Great Oscar's Ghost! Is that a 2-floor Starbucks? (Adventures with MooReece con't)

Ok so maybe I've been too harsh on this little city I'm currently inhabiting. It is the resting place of Oscar Wilde and Jim Morrison afterall, so it can't be all bad. I'm just critical because I come from the most beautiful city on EARTH! HA! Maybe not, but it is cleaner and even when something goes wrong at INCO (which is finally no longer on strike - praise heaven!) I'm convinced the air is still cleaner than the best of days in the metro. GROSS!

One thing that kicks Sudbury Ontario's butt? STARBUCKS at almost EVERY metro exit! So no matter how tired (and I'm TIRED!) I get and how sick of the heat and annoyed with the people that I get, a smile is waiting for me at the next stop. Can you say WOOHOO? Currently I'm plunked on the 2nd floor (that's right the 2ND FLOOR) of the nicest (albeit not the cleanest) Starbucks I've ever been to. I know, I KNOW, I shouldn't be indulging in North American capitalism at its finest, and I should be sipping café or noisettes or viennois at any of the thousands of café or brasseries at my disposal but believe you me, when you are a 6 cup at day girl, those Barbie doll sized serving containers (I refuse to call those things cups) just don't cut the mustard. "It's about quality, not quantity" they say and for the most part that is true, but when you are a junkie, you cannot train your brain to believe that 5ml of caffeine is enough when you're used to consuming 500ml (and for the same price, if not MORE!) So I sit here with my Grande Soy Chai The Latte and I people watch and I'm much happier than I was 10 minutes ago. In my defence, there were NO Starbucks whatsoever in the Riviera and I was forced to drink 1 itty bitty espresso per day until I found instant coffee. Mmmmmm NOT! My Matante Annette would NEVER survive here. SORRY MATANTE!

This is for Jaime: THANK YOU for turning me into a junkie! But the seat across from me is awefully lonely regardless... (and as I look around - like I do in every Starbucks - no sign of the stalker yet...HAHAHAHAHAHA)

Cheers!

BUSTille Day (Adventures with MooReece con't)

I was moving into Paris on Canada Day. First Canada Day that I actually miss. 14th of July is France's Bastille Day (aka their National Holiday) and so just like everywhere else the capital turns into a gong show. Just imagine a city of 2.5 million people, 2.5 million tourists and a control freak Canadian duking it out on the first not-so-sunny day in Paris. I was actually super excited for this holiday as I missed the one back home and I figured it would be a great opportunity to take part in French culture and party with them. HA, Paris never ceases to shock me!

I dragged my butt out of bed "early" to get to the Champs Elysee to watch the military parade. We don't get many parades in our neck of the woods and I kind of like them so I was jacked to see it (tanks, marching and men in uniform OLAY!) Also an airshow was on the menu. So I get off at Concorde (if you watched Da Vince Code, you know where that is) and I start to walk, and walk, AND WALK! I finally stop in this crowd that is slowly making its way through a gate and I'm confused, why is there a gate? Turns out everyone around me has a blue piece of paper in their hand and so I rubber neck to find out what it says. They are invites from Nicolas himself! GASP! I think of jumping the old couple next to me and stealing their ticket but then again, I don't look good in stripes. So I move on. And on....AND ON! Finally I get to Roosevelt and notice more gates with people in front and behind them. Turns out those invites are "priority standing" for the parade. HOW RUDE! I'm not sure if everyone in Paris got one and us meager foreigners get thrown to the back, but lets just say finding a good view point was not easy feat. Luckily I did find an okay spot where I could see the road through some trees (check my pictures you'll understand) and so I waited....and waited....AND WAITED!!! I thought the Parade was starting around 9am. Nope, more like 10:30am. I met an American couple from Seattle who picked me out as Canadian with my "Aboat" (I do not say ABOAT do I??) and we chit chatted and complained to make the time go by. After what seemed like an eternity 2x over the parade begins, as does the fly over. We enjoy this for approximately 10 minutes until Mother Nature decides to dump the Mediterranean on our heads. 3 months of rain fell in 3 hours on Bastille Day 2010! It must be ME - it's NEVER nice on Canada Day either...hmm....
Of course I went totally unequipped and so we ran for shelter under a tree (and we all know the safest place to be in a storm is under a tree, right children?) But eventually the tree gave into the weight of the ever accumulating water and in a search to find another tree, the man notices an underground parking lot RIGHT BEHIND US! Go Team! So we take refuge with about 100 other people until the rain finally lets up. We gave up on the parade, we couldn't really see anything anyways and went our separate ways. My next stop? The patisserie... then? You guessed it - STARBUCKS! Hey! It was RAINING again, I needed shelter and something warm thank you very much - don't judge me, I was quite content sitting there reading my book and watching people run around frantically in the downpour. 6 and a half weeks in France and the only day it rains is a National Holiday. Go Amy Go!

Fireworks are another staple of any national holiday right? Apparently here in Paris they are held over the Eiffel Tower and so as long as you have a view of the tower you should be able to enjoy the fireworks. That's great because I live in Montmartre (aka the highest point in Paris) with a magnificent view over the entire city (including Eiffel herself). So my roommate and I make our way up just before 10 to try and snag a spot. Did I mention that there are ALOT of people in Paris? Lets just say we spent over an hour being pushed, shoved, groaned at and almost burned with cigarettes and never got to see the fireworks because they weren't over the Eiffle Tower, they were to her right and a house was in the way. AWESOME! That is when my roommate looks up at me and says, Bastille Day was a total BUST. And I reply (you guessed it)... BUSTILLE DAY!