Hi All,
Yes I have been slack on posting, but away from my computer and need to donwload photos off my camera onto it before I put them on here.
Had a lovely Xmas with the family in Wells after a few days in London. I leave tomoro on the bus to Edinbourough before spenidng New Years at the Hogmany festival in Glasgow. Then fly back to Paris for one night and then off skiing in the Alpes for 7 days. I get back to Paris on the 8th January and then start work bright and early on the 10th.
So there is a lot of news coming, I just need to find the time inbetween all this fun to write on my blog.
Hope everyone had a merry xmas has an awesome New Year.
Lots of love
Nikki
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Xmas Time
I am very lucky to have my family in the UK so that I wasn’t alone for Xmas, so nice to just chill with family in an actual house. Volunteered my services for cooking and made about 3 batches of mince pies for xmas breakfast – yummy! 
On xmas eve the whole family trundled off to Bath for a very early dinner because we all wanted to drink and the last bus back was at 7pm or something. The sunset on the way there (at about 4pm I might add) was gorgeous over the snowy fields. Had diner in a tapas restaurant – was delicious. Another reason to love Bath!
Came home and got roped into helping Uncle Julian make pastry for his game pie. The two uncles were having a competition to see who could make the best… was up until 2am on Xmas day making it – of which one slice was eaten!
Since I was up anyway I decided to go to midnight Eucharist at Wells Cathedral. It was beautiful but sad being there by myself and seeing everyone with their families- what did I expect really. Was funny the prayer they did included Zimbabwe and those away in the armed forces – freaky!
Woke up nice and late on Xmas day and headed over to Aunty Fi & Nick’s to open stocking presents and eat mince pies! I am saying I had a white Xmas, it didn’t actually snow but there was still some on the ground. Xmas dinner was a feast – beef, ham and turkey! And lots of extras on the side.
After dinner, we mnaged to have a skype chat with the Aussie Meads who were on Boxing Day already and about to sit downa nd watch the cricket - looked so nice and warm, was very jealous.
We played charades altogether which was pretty funny, we are quite the dim family not being able to make the connection between kneeland and Disneyland, was a good laugh though!
Ofcourse Xmas isn't christmas without someone falling asleep on the couch, this is the start of balance things on Uncle Ju's head game!
After Xmas, there was a lot of leftovers eaten and a trip to Bath for the sales before I headed up to Scotland to celebrate New Year.
On xmas eve the whole family trundled off to Bath for a very early dinner because we all wanted to drink and the last bus back was at 7pm or something. The sunset on the way there (at about 4pm I might add) was gorgeous over the snowy fields. Had diner in a tapas restaurant – was delicious. Another reason to love Bath!
Came home and got roped into helping Uncle Julian make pastry for his game pie. The two uncles were having a competition to see who could make the best… was up until 2am on Xmas day making it – of which one slice was eaten!
Since I was up anyway I decided to go to midnight Eucharist at Wells Cathedral. It was beautiful but sad being there by myself and seeing everyone with their families- what did I expect really. Was funny the prayer they did included Zimbabwe and those away in the armed forces – freaky!
Woke up nice and late on Xmas day and headed over to Aunty Fi & Nick’s to open stocking presents and eat mince pies! I am saying I had a white Xmas, it didn’t actually snow but there was still some on the ground. Xmas dinner was a feast – beef, ham and turkey! And lots of extras on the side.
After dinner, we mnaged to have a skype chat with the Aussie Meads who were on Boxing Day already and about to sit downa nd watch the cricket - looked so nice and warm, was very jealous.
We played charades altogether which was pretty funny, we are quite the dim family not being able to make the connection between kneeland and Disneyland, was a good laugh though!
Ofcourse Xmas isn't christmas without someone falling asleep on the couch, this is the start of balance things on Uncle Ju's head game!
After Xmas, there was a lot of leftovers eaten and a trip to Bath for the sales before I headed up to Scotland to celebrate New Year.
London Town
After freaking out that I wasn’t going to be able to leave Paris for Xmas with all the snow I was lucky enough that both Paris & London airports were open. Luckily I was flying with easyjet to Luton as there were still delays at Gatwick and Heathrow. I went straight to the hotel to meet Aunty Fi who was taking me to the theatre as a Xmas treat. 
