Wish I'd Brought My Sunglasses...

Time is creeping up on me. Every weekend I want to explore and last weekend I did just that, armed with a mini army of Geordies to escort me. For those who don't know, 'a Geordie' is an affectionate term for anyone who hails from Newcastle upon Tyne, possibly the greatest place in the world and my university city incidentally (or not...). I digress.

Why do ticket inspectors never check tickets?

Dan, my Geordie friend (and fellow language assistant) and I met up at Nancy Gare at 12pm last Friday morning armed with Lidl cereal bars, crap home-made sandwiches and Orange KitKats. During the course of the weekend we travelled from Nancy- Colmar (2 ¼ hours), Colmar-Basel (40 mins), Basel-Strasbourg (1 ½ hours) without our ticket being checked. Bof!

Bit of geography for you.

Ticket was finally checked 3 minutes before arrival in Nancy (Strasbourg-Nancy 1 ½ hours) the following day.

Ahh the French and their 'I don't give a shit so it's not my problem' attitude continues...

Colmar

The Petite Venise area of Colmar

I admit it, before coming to Nancy I had never even heard of Colmar, a small city halfway between Strasbourg and Basel. However literally EVERYONE at school has been telling me to visit ever since I started in October. Unfortunately, had no time to visit during the Christmas markets, reputed to be some of the most beautiful in the world.

The February afternoon Dan and I spent in Colmar was B-E-A-utiful weather wise, bright sunshine, etc- luck was definitely on our side. It became apparent early on that everywhere in Colmar is beautiful, there's no shabby shite end- even around the station was pretty. If you've ever been to the Petite France area of Strasbourg, you'll know how beautiful it is. Colmar is like this partout. I wonder if the cute twee houses ever get on the inhabitants' nerves, whether they want a bit of grime and dirt à la Brussels.

Food was also a high point of our trip to Colmar. Had a Forêt noire- i.e. a black forest gateau. Heaven. And after meeting up with our assistant friend (and Geordie) Sian who is spending her year abroad in Issenheim, a tiny village close to Colmar, we headed out for pizza. It would have been nice to try some traditional food from Alsace- sauerkraut or something like that but pizza is always a winner.

Granted there is not a great deal to do in Colmar. Walking around 'oohing and aahing' at pretty buildings is the main attraction, although there are a couple of museums and a museum dedicated to Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi- the guy who designed the Statue of Liberty (of course, he was from Colmar). Maybe if the weather had been awful, I would have come away with a different impression. Yes I was lucky, but come rain or shine Colmar is a place not to be missed.

God I sound like I'm presenting 'Holiday' or something. Désolée.

Basel

After realising it would only cost another 10 Euros or so to get to Basel, we figured it made sense to kill two birds with one stone and visit Colmar/Basel in the same weekend.

One of the reasons I wanted to go to Basel was to tick another country off the ever expanding list of ‘Places I have been to’. However I also wanted to play around with Swiss currency (dangerously akin to Monopoly money) and leave the ‘safety’ of the European Union for the first time in nearly 6 years. Not nearly as dangerous as it sounds, Switzerland is about as bad-ass as Tom Cruise. I didn’t quite know what to expect from Basel but was pleasantly surprised.

Went to the Botanical Gardens, attached to the University of Basel, the oldest university in Switzerland, had a 12CHF meal in McDonald’s (about 9 euros, Switzerland is EXPENSIVE), spent a LONG time in a beautiful chocolate shop and saw the (very red) Rathaus, or town hall for those who don’t speak German.

Basel is a city of trams. So much so that ‘death by tram’ is probably the greatest risk to your health. Nearly got mowed down by 3 of them- they’re almost as bad as the street cleaners inNewcastle (incidentally, just why are there so many in the toon?!). Thanks to the tourist office, we found out that Line 16 is the picturesque route, showing tourists all the sights, slowly weaving its way through upmarket neighbourhoods of Basel. Great fun!

After our kitsch little tram ride we headed towards the banks of the river Rhine, desperate to catch some rays. Seems like everyone else in Basel had the same idea- the banks of the river were packed, so much so that there was no room for us! After eventually finding a comfy place to perch, we proceeded to sunbathe for almost an hour. IN FEBRUARY. Extraordinary. Weather hit around 14 degrees Celsius, but felt warmer in the sun. Brilliant atmosphere anyway- lots of students, families, young professionals. Switzerland is effortlessly cool, no wonder Roger Federer bought a pig farm there with his winnings from his first Wimbledon title. Oink.

Just an average February afternoon on the banks of the Rhine

After a quick stop in H+M (we had to use up our Swiss Francs somewhere...) it was time to leave Basel. It had been a brilliant day and a great introduction to Switzerland. Hopefully I'll return soon, sunglasses in tow next time....

La danse continue.

My current obsessions

Rastamouse- quite possibly CBBC’s greatest invention. Tells the story of mice with Jamaican accents who sing and investigate crime. Any mention of the word cheese can and should be interpreted as 'weed'.

Antoine Dodson- can’t help myself. Type in 'Bed Intruder song' on Youtube and you shall see why.

Désolé by Sexion D’Assaut. Song by French rap group that has been in my head since working in Brittany last summer. Amezzin’

Munster cheese: cheap as chips in Lidl, another current obsession...

BBC weather. We have a love-hate relationship. I stop by often, only to find out rain has been predicted.

