorority house!!! like OMFG!
ah, they're striking again.
perhaps it will be more effective this time. why do i say that? because it's freaking COLD and this lack of metro/RER system is making me walk to school. the colder people are, maybe the more likely they are to complain to sarkozy, who will just give these workers their benefits already.
then again, i still don't think sarkozy will budge. good for him.
then again, i still don't think sarkozy will budge. good for him.
oh, just one more thing
on my way home from the airport in paris, i wrote in my notebook some more. warning: i get emotional.
12/11/07 about 8pm on the RER to paris
yes, my trip was wonderful and i should be focusing on that right now, but i can't. i'm anxious from a whole day of traveling. i wasn't antsy until i sat on the plane from ams to cdg and realized i'd left my big coat in cph. of fucking course. and right as the first gusts of winter are sweeping through the city, too. i tried to reason to myself at first that i could do without it. then i realized that i'd be going to london on thursday (read: even colder) so i'll probably need to come up with a solution before then. i think i can find a coat for 40 euro or less at h&m, but that's 30 pounds i'd rather spend on souvenirs. then again, i have kind of wanted another coat...they have some really cute ones. meh.
i spent the plane ride half bothered by my dumb forgetfulness. the other half of me was focused on one of the most striking sunsets i've ever seen. from above the clouds, i could see the sun seep across the sky, both vertically and horizontally. the blood red orange led to a baby blue, which gave way to the deepest black. it happened to the left and the right, as well as overhead. i stared at it for about 15 minutes (meh, it was prob less), in utter awe of the most beautiful thing i'd seen all weekend.
i also just wanted to call mom and have her see it, too. i wanted to make her come look the same way she makes us come look at the sunset in san clemente.
now i'm crying on the RER, all by myself. sometimes how much i miss my family and friends surprises me. it's got incredibly force and it lurches on me so unexpectedly.
i've been so hard at work ignoring how much i miss home because i don't want to let it cloud my time here. i've only got four months, and even 1 day wasted on pining for home is too much.
but, as much as i might deny it, i miss the crap out of my family. i've never wanted to hug them so much.
i don't want to try to reflect on how i've changed and become more emotional on this trip. i just want to sit here in this bizarre mixture of desperate sadness and extreme joy. nobody really explained that i'd have this emotion. then again, i'm sort of glad for that. this emotional state is hard to explain, anyhow. heck, maybe someone DID explain to me that i'd feel this, but i just didn't understand.
now i think i've composed myself. geez, i didn't realize that i needed to cry. writing has always had this odd way of both unleashing my protected emotions and comforting me in a way few (if any) people can.
and to think, i came here initially to bitch about my forgetfulness.
12/11/07 about 8pm on the RER to paris
yes, my trip was wonderful and i should be focusing on that right now, but i can't. i'm anxious from a whole day of traveling. i wasn't antsy until i sat on the plane from ams to cdg and realized i'd left my big coat in cph. of fucking course. and right as the first gusts of winter are sweeping through the city, too. i tried to reason to myself at first that i could do without it. then i realized that i'd be going to london on thursday (read: even colder) so i'll probably need to come up with a solution before then. i think i can find a coat for 40 euro or less at h&m, but that's 30 pounds i'd rather spend on souvenirs. then again, i have kind of wanted another coat...they have some really cute ones. meh.
i spent the plane ride half bothered by my dumb forgetfulness. the other half of me was focused on one of the most striking sunsets i've ever seen. from above the clouds, i could see the sun seep across the sky, both vertically and horizontally. the blood red orange led to a baby blue, which gave way to the deepest black. it happened to the left and the right, as well as overhead. i stared at it for about 15 minutes (meh, it was prob less), in utter awe of the most beautiful thing i'd seen all weekend.
i also just wanted to call mom and have her see it, too. i wanted to make her come look the same way she makes us come look at the sunset in san clemente.
now i'm crying on the RER, all by myself. sometimes how much i miss my family and friends surprises me. it's got incredibly force and it lurches on me so unexpectedly.
