It's been an amazing 9 months so far, but we've decided to move back to Canada at the end of October. The decision hasn't been easy, and Justin and I have had our moments arguing about it quite seriously. But it is final now; we put in 1 month notice at our flat and will be homeless as of September 2nd.
We are quitting our jobs at the end of the month and going to travel until our bank account runs dry. Our plan is to take the little red Micra and drive around Italy. I have my doubts that the car will last, (I've been skeptical of it since our last car broke down in Wales) but Justin seems pretty confident about the plan. And worst case scenario we leave another car in a different European country and continue our journey by bus or train.
Going back to Vancouver will most likely be bittersweet; I don't think either of us are looking forward to starting from scratch again. But there is no point in getting all reflective or sentimental yet as we still have over 2 months before the big move. Should be a very interesting last few months here. I promise we'll take full advantage of it.
Gen
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
British for Soccer
I knew I would need something to fill the void left in my life moving so far away from the Canucks and soccer seemed the obvious choice. There's no denying how big soccer is over here, and really what I was looking for was something to get caught up in, to buy a jersey and go to the pub and yell at the TV with a bunch of hooligans. I was able to watch every Canucks game at home online so it wasn't the hockey I was missing so much as the social aspect of it. Which is what drew me to watching the Canucks in the first place.
Before arriving I started looking into a few London based teams to follow, Chelsea and Arsenal first, then maybe Fulham or Tottenham. I was leaning towards Chelsea initially just because I was under the impression they were the best London based team, and if you're going to pick arbitrarily you may as well pick a good one. I figured I would find out where we ended up living when we got here first though, and pick the closest team.
When we ended up in Wimbledon I figured the decision to pick Chelsea was made. Problem was with so many choices in London everyone we met followed a different team, and every other team was shit by default. In BC it's quite easy to choose the Canucks but over here it's not the same at all. We lacked any real persuasion towards a team and it just stayed in limbo for a while
With no salary cap in the Premier League teams are essentially buying success, which in my opinion ruins a lot of the fun (Although if the Canucks could buy the Stanley Cup next year I'd still go to the parade). So with that being said people don't just pick the best teams to follow because there's not a lot of merit to that. If you follow the good teams you just expect them to win and get mad when they don't, there's not as much to get excited about. At least that's what I'm told by loser followers. It kinda makes sense though, and a lot of people follow lesser teams and just lower their expectations. Scoring a goal against Man U is a victory, getting bumped up to the Premier League is cause for major celebration.
In England the Premier League seems to be most important, and winning that is the main goal, but all through the season there are other games sprinkled in between for other tournaments, the Carling Cup, the FA Cup and the Champions League. I think the first 2 are between British teams of different leagues and the last one is between the best teams in Europe. It seems really strange to me to have games of differing importance and intensity scattered through a season. It also means a failure in the Premier League can be offset by winning a couple other games and being winners of the FA Cup and Champions League like Chelsea did this year.
While Chelsea was playing those big games we went out to a couple pubs in Chelsea and Wimbledon and got caught up in the excitement enough to say Chelsea is our team, which should mean next to nothing in the coming years. It was a lot of fun to be out in the celebrations though, reminded me of the playoffs last year.
As luck would have it the Euros, which happen every 4 years, just took place so we were able to see what London was like during international play. It was cool to get behind England on the whole and go out anywhere knowing who to cheer for. No matter who was playing it was a relatively big deal at any pub, and the Spanish fans stole a bit of our thunder on Canada Day when they won.
Funny thing about fans here though is nobody really wears jerseys or even shirts, I was given an England shirt by a coworker and figured I'd wear it out to fit in and was very much the odd one out. Maybe 1 in 4 at a big Chelsea match is kitted up and well under half that had England gear during the Euros. Quite a contrast to a sea of Canucks gear at a local pub for a preseason game
We went to a game back in March when Michelle came to visit at the nearest team to us, Crystal Palace, which is in a lower tier. Despite not being in the Premier League the stadium holds 25,000 people and was very nearly sold out. It was cool to see a game live, because all sports are more exciting in person, but the highlight was easily the fans. They were so loud and so into it and their chants and songs were so vulgar it was just too funny. The songs are a huge part of soccer over here which is something you would never get in hockey. My favorite chant was the one about an opposing player being a sex offender, classic.
