Fading away...

Well, I haven't been around because I recently got myself onto myspace! I find it far easier to connect to new people that way and more exciting than blogger. Sooooooo.... I believe my blogging days here are coming to an end :(

I will post more as soon as I have made a concrete decision!

Jen

SCARY NAKED EYE!!!

Here is just a scary eye pic - with no makeup on top of it!!!

Chicago-bound!

Hello hello hello!

Happy Christmas Eve!!! WOOHOO!! Well, my big plan for Christmas include 12.5 hours of work Christmas Eve, 13 hours of work Christmas day, and to put a nice finish to things: 12 hours of work the day after Christmas! So basically, I have a weekend of about 38 hours to look forward to, YEAHOO!!

The upside of that very depressing news is that I leave for Chicago first thing in the morning on the 27th! It has been way too long since I have last been home so I am REALLY looking forward to getting back, seeing my brothers, hanging with my friends and basically being flat-out American for a little while. One of my major plans for the first day is my brother picking me up from the airport with an enormous dr. pepper in hand (I can't really get that in France), then grabbing a nice veggie burger at burger king, a nap, and then buying a new digital camera. I have had ENOUGH of not having a freakin' camera!!! I am totally SICK of it!

Yesterday, I took a huge walk around Paris as I will be gone for a couple weeks. I hiked over and across the Seine to St. Germain. There is a lovely tea store called Mariage Frères which I visited for a Christmas gift for my boyfriend's brother. After that, I hiked back up toward the Seine and followed it down to St. Michel. I then remembered that there is a famous bookstore for Americans called Shakespeare and Co that I hadn't ever visited. I've been meaning to pick up a copy of The Idiot by Dostoevsky and so I figured this was the perfect moment. This place is unbelievable!!! If you are ever in Paris, this is an absolute must. Any American writer who comes to Paris visits this place as if it were mecca. I think I will do a whole post on this place when I get back into town and when I can take some pictures. You kind of have to see it to believe it. After this, I crossed over and walked in front of Notre Dame, visited the flower markets, the christmas markets, the pet stores and then decided to cruise around the outside of the Louvre and see some of the older churches. After that, I continued down rue St. Honoré which is great shopping and then traversed the Palais Royal with it's fantastic gardens and was home again!

It's amazing the city I live in here. It is a different kind of everyday, but you can also make it like no other day. It's funny, I feel like I kind of own Paris now in my own way. I never feel lost, I always feel connected to one thing or another. It really has become a sort of home for me. This little 3 hour walk reminded me of that...

By the way, here is a crazy picture of my hair after it was attached all friggin morning - you basically get the idea of the crazy natural "go with the flow" haircut! AND, on top of it, There is NO color left!!!!



Anyhow, enough of the sentimental, it is time for me to start preparing to head back to the land of eternal cold - CHICAGO!!!

I'll be back with more news soon!

Jen

Soirée Fantasme!!! Fantasy Party

Hello hello hello everyone! Yes, I know, it has been a little while since I have posted. I have been as busy as usual however last Saturday night, my friend Alice held a Fantasy Party at the hotel. Basically, everyone was to dress up as a fantasy of some kind. You can imagine, we had men as women, men as gay men, women as whores, schoolgirls, etc... It was a total blast! Anyhow, I didn't have a costume as I worked all day and my school girl costume fell through for lack of a skirt! Anyhow, here is a couple little pics to give you the idea!

Okay, so in the top picture you have a view of the surrounding area with a picture of my head talking to a super cute Australian guy! No worries I was good! All in all it was good fun and close to home. That is my friend Alice, sexy huh? ;)

Talk you all soon!

Jen

P.S. For those who were curious how my hair is, you can kinda see here, but not really all that well!!!!

Anyone for Rugby

Well, today I come to you all with a little story about Rugby...

There are often perks to the hotel industry and it usually isn't pay! I had a couple of burly men stop by the other day to drop off their friend. They were in France for a rugby match between France and South Africa (needless to say, they were with the South African team). The guys were fun and easy going and at one point, one of the men asked me if I was interested in seeing a rugby game. I told him that I had never seen rugby before and wouldn't know what to do with it. He said it would be fun and on top of it, he is one of the team sponsors so the passes would be VIP for the presidential box. Hmmmm.... I contemplated my options and let him know I would call. After much hestitation (you know, going to strange places with strange men, etc...) I deicded YES! So, at 7PM last night, I got off work a little early to ensure I was presentable for the VIP seats. I first try and take a taxi, but Saturday night in Paris and taxis just don't go together. So, I decide to hit the metro! The thing is, the stadium is outside of Paris in a very, let's just say, unpleasant neighborhood. If any of you heard about the riots in Paris with exploding cars and such, it was at THIS place!!

