the explorer's return

So... hi.

Did you miss me? Did you think I was dead? (Honestly, at some points, I thought I was dead. I have never been so tired as when I got off that plane... but here I go, already getting ahead of myself...) Well, I hope you did, and I'm not.

Things I learnt from Explore

• EDWARD SNOWDEN
• French grammar yo (had to stick it in somewhere) 
• Peanut butter peanut butter peanut butter (aka I am not alone in my obsession)
• There is such a thing as too many wraps
• Also too many sandwiches
• Running twice a day is advised
• It is not possible to sing a song too many times (Elle me dit, anyone?) 

• I'm not as smart as I think I am
• It is possible to be entirely consumed by mosquitoes
• I am not as socially awkward as I had always suspected (whattt)
• You need sweatpants
• No matter how sad you feel, mini doughnuts will help
• Sleep is overrated
• Dancing in the rain is not
• POURQUOI?
• I own way too many clothes
• Being pushed in a shopping cart is the way to travel
• You will never regret taking photos
• How to do the carwash (...our own special dance, too special to be explained)
• Tea is the addiction of our generation
• So is flax (go figure, people just got really excited)
• LOUIS RIEL
• Bowling= bonding
• Cold showers after long runs are the best things of life

And, most importantly: 

• it is totally possible to be in love after five weeks (or even much before)

I have never met a group of people I felt this strong a connection with. At the beginning, I felt so many misgivings... but it has been the best summer of my life. I haven't been blogging as much as I might have liked, but in exchange I've definitely been living! 

off into the wild blue yonder

So, I'm off again. As I mentioned in my last post, I leave tomorrow for Winnipeg for five weeks! (On Canada Day. Really. Everyone else will be partying and I'll be sitting on the plane, probably beside some bizarre person who wants to discourse on about eggplants.)

How long is this for, you may ask?

Five weeks.

Do you know how much packing that involves?

This much.

(just assume that everything is stuffed to bursting, mainly with makeup and clothes)

My current life dilemna: why is it that socks always seem to disappear? It's not like I'm only wearing one at a time... The most plausible explanation right now is that our resident ghost wears them as hats and forgets to return them. (Or maybe it's my cat?)

My other problem: how many things am I likely to lose? I could make a list, but I just bought a new notebook and I don't want to contaminate its lovely interior just yet. (The first page is always the hardest. I never want to ruin it and yet I always end up disappointed.)

At least I have an epic soundtrack to comfort me.

I don't know how much time I'll have to blog while I'm over there- I'll try to fit some in and keep you all apprised of my adventures (or maybe misfortunes?)- but, as I don't know what the schedule is (or- the horror!- where I'll find Wifi) it might be difficult. (For some updates, follow me on Twitter!)If you don't see me around much, have a lovely summer anyway, blog ninjas!

rollercoaster mania

My deep, dark confession for the week?

I'm secretly an addict.

A rollercoaster addict, that is. (Or a chocolate addict, but that's a whole other story that involves cupcakes baked at 8 am...)

This was such a well-guarded secret (or perhaps I was just in denial?) that I didn't discover it until last week, during my (last-ever!) end-of-year trip.

(this is some of us after we survived the biggest rollercoaster. Amazingly. I thought I was going to die)

Unfortunately, however, my group didn't even go on too many rollercoasters. As often happens when I am involved, we managed to get lost. (Although maybe that's the wrong term- let's call it 'disjointed wanderings' instead?) For this reason, instead of going on many different rides... we went on the swings three times.

But let's be honest here. Who doesn't love swings? (We definitely did- just watch us!)

With all this swinging, I didn't get a chance to take many photos- I was too busy trying not to pass out (and with that description, who wouldn't want to go on rollercoasters?)- but one of my friends did take a few while he was waiting for my other friend and I to go on this ride, as he had decided it was too 'childish'.

