world famous Oliva!
First arriving on the pebble beach in Nice.overlooking the Med, in the Medieval village of Eze, one of the trip highlights for sure. 
Sunday, June 14, 2009
This is the end . .
OK.
so the flight home was pretty brutal and quite ho-hum. . . I've been home for a few days. Graduated from school, saw a lot of my amazing family, slept, felt sleep-deprived, cried about how I'm a continent away from where I'd like to be, and now am ready to ease back into Canadian life, for now.
Europe, you have not seen the last of me.
I feel like I should have some sorts of words of wisdom. . . .so here are some things I've learned!
-try not to throw up in one of the oldest and most famous buildings in the Western world.
-Mancs can hold their liquor. Even 16 year old ones.
-Politeness is appreciated all around the world.
-Smiling is easy and always understood.
and finally, sometimes it's important to asserts yourself in order to get the things that really matter!
ok, Renblawg, you have served your purpose. I think I'll try and put up a few photos.
peace to all the brothers, from Florida, to NYC, to Marseille, Antigonish, Tamps, Carp, and everywhere in between!
salut!
so the flight home was pretty brutal and quite ho-hum. . . I've been home for a few days. Graduated from school, saw a lot of my amazing family, slept, felt sleep-deprived, cried about how I'm a continent away from where I'd like to be, and now am ready to ease back into Canadian life, for now.
Europe, you have not seen the last of me.
I feel like I should have some sorts of words of wisdom. . . .so here are some things I've learned!
-try not to throw up in one of the oldest and most famous buildings in the Western world.
-Mancs can hold their liquor. Even 16 year old ones.
-Politeness is appreciated all around the world.
-Smiling is easy and always understood.
and finally, sometimes it's important to asserts yourself in order to get the things that really matter!
ok, Renblawg, you have served your purpose. I think I'll try and put up a few photos.
peace to all the brothers, from Florida, to NYC, to Marseille, Antigonish, Tamps, Carp, and everywhere in between!
salut!
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
all my bags are packed, but I´m not ready to go
home in a few hours.
sad sad sad. But today was great. Ok the morning was terrible since we went out last night, it being our last real night here.
We decided to head to the beach. SO crowded, but it hit the spot, and gave us time for thinking, lying, being offered every possible thing imaginable.
We then walked to the Catedral, and there was an impromptu vocal performance that was a highlight of the trip for me, for sure. After their performance, all the singers came out into the crowd to kiss (double cheek kiss) and shake hands, and it was amazing and so different from the vocal jazz shows I´ve participated in.
Barcelona, I will miss you muy muy muy.
We also went to say goodbye to Oliva and her husband, who always kissed us and I told her (perfectly, obviously, in Spanish) that I´d be back in two years. And I will!
So, this is one of the last blog posts. If anyone´s still reading at this point, so much has been left out, and I can´t wait to share more stories with anyone and everyone in a few short days!
Call me! I want to avoid the coming back home depression.
European Adventures, we´ve have some ups and downs, izquierda y deretcha (cannot spell in spanish) and so much in between.
I will be back, but Canada still has a big spot in my heart.
This flight is going to suck, 3 transfers, jet lag, and tired from a long day of lying on the beach, drinking a one euro beer, eating haribo candies, and watching the tide rise and fall. Life is hard!
te amo, barcelona, te amo.
adios europa!
sad sad sad. But today was great. Ok the morning was terrible since we went out last night, it being our last real night here.
We decided to head to the beach. SO crowded, but it hit the spot, and gave us time for thinking, lying, being offered every possible thing imaginable.
We then walked to the Catedral, and there was an impromptu vocal performance that was a highlight of the trip for me, for sure. After their performance, all the singers came out into the crowd to kiss (double cheek kiss) and shake hands, and it was amazing and so different from the vocal jazz shows I´ve participated in.
Barcelona, I will miss you muy muy muy.
We also went to say goodbye to Oliva and her husband, who always kissed us and I told her (perfectly, obviously, in Spanish) that I´d be back in two years. And I will!
So, this is one of the last blog posts. If anyone´s still reading at this point, so much has been left out, and I can´t wait to share more stories with anyone and everyone in a few short days!
Call me! I want to avoid the coming back home depression.
European Adventures, we´ve have some ups and downs, izquierda y deretcha (cannot spell in spanish) and so much in between.
I will be back, but Canada still has a big spot in my heart.
This flight is going to suck, 3 transfers, jet lag, and tired from a long day of lying on the beach, drinking a one euro beer, eating haribo candies, and watching the tide rise and fall. Life is hard!
te amo, barcelona, te amo.
adios europa!
Monday, June 8, 2009
Oliva, te amo.
