Parc-Life

Parc de la Pepinière, Nancy, France. No rain!

Ladies. If you fancy yourself as a bit of a voyageuse, (like me), check out the Travel Belles, a website for females with a real passion for independent travel. Each month readers are invited to contribute to the site across the 'virtual café table' to discuss travel questions and share those unforgettable travel experiences.

This month’s question just happens to be…

‘What’s your favourite spot to have a picnic?’

I’m a firm believer that food always tastes better when eaten outdoors. Perhaps this was thanks to countless days out with the family whilst growing up. Memories of pork pies (Google it if you’re unfamiliar, just don’t count the calories), cheese sandwiches and Hula Hoop crisps take me back to an age where the Spice Girls ruled the airwaves, Sabrina the Teenage Witch ruled the TV and the Furby ruled the playground. Times have changed, but my British picnic food still hasn’t.

A great picnic can happen anywhere. All you need is sunshine (we’ve had about 4 sunny days in the UK this year, so choose your day wisely) , food/drink and good company. And folk/ ambient music if you’re feeling slightly pretentious...

As for my favourite spot I thought of a few favourite picnic locations before settling on the city of Nancy, France. Granted, it’s not the most famous of French cities, but it’s where I worked, partied and lived for the last year, making it a very special place indeed. Nancy’s city park Parc de la Pepinière makes for the perfect spot, situated just behind main square and meeting point du jour Place Stanislas, a World Heritage Site, no less.

Our very own bourgeois pique-nique

On a beautiful Sunday afternoon in April, armed with fresh bread from the boulangerie, Quiche Lorraine, olives, cheese and fresh strawberries from the nearby farmer’s market I headed to the parc with friends. Watching the world go by in France is a favourite pastime of mine and that’s exactly what I did after almost exploding from gluttony/sheer happiness after the pique-nique. I watched as loved up couples laid down picnic blankets complete with hampers, baguettes and organic produce (how bourgeois of them! I can merely imitate). I saw families eating in the sunshine, taking the beloved family dog for a walk and groups of friends casually sipping on supermarket wine, cautiously looking behind their shoulders in case the parc wardens were watching. It is France’s notorious love of food that gives a French pique-nique that reputable je ne sais quoi. Maybe it was the atmosphere in the park that day, maybe it was the way I was feeling....everything was perfect. Yet something was missing. The rain.

The End. Enfin.

I'm home. It sucks. Well it doesn't, but 'home' just doesn't compare to the bright lights of Continental Europe. It's over, but knowing that I'll probably end up doing it all over again reassures me slightly...

Thought I'd leave you with this. I wrote it during my last week in Nancy in April 2011, typing away as I tried to avoid packing my life up and moving on to pastures new. It sums up how I was feeling throughout the final term in France, oh the euphoria. :)

Tales from the industrial heart of France. Nancy -je t’aime.

The other day as I came out of the train station in Nancy, I arbitrarily decided to take the Place Saint Leon exit, the exit I had taken upon my arrival in France on a rainy September night in 2010. The memories came flooding back instantly of that 10 hour journey from Chesterfield, England to Nancy, France (chez moi for the last seven months). So much has happened since my arrival in the industrial heart of France I can hardly believe it’s all coming to an end.

Integration in France got off to a good start when three days in I caught sight of myself in a car wing mirror. Wearing a stripy top and carrying a baguette under my arm (the beret and garlic were to come later), I had already ousted my inner Française. Perhaps it was this pivotal moment that set the ball rolling for what was to become an incredible seven months.

After learning I would be teaching in what is known as a ZEP school in France (that is to say a school which is given extra funding and more autonomy due to the generally underprivileged area (quartier) in which it is situated) I had my reservations. The looks of pity I got from just about every French person I came across in Nancy during my first two weeks as I told them I was working in the Haut du Lièvre quartier nearly drove me insane. Matters were made worse during my first day at work when I discovered one of my students had a dog called Sniper. I was more than a little concerned….

Fast forward a couple of weeks of teaching and strikes broke out across France (no surprise there- they were striking over Sarko’s decision to raise the normal retirement age for public pensions from 65 to 67). Luckily my school stayed open throughout the protests that almost ground France to a halt (schools were closed and fuel supplies were running out).I became blasé about seeing manifestations (protests) that had seemed so exciting at first, although found it hilarious when one of my 6ème students facetiously declared he was on strike when asked to take his pencil case out of his bag. Luckily hardly any of the teachers chose to ‘faire grève’. The P.E. teacher who spends every moment of his spare time fishing went on strike, only to remain chez lui. When asked by another teacher if he went fishing while the strikes were going on, he chuckled ‘Pas d’essence’. No petrol. Mais oui.

As I worked in a ZEP school, there were students who had real behavioural/ personal issues that often made teaching English a challenge. There was also the task of teaching English to students who could barely speak French. Take B, a 13 year old 5ème student who came to France last year from Algeria where he never went to school- he looked after the family goats. I couldn’t expect to perform miracles- the general level of English at school was below the national average, but oh was I going to try…

Oh and when they got it! That made everything worthwhile! When I had an enthusiastic group who were prepared to speak (and make mistakes), teaching was thoroughly enjoyable. My favourite classes were the 4èmes with whom I made a television programme in English. I helped groups of students write scripts before filming them and putting everything together to make a 30 minute video. Everyone got involved (including the deputy head!)- there were presenters, sports stars, weather forecasts and even a film preview. The tables soon turned when two of my students politely requested that I present the weather forecast for Britain. Nerve-wracking to say the least- and I was speaking my mother tongue!

