Tuesday, March 29, 2005

Like Disney Land, only REAL

I just got home from Monaco-Monte Carlo. Whoa. Monte Carlo really resonated with me, I have to say. I wish I had the time to blab on and on about it, but I just don't right now, so you'll have to wait.
for now, here's a top 10, to be explained later.
10. Palm Trees
9. NOT losing money in the casino
8. Turquoise Sea
7. Ice Cream
6. French Wine
5. My first Aquarium
4. HOT HOT HOT Cars.
3. Karément
2. Jimmy'z
1. Hanging out with wicked-cool Canadians (and a Russian)
Thanks for everything Mr. "Oldheski" and Mr. "Gavin". It was the best and I'll never forget it!



Friday, March 18, 2005

Spring is Sprung!

We have been really blessed lately with the weather which is not what my Canadian readers want to hear, but tis true. I walked to school today with only a t-shirt. Last Friday, I walked in my togue and winter coat!
I have been on the bike everyday, except yesterday due to scheduling, and today I even saw some flowers! We are expecting 22 on the weekend and I am hoping for great things in Monaco on Wednesday. There are no robins to really check the season, but I did see some bumble bees so I think that proves it.
how was St. Patrick's Day? I planned on doing nothing. I wound up out until 4 but never did find a bar with Green beer. Valentina, one of Erin and mine's group mates, invited us over for Tiramisu, home-made, and champagne, so we started the night off right! Then we went to Murphy's, an Irish pub of course where they were advertising a contest to "win a trip to Canada". It was a quiz type thing and I wanted to enter so that maybe I could get around the stupid Residence Permit, but no further information could be found. oh well.
Later we went to the Shamrock, where there was a live band with a fiddler and man did I miss my sister. Kim, you would have loved them!! and you probably would have weasled your way on stage too, which I would have loved. But alas, I guess we'll wait until June.....or May?? get on it.
today I went biking with Mo on some belgian trails and I am pretty sure I remember how to get there now so maybe I will get up the courage to go alone some time for some hill training. honestly. it still boggles my mind that there are hills so big in the Netherlands. Today I fell for the first time since I arrived. For those of you who know me as a Mtb-er this should tell you something about the terrain...I usually average one or two falls per trip in the don and it has taken me two months to fall here. it was dumb too. I was thrown by a sapling. it jumped out of nowhere and took me down. you're not much fun if you can't laugh at yourself though.
Erin and I are about to find a sunny place to start sorting out our advertising final report. yesterday I found out that we have the two highest marks in the class so really, I think we are overextending ourselves. U of T is going to just say "pass" or "fail" so really there is no difference between a 55 and a 95. Therefore, I think our sunny spot will be on a patio somewhere with some 'refreshments' and more chat than work. Such is life in the south!
Miss you all alot and wish you could be here to enjoy the spring with us!

