Definitely a quick minute

It's been definitely a quick minute since I've posted something.

It is so easy to get out of the habit of these things ! I don't believe in resolutions but its a new year..so I've decided to yank the chain and I'm ready to go.

So what have I been up to ?

Well . I went to London to go to a party (yes I was that desperate). Turns out I wasn't the only desperate Caribbean national as gals from Germany and New York came to take part in the daily pump :)
London also served as my depot for sending out my PhD applications (obviously I enjoy torture). If the applications were so stressful, I'd hate to imagine the next 4 years if I'm accepted :s

It was good to see my family - my uncle and aunt - who are always hilarious, ever cool, up to the times and I ALWAYS learn something when I go there (ever heard of iPhone-ography? ...u laugh...ish is real. Photography with your iPhone. Real courses which people pay money to do :s )
But! I indulged my aunt and bought her a 360 degree scope for her iPhone so she could take panoramic photos in one go :)

I also went to the island who shall not be named (Malta). More or less I would like to forget this trip ever happened. The only good thing about Malta is ...hey it was cheap. 10euro per night for a basic hotel with breakfast and amazing, never ending hot water supply? Priceless.

Otherwise , in my opinion, the people are weird and RACIST (evidenced by a tourist operator calling me a monkey in the middle of the street after I politely declined his horse and buggy ride) and the country , outside of the tourist areas, looks like a nuclear catastrophe occurred.

Yeah. Not my kind of pump :/

The christmas and new years were spent in Nimes and Bordeaux respectively where I ate and ate and ate like a Ngyumayum (Trinidadians over 25  would know this :D ) .

I've had my full and more of things I've never tasted or done in my life. Foie Gras, oysters, ice skating (just like rollerblading ..who knew lol ), risotto (yum), onion jam (its really really good).
What made it even more amazing is that one of the family members that I hung out with is a chef in Paris !!! (Cue greedy and satisfied grin).

Ah I can only say, I've been detoxing for the past 4 days. Boy do I.miss that chef. My cooking is just downright deplorable sometimes.

So school is back on and the next trip is Luxembourg ! :) I'm excited and not at the same time but, I'm keeping an open mind after Malta.

White people, you guys are ok. But some of you have some SERIOUS issues (besides all the mass murder :s)

That's it for now. As usual. Photos !

And just like that (part deux)

We are going to Geneva

Euro50 return from Nimes..

Life is good :)

Now to plan the birthday shenanigans to Tenerife! :)

The meaning of 'ou'

Well..apparently in France...the CAF specifically, there is a duality to the meaning of 'ou' that I do not know about.

I refuse to throw my education out the door and revise my understanding of the word 'or'.

CAF is an institution that can reform the hardest criminal. Do away with prisons I say...institute the CAF in every country all over the world. This monument...more like a grey elephant can instill patience , teach anger management and instill fear all at the same time.

I submitted my dossier October 22. What I thought to be a complete dossier based on the documents required by their website...

The joke was and still is on me.

This is where the basic definition of the word 'ou' comes into play.

So far I've received about 3 letters asking me for more documents. Today, I received a letter asking me to submit my birth certificate with a stamp AND a french translation of said document.

Attend, CAF is asking me to spend money that I do not have (why else would I apply to the CAF) to provide them with a document that is not even on THEIR documents list ?

#butdisisadogshow ??

Just to prove that I am not crazy, I'd like to know if you see 'ou' or 'et' entre les documents dans les fiches  jointes.

Lord put a hand.

It's been a quick minute

It's been a quick minute since I've blogged.

I am.settling into life in Nimes. I have FINALLY received my carte bancaire after 6 weeks of waiting last week Saturday. I met another trinidadian who is living one Provence over who also went to my secondary school :) So its always good to have a bit of home in close proximity. She spent the night last Saturday and we made good visiting Avignon (which according to her is a prison #dedd). Ah well! The company was great tho :)

Classes are in full swing and I've gotten used to the laissez faire attitude of the french student. However, I've made sure that they are scared of me though ! I've put the fear of god into them lol.

Nothing is really new. November has begun and with that winter is officially coming. Unfortunately. Sigh. The temperature has plummeted from 22 degrees avg 2 weeks ago to an average of 8. :(

But I'm still running and had.to make a trip to Decathlon to outfit myself to run.in these harsh conditions (oh my poor ears!!)

Christmas holidays are coming up and I can't wait for my trip to london and my subsequent trip to Malta! :) I'm still battling.on the idea of going to Luxembourg...I've found a train for 90euro return which is about 40 euro too expensive for me!
But I'll keep.you updated :) thank god for my private class that's keeping me afloat and comfortable !

Christmas is almost here! And.with that I am becoming painfully aware that my time is winding down.

A plus!

And just like that...

I booked a ticket to Malta for Christmas.

Oh the joys of Europe.

Got Paid!!!

Soooo!! If you ever come to France ...forget La Banque Postale.

After having my name spelt wrong, no bank card due to staff incompetence, the bank has added a new feature to their character.

This bank takes FOREVER to process your pay ! In fact , it is the LAST bank to do so !