As my school was a small one (around 250 students and 30 staff members), I got to know everyone pretty quickly. I often went out for meals with the history-geography teacher who has visited EVERY country under the sun (or so it seems). There’s also N, who advised me ‘Il faut manger locale’- ‘You must eat locally’ when it comes to finding a French boyfriend and A, a French teacher with whom I often talk about books, music and shoes (très cultural). Two of the classroom assistants have become my cinema/ soirée friends and constant sources of amusement. I feel incredibly lucky to have had such welcoming and hilarious co-workers- definitely helped me to settle in sans problème.

Given that my timetable was a mere twelve hours a week, my life in Nancy was not all about school. I made friends with students at the nearby Ecole des Mines (engineering school) and consequently got to go to their soirées! This included a ‘rave in a forest’- we were driven out of Nancy to the nearby Fôret de Haye and dropped off at a normally derelict building which had transformed itself into a boîte de nuit for the evening. Dancing the night away in the middle of a forest until 5am was definitely a brilliant Year Abroad anecdote, particularly due to the fact that the toilets turned out to be non existent...Thanks to the ridiculous number of bank holidays the French have we didn’t have to work the next morning either! Win win situation!

Suffice to say I profité-d bien from my assistant salary/vast amount of free time. In France I visited Metz, Strasbourg, Colmar, the Champagne Region, the Vosges mountains, Paris and Lyon. I also went to Luxembourg, Brussels, Saarbrücken, Basel, Krakow, Budapest, Bratislava, Vienna and Prague. My responsable, S, called me la voyageuse (the traveller) and teased me whenever I stayed in Nancy for a weekend. Not only have I fallen in love with France all over again but I’ve been able to travel across Europe visiting countries and cities I’ve read so much about in books.

It’s not only the ‘You’ll never guess where I went this weekend’ moments that I will look back on fondly. S, my responsable always gives me a lift to/back from school if we start or finish at the same time. It enables us to chat, discuss, and more recently have a gossip. Even if it’s just pointing to something and saying ‘How do you say this in English/French?’ the time I’ve spent with her has been not only invaluable but remarkably enjoyable. This summer she’s leaving her lifelong friends, parents and two sons in Nancy and moving to Toulouse to be with a man she met last summer who works as a doctor in Africa. Why? ‘C’était un coup de foudre’ she told me one day- ‘It was love at first sight’.

Things I will miss about France

ÿ The people. Clichéd but very true.

ÿ Filler words in conversations: Bah oui, bah non, bah je ne sais pas, bah franchement! I started imitating for a joke but have now found I do it naturally…

ÿ The food. The French find it amusing that I like strong cheese à la Roquefort/Munster ‘Mais t’es pas une vraie anglaise!’ (you are not a real English girl’) they say…Bah oui!

ÿ Paul the baker’s. Think of it as an upmarket Gregg’s.

ÿ The constant ‘Where is Brian? Brian is in the kitchen!’ jokes from French people. This catchphrase refers to a sketch by comedian Gad Elmaheh who remarks that the same characters appear in every English textbook in France- Brian, Sophie, etc. Most French people I have come across have re-enacted this ‘hilarious’ sketch much to my amusement.

ÿ Double decker trains. We have to get these introduced in Britain. The novelty just doesn’t wear off!

ÿ Nancy in particular Place Stanislas- main square and meeting place for all. Dubbed ‘la plus belle place du monde’ (I can vouch for that) there’s nowhere I’d rather be when the sun is shining.

Things I will not miss about France

ÿ The parking. Oh have I seen some sights this year!

ÿ The lack of queues. It’s in my British nature to form a line quietly without complaining. Don’t judge.

ÿ Avoiding patisseries. I could win a gold medal for abstention when it comes to boulangerie dodging, which isn’t an easy task when the bloody things are round every corner.

ÿ The notorious French bureaucracy. Social Security always on your back asking you to send in passport photos/ birth certificate copies, your right arm, etc.

ÿ The famous Nancy winter weather which came out to play in November (it proceeded to rain virtually non-stop for 15 days; there’s a reason why I went through 6 umbrellas this year!).

Yet all those ‘things I will not miss’ dwindle in comparison to the great memories I’ve got from this year, meeting and teaching people from completely different backgrounds to my own, speaking lots of French and quite frankly having the time of my life. I travelled a lot, I learned a lot and I most definitely laughed a lot.

Sitting here now, I’m feeling nostalgic to say the least. It’s my penultimate day at school, the weather is beautiful and conversation in the staff room today has focused on cheese, smoking, contraception and 60 year old prostitutes. I could only be in one country- la belle France!

Bliss.

Enfin! Spring/summer is upon us! The last 2 weeks in Nancy have been beautiful, I really really really don't want to leave la belle France. I'm so so so happy right now- returning to England just does not excite me in the slightest...

Blog on trip to Champagne region and trip to the Vosges mountains to come soon!

