Preparing for the Holidays

We're busy getting everything organized for the big family Christmas en Paris. Erik, Karina and I are trying to do our part by finding the perfect buche de Noel. We have tried two different ones so far, and figure we have four more days to sample before having to make a selection. So far we have tried the 'buchettes' from the bakery, and a delicious ice cream one from the frozen food store Picard. We'll let you know what the final verdict is. Other less glamorous tasks have included locating and purchasing fresh cranberries (or airelles, as they're called here), and buying frozen berries for fruit salad (mom, we've decided it's a go. The pineapples look delicious!). It's a tough job, but someone has to do it.


We have also been busy scouting out the stores of Paris. Our hands down favorite so far is the marche at Galleries Lafayette (which we have discovered carries cheddar cheese, white marshmallows and curry paste, to name a few hard to find delicacies, all at reasonable prices). We've been there three times in as many days, and I'm sure we'll find a reason to go tomorrow, too. We also went today to the Maille store. This was quite an adventure. After thinking that we had gotten off at the wrong metro station, we stumbled across this gem at place Madeleine. Yup, it's a mustard store. I can't really explain why we are so excited about this store, cause it really does sell just mustard, but it was great. Not only do they have cute little ceramic mustard pots, and varieties of mustard sold only at this one location (I picked up a blue cheese one. Delicious!), but you can buy fresh mustard in its own little crock. When I say fresh, I mean you stand there and watch them fill the pot from one of the three mustard 'taps' on the counter. So cool!

I'll also share this picture with you. Karina couldn't figure out why a store with chocolate in the name wouldn't sell chocolate! We crossed the street to go check it out, and were a little dissapointed by the baby clothes in the window!


Steve arrives tomorrow, and the fun will inevitably continue. I'll leave you with a picture of one of Erik's lunch receipts from Ecole Polytechnique. He'd like you to notice how much the beer cost. Yes, he had beer with his lunch. It is France, after all.


I will try and keep regular posts during the holidays, but as some of our most loyal readers will soon be joining us in this wonderful city, updates may become few and far between until the New Year.

Happy Holidays!

Karina is here!

Karina arrived yesterday morning, and Erik graciously went out to the airport to pick her up at 8:15. We were (are) very excited to have her here, and tried to keep her busy yesterday to combat the jet lag.

A nice cafe lunch, followed by a walk around the neighbourhood, drooling at all the patisseries, took us up to Sacre Coeur where we went inside and walked around, looking at all the saints, and the beautiful fresco on the ceiling.



A cool statue we found.


By that time Erik and Karina were both ready for a '20 minute' nap, and two hours later we set off again.

This time we ended up on Blvd Haussman, with plans to show Karina the awesome window displays. Apparently all of Paris had the same idea, and it was an absolute zoo!


We did manage to take some pictures of the fantastic light displays, and we were able to catch a glimpse of our favorite display, a scene with frogs playing in the bathroom. Very cute.

After a quick 'restoratif' we headed off to dinner, another recommendation from the trusty LP. It was definetly in the budget category (bottle of house wine, 4euros), and the food was decent, but judging from the popularity, we felt like we were missing something. I mean the huge line couldn't have just been for the cheap food...



Karina has escargot as her entree. They were delicous!

Today Karina and I did some shopping, and Karina enjoyed her first pain au chocolat, and crepe au nutella. Very delicious! We are planning on making dinner tonight, so will head off shortly for the grocery store (I know, so un-French, but it's Monday and the market is closed :( ).

We've got more mail!

I thought I'd share this picture of our 'mailbox'.

Thanks Grandma and Tracy and Ed for your cards. We will be thinking of you over the holidays.

A Night Out

Last night we went to see a concert with Zoe, Aurelie, Zoe's cousin and another one of her friends, Katarina.

Broken Social Scene is a Canadian band that Zoe knew from Canada. It was a great show. I'm not usually up for live music shows, but it's nice to get out of the house, and this concert was a pleasant surprise. The group is made up of musicians who all play in different bands. Its quite an assortment on stage, including a violin, three trumpeters, and even a trombone at one point. I wish I had more constructive or descriptive things to say about it, but it was a throroughly enjoyable mix of music styles. A very pleasant evening.

I also want to say hi to Jing and Katie, two more friends who are reading the blog. We miss you guys! And Katie, Zoe agrees that it would be a great idea if the guys did a show over here....

Tonight we go to another friends house for dinner (same place as last Saturday. Only in France do you plan your next dinner get together as soon as the meal is finished). Erik volunteered us for dessert duty, but due to a severe lack of basic baking tools, and time, I'm off to the patisserie to choose something delicious to share.

Tomorrow Erik's sister Karina arrives! We'll be waiting for her bright eyed and bushy tailed at the airport tomorrow morning.

The dum-dums...and a new Canadian treat

So, I feel like my French fluency has reached a plateau. I will admit that part of the reason that things are getting easier here is that I'm discovering more things that are accesible in English. Not to mention the many shopkeepers and waiters that insist on speaking to us in English. My favorite discovery is the library which has a plethora of English language books for me to peruse. Today I visited the Real McCoy, an American food store. It was chock-a-block with all sorts of delicious (note some sarcasm here...) treats such as fruit roll ups, peanut butter, marshmallows (4 euros a bag! And they weren't even the white ones! Luckily I had already seen coloured ones at the Franprix for 1.55), complete with a friendly, English speaking salesperson. We've been to one of the Canadian bars (yes! There are two Canadian bars here!), and have been to an Irish one (they spoke English there too). I've also been watching the BBC (not too much choice in English language tv--BBC or CNN, it was a pretty easy decision really). The annoying part about these channels though is that they are news only, and repeat the same headlines and documentaries throughout the day. I have watched the same soccer (football) highlights three times today, and have had a good laugh at the 'business weather' segment, which highlights the weather in cities that I guess people would travel to for business. The only two cities that they had in the Americas were Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro. I don't know what kind of business people are doing, but it's apparently not in the States! I've had the channel on most of the day, and they are very good at covering the weather for almost the entire world (Europe, North Africa, all of Asia, the middle east, etc.), but they always seem to 'forget' about North and South America. It's like they forgot there were two more continents across the ocean! But Erik (who is watching it now) has just mentioned that they finally covered Canada (-14 in Edmonton! Brrr!)

Hmmm...I just had to scroll up to the top of this post to remember what I was supposed to be writing about. The dum-dums.

