When in Rome...... (Part IV)

Dec. 3rd was a travelling day to Rome. It was also my 25th birthday.

We woke up in Marseille, France at the family house, got ready with our bags and left to the airport to catch our first plane back to the London hub.

We arrived in London right before lunch time and decided to have lunch at the airport. We patiently awaited for our next flight to take us to Rome, quickly coming to realization that our vacation was coming to an end. Rome would be our last destination.

We arrived in Rome fairly late in the evening, and had a bit of a harder time getting to our hotel. The language barrier was a bit problematic, but most agents and customer service at the train stations managed to speak english and guide us in the right direction. However, we hadn't done any research on how to arrive to the hotel, and I became overwhelmed lugging around my heavy briefcase and not knowing which bus to take. I got the ingenious idea to call the hotel to tell them where I was at (about 7km away) and ask how to get there. The manager told us to take one more metro ride and arrive to the stop where there would be a shuttle bus waiting for us. I was so relieved and Sebastian very happy.

We arrived at the hotel and quickly unpacked our stuff and got into bed. Sebastian had been very hungry and got frustrated when the supermarket right across the street closed as soon as we got there. I told him to eat some of the sausage we had brought back with us from Marseille, and the sandwiches we had been given onboard our flight.

The next day, we woke up to have breakfast downstairs and catch our first glimpse of the weather- gray, dull and hazy. We took the shuttle to the metro station and made our way into central Rome, unfortunately in some rain. We slowly strolled around going from one landmark to the next.

We had dinner at a tiny restaurant where I managed to spit out the phrase "acqua di rubinetto" to specify that I wanted tap water and not bottled water at 3€.

We went back to the hotel and had some more sausage while we watched TV and drank cappuccinos.  I mentioned to Sebastian that I had found it entirely fortunate that we had not been subjected to loud sex by next door guests in any of the hotels. As we were watching TV, we suddenly hear the moans of a man in the next room. I wasn't sure if it was sex or talking, so I immediately put my ear to the wall when Sebastian went into the bathroom (where apparently he was doing the same thing.) It became apparent that it was a SEX session when I heard the sound of skin slapping against two body parts.

There's no way that's masturbating, right?

We quickly heard the moaning grow louder, nearing its grand finale. We never once heard the woman make a peep. We laughed when it was done, telling ourselves that we would compete the following night.

The last day, we took the metro to the Vatican city. What bothered me the most were the incessant amount of peddlers coming up to us to sell crapless roses or offer guided tours of the main momuments. One guy bothered me so much as I was getting my picture taken that Sebastian yelled out "Hey! We're taking a picture here" and motioned for him to move out of the shot.

We arrived at San Pedro's Plaza, the entrance to the Vatican City, to see them setting up the christmas tree. The plaza itself was incredibly big, and Sebastian and I took a break on the steps before we continued to the next place.

We also found Rome to be a lot dirtier and ruder than the other 3 cities we'd visited. It seemed that as further south we headed, the harder it got. I think it has a lot to do with not being able to respond in Italian, even though I can understand a majority of it (I also speak french and spanish fluently)


As we came back to our hotel to pack up our bags, I finally let out a sigh of relief. The trip had come to an end- and a very good one at that. In preparation for our early 8am flight the next day, Sebastian opted for reassurance and commodity to arrive on time at the airport and decided to pay for a shuttle to come pick us up- at the tune of 65€. It hurt me a bit because it was the equivalent to what we'd spent on two nights at the hotel, but it was going to take us too long to do it by bus, metro and train.


That night, as we sat in bed watching the last bit of TV and talking, I remembered how excited I'd been at the beginning of the trip and thinking that maybe 12 days wouldn't be enough. I told Sebastian that after 11 days, I was ready to come home as I was beginning to feel a little homesick, and moreover tired of lugging our luggage from hotel to hotel, unpacking and packing every 3 nights, and hopping on 6 flights and 1 major train ride- plus countless other subways, trains,metros, trams and cars.

We had concluded our trip to Europe- "planes, trains, and automobiles." It was over, but time to come home. Before leaving our hotel room though, the guests next door decided to grace us with a going away gift: Loud laughter and sex at 2:30am, when we had to wake up at 5am.

