Very busy December!

To all of those following my blog regularly, to those who follow it occasionally, and to those who pretend to follow it so as to not hurt my feelings... I owe you all an apology for letting my writing slip for so many days! It has been a very busy 2 weeks. A lot has happened, and there's more to come, but that's no excuse to leave my legions of fans in the dark!! (HA! that's a good one)

I guess the beginning is always a good place to start... so, let's commence there. The weekend of the 6th was Lisa's birthday party. I've been talking about it for a while, and if you've been keeping in touch with me, you know I was planning it for a loooooong time. As someone said, it seemed that we were planning the coronation of a king more than a 3 year old's birthday party. But hey, Lisa is only going to have one super awesome Colombian nanny in her lifetime, so she better get the most out of me that she can!
The party was a total success. After spending over 40 man hours cooking, papier-macheing, planning, shopping, and decorating, I was very pleased with the results! The pinata was beautiful, not because it was particularly appealing to the eye, but because it was a very unique experience for everyone involved. I don't know how many of you have ever had a pinata at your birthday party, but for me, it was a staple when I was growing up. The excitement of beating this thing with people cheering around you, the anticipation the little treasures inside, and the sugar high from the birthday cake make for a very singular combination and a guaranteed high. The kids and the parents loved it, but Lisa was the most proud, since she helped me make it, and was telling everyone who would listen.
Then came the birthday cake.. that Barbie creation that took me 5 hours to make and decorate; it almost felt like my baby by the end of it. I had to fight the urge to take the cake and run before the guests ate it and destroyed my masterpiece. All in all, the whole party was a hit, and I enjoyed myself just as much if not even more than the kids themselves.
After the party, my friend Chelsea came to visit for a week. She arrived here last Wednesday, and we've had a lovely week (albeit a little wet) together. She's doing her masters in London, but she won't be there while I'm in the UK, so she came to visit. It's been a nice change of pace, to have a "roomie". I've fully taken advantage of having someone around to do some fun things...
For example, Thursday night, we went to this bar in Vieux Nice that has "Ladies' Night". This encompasses paying 3 euro, and getting all the champagne you can handle for that until their bottles run out. This meant that for 3 euro, we each got 5 glasses of champagne... I don't think I've ever found such a deal anywhere else! Then, the live music begins. Wayne's is a great place because there's a lot of ex-pats and Anglophone tourists, so the band plays everything from AC/DC, to the Beatles, to Bob Marley. The best part about Wayne's though, is the dancing... See, there's no dancefloor, so people just get up on the tables and make those their dancefloor. I know, it sounds like something trashy that drunk girl in the too-short-skirt would do on Tequila Sundays at your local biker bar. But here, everyone does it... literally, there are 12 or 14 tables with people on them, dancing, talking to each other, and having a blast. That night, we met Australian and French guys, and it was a lot of fun.
Being the troopers that we were, we stayed until closing time, and woke up 6 hours later, with a heavy head as a reminder of the Champagne extravaganza of the night before, to go to Monaco. That day, was the ONLY nice we have had as far as weather goes. The pics are here if you haven't seen them:

Monaco was gorgeous as usual, we were able to mix with the rich and powerful, while basking in the sun, walking around the Christmas market, visiting the Prince's abode, and even making a new Canadian friend ( from ABBOTSFORD of all places! It's such a small world!)
The night brought a divine Christmas concert from the Nice opera, and dinner at an Italian restaurant.

The other days, we went to Cannes and Antibes, where I was able to show Chelsea some of the lovely beaches that we have in the Cote d'Azur. Too bad it was raining the whole time... we even had a small version of a hurricane while walking along the beach in Cannes on Sunday morning.We tried to be brave and took a bus to the charming Aix-en-Provence, home of Paul Cezanne on Monday. But that ended up being a bit of a disaster, as the rain did not let up, my boots let all the water in, and Chelsea developed a horrible sore throat and couldn't speak. Aix is really a gorgeous city, but it needs to be appreciated in the summer.

I'm going to be busy again planning Christmas and my impending trip to the UK, but I promise I won't leave as much time between posts as I just have!
I hope most of you have gotten my little surprises in the mail? Let me know when you do, I want to know that they got there okay!
Allez, Bisous!!

Random...