We went for dinner(sushi! Yum!) last night with my friend Zoe and her French roommate Aurelie. Aurelie lived in Montreal for a year, so some English was spoken, but it was mostly in French. I still get frustrated not having a large enough vocabulary, but now it seems that words that I once knew are leaving me. When talking about the food that we had at our wedding, I mentioned that we had "les végétables grillés" and didn't even realize what I had said until I noticed Erik and Zoe staring at me like I'm an idiot. For anyone who is wondering what I said wrong, its 'les legumes' not vegetable with a french accent. Erik and I have both asked for 'un limon' at the market, and I was so confident that I thought the person helping me just didn't hear me, so I repeated it louder and pointed, only to notice the sign clearly marked 'citron'. To make matters worse, the more I learn about French, the more words I learn that are exactly the same or very similar in French and English! Patientez, manager, rhyme to name a few.

So, by now you might be wondering why I was looking for marshmallows.

Erik decided that he wanted to bring them to his work party tomorrow as a kind of "Canadian" treat. Aurelie, assured us last night that Rice Krispies were readily available, but she wasn't so sure about the marshmallows. On my way to the library today, I stopped in a grocery store to see what there selection was. They not only had marshmallows, but two varieties! Not the plain white ones that we're used to, but one of the packages had white and pink, and actually tasted quite authentic. Feeling quite pleased with the discovery, I headed for the cereal aisle, to pick up a box of Rice Krispies. Cereal in France is a funny thing. For all of their appreciation of 'good' food, and enjoying the natural flavours of things, its surprisingly hard to find a cereal that isn't sugar coated, or loaded with chocolate bits (or both!). Needless to say, there wasn't a box of Rice Krispies in sight, and I figured the closest thing would be Special K. From what I could remember, they looked just like flattened Rice Krispies. Thats kind of what they looked like on the box. I was quite surprised when I opened the box (after my marshmallows were partially melted, of course) to find out that these were actually brown flakes, vaguely reminiscent of Bran Flakes. I had no choice at that point but to make them anyway, and the result was pink-ish goop covering brown flakes. Not terribly authentic, or very attractive, but they tasted alright. Hopefully Erik's colleagues won't be as traumatised by them as they are at the mention of poutine...but that's a whole other post.


An update on our banking problems...

Erik left work early today to visit our branch of Societe General, in Lozere, to figure out the whole money transfer thing, and to sort out the PIN problems that we've been having. Turns out that the number that we should be entering on the computer insn't our PIN, but our client number. When Erik asked where he could find that number, he was told he couldn't find it, you have to ask for it at the bank (which raises the question: why would they give you the PIN in the first place if they knew you wouldn't be able to use it without another number that they weren't giving you....!!!!). So they gave Erik the number, and he asked the teller to try the number and PIN combo right away to make sure it worked. Of course it didn't work, apparently because she was using my client number, but Erik's PIN. When Erik pointed out that we have the same account, and should therefore have the same number, she said no, and looked up Erik's number in the computer. Guess what? It's the exact same number as mine (who trains these people?! Or as Erik asked when he was trying to be mad in French "are you a new bank???"). Anyway, apparently something happened when my name was added to the account, more excuses, more excuses, they'll send a new PIN and client number next week. And they gave Erik a card for 10 minutes of free calling time for when he calls them to ask where all this info is when it doesn't arrive next week. On the bright side, apparently it is free to cash an international cheque, and it only takes a week. But, we really have no reason to believe anything they tell us, so we'll find out the exact situation when the cheque actually goes through...

We've got mail!

Yay! Our first Christmas card arrived this morning, from my aunt Debbie. Thanks Deb for the great card, and I'm glad you're enjoying the blog! I'd love to see pictures of the wreathes you're working on, and of everyone at Christmas.

Apparently the mail gets delivered right to our door, and this card was in fact slid underneath.

I also thought I'd share a link to another blog that Howard shared with me, after my food rant. It's nice to know I'm not the only one craving weird things. Joan, I think you should stock up on cranberries before your voyage. I know it just wouldn't be Christmas without those...

Erik and I also got an email from our friend Mathieu yesterday. He explained why we were getting confused about some of the words that we had learned in French, but are in fact English in France (to the point that they have no idea what we're saying when we use the French word). I will quote his email, because he sums it up quite nicely (hope you don't mind, Mathieu!): !

By the way, Quebeckers always make fun of the French for using so many
English words.  Actually, many of the French words that you learnt in school (e.g. stationnement) were invented in Quebec to fight the evil English from Canada and the US in the bill 101 era.  Other "anglicismes" that I liked:
1) Le parking
2) Le shopping
3) Le sponsorizing
4) Le McDrive
5) Le gazole

Thats it for now. We're having sushi for dinner tonight. We're quite proud of ourselves for holding out this long before having it, considering how often we ate it in Toronto. Japanese restaurants are quite popular here. There are at least two in our neighbourhood.

Also, two more important dates to celebrate. We have now been in Paris for four weeks, and yesterday (the 13th) was our five month wedding anniversary. Has it really only/already been five months?

PIN Problems, Part Deux

So, Erik and I were naive enough to think that we had triumphed over the French Beaurocracy that was giving us so much trouble. But alas, we spoke too soon.

Last week we each got a nifty package from our bank, Societe Generale, containing our cards (which are actually Visa Cheque cards, not credit cards at all--thanks for clearing that up Zoe!), and a letter providing us with a convenient PIN number so we would be able to access our bank account online, over the phone, or through an assortment of other means.

I did have a minor panic attack trying to find the PIN for my card, which arrived safely at Erik's office, and thankfully, it works just fine. It's the online PINs that we're having problems with now.

I learned from the phone scenario not to enter an incorrect PIN more than three times for fear of being locked out of everything you own, including your house. So, I patiently tried typing the 6 digit number into the website three times, squinting at the paper to make sure I got the numbers correct, before calmly giving up. Its a lot easier to stay calm about a faulty PIN when you haven't been locked out. I was slightly confused by the fact that the website seemed to be telling me that I should be entering an 8 digit number (which I definetly didn't have...it is probably that PUK that they want :)), but figured it was just my back luck with French PIN's and let Erik have a go with his.

Luckily, Erik's didn't work either (well, I mean luckily in the sense that it means that there isn't some kind of curse on me surrounding any sort of personal identification device). So, I'm sure this will involve more frustrated calls to a very incompetent bank before it gets sorted out. On a side note, the incompetent people at the bank have started blaming each other for the difficulties they had getting the account organized, and also the difficulties they seem to have doing minor things like using the phone, or opening the door. You'll have to ask Erik to tell you about those.

Anyway, on to more pleasant topics.