Sebastian was pissed and made a shitload of noise at 5:00 am when we began getting ready to leave. I just laughed along.

There's a few lessons that that I've learned on this trip-

1) "Free wi-fi" does not mean free wi-fi
2) Pack light
3) Getting lost in Paris is Priceless. There's always an interesting sight to see around each corner.
4) Learn to ask for "tap water" in the different languages. It's free.
5) Carry coins to use the restrooms in Paris and Marseille shopping malls, public restrooms.
6) Wear comfortable shoes.
7) Read the destinations on subways and metros before hopping on.
8) Try a new dish each time
9) Carry cash to leave tips.
10) Pray you don't get a room next to an Italian Couple.

We now return to our regular programing.

Marseille, Marseille..... (Part III)

Our train ride from Paris to Marseille was very calm and relaxed. We rode on the TGV which took 3.5 hours. We had bought some snacks and sandwiches at a bakery in Paris because the meals were at least 8€ on the train. This was also Sebastian's first train ride, which he mostly spent reading, while I listened to music and tried to do our "bookkeeping." However, I fibbed during the trip to Paris, and had a very hard time keeping track of our money, and decided I didn't want to complete it until I saw my statement back at home.

I was fairly excited about this stop because I would be visiting my friends and family. Sebastian had admitted to me that he was a bit bummed out about having to stop at family's, and I told him I understood (I'd be bummed out too if I had to stop by someone's family in a completely different country and not know the language) but I hadn't seen them in almost 3 years, and had been looking forward to it for a while.

We arrived at the station where my brother picked us up. We went to his mother's house where I greeted my friend Ingrid, sister Samantha and her mother Marie. We had a nice dinner and caught up on some current events. My brother speaks english from what he has learned on shows and school, so he was able to talk with Sebastian. My sister is only a beginning english speaker, so spoke very slowly to him.

We went to sleep tired that night, with plans to visit Marseille the next afternoon.

We awoke to an empty house and had breakfast in the computer room as we took turns taking showers. My brother came to pick us up around 1pm, and took us to Palais Longchamps to walk around the garden before lunch.

We grabbed some kebabs and drove up to the Cathedral Notre Dame de la Garde which overlooks all of Marseille. It was very windy and cold, to the point of making our eyes water.

That afternoon, we went to see my brother's friends (his ex-gf Nana and his best friend who just had a baby) and spend time with them. Sebastian and the guys went off into the kitchen to smoke, while Nana and I talked about everything that'd been going- relationships, work, health, school, travel and family. She had come to visit us twice since 1999 when she was dating my brother. We reconnected fairly well when I came back to France during '06-'07.

Later that night, we went to the store to do some grocery shopping at the supermarket for that evening's soirée. While I was trying to pick out stuff (and evidently taking too much time) my brother got frustrated and managed to make me swell up with emotions and cry. My friend Ingrid quickly saw me upset, but I couldn't bear to tell her that I was too sensitive to my brother's comments.  Sebastian didn't know what was going on either, but I kept it to myself until that night when we went to bed.

That night, a few people I had met on my previous visit came to hang out at the house. We played games and mainly just talked and joked around. Most of the girls and non english speakers were in the room with me, while the guys and english speakers were in the other room playing poker. Sebastian managed to get along quite well with the guys. The guys thought him a few phrases such as "Ma boisson préferée est le pastis" as anise resembles licorice, which he loves.

The last night before our flight, we went to a fondue house where Sebastian and I quickly agreed that it was "fun don't." The smell of cheese overtook us as soon as we stepped inside. We sat at a table and waited for our different pots of cheese and bread. That was it. That's all there is to fondue: bits of bread, dipped in melted cheese. My brother joked around saying we shouldn't wear the same coats and jacket on the plane the next day to avoid hearing comments like "Ah, ces français puent!" (these french people stink)

The next morning was my 25th birthday. Sebastian and I had stayed awake past midnight the night before packing our bags and talking about our visit to Marseille. He admitted that he had had a lot of fun and been surprised about the turnout and enjoyed spending time with my family and friends. He said he had been relieved that a few of them spoke english.