Tuesday, March 15, 2005

Yes, I CAN

After my strenuous weekend, I thought it is probably time to start climbing out of my sink-hole of luxury and laziness. My bike is very sparkly at the moment, having spent 2 hours chipping off mud/cow plop and so clearly it was time to go for a ride. I thought about waiting around until the weather was nice, but then remembered where I live at the moment. I had one last thing to do with my bike before I could go, so I set to the business of cleaning the chain. gross. and yes, I did it IN MY ROOM, for spite. screw you guesthouse. in the process, I clumsily managed to get the thing wrapped around the pedal (i should mention I don't do bikes normally...these are all big steps for me...). I fixed that, then went to find my heartrate monitor, which had for reasons unknown, turned itself off and erased all my settings. grrr. So i reset that, then started the fight with my booties. It went surprisingly well mostly because there are giant tears in them now, so i thought I had better do something about that. At a loss, I just switched the feet so my cleats would dig in somewhere they didn't normally. I might actually have to sew though. yikes. By now I was starting to get a little wary of all the clues saying "don't go" but told myself I was being silly and yet again successfully snuck the bike out of the guesthouse without being seen. I hopped on and tore off down the lane, hopped a curb, and..........blew my back tire. wha?? well by now the sun was kinda pushing through and there was no way I was backing off now. so, I did it. I changed my very first tire, all by myself, with no coaching and absolutely no points for time either. There are all kinds of challenges associated with this process, let me tell you. not the least of which is getting the damn thing off. Of course it was the back (i was taught the front...much less complicated), and my newly greased chain made things really pleasant. I also had an audience on the tennis courts which made it even more enjoyable. I prevailed, got it off, got that sucker out, got the new one in, and felt altogether pleased with myself. It was now 3pm. oops, time flies when you are having fun. So I stopped at the bike shop, picked up a new tube, just in case, and finally started on my way.
I rode out of town towards Tongeren in Belgium, but almost as soon as I crossed the border, I deked down this big hill and followed a road along a canal for awhile. There was a dead deer floating there, and Belgium drivers who occasionally flew by me made me wonder about how it got there, so I decided to get off that road. I started following numbered bicycle routes that made my afternoon altogether enjoyable. Some went through woods and farmers fields with nothing to see but pasture, cows and chickens, and others took me along drives with some of the biggest houses I have seen here yet, all with immaculate gardens and pretty cars in the drive. the time flew by, and about that time, I realized I didn't know where the hell I was other than "somewhere in Belgium". I tried not to worry. I didn't have anywhere to be, the weather was warm and holding, I still had lots of water and even a snack, but that feeling can still get to a gal. I started working on a route home. Just when I was starting to panic, I found a sign for Maastricht and lo and behold, I had been close by all the time, and it was only about 10 km away. I almost missed the sign though, but a lucky shoulder check and it caught my eye.
Back on track, and back along the Maas river, I saw a crew. They had Saurus blades, were obviously HM, and rowing like shite. I was excited anyway....I tracked them for a little while, for where there is a crew, there is a boathouse, but I couldn't find the boathouse, therefore couldn't persist in my rowing push, and so continued home.
Dinner time! well deserved too, I thought. So I made my version of honey dijon chicken with rice and broccoli with cheese on it. I got some funny looks from the Europeans, but I think it was envy. bwa ha ha ha.
Later on, Fenna came over and we had a mango and some tea. The girls come home tonight, so who knows what the rest of the week has in store?

***

So far today has been pretty productive I might say. I got up and started mulling over the idea of an erg, but when I finally got my eyes open, sun was POURING through the window. that's it, I thought, I am riding instead. I got all suited up, and made a run for it before the cleaning staff arrived to catch me with the bike. I think I made it. I rode to the other side of the river to try and stay in the netherlands, since I have a map for those routes, but belgium, not so much. On the way, I got hit. Yes, I got HIT by one of those retarded scooters. No harm done and in fact I was quite impressed with how my body/reflexes handled the whole thing, because my mind had certainly checked out. The scooter jerk decided to pass me while I was passing another cyclist and caught the underside of my left forearm with his scooter thingy. i was pulled across the bike lane hard and fast, kept my balance and had the presence of mind to hop the curb as oppoed to crashing into it. I slowed to a stop safely on the grassy boulevard between the bike path and the road just in time to shake my fist as he drove off. Dick. Just when you think you get some allowances as a cyclist, some motorist or other comes along and takes up space again. Why can't the scooters ride on the road with the cars?? they go almost as fast and are three times as annoying in the sound department.
the rest of the ride was thankfully uneventful. I saw some horses, some crazy chickens, some really big hills considering this is supposed to be flat... and the whole time the sun shone and the temperature climbed. It was glorious. I only rode for an hour and a half in the interest of getting some work done, which I did, and now I am at the library to continue said work, so that's all for now.

Monday, March 14, 2005

Recharged

Friday morning, Cam and Erin flew away to Scotland for a long weekend. Fenna went to Amsterdam to hang out at some Turkish baths with her family, which left me in Maastricht all alone. I made great use of the time, let me tell you. On my long list of weekend accomplishments, highlights include: 3 4+ hour naps AND 8+ hours of sleep/night, 1 completed novel (Jitterbug Perfume), 1 clean bike, 3 gourmet meals just for me, consequent grocery shopping, 500 minutes+ in overseas chat time, laundry, and not a stitch of school work. I also watched some TV. I didn't go out, didn't train, just sat around mostly watching the weather change. It was glorious. I challenge you to top it. However, my globalisation paper is still not finished which puts a bit of a cloud on things, but even now, a file entitled "globalization draft one" is open on the desktop. it almost feels like I am working. Always a silver lining.

Saturday, March 12, 2005

My New Trick...

