La Petite Vie

New Year: What the hell should I do?

2011-12-29T05:12:00.001-08:00

A new year is fast approaching and suddenly I have realized it has been over a year since I last blogged and over a year since I last let myself write something just for fun, or write anything besides essays and papers for school for that matter.

I’ve also realized my personal self has gotten a bit lost along the way this year and as I embark on what is to be the project that is the culmination of all of my academic and life history and what it is I know about the world (aka my master thesis), I find myself asking “what the hell am I doing?” on a pretty much daily basis.

I read the blog of an old friend today and finally realized I am not alone in this horrible, angsty rollercoaster we call our 20s. For the past five years I have been having this ongoing inner battle with myself about what the heck life is and what I am supposed to do with it. I know, it’s crazy, but I actually thought I was the only one with these problems. I mean, people only put up the super cute and awesome pictures on Facebook, they don’t include their crappy jobs at the café and Mexican restaurant they are still working at on Linkedin. I mean honestly people, can we just cut the crap and actually put the truth on the internet so we can stop stressing out and comparing ourselves with each other?! Can we all just admit that “we have no idea what the hell we are doing and are just playing each day by ear and hoping to god it will work out and that we won’t end up in our parents’ basement in the town we grew up in.”

My own personal struggle has been this never-ending journey to find my own “passion” in life. This thing that people say you need to have about work because “work will make up a good portion of your life” so now I am frantically trying to find it otherwise I will totally be doomed forever and will be 40 and freaking out and wondering “why didn’t I just move to New York when I was younger and try to make it as an actress-pop-star-singer-princes???! That is what I really wanted to do!”

I look at my career, what it is I am going to be doing the rest of my life, in the same way I look at finding true love. There has to be that one, perfect something out there that is just meant to be, and meant for me, and I have to keep looking for it until I will come to that moment where I will just know. But is that true? Is there just one true thing for everyone? Or are there so many things instead?

I thought that I had done everything right. I did well in school, went to college, graduated, even studied abroad which I thought was totally cool and unique, but I guess everyone else did that too. I learned another language (big freaking deal, apparently this is the norm outside of America), got a big-girl job in a big city office building, and then even went to work abroad and am now learning yet another language and in my last year of graduate school! I should be so grown up now and know so many things! But I still have no idea what it is I am doing!!! Or what it is I want to do. Or what I can do for that matter. And I thought being a teenager was confusing….

So, as this New Year comes, I have decided to go back to the basics and take stock of this life I have so-far created. Journaling, dreaming, writing and getting shit done is my plan, and trying not to totally lose it every time someone asks “so what is it you want to do?” I’m still figuring it out, and I’m actually kind of happy about that. I feel closer and closer to the revelation every day, and know the best is still yet to come. God I hope that’s true…

Fall Cleaning

2010-11-08T12:49:00.000-08:00

View from the summer house

We are in full Autumn mode here and the scenery is beautiful. Falling leaves galore and a gorgeous harvest sun.

We spent the weekend in Uddevalla again, had a special ceremony for Tage, and spent some time outdoors enjoying the sun that had been hiding for so long.

The days are getting shorter now, and the darkness is coming, so I am trying to soak up every ounce of light I can.

We spent Friday at the summer house in Ljungskile doing some good, hard, outdoors work, cutting down trees and clearing bushes. This was a first for me so I opted to be family photographer half-way through.

Hey, I'm still learning this Swedish rustic way of life ;)

The men taking down the tree

Maude and the dogs monitored the work

Timber!

Spooky Spooky

2010-11-02T13:26:00.000-07:00

Well I just wrapped up my second Halloween in Sweden and it was a success! Carved pumpkins with my AWC gals, had a blast at Linnea and Andreas' second annual Halloween party and even found the movie Hocus Pocus on youtube to watch! I have to say, European Halloweens are becoming a stiff competition to my American ones. Well, almost ;)

J and me as cowboy and cowgirl

Andreas as a Somali pirate, the other Andreas as Ipren (a Swedish pill equivalent to asprin) and Felipe dressed up as his wife, Alexandra

Vilken härlig dag

2010-10-09T15:25:00.000-07:00

Today was a perfect Fall day. The air was fresh and crisp, the trees hues of orange and yellow.

Jonatan and I enjoyed an afternoon concert at the Gothenburg Opera and then I had nice evening out with my AWCG gals and finally saw Eat, Pray Love.

Tomorrow my mission is to find decent pumpkins for carving to really bring in the autumn season. We'll see how that goes....

Gothenburg Opera Foyer Concerts

I am teaching again

2010-10-09T15:11:00.000-07:00

At the bus stop near the school where I teach in Sweden

I really enjoyed teaching in France last year and when the experience came to an end, I realized how much I was going to miss it and my students.

Now I am living in Sweden and though I am focusing on my own studies at the moment, I still wanted to keep my teaching skills in practice and spend some of my extra time teaching English to cute Swedish kids.

I was lucky enough to find part-time working teaching ESL in an after school program. I teach only two classes a week (sometimes 5) but get to have fun teaching children 3-9 English and make some extra cash at the same time. And the children are such great learners! I am really impressed with their interest and motivation.

Here are some pics around the school with some of the beautiful Swedish Fall colors.

Puss och Kram!

Fall trees near school

Classroom
School

A day in the life of me

2010-09-29T07:37:00.000-07:00

So what do I do all day? Well, being a grad student I don't do much more than read and study and read some more, but for those of you who are far away, here is a little picture by picture account of what a typical day looks like for me :)

For now the weather is still a pleasure--we have had a lot of sun and while there is the nip of Fall in the air, you can still get away with a light coat and scarf. I am trying to take advantage of this so instead of heading straight for the tram in the mornings on my way to school, I'll take a stroll down to Lindholmen to hop on the ferry to Rosenlund.

Lindholmen

There is the ferry I just took!

And then I'll wait for the tram at Järntorget

I get off the tram and here I am at campus

That's my building!

And look, people just park their bikes here. They don't even lock them up! Can you imagine?! This really is utopia.....

I can take a little detour through our "secret garden" and grab an apple for a snack from the small orchard

Close up of the main building where all of my lectures are held

Here is the computer room at the library, where I spend a lot of my time. There are weird mask-like sculptures on the wall...I'm not too sure about those, but I guess they are cool to look at

There are a lot of excellent open lectures held by the various departments within the university. This one was one of Jan Eliasson and was held in this gorgeous hall

Jan Eliasson himself (if you don't know who he is, look him up, it's worth it)

And then I make it home and take over the kitchen table (to the boyfriend's dismay) with all of my reading and studying and reading and studying......

Not too exciting, but now you know!!

Let Me Catch You Up...real fast

2010-09-25T12:50:00.001-07:00

So it has been quite a while, and a lot has happened. The past few months have really been a whirlwind of hellos, goodbyes, surprises, shocks, solitude and lot of flying and moving around.

I have returned back to Sweden after two months back in the States. My parents came back with me for their first time to Scandinavia and they loved it—what a relief! I had such a great time showing them around my new home and introducing them to my “other family.” I couldn’t have asked for a better visit.

Now they are back home, and J and I are here, all settled in our apartment. There is still a lot of work to be done here, but it does already feel like home. It kind of always has.

I know it’s only been about two months, but I have to say, I am loving this “living with my boyfriend” thing. Initially it was something I really never thought I would do, and after being preoccupied with all of the technicalities of getting here (applying to school, getting into school, getting the visa, making the flight and getting all my crap here), I kind of didn’t really pay attention to the reality of what I was doing. But then I sit here, in our apartment, and become my 16 year old self again. I am living with my boyfriend. With my best friend. How cool is that?! We can do whatever we want! Eat candy for dinner, stay up and watch TV as long as we want. Kiss whenever and wherever we want. It is awesome!

Ok yes, I swear, I am an adult too. Yes we have to pay bills together and are having a slight disagreement about where the Tony Sopranos poster will go *cough*storage closet*cough*. But after being in a long-distance relationship pretty much my whole adult life, I am so completely ecstatic to know that I only have to be away from my love for no more than a matter of hours a day. So mushy and cheesy but so true.

Finally on the same continent again!

As for other updates—summer was great and exactly what I needed. A little re-charge of California and family and friend love to hopefully hold me over for the long, dark winter ahead of me. Working at IIE was great and geared me up for my studies.

I started school almost a month ago now. For those of you who don’t know I am pursuing a Masters in Global Studies at the University of Gothenburg. I am really loving being a student again. I get to go to the library and read for hours a day and then write papers and have seminars and lectures. It’s awesome! Haha. My class is really interesting too—there are 85 of us total and we come from all corners of the world. There are so many interesting people and perspectives—I am really happy to be studying in another country again.

I also have found a little job for myself teaching English to elementary school level children in an after school program here in Gothenburg. I really enjoyed teaching last year and am so happy I will be able to continue. And Swedish kids are so darn cute! Maybe even cuter than French kids? Hmmm…. :)

Other than that I am still very active as the Program Chair of the American Women’s Club of Gothenburg and am starting Swedish Language lessons next week, so I am definitely keeping busy. Oh! And I am going to join Friskis och Svettis (Chelsea L knows what this is), because I need to get some exercise going.