The level of celebrity that players get here is massive too. On top of all the coverage the sport gets there's also pretty intense scrutiny on their personal lives. They're included in all the sensationalized celebrity gossip, which seems normal here, but can you imagine seeing photos in the province of Kesler out with another woman and the caption 'Kesler Pucks Around!'. It's weird. There's also a lot of attention paid to the WAG's (wives and girlfriends). They're always shown on TV during the games and a lot of them are pseudo celebrities themselves, starting music careers or launching fashion or make-up lines.
As far as actually watching the sport, I definitely enjoy and understand it more than I did, and I could see watching the occasional big game back home. It falls in the middle ground of sports I can watch, far below hockey and well above baseball and basketball. It's easy enough to follow and for the most part there's enough action and athleticism to keep in interesting, although some games have been pretty slow. My biggest problem with soccer, and it's what kept me from getting into it before, is the diving. The more I watch the more pathetic I find it and I really can't help but think that these guys are actors and underwear models first and athletes second. I know not every sport is like hockey or rugby and I appreciate that, and if most contact in soccer is a foul that's fine, but it's the faking and rolling around on the ground wincing and then jogging off 10 seconds later that is just so disgusting. It's not like there has to be injuries for a sport to be enjoyable, but if you are slumped on the ground like you're paralyzed until they finally stop play and then hop up and jog off you are a liar, a pussy and not exactly the best role model. Of course it's not just the players though because why wouldn't they, it works, it just takes so much away from the sport. I know there's diving in the NHL and it bothers me there too, but even then it's usually something like dropping to your knees when a cross check to the back wasn't quite that hard, and at least it's called occasionally. Most people here don't seem particularly bothered by it, so I guess it's just part of the game, like having no video replay and countless blown calls that decide games. When I do manage to get over this part of the game it is actually pretty enjoyable to watch.
Between Chelsea winning the FA Cup and Champions League, and then the Euros it was a pretty good year here to try to get into soccer, and we had a lot of fun checking out a few pubs in Chelsea as well as a really good sports bar here in Wimbledon. It was nice to be in a crowd of people really excited about sport, but it fell far short of filling the void left behind by hockey. It was an adequate substitute for the time being, but I can't wait to go out and watch a Canucks game!
It should be noted that I have no idea what I'm talking about, this is just how I saw soccer this past year and I'm likely wrong on a number of things. I also choose to call it soccer because even though football makes far more sense I am a proud Canadian and it annoys Europeans.
-Justin
Before arriving I started looking into a few London based teams to follow, Chelsea and Arsenal first, then maybe Fulham or Tottenham. I was leaning towards Chelsea initially just because I was under the impression they were the best London based team, and if you're going to pick arbitrarily you may as well pick a good one. I figured I would find out where we ended up living when we got here first though, and pick the closest team.
When we ended up in Wimbledon I figured the decision to pick Chelsea was made. Problem was with so many choices in London everyone we met followed a different team, and every other team was shit by default. In BC it's quite easy to choose the Canucks but over here it's not the same at all. We lacked any real persuasion towards a team and it just stayed in limbo for a while
With no salary cap in the Premier League teams are essentially buying success, which in my opinion ruins a lot of the fun (Although if the Canucks could buy the Stanley Cup next year I'd still go to the parade). So with that being said people don't just pick the best teams to follow because there's not a lot of merit to that. If you follow the good teams you just expect them to win and get mad when they don't, there's not as much to get excited about. At least that's what I'm told by loser followers. It kinda makes sense though, and a lot of people follow lesser teams and just lower their expectations. Scoring a goal against Man U is a victory, getting bumped up to the Premier League is cause for major celebration.
While Chelsea was playing those big games we went out to a couple pubs in Chelsea and Wimbledon and got caught up in the excitement enough to say Chelsea is our team, which should mean next to nothing in the coming years. It was a lot of fun to be out in the celebrations though, reminded me of the playoffs last year.
As luck would have it the Euros, which happen every 4 years, just took place so we were able to see what London was like during international play. It was cool to get behind England on the whole and go out anywhere knowing who to cheer for. No matter who was playing it was a relatively big deal at any pub, and the Spanish fans stole a bit of our thunder on Canada Day when they won.