Seen today, in a French street:

A woman driving a motorized wheelchair... on the ROAD. Like a car.
She had blinkers and everything... she was behind a Citroen, and in front of a Renault. This is too good to make up! I was so stunned I literally stopped in my tracks, grocery bags in hand, and just looked at her smoothly change lanes, do a right hand turn, and go on her way.. maybe she was even going to get on the highway! Wouldn't even surprise me. Ah, the little things that remind me I'm in a different country...

Improv at its best: Paris Again.

Well you know, life surprises you, plans change, you find discounted ticket to Paris, you have 4 days off work, one of your friends says she'll receive you with arms wide open and even has plans for you already... what do you do? If your answer was "Go to Paris", you're right!
I had the incredible luck to go to this gorgeous city for the second time since my stay here, and it was a very different, but still electrifying experience. Being far more North than Nice (duh) it was a good 8 or 9 degrees colder than my sunny abode. I was smart enough to buy a scarf, hat and gloves before getting on the train, and I made good use of them!
Paris in the winter is still as charming as when I visited under the warm September sun. I think a lot of its charm has to do with the impending Christmas holidays. The city is dressed to the nines in decorations and lights, making it a completely euphoric experience for the eyes to go out at night. Champs Elysees are a sight, as is the famous Galerie de LaFayette, (somewhat equivalent to Bloomingdale's in New York, and The Bay in Canada). The latter, which has 4 stores all across from each other, pretty much occupying the whole block, leaves no penny unspent when it comes to prettifying its facade and the interior. You can see the pics on my Facebook... but my camera did not do it justice, as it's not very good at taking night time pictures.
Well, when I arrived on Thursday night, we went out to a chic club next to the Arc de Triomph, and we met up with Diana's boyfriend, as well as two of his friends from Spain, who were visiting. The club was not very pretentious, which was nice, and it had 2 rooms, one playing techno and the other playing a little bit of everythign. We stayed in the second one for the most part, where we danced the night away until 3:00 and beat off a particularly aggressive breed of Parisian man, who would do "n'importe quoi" to dance with us, even though we were surrounded by 3 other guys. Anyway, we had a blast, got home close to 4am, and poor Diana roughed it out next morning to go to work at 8:30.
I slept in a little longer, and then met her in the business district of Paris, the very modern, very sober La Defense. It's a little surprising to get off the metro from the Paris I know, filled with classical architecture, into a plaza full of skyscrapers, aluminum and glass. It was an even more pronounced difference with the grey winter sky as the background. Here is where Diana works, and we met up to splurge on Sushi. I say splurge because sushi here is very expensive.. to give you an idea, I had a California roll, 6 pieces of sushi and a miso soup for 20 Euros (about 34 dollars). But, I hadn't had sushi in 3 months, and since I was on "vacation" I decided to just go for it. It was heavenly!
After, Diana had to go back to work, so I spent the afternoon by myself. First, I went to the Christmas market at the Defense. It was a paradoxical place, because the market were all little wood houses, very rustic and welcoming. Yet, it was placed among giant skyscrapers and next to the Arc de la Defense, which is grey and cold. But the market was incredible... very cozy, festive, and full of surprises at every turn. After having some very delicious Hot Wine (a mix of spices, oranges and red wine... oooooh, so ridiculously good) when I was strolling along, I took the metro to the Musee d'Orsay.

The Musee d'Orsay is the Impressionist Museum, home to Monet, Manet, Degas, and Picasso amongst others. It's a lot less intimidating than the Louvre, and I was able to cover it in about 2 hours. I was very tired from our gallavanting until 4am the night before, so I went back home, we had a quiet dinner, a nap.. and then went out again. This time, we just had some crepes on the street, went to Hard Rock Cafe, and had a drink at a Cafe. Still, we were out until 2am. Don't ask me how that happened!
The next morning, Nicolas, Diana's boyfriend was taking his friends on a little city tour of places I hadn't been to, so I came along. We visited the Cour St. Emilion, which used to be an industrial area, and it's turned into a cool little street with all these cafes and restaurants. Then, we headed to the Jardins de Luxembourg. It was pretty cold, and there werern't very many flowers, but it was beautiful nonetheless. After that, a short visit to Notre Dame to see the Christmas Tree, and then to have late lunch with Diana.
We ate at a traditional French Basque restaurant.. the food was really rich, and I was full until the next day, but it was definitely worth it. After that, the garcons had to go, so Diana and I took off to have some girly time parading around the Champs Elysees at night, enjoying the Christmas lights, and doing window shopping at Sephora, Esprit, and others. It was magical, with all the people, the lights and.. yes, one more glass of Hot Wine.. heheh.

