Brazilian night

My friends and i went to Favela Chic, an awesome Brazilian restaurant. We enjoyed the food a lot and had a great time with each other. Click read more for pix ;) 

A Lille bit of Bruges

Last weekend i visited Lille, France and Bruges, Belgium. Lille was so great, i have been in Paris my whole time here and i haven't really moved around within France so it was nice to see another part of the country. While in Lille, we did a lot of sight seeing. Christmas is everywhere you turn here so there were lots of lights and festive people. Later, me and the group of students i went with went to a restaurant called Omnia which turned out to arguably my best meal so far. I don't know if it was the food or the general good mood but i had a blast. Saying i was tired at the time would be an understatement. i could barely move after this meal but i managed to carry myself to a club called Network which is a popular club out there. The next day we visited Bruges for half a day which to me was way too short.I've looked forward to going to Bruges since watching the Colin Farrell Movie "In Bruges". Typical, i know. We saw the sights and indulged in some Belgian waffles and chocolates, visited the chocolate museum. While walking around we found this little mall with a chair you sit on and it spins like a spinning top so my friends and we had a moment of being kids. After this, i was supposed to join the group to tour a beer factory but since that was not really my cup of tea, i decided to hang out with a friend who lives in Bruges instead. He took me on this awesome tour around his town called Damme and i had such a great time just chilling. After my trip i felt amazingly relaxed and ready to take on the world.

Midnight in Paris

After all the stress from school work, i decided it was time for some rest and relaxation. My friend got a room at a hotel called Le Grand Hotel. It's situated right across the Academie National de Musique, a.k.a the phantom of the opera's living quarters.We ate, laughed, stayed up late and indulged in the over priced mini bar (1 Toblerone = 7 Euros,Gasp!).  The view was amazing!It was really therapeutic for me. Now i feel rejuvenated and ready to take on my last month in Paris. The photos are pretty much in order of when i arrive till i go to bed. I know everyone is feeling the stress of final exams now so take a day off or a few hours off and treat yourself to some rest and relaxation.

Indian Night

We've recently been having these nights out which we dedicate to eating cuisines from different countries. This time it was Indian and we had such a blast. We ate at a restaurant called Angheethi.  Here's a list of some of the stuff we ate: 

Starter: Mango & Rose Lassi, Paneer Pakora, Samosa Legumes, and a grill mix of chicken & lamb.

Main course: Cheese Nan, Garlic Nan, Poulet Karahi, Panner Tikka Masala.

Desert: Kulfi, gulab jamun

I got some pictures of the food but not all, too busy chowing down what turned out to be some really delicious food. But i encourage people to try out new foods, keeps your stomach guessing. lol 

Next week is Brazilian! 

Nneka Concert!

For those who do not know who Nneka is, "y'all better ask somebody". She is a half Nigerian, half German neo soul singer. She started her musical career in Germany after getting influenced by artists such as Fela Anikulapo Kuti and Bob Marley. Her first major breakthrough song was heartbeat but she has many more amazing songs (read about her here).
So we went to her concert and it was sooooooo live!The openning band was really good too. i forgot their name. i was really interested in seeing how she would communicate with the french crowd being that she has a pretty thick Nigerian accent and to my surprise, she spoke like she always does and for the most part she was understood. Even my friend Natasha was speaking pidgin and didn't know it. I have two clips of her performing "Walking" and "V.I.P" (vagabonds in power). I wasn't allowed to take my camera into the concert but my friend was allowed to so all these pics and videos are courtesy of her. Excuse the blurriness in some photos, we were having too much fun to focus on the camera.

I Amsterdam!