Waka waka. Can’t stop playing it. I own both versions. Ouch.

Life is chugging along quite nicely, I've got to say.

I’ll leave you with this- did a ‘Holiday’ themed lesson with my 3èmes (15 year olds) yesterday. One of their tasks was to write a postcard using verbs in the past tense.

Here’s what one of my students wrote….

For those who can't read it: I went to Jamaica, I smoked The weed with Snoop Dogg, a star American. With Snoop, I bought a gun for the gang. I met 2pac and I visited his house. I went in America and seed The Game and 50 Cent and we drank.

The future’s bright…

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.

Bruxelles: A lot of fun on a small budget.

Brussels: A spontaneous weekend away. This year abroad keeps getting better and better.

Soooooo, the previous Wednesday a few of us were talking about going to Brussels for a weekend, although all the trains we looked at seemed really expensive. HOWEVER, our friend Norah had heard about a cheap return ticket to Brussels from Luxembourg- a 'passe-partout' for those who have youth on their side (i.e. for those under the age of 26). After leaving chez nous at 6h50, we finally arrived in Brussels around midday (got a group ticket to Luxembourg, then took a 3 hour train to Brussels). We'd also managed to find a hotel suite for the five of us on booking.com for a mere 2o euros each!

Hilarity ensued when we turned onto the street where our hotel was. Our street was full of soliciting prostitutes, even at 12h30 in the afternoon. Incroyable. This was made worse by the fact that the hotel opposite ours was clearly a 'shag-pad' for a lot of the prostitutes and their clients. Seedy.

Anyway, I'm not going to bore you with an endless 'And then we ate this....and then we did this' account of our fabulous weekend in Brussels, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Highlights included

• Food. Chips, a boudin chaud (sausage) and amazing waffles with chocolate sauce.
• Beer- 9.5% beer in Delirium, quite possibly the coolest bar I have ever set foot in, full of travellers and studenty types. Kriek beer (tasted like cherryade) and others of which I can't remember the name.
• Walking round the beautiful main square and seeing the most famous attraction- the Manneken Pis, a statue of a chubby boy weeing. I hated it- apparently it's because I'm 'soo British'.
• Seeing TinTin graffiti everywhere. Just graffiti everywhere in general. Beautiful buildings right next to piles of rubbish (quite literally). Brussels is Paris' edgy, less pretentious sibling.
• Walking round the European buildings- the Parliament and the Commission. Comedy pictures next to Union Jack flags and the like.
• Going to a flea market in one of the 'working class areas'. Walking back into the centre finding cool vintage shops along the way.

Hope I'm selling it to you. Just seeing the red light area (i.e. our street) was an experience in itself...

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??!

Le bilan et Lyon.

Lyon- Fête des Lumières 2010

Well 2010 in France is coming to a close. 3 months in France and here are the main things I have learned about the French.

1. They have very strange taste when it comes to hats/weird patchwork coats.
2. They will always try and shift the blame.
3. Red wine at lunchtime is completely and utterly acceptable. (Y)
4. Queues just don't exist.
5. Nor does a decent cuppa.
6. Old French ladies aren't very nice.
7. Toilets in bars are kind of unisex and downright weird.
8. Lorraine and Alsace have amazing Christmas markets.
9. French kids have hilarious sounding names- Alibaba and Ch'iti (pronounced Shitty) being just two examples.
10. French music in clubs is generally very poor.
11. French radio presenters are even more annoying, particularly when trying to sing English songs.
12. The French don't tend to give a shit when it comes to checking train/tram tickets, etc.
13. Paul the baker's is EVERYWHERE. (Think of it like an upmarket Gregg's).
14. Vin chaud rules.
15. The French park their cars like complete idiots (are they blind??).

So my final week here in Nancy has been pretty busy- went to Lyon last weekend for the Fête des Lumières, an annual event that sees Lyon and its surrounding suburbs ''light up''. That is to say there are loads of light installations/fireworks/pretty lights. The Fête des Lumières attracts thousands of people from far and wide, thus the weekend was un peu hectic when it came to queuing/ trying to move anywhere. Nevertheless, it was great to see Lyon lit up- the two rivers and the old town are B-E-A-utiful! Ambled round the old town a ridiculous amount, mind you. Love a bit of ye olde France. Also went out in Villefranche-sur-Saône, a smallish town just to the north of Lyon where my friend (and fellow language assistant/ uni housemate) is living. After cooking a ''fajita extravaganza'' we headed to a small club, which amazingly played the best music I have heard thus far in France. Forget Lyon, Villefranche is clearly where it's at. It's almost as good as my much loved favourite Villefranche-sur-Mer near Nice...

So my last week at school has been hassle-free, except for the sweets argument. The youngest year group is split into 2 classes, and I only gave sweets to one of the classes, as the other class were just horrible. Consequence: loads of 11 year olds coming up to me in the corridors asking me why I didn't give them sweets. Bof! Went out for drinks last night in La Quincaillerie, a rum bar which is a definite favourite. Ended up in a club with a load of engineering students before a snowball fight on the way home at 2:30am. Juvenile maybe, but a lorra lorra fun.

At present I am avoiding packing, beginning to think I may not get home tomorrow- heavy snow is predicted ce soir and I'm leaving around 5:30am tomorrow. Stress. On verra....

What a great few months I've had in Nancy. Can't wait for all the adventures to come between January and April. For now though, home is calling. I can't bloody wait...

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