Funny thing about fans here though is nobody really wears jerseys or even shirts, I was given an England shirt by a coworker and figured I'd wear it out to fit in and was very much the odd one out. Maybe 1 in 4 at a big Chelsea match is kitted up and well under half that had England gear during the Euros. Quite a contrast to a sea of Canucks gear at a local pub for a preseason game
The level of celebrity that players get here is massive too. On top of all the coverage the sport gets there's also pretty intense scrutiny on their personal lives. They're included in all the sensationalized celebrity gossip, which seems normal here, but can you imagine seeing photos in the province of Kesler out with another woman and the caption 'Kesler Pucks Around!'. It's weird. There's also a lot of attention paid to the WAG's (wives and girlfriends). They're always shown on TV during the games and a lot of them are pseudo celebrities themselves, starting music careers or launching fashion or make-up lines.
As far as actually watching the sport, I definitely enjoy and understand it more than I did, and I could see watching the occasional big game back home. It falls in the middle ground of sports I can watch, far below hockey and well above baseball and basketball. It's easy enough to follow and for the most part there's enough action and athleticism to keep in interesting, although some games have been pretty slow. My biggest problem with soccer, and it's what kept me from getting into it before, is the diving. The more I watch the more pathetic I find it and I really can't help but think that these guys are actors and underwear models first and athletes second. I know not every sport is like hockey or rugby and I appreciate that, and if most contact in soccer is a foul that's fine, but it's the faking and rolling around on the ground wincing and then jogging off 10 seconds later that is just so disgusting. It's not like there has to be injuries for a sport to be enjoyable, but if you are slumped on the ground like you're paralyzed until they finally stop play and then hop up and jog off you are a liar, a pussy and not exactly the best role model. Of course it's not just the players though because why wouldn't they, it works, it just takes so much away from the sport. I know there's diving in the NHL and it bothers me there too, but even then it's usually something like dropping to your knees when a cross check to the back wasn't quite that hard, and at least it's called occasionally. Most people here don't seem particularly bothered by it, so I guess it's just part of the game, like having no video replay and countless blown calls that decide games. When I do manage to get over this part of the game it is actually pretty enjoyable to watch.Between Chelsea winning the FA Cup and Champions League, and then the Euros it was a pretty good year here to try to get into soccer, and we had a lot of fun checking out a few pubs in Chelsea as well as a really good sports bar here in Wimbledon. It was nice to be in a crowd of people really excited about sport, but it fell far short of filling the void left behind by hockey. It was an adequate substitute for the time being, but I can't wait to go out and watch a Canucks game!
It should be noted that I have no idea what I'm talking about, this is just how I saw soccer this past year and I'm likely wrong on a number of things. I also choose to call it soccer because even though football makes far more sense I am a proud Canadian and it annoys Europeans.
-Justin
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
When in Wimbledon
The one question people would've asked for years to come after telling them we used to live in Wimbledon would be 'did you go to the tennis?' To save face we almost had to go.
We both actually really wanted to but with how busy we've been missing a days work to queue at 5am and be there all day was a stretch. We figured we'd just try our chances after work one evening. I walked in at 6pm with no queue and was given a Court 2 ticket for the same price as the grounds ticket I intended to buy, £10. Bonus. Went over and watched about half an hour of men's doubles.
Tennis is actually a lot more entertaining than I gave it credit for, even watching a bit on TV the last few days was alright. What I enjoyed as much as the play though was the ball boys and girls. They have a very strict routine steeped in tradition that while being interesting is also hilarious to watch.
After damp grass delayed play on Court 2 I wandered the grounds a bit watching a few games on the outer courts. There about around 15 of them so there was a lot to choose from. If one game was a little slow I could just wander to where a more entertaining person was screaming and moaning or yelling self congratulatory 'Come ons!'.
Gen got there a little after 7 and got in for a fiver, but was also told there was an extra match that night on Centre Court and to go to ticket resale. When people leave early they let someone know so their seats can be sold for charity. The resale booth is conveniently located next to the giant screen at the grass viewing area so you could get a grounds pass and just keep checking. We got great seats for £10 each.
We grabbed some food and rushed over just as a match between Tamira Paszek and Victoria Azarenka was starting. I was a little surprised they let us in with food but they did so we munched away and took it all in. At a break in play we were told there was no food allowed and we shouldn't have been let in, so I had to go back out to finish up and remember why I don't fit in anywhere posh.
