Un Dimanche Lyonais

My roommates went to Grenoble for the weekend so I was left to my own devices. I would have gone with them had I not had to work on Saturday (bummer). But luckily I did work on Saturday, because I accepted the invitation of my co-workers to join them for a drink after my shift. It gave me the chance to get to know the people I work with as well as practice my conversational French. I didn't stay out late on Saturday night which left me nice and refreshed for my 'Dimanche Lyonais'.

I woke up and made myself some coffee. Looked out the window and didn't see a soul in sight. I decided to do some laundry and catch up on the episodes of Newport Beach that I missed this week (yup, french repeats of the O.C.). After breakfast I read my book and did the dishes and took a nap. I woke up at 4:30pm and decided I needed to get out of the house.

Empty streets of Lyon

I was under the impression that nothing would be open, but alas, I ventured on a stroll through Vieux Lyon. People were everywhere! And not just people, tourists! I love discovering places that people go on Sundays so I was thrilled to find hundreds of people from all over the world walking through th 5e arrondisment.

Turns out, on Sunday afternoons in Lyon, people get ice cream, sit on terraces watch street preformers and walk a lot. As per usual, I've included some pics of the day:

On prend la glace.

La rue St Jean Street performes in front of the TempleLa Bouchon LyonaisA mime...in France. I know, right?Art GalleryIt's not a proper Sunday without a house of worship. Amen.

50 kisses... a day

I started my new job at H&M this week and I realized, it's been a really, really long time since I've worked somewhere with so many people. Hell, it's been a long time since I've actually had to get off my couch and get out of my pajamas to get a full days work in. But I'm not complaining. The one place I wanted to work at was the one place that hired me, so we're golden. I'm really enjoying it. I've already worked three days out of my four day work week and it might not be as easy as I thought it would be, but at least I'm sure I can do this. However there is one thing which I think might be impossible to get used to. I work with about 30-40 people on any given day. And when these people start their shift at staggered moments throughout the day, they approach me, they say "salut" and then they go in... for the two-cheek kiss.

For some reason, this is one french custom that seems impossible for me to get used to. I don't really agree with it. For me it's too close to soon. I'm all about personal space, and if you're not my friend yet, I just won't be comfortable getting that close to you (nothing personal). I think insulted a guy the other day because I accidentally forgot which country I was in and extended my had expecting to shake his. He laughed it off and assumed that 'I must be new here' before he dove in to plant his lips on my face (twice).

I must admit that thanks to this custom, I've managed to learn a lot about my fellow co-workers in a very short amount of time. I now know that Mikey is a smoker, Abdel has extremely soft skin and Sophie smells awesome -- all the time.

It made me wonder last week about the commonly used slogan "as Montreal as a two-cheek kiss". WTF people?! In my 26 years as a resident of Montreal I was ill-prepared for the amount of time I would be two-cheek-kissing people over here! There's nothing Montreal about it! Ya, we do it sometimes, but to claim it as 'our own' is preposterous. We clearly stole the gesture - so I think we should stick to what's actually really 'Montreal': Poutine, Bring your own wine, smoked meat and Tete-a-Claques (which I watched with my roommates the other day and reminded me how proud I am to be a Canadian).

So I guess I'll have to throw two-cheek kisses into the "French things I've really got to get used to" category. It's in the same category as: the sun going down at 9:45pm, carousels at every turn and everything being closed for the siesta from 12-2:30pm.

That's all for now folks,

Bisous :)

Yo quiero bailar

I woke up this morning and realized that it has been ages since I last danced. I never really thought of myself as much of a 'dancer', but I think it is one of those things that you don't think you'll miss until it's gone. And, I miss it. I can't even remember the last time I danced. Although we've gone out a lot to pubs and bars, we have yet to hit up a dance club. I figure since this is the summer of doing what I want - when I want, I think I'm going to make it my mission to get my groove on tonight.

There's something special about dance music here. It's not that it's different from the music back home, I think its just easier to tolerate when you're in a European country. Back home, it would be the machismos wearing their sunglasses in the club with their Ed Hardy t-shirts and designer shoes getting their groove on to some techno song while drinking their 14$ vodka Redbull; but in France there's just something way less cheesy about it. It's completely acceptable. These people aren't pretentious, they're not getting down to a song because it's the 'cool' thing to do. It's all they listen to here. House, Techno, electronica and Dance are the only thing you'll here around these parts. Well, that and Michael Jackson.

Here's one of the most popular songs in France right now... thoughts?

So that is my goal for the day. I'm going to go out tonight, and dance the night away...to techno music. And what's more important, is that I'm gonna like it.

Guess what? Yup, another concert....

To avoid sinking into a routine, my roommate Eimear and I decided to be spontaneous and buy tickets to the TV on the Radio concert on Wednesday. The show was that night, and her friend had just come into town from Ireland, so we thought we'd all hang out and hit up a concert. I had really wanted to see the band when they played in Montreal last month, but life got in the way and I missed the show.

