Thursday was just confusing. We thought it would be the perfect work day since it was cold and cloudy so after touring the Matisse museum we went back to the hostel. I spent some time staring at my essay and writing a blog. Emily worked on applications until we saw sun peeking out and decided to go to the beach to lay out. By the time we got downtown, the sun was gone and it was soooo windy. I almost blew away. We found a nook to huddle behind by the water and got some sun while we read, and I wrote some postcards. Not wanting to go back until the shuttle started running again at six, we hung out at a cafe for a few hours. Ok, I'm not going to glamourize it...we went to McDonalds. Hey it's cheap and they have free wi-fi so don't judge. Around 5:40 Emily headed back to the hostel and I went window shopping while I waited for Sydney's 7pm train to come in. Her train was a little late but she saw me waiting and came running to give me a hug. Neither of us noticed the old blind man walking by and Sydney accidentally tripped over his stick. Really, what are the chances. Thank goodness she speaks French and was able to apologize. My normal hand gestures and apologetic facial expressions would have been pointless for obvious reasons. So yeah, good start.
We stopped by the grocery store on the way to the hostel. Sydney loaded up on cheap but surprisingly tolerable wine and some cheese. Later, she settled in while Emily and I made the rest of our pasta. Sounds simple yet kind of a disasterous dinner. The water took ten years to boil. I burned my finger which had an ice cast for the rest of the night. Emily spilled red wine all over herself. Awesome. Overall though we had fun chatting over wine and catching up.
We decided to go out again last night and made our way to the old town. We ended up picking kind of a random pub which turned out to have great live music and way cheaper drinks than Waynes. It was a really cool building and the stage looked like it was in a cave. We were going to pop into Waynes on the way home but they were making us pay to check our coats for like 40 minutes. So we just caught the last tram back to our expectant beds.
This morning we kind of slept in; I just made it down to breakfast in my pj's. Then we decided, after looking at the pouring rain, to go to Grasse and the perfume museums. The hour bus ride into the hills was beautiful! Grasse grows and bottles the essences used in many famous perfumes such as Channel. Walking toward the factory I could smell the wonderful perfumes from a block away. We wandered through the museum then got a guided tour of the factory. In English! It was really interesting and I have a new appreciation for perfume. It may be my second calling. It was also cool seeing where the film Perfume, one of my favorites, took place. By the way, watch that movie at your own risk...it's very strange. Emily and I were challenged to beat the German couple with us by matching scents to their pictures. We got 8 out of 8! I think she was impressed since the average is 4. I'm defintely giving some credit to my stepmother's garden which has honed my nose over the years. The tour guide was a buzz kill though when she told us that professional, trained noses can recognize thousands of scents. Well we have 8 down! After, Emily and I wandered around Grasse and found a place in the sun that finally decided to show its face. It turned about to be a wonderful day!
The bus brought us back to Nice around 6. We decided to have our one night out tonight for dinner and texted Sydney to meet us. She had been touring Nice all day by herself because she leaves for Italy tomorrow and has to see everything she can. Emily and I found a resonable place in old town where we parked ourselves and ordered wine while we waited for Sydney. It defintely seemed like a place with a lot of regulars; the waiter was pretty friendly with people...really friendly actually. We ended up having a basic but very French meal starting with the local socca--crepe like dish made with chickpeas and sprinkled with black pepper. Really filling and yummy. For dinner, a croque-monsieur which is basically a fancy and delicious ham and cheese sandwhich. It's hard to really give it credit. I also had a classic espresso shot to round out the experience.
Tonight we are just socializing in the hostel lounge, and I've been learning a lot about Iceland. Apparently there are more people in Nice than their whole country and their government is terrible. The guy from Iceland also tried to convince us that his plan to get a tattoo of the Joe boxer smiley face on his butt cheek was a good idea. Interesting people certainly come from Iceland. Tomorrow we are visiting Cannes and Antibes on our last full day in France. It's been fun and I'm really going to miss the mostly good weather. I defintely think I could move to this area one day although may be not the city. The little villages are so charming and laid back. I will enjoy having my own room again in a few days. 14 bed dorms get old after a while. I wonder what room I booked for Scotland...
Well, final day in France will be up soon. My blogs may be scant after this while I have 3 essays to write but I will do my best.
Peace!
--written on Friday
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
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