With the approaching arrival of our family, many people have been asking us what we want from home. Besides my cat, who I don't think would take too kindly to the plane, we are really just looking forward to seeing everyone.

After spending so much time getting rid of everything before we left Toronto, and then lugging what was left through airports and around Paris, I have a new appreciation for minimalism, and edible gifts. That, and the fact that Paris is fairly well equipped with most of the conveniences and luxuries that we're used to in Canada (with the exception of a decent shower, consistent central heating, and skim milk, but I don't think any of those travel well either. Oh, and good fat free yogurt. The stuff I've gotten here either had the texture of cottage cheese--which I don't care for, or tasted like chemicals. Hopefully no one remembers a previous post where I talk about delicious sandwiches slathered in butter, or an obsession with crepes, as those posts might make you wonder why I'm craving fat free dairy products. Who knows, its just what I'm used to. And I try to make a concerted effort to get enough calcium, and I just don't like the taste of regular milk. I have no reason not to eat the full fat yogurt, except that the last stuff I ate tasted so soapy, I probably won't eat any kind of yogurt any time soon. To continue on my rant of impractical food that I miss, cheddar cheese is up there too. Despite the laughs we got at a dinner with some of Zoe's French friends, you really need cheddar to make good macaroni. However, cheese is something that is done particularly well here, and I'm willing to take the time to find an adequate alternative).

Whew. Did I mention that we're really just looking forward to seeing everyone?

Its funny the things that you miss. The food is supposed to be so much better here, and sometimes all I want is a packaged cookie, or a bag of chips. Or a yogurt.

Ok. On to other things I was going to share. Oh, the elevator.

The subway station that is most convenient for me is the Abesses station. This station apparently has some amazing-ly designed iron work outside of it, which means that there are always tourists standing right at the top of the stairs posing for pictures. Or they have their maps out. Makes it difficult for regular people to get in and out of there.

This station also has a crazy spiral staircase (I think Erik counted 9 flights last time) to get down to the platform. It also has an elevator, but I take the stairs, as a rule. Its an easy calculation. More stairs taken = more crepes eaten. Anyway, today the elevator was waiting at the platform when my train arrived, and I was feeling a little sore from the exercise class I did on TV yesterday (my New Years resolution is to start exercising again. I love the walking that we do here, but its definetly been a couple of months now since I've broken a sweat. Not good) so I got on (the elevator, in case you didn't follow through the last bracket. I'm getting a bit carried away with them, I have to say).

This was the biggest elevator I have ever seen! I always wondered how it would work because there's always a huge crowd of people waiting for it, and I figured it would take a couple of trips before you made it to the front of the pack and got on. Not so, the thing is big enough to hold a car! And it has seats, in case you can't bear to stand the whole 2 minutes the ride takes. What an adventure. The stairs are still more fun, especially because there are murals from floor to ceiling all the way down. I've posted this picture before, but here it is again, in context. This isn't one of the nicest sections, but just to give you an idea...


Well, I think that's it for today. A bit of a rant, I suppose, but hopefully entertaining. Things are going well, its getting quite cold, but still no snow (thankfully!).

Good to hear from Liane, my friend who is reading the blog from Australia, where she lives.

Oh, we also have a mailing address, finally. It's not permanent, as we're hopefully moving in February, but email me if you'd like it.

Thats it.

Hope everyone is doing well, we think of you all the time.
Take care,
Torie :)

Upper Class Eating

In case you didn't know, I really like food. A lot. Good thing we're in France, cause French people like it too. And they know how to do it well.

The other day I got out at a random subway stop to go for a walk (the Madeleine stop, for anyone who might be coming to Paris soon...not to worry family, its on our to-do list for you guys) and stumbled across the Fauchon store.

The website really doesn't do it justice. This specialty food store takes up about 4 store fronts on a corner of the street, and their windows are done up like a jewellery store. For New Years they're offering gold and silver plated eclairs, at the bargain price of 6euros each. Pre-order yours today! They also have displayed huge chocolate Christmas Ball cakes. A chocolate shell filled with cake and mousse and other goodness. If that isn't what you're looking for, they have balls of foie gras on a stick, dipped in chocolate and rolled in nuts. My stomach is grumbling. And they have a whole separate store just for chocolates and candied fruit that looks so real I thought it was fake. Amazing!

On this same trip (I really didn't plan to hit food stores only, I swear!) I discovered the food market at the department store Galleries Lafayette. This place was like the Holt Renfrew of supermarkets. Gold coloured carts, and women wearing fur, strolling around the nicest grocery store I've ever seen. And selling only the best food, I'm sure! The produce was all amazing, no bruised apples or rotting bananas in sight! They had prepared food counters with a huge selection of Chinese dumplings, or 10 varieties of prepared couscous. Fresh fish and meat. A bakery section with a zillion kinds of breads, and another section with two zillion different desserts. It was a good thing that I ate before I left the house!

Despite seeing how the 'upper class' eat, I have to admit I'm just as happy with a warm baguette from the friendly neighbourhood baker, or a hot crepe from any of the street vendors.

Bon apetit!

Almost employed!

Good news yesterday. I got another part-time job. This one is at an international nursery school, teaching English to kids between the ages of 2-5. The school seems really nice, and the teachers that I've met have been really great.

I'm now up to a total of 3.5 days a week between my two jobs, but those days are spread out over a 5 day period. Its a good start, and will provide the extra bit of cash that we need to have a good time.

Hopefully all the paperwork goes smoothly! I'm still waiting for my long birth certificate, and who knows, there's probably some other obscure document that I'll need.

Just wanted to share the good news.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend. :)

I should also let everyone know that the cell phone is working again. 4 phone calls and two more PINs (the first one they gave me blocked me out of my online account. It was not a good day...) and I'm connected again. Now if I only had people to call...

Also, on the PIN note, we got our credit cards (or bank cards. We're not really sure what the heck they are, but they make money come out of a bank machine) yesterday too, and you need a PIN to use them here. Guess whose little package didn't have a PIN included? Luckily it arrived in the mail at Eriks work that same day...

Bread and Frustration!

We'll start with the frustration.

We got a cell phone on the weekend. Our house phone does not have voice mail, and we can't make outgoing calls, so we thought it would be a good idea, especially as I'm applying for jobs, I wan't to be accessible, without having to sit by the phone all day.

Sounds simple enough.

So, we picked up the phone last weekend. It had to be registered under Erik's name because all the banking information is under his name only right now (another small frustration...). Didn't seem like a big deal. I plugged the phone in to charge last night.

