24 and Living the Life!

Salut!

Before I update about my latest adventures in Europe, I wanted to share with you all the ultimate FML to date of my entire existence. As I have shared with most of you, I was hopeful in seeing MJ in concert while in London. As I discovered (thanks for the news update, Big D), he has recently passed on - RIP. Anyway to my dismay, I get this particular message in my inbox on FB the other day:

Did you hear the news re: Michael Jackson? We were invited to attend his concernt in July or Sept.. We were hoping you could come as well during your visit. But looks like its not going to happen. FML
Thank you for the thought though T and P. I would have loved to have gone to see him in concert with you!

Moving along...

I celebrated my birthday early yesterday in Monaco. Rain threatened the day as the clouds hovered low along the mountains, but after receiving that awful MJ news, nothing could ruin my day. Monaco is a beautiful little city known for its tax breaks for residences, Formula 1 race track and the Monte Carlo casino. Upon arriving we walked through a beautiful garden which lead us up towards the palace where Prince something or other (I obviously cared that much) currently resides. The walk was great and not too hot. We eventually discover a bunch of tourist shops and man, they are all about Ferrari and racing gear there. As much as I love shopping, things quickly became repetitive and we decide it was time for lunch. I had my very first quiche (spinach and a veggie mix) in France and it was incredible! Not super thick and the perfect amount of cheese and egg. Mmmm mmmm!

We then continue our walk and find the F1 race track. It was exciting to be on the actual track but most lanes were being used for a parking lot so the tour was short. Along the dock, we find a few dozen gigantic yachts, big enough to hold two speedboats and additional water gear. It got me thinking of what I would name my yacht, and as uncreative as it is.. I would probably name it Princess Quachy. Which reminds me, if you haven't seen the official mascot for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. GOOGLE IT. Immediately. It is a sasquatch.. Named, QUATCHI!! I'm famous! Lol. I digress.. Back to it.. After admiring the boats for what seemed to be a long time, we walked to the Monte Carlo casino. Holy mother of pearl. All we saw around this casino were Porches, Ferraris and Lambos. It was a struggle to take pictures of any of these cars as every woman around decided it was their last chance at import model fame and posed seductively with these sexy vehicles. At this point it started to get crazy hot and we decided it was the perfect time to head back to Nice and get ready for my birthday dinner.

The socially appropriate time to have dinner in Europe is late. I, being Canadian and hungry decided to defy social norms and suggest that we have dinner at 8 PM rather than at 9 or 10, as per ML's suggestion - sorry ML but apparently bc it was my bday, I had veto power. We had dinner at Berlo of Pasta in old town Antibe; this place resembled a stone dungeon more than an eatery. I ordered the Veal and it was extraordinary! It came with a side of pasta and a mini salad. ML paired it nicely with a great red and it was the perfect bday dinner. The waiters sang happy birthday in english with their awesome french accents. We finished the night off by walking along the sea wall. Unfortunately, the pictures didn't turn out.

I woke up and the birthday festivities continued. We headed straight to Cannes and caught the ferry to Saint Honorat island to snorkel and relax. I feel like I have been a guest star on Laguna beach since I've been at Nice. Life has been so chill and relaxing that it doesn't feel like reality. The ferry ride to the island quickly brought me back to the speedboat ride in Phuket to Phi Phi islands - wonderful memories! We did an hour hike around the island and explored the old monestary that looked like a giant sandlecastle from afar. The architectural design was pretty cool. Next to it, stands the new monestary which is surrounded by two giant wineries. Next activity, snorkelling! The original site was a little rocky and scary for my inability to swim so after ML and MA got their fix of the dangerous waters and scraping up their feet, we found another location that was more suitable for my level of swimming. Noodle in hand, I jumped in the water. That's right, I swam with a noodle. I carried it on the ferry with pride. Better to be safe than drown!! Snorkelling was amazing! I saw my first jelly fish and some pretty cool looking fish with the guidance and patience of my swimming coaches, M and ML.

We headed back to the pad and fired up some blue cheese steaks for another epic bday dinner. Off to Paris tomorrow!! Words can't begin to describe my excitement!

Thank you for all the bday wishes :)

Happy early bday Vicky!! Hope you had a blast with the ladies in Etown!