My week

• Work, work, work. I'll miss it when I finish in 2 weeks. Highlights of my working week- filming my 4eme (year 9) students in the sun for the English project I'm doing with them (everyone is getting so involved and it's just so much FUN). Singing Celine Dion's My Heart Will Go On with one of the teaching assistants (my new gay best friend) was another highlight.
• Went to the opera on Tuesday evening- found cheap seats (12 euros) so put our glad rags on and saw The Portrait, a Russian opera (luckily with French subtitles, my Russian is not really up to scratch). It was an experience to enter the building alone- right in Place Stan, it is beautiful. The opera was ok- quite strange and a bit morbid at the end. In a nutshell it's about a painter who finds success but eventually goes a bit mental. Enough said. Moved onto new favourite bar Le Berthom afterwards for some Belgian beer :)
Nancy, Opéra.

Lovely.

Been chilling in parks a fair bit this week- temperature has been 25 degrees the last few days. Luckily the gorgeous Parc st. Marie is a 3 minute walk from chez moi- was there with the Irish for 3 hours on Wednesday afternoon chatting and people watching and went for a drink in the park with someone from school this afternoon. Life is chilled. I love the fact that whenever the weather is good the French are out making the most of it. At home a hot weather spell makes everyone turn to the beer....

Last night a few of us traveled from Nancy to Luxembourg to see Stornoway in concert. They're one of my favourite bands, their album Beachcomber's Windowsill is pure perfection and has been the soundtrack to my Year Abroad. A perfect way to round off my time in France I guess! There were only 60 or so people at the gig which meant the band were able to perform some songs unplugged. Amazing! So stripped down, the lead singer has a great voice, felt like everything he was singing came straight from the heart.

Perfection.

2 weeks to go and counting.

Vive la France!

C'est la vie!

Hello, hola and bonjour!

Je suis back! From 16 amazing days in Central/Eastern Europe. Had a blast as we galavanted through Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria and the Czech Republic, stories to follow bientôt. After a fortnight of no rain, we stepped off the train in Nancy on Sunday afternoon to....yes,you've guessed it....RAIN! Bof.

However the rain did not last. This week it got up to 17 degrees, a first for Nancy I think. Spring is here, but it's almost time to leave. Just under 6 weeks left in France. It's going to be good, starting with St. Paddy's, Nancy style.

Tchin Tchin

I’ve got it bad. That feeling that time is slipping away and there’s nothing I can do about it. Vive la nostalgie! It’s hard not to think about ‘the end’ now- as one assistant drunkenly said to me the other evening ‘It’s too sooooon!’ Only 8 weeks or so to go until I will leave Nancy with only a crappy Dunlop suitcase and great memories from a great seven months.

Friday night was hilarious. I was invited out for drinks with two of the teachers-Nathalie and Valérie from school. I often help Nathalie out with her SEGPA students- students so academically poor they have separate classes from the other students. They’re a handful, it’s not an easy job teaching them I've got to say. After helping in one of her lessons on Thursday, Nathalie invited me out for drinks on Friday night. We met up in Opéra, a nice little bar just behind Place Stan. Spent a couple of hours speaking lots of French (not that easy in a loud bar when you keep having to say ‘Pardon? J’ai pas entendu'.) Love how open the French are about their relationship history- I learnt that Valérie, originally from the South moved to Nancy for a man who later broke up with her. Also learned that Nathalie spent two weeks in Manchester when she was my age and was basically a massive slag. Love it.The most hilarious moment was perhaps the advice they gave me ‘Il faut manger local’ meaning ‘You must find a French hottie’. When in France, and all.

While we're on the subject of 'manger' i.e. food (when am I off this subject?), I went for lunch again this week at Anne’s house- an English lady who’s been living in France and Belgium for the last fifty years or so. Had soup, salmon (as my closest friends will know is the key to my heart) and chocolate mousse. Once again Bouba, her chihuahua was sat on my lap for the entirety of the afternoon. It’s been so nice to swap living abroad stories with Anne- we often talk about the differences between the French and the British. Two of the main ones we found;

· The French don’t let many people get close. In England, I’m used to talking to little old ladies at the bus stop about the weather or the news or some other topic that binds us together for a few minutes. Then we’re off. In France you don’t talk to anyone. You stay silent, don’t make eye contact with anyone and when the bus arrives it’s a free-for-all. Takes a while to get used to.

· The French are very reluctant to invite you into their homes. I get on well with lots of the teachers at school, but am yet to visit any of their homes, even my responsable who lives a mere 3 minute walk away from chez moi. It’s strange. Luckily I have a big group of assistant friends and French students to keep me occupied, but it would have been nice at the start to have been invited for a meal or an aperitif at someone’s house. It’s not easy, packing your life up and moving to a town in foreign country where you don’t know anyone. My first week here just felt surreal- nowhere near as tough as I was expecting but I just felt like I was living in a bubble, that everything I did was just a dream. I still feel like that sometimes- I have plenty of ‘Oh my god I can’t believe I live in France’ moments. When you are invited into someone’s home for a meal, like I have been with Anne it's great. The French spend hours eating a meal, discussing, debating- there’s always an aperitif and a cheese course between the plat principal and dessert. This is my kind of life! I just wish I saw it more often!