(I'm happy here because we hadn't yet started spinning. This soon changed)

He also had a conversation with himself between our phones. Really, I think coming on the ride with us would have been preferable... or maybe not, considering how sick and dizzy I felt afterwards. Spinny rides are officially Not For Me. (However, bumper cars are- a fact I also just discovered. My childhood was spent reading, not playing on these wonderful contraptions... how did I miss out?)

What do you think of amusement parks and rollercoasters? Any rides you'd never try?

random travel musings

So here we have it: the conclusion of this series. Did I actually learn anything in my travels, or am I still the same silly girl obsessed with perfectly painted nails?

...Yes to the latter half (my nails were bare the entire trip and it felt as though there was a Piece Missing from my Soul)... but I'd like to think that I'm a tiny bit more cultured. (Looking at the Mona Lisa must count for something, right?) Either way, here are some thoughts that occured to me along the way!

-I could not permanently live with roommates in the same room. Much as I love them, I do not have the patience to deal with anyone else's mess (let's face it, I can barely deal with my own)... yet another reason I have to get an apartment-style residence at university!

here we are, all cute and jet-lagged

-Food in Europe is much more expensive than food around here, as well as coffee being in tiny servings. (You know a small at Tim Hortons? Think half that amount, for three times the price.)

-...but the boys are really really cute #hormones
so it works out.

-The cars in Europe are just SO MUCH CUTER than anything you see around here. Really.

That is the most adorable thing I've ever seen, give it to me now and note also the cute little scooter

-However walking across crosswalks was terrifying... you basically had to put out a hand and hope that no one would hit you. (Rome earns a special mention for this... needless to say, my loving friends made me walk first every time.)

-What do Italians have against toilet seats? It's one little piece of porcelain, and it makes life so much easier. I lived in fear of falling into the toilet every day.

-We heard much about the "pique-poquets"...seriously. Every. Single. Day.

Say it in a French accent. You won't regret it.

-France had so. Many. Sephoras. (And MACs too!) There was even one in the train station! (Might as well look good while travelling... you never know when you'll meet the love of your life!... why yes, I watch a lot of movies, why do you ask?)

...and that's that. It's strange; the more I travel, the more I desire to travel. Once I see a tiny piece of the world- and really, in the grand scheme of things, I've visited no more than a sliver of the map- I can hardly wait to explore other exotic locales. (The places I want to go... that could be a post all on its own!) Unfortunately, I face that great dilemna; a lack of funds. (What kinds of discoveries could exist were money not an object?)

Oh well, I might be a broke student right now, but that won't last forever. Soon enough, I'll be a famous author (feel free to name-drop and say you know me), wearing gorgeous clothes (that is a definite requirement for any job I may hold in the future... and actually a primary reason I decided not to become a paleontologist) and free to jet-set all over the world and call it research! (Uh-oh. You now know my master plan. Don't tell!)

What's your current dream?

radical roman (italian) ramblings

...and radical they were indeed. At one point in Florence, we actually walked off the map! (Does that mean that the town ceases to exist? What a deep philosophical question... However, it more likely means simply that Mum and I continue to have an extremely bad sense of direction.)

As gorgeous as France was (you can see a small selection of photos here should you care to do so) I must confess that I preferred Italy. Why? Because... they had better food. (Surprise, surprise right? You should know by now that the way to my heart is through my stomach, for sure.)

really though just look at that. I don't think you can find a more gorgeous landscape

Our travels started in Pisa!

see how pretty this is? the town was unbelievably sketchy... not somewhere I want to be after dark

the basilica was unbelievably creepy... the place Weeping Angels go to die I swear

but really, is this not ridiculously crooked?