J



Monaco


Along the coast before the Casino


P.I.M.P.


Monte Carlo casino


Megs and I


A lookout point from the museum in Monaco


My bday dinner @ Berlo of Pasta in Antibe


Beach in Cannes


Ahoy matee!


Our snorkelling point in Saint Honorat island off of Cannes


M and I on the ferry ride


New Monestary


MA and ML snorkelling


Me post snorkel

J & M do Carrefour!

Bonjour!! So here we are in Golfe Juan, which is about 10 minutes to Nice, France. Our second roadtrip of the entire trip was more entertaining than the first as we anticipated crossing the board from Italy to France (we were highly disappointed as this consisted of a single sign, a red line and ML announcing, we are now in France - dead silence!) Golfe Juan will be our home away from home for the next 4 weeks and in exchange for ML's amazing hospitality, M and I decided we would trade our wively duties in exchange. No, no not like that sickos. Wively duties as in cooking and cleaning. This not only allows us to save money to spend (um, hello Milan!!. As much as I enjoyed the pasta, pizza and gelato in Italy, I want you guys to be able to recognize me when I come home!! The bakeries on every street corner do not help here either. I had my first pain au chocolait yesterday which basically looks like a croissant filled with chocolate. It was sooo good! I have not mentioned their nutella fixation here in Europe but it's EVERYWHERE. It comes in chocolate pieces, industrial size and basically everything you can imagine.

With that in mind, we headed to Carrefour to do some grocery shopping. When ML said large, we expected Wal-Mart / Target large. Oh this was far from!! This place was ginormous! A three way hookup (don't mind the references, I have been reading Tucker Max, damnit!) between Canadian Tire, Wal-Mart and Superstore. After an hour and a half of walking and contemplating, we made it through 1/3 of the store and got the necessities of survival - booze, light snacks, veggies and chicken. After unloading groceries (like good housewives) we went exploring. We saw the Nice / Cannes skyline and wow, speechless. We then chilled at the beach and I am seriously contemplating relocating to somewhere closer to a beach bc Sylvan Lake has nothing on this place! The beach was awesome and of course of all ppl, I attract some crazy mosquitoes and now I look like I'm growing another limb from my elbow.

M and I awoke this morning to the sun peaking through the shades and hit the beach around 10 am. That's right, life is rough for us! We scope out a prime spot near the water and quickly notice that tops are an optional accessory at this beach. There was a great abundance of leather ladies, as we like to call them. That's right, ladies who love their purses that much that they decide they want to tan and look just like them! Everyone knows I heart LV but not that much! M and I quickly lathered on the SPF 50 and swore on our unborn children that we would not let each other resemble any type of leather good. After a rough morning in the sun, we headed back to the pad and kicked it in the hammock for the remainder of the day. I definitely have to get myself one of those. It started to rain the latter part of the afternoon and I had the best nap EVER in that hammock.

Tomorrow we are off to Monaco to kick off my birthday festivities. Although, I do not anticipate getting nearly as rowdy as I did in Calgary (thanks again for the great early bday celebration!), it should be ridiculous. M and I have accumulated so many crazy stories and wish we had a voice recorder instead of trying to recap everything on paper or in Word the next day.

Hot man update: wooooooo! France is a much better place to scope out hotties than in Italy. I have seen 3 guys that are 7+ on the hot scale. That being said, their faces are covered by their huge sunglasses (Europe = land of aviators) so their hotness is solely rated on the ripping 6 packs! Woot. Hehe.









Hope everyone has a great weekend! We are off to tourist street to hit up some pubs.
Au revoir!

J

Caught on film!

Another road trip today! 6 hours from Venice to the Nice (pronounced 'niece') in Southern France and it's quite the change from Italy. The sun is shining and we are staying at ML's bachelor pad, living the life. 10 minutes away from a beach and a high traffic tourist destination, not to mention there are 5 or 6 bakeries within walking distance, I am in heaven! It's 1 am here and we have had quite the adventure today. Lots to recap but getting tired but enjoy the pics. I was going to load them to match each post but that's just too much for a gal on vacay ;)

Enjoy the pics!


Colosseum my first night in Rome!


A small part of the Vatican Museum


Sistine Chapel - photos are prohibited.. I'm a rebel like that !