We headed off to explore London, taking in Covert Garden, Piccadilly Circus before getting a meal and heading to Mamma Mia. I’m a big fan of the movie but the live show was so much better. By the end of the show we were all dancing and singing along with the finale! So much fun!
The next day after a lazy start I headed off to explore London on my own. I decided to splurge and went on one of the tourist buses, I think I got a good deal – 48 hr pass including a cruise on the Thames and guided walks. The bus tour was great and had a live guide which made it a bit more interactive, was a little bit chilly on the top. Did all the major sites….photos below!
I did the Ghost walking tour which took as past a few scary places, the best part was at the end when he showed us where all the pubs were!
Went into Harrods to see where my mummy worked while she was doing the living overseas thing – smelly fish place. Got the best lamb pie for dinner from the food hall and then headed back to my hostel – which was not the nicest but a bed and a shower.
The next day I did the changing of the guard walking tour – unlucky for me but with Xmas changing the dates I only got to see the changing of the horse guard. Oh well, always next time! Managed to fit in a cruise on the river before catching the bus to Bath where Saint Nicholas picked me up to take me home for Xmas.
We headed off to explore London, taking in Covert Garden, Piccadilly Circus before getting a meal and heading to Mamma Mia. I’m a big fan of the movie but the live show was so much better. By the end of the show we were all dancing and singing along with the finale! So much fun!
The next day after a lazy start I headed off to explore London on my own. I decided to splurge and went on one of the tourist buses, I think I got a good deal – 48 hr pass including a cruise on the Thames and guided walks. The bus tour was great and had a live guide which made it a bit more interactive, was a little bit chilly on the top. Did all the major sites….photos below!
I did the Ghost walking tour which took as past a few scary places, the best part was at the end when he showed us where all the pubs were!
Went into Harrods to see where my mummy worked while she was doing the living overseas thing – smelly fish place. Got the best lamb pie for dinner from the food hall and then headed back to my hostel – which was not the nicest but a bed and a shower.
The next day I did the changing of the guard walking tour – unlucky for me but with Xmas changing the dates I only got to see the changing of the horse guard. Oh well, always next time! Managed to fit in a cruise on the river before catching the bus to Bath where Saint Nicholas picked me up to take me home for Xmas.
School's Out for Winter
I have finally finished school - yay! My course is still a complete mess. We were told we were having one 2 hour exam with each of the 8 subjects having a section that we needed to answer (so 15 mins per subject). With that in mind (and no calculator or notes), the exam couldn't really be that hard since 15 mins of testing per subject is not a lot! The day before the exam I was involved in an evaluation of the course and mentioned that one of the subjects really needed to test us a bit better since it was highly based on calculations and you couldn't do them without a calculator. We were then informed that actually, that subject had a 45 minute exam with notes and a calculator - didn't we know??? NO. How ridiculous is that! So disorganised and typical of our course coordinator! It was a mad panic to try and study that subject to the neglect of others.
Then we get into the exam - which is all in english and they give all the international students french-english dictionaries. What the? This school is not organised very well at all! So silly! The so called 'english' in the exam was pretty awful as well, surely someone should have proof read the exams? Haven't got results back yet, but not too worried. More worried about the skipping classes bit!
Anyway, us Chatenay girls had a final breakfast all together in my room with croissants and coffee - yummy.
We also did some celebratory drinking ofcourse, bit of a nightmare trying to get into Paris with the snow and the like - got the first train home in the morning at like 5.30am...not good but a fun evening!
Then we get into the exam - which is all in english and they give all the international students french-english dictionaries. What the? This school is not organised very well at all! So silly! The so called 'english' in the exam was pretty awful as well, surely someone should have proof read the exams? Haven't got results back yet, but not too worried. More worried about the skipping classes bit!
Anyway, us Chatenay girls had a final breakfast all together in my room with croissants and coffee - yummy.
We also did some celebratory drinking ofcourse, bit of a nightmare trying to get into Paris with the snow and the like - got the first train home in the morning at like 5.30am...not good but a fun evening!
