MILAN HERE I COME!
I am going to Milan Italy for the weekend. I didn’t have the chance whilst in Rome and I really wanted to get my dress for Caspianne’s wedding here. Going to go to some ateliers but I’ll probably end up with something from Zara or H&M, the fast fashion here in Europe is far superior than in the US and Canada. The style is top notch.
BLUER SKIES
The clouds have lifted… I think. I’m feeling more at home now in Paris and I’m making friends. Met a girl from California, she’s really cool and we went for lunch at one of my restaurants Paul & Julienne. It was nice to be talking with someone other than the thoughts in my head. She works in marketing which gives her the flexibility to do a trip like this to Paris.
GETTING TO KNOW PARIS
I’m still feeling a little not like myself but i’ve already spent too much time at home. I need to get out, even just for an hour. This week at school I started to explore the lunch options in the area. I had made a list of all the restaurants and cafes that were recommended on line and saved them in Google Maps. What a great little tool, I now have a tab called “Paris Eats” and if ever I am hungry I open it up and it shows me which is closest to my location.
BONJOUR PARIS!
Finally in Paris and well…. I’m already skeptical about France and this is my last destination so I really want to end on a high note. When I arrived at my host, she wasn’t even home, she took a 3 week holiday. Only her adult children are home, her youngest is 17 years old which isn’t far off from Jacquelyn and Zoe and her son is 22, which made me the oldest in the apartment by nearly ten years.
BAGUETTES & CROISSANTS
It’s been a week now at this third (and last) host. Even with her rules, I am making it work. I’m out exploring a bit more, definitely trying some new restaurants. my two favourites are Mr. Mathieu and Maison Celine. Mr. Mathieu is a sandwich shop that only makes baguette sandwiches. Their most famous is the Mr. Poulet, it is amazing. Crispy baguette, roast chicken, butter, herbs, dijon mustard, and gruyere cheese, all melty and delicious.
AT THE END OF MY ROPE
They found me a place. It is clean, but again I am met with a xenophobia I haven’t experience in Berlin or in Rome. When I arrived at this woman’s house she told me to leave my bags outside until she talks with me to decide if she will allow me to stay. Thankfully I was “allowed” to stay and moved in. She then handed me a pamphlet with the house rules.
STILL NOT SO NICE IN NICE
I never thought I would get to this point on my trip, but I just want to come home. I give up on Nice. The school has no interest in helping me. When I spoke to them about my “requirements” for a host. I told them I just want what I paid for: a room in a host family, in a clean house that is 60 minutes or less away from the school. Their follow up question again was: what is more important, being close to school or that the place is clean.
LA MER MEDITERRANÉE
The school has placed me in a new host family. It’s so far from the school, like an hour and a half by bus away from the school, which includes a 20 minute hike in the mountains. Thankfully my dad and Sarvy are visiting for a couple days. It will keep my mind off this disappointing situation.
VIENNA!
I am so happy I got a week in Vienna, there is no way I would have survived living in that rooming house for another moment. The hotel in Vienna was gorgeous! Absolute luxury. It’s all Paris themed which is very à propos. Im sharing my room with my bonus sister Tara. The hotel has a great restaurant but the highlight is the bakery downstairs. It’s famous in the area. It’s called Moto Brot, and I lived in that little bakery. The croissants were French, your dad would have loved them. Buttery and flakey, oh and the almond croissants were to die for!
NICE ISN’T SO NICE
I have arrived in Nice and it’s starting to feel a bit like a repeat of Berlin. I arrived right on time went to the little EF school kiosk and no one was there. Not a soul. I called the transfer number and they said that they already picked me up.
CIAO ROMA!
My time in Rome has come to a close. How three months go by so fast! When I arrived in mid-April I was so anxious that I would have a rough experience like in Berlin, but I was so wrong. Rome was amazing, I would even call it home!
SICK… AGAIN…
I can’t believe it! I’m sick, again!! Thankfully it’s just a cold but man I miss those three years of not being sick. The most annoying part is that my ears are all stuffed which makes my balance questionable.
TANTI AUGURI
In my 31 years I have never had a birthday that wasn’t in Toronto, or at home with family. I figured it would be a little lonely, maybe anti climactic, but actually it was lovely. No I did not have the big birthday dinner I normally have with family, but my friend Ruth took me out for a gelato before class. Then during class school staff came in singing with a little cupcake with a candle. It was so nice!
CASTEL SANT’ANGELO
I’m so excited! Today I’m hanging out with my friend!!! The English woman, her name is Catherine and we went to Castel San Angelo. She’s a bit of an early riser, and we made plans to meet at 10am. I woke up already waited for the bus…. But it never came.
PASTA E TIRAMISU TAKE TWO
It took a little convincing, actually none, but Catherine is joining the pasta cooking class. It’s at a different restaurant than the last, this one is in Trastevere, the food district of Rome. We had so much FUN!!
PIZZA AND THUNDERSTORMS
Summer is here! Well nearly, the locals tell me that this week’s 24-27°c weather is nothing in comparison to a Roman summer. Not sure how I will survive… especially without air conditioning.
LEVEL UP!
Every Monday we get a whole new set of students, which is very exciting, more opportunities to meet new people. This cohort again was many short stay students, most of which seemed to have joined my A2 class. We had a Belgian girl, an American woman, two Dutch girls and a woman who is English but lives in France. No new Canadians. I have actually only met one other Canadian and she left weeks ago.
I WON!
It’s been a weird week without Mamie. A little lonely if I’m being honest. You don’t realize how important something is till it’s gone, and with Mamie here I had a companion. Making friends in Rome is a bit harder than in Berlin because the students are mostly short term, and the long term students were smart and came in the cooler months.
LAST DAYS WITH MAMIE
This week my classes are all in the afternoon which makes Mamie’s days feel really long since I’m usually home studying in the mornings.
FESTA DELLA MAMMA
After Napoli, Mamie and I decided that with the unpredictable weather it was best to cancel our trip to Venice and take today easy. It is Mother’s Day after all. We started with brunch at Mamie’s favourite cafe near her B&B. She become kind of a celebrity there. Mamie’s time in Rome is coming to an end and there were still a couple things she wanted to do.