It was a lovely weekend, all of it. It was nice to get out of town, see different people, and do different things. It really filled me with some energy that I very much needed, and I'm re-fuelled to attack December and all its challenges! You think Christmas is chaotic? Try it when you have kids (well, someone else's, but still). We have about 4 different craft projects planned, Christmas baking, tree trimming, gift wrapping.... it's going to be so much fun to live this holiday through the eyes of kids again! And speaking of Christmas... don't forget to send me lovely Christmas cards and gifts through the mail! Until next week!

An ode to Life

I have a couple posts to catch up on, but my time and energy are limited tonight, so I thought I would write the most important one right now, and save the more light-hearted and Lonely-Planet-ish for tomorrow.
I want to dedicate this blog to all the beautiful people in my life... the ones who have touched me from birth, to the ones who have stopped momentarily to intervene in my everyday banter. I want to dedicate this blog to Life. The life that zooms by your eyes when you're in your car, the one that you can almost touch with your fingers when you're in front of a magnificent sunrise, the life that curses through your veins when your heart pumps extra hard at the sound of the voice of someone you love so much. I want to dedicate this blog to the life that we sometimes take for granted, letting its precious minutes slip by us, as we complain we wished we had a better life. This blog is for those who are clinging to their lives,by threads of transparent hope wishing they had the Life that you and I are able to wake up to everyday. This blog is dedicated to the Life you know you want to have, and that you're working so hard for, even though sometimes you feel that you're throwing your days away in search of that life.

A very, very close friend of mine has been diagnosed with a very treatable, very curable cancer, that has been caught in time. He is 26, and has his whole LIFE in front of him. In my heart of hearts, there is NO doubt that he will beat it, as his body and mind are some of the strongest I have ever encountered. But, the sudden manner in which it appeared, and how quickly he has found himself in chemo really made me think about how thankful I am for what I have already lived and what is ahead of me.

My own sister, last weekend, also had the chance to be thankful for Life. She was incredibly lucky to escape unscratched and unscathed from what could have been another deadly accident at the Portman Bridge. But, she's okay.. and that makes me want to celebrate Life.

So to all of you out there, who are struggling in the mornings to get out of bed, who have lost the spark that makes your heart race, who wonder how long they will be trapped in the routine they have created for themselves... Stop. Stop, and make a list of what you're thankful for in life. I did it, as I was on the train back from my weekend, and I found myself writing for an hour. I had a list in which I thanked the powers that be from everything to forgiveness, to crepes in Paris, to my family, and to my warm house and full fridge.

I know I'm sounding a little like a Hallmark card here. I can't help it... I need to live the life that has been given to me as fully as I can, for as long as I can. If I don't, I will feel like everyday I'm going about rushing through moments when I should've been paying attention, and later on will have the anxiety that I have missed something really important. Your life, your REAL life, is not about being gifted, about having money, about your successes in school or work, about your car, about your education, circumstances, or failures. Your REAL life revolves around your attitude. Everyday, you have the chance to choose your attitude, and thus, choose your life. What will you choose tomorrow? And the rest of the week?

I can't think of a good, strong way to end this Ode to Life, other than to leave you with this:
" Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending"
- Maria Robinson

I guess I should update this...

Well, I've been putting it off long enough-updating my blog. I think I've hit a bit of a "traveller's wall" if there is such a thing. This week has been somewhat up in the air for me in terms of exciting activities ; it's felt a little like I'm just sitting around for exciting things to happen. Now that I've spent a whole month in Nice, and 3 in France, the glazed-eye look where I see everythign with wonder is starting to fade a little, and for the first time since I left, I'm feeling the toll of being away from home.
One of my best friends back at home is getting married, and talking about all the planning and whatnot via Facebook just makes me wish I wasn't so far away to miss all the details. As well, I keep having all these dreams where I'm back in my grade 3 classroom teaching my little darlings. And, inevitably, with Christmas lurking in the horizon (in a MONTH, can you believe it??!?!!) I'm feeling the pang of missing my loved ones. So I guess coming here to update my blog would be a little like looking at myself in the mirror and finally admitting that inspite of being in love with my life here, and the opportunities and experiences it has afforded me, I can't help but truly miss my life if Canada!
I would like to think that I have always recognized how rich my life is at home, and how blessed and lucky I am to have my education, my job, my family, my friends, etc. But after just 3 months away, I can really really feel the pride and the love that I have for the people and the accomplishments in my life.
Ah, it feels good to get that off my chest! Don't you all feel warm and fuzzy now that you know that I miss you tons inspite of all my fabulous perks here in France? ;)