The next morning, while going through my notes on my Ipod Touch, I came across the following message:

Hallo!

Hi bright eyes! *kiss*

.___. .___.

./@ \. ./@ \.

\___/ \___/ .

_______

\_____/

You make my day brighter.

It was one of the sweetest messages he had ever sent me.

Overall, I enjoyed being in Marseille, and I consider it to be the most beautiful stop. I could have stayed up on that hilltop at the church for hours if it wasn't for our limited time.


Next blog- andiamo a Roma!

Ooh la la.... Paris. (Part II)

Heureusement que l'un de nous parlait français, sinon, ça aurait été une expérience de merde pour nous deux.

We arrived at CDG airport in Paris in the early evening and took a train all the way to La Gare de L'Est where our hotel was located. Unfortunately, our train car was filled with the pungent smell of dog urine: not the way to welcome a foreigner into Paris. Musicians got onboard and played the accordion and violin and entertained us for a while until they moved onto the following car.

Once at the hotel lobby, the manager informed me that they were at maximum capacity and had upgraded us to an Executive Suite on the sixth floor.

When Sebastian heard the word "suite" his ears perked up and he asked me to confirm. We rode up the elevator to find ourselves in the nicest suite either one of us had ever been in. Face to face with a living room with refrigerator, full bathroom, closets, and a separate bedroom, we jumped with joy and ran to the window to see what kind of view we had.

There in the distance stood our beloved Tour Eiffel.

To our right, the Basilique du Sacré Coeur stood on a hill, quietly illuminated.

We decided to go out to dinner to a restaurant across the street where I ordered for the both of us. We came back to our hotel and went to sleep, ready to start our journée the following day.

We decided to walk instead of riding the metro all day as we had done previously in London. We walked all over the city to the Louvre, Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower. We walked so much our feet didn't hurt anymore.

We had dinner at different restaurants every meal, all the time excited about the choice in foods and environment we would come across. A very useful tip I learned a few years back was to learn how to ask for tap water in France. Every waiter will try to offer you "still or sparkling" water without the customer realizing that they are selling you a bottle of water. "Un carafe d'eau" is free tap water in a used but clean bottle.

We went to visit the Louvre and because I was still under 25 and travelling with my European Union Passport, managed to get in for free while Sebastian paid 9€ for his ticket.

We strolled around, looking at the statues and paintings, and came face-to-face with La Joconde- the Mona Lisa, hanging alone on a wall about 20'x20' (so that more people can view her at once.)

Afterwards, we walked through the Tuileries Garden and made our way to the Eiffel Tower, following the path of the Seine river. We walked for so long we saw the light show repeatedly in the distance.

 

Overall, our visit to Paris was very relaxing and enjoyable. I think it had a lot to do with being able to speak the language and not get taken like an ass. We walked around a lot, and I think that was my favorite part of hanging out with Sebastian. We got to talk and joke around and please our tummies with delicious crêpes along the way.

Next blog:

Tous à bord! Départ pour Marseille!

London- Mind the gap! Part I

(A recount of our Euro Vacation)

We left Houston at 8:35 pm on Tuesday evening (Nov. 24) and arrived in London the following day at 11:30 am.  Sebastian had been in charge of research for ground transportation and quickly found that the Underground would be the best way around London. We took two trains (or metros, I don't know the difference) and a bus and made our way to our hotel in Colliers Wood, where we forced ourselves to stay up until night so we wouldn't suffer from jet lag.

Extremely tired and sleepy, we managed to trek out that same night. Since we'd purchased all day tickets for zones 1-6, we went out to see Big Ben and the Parliament at Westminster, as well as the London Eye. We walked around a bit before calling it a night and coming back to grab fish and chips and a pint of beer at the pub next to our hotel. We slept on a very uncomfortable spring mattress that awoke me a few times that night (as well as the doors slamming in the corridors.) The next day, we forced ourselves out of bed to have their continental breakfast.

The following afternoon, we went out to the London Bridge to see the Tower Bridge, and walked around some more to find the Gherkin, which I repeatedly referred to as the "glass penis." We rode all day on the Underground and managed to take wrong directions at just about every intersection.  It later occured to us that we weren't really exloring London if all we were doing was riding the tube.

