Epic Transport Fail: Day 1

The whirlwind that was the Paris Trip begins... I was sharing a cabin on the train with a couple of guys who looked African, and asked me if I drank rum. They had a few swigs during the trip, and were kind enough to offer me some (which I politely refused). They were also kind enough to put my big suitcase up on the rack for me. :)

When I eventually got to Paris (everyone loves 7-hour train rides), I managed to successfully navigate the métro network (with my huge suitcase) and get to the closest stop to the hostel. It wasn't snowing, but there was a decent layer of snow on the ground, and I was feeling whingey after the long-train-ride-crowded-métro-trying-to-pull-wheely-suitcase-through-snow mission. Fortunately, the hostel wasn't far away.

Nicole, the Kiwi friend I was meeting, had texted me earlier to say that she and her friend Agnes were at a distant Parisian airport but couldn't get into Paris because of the snow.

And then, to top it all off, my dorm room was full of Australians! Nah, just kidding... I was actually quite stoked to see the Aussies and have a chat with them. One even let me use his laptop, which was much appreciated, internet-deprived as I am.

Nicole had been keeping me updated... they were now in a taxi, but stuck in traffic! So, I was advised not to wait for them for dinner! Had also met some cool Chileans in the dorm room and, when I went downstairs, they were going to have dinner, so invited me to eat with them. Mmm, pizza. Didn't practise my Spanish though (except for a little bit of listening!) as they were determined to speak English for me, lol. And they were all pretty good, too.

Finally, about 11pm, Nicole and Agnes arrived. They were, understandably, frustrated, as they'd spent most of the day stuck in an airport, then a 1-hour taxi ride had turned into a 3-hour, very expensive one. Lucky they were sharing the taxi with a couple of others (including a nice young Frenchman...).

However, they were still determined to see something of Paris that night, so off we went to the Champs Elysées, in the hope of getting something to eat at the Xmas market. It was just shutting... so, we ended up at a pizzeria. It was midnight by this stage. Nicole tried a very French steak tartare (ie raw: brave girl). As I had already eaten, I contented myself with an apératif.




We were in a hurry to leave the resto as we wanted to get the last métro, and were running off when a waiter came into the street waving a 5 pound note that Nicole had accidentally put down, and saying we couldn't pay with that. He then jokingly complained about being cold outside, so I had to hug the poor man to keep him warm.

Fortunately, we got the métro, and some well-earned rest!

Second Week of Holidays, With Random Reflections

Random reflections really describes a lot of this blog rather well.

Anyways, have had complaints (ok, complaint) about the length of time between posts. Hopefully the quantity being uploaded now makes up for that. ;p Just spread out actually reading them... Ha.

Had only a couple of days to fill in before Sabrina arrived to visit. Since it had been about 3 years since we last saw each other (and last time was in NZ), it was pretty crazy to meet up on the other side of the world! And really good to see her again.

Of course, it rained on the day she arrived, and the next day. Well done, Saint Gaudens. Hardly ever rains, except for when I have visitors. That makes twice!

There were many amusing times during the week, so guess I'll just list a few:

• cooking for 2 in my pathetic 'kitchen'
• randomly walking past the movies on All Saints' Day evening and finding that there were enough people there to have a queue out the door
• Sabrina continually getting big frights about not much (eg cyclist ringing bell behind us, lady coming out of a shop unexpectedly)
• making our own nightclub in my room, since SG doesn't have anything except bars
• making friends with the drivers of the 'navettes' (shuttles which go around town, and to nearby towns)
• attempting the exercises for the local fitness trail (and discovering a few new muscles the next day)
• managing (twice) to unknowingly pick the day that there was a discount at the movies to go and see one
• hiring an Australian tap-dancing movie because the video shop man recommended it when we asked about dance movies
• Sabrina explaining to me that if I use the word 'copine' for friend, and say my copine, it means my girlfriend. Luckily, I normally use 'amie' and, apparently, this doesn't work the same way. Otherwise, I could quite unwittingly have been telling people about my girlfriend.
• Sabrina randomly making conversation with the local Australian.

Also several good food moments:

• Calissons d'Aix: praline-y iced sweet things that Sab brought
• Lemon Tart: Just from La Mie Câline, but super tasty! Thank goodness for the actual lemon on the top though, or it'd have been too rich (even for me)
• Peanut butter: Sab found it in the 'world' aisle at one of the supermarkets
• Cherry pâtisserie thing: have really got to start remembering the names of things that I eat
• Super fromage crêpe: about 5 types of cheese in a single crêpe = guaranteed happiness
• Nutella crêpe: simple, yet tasty

Am now resolved to slowly work my way through many unfamiliar types of food. Although, I'm not too sure about stuff like rabbit. I saw a menu board today advertising a rabbit dish and it just doesn't appeal. We'll see if I get brave.