I went to Amsterdam (city of bikes) recently for a weekend with about 55 ERASMUS students. It was crazy but fun. We traveled by bus so it was about a 6 hours drive but we stopped often to eat so it took us 8 hours. Less than 2 hours after we arrived in Amsterdam, i already had some random guy trying to sell me Extacy and Coke. Welcome to Amsterdam!  After this we walked around, it was really cold,you will notice in all the photos i was very covered up. It was even colder than Paris! we took pictures in a giant clog, ate some Chinese with a blowup doll and visited the Van Gogh Museum. Then some of my friends proceeded to visit a coffee shop. Was a very interesting first night. oh and did i mention we stayed on a boat? 
The next day we visited Anne Frank's House. It was an amazing but sad experience. We literally got to walk in Anne Frank's footsteps. After reading the story several times over, it was unreal to actually see the place where she and her family hid behind the bookcase, and her room where she stayed. There were still posters that she hung up stuck to the wall. It was just amazing. My friend Keenan and i signed the Anne Frank house book. After, we just did some exploring, visited the sex museum. Don't judge me, it was actually on the program for the trip. After we visited shops found the best stores all over Amsterdam. There was a particular coat store which i totally live for right now, found the most amazing winter jacket there. 
There was also an Occupy rally going on "Occupy Amsterdam". And towards the very end of the trip there was a parade for St Nicholas. I found it quite strange because the dutch actually believe that St Nicholas a.k.a  Father Christmas a.k.a Santa clause did not have little elves but he had black helpers. No seriously, the helpers in the parade wore black face and had kinky hair, red lips and gold hoop earrings. I still don't know how to feel about all that. I also failed to mention that i visited the red light district but i was told pictures are not allowed there so just Google it. Anyways, Amsterdam was full of surprises and was everything i expected and more. I will be visiting again for sure.

Château de Versailles

Last weekend, i went with a couple of friends to Château de Versailles and i have to say, it was such an amazing experience! The château was so beautiful but the garden was what really took my breath away. It was like another world. I still can't believe the royal family had all that to themselves, its beyond huge. There was so much history i had to learn about while touring the château for example i took a picture of two doors which you will notice below. The open one is the door which Marie Antoinette used to escape the rioting crowds. she used it to run into the kings chamber, but as we all know she was caught and killed by guillotine! 
I didn't walk all through the garden, i sort of got tired after seeing how much longer i had to go. I had the option of renting a bike or renting a golf cart to finish the garden but i was too tired to do either. But i took a billion pictures and boiled it down to about forty something pictures which are in chronological order. Oh and we had random leaf fights throughout the garden. Its autumn so here a bunch of leaves just sitting around. I lost a shoe in the process. It was pretty much buried in leaves. Guess i can check leaf fight in Versailles off my to-do list. Enjoy <3 

Musee du Louvre

This week in class, the french teacher told us to describe our experience at an museum exhibition and that was when i realized I've been in Paris for 2 months and i haven't visited any museums. So i set out to the Louvre to see all the beautiful art and sculptures. When i got there, i was blown away by the beautiful architecture,the pyramids, the fountains, everything was just awesome. I waited in the longest line of my life as you will see in the photos but it was totally worth it. Students get in free so that was cool. I went to so many exhibits, i'm not too learned in the arts so there was a lot to take in and my head hurt afterwards. Lots of biblical and mythological references in the Italian art section. I took photos of some that i really liked. A worthwhile experience. 

Just another day in French land

Yesterday, i had a really busy day walking around Paris visiting and revisiting certain locations. Went out with friends, stuffed myself with crepes twice in one day, dinners, lunches, brunches, brides, bubbles, boats....see that doesn't even make any sense. I can't quite describe what i did in a short post so i just took lots of pictures so you can see Paris as i see it everyday. Enjoy <3 

Street Style: Paris Fashion week Pt2

Street style: Paris Fashion Week

Hey guys, sorry it has taken me so long to post, I've been rather busy with school. This past week was fashion week. I wasn't really able to attend because i have classes most of the time but i was able to do a street style sort of thing before the Valentino show. I took a TON of photos so i think i have to divide this out into two posts. Lots of people showed up like Jessica Biel, Diane Von Furstenberg, Ciara, Susie Bubble, Carine Roitfeld, Natalia Vodianova, Kate Lamphear and more! It was hard to get some photos because there were some paparazzi everywhere and i also got stepped on by several photographers in an their attempt to photograph Jessica Biel. so i have some battle scars. Even i couldn't get a good photo, got an over head shot. All in all, it was very fun and it was a great experience. 

Petit Chalet!!

My friends and i went to this amazing party on an island. I was really an amazing night out. Actually it was yesterday night. There was this really HUGE line because we had to get there by boat. Before i got there though, i took a taxi with my friend and left my phone in the taxi. Epic fail. Then i called my phone to see if the taxi driver can come back and he was all like "No, i cannot now because i have a customer but i will put it in the lost and found" Thankfully its a really crappy phone so i don't think he'd want to steal it anyway. But back to the party, it was actually kind of pricey. For females its 35 Euros and for guys its 50 Euros so i was counting on it being great. They also give you ten ticket stubs which you can use for food and drinks all night. They actually had a hot dog stand. I used all my ten stubs for Twix bars. I just went up to the guy and said "Dix twix sil vous plait" and he thought i was crazy but yea, i will be on a sugar high for a couple of days. Enjoy the photos! 

