Uno due

My Eurotrip in ten photos:

Trets-en-Provence, France; my home for 17 days

Nice, France

Florence, Italy

Corniglia, Italia

Manorola, Italy

Strasbourg, France

Bern, Switzerland

Antwerp, Belgium

Lille, France

Europa, I miss you so.

Musique en plus

Found this on my computer today:

And there's my talking voice.

Marseille (and Toronto)

I'm reading Pictures from Italy, written by Charles Dickens. I was going through my 1600+ photos from Europe and thought it would be a nuch more solid-headed recap; Dickens wrote it during his travels through Italy (via France) starting in 1844, and amazingly, he is tracing my steps backwards through France--Avignon, Aix and Marseille. He talks of the gypsies, the beggars in the streets, crowds gathering at popular tourist sites (the same as today), and so much of it is the same, yet so different too, with Dickens and his family taking three full days to travel from Paris to Marseille whereas it took me all of the hour and fifteen minutes to travel overhead.

Here's a passage he wrote of Marseille:

I was there, twice or thrice afterwards, in fair weather and foul; and I am afraid there is no doubt that it is a dirty and disagreeable place... a compound of vile smells perpetually arising from a great harbour full of stagnant water... which, in hot weather, is dreadful in the last degree.

And that seems to be an opinion of Marseille held by quite a few travellers I met on the road. Those who love Marseille, however, are more than infatuated with it. What I have of it are kind strangers eager to point me in the right direction, lasting patience with my less-than-perfect French, good advices and good seafood.


Nom, mussels and fries.

Clearest waters, my first dip in the Mediterranean

Notre-dame de la garde, seen from the Vieux Port

...but I guess divided opinions are true of every city. The same goes for Toronto, it seems--I jumped onto my flight home and was uneasy with impatience my entire flight home, dying to see my garbage strike-ridden city and reunite with my hometown that I love so much. A friend of mine was disappointed that I still held such enthusiasm for Toronto. When I asked him why, he answered that he wanted to hear from another person, and be assured that Toronto is not a place to stay.

But you know I feel otherwise.

Forest City Lovers and the D'Urbervilles tomorrow! SummerWorks is yet another point for the T.O.

My next adventure

Forty-five long days, one delayed flight, six delayed train rides, countless skipped meals, one ride in the back of a cop car, two CouchSurfing nights, too many dollars overbudget and seventeen (!) cities later, I am home in Toronto. In the 22 hours since my arrival at the YYZ Pearson Airport, I've charged the doors on the TTC, had Tim Hortoms, Bagel Stop and Korean food (yum), went to Dollarama and got rained on. Everything feels surreal, I keep saying Euros instead of dollars and turn around to see the tourist when I hear English being spoken only to realize they are locals. Gosh, I love Toronto.

I'm not sure how to get by for the next couple weeks, being super broke and all, but that is what student living is all about... is that a good thing?



I'm planning my next adventure already, Metro Toronto has published a timely article on the Pacific Northwest Trail, a 1 200-mile trail stretching from Washington State to Montana, over the Rocky Mountains and the Pasayton Wilderness. I would really like to walk it someday. Anyone in? Grizzly bears and all...

Recaps soon!

I'M ALIVE

Hello love (yes you),

I thought I'd report and say that I'm alive and well, dirt broke and out of toothpaste in Strasbourg. I have so many things to show you and I will begin when I come home in less than ten days. Strasbourg is a dream, Bern was kind.

See you soon!

Esther

BONJOUR

Hello from Provence!

I am toasting away to golden perfection in the sun here. My tan has never looked better. Currently I'm inhabiting La ferme de Noé, where it takes 50 minutes to walk to the nearest town. I look after potatoes, cucumbers, zucchinis, tomatoes, beans, and herbs among other plants, and some chickens, ducks and turkey. I know, right? And some crazy cats and dogs, too. I'm going to kidnap one of the wee little chatons and put him in a tea cup, because I can.

I want to show you my photos of the spectacular landscapes here, but computer use is limited (although Kitty is being very patient). I'm also speaking a lot more French than I would've ever thought, and I think I could survive here if I had to, despite the stifling language barrier.

So far, I've seen a day of Paris, two days of Marseille, some Aix and of course, Trets, the only town we can get to on foot before passing out in the Provence sun. Marseille, I was told, is dangerous and harsh, but my experience there was filled with kindness. Maybe it was my first view of the Mediterranean that rendered me blind, but I loved it there. Aix was also so, so amazing: Home to Cézanne's beautiful landscapes, and much of the subjects of his glowing portraiture. I wish I had more time in both cities, but it won't be my last time in Europe so there is always next time...

Among other things so far, I've sat in the back of a cop car (and spoke some fantastic franglais), and let some harmless but strange foreigners at a bar buy a round of Panaché (beer mixed with pop) for me and my colleagues at a tobacco shop (alcohol at a tabac is quite common here)... More adventures to come!

ps. Some of the best shows happen in Toronto when I'm not there: Ohbijou and Sunparlour Players at Soundscapes, Black Hat Brigade at NxNE... GET ON IT, TORONTO FOLKS.

Before I leave

This past Thursday I went to the Grizzly Bear concert, and I know you hear this from me, but God, what an amazing show. This time I really, really mean it. I was amazed by everything, even by how big Chris Taylor's mouth could get when he sings, but especially by Ed Droste's voice, and by how the ever-lovely Leslie Feist made a guest appearance. Observe and admire:

What a grand send-off (I leave for Europe tomorrow). When I come back I'll be seeing Amy Millan of Stars and my rainbow-endorsed imaginary husband Gentleman Reg at the Harbourfront Centre on July 25th, the Rural Alberta Advantage (the newest Saddle Creek addition, if you haven't heard yet) on the 30th, and St. Vincent on August 8th. I think that just about makes up for all the great shows I'll be missing: Beirut + the Dodos, and the Toronto Fringe Festival among others. My two former roommates are performing in two shows at the Toronto Fringe, Goodbye Rounds and Tim Buck 2 (scroll down a lot to find this one). I swear I almost considered going to Europe at some other time, but I'm really damn lucky to be living in this city. Dear Lady Luck, thanks for placing me here.