Centre Court was cool to see, the level of play was quite obviously higher than the outer courts, and there were some proper looking people in the royal box, but I didn't see any Middletons.
After the first match we got to see the last half of one that was rained out earlier between Agnieszka Radwanska and Maria Kirilenko. Their match was a lot closer with a more reckless and entertaining style. We ended up getting close to 3 hours of play at Centre Court which was pretty awesome.
Chances are if we didn't live about a 15 minute walk from the grounds we never would have gone but I'm really glad that we just decided to give it a try after work because we got to see a lot and it's quite an iconic event.
-Justin
We both actually really wanted to but with how busy we've been missing a days work to queue at 5am and be there all day was a stretch. We figured we'd just try our chances after work one evening. I walked in at 6pm with no queue and was given a Court 2 ticket for the same price as the grounds ticket I intended to buy, £10. Bonus. Went over and watched about half an hour of men's doubles.
Tennis is actually a lot more entertaining than I gave it credit for, even watching a bit on TV the last few days was alright. What I enjoyed as much as the play though was the ball boys and girls. They have a very strict routine steeped in tradition that while being interesting is also hilarious to watch.
After damp grass delayed play on Court 2 I wandered the grounds a bit watching a few games on the outer courts. There about around 15 of them so there was a lot to choose from. If one game was a little slow I could just wander to where a more entertaining person was screaming and moaning or yelling self congratulatory 'Come ons!'.
Gen got there a little after 7 and got in for a fiver, but was also told there was an extra match that night on Centre Court and to go to ticket resale. When people leave early they let someone know so their seats can be sold for charity. The resale booth is conveniently located next to the giant screen at the grass viewing area so you could get a grounds pass and just keep checking. We got great seats for £10 each.
We grabbed some food and rushed over just as a match between Tamira Paszek and Victoria Azarenka was starting. I was a little surprised they let us in with food but they did so we munched away and took it all in. At a break in play we were told there was no food allowed and we shouldn't have been let in, so I had to go back out to finish up and remember why I don't fit in anywhere posh.
Centre Court was cool to see, the level of play was quite obviously higher than the outer courts, and there were some proper looking people in the royal box, but I didn't see any Middletons.
After the first match we got to see the last half of one that was rained out earlier between Agnieszka Radwanska and Maria Kirilenko. Their match was a lot closer with a more reckless and entertaining style. We ended up getting close to 3 hours of play at Centre Court which was pretty awesome.
Chances are if we didn't live about a 15 minute walk from the grounds we never would have gone but I'm really glad that we just decided to give it a try after work because we got to see a lot and it's quite an iconic event.
-Justin
Monday, July 2, 2012
Canada Day in London
I remember coming across the Canada Day in London website way back when I was researching this trip, billed as the largest celebration outside of Canada and in a setting like Trafalgar Square it looked like the place to be on July 1st. Somebody from Canada must have some serious connections and be a paperwork ace because turning Trafalgar Square into a massive beer garden and concert is pretty unreal, all for quiet unassuming Canada.Australia day was just at a bunch of Walkabout Pubs, pfft.
We started off with some Caesars Gen whipped up with some Clamato and spicy vodka from the Canadian store. Then it was on to the familiar over priced Molson Canadian common at all beer gardens, just like home.I haven't felt homesick too much over here but seeing all the hockey jerseys (mostly Canucks!), the street hockey and the Canadian flag capes did choke me up a bit. Being outside of Canada makes a Canada Day celebration take on a whole new meaning and being surrounded by fellow Canucks singing along to The Good Old Hockey Game while in the heart of London was an amazing experience.
We were treated a personal video greeting from Stephen Harper, who enjoyed a hearty booing, as well as a painfully forced live speech by Canada's high commissioner to England, Gordon Campbell, who got to take the boos in person. A proud moment.
Canada Day in London was definitely the most moving I've ever had and made me very proud to be Canadian. We enjoy a pretty good reputation abroad and we owe that to all the Canadians that came before us. I feel very lucky to have that privilege and try to pay it forward while we are traveling. It was a real treat to spend a day in the company of thousands of like minded Canadians on the other side of the world.
-Justin
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Mallorca
We booked it all on a whim just a couple days before so there was little time to prepare or anticipate which made it really exciting. Being able to take off like that to anywhere in Europe is just amazing and something I'm sure I'll pine for the rest of my life.
