I'm Back!

Boom baby! I'm back! After a lovely return back to the native land of snow and ice known as Canada for the yuletide, I returned to adopted home for the year, Paris, on December 30th. I have to admit, as much as I LOVED going home for Christmas, I was really looking forward to coming back. Once you live away from home, you develop certain routines that you miss after a while. So I was stoked to come back to my apartment, friends, and of course, the city itself. After my joyous overnight flight with approximately 2 hours of catnapping, customs, baggage pickup, an RER train ride and 2 metro changes later, I arrived home with my massive suitcase and snowboard gear at around noon. Normally I enjoy the fact that most of the metros lack escalators, forcing you to take the stairs instead and get a little bit of bonus exercise, but I have to say, I was none too pleased with them on this morning. Oh well. I arrived home sweaty and tired and promptly flopped onto my bed in relief.

However, sleep is for the weak so after 5min of motionless bliss, I hopped up and called Annie to announce my glorious return. We made plans to meet later that afternoon, followed by a quick snack and a shower for me, and saying hello to Etienne and his friend Pierre who was staying with us for a few days. I soon headed up to Hotel de Ville to try out their skating rink. Ever since Christmas and having got in quite a bit of practice on my skates, I wanted to show off my new blade work (crossovers and conversion from stops to backwards skating. Oooo...Ahhh). However, the rink was packed and the line for rentals was about 200 people deep so we wisely decided to postpone for a weekday in the near future. Instead, we decided to go New Years dress shopping. Up and down the Champs Elysees, we scoured store after store for what this year's number would be. Annie made a good find at H&M, while I was having a bit of a harder time. Finally we decided that we had to get the amazing leopard print dress from Zara that has been calling to us from the display windows over for the past couple of months. It is fabulous, but a bit of statement piece that can't be worn very many times, so it seems kindof indulgent to buy it. Solution: split the cost and both get opportunities to wear it. All of a sudden it gets twice as much wear, its completely reasonably priced and we are both stoked! At the end of year, whoever wants to keep it the most (probs me), will buy out half of the other persons half. Now that is what I call smart shopping. Riding the high of great consumerist success, we headed back to mine.

We had a great night chatting with Etienne and Pierre, learning many new great French expressions, including "cimer" and "ca va etre SCANDALE!" We even had dinner together as a nice little family. Miraculously, I still had an abundance of energy so after a few drinks, Annie and I decided to head over to the Latin Quarter and hit up La Piano Vache. Reunited with Timon, his girlfriend Steph, Boris, Sophie, and some other friends of various people who were visiting and enjoyed a pint and some chats. I called it in around midnight, having finally been slammed by exhaustion, and headed for home. Had a few issues on my way out and on the way home, what with missing my connection and having to cab, getting home and somehow thinking I had given my key to Annie (but I actually hadn't) and then trying to call Annie (but her phone was dead). Nothing serious though, and I finally hit the hay around one and benefited greatly from a 10 hour deep sleep.

New Years Eve day went by in a flurry. I finally got around to unpacking and cleaning up, and spent the afternoon relaxing, and organizing plans for later that night, and Annie came by the pick up a few things she had left behind the previous day. I even got to play cards with our little family. I was also finally introduced to How I Met Your Mother. Eventually, I got ready for the big evening's celebrations and finally got to put on the dress. Ooo baby is it ever fine. It makes me feel like a million bucks. Sadly, there was not nearly enough documentation of its legendary-ness. But in some ways this is good because it means I can wear it again!

Loving the animal print. BABES.

First stop on the New Years Eve Itinerary: Dinner at a friend of Annie's at this amazing apartment in the 19th. Very chill, met a bunch of cool people, including a cool snowboarder living in Grenoble (looks like another ski trip!) and saw some of her friends I had met previously. I sipped gin and tonics for the next 2 hours, and was a very good start to the night.

Stop #2: Headed off by Velib over to Corina's. I arrived just after 11 and shortly after the whole group of us all hopped on the metro to go to the Eiffel Tower. The ride over was a little hectic. We hadn't left ourselves too much breathing room time wise, and the metro kept stopping for long periods of time at each station. I was worried for a little while that we might be ringing in the New Year of 2011 on a metro car. How romantic. Thankfully, we made it to the appropriate stop at 11:57 and ran out of the station and up around the corner to where we could see the tower. We made it with about 30 seconds to spare and then presto! HAPPY NEW YEARS!

Tower a-sparkle at midnight!