Ok there are probably like a million other things I have to say and I apologize this was not the most creatively written blog entry but I just felt that I needed to throw everything at you list-form to get it out and get you caught up. I will try my best to keep you all updated regularly, but honestly, I am just so busy!! But I love it! And I love Sweden! And I am so wonderfully, incredibly, probably annoyingly happy right now it would probably make you sick to hear about it all the time but I really will try to let you all know what’s going on. I love you! I miss you! Oh—and I’ll be home for Christmas :)

Puss och Kram!!

Our apartment--still a work in progress

I went to a kräftskiva!

The girls turned 1!

"Learning a Foreign Language is a Waste of Time," what?!

2010-04-23T02:53:00.000-07:00

I just finished reading Jay Mathews' most recent post on his Washington Post education blog, 'Class Struggle,' and I am left completely flabbergasted.

"Learning a language is often a waste of time," he explains in his blog titled 'Why Waste Time on a Foreign Language.' He goes on to say that while learning a foreign language "improves cognitive development, [...] enhances academic skills, encourages a sense of the wider world and looks good to colleges," it is still pretty much pointless for high schools to continue to include foreign language study in their curriculum because "there is little evidence that many students achieve much fluency in high school."

Oh, ok, so this is too hard and if everyone is not going to be perfect at learning a foreign language then we should just quit because why bother, right? Because the past four years of my life that I devoted to studying a foreign language, living in a foreign country and all that jazz that eventually led to my current career path and meeting my current life partner, that was really all just a waste because, still, I am not actually fluent in French yet.

What bullshit!!

He even had the audacity to throw in the quote from an actual high school teacher saying, "I'd wager close to 80 percent of kids taking foreign languages in high school do so because they have to."

Well no shit. I bet there is a pretty high percentage of kids who only go to school because they have to, but do you see anyone trying to shut down the schools (well I guess with all the budget cuts they pretty much are).

You want to know why students aren't fluent after a few years of high school Spanish or French--it's because it's not possible in our education system! Do you really think that by studying a foreign language one started learning at age 15 for about five hours a week is really going to be effective? How about adding more language requirements in junior high, and elementary school! That is what should be done to solve this problem.

I have spent this past year teaching English abroad at the elementary level. My students are shocked that American children do not need to study foreign languages at the primary level.

Of course, it is not like my six-year-olds are able to carry on the most intelligent of conversations, but language acquisition at a young age is so important and can make all the difference in future language learning abilities.

Sure, English is spoken everywhere, so what's the point, right? Well go on Americans, make us look even more like a bunch of jerks. Yeah, we will just hire other people to do our work for us, because that's a great idea for when people turn against us.

Sorry, but I was just completely astounded by this and had to vent. I apologize for my harshness, but seriously, come on people!

You can read Mr. Mathews' blog here: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/class-struggle/2010/04/why_waste_time_on_a_foreign_la.html

A Great Night for a Great Charity!

2010-04-22T11:28:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, I am a member of the American Women's Club of Gothenburg (a member of the Federation of American Womens' Clubs Overseas). I also have just been voted in as the new Programs Co-Chair of the Gothenburg Chapter and therefore am extra-excited to promote our upcoming charity event in May.

On Friday, May 21, at 7:00pm, we are hosting a wonderful evening of music, drinking and eating. How awesome does that sound?!

We are welcoming the world-renowned Yale Alley Cats from Yale University to serenade us for an evening while we raise support for the Bibi2Bibi charity- an organization helping disadvantaged grandmothers of AIDS orphaned children in Tanzania.

The event is at Örgryte’s historical Överås Mansion in Gothenburg and tickets must be ordered in advance.

Tickets are 300 SEK and can be purchased through our Plusgiro account 50 55 17-3.

For guest list purposes, be sure to include the number of people, and one or more names from your party in the message field. We must receive your payment before May 10 in order to hold your reservation!!

Venue: Överås Mansion, Danska Vägen 20 (click for map). Free parking is available at the mansion. If you're arriving by tram, take the #5 to Sankt Sigfrids Plan, and walk up-hill on Danska Vägen. The mansion is on the left, after approximately 400 meters. It is the first property on the left which has a large lawn looking out towards the street.

Here is a link to the event blog for more information: http://aidscharityconcert.blogspot.com/

The Yale Alley Cats: http://www.yalealleycats.com/

Bibi2Bibi: http://www.bibijann.org/

Överås Mansion: http://www.metodistkyrkan.se/overas/

AWC Gothenburg: http://awcgothenburg.com/

If anyone is in town and would like to attend--please let me know!!

Tack!

My child self...

2010-04-21T01:40:00.000-07:00

I am not sure why, but for some reason I am very much connected with my childhood self. Not in the way of “letting your inner child out every once in a while,” but in a way that I never grew out of that self of mine and I am in constant contact with it in everyday life.

I always check-in with child Liana. It is her approval I seek when making life choices—anywhere from where should I live, work and what should I wear. Everything always comes down to “would my child self be proud of this? Are these the dreams I had imagined while playing dress-up and beauty parlor and dolls?”

I like sitting and brining my mind back to my younger youth. When I thought that having extra-long hair that flowed down past my bottom would be the most amazing thing (and of course having it swept to one side over the front of my face so that one eye was covered. That one-eye covered by hair was key to the “sexy” image I had at 7).

My memories are like a mixed-media photo album—some plain snap-shots, but mostly little short films, often times silent, with no sound.

They pop into my mind randomly, like a fantasy I had when I was a child—it is me spinning in a grass field in a long-white dress. And my hair is long and wavy. I think it is because of that image that I have bought a profuse amount of white dresses in my lifetime. Each Spring I purchase at least five. And then I remember that one perfect dress I had as a child—the one I always had to wear. It was white, with small pink roses on it and the straps crossed in the back. Maybe I buy so many white dresses in hopes to one day be reunited with that one perfect one of my childhood.

One day when I was about five, I could not find that dress anymore. I remember wondering what happened to it, and then never seeing it again. I must have grown out of it and my mother must have packed it away, but still, I am forever searching for it.

When I feel nostalgia from a place, it is confirmation that I have succeeded in finding something my inner self is satisfied with. I have felt that with Sweden now, especially during this time when the Winter is over and the sun is creeping out and warming up to Summer. So yes, another decision that child Liana likes. I am on the right track.

America is my country and Göteborg is my hometown

2010-04-14T02:27:00.001-07:00

They are putting up the ferris wheel now--summer is coming!!

I have, yet again, been neglecting this blog and now, I have no excuses. I am not incredibly busy and don't have a million things to do at once. Nope, for the past week and a half I have taken on the role of "Swedish housewife," and I think I might be taking it a bit too far.

My arrival in Sweden was, as always, a joyful one. After Jonatan picked me up from Landvetter airport we went straight up to his parents' home in Uddevalla to enjoy the rest of the Easter weekend with his father (his mother was down in Aix visiting Alex and the babies).

I always enjoy weekends in Uddevalla because I know I will sleep and eat well and enjoy quiet evenings reading or watching Svenska Hollywoodfruar :)

Last week, back in the city, the pleasantness continued. Jonatan is now working full-time at his internship, so the days are mine to have and do pretty much whatever I want in Göteborg.

So I have been meeting up with my friends in the American Women's Club of Göteborg (we are preparing for a big benefit cocktail party/concert to raise money for Bibi2bibi, along with the Yale Alley Cats who are coming to spend the weekend in our city), I admit, I have shopped a bit--but not too much, and I have been enjoying the absolutely beautiful weather we have been blessed with here. Early morning walks along the Göteborg harbor are such a treat with the shining sun!

However, the past two days I seem to have slightly fallen off my path of go-go-Göteborg and found myself sitting in my lounge clothes at 2:00 in the afternoon sipping a glass of white wine and watching Sex and the City (with Swedish subtitles!! I am also practicing my svenska while I am here!).

Ok, so new goals--start writing more regularly, get in shape, practice that Swedish and check out all the new exhibits in town. Because God knows I have the time!!

More updates to come!

Le Départ

2010-04-02T23:58:00.000-07:00

Well here I am. 9:00AM on the day of my departure from the North of France.

My suitcase has surely exceeded its weight limit, and perhaps so have I with the profuse amounts of wine, bread and cheese I have been stuffing myself with lately--my final French indulgences in case it should be a while until my next taste.

Looking back I have feelings of satisfaction, embarassement, and also simple happiness. I really can't remember what I expected this year to be. There were so many uncertainties followed by so many regrets and anxieties after my arrival.

I scowled myself for my complaints and those times when I had quitting on my mind, but I know that this was a challenge, large or small, and I have completed and succeeded, nevertheless.

This year I have seen The Netherlands, England, Belgium and of course Sweden, and places in France I had never before visited.

I have tasted cow tongue, eaten chantilly in Chantilly, reunited with old friends in Paris, gotten to really know my brother and was welcomed into so many homes and families as one of their own. This year was a year of saints--of people completely selflessly opening themselves up and offering them to me. Never before, especially in my times in France, have I seen so much warmth and kindness. What I will take away most from this year are the people, for I know with the friends I have made during my stay here, we are not saying "au revoir"today, but instead "à bientôt."

My last day of classes was yesterday, and by far one of the greatest highlights of this experience has been teaching and my wonderful students and colleagues.

I was given my own personal farewell concert with a medley of English songs including "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," "Summer Nights," "Maria," and many more classics. I was bombarded with hugs, kisses, homemade cards and gifts and, the greatest compliment, tears from my teachers and recognition that I can truly be a teacher.