Home Sweet Home

I finally found the perfect place in Paris. As some of you know, i had a bit of a hard time getting accommodation when i arrived. I initially stayed at a hostel and then at a friends place, so I decided to just shell out a couple more hundreds to an agency that guaranteed me a place in a short time and they definitely delivered on that promise and I moved in last Monday! It is nice and cozy apartment located in the 19eme Arrondissement right next to a really beautiful park called Parc de Buttes Chaumant and It is very close to my school. It had everything i needed when i moved in, a Full-length mirror, a French-English dictionary and a big enough closet. I can't really take photos of the house being that its a family home but i can take a picture of my room. I also took a picture of a view outside one of the windows that i really love at night. Its a lit up street that to me looks so nice and calm when i look out the window at night, especially when it rains. Oh and don't ask me why i keep my Uncle Ben's rice on the desk in my room, it just felt....right.  I live with a really nice couple that own one dog and one cat. The cat is extremely scared of me so it took a couple of hours to get this shot of the cat, it actually tried to hide behind a chair leg......Cats.....but the dog is a sweetheart. Well, here are the photos of my space. 

Gallarie Lafayette and Live sit-ins

Yesterday i had a great time at Gallarie Lafayette which is a shopping center. Its quite huge and very beautifully constructed. I actually got to go to the roof where there is a beautiful view of Paris and the Eiffel tower. There is also a restaurant on the roof. Its mostly a tourist shopping center though so everything is expensive. I was with a friend of mine looking for shoes when a guy came up to us and invited us to sit in as part of a studio audience for a show on Canal + called "Salut Les Terriens". We thought it would be an interesting experience so we agreed to go. Also he said there would be food so that motivated me a bit more. well food turned out to be a small piece of cake and a bottle of water. The old "there will be food" trick, i should have known better. The show is a talk show hosted by a man called Thierry Ardisson with a lot of political mumbo jumbo and it was 4 hours of taping! so when we got there and were told that they had over booked people, i was so happy and ready to go because i was tired from shopping anyway but they said we should go over to another studio to sit in  on another show called "Les guignols de l'info". This show is actually way more popular and actually funnier than the other show. The best part was that it was live and we also only had to be there for about 15 minutes. It is a puppet show with a lot of political characters. It was funny even though i only understood every other word. I actually got a little video clip which can be found all the way at the bottom of the page. So, yea I had fun, and made new friends. Also the show gave us free tickets to see a play next Thursday. It was definitely a worthwhile experience.

Fun Post: Rémi Gaillard

I was hanging out with a friend of mine and he told me about a french comedian called Rémi Gaillard. I know he's super famous and stuff out here but I've never heard of him till yesterday and i find him EXTREMELY funny but thats just my opinion. I thought i should share the laughter with those who don't know him. So brighten your day and enjoy the following three videos.

LENNY LENNY!

 The funniest and also most amazing thing happened the other day. I was walking with my friends Cam and Sam to look for a Zara store when we spotted a car. i hadn't seen many like it in France and we sort of took a moment to appreciate it and eventually started walking on. I looked back for a moment because i heard the door open and out flies LENNY KRAVITZ. It was one of those moment in my life where i had to decide the appropriate reaction. It seemed surreal so i said to my friend "that's Lenny Kravitz" and i decided not to be another crazy fan and let the man live in peace. Cameron obviously did not think i should have been so calm because just then he screamed " LENNY LENNY" and Lenny stopped and walked back over to us. I kinda just froze. so excuse the crazy facial expression that looks like some sort of cross between a smile and me chewing on something. He had a quick chat with us and took a photo and headed off on his way. He was pretty nice. Well that's the best thing that happened all week.

Père Lachaise and the Catacombs

I was talking to my french professor at Baylor one day when he said " i love going to Pere lachaise cemetery to just relax and eat a sandwich". I stared at him wide eyed like what? who takes a leisurely trip to the cemetery? C'est bizarre, non? I decided to give it a go and i've got to say, that sandwich was delicious!