Then, onwards to Florence...

this was the best coffee of my life omg like really, it had ginseng and how cool is that? plus all the waiters were in fancy suits so love for that

we also went to the best restaurant. I can't even describe how good it was. plus it looked like we were in Versailles!

it seriously rained all day, I thought I was going to lose some appendages

and yet people still ate gelato, I feel my coffee was a far more sensible choice

I swear I'm moving here someday

After taking the bus yet again (I have so much more sympathy for those who take public transport all the time now) we arrived at Assise!

my new favourite (as are many things on this trip) church... really, can you beat three stories and gorgeous artwork filling every square inch? rhetorical all the way

adorably narrow streets, yes please! (as long as I don't have to drive... these people be crazy)

Finally, proving the saying "All roads lead to Rome" right by finishing our journey there. (Where does that saying come from anyway? I feel like it's somehow deep and mythological...)

so can anyone tell me what's on her chest? does she have a lot of extra breasts? are those melons?

crazy to think all maps looked like that at one time..

(Side note: these past two photos were taken in the Vatican, which is technically another city. I still can't believe that I stood under the Pope's window!)

I knew it was enormous and overwhelming and a world wonder, but I didn't know it would be quite that wonderful

and again. How is it possible that I walked around the place where Julius Caesar died? 

yet again. Rome by night, ancient and powerful and all too gorgeous. 

We also visited the Trevi Fountain (possibly my favourite stop on the trip... thankfully, because Mum and I got lost once more and had to hang out there for a while... I think the theme here is that Mum and I should not go places alone)- however, no photos remain (they somehow all disappeared, eaten by the faeries perhaps?) so... that's that. 

Also, how are there such random and gorgeous statues everywhere in all these cities? Send some to Canada for me, please! 

The nostalgia is growing... I think I'll go watch Roman Holiday! 

oui oui paris

So... I'm back! Did you miss me? (Pfft. Of course you did.) No worries, the lack of activity around here doesn't indicate my demise, merely that I've been doing other things. (Namely, sleeping and eating fruit. You would be surprised by how little fruit there is in France.)  It's been crazy catching up on all your blogs! Ok, so that was all LIES... mostly I've been sleeping... (until ten today, which is actually a new personal record!) but I promise I'll be getting back into the swing of things soon!...that makes it sound like I'm going out dancing... if only.

Despite the lack of dancing, the trip was wonderful. The people were lovely (the people on the trip with me, at least- personal wisdom doesn't lie in saying that Parisians are snobby) the food was good (advantage to being vegetarian: you get everything faster and fresher) and the coffee was wonderful (I drank my own body weight, at least).

And, well, then you have the cities... beginning, as stories are wont to do, with Paris!

I have a ridiculous number of street sign photos... just a reminder that I was really there!

Notre Dame Cathedral! Anyone else want to break into song?

chills. We visited countless churches, and yet...

it was almost inconcievable that I could be standing in the same spot as Hemingway and Fitzgerald had... this was the moment that it really hit me, that I was somewhere else and that there was infinite universes to discover around me.

the French do seem fond of their arches... we saw so many of these too, I lost track of what they all represented

yes. that is the Eiffel Tower. I WAS THERE. Interesting fact: it's the shape of an upside-down equation!

Next up: Versailles! 

yes. that is real gold. yes. I was tempted to steal it

"Louis the Desired?" somehow I don't think so

the famous Hall of Mirrors!

some people enjoyed pretending to be spies with our tour radios...

Monaco, home of Grace Kelly and car racing and the uber-rich... is there anything else I should know?

that it has a lovely landscape, perhaps?

impromptu photo shoots <3 also the one day it was actually sunny...

Last but not least... Nice. My favourite town, in fact; it was positively charming.

why is everywhere in Europe so unbearably picturesque?

let me just say there were a lot of stairs... s'all good, just means sexy legs!

And there you have it, dearest ninjas: part one of my travel saga! Join me next time for... Italy! Writing this post was extremely difficult because I simply have so many photos (most of them tiny details of things that I appreciated... not the best to provide a true story about the place and so many stories... (Aka, over eight hundred. Somehow I didn't think it would be appreciated were I to post them all.) Still. Take this as the inspiration for your own travels! Have you been to any of these places? Do you plan on it one day?

a post in two parts: the problematics of packing

"You know what's wrong with you?" 