I have loved my time teaching and I now am aware of the incredible effect children have on me. I am still not sure where this life of mine is going, but for the first time I am not stressed by that. I am content in seeing it play out, however long it shall take.

Merci, France. Another unforgettable year.

Now on to the next one...

Making Peanut Butter & Jelly sandwiches with Mme Lardenois' class

M Dufour's class--the troublemakers

I have so many gifts I don't know what to do with them!

My special class--M Pawlac, Yuto, Alix and Elena

The Return to Aix

2010-03-22T09:27:00.000-07:00

A week ago I had just returned from the long-awaited return to my much beloved city of Aix-en-Provence.

For those of you who don't know, Aix was, and still is, my dream come true. It was my first true experience abroad (apart from Canada and Mexico, which I don't really count), my first experience in France (the country I had dreamed of for so long) and the place where I met my bestest friend Bea, and my true love, Jonatan.

Yeah, this place was and still is pretty awesome.

Jonatan and I jetted down there for a quick weekend to visit his sister, Alexandra, her husband, Felipe and their twin babies, Valentina and Victoria.

The babies are just 6 months and were the cutest! I hadn't seen them since right after their birth, so it was wonderful to see how much they have grown and be able to spend more time with them.

The whole weekend was just perfect. Short, but perfect.

Jonatan and I walked down the same streets we walked on when we first met. Payed visits to old friends, took drinks at the old cafes. It was as if nothing had changed, yet so much has changed in these past three years.

It felt so good to be "home" with the people I love, and reminded me again how lucky I am and how truly wonderful life can be.

cheesy cheesy cheesy! I know, but I can't help it! It's the South of France, love and life!

You can't get much better than that....

Jonatan and I outside of the bar/club IPN, where it all began

Chantilly

2010-03-08T10:06:00.000-08:00

Le Château de Chantilly

I am back from yet another glorious weekend with my French family, the Gaudets.

It is always a treat, and such a pleasant time with them, and this time was not any different.

This time it was a true "family" weekend, spending much time with "les petits:" Pierre, Juliette and Matthieu. We played games, baked cakes and I learned how to play Wii games in French. Hyper bon!

Saturday evening quickly turned into another birthday celebration for me as the children found out I had my special day just a week before. We had champagne (not the kids), sang songs, ate cow tongue (not a part of the birthday celebration necessarily, and not all that bad) and shared a bottle of wine from my year of birth. How cool!

Sunday was a day in Chantilly, about an hour drive from the family home in Compiègne, touring the Château de Chantilly and its grounds. The chateau was breathtaking and the day was beautiful. I won't bore you with the history (though it is very interesting!) so here is some more information on the chateau and its inhabitants:

http://www.chateaudechantilly.com/chateauchantilly/fr/index.html

The best part: eating crème chantilly in Chantilly! It was one of the most decadent things I have tasted and completed this delicious weekend.

Merci famille Gaudet!

another view of the chateau

Raphaël's "Les Trois Grâces." The original was displayed in the gallery

Amsterdam 4 Stars

2010-02-28T22:57:00.000-08:00

And just when I was getting cocky with how perfect my life is :)

Here I am again at the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, crashing in an airport hotel due to a flight cancellation. This time is a little bit different than before (in December I had to stay the night in a less than desirable airport hotel due to a flight cancellation to Göteborg because of weather conditions).

This occasion is thanks to the good ol' French and their lovely strikes. Oh Air France. At least they hooked me up with a complimentary stay at a 4 star hotel, dinner and breakfast and cable television. La chance!

Oh and p.s. I am 24 now. Let the mid-twenties begin!

Back to France now for trips to Remy, Compiègne, Aix and closing up shop in le Nord, then finally back to Sweden.....for good?

Bisous to all!

Braving the Swedish snow!

Semla time in Göteborg

Cloud 9, or an overdose of euphoria?

2010-02-19T02:50:00.000-08:00

For no particular reason I have been completely and blissfully happy this past week. Looking at my life right now there are actually a lot of major stresses circling around me--a lot of unanswered questions and various elements that I must sit and wait for--things that have the ability to drastically change my life for better or worse.

But, despite all of that, I have been looking back on the past three years of my life and realizing just how lucky I am. Yes, here it comes, a bunch of mushy, gooshy thank God kind of stuff. But truly, in my so-called adult life I have been doing everything I have ever dreamed of and more.

Travel, love. It makes my heart sing to know that in my opinion right now, I have it all.

I know by now that this feeling isn't going to last forever. So, despite from the hideous snow storm that is going on right now, I am going to love this day and everything about life right now ;)

Alla hjärtans dag

2010-02-17T05:47:00.000-08:00

A few days delayed, I know, but definitely wanted to post about this year's Valentine's Day. To be honest, I can't remember the last time I had a Valentine on Valentine's Day. It was probably in 2007 when Jonatan and I were living in Aix-en-Provence. So it was a big treat this year to be with my Valentine again.

I was first surprised by a candle-lit breakfast in bed, followed by a romantic walk in the snow over Keillers Park (there was sun!! there is sun here almost everyday!) and then a dinner for two at Pizza Hut. Yes, Pizza Hut. Here, Pizza Hut is a little more swanky than in America. It is one of those sit-down places where the waitress actually comes to take your order. And they serve wine. Who woulda thought? And we weren't the only ones there on a Valentine Date. I think I had even seen a couple who had dressed up for the occasion.

And to complete a perfect day of love, I found out that Sweden was also in love with my best friend Bea. They even had a pizza named after her. Just more reasons why I am loving Sweden more and more. Puss Puss everyone!

Swedish Tradition is Going Straight to my Hips

2010-02-16T12:39:00.000-08:00

Today is Mardi Gras, and while many of my friends are celebrating and participating in the various shenanigans around the world (I'm getting updates from New Orleans, U.S.A., Porto, Portugal, Venice, Italy and all over Spain), I am resting cozy in my apartment up in Sweden, watching the snow gently fall outside, enjoying a nice big, cream-filled semla.

In Sweden, fat Tuesday isn't celebrated by flashing boobs and shiny, plastic beads. Come on! It's -8 celsius. It's too cold for that! Instead, up here we indulge in an oversized, and overly decadent, pastry called the semla.

A semla is a traditional pastry eaten on Shrove Tuesday in Sweden as well as in Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Norway and Denmark.

The word "semla" comes from the latin word semilia, which was the name used for the finest quality wheat flour.

The most traditional version of the semla was a plain bread bun, eaten in a bowl of warm milk.

Today, a typical semla is made of a cardamom-spiced wheat bun which has its top cut off and insides scooped out, and is then filled with a mix of the scooped-out bread crumbs, milk and almond paste, and then topped with a heaping amount of thick whipped cream.

Yes, while some prefer to drink themselves silly before jumping into the 40 days of lent, I am much more content with this Northern tradition. I mean take a look at these things. WHo could resist!

Now the questions is: what exactly am I going to give up for this next month and a half?

Les vacances, encore

2010-02-05T13:15:00.000-08:00

going back home tomorrow <3 (well almost home)

Divine Idylle

2010-02-03T11:56:00.000-08:00

our soundtrack for the moment

Paris Je T'aime

2010-02-01T01:45:00.000-08:00

I admit, I have been having some difficulty this year with my second experience in France. Le Nord is the polar opposite of Le Sud, and Valenciennes does not even compare to the dream life I lived in Aix-en-Provence.

But nothing is as we expect it to be, is it not?

France has tested me a lot these past 4 months. It has been pushing me-mind, body and soul- just to see how much I really do love it and how, despite all the troubles and heartaches, I will forever except it for what it is and cherish it in my heart.

Yes, France is like any romantic relationship. It is passionate and exciting, yet it is real and flawed beyond belief. But that is the greatest thing. Because despite its flaws, you can come to truly love it--to see past those bumps and sharp turns it may throw your way. You will love it no matter what, and it will love you right back.

That is what Paris reminded me this past weekend. There is nowhere like Paris, and each time I go my heart is filled yet again with my childish hopes and aspirations--and it is just so refreshing!

My other assistant friends and I rented a studio apartment in the Marais during our short sejour (something I highly recommend as apartments come fully equipped with towels, linens, kitchen supplies and the like). We spent our days strolling the Champs, shopping in Passy, tasting the best hot chocolate in the world (no joke) at Angelina, climbing Montmartre, attempting to visit the Eiffel Tower in a rain and wind storm, dining at Chez Fernand and sampling some truly delicious boeuf bourguignon, consuming copious amounts of wine and cheese and dancing the night away in Bastille, Saint Germain des Pres and the Quartier Latin.

All in all it was the perfect Parisien weekend, and to top it off I was able to have a mini Aix reunion with my friend Jennifer who is living in Neuilly-sur-Seine just outside of Paris. She is working in probably one of the best boulangeries I have been to in my life and stuffed us silly with macaroons, chocolate mousse, quiche and pain au chocolat. Merci beaucoup!

Chez nous pour le week-end

Angelina

Jen et moi

Surrealist Poetry

2010-01-26T07:42:00.000-08:00

Lez Assistantes

The other night we decided to have an "artsy French night" complete with wine, Serge Gainsbourg, some live music, candles and poetry. We are living in France after all--we should fit in a few activities to channel our past expats (I'm thinking Hemingway, Stein and the like).

Here is a fun game to play next time you get together with friends: it is called Surrealist Poetry.