When I turned the phone on this morning, it is all of a sudden asking for my PIN. I've never had a phone do this! Well, I've only had one other cell phone, and it was pretty basic. And it spoke English! Anyway, the phone company, SFR has sent me three text messages in the last week all with different PINs. I've also recieved two voice mails with different PINs. By the time I try all the PINs I can remember, I've been locked out of the phone.

Turns out you have to enter the PIN from the SIM card every time you turn the phone on! I will admit, its written quite clearly in French, on the page that the SIM card came with. Except the sales person put the card in, and didn't tell us anything about entering the PIN when we turn the phone on...and I obviously didn't look at that page until it was too late. So, now the phone is asking me to enter my 'code PUK'. Now I'm getting frustrated! At least I know what a PIN is! What the heck is a PUK??!! And where do I find it????

I consulted the English version of the manual that we had to download from the internet, and apparently you have to contact your service provider to get it. Great. SFR advertises on its international visitors page that it has operators available to help travellers from Europe in seven different languages, including English. When you call the advertised number, it turns out that the service isn't available yet. They're probably on strike!

Anyway, I think one of the hardest things to do in another language is talk on the phone. The other person can't see you, you can't gesture, you can't read their body language. Its just a big guessing game. So I call up SFR, and throw out the one sentence I've been practising: "J'ai une probleme avec ma telephone. I'll me demande pour mon code PUK, et je ne sais pas ou le trouvez." (translation: Where the heck do I find the GD PUK code???) Well, her response, after I give her my phone number, was "mais tu est un mademoiselle." Uh, yeah. Unfortunately, she can't help me because the phone is registered to Erik, and he is conveniently at work. She did say at the end of the conversation that she was happy to have helped me. I don't think she could have been any less helpful! And I had to pay for the call!

So, the phone is still locked, but I have 6 more chances to guess my PUK. Hopefully Erik will be able to sort something out when he gets home.

Onto a more pleasant topic. Bread. Yum!

To ease my frustrations, and due to the fact that there's no food in the house, I had for lunch a sandwich a jambon et gruyere. We're not talking Subway sandwiches here, folks, this is half a baguette, buttered, with a couple of slices of ham and cheese. Thats it. And to be honest, I probably would have been happy with just butter. Or just bread. Fast food at its best! The bread (freshly baked, of course in the ovens visible from the front of the bakery) is nice and crusty on the outside, and has a nice flavour on the inside. The butter is nice and creamy, and contrasts nicely with the saltiness of the ham, and the sharp taste of the cheese. I don't think I would ever have eaten a sandwich like that in Canada, but for some reason I wouldn't have thought twice about eating at McDonalds. The French really know how to do it. And for 3 euros, its almost cheaper than doing it yourself.

Anyway, my point, as I stopped by another bakery on my way home from groceries, was that we're eating a lot of bread. I had half a baguette for lunch, and we'll polish off most of another one with dinner. Its just so good. And everyone eats it. Whoever invented the low-carb diet obviously never came to France!

The bread that you get served at a restaurant is a necessary part of the meal. I've discovered that better restaurants have better bread. Bad baguette here tastes like the stuff that you get at Dominion. Not the ACE bakery stuff, but the generic French Bread thats pure white inside and comes wrapped in plastic. The kind that doesn't really have a flavour, but you don't really realize that it can have a flavour until you have the good stuff. My favourite baguette has a buttery taste when its warm. Its crusty on the outside, and chewy on the inside. I've learned that a good baguette has lots of different sized holes on the inside of the bread. This means that the loaves were shaped by hand and not by a machine. I was commenting to my mom that I have yet to see a presliced sandwich loaf, and I'm sure we never will (they don't even have them at the grocery stores). Bakeries are so common, and good bread is so easy to find, that I'm sure the French would never stand for something like that.

Writing this has made me hungry. I'll have to go break off a piece of warm bread...by the way, the bread that I like reminds me a lot of the ACE Bakery baguette. So if I've made you hungry too, go get a loaf of that, and warm it up in the oven. Eat it plain, and guilt-free, and it will be just like you're here in Paris.

Quail and an Inkwell or Finally, a Restaurant to Write Home About!

Hello everyone!

Time to do some writing about food! We'll start with the weekend...

We both enjoy going to the market on Sunday to buy food. Last weekend Erik was feeling particularly creative, and decided to buy quail. The butcher happily chopped off their necks, burned off any remaining feathers, and trussed them up for us, ready to be cooked. On Tuesday night, Erik set about preparing this delightful meal. The quail roasted in the oven with a dressing of olive oil, thyme and lemon. It was definetly a success, but we both agreed that the little birds require a very large amount of effort to get a very small amount of meat off the bones. I think next time we'll just get a chicken!


Now, I'm not sure if I've written about the restaurant situation yet, so I'll just say that all of our meals out have been a bit dissapointing. There is usually some good point to the meal (often the cheap wine :)), but we had yet to eat the wonderful Parisian meal that we were so looking forward to before we left.

Well, the Lonely Planet advised that our neighbourhood was good for big churches, and not much else. For some reason we thought we could discover a hidden gem of an eating establishment close to home despite this advice. Unfortunately, again LP was correct, and most of the restaurants around us cater to tourists, and are either too expensive for us, or just don't serve very good food. I was beginning to think that all French food would be bland and boring, until we ventured out of our neighbourhood last night and into a delightful little place called L'Encrier (the Inkwell).

What a treat! The inside was nicely decorated, and the menu was more than affordable. Erik started with a terrine, and I had a soup of something white (I didn't know the word when I ordered, and I can't remember it now...). Anyway, both were delicious! For main course, I had a duo of fish, served with a rice pilaf, and Erik tried andouilles, with a warning from the waiter. Andouilles are apparently sausages made with pig intestines. They actually tasted quite good, but you had to get past the fact that they looked like a regular sausage, as they didn't tast like sausage at all. We finished the meal off with chocolate cake and plum clafoutis, finally satisfied with a dining experience in this city. Plus, it had a non-smoking section. I have to say, nothing makes food taste worse than second hand smoke! We will definetly go back.

And thanks to Sheila, Tracy and Roman; some of the people who are reading our blog. Its nice to hear from you, and good to know that you're enjoying the updates!

Un dimanche en Paris

Hello all!


Our day started with a trip to our local baker (well, there are at least 4 that we've found, but this one is our favorite for pain au chocolat). Nothing gets a day going like a hit of chocolat!

A trip through the market, and we were all set for the next two days. Erik has decided to try making quail. I'll let you know what the final verdict is.

