Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Updates
I still don't have internet so posts may be a little random. Currently at my friends, using her internet. Also, saw skyfall the other day and loved it!
4 days in Paris
Hello all! The french people really like their vacations. After about a month
of working at the Lycee and College (high school and juniour high school) the first school break was upon us. Students get a whole 2 weeks off. When I was a
student I wouldn't be able to remember much after a single week off. I also received my first pay cheque, woo!
With money and free time I went to Paris for 4 days.
Day 1 - Friday
Arrived, ate, found
my hostel then headed straight for the Paris Pitchfork music festival!
The concert starts
at 4, but we arrived around 6:40 and stayed till around 1:30. We steadily drank
Heineken (the only beer served) listened and danced to Jessie Ware, the Tallest
man on Earth, The Chromatics, Robyn and Animal Collective. Had a great time,
and caught the last metro home at 2 am.
Disclosure
Robyn!
The Chromatics
Day 2 - Saturday
Late start to the
day - needed the extra recovery time. A
few other assistants and I went to the Musee D'Orsay. There was a massive line,
but it moved quickly - my favourite artists that were featured were van Gogh,
Georges Seurat (pointed paintings), and Monet. Then walked through the Jardin
de Tuileries and visited shopping areas and the huge Courses Lafayette.
Outside the Musee D'Orsay
Inside..
Centre of the Course Lafayette (Shopping Centre)
Day 3 - Sunday
Had beef Tartare
(raw beef) for lunch, I enjoyed it but I couldn't finish the whole portion. I
would eat it again. Sunday's typically means closed shops, but there is one
area called the Marais which is open. I really liked the Marais, there were
cafes, regular and vintage shops and chocolate shops. After we went to the
Centre Pompidou, I enjoyed it because they had more contemporary works of art.
Finally we went up to Sacre Coeur, we walked up the many steps to the Basilique
de Saint Dennis. Finished our evening a very typical french restaurant with
lots of interior décor and live music. There was a large Portuguese family
having dinner together which made me think of my family & big family
dinners. Miss them!
Me and Kendra in the places des Vosges
Centre Pompidou
Day 4 - Monday
Went to the Louvre -
with many sitting breaks my legs had started to have enough museums and walks.
Had dinner with
another friend from Oslo.
book stands by the river
Moi
Louvre
Napoleons apartment
I loved Paris and I
would love to go back however I felt very accomplished after the weekend and
was ready to get back to Lyon!
Oktoberfest!
Hey all,
October I had the pleasure of visiting an old American Apparel friend studying in Munich and obviously we went to the Oktoberfest! A fellow assistant and I went on a brutal 8 hour car ride from Lyon through Switzerland all the way to Germany. Lots of country side, farm animals and a bit of mountain. I definitely loved Germany, it feels a little more parallel to Canada compared to France. Also, the guys are taller and more attractive.
October I had the pleasure of visiting an old American Apparel friend studying in Munich and obviously we went to the Oktoberfest! A fellow assistant and I went on a brutal 8 hour car ride from Lyon through Switzerland all the way to Germany. Lots of country side, farm animals and a bit of mountain. I definitely loved Germany, it feels a little more parallel to Canada compared to France. Also, the guys are taller and more attractive.
We woke up at 8am in order to get a place inside one of the tents. You're basically sitting in a giant tent paying 11 euros for giant mugs of beer while the band plays old german songs and strangely popular american songs (ex. sweet home alabama). Our german friends made sure we were drinking strategically sipping slowly so we could last the whole day. Unfortunately for the table full of French people behind us, who we'rent strategic, had passed out by 11:00am.
The traditional thing to eat is 'kendle' which is a half chicken, of course there was sausage and sauerkraut on.
Me and Audrey in our dirndl dresses we rented from her landlord.
We stayed at the festival until 4pm afterwhich we left and had dinner. I had a great time laughing and speaking to many germans and foreigners from around the world.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
First Impressions
So here's a run down of what I think of Lyon France thus far.
