After four nights in Rennes after Bronwyn's arrival, we went to Paris for the week-end (this was last week-end). We arrived late Friday night and didn't do too much that night. On Saturday, Bron and I headed out around 10am to see the city. We were ready to get a big day in and see a lot. I didn't think that we would end up spending five hours in a one-block radius in the Latin Quarter... After having coffee at a cafe, Bronwyn decides she wants Starbucks, so the first two hours of our day are spent at two different coffee shops, one of which is Starbucks. Then we walk to the Notre Dame. For the first time that I've seen, they had used the big space in front of the church for a festival. A quebecois bread festival had erected a bunch of tents and was playing live quebecois folk music. They also had a beach volleyball court set up, complete with sand, and were happy for people to play. Bronwyn is an avid volleyball player and played varsity while in university. Her shoes and socks were off so fast and we ended up playing beach for two hours. What cathedral? We had Subway for lunch and then hit the court again for another hour before we were both pooped and went home. It was a really fun day! That evening, we went out with two of Raffi's friends from undergrad, German Clown Michael and Viktor.
On Sunday, we actually did some site-seeing. The Louvre, the Tuileries, Arc de Triomphe. It was nice. In the evening, we packed a bottle of (2 euro) champagne and headed to the Eiffel Tower. There, we drank bubbly, people-watched and admired the tower.
On Monday morning we wandered through the Marais doing a bit of window shopping. We met Raffi for lunch and headed to a park I first visited at Easter. In the North-East part of the city, the Buttes Chaumont is a beautiful and hilly park that has areas that overlook the whole city. It also has grass we're allowed to sit on, unlike many parisian parks. We took a picnic lunch and then all had a snooze in the sun. Bronwyn and I returned that night by co-voiturage, the carpooling service. It saved us a lot of money and the guy was speedy so we were home in almost the same time.
This past week in Rennes was very strange. I arrived home Monday night at 10 and left Thursday at 6am. So in two days, I had to proctor exams, clean out my office, submit all of my marks, hand in keys, get my apartment deposit back, tell my bank I'm outtie, pack my bags, and leave Rennes indefinitely. And so the week was hectic and full of goodbyes and bittersweet feelings and all that goes along with moving away from what had become my home. It was also strange to finish the job. For the first time in my life, I am currently homeless and unemployed. But it was fitting that I arrived to Rennes alone and left with two good friends. It was such a different feeling walking to the train station with all of my stuff this time around.
Cynthia, Bronwyn and I headed to Paris Thursday morning and are now in Amsterdam. I may not be able to post until Sunday, but will fill in the rest then. Hope you all are well.
Much love,
Hincks.
No comments:
Post a Comment