After a lunch of crepes (with Nutella, of course!), we were off to the Louvre. All museums are free on the first Sunday of the month, so we thought this would be a good opportunity to check out this famous museum.

All I can say is that it was breathtaking! I'm sure we didn't even come close to scratching the surface of seeing what was inside, but the building itself was enough of a treat. We headed straight for the Italian Painters section, in the Denon Wing, which houses the Mona Lisa (or La Jaconde, as it is known here). Really, there is too much to look at. Intricate mouldings, and painted ceilings, views out onto a spectacular courtyard. We both left feeling like we had a lot to learn before we could fully appreciate the art that was inside.

We took the long way back to the metro, through the gardens outside of the museum. I have to say that kids in Paris have it made! Not only are there these amazing carousels all over the city, this is the second park I've been too that has sailboats for rent that can be sailed in the fountain, pony rides, and this one also had an area with trampolines that kids could jump on. Who needs video games with all that?

I'll leave you with some pictures we took. We got on the subway at the foot of the Champs Elysees, but got a decent picture of the lights with the Arc de Triomphe in the distance. I can always tell a good photo opportunity by the crowds of people in seemingly odd places.

The glass pyramid at the Louvre, and from inside looking out.


The Champs Elysees with the Arc de Triomphe in the distance

Je vous enpris, patienter s'il vous plait!

This is Erik's new favourite line. Or I shoud say least favourite. It means 'please be patient!' Our latest episode in French Beaurocracy is with Societe Generale, our new bank. Erik thought he was getting a head start on things by opening an account before we left Canada. It seems to have not been so helpful. Two weeks into our stay, and we are still waiting for cheques and bank cards. Everything has to be ordered in. I still can't understand why that is, when any bank in Canada would issue a temporary card on the spot. Hopefully, the cards will arrive by next Friday. Which is so convenient considering that we can't even take money out from the branch because it is in the next town south of Ecole Polytechnique, and you can only withdraw from your home bank (long story about this...on his first day, Erik moved the account to the branch that was actually in the school. Unfortunately that location is only open on Thursdays, otherwise you have to go to Orsay, which is not only far away, but also in the next metro zone...). Anyway, thank goodness our bank cards and credit cards from home work here.

Other than that, it has been a busy week. I got a job, or a 'mini-job' as I should call it. I'll be teaching ESL to French kids at an American Private school on Wednesdays and Saturday mornings. Should be interesting.

My adventures today took me to the islands of the city. Not too much to share, other than pictures, as it was very beautiful. I also enjoyed the cherry-picker employed to decorate the tree outside Notre Dame.







Thats it! Hope everyone is doing well.

Keep in touch,
E+T

Apples, anyone?

So I made a discovery at the grocery store yesterday. The Canada Apple. I haven't had an apple since we left Canada, and I'm missing a good old McIntosh, so I thought I'd give it a try.

First of all, I have never seen an apple like this in my life. Its not red, and not green, but a brownish green colour. And the skin has a texture, reminiscent of a kiwi. Anyway, it definetly wasn't the best apple I'd ever had...but I'm not a huge fan of Delicious apples, and it kind of had a texture like that inside.

Just thought everyone would like to know that Canada is well represented here...in the food form, anyway (Quebec Maple Syrup also seems to be quite popular. It even has its own section on the Canadian Embassy in France website. Canadian Foods and Maple Syrup. We're so proud!)

P.S. Apparently the apple has a real name! Mom has just informed me that it is likely a russett apple, and one of my Grandma's favorites! There you go. Here's a picture (of the Golden Russett, couldn't find the regular one)

What did you say?

So, I've decided to start a list of words that we learned in French, but that the French don't actually use.

1. Fin de semaine. People don't know what we're talking about when we say this. You have to say 'week end'.

2. Chien chaud. Nope, its a good old hot dog here in France.

3. Biscuits? No, I'd rather have les cookies, s'il vous plait.

I'll add more as they come. We've also found that just saying a word in English with a French accent works sometimes, if we're desperate.

Again, I spoke too soon.

Yup, its snowing, and its sticking.

The Great Race

Stairs 1, Elevator 0

I spoke too soon

It snowed! Not the sticking around kind of snow, more like the big flaky raindrops kind. And I dutifully carried my umbrella around all day yesterday, only to be caught without it today, when I really needed it!


Went and looked at the Arc de Triomphe, very spectacular. Can't wait to go to the top and check out the "etoile" (traffic star) from above. Then I walked down the Champs Elysses. Some highlights included people queuing to get into the Louis Vuitton store, and the car dealerships that had crazy Christmas displays inside. So much so that I wasn't sure what they were selling at first till I looked at the signs...Peugot. Renault. Duh. That would explain why the shiny new car is in the middle of everything. For some reason the Toyota dealership wasn't looking very festive. Must be a French thing. I also thought it was kind of funny to even have car dealerships on the street. Imagine Bloor St. in Yorkville with a Toyota storefront in between Chanel and Gucci.

I also felt very Parisian when I was able to help someone with directions in the subway station. Well, maybe not directions, but I was able to tell her what station she was at. In French, of course. Unfortunately couldn't tell the other two ladies that asked me for help where the Grand Palais was. I'll look for that one day when I'm not soaking wet.

C'est tout!

Now the question is do I go back out into the snow to scrounge up some food for dinner, or should we just have crepes?

The Daily Grind

I realized that I hadn't written lately, and I know some people (Mom and Howard...) might check this fairly regularly, so I thought I'd treat you to a quick update.

Its been a quiet week. Erik has been working "Japanese salary-man" style, meaning he's out of the house as the sun rises (6:45!), and doesn't get home until about 7:30 (thats 19h30 for those of us trying to get used to the 24h clock:)). Quite a change from the schedule he kept in Toronto, and will definetly take some getting used to. The commute doesn't help either.

Anyway, this means I've been left to my own devices to poke around the city and get to know it better. I'm becoming a pro on the metro, and it really is quite convenient. I have to say after using it here, and the one in Tokyo, that anyone who comes to Toronto from a major city must laugh at our subway line. You really can't compare. We are within walking distance of three subway stops, on two different lines, and with a pass, there's no stopping me!

My mornings are usually spent writing cover letters and sending resumes. As much fun as it sounds, by around noon I'm ready for a change of scenery. So, depending on the contents of our fridge, its a quick meal here, or out to the boulangerie for a sandwich, or down to the corner for a crepe (I've had one every day now...I think I'm out of control. They're just so good!). Then I consult the trusty Lonely Planet subway map, and I'm off. Lots of wandering, I never bring a map with me, and all the subway stations have big maps outside. I haven't gotten hopelessly lost yet.