A week from now I will be in Krakow, Poland, knackered after having spent the night camping out in Charles de Gaulle airport. Niiiice! I can’t wait to explore a part of Europe whose language I cannot speak for once. Can’t wait to buy local food using different currency and, of course, Auschwitz. It'll be awful, but what else would it be? Moving on to Budapest, Bratislava, Vienna and Prague- it'll be knackering, but I’m sure we’ll have the time of our lives. Protitez-ing bien we are spending next Saturday in Paris, starting with the tourist trap that is the Café des 2 Moulins, Amélie style...

As Humphrey Bogart says in Casablanca, "We'll always have Paris". Mais oui.

Here's to the next 2 months.

Cheers!

Quoi de neuf?

For the first time in a while the answer to that question is pas beaucoup. After spending the last two weekends in Nancy, the thumbs are starting to twiddle I’ve got to say. Last weekend I was a little (shock, horror) BORED! Vrai dat, vrai dat.

As Billy Ocean once said ‘When the going gets tough, the tough get going’. I didn't exactly 'get going', but I did get off my backside and profité-moi-d bien from Nancy’s coffee shops and bars.

France is famous for its café culture, yes. But this culture is based on brasseries, not little cosy cafés where you can buy a cuppa and a scone and read The Guardian (oh, England). Brasseries were first set up in this part of France due to the sheer abundance of breweries (and proximity to Belgium-potential beer capital of the world). So brassed off (I do amuse myself sometimes) with brasseries, it was time for a change....

It was bloody brilliant to discover Kensington Coffee, a Canadian coffee shop that sells BAGELS. With smoked salmon and Philadelphia cream cheese! And proper cookies and muffins! Spent an hour or two in there last week with some other assistants, whiling away the time (my weekend did commence last Wednesday after all). The owner of the café (who would fit in well in a low budget, indie movie) told us he lived in Toronto for a few years and found that coffee shops like the ones in Canada (and every other English speaking part of the world) didn’t exist in France, particularly the industrial North-East. Et voilà! He opened Kensington Coffee!

This week I visited Kensington Coffee, le Phenix (standard Irish bar affair) twice, a café on the corner of Place Stan which does an afternoon deal of dessert and a drink for 5 euros (winner) and an Italian restaurant for an assistant’s birthday in which 3 hours of our evening was spent. 3 hours for a main course and dessert. Car-azy! Still, what else would I be doing??

Saw the new French blockbuster Rien à Déclarer at the cinema last week- about a French guy and a Belgian guy who are forced to work together policing the Franco-Belgian border. A bit slapstick, but highly entertaining. However made Belgians out to be complete nutters/ a bit racist towards the French. Also saw The King’s Speech, the British film that’s up for all the Oscars, which was amezzin’ (plus got to see it in original version thanks to the Cameo cinema just down the road, woop!).

The Rien à Déclarer trailer, for all you French cinéphiles.

Won’t be twiddling my thumbs this weekend as I am off to Colmar, which (if I’m led to believe) is one of the prettiest towns in France. Meeting up with a fellow assistant and going to Basel on Saturday too. Expect photos.

Another country to tick off the list. Tis a hard life.

Livin' la vida loca

….as our good friend Ricky Martin sings, I really do feel like I am living the crazy life in este momento. Life in France is speeding along; before I know it it’ll be the end of the assistantship and then quoi? Answers on a postcard please.

Quoi de neuf?

Bullet points are essential here.

• Avoided starting my Year Abroad project. (Y).
• Finally went for a run. (YY)
• Written/made a presentation about the differences between French and British higher education with a student from the École des Mines (engineering school). Presented it in French. Pas mal.
• Went to Brussels for a weekend (another blog is necessary, I feel)
• Been out for drinks in Blitz café, v. cool bar as far as they come in Nancy.
• Been to a retirement do at school- the 68 year old food technology teacher is finally throwing in the towel. Spent several minutes wearing a hairnet and banging cutlery around (even the Head and Deputy Head joined in- some kind of farewell ritual). Then proceeded to devour the mini patisserie buffet.
• Been to Le Normandie, the other foyer in Nancy for drinks/prawn crackers and general mayhem.
• Went to a party with the name ‘Soirée Info-Nympho’. Basically, an École des Mines soirée where you either had to dress up as a geek or a hooker. I chose the former. Funny night pre-drinking with some guys from the school, before catching the last tram to a random church and dancing the night away. Felt like a school disco, albeit with beer. Hilarious.
• Went out for a birthday meal (Yerark’s) with a few assistants from a nearby lycée. Ate lots. Standard.
• Went on a school trip to a glass blowing factory. The bus driver got us lost (bloody sat-nav). I was chief photographer so had to take pictures of the kids (something which would NEVER be allowed in the UK).
• Went to a place called Ludres the other evening. A couple of weeks ago, I met a woman, Sandrine from the Champagne region who invited Jackie and I round to hers to sample some proper Champagne. (I love my life). Spent a lovely evening eating smoked salmon (winner), drinking champagne and chatting in French.
• Went to see the new Clint Eastwood film, Hereafter (or Au Delà as it is known over here). I liked it. Jackie hated it.
• Went shopping. Bought clothes (Y).
• Went for an African meal on Thurday evening with a load of other assistants. Was enjoying the nice atmosphere and delicious food until I ate something that did not agree with me. Suffice to say I am STILL allergic to nuts. Mouth swelled up, felt ill then proceeded to ‘chunder’ all over the bathroom in the restaurant. Nasty. Jackie took me home, threw up some more then think I passed out in the bathroom for a while….. Luckily felt fine the following morning!! Bastard nuts…Good African beer though.