The Vatican


Me at the Colosseum


The Roman Forum


Sunset on the Spanish Steps


That oven baked calzone I kept talking about


M & I on the Bridge of Sighs in Venice


Venice Day 2 - sun makes everything better


The canal that runs throughout the city


M & I ecstatic about our coffee to go !


Last but not least, my favorite picture I have taken on this trip. It was after our 551 step march up the Vatican. The view of the statues from the top of the Vatican. Absolutely breathtaking!



Hope all is well back in Calgary! I can't believe I've been gone a whole week. Somebody update me!! Hehe

J

PS - Switching languages has been a challenge, especially reading! I make a much better Italian than I do a Frenchie!

Venice - Follow that pastry!

Some of you have been asking how I have been finding the time to write such detailed posts and to sum it up: white wine and creepy Italian men that would keep any young woman off the streets. White wine is self explanatory, it helps with my quick thinking, bad spelling / grammar and sarcasm. Italian men here are far less subtle, if possible than the men in Rome. They slow down in cars, tilt their glasses and gawk, shamelessly. It's actually more scary than anything. So if that isn't reason enough to stay around our hotel, I don't know what is.

As previously posted, the forecast today was rain. M and I prepared and dressed for the worst. We were pleasantly surprised when the weather turned out to be sunshine. All day long! Yes, another point on our side. There was some drama on the train today with some crazy woman who didn't pay her fare and was caught by the transit po-po and instead of admitting her mistake, decided to yell, continuously for 30 minutes. Her voice was hoarse and resembled a man's more than anything and she pulled the race card. Yes, bc she was African, the train conductor asked for proof of payment.. Who knew 2.90 Euro could get a train ride and a free show?

We arrive in good spirits, trying not to let the forecasted weather damper our moods. We find our shopping street, which we scoped out yesterday, split from the men and began our long day of souvenir hunting. It was great!! Oh how I missed shopping. You know you're a true shopaholic when you find greater joys in shopping for others than yourself. I got yet another pleasant surprise when M presented me with an early bday gift that I was eyeing early but opted not to buy bc I wasn't focusing on myself today. Thanks love! I heart you and the gift muchly! After spending 4 hours shopping and eyeing every bakery and its goodies within in our proximity, we met the Mike's for a sit down lunch. Much needed, if you were to ask my ankles. I had grilled chicken and potatoes. I've been two days pizza free (it's weird) but can't say the same for gelato. I have been consuming so much that I can taste the difference btw a 1.20 Euro gelato and a 2.00 gelato! Blubberville here I come!

After lunch we decided to stay together and continued on shopping for souvenirs. Aside from blown glass, Venice or Italy in general is known for its Silk. The afternoon flew by as we attempted to balance shopping and retaking photos. Pictures were second priority as we were all in agreeance that we didn't want to take anymore steps than required. As we headed towards the train station, after yet another 6 hour day of being on our feet, there it was, basking in the sunlight. A to go coffee shop. This may seem the norm in North America as the mentality is very 'go, go go' but in Europe, lunches last for hours the experience of a meal is weighted much the same as the quality of the food. That being said, anything 'to go' is rare. You would not believe the excitement that spread across the faces of M and I. We rushed in and ordered. To my dismay, my coffee was mini (which is regular size here. Curse Mickey D's for making Supersize a norm) and M's was a reg size back home. That just made our day even more fulfilling.

I passed out on the train ride back home and much like an airplane, trains lack sufficient seating that supports the neck for sleepy travellers. I awoke to a girl giggling at my bobble headed nature. Luckily, it was in time for our stop and we headed back to the car, only to find that once again, we got owned by Venice. A parking ticket!! However, this was pure proof of lack of intelligence of the Venice polizia as it said that our ticket was not valid, but they just read the date wrong. ML lives in Nice so for him to travel back here to fight this ticket would be more costly than to pay the damn thing, so there you go. You win Venice, 5 - 3. We are leaving bright and early tmw morning!

To end the blog today and to signify a temporary end to my Italian experience (M and I are in Milan in a couple of wks), I thought I would leave you with some helpful phrases. Note: spelling may be inaccurate but at least I know some Italian!