"No, what?"

"Nothing."

...and this, right there, is why I prefer older movies. (Not just because Cary Grant is in it.) (Although he definitely is a factor...)

They're just so... sweet. I can't describe it any other way than that. (You know I must be enjoying it when I'm struck speechless...doesn't happen often!) 

You might be asking yourself right around now, "aren't you supposed to be packing? Not rhapsodizing on the joys of old movies and Cary Grant?" 

And the answer to that would be...why, yes.

However, look at my suitcase.

Do you really think I need to bring anything else? (And just to reassure: that can is not pepper spray or explosives, but dry shampoo. No matter where I go, my hair must look fabulous!) 

But...

HAH. I fooled you. The inside of my suitcase actually looks like this:

That is... half empty. (And honestly, if I wasn't bringing my enormous Desigual sweater, it would be only a quarter full. That thing is HUGE. I could conceal a dead body with it... what?) 

Yes. Let that sink it for a moment (not the dead body thing, I was kidding about that, I swear... although who knows, I might get annoyed by some of my travel companions and need to use it... so the lesson here is DON'T GET ME MAD) and marvel. 

Honestly, though... I'm pretty much packed. All that remains is the all-important things like toothbrush, makeup... (YES. I need makeup, and anyone who says elsewise has never seen me first thing in the morning. If you tell me that I don't need to bring something, I will take it as a personal challenge and bring it for sure.) Why is it that the most important items are the ones you can't pack until later, and are thus most likely to forget?

However, procrastinating isn't doing me any good either. I am now terrified that something like this is going to happen to me...

Happy Wednesday, ninjas! Any embarassing airport stories to share?

overcoming obstacles (aka a terror of skiing)

Yes... I am alive! (Or perhaps I'm a zombie and I just haven't realised it yet. I haven't had any odd cravings for brains yet, only chocolate, but I'll keep you posted.) Skiing was, in fact, wonderful, thanks mostly to my wonderful bros (yes I use that word now, I have been corrupted) Kori and Cécile. There were no:

a) tears (okay, a few mentally, but I kept it well inside)
b) collisions (amazingly I did not hit a tree, impressive)
c) injuries (although my legs are quite stiff today... another sign of zombie-ism?)

Although I stayed in snowplow snake (my term... you know, when you zigzag wildly across the entirety of the hill) the entire time, I think it went rather well. I may not have been the most graceful (but then, when am I ever?) but I had fun!

Warning: photo avalanche follows... I hope you're not buried!

the obligatory graceful chair pose in the lobby... don't I look perfectly lodge-like?

and again, be astounded by the beauty and grace. Cécile is a little less enthusiastic... perhaps wondering why she invited me... 

the stuffies are prepared to devour all the gummies before Cécile and Kori can get to them!

my latest superpower: I can fly! however, I am also adept at falling on my face...

Note I and Kori's favourite shirts of the moment: grey sparkly owl sweater and green Celtics hoodie! one last pretty photo before the hot tub

various "the bachelor" reactions: what is this? does he have a harem? 

needless to say, we were not impressed.

And on that cheerful note... the next day begins. Drumroll please! 

Girl Rule: there must be at least one mirror selfie per trip!

thank you Kori for ensuring that Cécile and I were not driven mad by our hair!

she makes putting on ski goggles look cool.

all ready to head out! (note that we haven't started yet... aka no looks of terror)

be impressed by the snowplow. I'm still amazed I didn't cross my skis...

OMG we survived a blue run! what is this!

alternatively, I may be about to eat Cécile's ear. I was pretty hungry

the sweater trade! betraying our schools, muahaha

...and then we returned home, and nearly fell asleep in the car, and I went to work, and daily life returned.

Sometimes you just need a lovely break from reality. Thank you, my dearest friend-people (and to Cécile's wonderful parents) for making this possible!