1) The city is absolutely lovely, small streets lined with fancy looking old buildings.
Now that I have a bike I take it down to the city centre on weekends or to the College where I teach, the ride takes about 45 minutes. I ride down by the curvy Soan river and whiz past all the old apartments and buildings. Its sometimes hard to focus on the road in front of my with such great views.
2) Bouchons (typical Lyonnais restaurants) aren't cheap. To eat out at a restaurant one must spend at least 12 - 20 euros, 12 being on the very cheap side. There are however sandwhich shops, kebab shops and some fast food chains - Quick is a french fast food chain, from what I've had the burgers are dry.. heres their website http://www.quick.fr/-400107.html it appears at one point they had a darth vader burger? Finally there are Boulangeries - bakeries everywhere.
3) There are lots of french people (particularly teenage boys but not exclusively) that smell. I always try to open the windows in my class room and on the metro you frequently walk by people and get a whiff of their natural body odours. Lovely. I've noticed it a bit less lately, perhaps I'm getting used to it.
4) I've probably told this to a lot of you already but some french men are quite aggressive. It's probably one of the biggest irritants of mine, and the biggest problem I have with living in a new city. In general french women dress more conservatively, which is fine (in fact I barely ever wear dresses or skirts) however to dress any other way is not really an option. If you wear a skirt or shorts you'll get stared at by both men and women. Don't get me wrong, its not every french man and during the day people are very civil. It is the most noticeable at night, on weekends, when they're in groups of 2 or more, even when a woman is dressed decently you're bound to be hollered at. I just wouldn't feel safe walking home alone which is really a shame, I really do feel bad for the women who live here and endure this their whole lives.
5) On a lighter note, everyone in Lyon is very friendly! Most people are willing to help when you ask for directions or questions and are often curious about where me or my friends come from.
6) Cheese is plentiful and cheap here, with a large section dedicated to cheese in grocery stores. The milk and butter tastes really good. (Milk isn't refrigerated in grocery stores you can find them stacked or in crates. I believe they process boil/heat the milk so it lasts longer. Obviously it needs to be refrigerated after its opened.)
Phew, so those are my very first impressions as a Canadian arriving in Lyon, more about life coming soon!
xx Julia
1) The city is absolutely lovely, small streets lined with fancy looking old buildings.
Now that I have a bike I take it down to the city centre on weekends or to the College where I teach, the ride takes about 45 minutes. I ride down by the curvy Soan river and whiz past all the old apartments and buildings. Its sometimes hard to focus on the road in front of my with such great views.
3) There are lots of french people (particularly teenage boys but not exclusively) that smell. I always try to open the windows in my class room and on the metro you frequently walk by people and get a whiff of their natural body odours. Lovely. I've noticed it a bit less lately, perhaps I'm getting used to it.
4) I've probably told this to a lot of you already but some french men are quite aggressive. It's probably one of the biggest irritants of mine, and the biggest problem I have with living in a new city. In general french women dress more conservatively, which is fine (in fact I barely ever wear dresses or skirts) however to dress any other way is not really an option. If you wear a skirt or shorts you'll get stared at by both men and women. Don't get me wrong, its not every french man and during the day people are very civil. It is the most noticeable at night, on weekends, when they're in groups of 2 or more, even when a woman is dressed decently you're bound to be hollered at. I just wouldn't feel safe walking home alone which is really a shame, I really do feel bad for the women who live here and endure this their whole lives.
5) On a lighter note, everyone in Lyon is very friendly! Most people are willing to help when you ask for directions or questions and are often curious about where me or my friends come from.
6) Cheese is plentiful and cheap here, with a large section dedicated to cheese in grocery stores. The milk and butter tastes really good. (Milk isn't refrigerated in grocery stores you can find them stacked or in crates. I believe they process boil/heat the milk so it lasts longer. Obviously it needs to be refrigerated after its opened.)
Phew, so those are my very first impressions as a Canadian arriving in Lyon, more about life coming soon!
xx Julia
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