Anyway, on to more exciting topics. Like I mentioned, this week has been somewhat lacking in exciting activities. I guess what stands out the most is that I have purchased my ticket to the UK. I have my friend Amanda living in Newcastle, who I will spend New Year's with (we're going to an 80's party!!! Aren't you just itching to see the pics of all the awesome costumes already??) and I have some Uvic friends living around London, whom I want to visit as well. I'm very excited, but I have to admit that living my balmy 18 degree city to -2 and snow is not all that appealing... I don't even have gloves!! I guess I'll just have to spend my time inside English pubs to run away from the cold... oh the sacrifices I make!
Let's see what else... last Saturday I went out with Cecile's sister, whom I had mentioned in my last post. She is a lovely, lovely girl , we had a lot of fun, and it was so nice to have a girl-friend to talk with and drink wine with! I'm seeing her again this week :)
As for work, it continues to be wonderful. Lisa, who is turning 3 in 2 weeks is very excited about her upcoming birthday party. Since I'm trying to be a mixture of Mary Poppins and SuperNanny, I have brainstormed with Cecile to make some cool party projects. For example, Lisa and I will be making her very own piñata with papier maché... impressive, no? Also, I have volunteered to make a Princess cake with the top of a Barbie doll, and her skirt being the cake. I will take pics so that you see how very Betty-Crockerish I have become. It's quite impressive, actually. About twice a week I bake for the family while the kids sleep, and so far I've made oatmeal and blueberry muffins, chocolate chip cookies, feta and spinach scones, regular scones, cinnammon rolls, zucchini bread... and they love it. I don't eat any of it, because I'd rather splurge on French food, but if it keeps them happy, then it's all good!
This upcoming weekend I have my American friend Dan coming to visit, hopefully I'll make a good tour guide, since we're goign to try to go to Aix-en-Provence and Monaco.
Well, it sounds like I've done my bit here. I thought I would leave you with a little list of the things that I miss the most from Canada.. so that you can send them to me on the mail, for Christmas!
1) Nonfat vanilla yoghurt in big 750ml tubs.
2) The gym :(
3) Supermarkets that are open on Sundays
4) The ban on smoking on restaurant patios
5) Canadian Diet Coke... it tastes different that French Diet Coke. Don't ask me to explain it, it's like asking me to be rational!
6) Cheap shoes. You can't find a pair for under 100 euros here.
7) Banks who update your online account status immediately... as opposed to 3 days later.
8) Dog owners who don't leave their dog's poop on the sidewalk
9) My L'Oreal facewash that costs 7 dollars at home, and 17 euros (approx 30 dollars) here
10) Organic Peanut butter for my morning toast
11) SUSHI!!!!! All you can eat for 13 dollars at Davie St, or that other place in North Van that's ridiculously good. I actually salivate everytime I think about it.
12) Cheap makeup. For some reason Covergirl hasn't made its mark in France. As a result, I'm economizing on eyeshadow, mascara, bronzer and blush... I don't know how much longer I can go on....

So that's my Christmas list folks... you know what to get me now!!