1. First have everyone sit around a table, each with a piece of paper, a pen and some coloring crayons.

2. Start with each person writing a phrase on their sheet of paper. It can be anything: a poetic sentence, a statement, an observation, a description. Whatever comes to mind.

3. After writing the sentence, each person passes their paper to the person on their left.

4. Now, after reading the phrase, the person must draw a picture somehow representing it: an exact representation of the sentence, or whatever comes to mind after reading it.

5. The person then folds the paper over to cover the sentence, only revealing the image they have just drawn and passes it to the next person.

6. From here, the person must write a sentence about the image they see. Again, anything that comes to mind.

7. This continues for as long as you want, or until you run out of paper :) covering phrases and pictures and creating new ones as you go. In the end, you have a crazy "surrealist poem" of phrases and images. It is funny to see how the first person's idea has developed in image and word.

Try it sometime! It is a sure thing for a good time with friends ;)

Bisous!

In Bruges

2010-01-11T13:18:00.000-08:00

There is not much more that I can say about Bruges other than I loved it. I know a city is good if I fall in love with it the instant I step off the train.

Quaint and picturesque, it is a city full of romance, class and incredible history. Plus there is a Chocolate Museum, a Diamond Museum, a French Fry Museum and an awesome Brewery. Pretty much it is heaven and it is only 1.5 hours away from Lille.

Will I be back? I think so.

Me in Bruges

Laura, Chelsea and me on top of the Belfry. It was a steep and scary climb to the top. I was a little distressed :)

It was so cold! All the canals were frozen. No boat trip this time...
View from the top of the Belfry

Holidays

2010-01-07T11:41:00.000-08:00

Bonne année! Gott Nytt År! Happy New Year!!

Readers, I apologize for my lack in writing. I think I took the word “vacation” too literally this time and am paying for it now: motivation and work accomplishments have been at a minimal these past few weeks. But I am trying hard to get back on the wagon, or the horse, or whatever the saying is….

Anyways, there is much to tell, most importantly about my holidays and my first Swedish Christmas.

Yes, I have just returned from experiencing my first Swedish holidays and friends, I have to say, I’m hooked.

First off, the whole event of Christmas is completely and totally amplified in Europe in general: markets, ferris wheels and decorations galore. While I found Göteborg to not be so over-the-top with the street décor and such (with the exception of Liseberg which is a winter wonderland) the traditions definitely proved that Sweden can be the capital of Christmas (after all, Santa Claus does live there, or is it Finland? Or both?...)

Tradition is alive in everything: from the food you eat to the spontaneous singing and drinking during dinner, the annual Disney extravaganza and the exchanging of gifts.

So let me start from the beginning:

First, Christmas in Sweden is not really celebrated on December 25^th, it is celebrated on our Christmas Eve, the 24^th. It commences with a visit to church in the morning—a shorter version of the real thing, with a nativity scene and special presentation for the children. Afterwards it is back home for perhaps some fika time (coffee and chit chat) while dinner is prepared.

At 13h00 (1:00pm) dinner commences. It is a literal smörgåsbord of Swedish cuisine: sill, Christmas cheddar, julvort, köttbullar and beet sauce, pate, eggs and kalles kaviar, ribs, skinka, knäckebröd and shot after shot of snaps. Dinner goes in a pattern of: eat, drink, sing, repeat.

After dinner at 15h00 (3:00pm), Kalle Anka’s Christmas special is on. Kalle Anka (Donald Duck) is a necessity for a Swedish Christmas. It is pretty much a compilation of the most classic Disney cartoons and films all wrapped into one hour-long display. None of it has to do with Christmas at all, actually, but it was a great treat of nostalgia for me. A great article on it can be found here: http://gawker.com/5433951/if-you-lived-in-sweden-youd-be-watching-donald-duck-cartoons-right-now

At around 16h00 or 17h00 (4 or 6:00pm) Dad (Tage), steps out to “get the papers.” As Maude and Jonatan and I were sitting around the Christmas tree awaiting his return, we were surprised by a knock at the door. Immediately Jonatan and Maude shoot a glance in my direction, and my heart skips a beat. Could it be? Is it really him? Tomten???

I crept to the door, and as I cracked it open, low and behold, SANTA was there. “Hello. Merry Christmas. Are there any nice children here who are expecting presents?”

We of course welcomed him in and he then went to work distributing the gifts to everyone. Another tradition in Sweden is creating special rhymes and riddles as Christmas cards. Each present gets one and it is written to the receiver as a sort of “hint” as to what the gift is.

After all the presents were handed out Santa (Tomten) had to be on his way. So many other houses to visit that night! (It is my theory that Sweden celebrates Christmas a day earlier than the U.S. because Santa starts there (as he lives there) and then doesn’t get to America until later).

Tage returned shortly after. Darn it! He missed Santa again!

The present exchange was of course much fun. We all made away quite well with our loot. Perfumes, colognes, books and a shakti mat (the rage in Sweden now) http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/25/world/europe/25stockholm.html?_r=1&ref=world

That evening it was more Christmas television specials with Svensson, Svensson and then it was time for porridge. Another customary Christmas food, porridge is eaten in the evening at the end of all the festivities, and the lucky one who finds the almond inside gets to make the wish. Well of course I forgot about that part and scarfed down my whole bowl, thinking that crunchy part was perhaps some uncooked grain and I should just swallow it whole to be polite. Everyone stared at me as I licked the last part clean, wondering where the “wish” they had so carefully planted in my portion had gone. Yeah, I had done so well up until then! Drinking the snaps, singing the songs, eating all the fish! And then I freaking ate the almond. Oh well, I guess there will be next year :)

The rest of the holiday was just splendid. We spent a lot of it at Jonatan’s aunt’s house with his cousins, uncle and grandmother. I was able to hit some of the after Christmas sales at Torp with Linnea and Josefine, and even practiced my Swedish a bit. I am able to understand more and more now, and was even able to talk with Jonatan’s grandmother a bit! (ok for like 1 minute…)

Anyways, my stomach and soul is overflowing with julmust and glogg now. Pepparkakor are coming out my ears and I have gained at least 8 kilos. No joke.

I am incredibly homesick for Sweden yet again, but it is less than a month now until my next visit.

Coming up in the Life of Liana: more France, a trip to Bruges and PARIS!!!

Bisous!

New Years in Gothenburg

Chocolate Party

2009-12-18T17:27:00.000-08:00

Ecole Froissart Christmas Concert

I've been a pooper and have complained a lot about this fine country I have been living in. So, to shake things up a bit, I am going to instead sing my praises for France and how it knows how to party.

My schools this week were a buzz with excitement for the coming holidays. Students were
preparing for their Marchés de Noël and even a fun game of English Christmas bingo was too much for them to focus on.

On Tuesday I was pleasantly surprised that I did not have to "work" (though playing with French children while teaching them English words can hardly be called work), but instead got to be an audience in Ecole Froissart's Christmas Concert.

It was the cutest thing--little French children (5-10 years old) singing off tune carols in French, and yes, in English. My little rugrats sang that Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and they sang it with the merriest Christmas spirit they could. I was so proud!

Following the Christmas concert, the school hosted their annual, are you ready for this?, CHOCOLATE PARTY.

Yes. A party for chocolate. How awesome is that? When I first moved to this country three years ago I was so overly impressed by how chocolate had been incorporated into everyday life: chocolate in cereals, pain au chocolat, chocolate bits that came with your coffee. It was great!

And now, at Christmas, elementary schools have full-on parties for it. Hallelujah!

We had chocolate truffles, chocolate rosettes, chocolate madeleines, saucisson au chocolat, chocolate cake, hot chocolate...the list goes on!

To sum it up, all I have eaten this past week is chocolate.

Man, like can be tough ;)

Merry Christmas everyone!

Students parousing the chocolate selection

Some of the chocolate goodies

The First Snow

2009-12-16T15:21:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone!

I am so sorry it has been a while since my last post, but a lot has been going on.

First, it is snowing!!! I know this is not some unheard of Marvel, especially in Europe and the North of France. But give me a break, I'm a girl from California, and the possibility of having my first white Christmas is currently the most exciting thing in my life right now.

The first snow in Valenciennes

So, a quick update:

Two weeks ago I spent a lovely weekend in Compiègne with my new French family: the Gaudets. The Gaudets are family friends with one of my mom's students and we have been in touch since I arrived here in France. They invited me to visit two weekends ago and it was the most pleasant weekend.

I admit, I have been rather homesick these past few weeks, especially with the holidays coming. So staying with a family really did the trick in cheering me up. The Gaudets, Anne and Christophe and their three children Pierre (10), Juliette (7) and Matthieu (4) were the most charming family. We enjoyed two days touring the city which houses the Chateau de Compiègne (Napoleon's digs) and the location of where the English captured Jeanne d'Arc. We also caught the film Le Petit Nicolas, went to the local Christmas markets, went to Mass (my first time) and enjoyed a lovely family lunch on Sunday at Anne's parents' house.

The family was so welcoming to me and have invited me back whenever I want. I definitely plan on returning in the Spring and perhaps for a visit to the Chateau de Chantilly. Juliette even cried when I left! So I think they liked me :)

Christophe and Matthieu, Me, Anne, Nicole (Anne's mom), Pierre and Juliette

On to more updates...