One day I went to Luxembourg Gardens, which is a huge expanse of nature in the middle of the downtown. Its pretty amazing. Complete with pond and kids sailing sailboats, five tennis courts, pony rides for kids, and paths around the perimeter for walking and running, and I know that I haven't seen it all. The grass is immaculate (but you can't walk on it!), and the there are well maintained flowers throughout. I even saw an interesting snow-plowesque machine that was being used to scoop up the leaves. Next time I will bring something to read, and just relax for an afternoon.

The other day I went window shopping, and ended up on Blvd Haussman with all the big department stores. The two that I happened to walk past (Le Printemps and Galleries Lafayette) had gone completely Christmas crazy. It was amazing! Not only do they have fantastic motorized window displays, complete with raised viewing areas for kids, but the overhang on the sidewalk is completely decorated in metallic shapes and decorations. This goes on for about three blocks for each store! I'm definetly going back, because I'm sure there are lights involved too, and I'll bring my camera this time.

Erik and I went back up to Sacre Coeur the other day to see it lit up at night, and I think its even prettier that way.


We've also discovered a square in our neighbourhood that is completely taken over with artists selling their work, and doing portraits for the tourists. I think I took a picture of that today, hold on...


Today I actually went inside Sacre Coeur. What a magical experience. There was actually a mass going on, but people were still wandering through. It was nice to stand and listen for a bit, and enjoy the vastness of the inside, with all the stained glass and domed ceilings.

Hmm...I feel like I'm forgetting something...but it's obviously slipped my mind. Last night we made the mistake of buying baguette sans sel (salt), which could easily translate into baguette sans taste. We won't be doing that again.

Well, I guess that's it. I hear there's been snow back home, and I have to say that I'm not too sorry to have missed it. I'm sure it will find its way over here, but until then, I get to keep pretending that it's fall.

Thanks Joan for the countdown email...you guys are the best at keeping track of dates. First the wedding, now until your visit. We're really looking forward to having everyone here.

Take care, and keep in touch.
Torie :)

A new addiction...

Crepes with Nutella. I'm in big trouble!

Adventures in French Beaurocracy...

Today we go get our Cartes de Sejour. This should be an interesting adventure, considering how unhelpful the French Consulate was in Canada. We will update you with all the juicy details, après un café.

Bonne journée!

Ok. Wait till you hear about our day! Erik has insisted on writing this one, but lets just say, it was a journée comme les Français! Complete with a restoratif on the way home. And we thought the Consulate in Canada was bad! Lets just say that Erik's 'Scientist' label affords him quite a bit of status. Apparently his head is 'trop plein' (too full...as in he's too smart) to have to deal with these people. Straight out of the receptionist's mouth.

Torie accepts no liability for anything written after this point.

According to the Lonely Planet, the first version of Paris started in 300BC, but unlike french wine, bureaucracy does not get sweeter with age. To stay in France, a visa is not enough - one also needs a Carte de Sejour, which translates simply as "Extra Thing". To get this "extra thing", you need to go to the Police prefecture. Judging by the prefecture waiting room (which torie never got to see despite waiting in the line this morning for an hour and a half) France seems to be a popular destination. Especially if you don't have the appropriate documentation.

We sat in the waiting room for 1.5 hours this afternoon, and most peoples' strategy was to walk up to the counter with a stained napkin and request that they be made mayor. We saw many asylum seekers, one Polish french teacher who was being forced to work as a maid or give up her welfare, and a man who was told that he had been in the country since 2002 without a visa and even though he owned a restaurant in Paris, he needed to reapply from Vietnam.

Luckily the waiting room was equipped with a coffee machine, which produces better espresso than most Starbucks ... and for 0.35E no less. Between coffee and the entertaining battle between the overheated receptionist opening the window vs. the freezing cold patrons closing it, the wait passed quickly. I was told by Dr Zuk that the Ecole Polytechnique name would open doors, but that was the first time that I saw it in action. Once I was determined to be un scientifique, it was considered below me that I have to deal with this anymore. I was told to tell my host to take care of all this, and that as Torie said, my head was too full to concern myself with this. We were told to get out of there, let the host worry about it, and that we were special.. very very special... just like our mothers told us.

Luckily, France is filled with locations meant for washing the bad taste of bureaucracy out of one's mouth, and we took advantage. A few glasses of wine at a brasserie on the walk home, a walk to the top of Montmartre and a beautiful night time view the Eiffel Tower, and walking home down the steps of the Butte, a bottle of darn fine 3Euro wine, and suddenly the love affair with France begins anew.

Ok. I'm having problems with this whole 'adding photos' thing, so you'll have to bear with me. The text actually starts at the heading "Le Tour Eiffel", if you want to scroll down to the middle of the blog and start reading from there.

In this picture, you can see Sacre Coeur in the background (its the shapes sticking up on the hill...basically the highest points). Thats our neighbourhood.




















Here are some more shots . We didn't climb all the way up, as it was fairly late in the afternoon, so these pictures were all taken from the first level. These are all things that we still have to see, so I'll just give the guide book explanations.


This is one of many bridges across the Seine.
I think this dome is Hotel des Invalides, but anyone who had been here can correct me.
This is the awesome park that leads up to the tower. Isn't it huge? We couldn't believe how green the grass still was! It looks like a golf course! Called Parc du Champ de Mars.



La Tour Eiffel


After an exciting morning shopping at the market (so much good food, such a small area!), Erik and I decided to head downtown and check out one of Paris' most visible landmarks.

The tower itself is at the end of a HUGE park, where there were kids playing and sitting on donkeys (?). It made for a very dramatic approach to the amazing tower.

I have to say, it may not be as tall at the CN tower, but it sure looks a heck of a lot nicer, and is it ever interesting being up there and being to see straight down! I have to say the climb down was much scarier than going up. Its all open, so you can see down to the ground the whole time. I don't know what it is, but for some reason being able to see all the way to the ground freaks me out!

On our way home, at the metro station Abesses. This spiral staircase is covered in graffiti and is the only way down the the platform. Kind of creepy if you're not sure where you're going. I have to say that Paris sure has a lot of stairs! It makes you realize how flat other places are, and how much we rely on escalators and elevators.

Thats it for now! We bought some great stuff this morning, and Erik is making his famous risotto. Although we haven't been blown away by anything we've eaten here so far, we can't stop talking about how much different the things we bought today taste. The arugula is more peppery, the onion is sweeter, the garlic is juicier, and well the cheese is just delicious! We wish we could share it with all of you!