We walked over to Buckingham Palace and stopped by a park where a cute little squirrel climbed up my leg with a face asking "you hAZ fOoD?" Sebastian and I cracked up laughing.

At 4:30 pm, night fell. We were shocked. Not used to seeing darkness until 6 pm during the winter in Houston, we decided to go by foot to Piccadilly Circus. It was actually quite further than estimated on the map. On the way there, Sebastian came across Primark, a clothing department store, and decided to stop in to see what outfits they had. They had ridiculously low prices and he managed to get two button down shirts, complete suit and socks for about £46. He was very happy about that. I was tired and wanted to go back to the hotel, and even though he asked me repeatedly if I wanted something, I told him no.

Who turns down free clothes? That would be me.

Overall, I found our London stop to be much less of a culture shock. The people were very nice, respectful and very courteous. It was cold as hell- the coldest stop of all- but I'm glad it didn't rain. I had too much fried foods, but at least I didn't get sick. We ordered tap water everywhere and saved about £2-3 per meal on bottled water.

Sebastian made it his mission to "get busy" in every city stop of our trip. Which we did.

Next stop, Paris.

Houston, we have landed

My 12-day trip to Europe with the ex-turned-boyfriend-again finally came to a close this past Sunday evening. It was hard work and very tiring, but very well worth it and deserved in my opinion.

We started off easy and ended up much more exhausted. London was calm, clean and had respectful people. The Brits were courteous, well mannered and very helpful. Paris was dirtier, fast paced and very busy. Marseille was quiet and very relaxed. Rome was the worst. Rude Italians, dirty streets and annoying peddlers made me glad that it was the last stop before coming back. Saturday night, I finally began to feel homesick. The loud italian sex next door didn't make it any better either.

Surprisingly, Sebastian and I got along extremely well. We didn't fight at all and didn't get on each other's nerves either. I was very happy about that.

During this trip, I also turned 25 years old! It was a travelling day which left me having breakfast in France, lunch in England and dinner in Italy. Top that!

I'll be posting a couple of entries as time permits; for now, I'm catching up on my work and still need to go through all my pictures, and get the other half from Sebastian. But here is a sneak peak for your enjoyment.

Buckingham Palace, London:

Musée du Louvre, Paris:

View from Notre Dame de la Garde, Marseille

Colosseum, Rome

Oh no you didn't!

I spent a total of 18 hours with Sebastian this weekend, and I gotta say I actually got a bit peeved at a few statements he made.

We went to the David Guetta Concert on Friday night, and even though I was really looking forward to it and it was GREAT music, I couldn't stand up any longer. We were there from 10:30pm until about 2:30am, without sitting down for one minute (well, unless you count the bathroom...... but wait...... I squatted there too.)  There's only so much I can take in heels, and I was in real pain.

While at the concert, Sebastian got this "awesome idea" that I needed to be lifted up to be able to see over the crowd. I was fine from where I was standing. I could see the stage perfectly. So he tries to lift me and I'm wiggling cause I want him to put me down and he says "Well, lose the 8lbs and then I'll try again"

SAY WHAT?!

I was already tipsy so as soon as I heard those words, tears.

The only thing that made it better was seeing David take the stage.

Then, the next day, I asked him if he could make grilled cheese sandwich for breakfast, so he did. The sandwich ended up being quite salty because my butter was salted. When I told him this he said he hadn't realized it, and that he was used to cooking with unsalted butter, and then salting to his taste. When I told him it was pointless to salt unsalted butter (hence why they make the salted kind) he retaliated with "Well you wouldn't know, you don't know how to cook"

I walked off to my room saying "Well that was a low blow."

And we're embarking on a 12-day trip??

Well, as enthusiastic as Sebastian is about everything, and as sure as he is about us getting along because we do get along at every other moment, I can definitely sense we're going to bump heads at least twice on this trip. When I told him this, he said that I shouldn't be too preoccupied about it, else it'd affect the vacation. I just like to think of the worst first and be ready if it happens.....

But maybe he does have a point.