Showcase
Us international students had a last soirée on the Friday the week before we finished. Now we all had exams the following week and me being me hadn't actually studied so I was planning on just going to the pre-party and then going home - likely story. Got home at 4.30am! We had pre-drinks at Cité Universitaire, not on the lawn like in summer but just sitting on the steps in one of the residence's foyer! Crazy people that we are.
We soon headed off to Showcase which is a nightclub under Pont Alexander III (Alexander the third Bridge). It's quite classy and you have to be a on a list to get in. Not entirely sure how its done - but it helps to have friends on the inside! Here's a promo pic from their website showing the entrance.
Apparently it was an old boathouse that they converted - anyway its pretty special to have been there. It's huge and you can see the stone arches of the roof. It's so nice to actually find a place which is big enough to actually dance in, normally night spots here are tiny and overcrowded.
They have guest DJ's and the like and although I was pretty sick of the music by the end of the night it was an experience. Shots were only 5Euros (when compared to the other drinks this was a bargain!) so not too expensive. Here are a few more photos of the night. I look like shit but I wasn't planning on going clubbing
We soon headed off to Showcase which is a nightclub under Pont Alexander III (Alexander the third Bridge). It's quite classy and you have to be a on a list to get in. Not entirely sure how its done - but it helps to have friends on the inside! Here's a promo pic from their website showing the entrance.
Apparently it was an old boathouse that they converted - anyway its pretty special to have been there. It's huge and you can see the stone arches of the roof. It's so nice to actually find a place which is big enough to actually dance in, normally night spots here are tiny and overcrowded.
They have guest DJ's and the like and although I was pretty sick of the music by the end of the night it was an experience. Shots were only 5Euros (when compared to the other drinks this was a bargain!) so not too expensive. Here are a few more photos of the night. I look like shit but I wasn't planning on going clubbing
Friday, December 17, 2010
Lots of Snow!
We had one of the biggest snow falls since the 1970's in Paris, think it was about 11cm. Was amazing to sit in class and watch the snow fall outside.
It is so beautiful and quiet, there are no cars on the street because it is so slippery and the snow muffles noise, even your footsteps - I was in absolute awe! The northern girls just laughed at me and thought I was being silly!
Ofcourse, Paris isn't used to the snow so there was absolute chaos with everyone tryign to get home, no buses, trains not running to any timetable. They had plenty of warning that it was going to snow so not sure why they didn't put snow tyres/chains or encourage people to stay at home. There was a big outcry from the public about how unprepared they were. Paris didn't work for 2 days basically! Classes were still on though :(
I was dying to find a sled and go sliding down the hills like the kids were, there were even people with snowboards out!
I love the snow, its so pretty. After a day or two it turns to icy mush which is not so great but when its fresh and beautiful you cna't help falling in love with it!
It is so beautiful and quiet, there are no cars on the street because it is so slippery and the snow muffles noise, even your footsteps - I was in absolute awe! The northern girls just laughed at me and thought I was being silly!
Ofcourse, Paris isn't used to the snow so there was absolute chaos with everyone tryign to get home, no buses, trains not running to any timetable. They had plenty of warning that it was going to snow so not sure why they didn't put snow tyres/chains or encourage people to stay at home. There was a big outcry from the public about how unprepared they were. Paris didn't work for 2 days basically! Classes were still on though :(
I was dying to find a sled and go sliding down the hills like the kids were, there were even people with snowboards out!
I love the snow, its so pretty. After a day or two it turns to icy mush which is not so great but when its fresh and beautiful you cna't help falling in love with it!
Monday, December 13, 2010
Xmas Markets at La Defense
I've been in Paris for close to 5 months and I still hadn't seen La Defence so on an abosultely freexing cold evening mid-week (after skipping class) we headed off to the Xmas markets there. I have never been so cold. It is like a massive wind tunnel. 
I'm so used to seeing beautiful old buildings in the centre of Paris where it is illegal to build above 6 stories that to come just out side and see this concrete jungle was a bit of a shock but the markets were lovely. The space in the middle fits the Arc de Triumphe in the middle - it is absolutely huge.