Italian phrases:
Bonjourno - hello
Ciao - hello / bye
Graciez - thank you
Preggo - you're welcome / welcome
Bella - beautiful
Il conto preggo - the bill please
Arrevedercia - goodbye
Quanto costa - how much?
Quando - when?

I also learned a bunch of inappropriate slang here but have not felt the need to put these words to use so I can't remember them.. The international symbol has been able to make do! Just kidding. I feel no need to flip anyone off on my vacay. Just smooth sailing!

Arreverdecia (or however you spell it!)

J

Venice - Map. Highly Required

As previously mentioned, the drive from Rome to Venice was a bitch, to say the least. Anyway, we arrive at our hotel after driving around lost for an hour, Liz, our GPS (indeed, we named her) failed to direct us. Eventually ML found our way here and WOW 75 Euros can get you a nice place. We get here, exhausted and decide to siesta for a couple of hrs before we meet up for dinner. I, the nerd and not wanting to forget a single moment of this trip, reach for my travel journal, only to realize, I am a retard and left it in Rome. Yes Amy, the beautiful travel journal you bought me for THIS trip and for my birthday, I left in Rome. I wanted to cry. Course of action, you ask? I'm calling Rome as soon as we get to Nice and asking them to send it. I will fork out the fee. It is too cute and has too many thoughts in there to just be left, abandoned. I would make a horrible mother!

Anyway, last night M and I ventured out on our own, without our usual male entourage. Our consequences for such actions was discrimination. Twice. Firstly, we were reassured by the front desk that we would be able to purchase bus tickets on the bus itself. We get on, only to be rejected. The answer is no. Tickets can only be purchased at Tobacco shops. We get kicked off a bus (causing me to relive my Jr. High yrs). Fine, we decide to grab dinner at this quaint pizzeria by our hotel. No english menu but no biggy, I ask for a Calzone with spinach, mushrooms and tomatoes. It's oven baked (stone oven baked. None of this electricity bs we have in Canada) and of course, amazing. Funny thing is, we ask for cutlery and again, slapped in the face with rejection! You cannot eat in the place. Fine. We take it back to our hotel, eat it there and then venture to a super market to pick up some wine and fruit for the next couple of days. On our journey, we find many locals seated at the exact pizzeria.. We can't see them eating but we presume that after 5 minutes of creepy staring from across the street, the locals were welcome to consume their food there. Venice - 2, J&M - 0. The rest of the night was spent sipping wine while sitting on our balcony recapping the past 2.5 days in Rome and reliving our ridiculously hilarious pictures. I will post when I can!

Day 4 - Venice In its entirety, no joke

Before I begin the description of my day, let me first describe my restless sleep. This brief description may cause some jaws to drop and for some, to reconfirm my dedication and obsessive love. Mid sleep, M and I smack into each other, which is rare bc I have conditioned myself of the years to limit rolling in my sleep, however last night was an exception. It was an intense volleyball game and the blonde at the volleydome was threatening to blow the whistle. We were down a couple points in the third match and we needed to win this. The ball is coming over the net and in an effort to keep the rally going, I dive to the right. Literally, in my sleep, I whip my body to the right, only to realize, I am nowhere near playing volleyball. That's right folks, a week away from the game and I start to dream about it! I am a freak..

Not sure if interrupted sleep or the 20 to 30 kms we are walking a day was the reason but we woke up an hour later than we anticipated. Rushing out the door, we forget our map, detailed plan included. Assuming Venice, being a sinking island and all, couldn't be too hard to navigate we decide to 'wing it.' Think again. We spent 8 hrs on this island, 6 of which were spent on our feet, walking around, trying to find historic landmarks. Maps for sale were incredibly over priced and being the overly confident (arrogant isn't a nice word!) young travelers we figure we can manage on our own. Upon returning to our hotel, we find we had walked the ENTIRE island in one day. Yes, the whole f-ing thing!

Forgetting the sever ankle and lower back pain, Venice was gorgeous. Aged and cultured as I would like to put it. The canal runs right through the city and throughout the day, I had to keep reminding myself that ppl in fact lived here. It felt so much like an amusement park of Europe that ppl just visited. Tourists flooded the streets (no pun intended) and I found myself clumsily running into ppl everywhere 5 steps or so. After 5 hours, we had a very short siesta where we sat in St. Marco square in the rain and listened to a live band play. I seriously felt like I was in a movie. The only thing missing was a poofy dress and a hot European guy. Which ladies, I regret to inform you, I have failed to see. The quest for Mr. D&G model continues...