Our only criteria was that it be warm and cheap so out options were wide open. We got a package deal to Port D'Alcudia on Mallorca that was flights, transfers and 4 nights all inclusive for £340 each so we figured why not. All I knew about Mallorca was that it was a Spanish island that's got spots I've seen in a few skate videos and the weather said 32 and sunny. Done. Neither of us had done all inclusive before but for what we paid our expectations were low and if we ate and drank off site it wasn't the end of the world. The resort was nicer than expected and exceeded the scary reviews we'd read. Though that wasn't a stretch. For a budget and brief holiday it was perfect. Shitty buffet food, free drinks, 7 pools and a bed were all we needed.
The town itself was alright, small and very touristy, but the beach was stunning and stretched for 30km or so around a bay. We spent our first day there lounging in the sun and proving Sainsburys spf15 sunblock was not good enough for our pale skin.
It's difficult for me to go somewhere new and not explore. As much as I love relaxing by a pool or beach I just always have this urge to see more and more. Lucky for me our sunburns meant we wouldn't be lying in the sun all day the second day. We rented a car and set out to find some snorkeling. It was nice to get behind the wheel on the correct side of the road, but I do feel like going back and forth all the time is setting myself up for disaster. We drove through some amazing country side as well as villages with streets barely wide enough for our little VW Polo. I never imagined I'd drive anywhere as busy and chaotic as Central London or tiny Spanish village like Son Servera with streets so narrow both mirrors are nearly touching building. It's pretty surreal. I fell in love with snorkeling in Hawaii and couldn't wait to get back into some water where I can see further than my hand in front of my face. We ended up in a small town on the south coast called Cala Morlanda which had another great white sand beach, but more importantly a rocky area free of people and full of fish. It wasn't as colorful as Oahu but there was still a great variety of fish and it was so nice to explore the clear warm water. I'd love to have some photos but my bulky $400 everything proof camera crapped out at the first splash.
We headed east from there to a place called Cala Rajada for some more snorkeling. This was a really cool looking town with a more authentic feel and quieter resorts. We found a beautiful little cove at the end of a road with not too many people and some more great snorkeling.
We ended up in Palma, which is the main city on Mallorca. Decided to check out a couple skate spots I'd seen to make use of bringing my board here. It was nice to get back on my board on Spanish ground. Palma had some similarities to Barcelona, open plazas with smooth ground, but it wasn't quite the playground Barcelona was.
We spent our last day pool side taking advantage of the weather, the resorts pools and views and free drinks. Afterwards we wandered to the beach to take in the sunset and have a nice Mallorcan dinner of tapas and paella.
Mallorca wasn't somewhere we'd planned on going but it was absolutely beautiful and the weather was perfect every second we were there. I'm sure Cornwall is lovely and I hope we can still go soon, but this was a hell of a second choice.
-Justin
Sunday, June 10, 2012
The cost
A co-worker from Citytv sent me a message asking about the average cost of things here, so I thought I'd do up a quick blog with some examples of basic costs in case others were curious too. One thing to keep in mind is that 20% tax is included in all of these prices, so what you see is what you get. Also, tipping is optional and not expected in most cases, and if you do tip 10% is fair.
Food And Drink:
The average cheapest pint of lager costs around £3.50 at a pub.
A cheap bottle of wine from a supermarket is £5 and out for dinner you can get a cheap one for £9.
There are cheap dine out deals here, things like curry and a pint for £5 or two can dine for £10, but while the food is edible if you're on a budget, it's pretty obvious it's reheated crap.
The average good priced meal out costs around £10 for the main course. Portions are small compared to North American standards.
The average good Sunday roast dinner costs £15.
You can buy bread, crackers, and similar food basics for under £1.00. I just bought a huge bag of fresh basil for .80 pence. Groceries in general are quite cheap.
You can buy amazing cheese in any supermarket and its about 1/4th of the price you would pay in Canada.
Many pubs and restaurants have happy hour where drinks are dirt cheap.
Beer is very inexpensive at grocery stores - We just bought 3 cases for £25.
Transportation:
Monthly transit ranges from £60-£180 if you're using it as your main source of transportation, depending on zones and how much you need it etc.
A bus trip is £2.30 or if you have an Oyster card (a reloadable card you can have money or monthly passes on) it is £1.30. There are no transfers.