I met up with Jordan last weekend in London. We visited his old college roommate Nick who is living there now and working for Skype Mac. We spent a couple days in the city, and then took a road trip out to Kent to visit some castles and stay in some B&Bs. We visited Leeds Castle, Dover Castle, and saw the secret wartime tunnels under Dover Castle and the White Cliffs of Dover. Back in London, we visited Greenwich park and stood on the Prime Meridian.

Dover Castle

Jordan and I on the White Cliffs of Dover

Me on the White Cliffs of Dover

It was so beautiful! And France was just over the Channel

On the Prime Meridian

Jordan is off to Berlin now to visit an old friend for the holidays, and I am leaving Saturday for Sweden. Because of the snow the forecast says to expect flight delays, but I am hoping that will go smoothly as it is Jonatan's birthday too!

I hope you are all going to have a lovely holiday and I miss you tons!!

More to come on a European Christmas!

Bisous!

Me on top of a castle!

London Town

2009-12-09T14:49:00.000-08:00

I am off to London tomorrow everyone for a weekend with Jordan and his friend Nick. We are checking out the city and then will be off to some B&Bs in the English Countryside. I will take a lot of pictures for you all to see!

I am sorry I have been neglecting this blog lately. Things all of a sudden got a little busy, and I have been focusing on my Swedish blog. But I have a lot to tell you, especially about my weekend in the countryside with my new French family. So stay tuned and I will update you all soon!

Bisous to all!

I Blog for The Local Now Too--Check It Out!

2009-12-04T13:19:00.000-08:00

Hej Everyone!

I just wanted to let you all know that I have another blog out in the cyber world now. I am now a blogger for The Local--Sweden's News in English www.thelocal.se

You can find my blog here: Sverige on my Mind http://www.thelocal.se/blogs/sverigeonmymind/

Of course, my posts are pretty much focused on Sweden, but I have been getting a lot of comments and feedback and am sometimes featured on the main page. Kinda of cool :)

So please read!

Tack!

My Brother is Gone

2009-12-03T14:33:00.000-08:00

After about a month and a half of meandering around Europe together and living in extremely close quarters in a quiet French town, my brother has taken off on the next chapter in his journey around the world and has left me all alone in Valenciennes.

Ok, now I am just being a baby. I am not all alone. I still have my awesome roommate Chelsea and the other characters of Val. Plus, I have my own agenda to stick to: this weekend, a trip to the country with my famille francaise. Then it's back in Val for a few days, and then I actually get to go to London to meet up with the Big Bro again. So, yeah, it's actually not even really goodbye either.

Nevertheless, I am feeling a bit down, and more than I expected. To be perfectly honest, I was definitely apprehensive about Jordan's extremely long visit over here (3 months it will be in entirety).

When I first arrived in Lille I was freaked because I was homeless, and how could I have my brother come visit if I was living in a tent with the other SDFs?

Then I got an apartment, but it was small, and there were only two beds--one for me, one for the roomie. Where was he going to sleep? Did I need to venture to the big Carrefour to find a foam mattress for him? And do I really want him around, in my space, for that long? What will he do all day while I work?

Um yeah, I'm kind of a worrywart. Can you tell?

Well, to my pleasant surprise, this has been the greatest month and half I could have asked for. I've been a little bit more homesick this time around abroad and it was great to have a comfort from home.

It was also great to really get to know my brother. Sure, I've known him over 23 years now, and we've hung out a lot and even traveled together quite a bit as well. But this time, I got to actually live with him. Because of our close proximity physically in my apartment (and our bedroom, aka the living room/kitchen/dining room), there was not much room to hold back conversations, opinions, snores and maybe sometimes even farts. Gross, I know.

But really, it was so incredibly wonderful to feel so comfortable with my brother and to know that we really are a lot alike. To know that we live rather similarly, and that we are excellent travel partners.

It is my personal belief that siblings are your best allies and friends in life. They know where you come from, why you are the way you are, and are the ones who can understand your quirks, worries and phobias the most (I have many).

So, now I will have to go and watch The Office alone tonight. Jordan, it was a blast. Can't wait to meet you in London, I'm going to see what I can do about Barcelona, I can't wait to have you back here in Val for even just a little bit, and I am going to hate having to say goodbye for real.

Love you!

Francegiving

2009-11-29T08:03:00.000-08:00

This year I celebrated my third Thanksgiving away from my family and country. It was also the second Thanksgiving in a row that I was abroad and away from real turkey and cranberry sauce, so I'm fairly used to accepting the fact that sometimes you just have to let go of your traditions and know you will have another "real" holiday someday.

But, this time, we decided to say "no way France, we are having our Thanksgiving!"

Chelsea and I scoured all of the grocery stores in Valenciennes, went MacGyver on poultry and cooked up an awesome Thanksgiving dinner for Chelsea's French family, the Bisiaux family.

And I must say, it was a huge success. I concocted, from scratch, the best-ever green bean casserole, Chelsea made her grandmother's southern dressing (kind of like stuffing) and her family's coca-cola salad (sounds crazy, I know, but it was delicious and served as a perfect substitute to our missing cranberry sauce). We found smoked chickens to be the turkey replacements, and add a bunch of French wines and aperitifs, and you get the best Francegiving one could have.

The night was perfect, and as we streamed a recording of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, we almost felt like we were home.

Check out these pics of our feast! I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving and am so grateful to have you in my life!

Amsterdam-The San Francisco of Europe

2009-11-24T11:03:00.001-08:00

Amsterdam is by far one of the coolest cities in Europe. The instant I arrived I was all at once impressed, excited and at ease. The streets are peaceful, yet energetic. The intertwining streets and canals are more than just picturesque. This past weekend was such a treat for my senses and my mood--a treat that I was in desperate need for after some extra dreary and rainy days in Val. Really, that city is starting to get to me. I think some more weekend trips are in order.....(good thing small farm town, London and Sweden are coming up).

Anyways, in short I was completely blown away by this town, and am already planning trips back, as well as Jonatan's future shipping career there (it has the biggest port in Europe. I think it's a plan).

Jordan and I strolled around the Nine Streets neighborhood, visited the Anne Frank House (incredibly moving and the best "museum" experience of my life), attended the burlesque festival going on in a nearby circus tent by the shipyards and perused some prostitutes and coffee shops. An all around good weekend.

The people are as warm and open as San Franciscans, the townhouses were reminiscent of the brownstones of New York and throughout my whole stay I had the most comforting feeling of nostalgia. It was as if I was there before, but for the first time. And I can't wait to go back!

Amsterdam

2009-11-20T04:07:00.000-08:00

Jordan and I are off to Amsterdam for the weekend. It is the Burlesque festival today and tomorrow. I'll let you all know what kind of trouble we get into....stay tuned :)

Sweden vs. the U.S.A in Climate Consciousness

2009-11-17T13:56:00.000-08:00

In a recent article published by The Local http://www.thelocal.se/23278/, it was reported that a new study by the Swedish National Environmental Protection Agency (Naturvårdsverket) found nine in 10 Swedes to consider themselves conscious of climate issues. Half of the polled citizens revealed they suffered a guilty conscience when their actions negatively impacted the environment.

In the wake of the upcoming Copenhagen Climate Change Conference, COP15, to take place next month, this seems the perfect time to re-evaluate American habits in regards to the environment and where the country stands on the new climate change deal.

Unfortunately, the United States has been causing a lot of stress to the other United Nation countries involved in this deal, saying it cannot participate so soon in this formal global climate agreement as it is not realistic for the country. But is it really too soon? Others would argue that it is becoming too late, and that time is running out. President Obama has mentioned fears that there is not enough time for the U.S. to commit such an agreement as there is still pending legislation with the U.S. Senate and of course, the issue of cost.

However, the need to take action in reducing greenhouse gas emissions has been stressed as one of the “defining challenges of our century”, according to incoming COP15 president, Connie Hedegaard.

America has never even officially signed, or rather, ratified the Kyoto Agreement, a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC or FCCC) introduced in 1997, aimed at combating global warming. This is significant as the U.S. Energy Information Administration noted that as of 2005, the United States was the largest per capita emitter of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels.

So what is there to do? Why is America so behind?

Being from California, the San Francisco Bay Area to top it off, I’ve gotten up on my high horses, thinking my home was as green as you could be. Organic clothing outlets, vegan buffets and signs about “going green” every which-way you looked. I have since been proven wrong. In my frequent stints in the glorious nation of Sweden I have quickly learned that that country puts the U.S. to shame when it comes to caring about our Mother Earth.

In California people want to drive a Prius, shop at Whole Foods and attempt to reduce, reuse and recycle. It is the “trendy” thing to do now.

Well, recycling-schmycling. In Sweden they have full on recycling stations in their homes, where they sort everything from cardboard boxes, to newspapers, bottles and plastic containers to batteries and old electrical supplies. Yes, you Swedes reading this may be laughing at my American naïveté and baffled that I find your organized trash and recycling rooms in your apartment buildings to be works of art, but it’s true. I thought our blue containers we put out on the street in California were advanced and efficient, but that was before I saw the 30 square metered recycling room (of which there are two) at my boyfriend’s complex in Göteborg. It is a recycler’s paradise in there, with neatly labeled bins and receptacles complete with photo-ID cards distinguishing where one must put the paper products, the dark glass products, the light glass products, the plastic products, the electrical products and so on. Sweden has taken it to a whole new level-a level that has truly taken America far too long to reach.