Barcelona keeps on getting better and better, which is why these posts are shorter and shorter!
Although maybe it´s a good thing we end here, because it´s exhausting to be in a city that sleeps. . . . who knows when!
We have discovered many gems in this city, actually, even on the block we´re staying on. Right next door there is a bakery called Oliva, run by the greatest two people ever to live. We don´t really know if her name is Oliva, but she will forever be Oliva to us. She runs the bakery with her husband, and for the past three mornings we have gone over to enjoy delicious chocolate croissants for breakfast. Actually, delicious isn´t strong enough of a word. They are to die for. Literally the best I have ever had, and we just came from Italy and France. . . . and they sure love their croissants there.
Were so sad to leave Oliva´s, and in broken Spanish we told her we´re leaving tomorrow, so we took a picture with her, and told her we´d be back tomorrow for our usual. Oh, it´s great.
the other Barc obsession has been a Thai restaurant right across our street. Pad thai is possibly my favourite food ever, and I eat it a lot, and again I can say with absolute certainty that they have the best pad thai I have ever had, hands down. No competition with any thai place I´ve been to. We´ve been twice. . . we´re skimping on dinner tonight in order to justify going out to the same restaurant twice, especially when we´re supposed to be backpacking, and cooking our own meals. . . . but it really is so good we can´t help it.
So, despite the previous paragraphs, we are doing more in this city than just eating. This morning we went to Gaudi´s Sagrada Familia. . . yep, still being built, and it won´t be completed until about 2030. Going there and seeing it, you can definitely understand why. It´s the most visited site in Spain for a reason, and we waiting in a decently long line to be able to get inside and head down the intense spirally stairs.
Last night wasn´t as eventful as our previous night here, but Thomas who works at the hostel played guitar, and we all hung out here. Danielle and I almost decided to go with these girls to a salsa club. . . but maybe better judgment stopped us. Anyways, Thomas played everything from Sublime to Jack Johnson, to Brasilian songs, to Ben Harper, and it´s amazing to see how universal some songs are when they have messages of peace and love.
He also love Mason Jennings, so obviously we´re bff.
so the night before, about 15 maybe people from our hostel went out to this popular club called Razzmatazz. It was an experience. Mom, if you´re reading this, yes we were safe! But it really is true that you do not go out before 1 am. We got there maybe at 130 and it was empty. But the time we headed back around 530, people were still lining up to come in, and it was packed. Different lifestyle for sure. Also, it was nice to hear Metric and Crystal Castles play. Canadian indie represent.
Anyways, we´re going to do some more Gaudi and other touristy things tonight. The Wailers are apparently playing somewhere on this street, but our hostel is also organized some sort of fun night, except they probably have a cooler name for it than that!
Were home in two days. . . not ready, I wish I had a year here, but Ill be back. . . . mostly to see Oliva, our new bfffffff (for lifeeeeeeeee).
P.s if anyone mentions that 20 lbs I have gained I will kill you fuckers. That is all.
Although maybe it´s a good thing we end here, because it´s exhausting to be in a city that sleeps. . . . who knows when!
We have discovered many gems in this city, actually, even on the block we´re staying on. Right next door there is a bakery called Oliva, run by the greatest two people ever to live. We don´t really know if her name is Oliva, but she will forever be Oliva to us. She runs the bakery with her husband, and for the past three mornings we have gone over to enjoy delicious chocolate croissants for breakfast. Actually, delicious isn´t strong enough of a word. They are to die for. Literally the best I have ever had, and we just came from Italy and France. . . . and they sure love their croissants there.
Were so sad to leave Oliva´s, and in broken Spanish we told her we´re leaving tomorrow, so we took a picture with her, and told her we´d be back tomorrow for our usual. Oh, it´s great.
the other Barc obsession has been a Thai restaurant right across our street. Pad thai is possibly my favourite food ever, and I eat it a lot, and again I can say with absolute certainty that they have the best pad thai I have ever had, hands down. No competition with any thai place I´ve been to. We´ve been twice. . . we´re skimping on dinner tonight in order to justify going out to the same restaurant twice, especially when we´re supposed to be backpacking, and cooking our own meals. . . . but it really is so good we can´t help it.
So, despite the previous paragraphs, we are doing more in this city than just eating. This morning we went to Gaudi´s Sagrada Familia. . . yep, still being built, and it won´t be completed until about 2030. Going there and seeing it, you can definitely understand why. It´s the most visited site in Spain for a reason, and we waiting in a decently long line to be able to get inside and head down the intense spirally stairs.