i've been so hard at work ignoring how much i miss home because i don't want to let it cloud my time here. i've only got four months, and even 1 day wasted on pining for home is too much.
but, as much as i might deny it, i miss the crap out of my family. i've never wanted to hug them so much.
i don't want to try to reflect on how i've changed and become more emotional on this trip. i just want to sit here in this bizarre mixture of desperate sadness and extreme joy. nobody really explained that i'd have this emotion. then again, i'm sort of glad for that. this emotional state is hard to explain, anyhow. heck, maybe someone DID explain to me that i'd feel this, but i just didn't understand.
now i think i've composed myself. geez, i didn't realize that i needed to cry. writing has always had this odd way of both unleashing my protected emotions and comforting me in a way few (if any) people can.
and to think, i came here initially to bitch about my forgetfulness.
13 November, 2007
i killed one.
that last blog was fun, wasn't it? i think my personality is a bit different on paper than it is virtually. anyway, on to more stories.
i arrived in cph friday night. venz met me at the airport and we headed on denmark's brand new metro to his house. (side note: every time i see another city's metro system, i scoff at it, then show my other worldy friends my impressive paris metro map. ha, take that) we ate a home cooked meal, caught up, and gossiped about sb people. gosh, i've missed that. i missed hanging out with venz in general. he used to be around so much, and i guess i didnt really realize how much i'd grown accustomed to having him be physically there to talk to.
saturday morning we woke up and headed to venz's summer house in a city i can't spell or even remember. we met up with venz's cousin alex and venz's dad's cousin and his wife (holgard and eva...venz, correct me on the spelling of their names). we drove out about 100 km i think and when we finally got there, we started driving down this dirt road, through a forest with sunlight streaming through the top and tiny cottages peeking from behind the trees. it was incredibly quaint and picturesque...in fact, that's how i can describe my whole day at the summer house. eva and holgard brought us into their home (of course it was all wooden inside), gave us warm socks and lit the fire to keep us warm. we went into the little town with shops, filled with people doing their saturday shopping (but, then again, this is still a small town, so "filled" doesn't mean tons).
we headed back, but this time went to venz's house. the place looks like nobody has replaced the stuff in there since the 70s, just added things since then--in a good way. it reminds me of the beach house in san clemente. in the summer house, there were tons of old books/comics and old games. we played a round of scrabble (i pwnd, duh) and hung around the house for a couple hours, but because we had no heat there, we headed back to eva and holgard's place pretty quickly. we made the windiest, coldest trek back toward their house and rejoiced in the heat the fire gave us. at dinner, we chatted easily, and alex, venz, eva and holgard eventually fell into talking about family gossipy stuff. i loved this, but i don't know if it's because i miss it in my family, or because i never REALLY had it (my family is small and not incredibly close...but this doesn't mean i'm complaining). either way, i was so content to be listening to stories by the fire, laughing at holgard's story of killing a poisonous viper (you have to understand, this guy is a quiet, incredibly respectful, wouldn't-kill-a-mouse type guy...and then, we're talking about vipers, and he just unemotionally states, "i killed one. it should have been three.") and just basking in the comfort of a borrowed family.
alex, venz and i headed back to cph around 8 pm, sharing christmas beers and stories about being kids. we went out and got ice cream once we got back (yeah, in the FREEZING cold..but it was delicious and so worth it), wandered around with venz's friends for a little while, then went back to venz's room. venz and i cuddled and fell asleep together. HA jk. he wishes.
sunday was our decidedly tourist day. we borrowed a bike from venz's friend and hit the streets (geez, it was freaking cold). we ate at a bakery and headed to christiania. i was fascinated and kept asking venz questions, which i'm sure he got annoyed with but was patient with me anyway. it seems like a funky place to visit, but i'd never want to live there. i'd always feel dirty.
then we biked over to new haven (er, nyhavyn, or some danish spelling). again, picturesque. the colors on the buildings were vivid and a welcome contrast to the gray parisian buildings i'm used to.