In a totally different news, my sister is now inhabiting the wonderful stad of Antwerpen (pronounced Antwerpuh), read her Euroblog here and her great story of how the name of the town came to be.

Vancouver: an observation

I've been in Vancouver since Saturday--actually, make that Coquitlam, a place where consumerism threw up yet somehow made a manageable place to live with green parks and bike lanes, in which my parents have decided to settle for the time being since their recent move from Ontario ("yours to discover") to British Columbia.

Today was my first day in downtown Vancouver, and probably my last, since I am leaving to go back home to Toronto early Friday morning (hooray check-in at 5 AM). And to be quite frank, I'm glad.

I'm probably being very close-minded and have seen very little of the city, especially considering my parents and I are stark opposites of human beings, and whatever they have shown me is not what's up my alley (except for the trails, the lakes and the hiking). But to be fair I did live here for a month way back when, and back a few years ago when my dad was trying to make business here I visited a few times. Unfortunately, the little that I've seen of the city makes me want to return to Toronto.

What makes me feel ill at ease is this: the streets named after shopping malls, or plainly called "Mall"; American big-power names like Starbucks dominating every corner; businesses far from local invading the "touristic" and "enjoyable" streets like Robson; the stark contrast of the rich and the poor, embodied by the men panhandling outside a Chanel boutique; and, this is just me and how I am, the lack of music stores or music in general (every store I went into today was playing house music). I think there is a point to be made when a city is built on support of the locals and the independent culture that they bring along--it's what makes me love a place. I want to love every city, and enjoy the excitement of waking up in a new place whenever I get off the plane. But I missed it with Vancouver.

Yes, Toronto is bedridden with mass production and American power names, too. And of course, all well-to-do urban cities have at least partially succumbed to that. But the cookie-mold condominiums speckled from the coasts to Coquitlam and beyond really hurt how a city is perceived. Little is left of the old, or what built the city in the first place. Everything felt stark naked and new. Vancouver is a wealthy city getting a make-over for the 2010 Olympics, but where did the charm of culture go, if it was ever here?

Of course, I may be misunderstanding everything. Maybe I just love Toronto and Soundscapes too much. But I want to see this place as it were before.

Still, I turn around and see mountains and rivers all around me, and my mind eases up a bit, and I even get a little bit jealous that Toronto is nothing but plains, plains, and the overpolluted Lake Ontario that's become more of a cliché. Also, the English Bay was beautiful, grass and sun and dogs. My favourite was still the Vermeer, Rembrandt and the Golden Age of Dutch Art exhibit at the Vancouver Art Gallery (am I allowed to call it Vag for short? Please?)--the Dutch genre paintings have always been a favourite of mine (along with Post-Impressionism) and I thought I knew much of it, but I left the gallery with fifty new favourite paintings. I took lots of notes, but my favourite, I think, is the one where I wrote: "I WANT TO BE FRANS HALS".

The liveliness of the eyes and the rosey cheeks are always my favourite part.

Anyway, I'm sure I can invoke a lot of rebuttal from what I've written, so I'm peacing out for now. I'm still getting ready for my European travels, and I started reading "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer. The world knows my attachment to the movie, so I'll probably become borderline obsessed after this. See you then!

Itinerary

Fourteen days left between me and Europe. I think it's time to reveal my itinerary and ask for pardon for the upcoming absence (although I have been very MIA this month anyway).

I'm being super ambitious, hitting at least 14 cities in a 48-day span. 17 of those days, I'll be on La ferme de Noé to the north of Marseille and Aix-de-Provence, building housing for animals and farming and harvesting and cooking and engaging in other earth-friendly shenanigans (and hopefully also those not very friendly to my liver). The not-so-secret hippie in me is basking in the glory of the thought. Marseille, Aix and Arles are all within the arm's reach of the farm.

From then on I'm heading off to Genoa, Cinque Terre, Florence and Venice in Italy. Reading cautionary tales of Venice has made me wary, but I'm open to falling in love with the sinking city. So we'll see. Bern and Lucerne, Switzerland: Lucerne is my dad's favourite place in Europe, so I know I'll be captivated by its charm. Belgium will be housing my amazing twin sister (yeah, really) for three months, so I'll be visiting there on my way back to Paris! I hope to hit Antwerp (yay for wool), Brussels and Bruges (In Bruges being one of my favourite scripts ever). Then I'll head back to Paris before hitting home base in Toronto.

I know, right?

Time to go buy a travel case for my ukulele.

ps. I may or may not have been playing Hot 'n Cold by Katy Perry on my ukulele. Whatever.
pps. I have a lot to say about the suicide of the former president of Korea, and even more to say about the exhausting trial of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Then there's the North Korean tests, the UN response. There's just so much around me and far from me, and my head is turning in every which direction. I want to gather my thoughts and understand what they want, and still not make excuses.

les poulets couvent souvent au couvent

I got an e-mail last night from CADIP confirming that my application to do volunteer work in France in June was approved. I had just transferred the right amount of money in my banking account for the application fee the night before, so phew! But I am super excited! Summer is happening for real. My roommate Kitty is joining me, and it will be her fourth (!) summer in France in a row!

We're going to a little town called Trets near Aix-en-Provence in the south...

I long for summer already.