Antibes & Cannes

Giulia, Christoper et Moi

First weekend back in France and I'm off exploring. Giulia (Italy), Christopher (Germany) and I spontaneously decided to go visit Antibes. We set off Saturday morning and went to meet our couchsurfing host Cloe (France). She lives just outside the city center in an apartment. She cooked us lunch and then we went into the city center to have a look around. It's very nice, busy compared to Sanary where we live, yet still quiet by Manchester standards. We walked around the port, went on the beach and then wandered through the old town, it's all narrow cobbled streets and quaint little shops. The weather was lovely too, which always makes a place seem nicer. We went to the 'provencial market' which consisted of little stalls selling pottery and other handicrafts, and we went to the Picasso Museum but it was closed!


The Port

We headed back to the apartment and had pizza for tea, then Cloe invited us to go to her friend's house party with her. Apart from the fact that it was chav-themed and we were the only ones dressed normally, it was really good, everyone was super friendly. We stayed for a few hours then went to a bar at the port, it was called Hop Store and it was full of English people!! It turns out Antibes has a huge English population (all middle class southerners). There's even an English grocery store and I bought baked beans, supernoodles and chocolate!!! I was so excited. It was a great night, we talked to loads of English people, made lots of friends and got pissed on corona at €7 a bottle!

On Sunday, after a hangover-curing McDonalds, we went to Cannes. We parked up and walked the length of the huge main road called La Croisette, it goes right along the coast for 2km and finishes at the Palais de Congrés, where the famous Cannes Film Festival is held. It was a lovely stroll, the beach and the ocean on the left and all the designer shops and expensive hotels on the right. We stopped and had coffees on the beach and people watched, even saw two old dears going for a swim! It was nice weather but it's still January! Far too cold for swimming if you ask me!


Les Dames going for a dip

We got back to Toulon around 7pm and finished off a fantastic weekend with a Chinese all you can eat buffet! I'm not too fond of the French's take on Chinese food, everything's in caramel sauce! However their version of Spring Rolls is fantastic!!

Jelly

Jelly, that beloved wobbly thing we eat in England, to the French is the epitome of why English food is disgusting. They HATE it with a passion. So naturally I brought some over to make them like it. Yesterday I made some with the boys. They were quite intrigued and enjoyed making it.

Their verdict: it doesn't have much flavour, it's texture is horrible but it's fun to eat. They ate one bowl between four of them and then didn't want any more. The Dad looked mildly disgusted and I dread to think what the Mum will make of it! She thinks chocolate is a drug and sweets are chemicals...!!!

So my mission to spread the love for jelly has categorically failed. But not worries, more for me!!!

Bonjour 2011

Happy New Year Everbody!

Well I'm back in France after two wonderful weeks at home. It was great being back in Manchester, after 4 months away I'd really started to miss my friends and family. When you're away it makes you appreciate home a lot more, it makes everything at seem fantastic and beautiful. I spent the holidays havings drinks, lunches and coffees with my friends, playing on the Wii with my parents, lounging in my pyjamas, scoffing British food (mainly bacon butties!) and working in my pub. It was splendid!

Getting back here was a nightmare, as usual! I don't know why I keep travelling, I always have the most horrendous luck! I set off from home at quarter past 8 at night on the Sunday to catch the train to London, only to be told I'd cocked up my train reservation and had to buy another ticket - £45 down the drain!! I then spent three hours on the train, followed by a taxi ride in which the cockney driver mocked my northern accent, followed by a 2 hour bus ride to Stansted. I don't know how they get off claiming Stansted is a London airport, it's bloody miles away and a nightmare to get to! My flight was at 8.30 in the morning and I got to the airport at 2am, planning to get some sleep on a bench. However when I got there there were loads of people sleeping on the floor in the check in hall... turns out security isn't open at night!! So I joined the rest of the refugees and got comfy on the floor. At first I chose WHSmiths doorway as my bed for the night, as there was no one else there, however I soon learnt why there was no one else there... the cold metal shutter! So I went and settled under an information board. I'm fairly certain I was the most comfortable person in the airport at that time because being the hardened traveller I am, I prepared for the worst: I had my earplugs, which I take everywhere with me - useful for blocking out noisey hostel dorms or, in this case - idiots hooving the airport floor at 2am! I had a eye mask to make it dark, and my best purchase yet - an inflatable quilted pillow!! By far the best £5 I have ever spent!! I was definitely the envy of the airport! I managed to get quite comfy and get a couple of hours sleep, although it was cold, and I regretted not taking my sleeping bag.

When we finally boarded a whole 12 hours after I left home, I was welcomed back into French living my the French people flying back to Marseille - pushing and cutting in front of my in the queue to board. I got quite annoyed but I had the last laugh when they had to pay excess baggage for their three items of hand luggage! - This is Ryanair, not AirFrance! Clearly not frequent budget flyers comme moi!

When I landed in Marseille we queued for 45 minutes to go through passport control. 45 minutes stood up with a very heavy backpack (full of tea bags!!) I went and waited for Sophia who was arriving from Munich shortly after me and we got the bus together to the train station, then the train to Bandol, and then Sophie (the mum of my family) came and picked me up and took me home. I finally arrived home at 4pm Monday - 20 hours after leaving home in England! I had a quick shower and then started work! EXHAUSTED!

