Fortunately, Unfortunately

Once my stay in Nice was over, I had a lovely two and a half weeks in Switzerland and Germany.  And then, after being spoiled by relatives, sleeping in seven different beds, surviving a hike through a thunderstorm, and reconnecting with family and friends, I packed my bag for the last time and said au revoir to Europe.

My last train trip was one of those travel times when everything feels like it's going wrong.  But actually, it's not everything.  The reality is that lots is also going well.  And, so, I attempted to see the humor and the positives which led me to write this Fortunately/Unfortunately story.  Maybe you've played this game before?  It's one I like to play with my students in drama class.  So, here it goes.


It was the second Monday in August, the day I was to fly home.

Unfortunately, I had to get up after only four hours of sleep.

Fortunately, I got to watch the sunrise as I left Ben and Melissa's apartment in Berlin and rode the S-Bahn to the train station.

Unfortunately, when I got there, I found out that my train would be leaving ten minutes late.

Fortunately, that meant I had time to buy myself a cup of tea.

Unfortunately, they didn't have any black tea.

Fortunately, they had some other teas (though less desirable ones...)

Unfortunately, because of the poor design of the teabag, I couldn't close the lid on the cup and spilled tea all over my arm.

Fortunately, the multivitamin tea actually tasted okay.

Unfortunately, when I returned to the train platform, I discovered that the train would be leaving 25 minutes late, meaning that I'd miss my next train connection for sure.

Fortunately, the ticket counters were open (even at 6:30 a.m.) and I was able to get my ticket changed to another train.

Unfortunately, that left me with 3 minutes to run across the station and up several flights of stairs carrying 50lbs of luggage to the new train that I was to take.

Fortunately, I made it on time and caught the train.

Unfortunately, the train was stuffed full with no hope of getting a seat.

Fortunately, I could sit on my giant backpack which was more comfortable than the floor where some other passengers had to sit.

Unfortunately, a lady walking by as the train went around a curve almost fell on top of me and spilled her coffee on my head. 

Fortunately, the coffee wasn't that hot.

Unfortunately, my bum and my back were beginning to feel sore and I wasn't too excited about the prospect of spending four and a half hours on the floor of the train.

Fortunately, after the first hour and a half or so, the train stopped at a station where lots of people got off and I got a window seat with a table and an empty seat beside me where I could deposit my big bag. 

Unfortunately, the train eventually got fuller and I had to free up the seat next to me.

Fortunately, I found a place to put my massive pack that didn't require me to lift it above my head (which I couldn't do on my own anyhow).

Unfortunately, I was starting to feel bored and wishing I was already in Frankfurt.

Fortunately, two cute little German boys siting across from and next to me - who were very excited to be on their first major train trip with Oma - kept me entertained for the rest of the ride.

And so I arrived at the airport in Frankfurt.  Whether I should consider it fortunately or not, I'm not sure, but nothing very interesting happened on my flight home.  What was fortunate, was that my dear mother met me at the airport and drove me home where I was welcomed by my housemates and my very own comfy bed.

A Few More Photos

Only have two more days left in France!  Here are a few more photos to give you an idea of where I've been and some of what I've done.

 Nice as seen from the Parc de Chateaux.

The view on the other side of the Parc, looking out over the port of Nice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The old town in Nice.

 Place Massena at night.  There are seven statues on top of poles which, apparently, are supposed to represent the seven continents.  Normally, they're white, but they light up at night!

Monaco: Melissa and I visited the city for a day.  Very rich and clean - and all built on a steep mountainside. 

Melissa and I went hiking.  The train dropped us off by the river that you see in the valley below.  We walked up the road to the village in the center of the photo and then continued up a trail to a little summit with a chapel on it.

Villar sur Var old town: the town we walked through on our hike.  Love the narrow streets!

Our lunch on the hike.  Melissa and I managed to eat an entire Camembert and a baguette between the two of us!

Lists

Signs that I'm adapting to life in France:

- I expect bread to be served with whatever meal I order at a restaurant.
- I wait for a break in the traffic rather than for the light to change when I cross the street.
- I don't jump anymore when someone drives their scooter right beside me on the sidewalk.
- I don't apologize when I push my way through the crowded sidewalks, almost brushing past strangers (their personal bubbles are much smaller than in Canada).
- A tourist asked me for directions (only my first week in Nice, but at least I could tell him where on the map he was!)
- My Canadian friend comes to visit and I am actually able to translate the necessities.
- I eat a "pain au chocolat" (chocolate croissant) for breakfast.
- 30 degrees Celsius feels like a comfortable temperature.
- I rarely, if ever, take a sweather with me when I go out, even late at night.
- Olive oil and balsamic vinegar is my preferred salad dressing.


Things I'm looking forward to in Canada:
- Quiet, empty beaches with shady trees.
- Multi-grain and whole wheat breads.
- Green space, especially trees, grass, and gardens.
- Cool air.
- Reconnecting with family and friends.