Hello!! Guess what I learned today?
Below are some of the video I have taken. I would post more, but the library closes in ten minutes and it took me all afternoon to figure this out. THANKS SO MUCH THORSTEN! The first is of the quintet I described in Köln and the second I took while just walking the streets of Maastricht during that crazy carnaval week. hopefully it will once and for all sum up how NUTS that weekend was. Cheers!

Sight and sounds of the Köln Dom


Carnaval Walk!

Friday, March 11, 2005

Kansai Canadian

I don't know if anyone actually bothers to check out my friends'respective blogs listed on the sidebar, but just to entice you, i have lifted this shamelessly from Anthony. He is currently in Japan teaching English...clearly this is a leisurely pursuit! ;)

A brand new world... (morning entry) [--by Anthony]

New post time! That means I have four minutes to write a post and then get out of my apartment. In the news today Elvis has married Kareem Abdul Jabar, and their genetically engineered children will be kung-fu stars of the future. Both giants of popularity were unearthed from their graves and reconstituted using bacteria that was found beneath the toes of the worlds oldest animal: the drosophila methusela, a fruit fly that lives to be a thousand years old and has toes. More to come later.

a Music Note...

I have a small favour to ask. If anyone has spare time, I would love love love mixed CDs. love love love them. can't stress enough. I have no preference about what is on them, and in fact, would be more curious about what you might listen to, or what is even popular in Canada right now, because I garuntee it isn't Schnappi or Annuk. (did anyone try downloading that stuff?? what did you think?) I got some from Thorsten before I left which were almost full of music I hadn't heard before and I have had a lot of fun learning all the songs! Even something classical would be great for studying. I don't have any way to make my own, so I just thought I would put this out there.
My address is Guesthouse, Universiteit Maastricht, PO box 1253, 6201 BG Maastricht, Netherlands

a few shots...

Here are some recent photos...The first is Erin's compilation from Köln which actually has a lot of MY photos in it, but there are some fresh ones and a different set of comments. The second is from Tuesday night and it mostly just head shots, just for fun. I took most of them, but with Fenna's camera which is why I am not in them. oops.
Erin's Köln album
Tuesday Mugs

Long time, no blog (thanks for noticing!)