So whilst people were living it up on the 30/31 October, my flatmate and I stared into each other's eyes hoping and wishing that money will magically appear into our accounts.

And it did.

On the 1st of November. A new first for me. Being paid in the proceeding month lol.

Ah well. I can take 6 more months of this mularky.

Say no to La Banque Postale.

Sun Chaser

So! The toussaint holidays are in full swing and I have decided to chase the sun in earnest. So while everyone is freezing their butts off going to Paris, Strasbourg and Lyon, I decided to head to Arles and Marseille for a short stint.

Arles in 5 words. Small, quaint, caves, great market. That's it. lol

Marseille...wow Marseille. BEYOND Words. I mean, yuh stink. The city could do with a good scrub, more garbage bins and less horny africans and Algerians (more on that later), but WOW. What a gem. If you really want 'to do' Marseille you either have to be youngish or a pretty active older person. All of the gems are on a mountain, around the corner, 20 kms away. Some attractions, comme Notre Dam, you can get to by using the little choo choo trains for les gens paresseux. (this immersion is doing wonders! Im starting to drop in french randomly nowadays lol). Others, like Les Calanques, you better walk with your defibrillator if you're not up  to scratch on the fitness. There's no choo choo, no plane, no shuttle. The bus drops you at the bottom of the cliffs and you are on your own.
My advice after doing a portion of Calanques in 4 hours - Make sure you leave energy, strength, mental fortitude for the walk back. I barely made it back. BARELY.

Anywhoser, I arrived in Marseille on Thursday 24th. Coincidentally I had a journey booked to Germany for the same period but that fell through. However, I am ecstatic that I didn't spend my time being cold in Germany (although I am not ecstatic about the Euro100 wasted, I'll try to forget that in the next 10 years or so lol). It was 22 degrees C. Warm enough in my books and I decided to set off early and take advantage of my midday arrival. After being stalked by a Senegalese on Rue de la Republique who decided he would DIE if he didn't tell me how beautiful I was, I decided to head to Notre Dam. Yaz, who I rented my studio from, assured me that 'everyone' does Notre Da9m by foot... :\  . Silly and stupid me. I was the ONLY person huffing and puffing, knees to chest, trying to counteract gravity on my way up a 70 degree slope (I swear) to the Notre Dam. After about 15 minutes and much sweat later, I finally made it. And, it was soooooo worth the work. Marseille is laid out like a lady in waiting at your feet. The views are breathtaking and it's easy to tune out and lose yourself in them. Alas, the Frioul islands were waiting and I had a date for the 4.50pm boat shuttle. After sprinting past an accident and a man floating in mid air begging for money (I swear!! these marseillans), I made the shuttle to do even MORE hiking (and risk a buss ass) on the Frioul islands. Another worth while experience.
Calcite veins, limestone mountains and a small fort all made the journey, by foot, an exciting one.

On Friday, I woke up sore and decided to head to the Calanques. I decided there and then comfort over fashion and donned my running shoes. Thank GOD I did that or else I would've died a most grizzly death up in those mountains/cliffs. 4 hours. 4 hours of highs lows, feeling vulnerable and small or like a conquering lion. And I didn't even do the whole thing. Apparently all of these cliffs are connected and you can explore a series of them. In the 4 hours I was there (I walked for 3.5 hours) I did 1 Calanque (Surgiton) and went to the 'beach'. But again, entirely worth it. I'd like to bring my family up here one day if they come to visit, but I am sure someone will suffer with some coronary issue...soooo..scratch that lol). It is beaaauuutiful.

Back to the studio at 6pm and I get a text...hey! wanna come to Aix to lime? uuuh.why not!! So off to Aix I go where I had 45 minutes of blissful sleep (and thank god I did that) where I met up with a trini ex-convent girl studying in France. We shared tales of when she just arrived 5 years ago and the constant faux pas she made. With all that said, her french is pretty bad ass right now. I have hope. lol So 4 hours, 2 sangrias and 2 horny africans later, I return to my studio knowing that i'm going to feel this on Saturday morning.

Oh and feel it I did. Waking up and stretching was an exercise in patience and trying to unfurl myself as my body set into some type of rigamortis. Muscles, joints everything. Stiff and painful! Ah well! Vacation is still happening so! Gotta go! I discovered in the cafe across the street that they serve a sinful chocolat chaud. I was informed that they have two types of chocolat chaud..the regular milo/nesquik type and the OTHER type. The OTHER type is just melted chocolate..yes thick, rich, warm, melted chocolate served in a tea  cup...WHAAT!! yeaaah... the OTHER type won hands down. I don't think I can drink regular hot chocolate ever again :(

So after being followed by an Algerian named Assiz who gladly showed me around old Marseille, it was time to go home. I was sad as Assiz informed me that I was missing the last night of some huge music festival happening that night, but I just really wanted my bed in boring, snoozy ole Nimes. It was fantastic, but it was time.

So! That is it! Back to reality where I have to go to the bank tomorrow to curse and threaten as after 5 weeks, I STILL have not received my bank card from La Banque Postale...wtf!

More on that....