In a parody of the United States’ opposition to Socialism, The Daily Show visits Sweden and analyzes the “horrific” effects a socialist government can have on a people. In the episode, Wyatt Cenac tours Swedish Pop Star Robyn’s home in Stockholm. Her “recycling station” in her kitchen is mocked, but really, it is just to show the absurdity of America’s slow assimilation to becoming environmentally conscious http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-april-21-2009/the-stockholm-syndrome-pt--1 . If you have the time, I would check out Part 2 of the report as well for some more satire on why free health care and free education is a bad thing http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-april-22-2009/the-stockholm-syndrome-pt--2 .

Since first coming to Sweden, I have now been trained to organize, separate and reduce my waste and recyclables—a basic skill even a 5 year old knows in this country. I cringe when I accidently throw my plastic coke bottle in the trash can on the street and not the green recycle basket. Having lights on in unused rooms is now a pet peeve and I am completely anal about unplugging all appliances when not using them.

It is definitely a contrast looking at the way I was raised in suburban California compared to my boyfriend’s upbringing in a smaller, Swedish town. And to be honest, it is kind of silly that it is. I could go on for hours about how Sweden, and many other European countries for that matter, are more environmentally aware and advanced than us. Americans need to step it up-from slightly altering their day to day lives to help out the planet, to taking the initiative as one of the biggest world leaders and taking a daring step towards the diminishment of global warming.

I am still counting down to Copenhagen—just 19 days left. Let’s hope for possibly a surprise outcome.

Nothing stays plugged in here. There is no wasting energy allowed.

There is a cat garden by my apartment

2009-11-16T16:09:00.000-08:00

One of the hardest things about living abroad for me is being away from my pets. The love and affection one can get from their animals is irreplaceable and unlike anything else. I envy those who took on the challenge of bringing their furry pals overseas (Jamie, if you are reading this, I am thoroughly jealous).

I miss my kitty Gracie so much and want more than anything to just snuggle her nose and babytalk her all night long. Come on, you know you would do it too.

So, to my very delight, I discovered a small patch of gated grass on my way home from school a few weeks ago that was covered with kitties! Black, white, gray, white and gray. They were all kittens the first time I saw them and have since grown.

But how cool is that?! A freaking garden of cats! There were at least 10 of them (though I was only able to capture a few on film).

As I was walking home today I noticed an old man putting around the garden distributing water and food to his feline friends (he must be the leader of the pride). I tried approaching one of the resting kittens and she looked quite curious and interested in who I was, but then got this manic look in the eye and the thought of french cat rabies quickly entered my mind.

I am going to monitor this cat garden phenomenon during my time here, but maybe I'll just keep my distance...

I really saknar dig, sverige

2009-11-15T13:17:00.000-08:00

And to top off my homesickness for Sweden today, the reality show Paradise Hotel, the Swedish version, starts tonight and I'm missing it. An island full of beautiful, single swedes hooking up in huts while drinking pina coladas. What could be more brain-numbingly entertaining than that? Nothing, and I'm missing it. Ughhhhh.

Jag saknar dig, Göteborg

2009-11-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

I'm having a Sweden withdrawal day. The people (duh), the streets, the sounds and just the overall energy. Especially that of Göteborg. Håkan Hellström can always give that to me, if only for just a few minutes.

I'm trying to be creative for some more blog posts, and am attempting at starting HubPages to write even more, but the words just aren't coming....

Inspiration, where are you??

Salsa!

2009-11-13T16:14:00.000-08:00

This past Wednesday night was definitely one to put in the books of my life here in Valenciennes. In an effort to stay fit and active while also trying new things while living abroad, Chelsea and I decided to partake in the weekly Salsa dance class at the Cuba bar here in town. It was 5€ and then you could stay after for the DJ set, so it seemed like a pretty good deal.

Cuba bar is located just across the street from the Valenciennes train station and is apparently the only real bar/nightclub in town. It is the place to go in Valenciennes. If you ever go/have ever been/or ever hear anything else about Cuba bar, you will realize that this last statement is probably the saddest thing you will ever hear in the world.

Cuba bar is tastefully decorated all in red with Che Guevara paraphernalia splashed on the walls. It has no real tequila (we asked the bartender for Patrón, but he had to go in the back to dust off a bottle of Jose Cuervo to even get anywhere close to that). They didn't even really know what a "shot" was and instead made us Tequila Sunrises which were a pathetic excuse for a cocktail (pretty much a fruity smoothie with apparently some alcohol in it and a fake, candied strawberry with fake, hardened whipped cream on top). The crowd wasn't the best either. It was rather sparce and all the men seemed to be no more than 5' 5" while the women were, well, rather greasy.

Anyways, the salsa instruction started and it was actually rather fun. I love to dance and the music definitely picked things up a bit. Until it came time to dance "en couple." Well, I figured that since Chelsea and I had come together, we were "en couple," but apprently "on ne peut pas faire ca en France," the instructor said (we do not do that in France). There was a moment of confusion, it was a little dark and the music was loud and I could not quite understand the French of our teacher in his thick Northern accent, so when he extended his hand to me to invite me to dance with him I just thought, "ok, pourquoi pas?"

I approach my partner glancing over my shoulder to be sure that Chelsea has been paired up as well, and oh yes, you betcha she has. She has Michel. The 4 foot mini-man dressed in a blue-checked shirt. I cannot help it but burst out laughing. He literally comes up to her boobs and is half her size. This is our life in Valenciennes. She sneers at me and mouths a big "fuck you," but what can I do? So, I just apologetically laugh again and continue dancing with Mr. Salsa dance teacher, who spins me around all night. It was a pretty good time.

Michel turns out to be flaming gay and an incredible dancer. Chelsea gets to kiss a French guy (not Michel, obviously), and I end up having to foot the bill of our overpriced, kitchy cocktails.

Yet another adventure in Valenciennes and more proof that this town will never cease to amuse me. Stay tuned for many more.

Success! I have a library card!

2009-11-10T09:50:00.001-08:00

Yes! Something went very well today: I succeeded in signing up for a library card at the library here in Valenciennes.

It is a rather nice library actually: 3 stories and a great collection of French as well as American, British and even Swedish literature.

First borrowed books: Anais Nin's Henry and June en francais, and the Life of Pi for Jordan and a collection of Keats' poems for Chelsea.

I think I found my new hang-out in this town :)

Back to Valenciennes

2009-11-09T12:52:00.000-08:00

After our travels to Sweden, Germany and Paris, Chelsea and I are yet again back in Valenciennes. The rain was here to welcome us "home." We were thrilled, as you can see by Chelsea's disposition.

It is not all bad though. Jordan and I went on a 3 hour walk and discovered some hidden parts of the town and its surrounding areas. He also prepared a Mexican feast for us tonight and we were able to escape to Lille yesterday afternoon to take a tour of the Palais des Beaux Arts.

We are now snug in our little apartment, candles burning, Chelsea crooning away on her guitar, and Jordan doing the dishes :)

Next up: weekend trips to London for some shows, some jaunts to Belgium and The Netherlands and a meeting with the U.S. Ambassador to France in Lille.

A bientot!

Palais des Beaux Arts, Lille

The Rainforest in Sweden

2009-11-06T09:32:00.000-08:00

Jordan and I visited the Universeum museum in Göteborg during our visit in Sweden. It is the science discovery museum of the city (think Academy of Sciences in SF but toned down..a lot). It was pretty cool though. They had an indoor rainforest with wild animals like crazy birds and marmosets running around, an aquarium and tons of discovery stations. Here are a few of the pictures. Enjoy!

Me trying out a Swedish police car. Jonatan was jealous :)

Jordan experiencing what a gale wind feels like.

The aquarium.

The crazy birds that were jumping all around our heads!

Halloween in Sweden

2009-11-05T14:26:00.000-08:00

Halloween in Göteborg was a blast. I had fun showing Jordan my "second home" and it was great to see Jonatan and his family. I can't wait to go back! Just 6 more weeks...:) Also, check out my facebook page for more photos!! http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/liana.small?ref=profile

Hej Då France!

2009-10-23T22:58:00.000-07:00

I am off to Göteborg for some much needed r&r. Looking forward to some good TV, a little Max, a little Liseberg and Jonatan...of course <3 I will be back in the beginning of November, so I apologize now if I am a bit MIA. I am really excited about this trip because my brother, Jordan, will be meeting up with us there next week. The first time any of my family members gets to visit Sweden! (and meet the other family).

Puss och kram!

Neness...yes it rhymes with p****

2009-10-21T14:59:00.000-07:00

This is Neness. He has a picture of himself tattooed on his arm.

For weeks now Chelsea has been saying we need to check out this bar in town called American Graffiti.

"I hear they play good music and stuff. One of my teachers recommended it and her husband is a musician, so it must be good."

Well we went, and yes my friends, it was good.

This place, American Graffiti, is a haven for any American wandering, lost and alone in Europe and in need of a good friend, who is totally obsessed with all things Americana.

We stumbled in last Friday night, and once Chelsea opened her mouth and that Southern drawl came out, the owner of the joint, Neness, nearly peed his pants with excitement.

"Nashville?! Comme Johnny Cash?! Yes?"

We were instant celebrities, were offered free beer (and cherry beer) all night long and coaxed into taking pictures with the band of the night (they wanted us to hold their guitars, which were apparently replicas of the one Marilyn Manson has. How cool....).

I don't quite know what else I can say about this place. Really only pictures can convey the absolute awesomeness of it. Though yes, I have to say it again, Neness has a tattoo of himself, on his arm. And a statue of Elvis in his kitchen.