Things I've done in the last few days:
- Enjoyed my friend, Melissa, visiting me for the weekend (a Canadian friend who's living in Berlin).
- Got yelled at by the neighbour downstairs.
- Hiked up a little mountain with a view of an old little pretty village and a landscape of forest, rocks, mountains, and a river.  Yay for getting out of the city!
- Got directions to the start of the hike from a Polish man who only spoke Polish. He explained the directions to another man who explained them to me in French.  I then explained them to Melissa in English.  Only took three languages but we got it!
- Visited the Principality of Monaco where we took elevators to get from one street to the next (the whole city is pretty much on the side of a mountain), got rained on at the beach, and heard more German spoken than any other language (we all know Germans like to travel!):
- Ate Socca, a Nicoise specialty.
- Survived a "canicule" (heatwave) - apparently, it's 39 Celsius today.  So, I don't feel bad for sitting inside today - it's too hot even to walk or take the tram to the beach!  Instead of a refreshing swim, I resorted to a cold shower.

The Second Week and God's Family

Before leaving for France, I got the contact info for a new church plant (started just over a year ago) that's connected to Salt & Light (i.e. the family of churches that my church in Vancouver is a part of).  The church is about an hour's bus ride from Nice in a place called Sophia Antipolis.  I joined them for their Bible study/worship evenings the last two Thursdays.  They are a pretty small group that meets in their pastor's living room.  When I walked in for the first time last week, I was immediately greeted with a kiss on each cheek (the French greeting) by everyone in the room and some of them were kind enough to engage in conversation with me - speaking slowly, explaining new words, and listening to me stumble through phrases.  What a blessing it is to find like-minded Christians on the other side of the globe and to feel like you are one of them because we are all of God's family!  The Bible study part of the evening is hard for me to follow but I love that anyone can join together in worship, irregardless of language.  Their style of worship is a little different than what I'm used to: instead of singing songs they have "free worship" - two guys play guitar and a bonga drum and everyone just speaks in tongues or sings whatever or prays all at the same time.  We also had times of praying aloud for various situations and times of being silent in God's presence.  It's been a great place to meet with God.

And now I'm already at the end of my second week in Nice.  I've gotten over the honeymoon phase: some of the things that were new and exciting last week are now kind of annoying (like eating white bread all the time).  Initially, I was excited to be able to communicate in French; now I'm just finding that it's hard work.  French verbs.... aaah!  There is so much to learn.  And it's been really hot this week - usually around 35 degrees - so some days I have no energy or desire to be out and about exploring Nice or the region.  The Mediterranean Sea, however, has been great for cooling off.  You can only sit or lie at the beach for a short time before swimming becomes a must.  And the water is the perfect temperature for cooling off without it being super cold like in BC.  It's also super salty which means it doesn't tasted so good when it gets into your mouth but it makes it really easy to float! 

A Few Photos

 The window in my room.

 The view out of the window: a mishmash of buildings (all squashed tight together), little gardens, and laundry hanging to dry.  When my window is open (which is all the time in this hot weather) I can hear people talking, having dinner, listening to the radio, or watching tv.

One of the many impressive looking buildings in Nice.  I love the ornate balcony railings, decorative stone work, and numerous window shutters on many of the buildings here.  This one is a few blocks from my apartment so I pass it on my way to school every day.

The First Week

Hard to believe, but I've been in France for exactly a week now. Yet I've experienced so many new things in this week.  When I first arrived, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I can actually communicate in French and even have a decent conversation when someone is patient enough to listen to me stumble through simple phrases and sentences!  My homestay "mom" is one of those people.  She's very patient and chatting with her at dinnertime (which is usually around 8pm) is great practice for me.  She lives alone so the apartment is pretty quiet but I like that, as it makes for a nice retreat from the busyness of the city here.

My first few days in Nice, I found I had a harder time adjusting to life here than I thought I would.  Afterall, I've spent lots of time in Europe, so I won't have much culture shock, right?  Wrong.  So much newness!  I'm compiling a list which I'll post later.  I've also had to adjust to a new schedule (like dinner at 8pm!), new living situation (where someone is cooking, grocery shopping, and generally taking care of me - it's nice but still an adjustment!), new diet (fresh baguettes are delicious but I am getting a little tired of so much white bread), new language, new people, new modes of transportation (mostly walking everywhere which I love), new school (which has been great), etc.

I spent the first few days mostly on my own, exploring the city, figuring things out (like getting a French phone card), and beginning to unwind after a busy few months at work.  In the last few days, I've met a lot of new people and visited some places outside of Nice: Cannes, Sophia Antipolis, and Menton.  But more on those adventures later. Typing on a French keyboard is very slow as several of the letters are in different places.  I'll write more when I'm at the French school this week - their keyboards can adjust to English typing!

An Adventure Francaise

A week ago I began a new summer adventure as I stepped onto a plane bound for France.  I am spending the month of July in Nice, on the hot and sunny Cote d'Azur (i.e. the south of France for all those who, like me a few months ago, have no idea where that is).  The purpose of this trip is to immerse myself in the language and learn as much French as I can in four weeks.  I'm doing this by taking French classes for four hours each day and attempting to dialogue with as many people as will put up with my limited language skills.  Despite being a student here, I'm also on vacation from work so I'm enjoying the opportunity to rest and relax, discover a new culture, and soak up the sun.