I REALLY live here

So, it's been (*gasp*) 11 weeks since I left Canada, and took on France. I've changed residences, and had a couple adventures. But now that I'm more of a working girl, I've had to settle down a little bit and actually do things people do when they reside somewhere. You may be wondering then, exactly what I was doing in Nantes? Well, it wasn't the same. I seemed to be in this constant honeymoon phase, where everything was glittery and new. And don't get me wrong, Nice has very much been a dream come true, but I'm actually very happy that I'm more settled and can say I take part in everyday routines of French people. Here are some of the things that mean I really really LIVE in France:
1) I buy my bread fresh from the boulangerie every couple days.. make it a 6 grain baguette. Yum!
2) I have a constant supply of wine at home. Be it a nice rouge to accompany the Camembert I have in my fridge, or a nice chilled white to have a glass as an "aperitif" before my dinner.
3) I do laundry, and hang it up in the lines outside of my balcony, like everyone in Nice does. I don't think they have yet encountered the technology of driers here. All the better for the environment!
4) I watch the news in French, listen to the radio in French, read my free Metro newspaper in French, and watch dubbed versions of Friends, Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives. It's like good old times in Colombia, where everything was dubbed into Spanish.
5) I have to deal with a garbage cubicle for the building that fits 1.5 garbage bags for 15 apartments. That's how I get my upper body workout.
6) I have become accustomed to paying 3.5 euros (about 6 dollars) for a Diet coke when I go out to a restaurant. I no longer see this as scandalous.
7) I earn in Euros, have a French bank account into which I deposit Euros, and a check book (French people pay for cheques for everything. Let me tell you, it makes waiting in line at supermarkets a patience game)
8) I have to clean my apartment twice a week. That includes dusting, waxing the wooden floors, vacuuming, etc. No more Michelle who did the housework in Nantes!
9) I take the buses, go for jogs around the neighbourhood, and am the butcher's best friend (he gives me a discount on rotisserie chickens!)
10) I give directions to tourists!!! In french, english and Spanish!! That's right, I've had to do it a few times already, and I actually know what I'm talking about, I'm not just making up false directions so that they'll leave me alone.
11) On the tourist subject: They're ANNOYING when they walk all 5 or 6 of them in one single file on the sidewalk. It reminds me of Victoria... and you all know I was an active militant against tourists there...

So yes, my life is a bit calmer and less full of surprises, but I'm really comfortable, and happy with my life. But don't worry, I'm not getting too comfortable... I'm still coming back to Canada!
By no means am I becoming boring though. Last Friday I wanted to have a cultural outing, so I scoped out the shows at the National Theatre, and I went to see Don Juan, in its original Spanish version, with French subtitles projected above the stage. It felt nice to have the upper hand for once with this language business!
Then on Sunday, since I had la voiture, I took off to a couple towns in the Corniches, which are all the towns along the ocean between Nice and Monaco. Cecile and Iannis had made a couple suggestions as to places to visit. So my first stop was at Beaulieu sur Mer (literally: Beautiful Place by the Ocean... Napoleon was VERY creative when naming this town). Here,the Greek villa Kerylos is found. This is a mansion, built by a very rich, very eccentric millionaire in the early 1900s. He wanted the whole house to be an exact replica of a 2nd century Greek abode. The whole inside is built from Ferrara marble, the frescoes and rugs artificially aged to look the part, the beds like those Ancient Greeks sleep in, and even a shower which collected rainwater, and that's how they bathed. It was impressive to see that much passion and dedication being put into recreating something you're in love with, but at the same time, it was excessive! I walked around with this telephone-like apparatus which had the recorded guided tour of the place. Everytime you came to a place of interest, you would find a plaque with a number. I would then punch the number into the machine, and listen to the French explanation of the artifact/room. It was very cool.

Then, I walked 5 km to the other town I was going to visit: St. Jean Cap de Ferrat. This town is not very special, but the walk there, along the Mediterranean is incredibly beautiful. Annnnd, on the way there, I saw Saddam Hussein's ex-yatch. The state of Irak has had it anchored in the Nice port for the past 2 years, and I saw a news reportage on it about 10 days ago, mentioning that Irak was putting it for sale, and it would be showcased to potential buyers in the month of November (for a small sum of 165 million dollars). Well, I was lucky to see one of the potential buyers taking it out for a spin on Sunday, I noticed it was the same name as the one I had seen on TV. Whoever was on it (maybe it was the help that ran away with it! That's what I would do if I worked in a fancy yatch) was having a blast, running the ski-doos around the boat, and soaking in the sun.