It was all going so well...

• Went out with the assistants I know from the lycée. Irish bar MacCarthy’s and Loveboat. Danced to Shakira. Free lollipops. Niiiiice!

Phewwww. Almost finished. On Friday I found myself in Ludres again- I was visiting Anne, an English woman I had met a couple of weeks previously at the English speaking dinner (see previous blog, my friends). I love her! She’s 81 ish but looks about 65 and is really active (she’d been to the gym before I arrived!). After a lovely aperitif which came from the Ile de Ré (Charentes I think…), we had a lovely meal of avocado and tuna, shepherd’s pie, bread and cheese and apple crumble!! All of which was home-made, a proper taste of home. I ended up staying 7 hours! Got to hear all about her life- she’s been living in Belgiuim/France for the last 55 or so years. When she was younger she borrowed her mum’s car and drove from Essex to the south of France with some girlfriends- and that’s where she met her Belgian husband! They settled in Belgium, then moved to Nancy around 30 years ago. Such a nice story! Her husband passed away 20 years ago, but now she has a Chihuahua to keep her company (the dog took a shine to me and fell asleep on my knee for a couple of hours, sooooo cute!). Was a great afternoon hearing about her amazing life on the continent and her huge family (she only speaks to her daughters in French). A real inspiration. She also gave me some home made Mirabelle jam and little cakes she'd baked to take home with me- I was smiling the whole way back. The way to my heart is clearly food…

Right, that’s that for now. I wish la vie en France would stop whizzing by so fast. The cliché is true: so much to do, so little time. Mais la vie est belle!

Luxembourg and sunshine!

Luxembourg, cute as!

After a long absence, the blogging business is back in full swing. Felt another one was necessary after the really nice weekend I've just had. Sorry if I sound smug....

Perhaps the main reason for my good mood is the weather. Living in a notoriously rainy city, any sunny day that comes your way is worshipped to an almost ridiculous level. Today (Sunday) was a blinder of a day, so Jackie and I headed to the other end of town for a walk along the canal. Beautiful! So many people were out on their bikes/running, felt very French all of a sudden. Apart from a hilarious incident where we ended up running away from hissing swans it was a relaxing Sunday morning stroll. We finished in Place Stan with a cup of coffee from a bar right opposite the town hall and indulged in some people watching- a great way to spend time if ever I needed another excuse to procrastinate. Amazingly we had our coffee outside, sans coat! Was so warm and a rare treat to soak in the sun in the industrial heart of France. Job done.

The weekend got off to a good start on Friday evening when Jackie, Michelle and I were invited to dinner with an English class. An English tutor (and Anglophile to a downright weird extent) organised a soirée featuring a ''traditional'' English meal (more on that later) and English conversation. As we had been invited, our three meals were free which was pretty convenient. The ''English'' meal consisted of coleslaw (never have I eaten coleslaw as an entrée), strips of rozbif (or roast beef) and gravy accompanied by a hash brown and salad. Yes. SALAD. A true Brit knows that roast beef would NEVER be accompanied by salad, and hash browns are for breakfast! Dessert was cheesecake (nice, but American...) so although it wasn't a particularly English meal it was nice all the same to have a free meal in exchange for speaking some English. The English learners were mainly middle aged/ retired but were lovely and very interested in what I had to say. After the meal I moved onto another table and everyone was looking at me like I was a famous person/ alien (take your pick) asking countless questions from 'What is the weather like in England?' to 'What do you think of Sarkozy?'- the perennial question really. When posed this question, I tend to just mumble something along the lines of 'He was alright before he came to power but now he's just a short idiot' which seems to do the trick...

Anyway, I met an English lady who's been living in Belgium/France for the last 50 years so it was interesting to talk to her (she's been in France so long that even her grandchildren can't speak English). She lives in a village about half an hour away from Nancy and invited me to her house for lunch one day which was nice of her. She even took the time to draw me a map of how to get chez elle- including which bus stop to get off at. Will definitely take up her offer, think it would be nice to hear all her tales of France (I'm sure of which there are many). In addition to this I've also been invited to a French woman's house for some proper Champagne (she comes from the Champagne region and was horrified to hear that I'm yet to drink any of the stuff since my arrival in Nancy (True dat). La vie est belle!

Went to Luxembourg yesterday (Saturday) for the day with 3 other assistants which was great! It's the sort of place you'd never think of going for a weekend but it's actually a really nice city/country. Had a bit of bother with the trains- our train on the way there was late and took 2 hours instead of 90 mins and our train on the way home was cancelled! Had to change and wait 50 mins in Metz but at least we weren't stranded. Upon arrival in Luxembourg we headed to the nearest eating place as we were all starving after our long train journey. Went to a Chinese buffet which was a bit crap if I'm honest- not much choice and the food wasn't very hot (avoided the chicken). Norah, an Irish assistant exclaimed ''I never wanted a fekkin' Chinese anyway!'' upon our exit. Don't mess with the Irish....

Still, the dodgy Chinese didn't ruin our day in Luxembourg. Did a walking tour of the city which is built on two hills. Ended up walking down below in the valley which was pretty and wandered round the old fortifications just as the sun was setting. Got some nice pictures (hilarious ones involving coloured vases and our reflections). I'd definitely recommend Luxembourg for a day trip- there's not loads to do (a few galleries, a history museum but that's about it) but it's nice for an amble.