Hope you all had a nice weekend, and keep in touch. It's always nice to know whats going on in your lives.

Take care,
E+T

Crazy things about Paris:

1. bottles of wine at the grocery store for E1.05. It's pretty hard to avoid wine around here. We also had a half litre of house wine at dinner last night for E6.00. And its all been pretty good!
2. the handheld shower. What a terrible idea. Runs along the lines of the squat toilet in Japan. It's one of those 'what were they thinking?' ideas. And of course because I don't like it, I can think of many reasons why its a bad idea. Like, what do you do with the shower head while you wash your hair? Do you sit or stand (I've tried both, and they are both uncomfortable). How do you keep the water in the tub? How do you avoid tripping over the hose after you've carefully arranged yourself to not spray the water out of the tub?
3. lights on timers. The hallway in our building has light switches to turn the lights on. Unfortunately (or fortunately for whoever pays the electricity bill) the lights are timed, and if you happen to get caught on the stairs when the lights go out, watch out! Its pitch black until you get to the next switch! This is good exercise though, as it makes you pick up the pace on the way up.
4. its difficult to walk more than a block without seeing a nice bakery. And the pain au chocolat is to die for!
5. steak frites for E1.50. This is how much Erik paid at his cafeteria at work. Mind you, he said it wasn't great, but for 1.50, who cares?! And they also serve wine.
6. the separate toilet and bathroom. Sounds like a good idea until you try and wash your hands. Or flush the toilet while someone is using the shower (I suppose that's the one advantage of the handheld shower. Its alot easier to get out of the scalding hot stream. Mind you, then the floor gets wet...)

Stairs!

So, we are lucky enough to have a fabulous stairmaster in our apartment.


The only reason I can see to use this machine is if you never leave the house. There is a much more scenic and 'natural' stairmaster just outside our front door.

Our neighbourhood is quite hilly, and the dome at the top of Sacre Coeur is actually the highest point in Paris (this might explain why we are able to see the Eiffel Tower from our bedroom window). On our first walk, we were reminded of San Fransico.

Anyway, I thought I would share my new workout routine with all of you. It begins with these stairs.


These stairs bring you up to the side of Sacre Coeur, where there are more stairs to get to the basilica.


Here are some more pictures, just because it's so beautiful:



So, a trip down the stairs in front of Sacre Coeur brings you to tourist central (am I becoming a Paris snob already?:)), and it was fun to listen to the Japanese tourists (I picked out some 'Iie des ka's'--not quite sure how that related to the sightseeing, but who cares?)


Polish off the trip with a stop at the baguette store (sorry, no picture of that), and then up the stairs to our 5th (actually 6th, but the french start counting floors on the second) floor apartement. I think we're the only ones who actually take the stairs, as there is an elevator, but I figure its more fun than hanging out on the stairmaster in the bathroom.



Well, thats about it. I hope you enjoy the pictures, and stay tuned for more fun France experiences.

Well, we're here!

Exhausted, and a little disoriented, but we made it to our place with our 200+ lbs of luggage.

First of all, let me recommend that you don't fly American Airlines. It really was a fine flight, but for some reason, flying through Chicago really didn't make any sense (we were going the wrong way...plus a long layover). And the food was quite possibly the worst I've ever had. It will just make the Parisian kind taste that much better!

Well, our apartment is pretty awesome. We have literally just walked in the door (after making 4 trips up in the ancient elevator--its just big enough for one person and a suitcase. We had four), and wanted to share the views that we have from our windows. They might not be the nicest views in Paris, but they're really the only ones we've seen yet, and we think they're pretty awesome (by the way, flying into the city was so dissapointing! We were hoping to see some of Paris, but the plane somehow managed to completly avoid it, and we got to see farmers fields instead).


So, here you go. Enjoy, know that we're here safe, and we'll write more as soon as we've eaten (or maybe tomorrow).

Take care,
E+T

It's official. Erik Johnson is now a Dr.!

The successful defense was celebrated in style with friends. Hard to believe this long road has finally come to an end.

Congratulations!

OK, at long last, here are all of our fabulous Japan pictures. Pour yourself some sake or nama biru and make yourself comfortable, as there are a whole lot of photos! Also, the second half of photos haven't been organized or captioned (is that a word?), so view at your own risk :)

Have fun! We sure did!

http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2121740799&code=18689722&mode=invite&DCMP=isc-email-AlbumInvite

Finally, some pictures!

Heading for home...

This hotel has free internet, so I have to take advantage.

Just a quick update, because Erik and I are hoping to do something fun for our last night.

We spent four days in Tokyo. What an adventure to go from rurual Ohda to the metropolis of Tokyo. More details to come, but some highlights included a day at the Sumo basho, a trip to the fish market, and a baseball game.

We headed to Osaka last night to have dinner with one of Steve:s friends, stayed there last night, and today headed for Kyoto for the day (not much to do in Osaka). Saw some wonderful things in Kyoto, then tried to avoid the fact that it was time to say good bye to Steve (he somehow thought we were leaving today...so he had to head back to Ohda tonight). We took the same train heading for Osaka, but he stayed on, and we had to get off, so it made for a quick and relatively painless gooodbye. We will see him again in France sometime, and can t thank him enough for such a wonderful vacation.

So, now we are in Osaka, dreading the return of real life. So many things to think about in preparation for France, but it will all have to wait until we land from the painful 13 hour flight home.

We hope everyone is well, and look forward to catching up with everyone, (and sharing our photos...there are sooo many).

We ll talk to you soon,
Torie and Erik :)

Crazy Japan strikes again!

Today we leave for Tokyo, so this will likely be the last update before we get home. So let me fill you in on what we've been up to for the last day or so.

Yesterday we went on a hike with the junior high students at Kitasanbe School (one of Steve's mountain schools). What a serious hike! Mt. Sanbe is the highest mountain in Shimane prefecture, and is actually one of a series of mountains that once formed the outside of a volcano (I think, but as I don't speak Japanese, some details slip by. But it makes for a good story). So the day started with a climb to the top of Sanbe, about an hour. Then we descended that mountain through a gorge of slippery rocks to a lake at the bottom, and climbed up to the top of the next mountain, where we had lunch. Luckily, the weather was not the best yesterday, it was supposed to rain, so they cut the climb short and we omitted one of the mountains from the excursion. The climb continued along a ridge between the second mountain and Sanbe, and we arrived again at the top of Sanbe (very tired, legs like jello and ready to give out at any moment...). I've never been so happy to be at the top of a mountain. Back down to the bottom and we were all done. It was a full day, we started climbing at 8am and were not done until around 3pm. We couldn't have been happier to get to the onsen that afternoon, where we relaxed and then watched sumo and ate icecream.