Used cars about 10-15 years old range from £500 - £2000 to buy.
Gas currently is about £1.40/litre
You can find great deals on flights to pretty much anywhere, but the cheapest fly when the tube is closed and from a difficult to get to airport, which adds significantly to your cost.
Bills and Basics:
Mobile phone contracts are great here. Ours includes daily roaming international data and pretty much unlimited everything else for £50 per month.
Bills are expensive and many. Electricity is the biggest cost, council tax (which is like property tax and everyone pays according to their borough and house) is due monthly, TV license fee is a yearly fee, parking fee, water, etc.
TV, Internet, and landline costs us about £50 a month inclusive.
Rent is out of wack here, with most people living in shared accommodation and roughly paying £400 per person per month.
Minimum wage is about £6.10
Entertainment and Shopping:
Clothing is generally the same number you would pay in Dollars, but in Pounds. I only buy the cheapest things if any so that's all I can really speak to -Recently I bought a tank top for £4 and a summer dress for £8 from H&M.
There are markets everywhere with clothes, food, and trinkets at various prices.
Movie tickets are about £12 but you get a selected seat. Some movie theaters allow you to drink alcohol.
Most museums are free, asking for a donation if you can spare it.
Concerts vary but seem to generally be cheaper than tickets would be in Canada. We saw Foster the People and tickets were £12.50. We are going to a 3 days festival in August and it was about £230 each including camping and parking.
Food And Drink:The average cheapest pint of lager costs around £3.50 at a pub.
A cheap bottle of wine from a supermarket is £5 and out for dinner you can get a cheap one for £9.
There are cheap dine out deals here, things like curry and a pint for £5 or two can dine for £10, but while the food is edible if you're on a budget, it's pretty obvious it's reheated crap.
The average good priced meal out costs around £10 for the main course. Portions are small compared to North American standards.
The average good Sunday roast dinner costs £15.
 |
| Just one of many 'Curry and a Pint' deals |
You can buy amazing cheese in any supermarket and its about 1/4th of the price you would pay in Canada.
Many pubs and restaurants have happy hour where drinks are dirt cheap.
Beer is very inexpensive at grocery stores - We just bought 3 cases for £25.
Transportation:
Monthly transit ranges from £60-£180 if you're using it as your main source of transportation, depending on zones and how much you need it etc.
A bus trip is £2.30 or if you have an Oyster card (a reloadable card you can have money or monthly passes on) it is £1.30. There are no transfers.
Used cars about 10-15 years old range from £500 - £2000 to buy.
Gas currently is about £1.40/litre
You can find great deals on flights to pretty much anywhere, but the cheapest fly when the tube is closed and from a difficult to get to airport, which adds significantly to your cost.
Bills and Basics:
Mobile phone contracts are great here. Ours includes daily roaming international data and pretty much unlimited everything else for £50 per month.
Bills are expensive and many. Electricity is the biggest cost, council tax (which is like property tax and everyone pays according to their borough and house) is due monthly, TV license fee is a yearly fee, parking fee, water, etc.
TV, Internet, and landline costs us about £50 a month inclusive.
Rent is out of wack here, with most people living in shared accommodation and roughly paying £400 per person per month.
Minimum wage is about £6.10
Entertainment and Shopping:
Clothing is generally the same number you would pay in Dollars, but in Pounds. I only buy the cheapest things if any so that's all I can really speak to -Recently I bought a tank top for £4 and a summer dress for £8 from H&M.
There are markets everywhere with clothes, food, and trinkets at various prices.
Movie tickets are about £12 but you get a selected seat. Some movie theaters allow you to drink alcohol.
Most museums are free, asking for a donation if you can spare it.
Concerts vary but seem to generally be cheaper than tickets would be in Canada. We saw Foster the People and tickets were £12.50. We are going to a 3 days festival in August and it was about £230 each including camping and parking.
Friday, June 8, 2012
Gay Paree
Paris was pretty much on the top of our list of cities to visit while we were here so when Genevieve's friend Candice and her boyfriend Nathan told us they were getting a flat for a couple weeks and invited us to join them we jumped on it. We spent 4 nights cramping their studio apartment and exploring the French capital.