Well, so far, 30 minutes late for the match, but I get to the gate. (This is after many painful turns in very high heels because, in French, when I said GATE U, they understood GATE E and sent me in little circles) Finally, I make for half time (better that not at all right?). My friend from the hotel pops down, gives me my very special ticket, gets me in the door and welcome to the world of Rugby with champagne and foie gras. (This is no joke by the way). The people who work for the team are absolutely charming and I am having a lovely time. Afterwards (the French win), we all go inside to drink and snack a little bit more. Paul, the nice man who has offered me these seats, stays by my side and introduces me to EVERYONE (this includes the Ambassador of South Africa in France). He then invites me to the game dinner after the match with the team. After a great deal of hesitation, I say yes.

So, dinner it is, and I spend my whole time explaning to everyone else what is we are eating. They served duck liver as an appetizer and funky white fish wrapped in bacon as a meal. The French had no problem but a bunch of rugby playing south africans looked like they were on fear factor. Dinner was great and I met a bunch of great people. The problem is, I have to get home because it is nearly 2AM and I work the next day. The team is staying at a castle outside of Paris (Chantilly) so they really can't drop me off. Two people working with the team are actually in Paris so I decide,"Hey, I'll hitch a ride with them." Some French liaison insists that the metro is still working. So, off we go, with the two strong men, to the metro to get me home and off to bed. We arrive, metro closed, and don't forget, we are in one of shittiest suburbs outside of Paris. We decide to walk back because NO taxi would even stop for us (not even the availble ones). The thing is, they drive THROUGH those areas, they don't STOP in them! As we are walking back, I try every taxi company I know. One guys runs ahead and comes back to tell us there is no one there anymore. I walk up to the gate and start to talk to the security guard about options, I turn around, and the two guys are GONE!!!! They FREAKIN' left me there, ALONE, 2AM, WORST SUBURB IN PARIS, AHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Well, I decide it is time to put on the girlish charms or end up as insulation for a local garbage dumpster. I see two men with badges, nice suits and a nice watch and decide that it is now or never! I run up to them and explain my whole predicament in French and they told me,"No problem, we will get you back to Paris." I seriously wanted to click my heals and say,"There is no place like home, there is no place like home." So, as I am grateful and shitting my pants at the same time, I am walking with these two perfect strangers to their car in and underground, UNDERLIT parking garage. Now, I am thinking to myself,"If you get raped in this piece of shit parking garage, it will be entirely your fault." Finally, the guys spots his totally high end mercedes and I am like,"Okay, maybe not tonight!"

The two men are the organizers for the World Cup in France. They are kind as ever and drive me as far as Gare de Lyon at the OTHER end of Paris. They drop me off because there are plenty of taxis. Even the worst part of paris doesn't compare with St. Denis (where I was), so I am just happy to be in paris again. I thank the profusely and go on the hunt for a taxi.

NO taxi will take me because it is the end of their service. In France, you cannot have a client in the cab after the service is over otherwise it is very very high fines. So, off I go again by foot. I stumble across a Holiday Inn and I say to myself,"Better go in there and call a cab then to wander through the streets at nearly 3AM." I go in, the guy calls me a taxi and there is a group of awful texans DRUNK at the bar saying all the worst stuff you can imagine. I sit down in the lounge praying for the taxi to arrive. At one point, the stupid fuck turns around and says,"I can get any whore, even that silly little whore," pointing to ME!!!!! Now, I don't want to start a fight with some drunken redneck in France, but I seriously wanted to feed the guy his testicles. So, the taxi arrives and I decide that I need to show him he isn't as clever as he thinks speaking in English in France so I say,"Excuse me, sir? (he looks) Next time you call someone a silly little whore, it is probably best if you chose a language they didn't understand." He starts shouting all kinds of shit at me, I grab my bag and hop in the cab and am finally on my way home!!!!