Père Lachaise Cemetery  is the world's most visited cemetery with over 1 million bodies buried there. These include famous poets, singers, writers, politicians and more. I took it upon myself to visit the graves of Oscar Wilde and Edith Piaf. American singer Jim Morrison is also buried there. It is tradition to put on red lipstick and kiss Oscar Wilde's tombstone (more like a tomb boulder), but i decided against it..for sanitary reasons. 

We also visited the catacombs which is a site where millions of bones of the dead are pretty much stacked on top of each other (To read its history click here) . A wall of human skulls and bones. it was quite creepy. Apparently people actually try to steal the bones too. everyday they catch at least 5 people with a skull in their bag. People never cease to amaze me. Photos of Père Lachaise are first and then the catacombs come after. It was quite dark in the catacombs so forgive the picture quality.

Moulin Rouge!

While having breakfast the other day, i heard someone sneeze next to me and i instinctively said "bless you" and that's how i met Cam and Sam. The coolest Aussies ever. Within an hour of meeting, we had already booked tickets to see Moulin Rouge.
Before seeing the show, i never knew what it actually was. I only knew it was a cabaret sort of show and i had the Moulin Rouge song to refer to but that was it. When the show started i didn't have much of an expectation but when a couple of mostly naked women started dancing, i understood the men to women ratio in the audience. The costumes were very extravagant. People weren't allowed into the room with cameras so i wasn't able to take pictures of the actual show but i got some pictures of it online. There was this really awesome part of the show when one of the dancers got into a big tank with snakes in it and swam with the snakes.. it was pretty amazing. so here are some pictures from the night.

Little hotel, big charm

Right now i'm staying at a hotel on Rue de Fourcy while i wait for my home stay accommodation info and its not an expensive hotel compared to some others and the rooms are not the greatest either but i find that i can over look all that stuff when there is so much more to the hotel. It has the coolest features ever. On my way to breakfast one morning, i stumbled upon a passage way that made me think i lost my way, that's because it looked like something out of Spartacus. I thought i was walking to a torture room or something but it was just an alternate way to the breakfast room. Here are some photos from the hotel. If you notice, in the last few pictures, i didn't really go in the room..was a bit scared honestly, it was pitch black.

Luxembourg, subways and stare wars

Its been a busy couple of days, so much to do and so little time. I won't lie and say its all fun and games. I've had to look for an apartment the whole time and have finally given up and hopped on the home stay express. I should have a place within the week. For the first two days tho i hung out with an amazing family of my friend and had an awesome time. actually on the first day, jet-lagged and all, i was taken out dancing at this club, and the next day we visited the Luxembourg garden. It was beyond what i could imagine. sooo beautiful. took so many photos. Definitely going back. A good place for an afternoon nap.
Also i rode the metro for the first time in Paris and I gotta say, the french do love their stare wars. Its so funny how normal it is to stare here. You would have people looking straight into your eyes yet want nothing in particular from you. Found it a bit weird at first but i'm getting used to it. I was told it gets worse too, eventually they start trying to sit closer to you but i don't know.  All the stuff i heard about pick pocketing and stuff didn't really happen to me. Maybe cause I've been watching my stuff like a hawk.but i did see an american tourist walking around with his bag WIDE open and they complain that people steal from them. oh and i almost got hit by a bus and then a car.....good times. Well here are a couple of photos from the first few days.

Adieu, Adieu, to you and you and you

OK i have a confession to make......I'm taking a beret with me. I know, I know, the French don't really go around with a beret, a baguette in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other. But just in case they do, ill fit right in.
The past two weeks went by so quickly, I've had to make some last minute preparations and even purchases. My stupid laptop died on me, well actually i took it to an electronic store in working condition and i got it back dead. Right now i'm just about packed and  ready to go.

T-Minus 2 Weeks

In exactly 2 weeks, i'll be packing my bags and heading off to France. First time visiting and i barely speak french but i'll be fine...i think. My expectations are not that high, i only expect to learn french within a week, meet an artist called Jean-Pierre and live happily ever after in a chateau somewhere in the south of France. 
In all honesty i am truly excited. So many places to go, things to do and people to meet. I will be documenting my trip every step of the way and i hope you all enjoy what i have to say and do. I will start posting pretty frequently as soon as my trip begins.