Last night wasn´t as eventful as our previous night here, but Thomas who works at the hostel played guitar, and we all hung out here. Danielle and I almost decided to go with these girls to a salsa club. . . but maybe better judgment stopped us. Anyways, Thomas played everything from Sublime to Jack Johnson, to Brasilian songs, to Ben Harper, and it´s amazing to see how universal some songs are when they have messages of peace and love.
He also love Mason Jennings, so obviously we´re bff.
so the night before, about 15 maybe people from our hostel went out to this popular club called Razzmatazz. It was an experience. Mom, if you´re reading this, yes we were safe! But it really is true that you do not go out before 1 am. We got there maybe at 130 and it was empty. But the time we headed back around 530, people were still lining up to come in, and it was packed. Different lifestyle for sure. Also, it was nice to hear Metric and Crystal Castles play. Canadian indie represent.
Anyways, we´re going to do some more Gaudi and other touristy things tonight. The Wailers are apparently playing somewhere on this street, but our hostel is also organized some sort of fun night, except they probably have a cooler name for it than that!
Were home in two days. . . not ready, I wish I had a year here, but Ill be back. . . . mostly to see Oliva, our new bfffffff (for lifeeeeeeeee).
P.s if anyone mentions that 20 lbs I have gained I will kill you fuckers. That is all.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
barça = amor
so i won´t write anymore than I already love love love Barçelona, and it hasn´t even been 24 hours. La Rambla. . . words can´t really explain it. And the food is so good!
We´re heading out to a thai restaurant. . . restaurants don´t even open until 8. . . what are we, rockstars?????
barça, te amo
yet again, ben, tu as raison
We´re heading out to a thai restaurant. . . restaurants don´t even open until 8. . . what are we, rockstars?????
barça, te amo
yet again, ben, tu as raison
Friday, June 5, 2009
Benjamin was right. . . .
well, half right.
despite any late night bitching, today was actually a great day in Nice.
Went to the modern art museum, and the Museum of Massena, then Danielle and I layed on the pebble beach for one final time.
Xavier Rudd just came on the speakers, and I can tell this is going to be the start of a great five days.
We wanted to head out to Marseille, but the money factor, and last night we spoke to someone who told us it was worth going to, but not for the amount it would have costed us, and the short visit we would have had there.
Also, if anyone has ever had the "deluxe fries" at Mcdonalds, they are heaven on earth. Heaven. I will miss them!
Goodbye France, je t'aime, mais c'est le temps de partir. Je reviendrai bientot.
p.s for future reference, anyone who knows Benjamin. . . . heed his advice well. He knows best!
despite any late night bitching, today was actually a great day in Nice.
Went to the modern art museum, and the Museum of Massena, then Danielle and I layed on the pebble beach for one final time.
Xavier Rudd just came on the speakers, and I can tell this is going to be the start of a great five days.
We wanted to head out to Marseille, but the money factor, and last night we spoke to someone who told us it was worth going to, but not for the amount it would have costed us, and the short visit we would have had there.
Also, if anyone has ever had the "deluxe fries" at Mcdonalds, they are heaven on earth. Heaven. I will miss them!
Goodbye France, je t'aime, mais c'est le temps de partir. Je reviendrai bientot.
p.s for future reference, anyone who knows Benjamin. . . . heed his advice well. He knows best!
Thursday, June 4, 2009
and catch a plane to barcelona. . .
cos this city's a drag.
so, Nice is not so nice on the 6th day.
It;s still beautiful, and coastal, and the nutella and crepes still taste just as sweet. . . . but on a under 3 week trip, staying in an older person town isn't really the most exciting thing ever.
We've kind of got the blues about it, which is such a bummer. Because of the planes and bus we booked, we were left with way too much time in Nice.
oh well. . . we leave for Barc, oh dear Barc, tomorrow around 11pm. . . and it could not come sooner.
But. . . we still had a great day today. We went to this Medieval mountain top village called Eze. It was breathtaking,and not too touristy so that was nice. We have also been eating possibly the best brownies in the world at our hostel.
Oh, we also made some friends in our last hostel, Baccarat. We shared a room with two girls from NYC and a couple from Sweden, and we spend one night drinking cheap wine, and talking about our respective countries, and mutual love of Friends, the t.v show.
Mmmm what else. .. I guess it's lame that I'm writing this at 1 am our time. We hit the "scene" at our hostel, chatted with a nice guy from Melbourne. We talked about Summer Heights High.
There's a pretty rockin party going on in the common room under me, which used to be a chapel, but I cAN'T be bothered. . . I'm already in my jammies. Plus, obviously I'm saving my big nights out for Barcelona, the city I;ve built up so much in my mind and heart that it cannot possibly live up to the expectations.
Oh,. but it will! Blog world, expect a whole different vibe from Renblawg.