After my four day weekend, it's back to work tomorrow. Probably should start doing something more useful with my time. A la prochaine fois!

La rentrée.

La Galette des Rois

I should start by saying Bonne Année! Can’t believe it’s already mid January- only 3 ½ months until my French adventure is over (work-wise anyway). After the mayhem that was early December, I packed up my suitcase- direction: England! Luckily I managed to get home hassle free despite all the snow/ rail disruptions. Was supposed to have an hour to change trains at London St. Pancras but as my Eurostar was running late, I ended up having just 8 minutes. Mega stress! Not only that, but I had to try and find a ticket printing machine as I’d booked online. After running around St. Pancras like a headless chicken, I made it onto the train with three minutes to spare. Not bad! (Albeit red faced and on the verge of collapsing).

Something felt good though, and I couldn’t help smiling as the train pulled into Chez-Vegas. I love it when you return home and get the feeling that absolutely nothing has changed, as if you never went anywhere in the first place. C-town is definitely one of those places. (I used to think that was bad but after living abroad for a few months, I find it oddly comforting).

So after a decent cup of tea and a few slices of toast (walking cliché, I realise) I was back to normal My two weeks in England flew by and mainly consisted of…

• Eating anything I could lay my hands on. Cheese, turkey, stuffing, chocolate log and crisps featured highly.
• Making the most of toast (how poetic).
• Drinking wine
• Seeing family
• Catching up with friends (we seem to pick up where we left off. None of this ‘tell me everything about France’ business that really pisses me off).
• Watching TV! Didn’t realise just how much I’d missed it.
• Christmas walks! Ambling round Bakewell before going to a tea room for a scone. Could I BE any more English?!
• Showing my American flatmate England (something I took very seriously). She had a fair few pints, we ate lots, went to York, went to a panto (oh yes we did…) and showed her a PROPER night out on New Year’s Eve. Perfect.

So after two weeks of gluttony and catching up with the people that matter, I wasn’t feeling particularly keen to return to France. No-one to cook for me, or do my washing, plus I had to go to work. Bleurgh. It’s actually been fine though. I thought things would slow down a bit after Christmas but it’s been mental.

La rentrée has been better than expected. I’ve had some great groups of kids these last two weeks. I taught my oldest kids about chavs which I think they really enjoyed and I did a lesson on the London Underground with a group of 4èmes(year 9)- my favourite group in the whole school.

On the 6^th January, i.e. Epiphany we had the Galette des Rois- the pastry of the kings which is a bit like apple strudel but cake-shaped. You buy these Galettes in the boulangeries or the supermarket and there’s a toy or little trinket inside each one. The person who finds the trinket becomes le roi- the King (or la reine) and gets to wear a cardboard colourful hat for the rest of the night. A week after Twelfth Night and these galettes still seem to be everywhere –not that I’m complaining….

Agenda for the next few weeks:

• Go for a run (ha.)
• Going for an English meal with a load of French students. The rule= no French allowed.
• Going to Luxembourg tomorrow- another country to tick off the list.
• Planning a weekend trip to Colmar in Alsace /Basle in Switzerland. Really want to try Couchsurfing for the first time.
• Doing a presentation about the differences between French and British higher education at the École des Mines next week
• Cinema.
• Planning the adventure that will be EASTERN EUROPE. In the February/March holidays I’m going to Krakow, Budapest, Bratislava, Vienna and Prague. Flights are booked, but everything else is yet to be done…..
• And no doubt a few Irish bars…

How many weeks til the holidays??!

Nancy- Je t'aime.

Well what a week it's been. Time flies, etc, etc. A week from now, I will be packing my suitcase ready for England. Although I absolutely love it in France, I can't imagine being anywhere other than home for Christmas (American flatmate Jackie in tow this year- I just can't seem to get rid of her....).

Last Thursday I went to Germany for two nights to see my friend Fiona who is currently working as an assistant in Saarbrücken, Germany. Although a short distance from Nancy, the trip toSaarbrücken involves catching 3 trains- taking over three hours. Bof! After having one minute to (successfully) change trains in Forbach, I arrived safetly in Saarbrücken ready for some festive FUN! Walked round the Christmas market, drinking glühwein from mugs as we went along. Saw Father Christmas 'fly' across the sky in his sleigh at 7pm prompt (basically a sleigh with a man inside travelled along a wire from one council building to another. Made for hilarious viewing, particularly the song that went with it). Went for a lovely Italian- pizza and tirimisu washed down with a Cosmopolitan, what else? Was both shocked and dismayed at Fiona's pizza-eating capabilities- she wasn't on top food eating form that night, ha ha.

Santa Claus, 'flying' across the sky at Saarbrücken's Christmas market.

The following day (after a mandatory trip to H+M of course) we headed to Namborn- a village in the back of beyond of Saarland! Getting there proved to be a little tricky due to the snow but after both a train and taxi ride, we arrived at our destination. Amazing! We were in Namborn for a Christmas meal with the other English assistants in Fiona’s department and the house we went to was amaaaazing! I think the snow helped a lot- the street looked like a ski village- chalet type houses and everything. Picture postcard material, fo’ shizzle. After a great deal of cheesy crisps and wine, we sat down for our Christmas Meal. V. nice, apart from the mashed potatoes that one of the assistants had ‘flavoured’ with a whole head of garlic. Je sais pas pourquoi mais c’était pas bon. After a cosy afternoon/ evening of eating, quizzing and chatting, we headed back through the snow to catch the train back to Saarbrücken. Job done.

