My first Tour de France

What a weekend.

In total contrast to last weekend, this one was hectic - I actually stepped out of the house (I know, but it gets even better).

Friday - dinner on the Champs Elysées

Friday it was time to meet up with an old friend - of which there seem to be plenty floating around, weirdly.

So I'm standing on the platform, waiting for the train that will take me to the restaurant (on the Champs Elysées no less), when a timid-looking girl sidles up to me and awkwardly gestures at the tracks "Eiffel Tower"? Seeing as she clearly wasn't sure if I spoke English, I was tempted to shrug (in a convincingly French way - maybe with a little "putain" for credibility) and say something like: "Désolé mais je parle pas anglais". Realising it wasn't a big deal being able to convince a foreigner I was a native speaker, and slightly taking pity on her, I summoned my most reassuring British accent. Turns out Diane's Australian and left to live the dream in Europe. Respect. Totally should have got her "06".

The restaurant we ate at served a combination of French and German food, and was pretty good if pretty expensive. €22ish euros got me 2 courses which ain't bad at all for the Champs. The food was pretty good but the wine left something to be desired - a "vintage" 2009 just won't cut it. Food - the kraut was pretty damn sauer and the crème pretty damn brûlée (I could be a food critic), but that didn't stop it being demolished in a minute flat.

Objects in image taste better than they appear

Saturday - Friends made, Money lost

Nothing much happened on the Saturday, apart from a poker game with the flatmates where I met my first real live French stereotype (minus beret). The less said about the poker game the better. Went from being chip leader to losing all my significant stake of 7 euros with 2 pair (Aces and 10s), and on a bad beat. So that was Saturday.

Sunday - Tour de France

Man did I regret going to bed at 4am on Sunday morning. First, I overslept and thought I'd missed the Tour de France (missing Bastille day still haunts me) and then was halfway to the station before I realised my camera was uncharacteristically light. Apparently, you need batteries.


After navigating my way out of the metro station, which took about as long as the actual metro trip, I met up with a certain co-Parisian and we headed off to the Champs to catch some cycling action. Easier said than done - the roads were packed and it didn't help the gendarmes had closed half of said roads. 


After hunting for a spot, we found one that was poifect but it wasn't long before we were under attack...two diminutive Vietnamese women's blitzkrieg caught us by surprise. I bend over to tie my shoelace and by the time I've straightened up they have me surrounded. Pincer movement - oldest trick in the  book. Being a fiercely territorial creature, I held my ground and saw out their offensive until they eventually backed down. Victory.


They may take our personal space, but they'll never take..our freedom!

Sergeant Green calling in reinforcements

I took my camera in the hope of getting some awesome photos but the place was infested with other photographers and it was near impossible to get good shots. By the end I was just rapid-firing above my head - the 'shoot and hope' manoeuvre. Managed to get a few passable ones, check my Facebook over the next few days.

If I ever find out whose head this is, they won't have one left after I'm done with 'em

So a pretty sweet weekend all in all! Roll on the rest of the year abroad.


Peace from Paris.

My first proper weekend in Paris

Completely forgot it was Bastille day ce weekend. The biggest holiday in the French calendrier and fwit, right over my head. That would explain the signs advertising "BASTILLE DAY" offers outside shops and restaurants. The main reason I didn't realise is because apparently the French don't get a day off when a public holiday falls on a weekend. Not so lazy after all.

Saturday

In other news my flatmate's phone was almost stolen at a metro station today!

Apparently he ran after the guy and after a few minutes the thrilling chase culminated with a rather anticlimactic "I found your phone on the floor mate". In French of course, not the aggressive Cockney brogue I translated it into in my head. No-one better pull that stuff with me or they'll face the full force of my poorly conjugated insults and tame French swear words.

Then that night, me and my flatmates got takeaway. It's Domino's so I was a bit cautious having been told it's nothing compared to its British contrepartie. One of them innocently suggests the 'Indienne' one for me - what a stereotype, unbelievably offensant. 


(...It does sound awesome though, so I go for it). 

Someone at Domino's is a stickler for French grammar

After we've polished off the pizza, the poker set comes out. It starts off fairly casual, but as the others are knocked out one by one, it ends up being an intense heads-up between me and a guy who's been playing in casinos for years. A few hands later, I'm surprised I'm up on him. Apparently I have an uncanny ability to unsettle opponents that throws 'em off their game. Something about unpredictability and playing hands fast and loose. Don't know if that's exactly something to be proud of but at the very least, I have a bright career in professional poker if the whole graduation thing doesn't work out!

Stop me, I'm a madman

Sunday

While making a sandwich for dinner (nothing wrong with that), I discovered bread lasts a lot longer here in Paris. A loaf I bought all the way back on my first day is still in date. Probably some unholy French process that's illegal elsewhere.

Went roaming for a bit to make up for missing Bastille Day but this city is a ghost town (/city) on Sundays. So I came back to watch TV (Suits is awesome). I've started assigning the characters to people in my office. This should make things interesting, especially as I have  Donna, the receptionist with an attitude, down (with the lady who answered the phone "Oui boii").


The year abroad dream will have to wait till next week but all in all, not a bad weekend.

Peace from Paris.