Also, I know how completly princess it sounds to be glum on an amazing europe trip, so I will add that I'm not glum, today was great, but my advice to other travellers is to not book yourself into a corner with flights, because 6 days in one place get feel like eternity when you hear of others doing 5 cities in the time you were in one.
The cote d'azure is lovely. . . but it's a little too upper class for my liking.
Give me the grungy streets of Naples, with its street dogs, two hour lines for pizza, and pedestrian unfriendly streets!
Home on wednesday. I really wish I were staying for a year, only not in Nice.
so, Nice is not so nice on the 6th day.
It;s still beautiful, and coastal, and the nutella and crepes still taste just as sweet. . . . but on a under 3 week trip, staying in an older person town isn't really the most exciting thing ever.
We've kind of got the blues about it, which is such a bummer. Because of the planes and bus we booked, we were left with way too much time in Nice.
oh well. . . we leave for Barc, oh dear Barc, tomorrow around 11pm. . . and it could not come sooner.
But. . . we still had a great day today. We went to this Medieval mountain top village called Eze. It was breathtaking,and not too touristy so that was nice. We have also been eating possibly the best brownies in the world at our hostel.
Oh, we also made some friends in our last hostel, Baccarat. We shared a room with two girls from NYC and a couple from Sweden, and we spend one night drinking cheap wine, and talking about our respective countries, and mutual love of Friends, the t.v show.
Mmmm what else. .. I guess it's lame that I'm writing this at 1 am our time. We hit the "scene" at our hostel, chatted with a nice guy from Melbourne. We talked about Summer Heights High.
There's a pretty rockin party going on in the common room under me, which used to be a chapel, but I cAN'T be bothered. . . I'm already in my jammies. Plus, obviously I'm saving my big nights out for Barcelona, the city I;ve built up so much in my mind and heart that it cannot possibly live up to the expectations.
Oh,. but it will! Blog world, expect a whole different vibe from Renblawg.
Also, I know how completly princess it sounds to be glum on an amazing europe trip, so I will add that I'm not glum, today was great, but my advice to other travellers is to not book yourself into a corner with flights, because 6 days in one place get feel like eternity when you hear of others doing 5 cities in the time you were in one.
The cote d'azure is lovely. . . but it's a little too upper class for my liking.
Give me the grungy streets of Naples, with its street dogs, two hour lines for pizza, and pedestrian unfriendly streets!
Home on wednesday. I really wish I were staying for a year, only not in Nice.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
des crepes avec nutella, et un café, s'il-te-plait
mmmmm le café,
mmmmm les baguettes,
mmmmm le nutella!!
je reviens au Canada au moins 10lbs de plus, et ça ne me donne pas de peine car je mange comme une championne!!!!
Today was so far a shopping and eating day. If you know me at all, you surely know it is not my favourite passtime not by a long shot (EATING IS); . But here the shops are so unique and different, and strip malls are seemingly non-existant, so it's been fun.
So obviously I4M OFF TO shop for dinner.......BAGUETTE here I come.
p.s it has literally taken me 20 mins to write this..... thanks french keyboard
mmmmm les baguettes,
mmmmm le nutella!!
je reviens au Canada au moins 10lbs de plus, et ça ne me donne pas de peine car je mange comme une championne!!!!
Today was so far a shopping and eating day. If you know me at all, you surely know it is not my favourite passtime not by a long shot (EATING IS); . But here the shops are so unique and different, and strip malls are seemingly non-existant, so it's been fun.
So obviously I4M OFF TO shop for dinner.......BAGUETTE here I come.
p.s it has literally taken me 20 mins to write this..... thanks french keyboard
Monday, June 1, 2009
la France, mon amour
so, I love it here. What a relief to understand and be understood..... we got to Nice 2 nights ago at 4am, and these boys escorted us to our hotel..... were pretty sure a man from our bus paid them to, but I think mqybe they were just really 'nice'. ha ha ha
The air in France is reviving Danielle, and weve done quite a bit since we got here. The beach here is pebbles; which is so different. Also, our hostel is def a party hostel, and the girls in our room qre super cool.
This keyboard is so hard to type on, so this will be brief; but we also went to Monaco today, and saw the Oceanography museum .... Brandon if you're reading this, we thought of you.
Also, Renblag might soon be graced by a guest writer, so stay tuned.
The air in France is reviving Danielle, and weve done quite a bit since we got here. The beach here is pebbles; which is so different. Also, our hostel is def a party hostel, and the girls in our room qre super cool.
This keyboard is so hard to type on, so this will be brief; but we also went to Monaco today, and saw the Oceanography museum .... Brandon if you're reading this, we thought of you.
Also, Renblag might soon be graced by a guest writer, so stay tuned.
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