The opening acts were Beat Assailant and Of Montreal (who contrary to their name aren't even from Montreal, but never the less they put on an unforgettable show) and the concert was part of Lyon's annual Nuits de Fourvière concert series. When we got to the venue I was amazed to see that the show was going to go down in yet another ancient amphitheater (much smaller than les Arènes de Nimes). This one was called Le théâtre antique romain.

I would have taken pictures had they not confiscated my camera when I got there. I couldn't believe it! They gave me a number and placed it in some 'camera check' booth. At first I didn't really care, but once we got to the top of the hill and I realized how awesome the venue was, I was overcome with frustration knowing that some strangers had my camera. Arrrrgh!

Here's a picture I got off the internet :(

We arrived shortly after Beat Assailant took the stage and they were fantastic. Filled with energetic dance moves and a wicked horn section, the band got everyone on their feet and dancing to their hip hop beats.

Shortly after, Of Montreal started the show off on an interesting note which would carry through the rest of their set. A man in a suit and a lion mask emerged to get the crowd ready for the band. It turns out he wouldn't be the only animal we'd see that night. During each song, a guest would come out and act out some sort of' mini-play' on stage. Animals and aliens would dance-battle each other, people would come out in gas masks with smoke machines; the band definitely kept everyone on their toes wondering who/what would come out next. C'etait genial.

Probably the strangest part of this night was the fact that I bought a (pretty pricey) ticket to see a band that I've never even listened to. I was going strictly on the fact that TV on the Radio is a group that my friends back home like and my brother said I would love. And you guys were right, they were great. I really enjoyed their style and they put on a really good show. I had a fantastic time last Wednesday. Like always, I wish you could have been there.

Passe Partout

I had the honor of being invited to the Justin Nozuka/Jason Mraz concert in Nimes last week. My friend Sim has been really great about inviting me out to the bands different tour spots around France. It was really nice seeing a familiar Montreal face, and hanging out with a good ol' Canadian band wasn't so bad either. The concert was held in les Arènes de Nimes, which is an old Colosseum in the heart of the city. It is a gorgeous venue, and being able to roam around wherever we pleased was a nice added bonus.

About five minutes after I stepped off the train, I found Sim's tour bus parked outside the venue and woke him up with a text message. For the rest of the day, we strolled around the city, ate some delicious free catered food and I listened to both bands do their sound check while he checked on his merchandise and schmoozed with Mr. Mraz's peeps.

During the sound check I became overwhelmed with what was going on; I realized the following: I'm in France. I'm hanging out with one of my friends from back home. I'm in this amazing ancient arena watching a shirtless Jason Mraz and his superawesome band do a sound check five feet away from me. I'm going to get to see a concert that I've wanted to see for years, in one of the coolest ways possible.

I was all over the place that night. I was in front of front row, I went up to the top steps of the venue (old rock and dirt stairs), I watched both bands play from side stage. It was amazing. Feeling the energy from the crowd and watching musicians do what they love from such a close distance, was really inspiring. Its safe to say that all further concerts will be compared to this one.

Everyone was so nice. Justin Nozuka and his band are a really fun group of down to earth guys. Even though no one's really heard of them in Canada, they're crazy famous here in France. Girls go crazy for them, well, mostly Justin. After the show, Jason Mraz came up and congratulated Justin's band on the good work that they did. Then he saw me and introduced himslef to me. "Hi, my name's Jason." he said as he reached out to shake my hand. Such. a. sweetheart. He asked what my contribution was to the show, and I let him know that I danced my pants off during his cover of Lionel Richie's All Night Long. I said it was a pleasure to meet him, and then he thanked me and then went on his way.

Sim scored me a free t-shirt from Jason's merch guy. We had a great time. I love France.
When my fun-filled day of music was over, I hopped in a cab, and headed back to my youth hostel. Because that's just how I roll.








Here are some more pics from the concert....

Holy 'hill of prayer' -- that's a long walk.

I had a fantastic afternoon today. I decided to make the crazy trek up the massive Fourvière hill, to get to the Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière. I wanted to do this right, so I walked up the winding footpath for 30 minutes until I got to the top instead of taking the tram up. The two things to do at the top of this hill are check out the view of Lyon in its entirety from the lookout or walk around the Basilica. I did both.

The Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière is lit up every night on a hill that looks down onto the city of Lyon. So after a dozen nights of seeing it up there on that hill, I was intrigued, and decided to devote a whole day to exploring this basilica. I learned that this particular church was built in the late 1800s and that people flock from all over to see it. I can't blame them; it's beautiful inside and out. Which probably explains why it is one of Lyon's main tourist attractions. Notre Dame de Fourvière is filled with intricate stained glass windows, metallic mosaics along the walls and religious sculptures on beams throughout the building.

Here are a few things that I learned about myself today.

1) I really can't stand tourists who refuse to even attempt to speak the language of the country they are visiting.