The xmas markets were very pretty, not that much nice stuff in the stalls. Jewellry, scarves, little nicknacks. There were lots of food stalls selling awesome things for xmas. Got some lovely salami and honey cake. There was a lot of German influences with the dinner food - sausages with bread and roast pork dishes. How big is that saucepan full of potato tartiflette - almost like potato bake but not bakes - like a hot potato salad.
This photo doesn't really do it justice but the view from under the arche is amazing looking back into Paris along the Boulevard. A nice christmassy evening had by all ;0
I went again with Rach and we tried hot cider and vin chaud, didn't try the xmas beer and the hot vodka was probably taking the warm drinks a bit too far!
I'm so used to seeing beautiful old buildings in the centre of Paris where it is illegal to build above 6 stories that to come just out side and see this concrete jungle was a bit of a shock but the markets were lovely. The space in the middle fits the Arc de Triumphe in the middle - it is absolutely huge.
The xmas markets were very pretty, not that much nice stuff in the stalls. Jewellry, scarves, little nicknacks. There were lots of food stalls selling awesome things for xmas. Got some lovely salami and honey cake. There was a lot of German influences with the dinner food - sausages with bread and roast pork dishes. How big is that saucepan full of potato tartiflette - almost like potato bake but not bakes - like a hot potato salad.
This photo doesn't really do it justice but the view from under the arche is amazing looking back into Paris along the Boulevard. A nice christmassy evening had by all ;0
I went again with Rach and we tried hot cider and vin chaud, didn't try the xmas beer and the hot vodka was probably taking the warm drinks a bit too far!
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Eurodisney (at Xmas!)
EPF's international students association managed to score 29euro tickets to Disneyland (both parks) in December and since Rachel really wanted to go we headed off 'early' on Sunday to Disneyland. It was pretty cold so we were rugged up really well and were pretty warm for most of the day although my feet were always freezing.
They had decorated the park for xmas, it was very pretty and they ahd snow-machines going off some of the roofs and with the remnants of the previous day's snowfall ti was very whimsical! We did a lot of different things that I didn't do the last time I went to there - lots of the kiddy cartoon things like the Alice in Wonderland maze
and Peter Pan's flight which I;'m not sure was worth the wait.
We did most of the scary rides, the tower of terror was awesome, the new RC racer at the Toy Story land was fun and we mangaed to go on the rock & roller coaster twice coz it had a short line close to closing time. After the studios part of the parc closed we came back to catch the fantallusion parade whihc was awesome - ltos of princesses and their handsome princes and also some of the baddies.
It was great to see since I missed it last time coz it was on so late due to it being summer.
It was nice going back to disney land and if I knew when I first went that I would come again I probably would have got a year long ticket to save some money. I'm pretty sure I won't be going again, there are only so many queues you can stand in in a life-time. About half way through the day I was totally over it but by the evening when the place was lighted up I got my mojo back and strated to enjoy the atmosphere.
Rach & I swaped cameras for the day so we could actually get photos of ourselves on our cameras. This is about the only photo of us together at Disneyland. The Disney castle is so pretty when it is lit up at night!
They had decorated the park for xmas, it was very pretty and they ahd snow-machines going off some of the roofs and with the remnants of the previous day's snowfall ti was very whimsical! We did a lot of different things that I didn't do the last time I went to there - lots of the kiddy cartoon things like the Alice in Wonderland maze
and Peter Pan's flight which I;'m not sure was worth the wait.
We did most of the scary rides, the tower of terror was awesome, the new RC racer at the Toy Story land was fun and we mangaed to go on the rock & roller coaster twice coz it had a short line close to closing time. After the studios part of the parc closed we came back to catch the fantallusion parade whihc was awesome - ltos of princesses and their handsome princes and also some of the baddies.
It was great to see since I missed it last time coz it was on so late due to it being summer.
It was nice going back to disney land and if I knew when I first went that I would come again I probably would have got a year long ticket to save some money. I'm pretty sure I won't be going again, there are only so many queues you can stand in in a life-time. About half way through the day I was totally over it but by the evening when the place was lighted up I got my mojo back and strated to enjoy the atmosphere.
Rach & I swaped cameras for the day so we could actually get photos of ourselves on our cameras. This is about the only photo of us together at Disneyland. The Disney castle is so pretty when it is lit up at night!
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