Browsing Tag:

nice

In travel on
November 12, 2013

c’est un parc

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goodness i love nice! i have never been somewhere that has felt so much like me. it has the perfect mix of everything: cute little shops and big “one stop shop” malls, farmers markets and food superstores, a convenient modern area and a beautiful old town, a beach down the street and hills and mountains a quick trip away, cheap cafes and gourmet restaurants… i could go on and on! but this past week, nice got the one thing i felt it was missing: a park! there are little parks around the city but nothing unified or central and unfortunately none near me. i wondered why there wasn’t more green spaces but then i found out that the big eyesore of a construction site in the middle of town was going to be a state of the art park and it would be opening soon! and nice isn’t like california so when they say something is opening, it opens on that day. probably the only thing in france that is ever on time… but i digress. it was actually an accident i was in the park on opening day but i’m so glad i was because there was live music and performers and big screens with movies and videos and an opening ceremony with the mayor and city officials. i’ve learned when something opens in france, it starts with a bang! looking forward to many more outings and visits here.

In travel on
November 9, 2013

on the town

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my goal for this month was to explore more of nice and find places that are more local and less touristy. while i have been finding some wonderful places, i always find myself back on my street. i live on the main street in the modern section of town and it really is a one stop shop for many things. there is a farmers market a few blocks down from where i live, a really nice market near the turnoff for my school, lots of clothing and book stores and just about everything else you could think of. when i first came to france, i was worried that it would be like new zealand and i wouldn’t be able to find many common things i’m accustomed to in the states. but i’m happy to say i’ve been able to find most things i could ever want and need, with the exception of canned pumpkin and kale but i’ll let those slide. i also love walking along the street i live on because there are no cars and only the occasional tram to worry about so its pretty peaceful. believe it or not, all these pictures were taken within 10 minutes of where i live. so many photo ops can be so distracting especially when i’m trying to get to school on time!

In travel on
November 6, 2013

before sunset

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even though i’ve lived by the beach my whole life, i’ve never really appreciated it. at least not like i do here. the beach in nice is wonderful and the perfect place to watch the sunset over the peninsula. sure, it has its problems like topless sun worshipers (thank goodness that season is coming to an end) and sharp rocks (i like the pebbles but they are a bummer to walk on in the water). i think after my time here, i’ll appreciate the beach more in california and maybe even visit more than once a year. but till then, i’ll enjoy my ‘nice’ beach here.

In travel on
October 31, 2013

fleurs de nice

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today i picked up these beauties on my walk back from class. i saw them and fell in love but i decided not to buy them because i didn’t see a price and flowers at the market can get pretty pricey. i kept on walking but i had that feeling you get when you know you are going to regret something. i looked at the flowers at a few more stalls, thinking maybe those would suffice but none compared. i knew i had to go back and get those flowers. so i turned back around and tried to recall where that vender was. when i arrived, the stall was closing up so i got there just in time and to my surprise, they were only 2€ a bundle! i got two bundles and because the vender was closing for the day, he gave me a bundle for free! i walked back to my apartment with a huge bouquet and an even bigger smile and people were smiling at me because they probably thought i was in love! and i was… with my pretty flowers! so now i have flowers all over my room (the bouquet pictured is only a third of them!) and the resolution to buy flowers from the marché more often.

In travel on
October 30, 2013

a nice day

I’ve had a few people ask me lately about what a day is like for me in France so I decided to do a post about it. Obviously everyday is different but this is a pretty typical day for me. When I did a post of what a day in New Zealand looked like for me, I used black and white hipstamatics so I decided to stick with that theme for this post. also I’m doing the times in military time because that’s what I use here. for example: 14h is 2pm (the h stands for heures). here’s a little sliver of my ‘nice’ life

6h – the time I wake up usually varies but i’m definitely an early riser. today I woke up at 6h to do yoga. in new zealand, i got in the habit of waking up and working out and that has stuck here too. but what’s even nicer here is that i have my own space and i don’t have to awkwardly workout in the common room *cringe*

8h –   the lady I live with leaves at 8h so usually make breakfast and read my devos in the tiny kitchen once she’s gone. breakfast has become my favorite meal of the day and I usually have quinoa with fruit, oatmeal, soy yogurt with granola or sweet potato with banana and honey (trust me, so good!). this morning I took the yogurt with granola and fruit route. I also had coffee from the nifty nespresso maker in my kitchen. I love espresso and it’s been nice to have it so handy.

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9h – I leave for class around 8h40 to 8h50 depending on if I am walking or taking the tram. the tram stop is right near my house which is nice for when it’s raining or I’m running late. my walk to class is probably one of my favorite parts of my day. I normally listen to music (lately, lots of Joni Mitchell, Bon Iver, Joshua Radin, Cœur de Pirate and Nirvana) and admire the pretty scenery. I love this old hotel I walk by on the street my class is on and there are lots of darling fruit stands and bakeries along the way too.