I have never had such a special midnight moment at New Years! The sight of the tower lighting up in sparkling lights, our group popping open numerous bottles of champagne, hugging, pictures, huge smiles...it was magical. I was so happy that I got to spend it with Eva and Corina, some of my close friends, my first friends in Paris, and here we were toasting to our first four months here in Paris, and to the coming months. I hadn't seen Bruno, Bhavani and Cana in awhile so it was so good to catch up with them, all people I had met and befriended at the start of the year. The happiness was contagious. Randoms were setting off fireworks and the Champs de Mars were packed. We were able to get a bit close after about 20 min and stayed under the tower until after 1.

Brazilians Bruno and Bhavani celebrating with champagne.

First friends together on New Years.

About twenty after one Corina and I decided we wanted the night to continue and decided to take a brief pit stop at her place, since it was so close before heading to meet up with my Dutch friends. Easier said than done. Somehow, it took us almost an hour and a half and my first visit to the bushes in a city ever before we finally made it inside. We had a quick glass of wine to celebrate our success at finally making it home after becoming incredibly lost and danced to my new favorite party anthem, We R who We R by Kesha. Its classy, that's for sure.

Stop #3: We then started out once again for Rue de Rennes for a house party at a friend of Boris'. By the time we got there though, it was about 3, and the party was kindof dying down. We only ended up staying about 45 min. A bit of an anti-climatic end to the evening, but such is life. I wasn't going to let it put a damper on my Paris New Years. As the crowds began to head home, Corina, Timon, Steph and I were the last to leave. I walked Corina backed to her house and then hopped on a Velib and biked back to mine. I have really come into my own on the velib factor, and have been loving it. It is going to be a huge plus in 2011. I can feel it.

Final destination: Home, at about 4. Etienne called me and told me he was on his way home, so being that I had a surprising amount of energy considering the hour, I made myself some delicious potatoes, and watched a bit of tv while I waited for the boys to come home. It was worth the wait. They were quite intoxicated and proceeded to have a dance party in the living room. At one point, a Santa suit even came out, and more dancing continued. It was memorable. I finally to dance. Perfect ending. Finally, at 7:30, exhausted, I bid them good day and crashed. Just a solid night. Not too crazy, not too wild, but all around good. I got to spend it with my close friends and was so happy all night long. Can't ask for any more than that on New Years my friends.

Living room dance parties to top off the night.

January 1st of 2011 was pretty anti-climatic. I slept in the latest I have ever slept in my entire life, rising from my bed at 4pm. That's right. It has wreaked havoc on my sleep pattern ever since I will have you know. Annie came over once again, because that evening was Marina and Jordana's double birthday party. People should never have parties on New Years Day. Its pretty hard on the guests. Annie and I procrastinated going for the longest time, (probably since the house was void of food and all stores were closed), but we finally pulled it together and left just after 11. We made a pit stop en route to Glenn and Marina's for pizza and cheesy pastry which was so necessary. By the time we arrived, I was feeling pretty good. Too bad I looked like crap, which I didn't realize until I saw pictures the next day. It was a good night, though not a rager. People trying to party when they are really tired are pretty funny. Naturally, we didn't last too long. Corina, Annie and I tried to catch the last metro shortly before 2 but just missed it and ended up cabbing. Once home, it was pretty much straight to bed, as the whole house was pretty wiped.

Madeleine Group stoked to be rocking out in 2011! Please ignore the bags under my eyes.

All of a sudden it was Sunday at one, and I got up to say goodbye to Pierre, who was heading back to Germany, where he is doing an Erasmus exchange for the year. He was fun to have around the past few days. The rest of the day Annie and I devoted to food. My body was none too happy that it had not been fed fruits or vegetables in about 48hours. We decided that we should cook a delicious savoury vegetable filled meal, and started routing through some French cookbooks. We decided on a lamb casserole. Next came the grocery trek. Since it was saturday, it took awhile to find all the ingrediants we needed, but in the end we came back armed with lamb, carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, zuchini and eggplant. Our next hour as we washed sliced and diced in the kitchen, it was pleasantly reminiscent of our epic kitchen day not so long ago back in 2010, the Christmas dinner of course. (I have since talked to most of the guests and they all told me it was one of the best things that has happened to them in Paris. No bid deal).

Two and a half hours of tempting, delicious smells later, Annie, Etienne and I got to dig into our casserole and it was heaven. So savoury and flavourful and vegetably and exactly what was needed. Food makes me so happy. It is just too yummy for its own good. (I am constantly impressed that I have not put on 30 pounds this year, because the food is just so good, all the time).

What a whirl wind the first four days back were. But a good omen for the next six months. Busy, but fun. Productive, filled with food, wine, friends and memories. Oh right. And some school work too. Of course...I'll get to that soon. Promise.

Bisous.