then i saw one of the top ten most awesome things ever: a drawbridge going up. we saw that the guards were gonna clear the bridge to pull it up. "you wanna watch?" venz asked. duh. what used to be a flat street across the water began to tilt up and up, the angle getting larger and larger. we were in awe. it was like two kids seeing a magic show for the first time.
after they put the bridge back, we continued on to less awesome but still great things. we saw the changing of the guards and the opera house, then biked out to the little mermaid. this is one of the things copenhagen is most famous for. hans christian andersen lived there, so this mermaid is a sort of memorial for him. WELL IT WAS DISAPPOINTING. we get there and it's just this mermaid, sitting lamely on a bland rock, staring in the water, not even looking particularly pretty or pensive. she was small, too--maybe half to three quarters of the size of me. venz warned me it would be lame like this, but i guess i just didn't believe him.
anyway, that mermaid really made me want to drink beer, so we went to the carlsburg brewery. jk...i mean, about the mermaid making me want beer. we'd planned to go to carlsburg all along. the danes love their beer and i understand why--it's an effective way to keep warm in these FREEZING months. after we wandered through the factory and saw the HUGEST beer bottle collection in the world (and explained edward forty hands to non-americans...lol that's a silly game we have, isn't it?), we enjoyed a couple beers--including the christmas brew--and headed back to venz's dorm so he could cook dinner for his hall (mmmmm fajitas). we returned the bike to his friend first and once we stepped outside her apartment, we saw it: SNOW!!!!!
it was freaking snowing. i didnt believe it at first. it must just be hail, or weird looking rain, i reasoned. i couldn't be so lucky to have snow on this trip, too. but i opened my mouth and tested it and, by gosh, it was snow. i started squealing and jumping around and generally freaking out. venz was getting into the spirit a bit, too, but he was also all complainy about it ("how much more of this am i gonna have?")...lol. silly venz.
we spent the rest of the night looking outside and saying, "look! it's still snowing." we got warm and dry and spent a long time just talking. i loved hanging out with venz because it made me realize what stupendous friends i've made in sb :-)
monday, we went to the airport fairly early so i could shop around the "largest airport mall in europe" supposedly (or so said the signs inside the shopping area in the cph airport). my flight got off without a hitch, and i was in the air, headed for amsterdam.
i had a three hour layover there, and i was so the opposite of mad about that. i wandered around the christmasy shops for the first hour and a half, then grabbed myself a gingerbread latte and settled into a new book (nicholas sparks' three weeks with my brother). it was three of the most enjoyable, most relaxing hours i've had in a while. really, i don't know why people complain about flying so much. i think it's just wonderful.
i arrived in cph friday night. venz met me at the airport and we headed on denmark's brand new metro to his house. (side note: every time i see another city's metro system, i scoff at it, then show my other worldy friends my impressive paris metro map. ha, take that) we ate a home cooked meal, caught up, and gossiped about sb people. gosh, i've missed that. i missed hanging out with venz in general. he used to be around so much, and i guess i didnt really realize how much i'd grown accustomed to having him be physically there to talk to.
saturday morning we woke up and headed to venz's summer house in a city i can't spell or even remember. we met up with venz's cousin alex and venz's dad's cousin and his wife (holgard and eva...venz, correct me on the spelling of their names). we drove out about 100 km i think and when we finally got there, we started driving down this dirt road, through a forest with sunlight streaming through the top and tiny cottages peeking from behind the trees. it was incredibly quaint and picturesque...in fact, that's how i can describe my whole day at the summer house. eva and holgard brought us into their home (of course it was all wooden inside), gave us warm socks and lit the fire to keep us warm. we went into the little town with shops, filled with people doing their saturday shopping (but, then again, this is still a small town, so "filled" doesn't mean tons).