I love this place.

Elvis, Native American, Marilyn Monroe. That's America

There's our guy

Just like Marilyn Manson....

I'm a Teacher and a Tour Manager

2009-10-15T14:56:00.000-07:00

One of the classrooms at one of my schools: Plaine de Mons

Quick update to everyone, just to lay down some news and an overview of life so far here in the North.

I went back and read a few of my past posts and I must apologize--I sound rather cynical and ungrateful for the experience I am getting to live now.

In all honesty, I am having a blast. Yeah, France can be pretty ridiculous and I never will understand how this country works, Valenciennes is the quirkiest town next to Tucson in my book and I swear I sometimes feel like I am in an episode of the Twilight Zone, but other than that, people here are nothing but warm and welcoming, I laugh everyday and I am able to talk to the ones I love whenever I want (except Bea and Allison, I need to work on that one--sorry loves!).

So I have taught two classes so far, on Thanksgiving. I think they went well. I am discovering that even though I am only teaching 12 hours a week, I am definitely going to be working a lot more. Prep time for lessons takes a while, plus I have 12 different classes a week, and even if I repeat lessons, I need to tailor them to the individual classes since language levels vary greatly between classes and schools (I teach at three schools).

But I am enjoying it nonetheless, and also have started tutoring Louise, the 13 year old daughter of the Inspector of my school district, so that is a little extra cash.

I also am the European Tour Manager of my roommate, Chelsea Lovitt, singer-songwriter from Nashville. It started out as nothing serious, but we've been here about 2 weeks and already have her booked at two gigs.

Yup, we are just hanging out in the cold North of France, playing guitars, sipping wine and just trying to soak it all in.

Chelsea on the streets of Valenciennes, guitar in hand

Lez Assistantes
(Laura (from Miami), Chelsea (from Nashville), Me, Rose (from Alaska!))

One of the schools I teach at is for handicapped children. This just looks like some weird torture device from the 1940s. I don't even want to know...

Ma Tres Chic Vie en France

2009-10-12T03:15:00.000-07:00

Chez Moi

Ma Chambre

La Cuisine

I am now finally settled into what will be my home for the next few months. My 2-room apartment is on a quiet street, down the road from the Musee des Beaux-Arts of Valenciennes and, as I have just discovered, right across the street from the French version of Gossip Girl.

Juste en face of my large, living room windows is the private Lycee (high school) Notre Dame and today I have learned that my front doorstep is the hot-spot before and after school and at midi (lunch time).

Five minutes ago the immense green doors of the gated school opened and out strode the throng of highly well-dressed tweens and teens complete with their Longchamp totes, heeled boots, neck scarves, and, of course, that signature cigarette hanging from the lip.

I've decided it is best to either stay hoarded up in my apartment during these specific hours or just stay away, otherwise I end up fumbling through the tangled mess of intimidating French girls who look way more sophisticated than I, a girl almost 10 years their senior.

While this could end up being rather a nuissance, I will revel in it for now. Nothing goes better with my lunch of rice and lentils than a little French teen gossip and galavanting around.

And yes, I am eating rice and lentils because that was all I could afford from the discount supermarket as I now only have 2,50€ in my bank account.

Yup, I am living the dream people. The dream of the glamorous, tres chic life in France.

I live at McDonald's now

2009-10-08T10:24:00.000-07:00

So, I am sorry for not writing recently. In France, everything takes a million years and a day to accomplish, so I am still waiting for internet at my apartment.

Therefore, I now live at McDonald's. And have gained 10 pounds (well not yet, because I walk like a million miles a day as well, so it kind of cancels out).

Anyways, in short, I have started teaching, and the children are adorable! I am so excited! I have been asked if there are cats in America, and also if I know Michael Jackson.

I'm excited to get this teaching show on the road, and also be more connected to the world. Hopefully that will happen soon, and I will post pics and more updates shortly.

I miss everyone so much. The weather here is the worst and can kind of be depressing, but I am really enjoying speaking French and am looking forward to Jordan's arrival in less than 2 weeks and my vacation in Sweden in 2.5 weeks. Thank god, I finally get to go to a country where things actually will get done....

Gros bisous to all!

Today started marvelously, went to shit, and then ended on a good note

2009-10-01T09:48:00.001-07:00

This morning I treated myself to a trip to the French salon. I feel like since I have gotten here I have been a wreck--sweaty from walking all around this city all day, my hair a frizzy mess and my clothes in shambles after trekking them all over Europe and only having washed them once in the past month.

So, by the recommendation of Pauline, I went to Camille Abane for a hair cut, and it was awesome.

Anais, my new stylist, was the cutest thing, and while customer service apparently doesn't exist in this country, one can find some kind of respect for clientelle at a good coiffure.

They greet you by taking your coat, slipping you into your own robe and then escorting you over to the shampooing stations where you sit in massaging chairs. And Anais, what magical hands she has! I got the best scalp massage I have ever received, followed by a deep conditioner rinse, and then the most precise haircut I probably ever have. I swear she checked almost every strand to make sure it was perfect.

So, I walked out al 11am feeling super French chic and not a haggared mess like I have been.

Then I went home (or to my fake home?) and realized I had no return emails for housing or from my school contacts. I was supposed to go sign my work contract today but no one had contacted me. I realized my money was running out and that I really had no idea what the heck I was doing, yet again.

So I cried. A lot. Went thtough plenty of tissue packets (thank goodness I bought the maxi-pack from Match) and called Jonatan wailing and flailing like I seem to always do.

Well he told me to give myself a slap in the face, grow up and stop crying (and to stop biting my nails) and to just go down to my school and see what the heck was up.

So I did. I marched down to the train station, bought my ticket to Valenciennes, got on, and then Mademoiselle Sophie Lejeune, one of my contacts, called me on my portable. I was flustered and couldn't quite understand her on the phone, but somehow managed to communicate that I was on the train, going to Valenciennes. She said she would meet me at the train station and then take me to the Inspector's Office so that we could go over any questions.

I got off the train in Valenciennes, wandered around a bit and then finally bumped into little Sophie Lejeune--a typical petite Frenchy cute in her little black mary jane heels and dress. And she was the sweetest thing. An air of relief finally washed over me. I of course apologized profusely for sounding so desperate the past week or so, but she said she understood, and even invited me to stay with her should I need to in the time being.

Well we walked right down the street to the Inspection de Valenciennes, which is in the same building as my main school that I teach at (Ecole Cariot). It is a typical northern building: large and all brick, with vines creeping up the sides.

And then all the French started. Now I think I understood people fairly well, but now that I think about it, it was really all a blur.

I met the Inspector of Valenciennes, who is sooo super nice and looks like the actor Bob Hoskins (from Roger Rabbit), I met a bunch of other people who work at the school whom I have forgotten now, including some lady I am supposed to have lunch with tomorrow and who is going to look at an apartment with me, I met Anne-Elisabeth, the cute, really tiny, English teacher I will be working with, and then some other guy who I think is an English teacher whom I will be working with (so I better figure out his name...)

Anyways, Sophie made the introductions, it came up I had no housing and was staying in Lille, so then everyone started throwing out ideas for housing. This Serge Gaveriaux (who is supposed to be my main contact) apparently has just been missing. No one knew he was doing nothing for me, so they all tried calling him, finally got him, I forget what was taken care of with that. Someone called the Mayor of Valenciennes to ask about some house he has for housing. I had a coffee and a cookie. The lady I am having lunch with tomorrow went online and called a bunch of apartments. Blah blah. French French. Oh you are from San Francisco? French French. Oh I think I found housing for you! Oh wait no, the guy I tried to call is in China.

That is pretty much how it went, from what I can remember. So, in the end, I am going back tomorrow, at 9am so I need to get up very early. Sophie will introduce me to my other two schools and we will figure out my work schedule (so far I teach at Ecole Cariot Tuesdays from 8:30-10am and then Fridays 8:30-10am and then 2-3pm), I will have lunch with Sophie, the lady whose name I don't know, and her friend, and then the lady whose name I don't know will go look at this studio apartment with me, and hopefully more places if we can find any.

Whew. Man. All I want to do now is eat McDonalds and watch TV. So yeah, I will do that now.

Thanks Jonatan--you know more than anyone when I need a good slap in the face. I don't know if I could have done today without you xoxo

Tomorrow....another day of stuff I probably won't understand or remember

I Went to Belgium for Lunch

2009-09-28T08:21:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Sunday, a few other assistants and I were exhausted with the stresses of our first week in France and really wanted a full day of rest and fun. Since Sundays in France are usually pretty dead, we decided to hop on the train and head to Brussels for lunch!

After getting off at the wrong train station and having to walk through the more grimy part of town, we eventually made it to the city center and saw that Brussels is quiet beautiful and quaint. I concluded it is pretty much a city filled with chocolate, lace, gold, beer, fries and waffles, which is pretty cool in my book.

We strolled through the Grand Place, had some sausages and fries, meandered through the winding, cobblestone streets, saw the peeing boy and also a shop that sold a real Nimbus 2000 for 320€. I engulfed a ginormous waffle complete with chocolate, whipped cream and strawberries.

It was a great day, and refreshing to hop over to a different country. However, we took the eurostar home, which meant going through customs and almost ending up in London. But whatever, that wouldn't have been such a bad thing :)

The Rachels and me in the Grand Place

The peeing boy

Sausage and fries all in one. Delicious!