We took the Eurostar through the chunnel which cost 80 pounds each return I think, but even better than the cost was the ease of the journey. It took less than 4 hours from our door in Wimbledon to the streets of central Paris. A trip from Vancouver to Qualicum takes longer than that. Amsterdam from Luton airport was nearly double. The central location of the stations and the ease of security and customs was such a treat compared to air travel and Paris is quite easily doable in a weekend here which is awesome.
I'd been told that Paris was a disappointment to some people, and I guess the way the city is romanticized and so iconic I can see it being built up to an inevitable let down. Personally I didn't expect it to wow me or change my life, I just thought it looked like an interesting place with some stuff to see that was easy to get to. It met those expectations quite easily.
We started our first day by dropping off our bags and promptly hitting the metro for a wander. We aimed for the area surrounding Notre Dame for a start. I really liked seeing a different style of building from London, while they appear to be similar aged buildings and really not so far from London it was quite a distinct difference that made me realize just how diverse Europe is for such a relatively small area. You can drive 12 hours in BC and refill your Big Gulp at the same 7-11, here you go through a couple countries and feel worlds apart.
I had no intention of going to Notre Dame before we got here, but it looked interesting and the line was reasonable so we climbed the 400 something spiraled stone steps to the top for a view of Paris. This turned out to be my favorite part of the trip actually. The steps all have deep grooves worn in the stone from 800 years of traffic, and the view from the top is incredible. Sharing a view of Paris with Gargoyles that have been there hundreds of years was surreal, picturing the differences they've seen over the centuries just staring off with their goofy faces. I loved those gargoyles.
Paris has a number of famous skate spots I'd wanted to check out, so I brought my board, but having just skated once since rolling my ankle 4 months ago I didn't really expect to skate. I played the role of skate tourist one afternoon and went by myself to look at a few famous spots with no intention of skating. The next day for some reason Genevieve was keen to join me to a couple spots in case there was a chance of 'filming' a trick on one of our digital cameras. It was pretty ridiculous, but there's not many chances in life to skate and get a trick in a city on the other side of the world, regardless of the camera or the mediocre maneuver, so we did it and it was pretty fun. Might be usable, might not, but it was nice to get on the board a bit in Paris on a vacation pretty far removed from a skate trip with the boys.
Genevieve's coworker Hannah happened to be in Paris the same time as us with the boyfriend and sister so we got to meet them at the park across the Seine from the Eiffel tower for some wine and baguettes. Before coming to Paris my only must see was the Eiffel tower, so sitting there drinking wine and watching it sparkle was a moment I won't forget. It always feels a little weird at those iconic sights because you don't really choose to want to see them, someone else does. I guess it's just symbolic of where you are and regardless of what it is, that's how you know you're somewhere new and different. Either way it was pretty moving.
The Louvre was kind of the same, a must see as chosen by everyone else. I did want to go, but having spent so much time in museums in London our limit was pretty short. The sun was shining too bright to spend much time in there so we parted ways with Candice and checked out the Mona Lisa and a handful of things on the way out. I think my favorite part of the Louvre was the mayhem around the famous pieces, all crowding around and taking pictures of the highlights from their travel books without really knowing what else is in there. Just to be clear I'm no better, I just find all of it a little off.
Food and drink in Paris was quite expensive in comparison to London. It was tough to justify 8 Euros on a glass (not a pint) of beer that wasn't even filled to the top. This would explain why there weren't really any pubs in the way we're used to, and most people seemed to just be drinking wine in the parks or on the Seine at night. Another wonderful example of public drinking gone right. We did go for one nice dinner in a fancy little french restaurant, Gen earned it tagging along to skate spots.
We'd heard the stereotype that Paris was dirty and the French were assholes, and while there's always some truth to stereotypes I didn't find it too bad. Most people, while not friendly, weren't particularly rude either. Where ever we tried to use a little grade 9 French they would always speak English. The city itself was pretty dirty though, and the funny thing is I think Paris has been told how beautiful it is for so long that it's gotten a sense of arrogance and that it's too good to clean the puke and dog shit off it's sidewalks. There were also a lot more sketchy characters than we've seen in London, meaning I had my wallet in my front pocket quite a bit. There's a lot of gypsy scams I remembered from Barcelona as well as aggressive African men selling trinkets at all the tourist sites.