The weather has been miserable and has been taking a toll on my mood. My (now,not so) perma grin is being threatened by mother nature and I am not liking it one bit. Forecast for tomorrow? Rain. Yet again! Give me a break!! I refuse to let water pellets ruin anymore pictures! I don't have a straightener, at least let me where my cute summer outfits. Long pants, not an option. So if my next post is titled: 'sick in France, kill me now,' you will know why!

Tomorrow's agenda - SHOPPING! I haven't bought anything except a cute pair of sandals for Paris. I know! But like I said, I am a changed woman! Lol for today at least. Venice is famous for blown glass everything and mardi gras masks. I just hope I dont break any of it in my suitcases!

As always, missing home (does my vball dream give it away?!) Well wishes from Venice.

Thank you for the comments!! Keep 'em coming! Sure makes me more motivated to keep posting about life on the go, even if Venice is up 3 - 0 on Megs and I !

** Sidenote: I can't believe you broke your leg on the trampoline, D!! Hope you feel better soon :) Keep me posted on surgeries and stuff. Miss you.

J

Roma - land of pizzas and gelato!

BONJOURNO! Forgive the lack of posting, it's only my 2nd time on a computer thus far, but can you blame me?? It's Rome for goodness sake!

The flight to London was great. Caught up on some well needed sleep and finished a book. Landed in Heathrow for a two hour layover which was not bad. That airport is HUGE! So many shops and used significant willpower not to buy anything and had to constantly remind myself that the lower prices, were in Euro.

The flight from London to Rome was horrible. The plane was small and cramped, the old creepy dude beside me kept falling asleep on my shoulder and babies were everywhere, crying left and right. I felt like someone had beat me, literally in my sleep when I got off that plane. Next stop, navigating my way from the airport to the Termini to meet Megan and the Mike's. There seems to be an abundance of male population with that name lately! I grab my luggage and am approached by two extremely greasy Italian men, looking for directions. I pull the fob card - no engrish! They move on to harass some other poor unsuspecting female. I meet two friendly Aussie sisters who have the same itinerary as I - Rome then Venice. We arrive at the Termini, after what felt like an eternity, as I am in Rome stuck in a tin can (the train) unable to explore. The Aussies and I part ways and I try to find Megan and the Mike's among the thousands of other people. We finally find each other and breathe a sigh of relief. I guess both of us were fearful we wouldn't be able to find each other, especially without a 'plan B'

We head straight to the Colosseum to see it all lit up and I am absolutely speechless. It wasn't until that moment that I stepped out of that train station that I realized, I was indeed in Rome. That's right, you can take the train directly there and as soon as you get out of the station, there it is. Standing in all its glory. Thousand years of history, waiting to be explored. After I wipe the perma grin / astonishment off my face, we head to our hotel and pass out. We both had exhausting days.

DAY ONE
Megs and I get up around 7 to get ready for our day. A full blown day at the Vatican. We arrive to a ridiculous line up, as most people had the same idea as us, to avoid the Vatican on Sunday bc of Sunday Mass. No biggy. Mike A (MA)and I decide to endure the line to see the Vatican Museum, where Megs and other Mike (ML to limit confusion) decide to explore around the area as they have already seen it. I see the Sistine Chapel, endless amounts of artwork dating back to xx BC and after about 2.5 hours, everything begins to look the same. Don't get me wrong, I was amazed and continue to be amazed by the beauty of it all, but to recapture everything in words (with my limited time on the internet here) would take hours. We have a quick bite to eat along this beautiful bridge and head back to the Vatican. We hike up 551 steps to the top of the Vatican and look down to St. Peter's Square. Now remember, I'm already stupified in the beauty of everything else from the morning, but this just put me over the edge. The view is indescribable and when I am able to post pics, I'm sure most of you (and by that I mean the whole 4 of you reading this) will fully agree. I realize at that moment, atop the Vatican that I had rushed through my day and seeing 'everything' as opposed to enjoying the moment. Here I break away from the group for awhile to take it all in - being in Rome, being at the Vatican, being lucky enough to have this experience. Cheesy, yes. Worthwhile, hell ya. After that we headed back to St. Peters Square to take photos, all the while, I'm rereading Angels and Demons in my mind to picture Tom Brown's vision in the book. I am a dork at heart. We decide to head back to the hotel for a short siesta (basically a break or a nap, they're very popular here) but along the way, I decide I need to have gelato bc a) it's Italy and b) it's scorching outside. The gelato is awesome. Amato Gelato my ass. Yes, I said it! This was incomparable to anything in calgary and those who know me, know I don't discriminate against desserts. Well ladies and gents, I am a changed woman.. Maybe..