Had to have beer

Look at all the yummy ways you could get them!

Pat, me and Rachel with our gaufres

The Nimbus 2000

We were on our way, but had to get off in France this time

Housing in Lille: I need a tent

2009-09-26T08:43:00.000-07:00

So, I have concluded yet another futile day of searching for housing in Lille. I have sent out as many "feelers" as I can, sent out millions upon millions of emails and phone calls to results on leboncoin.fr, appartager.fr and every other housing site there is in France. I've pretty much almost given up. So here is what I plan to do:

1. Wait and hopefully my contact will find something for me in Valenciennes
2. Stay in Lille with my friend as long as I can, try and get as much of my paper work that I need to do to stay in France done, and then Jordan will be here and we can bum around until vacation time. Go on vacation. Get back. If there is still no housing, just peace out of here and travel around a bit
3. Rent a parking space and put up a tent in Lille
4. Buy an RV and put it somewhere
5. Try and get my paper work taken care of in France and then move to Sweden
6. Try and get my paper work taken care of and move back to Aix

I'm to the point of "whatever" I might as well enjoy myself now, just know that things work themselves out, and hope this will too. I'll try and figure something out, otherwise I'll jsut buy a plane ticket somewhere else. Thanks France!

Continuing in Lille

2009-09-26T02:56:00.000-07:00

I have been in Lille almost a week now, but unfortunately there have not been too many new revelations since my last post. I am still homeless and on the hunt for a somewhat decent apartment here (I am viewing 2 studios today, so hopefully that will go well), so my days are spent desperately emailing and calling prospective homes and then meandering around the city with my fellow teaching assistants, exploring our new home and trying to enjoy this new, beautiful experience of ours, without freaking out about all of the silly details of homes, paychecks, social security, bank accounts and the like.

On a positive note one of my contacts from a school I am teaching out called me yesterday. She assured me someone has been looking for housing for me in Valenciennes (where I am teaching) and that they would call once they had something. That's great, but I don't want to live in Valenciennes, so I am hoping I can take care of this housing deal on my own. But we shall see...

Mostly today I guess I just wanted to share a few pictures of my last few days of exploring. That is more fun than reading anyways, right? Hopefully there will be more news after the weekend...

They have a Scandinavian restaurant here :) that is a good sign

Of course with a Swedish plate (there also were Scandinavian salads at many of the restaurants I noticed. Maybe being up north has something to do with that?)

A street in Vieux Lille

Me and one of the Rachels (there are 2) in my American Assistants group. We are being tourists in front of the Opera

Look a gun shop!

Beautiful sunset view from where I am staying, at the Place de Jeanne d'Arc (that's a good coincidence)

Wherever You Go, There You Are

2009-09-22T15:26:00.001-07:00

So here I am. I know it has taken me a while to start this thing (having been in Europe about a month now), so I apologize for my tardiness and hope you all will understand I was a bit distracted these last few weeks ;)

To sum up what you have missed: Swedish McDonald's is still the best in the world, Swedish women are so hot they can't keep there hands off each other (literally), and Swedish men really probably are the best partners due to their "enlightened attitudes toward equality and gender roles" as The Local has reported http://www.thelocal.se/21098/20090804/ (I can't cook, clean, or do laundry the Swedish way--yet! But I want to learn!).

Jonatan and I had a great time doing what we do: eating, relaxing, laughing ;) And I was truly sad to leave when it came time. Goteborg is a beautiful, welcoming city and I enjoyed exploring it a bit more on my own this time (as Jonatan was in school. which was ok, because now I am totally comfortable taking the buses and trams all by myself. and shopping all by myself too, the most important thing).

I even joined a club while I was there: The American Women's Club of Goteborg http://awcgothenburg.com/ and was able to connect with many interesting women living the expat life with their Swedish partners in this coastal city. Good contacts to have!

Jonatan and I also got to share the most exciting weekend together: meeting the twins! Alexandra (Jonatan's sister) and Felipe (her husband) welcomed their first children into the world one month ago: Victoria and Valentina. They were the most beautiful babies and spending time with them and the family was very heart warming (I still need to work on that svenska though...I'm starting up that Rosetta Stone again).

But sadly, I had to eventually say hej då to Sverige and bonjour to France (though I hope to get back to Sweden soon! And not just because I had to be an eno gab on my flight out and leave half of my luggage there because I am an idiot and don't check baggage allowances on flights within Europe until two days before I leave).

So now I am in Lille, my new home for the next 7 months. I admit, yesterday, after travelling from Goteborg to Oslo to Paris and then finally to Lille, I was a bit of a poop. I was nervous, anxious, stressed, lonely and my heart was hurting a lot. But, thanks to the most generous friends, I had a place to stay and a tour guide during my time of transition.

And Lille really is an exquisite city. The past 24 hours I have felt a bit off balance and have been trying to search for that passion and admiration I usually feel for anything French. It is slowly coming back, especially after I devoured a tarte au sucre and a gourmandise from the original Paul (boulangerie), but I am hopeful that once I am settled I will yet again be mesmerized with the certain magic this place holds for me (like the food, shopping, architecture, history, language, culture and art and not the beaurocracy or the pain in the *** it is to do pretty much do anything practical here. but whatever. this is definitely only temporary that I will be here, so I might as well just focus on the good stuff and enjoy it ;).

I have so far set up a French cell phone number for myself, tried unsuccessfully again to contact the teachers at my schools in Valenciennes (for those of you who don't know, I will be teaching English this year in 3 French public primary schools in the city of Valenciennes, about 30km outside of Lille), and met up with about 10 other American teaching assistants in the same boat as me. It really is great to be able to meet with people going through the same thing as you--especially when it can be so frustrating!

Anyways, I enjoyed a tasty steack avec sauce deux poivres et frites this evening at Aux Moules http://www.auxmoules.com/ and a big Belgian beer with my fellow assistants.

Tomorrow it is off to discover Valenciennes, desperately search for a place to live and maybe write and discover more of this new place. And it's not bad. It may be missing a few places and people in particular that I would like to have, but it's alright. I think I will enjoy it just fine. Afterall, how bad can a place be that sells chocolate covered waffles? Not bad at all...

A Room of One's Own

2009-07-15T20:25:00.000-07:00

So here is the premier post of this new blog of mine. I have been contemplating the creation of one of these for quite some time. I really could never grasp the idea of a blog--sharing one's inner thoughts with all who would care to read (as if anyone would). I mean, who really wants to know what crazy, random things go through my head all day? In the end I realized I really did need an outlet--a place to compile my writings and wanderings, whether for others to read or just for my own self preservation and accumulation of thoughts and ideas. So, voilà. La petite Vie (the Small life) has been born.

Today, during my weekly IVLP (International Visitor Leadership Program) staff meeting at IIE (Institute of International Education), we had the Empowerment of Women as our resource topic of the day. Women's issues in general have always been a hot IVLP topic. The range in the countries coming on this topic are vast, stretching from Turkey to Brazil, Indonesia to African regions. They can focus on immigration, women in business, philanthropy and NGO management, women's rights, reproductive rights, essentially anything where a "woman's struggle" can be seen.

Now, recently, or I suppose over the last two years mostly, I have been struggling to discover what one issue in life I am really, truly passionate about, above all others. This has been a daunting and frustrating task. The truth is, is that I have way too many interests and desires, I don't know which one to follow over the others. To me, women's rights and all feminist movements have always seemed to fall into categories that are so cliché and worn out. I have been hearing about women's rights from the start, especially having spent my formative years in the San Francisco Bay Area. Of course, I am a woman, so I am supportive of all things that gear towards equality for women, a woman's right to choose, etc. But I never really thought that women's empowerment would be my main focus. That was too easy, I thought. Until today.

During our IVLP staff and volunteer meeting, a colleague of mine brought up Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own as an introduction to our discussion on this topic of women. This extended essay, written by the influential English writer during her time at Cambridge University, comes from Woolf's conception that, 'a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.' This goes along the same advice my mother has always told to me: that, as a woman, I must always be independent and able to support myself, no matter if I marry or have no need to work. The ability for a woman to care and support herself, both emotionally and financially, is the key to freedom and equality in this modern world.

This got me thinking. While I have never considered myself a die hard feminist, this modest yet profound statement was what I have been dedicating myself to so fervently in the last few years: trying so hard to focus on just myself and my growth, concentrating on my professional advancement and feeling the most satisfaction from my own personal successes--whether they be financial, personal or professional.

In fact, it was for this exact reason, to create a room of my own, that I have chosen to move to France again, alone. It was for me, to write my fact or fiction, and to own it, just by myself. I realized that this was the most important thing for me right now, and that this feeling of the need for independence and freedom could be compared to and shared with all of the other women's issues we discussed today. Whether it be with IIE's Women in Technology (WIT) program, bringing educational opportunities and trainings in soft business skills and internet technology to women of the Middle East and North Africa--women who may not otherwise have had the opportunity to learn skills or trades to help support themselves on their own--or with the various NPOs at San Francisco's Women's Building, offering programs teaching self sufficiency, leadership in female youth and many resources for advocacy against violence towards women in the city and elsewhere. All of these focus on the empowerment of the female being, the empowerment of me, my African IVLP visitors, my friends and co-workers. So I thought, "not bad. not bad at all."

Maybe I am a feminist after all. Or at least just a little bit.