I really enjoyed 5 days in Paris, it was great to see all the iconic sights as well as a lot of Paris I hadn't planned on exploring, but I wouldn't want to spend much more time there. Great place to visit but not somewhere I'd want to spend a lot of time, I just didn't really mesh with things there. Coming back to our home base in London is so nice and makes me so happy to travel the way we are. Being able to bank and use our phones for free in Europe is a sweet bonus too.
-Justin
We took the Eurostar through the chunnel which cost 80 pounds each return I think, but even better than the cost was the ease of the journey. It took less than 4 hours from our door in Wimbledon to the streets of central Paris. A trip from Vancouver to Qualicum takes longer than that. Amsterdam from Luton airport was nearly double. The central location of the stations and the ease of security and customs was such a treat compared to air travel and Paris is quite easily doable in a weekend here which is awesome.
I'd been told that Paris was a disappointment to some people, and I guess the way the city is romanticized and so iconic I can see it being built up to an inevitable let down. Personally I didn't expect it to wow me or change my life, I just thought it looked like an interesting place with some stuff to see that was easy to get to. It met those expectations quite easily.
We started our first day by dropping off our bags and promptly hitting the metro for a wander. We aimed for the area surrounding Notre Dame for a start. I really liked seeing a different style of building from London, while they appear to be similar aged buildings and really not so far from London it was quite a distinct difference that made me realize just how diverse Europe is for such a relatively small area. You can drive 12 hours in BC and refill your Big Gulp at the same 7-11, here you go through a couple countries and feel worlds apart.I had no intention of going to Notre Dame before we got here, but it looked interesting and the line was reasonable so we climbed the 400 something spiraled stone steps to the top for a view of Paris. This turned out to be my favorite part of the trip actually. The steps all have deep grooves worn in the stone from 800 years of traffic, and the view from the top is incredible. Sharing a view of Paris with Gargoyles that have been there hundreds of years was surreal, picturing the differences they've seen over the centuries just staring off with their goofy faces. I loved those gargoyles.
Paris has a number of famous skate spots I'd wanted to check out, so I brought my board, but having just skated once since rolling my ankle 4 months ago I didn't really expect to skate. I played the role of skate tourist one afternoon and went by myself to look at a few famous spots with no intention of skating. The next day for some reason Genevieve was keen to join me to a couple spots in case there was a chance of 'filming' a trick on one of our digital cameras. It was pretty ridiculous, but there's not many chances in life to skate and get a trick in a city on the other side of the world, regardless of the camera or the mediocre maneuver, so we did it and it was pretty fun. Might be usable, might not, but it was nice to get on the board a bit in Paris on a vacation pretty far removed from a skate trip with the boys.Genevieve's coworker Hannah happened to be in Paris the same time as us with the boyfriend and sister so we got to meet them at the park across the Seine from the Eiffel tower for some wine and baguettes. Before coming to Paris my only must see was the Eiffel tower, so sitting there drinking wine and watching it sparkle was a moment I won't forget. It always feels a little weird at those iconic sights because you don't really choose to want to see them, someone else does. I guess it's just symbolic of where you are and regardless of what it is, that's how you know you're somewhere new and different. Either way it was pretty moving.
The Louvre was kind of the same, a must see as chosen by everyone else. I did want to go, but having spent so much time in museums in London our limit was pretty short. The sun was shining too bright to spend much time in there so we parted ways with Candice and checked out the Mona Lisa and a handful of things on the way out. I think my favorite part of the Louvre was the mayhem around the famous pieces, all crowding around and taking pictures of the highlights from their travel books without really knowing what else is in there. Just to be clear I'm no better, I just find all of it a little off. Food and drink in Paris was quite expensive in comparison to London. It was tough to justify 8 Euros on a glass (not a pint) of beer that wasn't even filled to the top. This would explain why there weren't really any pubs in the way we're used to, and most people seemed to just be drinking wine in the parks or on the Seine at night. Another wonderful example of public drinking gone right. We did go for one nice dinner in a fancy little french restaurant, Gen earned it tagging along to skate spots.
I really enjoyed 5 days in Paris, it was great to see all the iconic sights as well as a lot of Paris I hadn't planned on exploring, but I wouldn't want to spend much more time there. Great place to visit but not somewhere I'd want to spend a lot of time, I just didn't really mesh with things there. Coming back to our home base in London is so nice and makes me so happy to travel the way we are. Being able to bank and use our phones for free in Europe is a sweet bonus too.
-Justin
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