At about 3AM, i arrive at home after driving with a mute for like 20 minutes. I pay, I get out, and I feel like I am in Disneyland once I get back to my area of town. Now, I am very lucky this time, but this is definitely something I would not repeat. I went in to check out a little rugby, and spent the good majority of my night running around and fearing for my safety!!!

That's all for now folks, I hope you enjoyed my latest news from France. Have a great day!

Jennifer

Allez Les Filles - a little sidenote from Cosmo in France

Okay, so my new added perk of this weblog - girlie magazines from France! I wanted to bring home some of the very interesting girlie reading material we have here, so today's article is entitled "Let's go Girls - An Anti-Rape Condom, what do you think?"

To give a brief translation:
In South Africa, Sonet Ehlers put into action the Rapex, female condom made to catch rapists. And, the 25th of November, it is the world-wide day to eliminate violence against women. An occassion to start the debate

In latex, the Rapex is used in a similar fashion as a tampon with an applicator. It can be worn up to 24 hours. Why is it anti-rape? Bcause it is armed with little little hooks that, at the moment of penetration, attach to the skin of the penis and provoke a pain that stuns the rapists long enough to allow the victim time to escape. Even if this does not cause any long-term injuries, the aggressor is obliged to see a doctor to have the Rapex removed and then the police are also called to intervene. In South Africa, there are 52,000 rape accounts per year whereas in France there are only 8,000 (ndlr - that is a ton just the same!!!).

Anyhow, you get the gist of the article. The reponses were pretty much unanimous - pretty much against the concept:

It is degrading. To put on this thing is like saying,"I am a woman, therefore fragaile, therefore 'rapable'.

Women are more in danger at their own place rather than outside and it is the same in most societeies. This is not the right approach.

It is the modern version of the chastity belt. Who is going to control how this will be used?

Anyhow, there is my interesting article for the day for all my readers. You can see the image of this interesting little device in the photo above!

Take care and I will be back soon with fun little tidbits from here in France...OVER TO YOU BOB!

Jennifer

A little Breakfast in America?

Ok, so back again with a little more restaurant news!!! In this case, diner news!

Basically, I woke up Sunday morning and I was dying for a good old Denny's hangover breakfast. It sounds so simply right? Well basically, what I eat for breakfast now includes croissants, tea, jelly....and well that's about it. The good old French breakfast just wasn't going to cut it for me Sunday morning. I remembered seeing something in some American newspaper regarding a place called Breakfast in America - An American Diner in Paris. I know I know, I should be taking advantage of all the lovely places to eat in Paris, but sometimes you just need your American crap-food fix and that is exactly what I got!!! I ordered a cheese omlet, hashbrown, sausages, a stack of pancakes and 2 orange juices!! I was stuffed to the bone and for the first time in a long time experienced one of the famous Denny's food comas! (You know, after you eat such ridiculous portions of food and about the only thing you can do is vegitate in front of a television or sleep?) Anyhow, it is one of the few places in Paris where you can have an American breakfast. Now, does it compare to Denny's? NO WAY!!! It filled the little hole in my stomach but it made an ever bigger one in my pocket-book!! I walked outta there paying 20 euros!!!! (That is about the equivalent of $24 for what woulda cost me a maximum of $10 for a better meal at Denny's. But hey, you gotta take what you can get - and they all speak English, perhaps that is what cost more!!!

Breakfast in America

17, rue des Ecoles

75005 Paris

01.43.54.50.28

cc@breakfast-in-america.com

www.breakfast-in-america

That is all for now folks, have a great day!!!

Jennifer

New Restaurant - Sur un Arbre Perché

Great new restaurant to share with you called "Sur un Arbre Perché." Basically, the concept is that you feel like you are up in a tree - there are little swings and tables are set in a sort of tree house. The atmosphere is perfect, the lighting is exquisite and it is extremely romantic! (Hence the reason I went there last night with Mr. Love - a.k.a. Nico) The food was great in general however the duck was slightly overcooked. They may have done that on purpose because I am an American and Americans tend not to like undercooked meet. The wine was perfect and they also do massages there! You can have a little 15 minute massage in between dinner and desert or you can go there specifically for a little massage. Basically, it is very Zen and the service was very good. I definitely suggest this restaurant for a lovely little dinner "entre amoureux." Check out their website by clicking above for more details.

Sur un Arbre Perché

7, rue 4 Septembre

Paris 75002 FRANCE

01.42.96.97.01

Metro: Bourse