After our siesta, we decide to have dinner at a pizzeria near the Colosseum and when I say near, I mean, I am drinking wine and cutting my pizza facing this thing. Thats the thing about Rome, I expected all the sites to be far off in some distant place, bus ride required, but it's nothing like that. Everything is in the neighbourhood, in your face beautiful.

DAY TWO
I wake up to a thunderstorm. Yes, I am almost in tears. The plan is to see the Colosseum up close and personal. AND IT'S F-ING RAINING. Not just raining, monsoon raining. Luckily, like Calgary (can you believe it??!) the weather changes like a teenage girl with PMS (again, I said it..) and after breakfast, it's sunny again. Perma grin and all, MA, ML and I head to the Colosseum. Megs has already been there twice. Lucky biotch - just kidding love! We arrive to yet another ridiculous crowd, it is high season afterall. It was really cool to be there and envison all the plays, political speeches and executions that took place here. That being said, I am sadly disappointed. You know when you have this vision of how something is supposed to be and it's absolutely grandiose but when you get there, it is nothing like expected? That was me. There. At the Colosseum. I felt like a fraud, a jerk, a combination of two. Like I was unworthy to be there bc I didn't fully appreciate this. Slightly disappointed, we headed to the Forum and holy hey-zeus, I was blown away. This was the feeling I thought I would get at the Colosseum but the Forum was ridiculous. Destroyed building here, church there.. I wish I could post pics so you would understand!

It was a crazy day after the Forum. Saw the Pantheon which is the only intact building that remains from thousands of yrs ago in its entirety. Then to the Fountain of something I don't remember how to spell. MA and ML decide they are exhausted especially being threatened by yet another thunderstorm. Megs and I decide that no rain can stop us from our last night in Rome so we venture out. Have a bottle of white wine and some more delicious pizza - so delicious, my meticulous and OCD calorie counting inner voice encourages me to eat rather than scowling me.. We then head to the spanish steps but not before grabbing some gelato. Where the owner spoils us with a glass of wine, more pizza and appies. All free. Did I mention I LOVE ROME?! We take some ridiculous pictures at the steps only to realize, we better hurry back before we miss the last metro and get stranded. Laughing the entire way back to our hotel room, we both pass out.

DAY THREE (today)
I have just arrived in Venice, or Pedova to be exact, near Venice but cheaper. 8 hr car ride, I am exhausted. Just thought I'd send a quick update before all the details of my first two days are flooded out by white wine.

I promise I will get pics up asap.

Thanks for reading! It means a lot! Don't forget to comment, comment, comment!

Ciao!

PS - I am trying to pick up as much Italiano as possible. I would love to live here!

Europe Bound

All packed and ready to go ! Unlike most trips, I didn't wait until last minute to throw everything together - learning lesson from the past? Perhaps. Had a relaxing day, nothing too stressful or pressing that needed to be done. Got to see the girls and the fam before I left which made it all the better. Still feels so surreal that I'm leaving in less than 4 hours. I don't think reality will set in until I land in Rome.

Yes, my first stop is Rome. Then off to Venice. I can't wait to try the Gelato and pasta in Italy !! I'm a little apprehensive about everything I've heard about the Italian men and having watched Taken, I think my guard will be up the entire trip. No, I did not bring pepper or bear spray, contrary to everyone's suggestions. Hopefully hairspray and perfume will suffice. Actually, I'm just going to keep my fingers crossed that I never have to resort to such defense mechanisms.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. Miss you all already.

Ciao!

J