So I'm starting the New Year in France, with my finances in disarray thanks to the fiasco getting home, and my love life is non existent at best, but at least I'm in fairly good health (if we don't count the binge drinking and the the 18 kilos of chocolate I consumed over Christmas!)I haven't come up with any worthy New Years resolutions yet, any suggestions are welcome!

Hello Manchester

I'm finally home!! 1 plane, 2 trains and a tube cancelled but I made it home in time for Christmas. Should have been back Saturday night but my flight was cancelled because of the snow.

So I left my house in France at 4.30am and arrived at my house in Swinton at 5.15pm. One hell of a journey!

Here are the highlights:

At 5.30 in the morning I met a hilarious drunk Scottish man at Marseille airport, who followed me around until I got on my bus at Stansted! He explained to me Boob Theory, metaphors about vanilla, and he sang me a song about meeting a girl at the airport.

I had to beg my way onto the coach to London, but luckily I'm charming so I got the last seat.

I made friends with a very posh business man on the bus to London and we chatted about the wonders of Britain.

Every single mode of transport I attempted to get on was cancelled. And I didn't get one minutes sleep.

It was fun though. Another adventure.

And I am SO happy to be home!!!!

I'll be coming home for Christmas!

Tonight is my last night in France of 2010!! I'm leaving tomorrow to go HOOOOME!!! It's been over 4 months since I left, 4 months without seeing my family or my friends, 4 months without fresh milk and Warburtons bread, 4 months of slimey French men, over priced drinks and crappy house music! And now I can not wait to go home and top up on Englishness!!! When I'm at home I'm the first to criticize England: it's weather, it's politics, the passive dispassionate attitude of the people... But now I'm really missing it. Guess the grass is always greener.

I have a hell of a journey home though. The only affordable flight I could get was to Stansted... at night. Which means there were no trains home, so I'm getting a bus into London, and then another bus up to Manchester over night. 7 hours on a bus. Hurrah. I'm also going to freeze to death because I have no winter clothes here, which is fine here because it's not really that cold. But it's snowing at home! And you know what - I'm not going to get any sleep and I'm going to be very cold, and I don't care one little bit!!! I'm going HOME!!!

This week has been spent drinking coffee with my friends and counting the days til I leave! It's been a bit difficult to find the motivation and enthusiasm for the kids but I think I pulled it off without neglecting them too much!

The family bought me a beautiful necklace for Christmas :) Its a sliver sun pendant and I actually really like it.

Oh and today was Sophie (the mum)'s birthday and we had a special dinner. It was good, for once I actually hung out with the whole family. We had foie gras, very French, followed by duck. It was tasty, but still - I cant wait to go home and taste my mums cooking again!!!! Even if it is only spam butties!!!

ETA: Manchester, 19th December 2010, 6am!!!

J'arrive!!!

Mont Faron - Belgentier - Sollies - Ile Gaou

I've been a busy lady. Let's recap:

Friday I went to La Villa Bivona with all my international amigos, it's a big club at La Seyne. We danced until 5am and we bought a €70 bottle of vodka (to share, naturally). I was verrrrry drunk and wandered around a lot on my own making friends with random French firemen. One guy even thought I was French, this made me very happy!

Saturday I woke up at the boys house and got served breakfast/lunch in bed - YES! I love those little Germans. Then in the afternoon I climbed a mountain. Great hangover cure! Me Giulia, Sophia and Thuy climbed the big mountain in Toulon, it's called Mont Faron and it overlooks all of Toulon and the port and all the islands just off the coast. We went up pretty high and watched the sunset. It was stunning, and absolutely silent.

Sunday Giulia, Melissa and I went to visit Mary, she's an American au pair who lives East of Toulon (whereas we all live west). She lives in a village in the mountains called Belgentier and she showed us round. Its really small and quaint, it's famous for a door that Louis XIV walked through when he stayed there one night (woo big deal) and it also has a baseball team!! We were sat in a tiny little bar (there are only two bars in the whole village and one doubles as a burger joint the other doubles as a news agents) and we were having a coffee when the entire baseball team came in, one guy was even wearing the whole uniform, tight white pants and everything. I found it highly amusing that this little village in the mountains, with a population of little more the 1500 inhabitants, has its own American baseball team!! That's the French for ya!

Mary also took us to Sollies, another little town east of Toulon. It's high up a mountain (like so many places in this part of the world) and had really nice views.

Today, (Monday) Sophia and I skipped French class (again) to go on one of our romantic walks. We went to Ile Gaou, an island/nature reserve further along the coast from Sanary. It was lovely. Afterwards we met Melissa and Debbie and went for coffee at the port at Sanary, sat outside in the sun.

The weather has been brilliant lately, I can hardly believe its mid December, it's more like a good day in July by England standards. Haven't worn my coat all week and its been getting up to 17° during the day! Nice. Think I'm going to get a shock when I get home next weekend.

I'm still having a great time here, this weekend's been amazing, and I still get a buzz from going off exploring, visiting new places and hanging out with my friends here. However it's been 4 months since I saw any of my friends or family back home, so I'm SO excited to go home for Christmas!! 5 days to go. I'm even missing crummy old Salford now too!