2) I absolutely adore everything that makes up a house of worship. Yup, folks... whether or not there is a higher power, the fact that hundreds (sometimes thousands) of years ago, religious townsfolk got together and built these magnificent structures which find a way to bring together people of different nationalities and races from all over the world never fails to amaze me. I guess I really began to notice my new found obsession when I was in the Basilique du Sacre Coeur in Paris. It is freakin' awesome in there. (FYI- you can't take pictures in there)

3) The third thing I learned about myself today is how much I love taking pictures of architecture. I was blown away by the details in this church from the doors to the windows to the countless sculptures of Mary along the walls. I taught myself how to adjust my f-stops and shutter speeds to attempt to recreate the magical lighting of this church through its stained glass windows and its candle lit altars. I loved experimenting with the different shutter speeds and training myself to stand perfectly still while I tried to take a picture at 1/10 of a second (not that easy). But I think I got the hang of it. So here are some of my favourite pics of the Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière.

It's a Garden Party!

Last night, Lucy* was kind enough to invite Eimear and I to a garden party that her host sisters were throwing. They had just had a birthday and the two girls (Claire and Marie) are moving to Montreal soon, so they invited 100 of their closest friends to kick off their final days in France.

This party was amazing! It was open bar, they had a light show, smoke machine, DJ, swimming pool, hookah, outdoor toilet, ping pong table, dance floor and food. Not to mention, everyone in attendance was so nice and welcoming (albeit drunk). Oh, and did I mention they were gorgeous? Everyone was stunning. Beautiful girls in bikinis, super hot guys dancing around hot and wet from the pool...and not a soul over the age of 23. So, as the grandma of the party, I just danced around and chatted with some people who all said I spoke french really well (flattery will get you everywhere, young ones) except for this one pushy guy who said I had a really strong accent - wtf?

The music was a riot! The DJ played lots of dance music, a bit pop, tons of Michael Jackson and then some salsa. He also managed to get away with sneaking in classic tracks like Cotton Eyed Joe AND the Macarena. But we all loved it and had a great time.

It was extremely reminiscent of the summer parties at Goran's house, and needless to say, I wish you girls could have been there.

*Lucy is the niece of Sarah, a friend that I made in Costa Rica while I was there with Lisa and Sarah. She's the girl who I'm replacing in the apartment. She studied in France for a year and is about to go back home to LA in a few weeks. She's pretty effing cool.

Hey... where'd everyone go?

Did you know that the whole city of Lyon shuts down on Sundays? (Of course not, how could you?) Nothing is open. Not grocery stores, not shopping malls, not even the pharmacies. This means, that if you need milk, cigarettes or tampons, you have to either buy them ahead of time, or wait for Monday to come around. Not only is nothing open, the city appears to be deserted. It's a ghost town. No one walking on the streets, not even beggars asking for change!

The weather was absolutely gorgeous out last Sunday, so my roommate Eimear and I decided to go to the nearby Parc de Tete d'Or. I had never been before so I didn't really know what to expect. I've seen parks before, so I thought I knew what I was in for. Maybe some grass, benches a couple of people walking around, perhaps a pond and some sort of playground. Hell to the no! Not here.


Parc de Tete d'Or is where the whole city comes on Sundays when everything is closed. And I can say the whole city because I'm pretty sure the entire population of Lyon could fit comfortably in this enormous park. If they don't feel like visiting the greenhouse, they can rent a boat and canoe around the lake. Or if that doesn't tickle their fancy, they can sit at one of the many lakeside restaurants and watch the ducks swim by. Or if their not into ducks, they can go see the giraffes, elephants and lemurs at the FREE ZOO! Yup. Xanadu is real, ladies, and it's officially a 15 minute bike ride from my apartment.

Some pics from my first visit to Parc de Tete d'Or

The Roommates

It just occurred to me that you might not know who I'm talking about when I'm referencing my new friends. At the moment I've got 2 roommates. Eimear is from Ireland an Valentin in from France. They'll both be living here until the end of the summer.

I work hard for the money...

After a day of shlepping through town in the 35 degree weather, I was crossing the bridge back home when my phone alerted me that I had a message waiting. I don't know how that is possible, since my crazy french phone never rang... but the message was to inform me that

I GOT THE JOB AT H&M!

The first place I applied...
The only place that called me for an interview...
The place where I was sure I bombed the interview.... CALLED ME BACK to tell me that I was hired!

This job is fantastic for the following reasons:

1) It's only 22 hours a week - which will allow me plenty of time to see the sights, travel around France and not get sick of working all the time.

2) Since I was limited to only bringing 2 suitcases with me from Canada, this new job provides me with not only a slew of new fashions to choose from, but AN AMAZING STORE DISCOUNT!

3) I've secretly always wanted to work at H&M in Fairview but Kristie McCrory works there and for some reason I'm intimidated by her edginess and the fact that she dated Andrew after I did.

4) I can finally stop worrying about when my money's going to run out... I have a job!

I love you all,

Sophdogg out.