I returned on Saturday to Nancy ready for the fête de Saint Nicolas, the biggest event of the year in this neck of the woods. And it was definitely worth coming back for.

In this part of France (and Europe), Saint Nicolas is celebrated on the 6^th December. Children receive presents and good food is everywah (think biscuits, spiced bread and vin chaud- mulled wine). Always something to celebrate, I feel. Saint Nicolas is the patron saint of Lorraine (this region of France), so this was a very BIG deal.

The festivities began on Saturday evening in Place Stanislas, dubbed la plus belle place du monde- the most beautiful square in the world (Je suis d’accord). After ‘double-socking’ it up, we headed to Place Stan for the fireworks. We had been told to arrive early, as it gets mental, crowds-wise so we arrived at 6pm, 90 minutes before the fireworks were to commence. Bof! Cold as. After shivering in the freezing cold for a ridiculous amount of time, the fireworks began!

I have never seen anything like it before. I was quite frankly blown away by the half hour display, which did not only feature amazing fireworks but also the story of Saint Nicolas, which was projected onto the buildings in the square.

In case you were wondering/ vaguely interested, here is a synopsis of the story;

· Three children get lost in the woods (never walk alone in the woods being the moral of the story here).

· Cold and hungry, an evil butcher lures them into his shop before killing them all and chopping them into tiny pieces. (There were some kids crying by this point in Place Stan- I don’t blame them).

· When Saint Nicolas hears of the news, he travels to the butcher’s house and somehow manages to bring all three children back to life (a little imagination is necessary).

· Nowadays, if children have been good, Saint Nicolas delivers presents to them on the 6^th December. However if they have been bad, children are told that Père Fouettard will come and whip them all back into order. Ouch!

Quelle histoire! The following day, we waited around in the cold and rain to see the Saint Nicolas parade. Each area of Nancy made a festive float (which was pulled by a tractor, how agrarian) and paraded round the city. Saint Nicolas and the evil butcher appeared at the end of the parade too, which was a nice touch. Really don’t understand why the French don’t show their appreciation for parades, shows, etc. No one applauded or cheered at the end of the parade, nor after the fireworks the previous evening. How bizarre, how bizarre. Seems a bit rude if you ask me.

Et voilà! Can honestly say the light/sound/ video projections of the story and the fireworks were one of the best things I have ever seen. Amazing night- definitely worth braving the cold. I think the 25000 other people in Place Stanislas will agree with me too...

Words really don't do the fireworks justice. See them for yourself here...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_pE1ETSjWo

Ladies of leisure.

I seem to have become a lady of leisure. Qu'est-ce qui s'est passé? What happened? The French and their casual approach to work, that's what happened. Although officially I am supposed to be teaching 12 hours of English per week, last week I worked the grand total of 6 hours. 6 hours. And I got paid a ridiculous amount to do it. Mais comment?

It's mainly to do with the fact that the French have a ridiculous amount of jours fériés- or bank holidays as we would say in ye olde Angleterre. As last Thursday was a bank holiday and Fridays are my usual days off my weekend commenced last Wednesday. Vive la France!

After recovering from the guilt of not working (which didn't take long to get over, quelle surprise), I went and celebrated my youth by attending a party in a forest. As you do.

I should probably mention here that the last three nights out have been pretty memorable as far as nights out go. After inviting all the other English assistants we know round for a pre-lash last weekend (or 'un before' as it is known in France), an assistant proceeded to 'chunder everywah'. After cleaning up sick for what seemed like ages (to be fair, it did take a fucking age), we decided to head out into Nancy-ville quand-même, ending up in the cultural establishment that is le McCarthy, supposed watering hole of the Irish. Memorable.

Back to the party in a forest. My friends from the local Grande-École (friends in high places, clearly) invited me to a soirée their school was holding in a forest just outside Nancy (pourquoi pas??). Obviously our answer was 'Bah, oui!'. 15 euros for a party in a forest with an open bar seemed like a pretty good deal. And no work the next day!

So after hopping on a coach from the Ecole des Mines at 23h30 (very funny coach journey, felt like I was on a bus with a load of football hooligans à la Millwall), we arrived at the Forêt de Haye ready to P.A.R.T.Y! Luckily for us, the party was being held in an old warehouse and was not in fact outdoors as I had originally assumed (it rained every day last week so that would have been disastrous). After spending a ridiculous amount of time waiting for a measly beer, we hit the dancefloor...4 hours later we were still 'busting-a-move' on aforementioned d'floor. Was definitely an experience anyway, perhaps due to the absence of toilets (but maybe that's too much information). Two guys sitting near us on the bus back 'made a little vomcano' which was lovely to watch if I do say so (or not- haha), but apart from that it was a night to remember!

'Livin' it up' was rounded off by a night out in Nancy last Friday, which culminated in a trip to La Friterie, a 'Munchies' type affair if you're familiar with late night takeaways in Newcastle upon Tyne (thought not). This does seem to be a common way to round off an evening- perhaps I should commence the jogging I've been postponing indefinitely for the last month (?).