I came back to Nice, after a lovely Sunday excursion, and found myself with another proof that I really do live here: it took me 30 minutes to find a parking spot. I'm not even exaggerating. I spent more time circling around the neighbourhood looking for a spot than I did entering Nice from St. Jean Cap de Ferrat. As I have found out this week that I have the car everyday, it's like that always. I guess it's the curse of living right downtown, in the old continent where roads are tiny, and there's literally no more space.
Other than the parking, the driving has been very good.. on my part. On the part of the French. Well, let's just say that they have a diminished regard for civic laws and no fear of authority. That means that they park ANYWHERE -on the sidewalk, on the crosswalk, double parked... you get the idea- they go at the speed they damn please, they run over pedestrians (well, not quite, but little green man=accelerate and scare the people crossing the street), and they often cut in and out of traffic without signaling. I have been very careful, and will continue to be, as I don't trust these baguette lovers on the road. But, I must warn you that if I come back cussing and talking like a sailor when I drive, it's all the French's fault. Doesn't make me less of a lady ;)

This week has been a bit unique, since Cecile and Iannis took off on a little couple holiday to Prague, and I've stayed at Cecile's mom's house. But on Saturday, I'm taking on the town with Cecile's sister, Marion, who is 26, and lives here in Nice. I just met her on Wednesday, and I'm already loving hanging out with her... it's going to be fun to have someone to do things with!
That's all for now, Happy belated Remembrance Day!

A tourist in my own city

Coming on my 2 weeks in Nice, I've still really loved my work, but now it's starting to sink in that I don't really know anyone, and that it might take some extra effort on my part (why not walk up to strangers on the road and introduce myself???) to start building a social circle in this lovely city. Yet, I've really enjoyed balancing what I call the incognito-tourist lifestyle. This lifestyle I discovered a bit of in Nantes, but I'm really becoming a pro here in Nice. Let me explain a bit...

When you move to a new city, you're always excited to see the sights, get to know your surroundings, and discover all the hidden treasures your new abode has to offer. For me, I have a really big passion for sharing with everyone back at home what I'm living right here. This, no matter how many pictures I take, and how many blogs I type, is MY experience, and it's hard to convey to all of you... yet, I get out there and I try to be detailed with my descriptions so that you can see and feel a little of what I'm experiencing. So, to do that, I explore and take pictures... but I don't really want the people who live here to see me as a tourist. Firstly, it's not the safest for me as a young woman, alone, to be seen with a camera and looking all gazey and in love with the city. Also, I want to really LIVE here, and not be treated like someone who is just passing by. To do that, I have to be stealth when it comes to my touristy actions. These are the things you should always avoid:
1) Wear a backpack
2) Walk really really slowly so that you're holding back the pedestrian traffic behind you, and people start pushing by to get through.
3) Walk around with your mouth open in awe... even if you really are in awe.
4) Walk with the camera in your hand.
5) Avoid all souvenir shops.

So, I've been perfecting this technique, and today when I went to the place of the Vieux Chateaux, no one could have mistaken me for a tourist! This, my friends, is being an Incognito Tourists. I'm getting to see all the sights, but without jumping out as a tourist target.

I've been doing a couple interesting things. Sunday, there was a series of concerts hosted by the city of Nice, and I went to see the Orchestra of Montecarlo (from Monaco) at the Acropolis theatre. The classical live music was sublime and moving, and I really enjoyed the Opera soloists as well. I feel very cultured when I do things like that... I vow to myself that I will do them more often when I go back to Canada!

Then today, like I mentioned, I went to the place of the old chateaux. It was first a Celtic fortress in the 11th century, until the Sardinians came in, and built it into a modernized version of what it is right now. Later, Louis XIV destroyed it, and all that is left nowadays is the parks, the fortress walls, and some archeological ruins. Not to mention, the best view of Nice, since it sits atop the highest point in the city. See the pics on Facebook!

Weather-wise, I haven't had anything to brag about. It's been a rainy 10 days.. there is a huge storm front going through all of France right now, and 5 departments in the interior have sustained serious flooding from the Loire (just imagine the 3 months of rain squeezed into 5 days of raining, and you'll get a picture of what these people are dealing with). Here, we've had some big electrical storms, one which left 1.5 million people-including myself- powerless for 6 hours Monday morning. Right now as I write there is another big storm going on.. the thunder is so loud the glass on the windows is actually shaking, not a word of a lie!

Aside from drowning in the rain, I've been working lots, and still loving every moment of it. Yesterday, Cecile informed me that we'll be taking a couple family vacations during my stay. The first, is scheduled in late Dec or early Jan, to Switzerland. The other, is a 2 week getaway to a rented villa in Tuscany, Italy. I'm telling you.. life is ROUGH out here.
This is all for now, hope you enjoyed the update and the pics that are now up!
bisous