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10h – class time! I love my teacher! she is adorable and hilarious and really likes the way I write so I end up doing most of the work on the board which keeps me on my toes. we do lots of speaking as a class and have discussions on all kinds of topics. everyday has a theme and today’s was french television. some other interesting themes have been falling in love, blogging, applying for a job and social media.

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11h – usually around 11h, we get a break. occasionally, I’ll go to the market and get dried fruit or to the local patisserie to grab a macaron but usually I just stay in and chat with friends. my closest friends in the class are erika (my class partner from spain), stefan (from iceland), hugh (from scotland) and marsella (from brazil). today was stefans last day, which was très triste, but he may come back to class next year. or I could always visit him in iceland, which is now on the top of my list of places to go. my friend nina left the class last week to go to school in monaco and the week before that, my class partner vincent left to go back to amsterdam. it’s always so sad to see people go.

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12h – for my first month, I stayed in class for 4 hours but starting this monday, my classes went down to 2.5 hours. it’s sad because I love being in class but it also gives me more time to explore the town. here are a few pics from my walk home.

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13h – I usually end up having lunch around 13h because I often run errands or just slowly meander home after class. today, I had homemade mexican sweet potato stew. I do all my cooking at the beginning of the week so I don’t have to worry about what I’m going to eat during the week, much to the dismay of the woman I live with (its very uncommon in france to make your meals in bulk all at once). I’ve noticed having things preprepared also keeps me from going out to eat when I’m too tired to cook. I usually go on pinterest and read while I’m eating lunch.

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14h – today, I had a few meals to make for the rest of the week. I made pumpkin soup and pumpkin hummus because it’s pumpkin week on the meal plans I use. I swear these meal plans have been such lifesavers and have also kept my grocery bill down, which is quite a feat considering food is so expensive here. I often catch up on tv shows, listen to my church’s podcast or blast irish music while I cook. I’ve discovered that cooking is so relaxing for me and my meal prep days are some of my favorites.

16h – after I have some downtime, I do my homework, which I usually have quite a bit of. normally it’s not too taxing but I have had quite a few papers and presentations. I love doing my hw on my bed because I have a pretty view of the courtyard. I also often do my homework in coffee shops but today, I’m staying in because I want to save money and I already had a coffee this morning.

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17h – after I’m done with my homework, I usually explore the town, meet up with friends or just chill in my room. today, I went to the beach because it was overcast and I knew not many people would be there. it was so calm and pretty and peaceful. I’m not usually the biggest fan of the beach but I love the beach here because it feels so separate from the hustle and bustle of the town and it’s a great place to get away. And there’s no sand! just small little pebbles (see pic above).

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18h – I walked around the town and explored the park that just opened on Saturday. Nice seems to get prettier and prettier everyday.

19h – dinner time! the french eat dinner pretty late which is something I have been accustomed to even in america because of my years of getting home late from dance. I have also taken up the French way of eating big meals for breakfast and lunch and a small meal for dinner so I usually just have a salad or simple soup. tonight i had a simple salad with soy sauce, quinoa and chickpeas.

20h – after dinner, when i have nothing else to do, i usually read. i’ve been reading les mis lately which i am in love with! my goal is to read it in french someday. i also usually catch up on emails and fb and look at my blogroll during this time. most nights, i have things to do at the church or go out with friends but i’ve been learning to really appreciate my downtime too.

22h – for some weird reason, i go to bed really early here. last night i went to bed at 9. its probably because i wake up so early but i’m liking this schedule. so that’s a day in my life. cheers to doing it all again tomorrow and if you got to the end of this very long post, kudos to you!

In travel on
October 11, 2013

nice living

highlights of living in france so far:

1. day trips to surrounding cities. so far i’ve only been to monaco but there are so many quaint cities just a bus ride away. i’m going to the alps this weekend for a church retreat and i’m planning on going to cannes with a friend in a few weeks.

2. walking everywhere! since nice is pretty compact, i can walk almost anywhere within 20 minutes. though i do have blisters to show for it, i love walking here and admiring the beautiful people and architecture.

3. homework at fnac and emilie’s cookies.

4. eating in the old town with friends. even though old nice is the more touresty part of town, there are a lot of great places with traditional nicoise food. and i also found socca, which is my new favorite thing to eat and its usually only a few euros!

5. classes alliance français. the highlight of my day everyday is going to class. my teacher is hilarious and quirky, the class is challenging but not so much so that i’m lost and the students are all so much fun to get to know. we are all from different parts of the world which makes it extra interesting. my class partner is from sweden but he has lived in ireland most his life, one of my friends in the class is from iceland and loves sigur ros too and i think the girl who sits next to me was a russian mail order bride! other students in my class are from australia, saudi arabia, brazil, china, thailand, africa and a few other countries around the world. we joke that we have every continent represented.

6. getting settled in. nice is finally starting to feel like home. my room feels really homey and i’ve been making quite a few really nice friends from school and church.

so excited to see what the rest of this year brings because if its anything like these past couple weeks, it will be by far the best year of my life