we headed back, but this time went to venz's house. the place looks like nobody has replaced the stuff in there since the 70s, just added things since then--in a good way. it reminds me of the beach house in san clemente. in the summer house, there were tons of old books/comics and old games. we played a round of scrabble (i pwnd, duh) and hung around the house for a couple hours, but because we had no heat there, we headed back to eva and holgard's place pretty quickly. we made the windiest, coldest trek back toward their house and rejoiced in the heat the fire gave us. at dinner, we chatted easily, and alex, venz, eva and holgard eventually fell into talking about family gossipy stuff. i loved this, but i don't know if it's because i miss it in my family, or because i never REALLY had it (my family is small and not incredibly close...but this doesn't mean i'm complaining). either way, i was so content to be listening to stories by the fire, laughing at holgard's story of killing a poisonous viper (you have to understand, this guy is a quiet, incredibly respectful, wouldn't-kill-a-mouse type guy...and then, we're talking about vipers, and he just unemotionally states, "i killed one. it should have been three.") and just basking in the comfort of a borrowed family.
alex, venz and i headed back to cph around 8 pm, sharing christmas beers and stories about being kids. we went out and got ice cream once we got back (yeah, in the FREEZING cold..but it was delicious and so worth it), wandered around with venz's friends for a little while, then went back to venz's room. venz and i cuddled and fell asleep together. HA jk. he wishes.
sunday was our decidedly tourist day. we borrowed a bike from venz's friend and hit the streets (geez, it was freaking cold). we ate at a bakery and headed to christiania. i was fascinated and kept asking venz questions, which i'm sure he got annoyed with but was patient with me anyway. it seems like a funky place to visit, but i'd never want to live there. i'd always feel dirty.
then we biked over to new haven (er, nyhavyn, or some danish spelling). again, picturesque. the colors on the buildings were vivid and a welcome contrast to the gray parisian buildings i'm used to.
then i saw one of the top ten most awesome things ever: a drawbridge going up. we saw that the guards were gonna clear the bridge to pull it up. "you wanna watch?" venz asked. duh. what used to be a flat street across the water began to tilt up and up, the angle getting larger and larger. we were in awe. it was like two kids seeing a magic show for the first time. after they put the bridge back, we continued on to less awesome but still great things. we saw the changing of the guards and the opera house, then biked out to the little mermaid. this is one of the things copenhagen is most famous for. hans christian andersen lived there, so this mermaid is a sort of memorial for him. WELL IT WAS DISAPPOINTING. we get there and it's just this mermaid, sitting lamely on a bland rock, staring in the water, not even looking particularly pretty or pensive. she was small, too--maybe half to three quarters of the size of me. venz warned me it would be lame like this, but i guess i just didn't believe him.
anyway, that mermaid really made me want to drink beer, so we went to the carlsburg brewery. jk...i mean, about the mermaid making me want beer. we'd planned to go to carlsburg all along. the danes love their beer and i understand why--it's an effective way to keep warm in these FREEZING months. after we wandered through the factory and saw the HUGEST beer bottle collection in the world (and explained edward forty hands to non-americans...lol that's a silly game we have, isn't it?), we enjoyed a couple beers--including the christmas brew--and headed back to venz's dorm so he could cook dinner for his hall (mmmmm fajitas). we returned the bike to his friend first and once we stepped outside her apartment, we saw it: SNOW!!!!!
it was freaking snowing. i didnt believe it at first. it must just be hail, or weird looking rain, i reasoned. i couldn't be so lucky to have snow on this trip, too. but i opened my mouth and tested it and, by gosh, it was snow. i started squealing and jumping around and generally freaking out. venz was getting into the spirit a bit, too, but he was also all complainy about it ("how much more of this am i gonna have?")...lol. silly venz.
we spent the rest of the night looking outside and saying, "look! it's still snowing." we got warm and dry and spent a long time just talking. i loved hanging out with venz because it made me realize what stupendous friends i've made in sb :-)
monday, we went to the airport fairly early so i could shop around the "largest airport mall in europe" supposedly (or so said the signs inside the shopping area in the cph airport). my flight got off without a hitch, and i was in the air, headed for amsterdam.
i had a three hour layover there, and i was so the opposite of mad about that. i wandered around the christmasy shops for the first hour and a half, then grabbed myself a gingerbread latte and settled into a new book (nicholas sparks' three weeks with my brother). it was three of the most enjoyable, most relaxing hours i've had in a while. really, i don't know why people complain about flying so much. i think it's just wonderful.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