We were then ready to start eating again, and decided on kaitenzushi (conveyor belt sushi) for the third time this trip. We were craving something called ebi-fry-maki-zushi, which is shrimp tempura roll, and soooo good! One of the kids on the climb has a brother who works at this place, and she was making fun of us because the last time we were there we ordered six of these. Anyway, half way through the meal we found out that the pizza place we wanted to go to was open, so we left and headed for our next round of eating. One pizza, six beers and three free sausages later, we were at the local Lawsons to pick up some refreshments and snacks. Many people wanted to see us on our last night in Ohda, so we had a mini party here at Steve's house complete with mini-Japanese style keg to serve nama (draft) beer.

Thats about it. We don't really have too many plans for the rest of the trip except that we hope to leave for Tokyo today around noon, however at the rate we're going, it will be much later than that.

So,,,thats it for now. We're looking forward to hearing from everyone, and settling back into our lives (do I really have to go back to work???).

Talk to you soon,
Torie (and Erik)

Finally a day off!

Kayaking was cancelled due to Kuri-san being sick, and us being rather tired/under the weather after a night out with some of Steve's teacher friends. Red wine was a bad choice!

We checked out some beaches on the way back from the cancelled outing, saw some fisherman making salt from sea water, then napped until 3pm. I think we'll check out the driving range later today.

We leave for Tokyo on Thursday, and Erik and Steve have been religiously following the sumo basho (tournament) in prepartion for the trip.

Its bento time!

Check you later,
Torie

Too bad...doesn't look like we'll be able to post any photos until we get home...we weren't able to get Steve's computer to recognize our card reader. Sorry, I know people were looking forward to those.

Today was sports day number 2, at the Ohda elementary school. The pinnacle of the day was the marching band performance after lunch. Picture six year olds playing the trumpet and marching in formation. Unbelievable. The principal was wondering why we don't do anything like this in Canada. I can't even begin to imagine the amount of preparation and organization that it involves. The entire school did exercises in unison, and teams of 300 performed choreographed cheers. Again, hard to imagine, but not to worry, we took pictures.

Thats it for now. More adventures await us...

Hello all!

We've gotten lots of positive feedback on the blog, and we're glad that everyone is enjoying it. It's fun being able to share our trip with you all.

Here's our latest update.

We just got back last night (2am) from an adventure down to Shikkoku, one of the smaller of the four main islands of Japan. This is the place that Erik and I visited last year, and had a particularly negative experience that involved lots of frustration with not reading Japanese, and driving. So, this time we brought Steve. We left on Tuesday morning, and drove down to Hiroshima to activate our JR passes that we will be needing later on in the trip (thanks Karina!). These passes arae only available to visitors, and we had some concerns that Steve wouldn't be able to activate his, but we were lucky, and had no problems. We're looking forward to taking advangtage of the rail system later on to get to Tokyo.

Anyway, after that we kept heading east to Onomichi, where we picked up bikes and started biking across a series of tiny islands that connects Shikkoku to the main island, Honshu. It was an amazing ride. The bridges were fantastic, and the scenery was even better. We made it half way the first day, and got in late to the only town on the middle island. The only place we could find to stay at was an awesome ryokan with an amazing onsen. Just what we needed after a day of biking. After a traditional Japanese breakfast there the next morning, we headed out again (our behinds are quite sore at this point) and headed to the next island to check out a shrine that houses most of Japans "National Treasures" which were some pretty spectacular samurai swords and armour (I'll let you guess whose idea this was...) :)

We had reached our time limit at this point, and biked back to the ferry that took us back to the ryokan where we had another bath (soooo nice!) before taking the ferry the rest of the way back to the mainland (so much easier by boat!:). After paying for our ridiculously expensive parking, we continued driving east to catch another ferry back to Shikkoku so we could head into the Iya Valley. It was getting pretty late at this point, so we cancelled our intended destination (a place called Chiiori, we never made it, but more on that later), and stayed the night in Kochira, and climbed the 800 steps up to a beautiful shrine the next day, on the top of Kompira-san(H, J, and K, I think you did this on your trip). A nice walk down and another great bath, and we were back in the car heading into the depths of the Iya Valley.

What can I say about the view? It was amazing. We drove down some pretty unbelievably narrow mountain roads, did a quick run across the vine bridges, then drove down a mountain. Pretty scary stuff. The roads are just wide enough for one car, and are very windy. Lots of backing up to let other cars pass.

A couple of hours later we were back in Oda, exhausted. Woke up this morning to go to school with Steve to Tomiyama valley Elementary School. I can't believe how beautiful these schools are! Anyway, this is the "Ebi-Cani Dance" school, and we started the day off with a rendition of that. The kids were so cute, and we got to take part in some cool drumming thing, and then they dressed us up in costumes to take pictures. Everyone has been so nice!

Wow. I can't believe that we've only been here for about a week. Steve is keeping us very busy, and we're having a great time. Hope everything is going well for everyone back home. Now I'm going to see if I can figure out how to post some pictures....wish me luck.

E+T:)

Erik and Torie take on Japan!

Well, we made it! After travelling for about 24 hours (Toronto-Detroit, Detroit-Osaka, Osaka-Oda) we met up with Steve. He had arranged for us to get a train 40 min. after we landed (I wasn't so sure that would work...) luckily our plane was 15 min early, and the Japanese woman he had recruited was ready and waiting to give us our envelope with further instructions. What an adventure.

Life is Japan is good. Steve took us to a sports day yesterday at one of his old schools, and what an adventure that was. We were all on a team and got to compete in events such as the ball toss, relay and tug of war. Other activities that students participated in were ones such as tire tug of war (junior high school girls fight over tires, dragging them to their side of the court), crazy obstacle courses, and well choreographed dances, one of which ended in a congratulations sign being held up and Erik and I being pushed onto the field. Pictures are coming soon.

That evening we went to a teachers enkai (party) and experienced things such as the banzai, crazy teachers doing backflips, and some crowd surfing. Truly things that one could never imagine.

After an exciting walk home last night complete with sandal tossing, and searching through the jungle for lost sandals, we awoke in time for Steve to take us on a crazy bike ride around and up the mountains of Oda. It was amazing.

Hard to believe we've only been here for three days. Tonight we're staying at some fancy japanese style hotel and visiting a house that will be dismantled and rebuilt in France as some architect thinks it's a work of art. Can't wait.

Stay tuned!
Erik and Torie