Et voilà! That's your lot. I should probably get back to work. Who am I kidding?!

Where is Brian? Brian is in the kitchen!

In case you were wondering, the title of this post refers to a sketch by Gad Elmaleh (the guy in Priceless, with Audrey Tatou) about learning English in France. Apparently, the same names appear in all the English text books- Brian, Sophie et al, so if you admit to being a native English speaker, it is likely a French person will at some point ask you where Brian 'eez'. Just for your reference!

My first week in the industrial east of France has come to an end and what a week it's been! Can honestly say it has been much more enjoyable than expected. I thought the first week would be a constant stream of paperwork, angst and early nights with only a DVD for company, but luckily Nancy is FULL of language assistants (namely English speaking). In true Brits abroad fashion, we have been frequenting Nancy's Irish bar (La Taverne de L'Irlandais) for the typically French 'demi-pêche'- Stella and peach sirop. Sounds bizarre but it's good stuff!

So the first few days here were taken up by constant shopping (and not the fun kind of shopping). Our poorly equipped kitchen was in need of some essentials so Dan (another English assistant from the best university in the world) and I visited 'Tatti' a few times for cutlery, mugs and pans. The name says it all really- it's a bit like Wilko's but even more, well, tatty! Ha. We did find time to visit the Irish bar and go for a pizza so it wasn't all grim...

BNP MEMBER ALERT!

Yes, today I have joined the BNP. Luckily this has nothing to do with the British BNP (the racist British National Party for all those who don't know), but I opened a bank account with the BNP Paribas! Amazingly I managed to sort out all the bank stuff without any difficulty- I was in there a good half-hour and opened a student account which is freeeeee!! Apparently you have to pay around 3 euros/month with most other French banks, so I wasn't having any of that! It even has internet banking which I'm sure will prove interesting trying to figure out. The lady who opened the account for me was lovely though, as was the lady who sorted me out with a French sim card and phone number, so don't believe all the French stereotypes! So after opening my bank account toute seule earlier, I headed straight for the boulangerie near the flat for a celebratory raspberry tarte. Well deserved (I think).

Les Soirs

Evenings have been pretty busy so far, namely because it takes about 20 minutes to boil a pan of water in our kitchen! My travel kettle has been an absolute life saver (cheers nan and grandad)! Jackie (my American flatmate) and I have been 'creative cooking' with our hob- chicken risotto and home-made ratatouille being the favourites. After going to a French pre-lash on Thursday night (but not going out afterwards), I finally experienced Nancy by night on Friday. And Saturday. Naturally, the Irish pub featured on both occasions. On Friday, we moved on to Les Artistes, a studenty cocktail bar which I feel is going to become another one of our haunts. I opted for a lager-cocktail, merely because I was intrigued. Turned out to be a good choice! Anyway it was a really lovely evening with all the other English assistants (shame we weren't speaking French though- next time perhaps?!). The evening ended with a 'lovely' photo of myself in front of Lyon's team bus, eyes bright with excitement. It's a shame Nancy lost 3-2 to them the following day...

A perfect Sunday

My first Sunday in Nancy was a beautiful day, not a cloud in sight. Walked down to Place Stanislas- the main square in Nancy (a World Heritage sight, no less) and it is just incredible! So many people, but the architecture is amazing. Needless to say, a LOT of photos were taken. After eating a heart-attack tarte-fromage in a bag, we headed for the park which has a ZOO! Was probably a bit over-excited about that, in retrospect. Nevertheless, we saw monkies, goats and even an albino peacock! You don't get that in Sleazes Park!

Needless to say, this perfect day ended with a trip to La Taverne de L'Irlandais. A pattern is emerging...

Baguettes, bars and blogging.

Bonjour à tous! Thought I'd better get round to writing something down about the year abroad, given that this will supposedly be the best year of my life, but where to start? I arrived in la belle France on Monday evening, laden with enough white t-shirts to last me a lifetime, not to mention a ridiculous amount of sandwiches. The journey was surprisingly hassle-free, apart from ten minutes of hell in Paris when I had to change stations...Arrived in Nancy just before 10pm and was met by the teacher, Sandrine who will be taking me under her wing this year. She seems v. nice, and made sure I got into my accomodation ok which was helpful.

The foyer where I am spending the next seven months of la vie is fairly basic, but I'm sure I'll get by. Bedroom is pretty huuuge, although they don't turn the heating on until November 1st apparently and it can get proper freezing at night already. Kitchen leaves a LOT to be desired- it's clean and quite modern but literally all we have is a fridge and a hob. Pas de oven, pas de freezer, pas de microwave. I'm gonna have to get creative with cooking- Come Dine With Me with only one saucepan anyone??

Lessons I have learnt thus far about the French:

• They are admin crazy, want photocopies of every little thing
• If it's not their job to do something, they probably won't go out of their way to help you (as I have found in the admin office in my 'foyer')
• French people really do carry a lot of baguettes around
• French people love Irish bars. Excellent news.

I was meant to be starting at my collège this morning, but received a text from my 'responsable' earlier on telling me not to come in because they've had a big meeting this morning (or something to that effect). Don't know if I'm supposed to be going in this afternoon or not- who knows? I'll make like the French and just give a shrug of indifference...