Recently it has come to my attention that there are actually people who read my ramblings...I am flattered. I apologize for being so quiet lately and I appreciate your concerned emails! so what's new? Well, not surprisingly not too much, otherwise, i would have probably blogged before now. Of course, that won't stop me from writing something you can distract yourself from your jobs/homework/spouse for a good 20 minutes. basically a whole lot of nothing: my specialty!
This weekend was pretty bust actually. We had planned to go to Belgium, but the weather was crap and financial committments I thought I had (more on that in a minute) prevented me from actually taking action. It is easy to be lazy when the weather is grey. I don't think I even went out this weekend. not once. ho hum. Sunday was fun though; We had our 'end of winter' bike ride and dinner with my new team. however, there was still snow on the ground, so so much for 'end of winter'. There are
pics in an album i put together for the team. some are repeats you may have seen, but most are new. After the ride, we all met up for dinner at Jikkie's place which was fabulous. of course, it was pasta, again, but this time the sauce was distinctly dutch. I could tell from the sausage and excessive use of cream. it was soooo good. Lately, Erin and I have been more adventurous in the kitchen and we are the envy of her corridor at every meal. We have pretty much mastered the stir-fry, which Europeans just don't get, but love to taste, and also anything to do with chicken. Nonetheless, if you have any recipes, please send them along! I am especially looking for a good pancake recipe (Thorsten, I still have yours. sooo goood) because i hear there is maple syrup in the mail. thanks mom! If you have a good recipe, let me know: but keep in mind, i have no freezer and no oven. just a stove top and a microwave. very challenging.
Monday I was supposed to get my official Dutch residency permit (aka visa type thingy) but i half assed it and managed to hold onto my 432EURO for another day. this residency permit is a point of high contention here. some cities are sticklers, and others not so much. 432 is soooo much money for seemingly nothing but a fancy stamp in the passport. In all liklihood, the damn thing won't even be prossessed until after I am already gone. How aggravating is that? the divide is about 70/30 in the guest house for not getting it; boycotting the gov't is not usually the best idea. I am not so brave since I am determined to go home degreed, and preferably not because I was deported. But I am certainly not making it easy on them either. 432 euro. ouch ouch ouch. Even the dean of law in rotterdam tells his students not to get it. But then you hear the horror stories: one girl got a call saying "get out of the country by tomorrow" but managed to talk and pay her way out of it. yikes.
moving on....
Tuesday night was pretty typical. I had a great day that day actually. I completed my first 6K erg test of 2005 and managed a decent score, although a little lower than I had hoped. but honestly, I am just happy to have finished since I am training all alone over here. So I was pretty buzzed from that...then I got some work done, played on the computer for kicks, and by the time I got home, the ladies had ordered pizza for dinner as a treat. I contributed a bottle of southern comfort and we watched american tv while drinking booze from new orleans, and pepperoni pizza. we had tickets to a big economics'faculty party at the Bon barniere or something like that which was this giant old theater. It was the best party yet for sure. there were 2000 kids apparently, it was completely packed, the music was great and as usual, everyone you know is there. We were pretty merry let me tell you. called it a night around 4 then slept until i wanted to on Wednesday.
Wednesday was supposed to be a bike day, but although when i went outside to fiddle with my brakes (finally fixed them...MYSELF!! thanks for the tip Jerome!), clean a little etc, it was sunny, by the time i was ready to hop on, it was pouring. Such is dutch weather. completely unreliable. So, i went shopping with Erin downtown instead. Although Maastricht is known for the shopping, I have to say it isn't all that great. Whenever erin and I go, we usually call it successful when we get to stop at the grocery store; not so much luck in retail. I think we have about 80 failed missions for tops under our belts by now. oh well. penny saved is a penny earned. I don't have school on Wednesdays which is awesome since Tuesday is always so nuts. When we got home, we decided to investigate the tennis courts. We played an entire thirteen minutes before we bagged it due to the night fall and also the slippiness of the courts. BUT, thursday morning, we agreed to meet up for round two. what luck!
THURSDAY WAS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL DAY! We played in shorts and t-shirts and enjoyed the sun which stayed out ALL day. It was amazing. The best day yet. We hit the ball back and forth for an hour but then had to quit for school and such. What a shame to waste such a good day in class, but it can't be helped here. Notably though, the sun puts the dutch in a really good mood. Our prof wasn't nearly as pissy as usual. haha.
Last night was pretty tame for thursdays. Friends of ours had bought some alcool and absinthe and were almost successful with the peer pressure, but we managed to run away. who plays dice with absinthe?? honestly. someone had a good night...or a really bad one. not sure which. We went to bug Fenna who was having tea with owen and Cam played her guitar for us. Cam has the most amazing voice ever. Why is she even in school?! clearly she should be a star somewhere with minions of fans and stuff. I will record her one of these days and put it up with the videos I took on my nonexistant webspace. Any tips on that one??
We shared a pinapple, talked about some trips, and then I went home. Surprisingly, my floor was actually having a party. Until now, my floor has been the most quiet of all because it is filled with grad students. not last night. They stayed up being obnoxious until 7am and so I am literally writing this on about 2 hours of sleep all told. Right after this, I am napping until I feel human again. Those same people just wrote a note about what pigs we are (apparently...honestly, we have the cleanest kitchen in the place) and they left the place in a state of disaster. I stepped on the broken glass of our very few tumblers on my way to school this morning at EIGHT. so now we have no glasses either. oi. I guess that's life in the guesthouse.
Miss you all!! Miss Canada!! Miss Toronto!! but I don't miss the snow. Have fun with that. ;)

Saturday, March 05, 2005

What are your thoughts?

The other day at school in my advertising class, we discussed this ad and tried to come to a conclusion as to wether or not it is "ethical". I open it up to you.
Ethical?

Let it snow!

So how are things on the other side of the Atlantic? On this side, it is snowy and cold. Sound familiar? Erin and I were a little put off at first, but I have to say that throwing snowballs at Italians and Spanish who have little experience with the white stuff is a pretty good time. Mind you watch out for the Finns, Swedes and Norwegians. They know what they're doing with the packing snow.
I wrote my first Dutch exam on Friday. That was an experience. I didn't really get to study for it as much as I wanted, nor was I prepared for either of my presentations this week (at least not to the level I am used to). I blame Erin. On Tuesday, I was all set to study and she made me play a drinking game instead. She tricked me with Tabouille, the brat. I was sucked in. Then she made me promise to come with her to highlander for "just one hour!" I couldn't let my buzz go to waste, so I agreed to go, but since we were only going for "just one hour" i didn't bother getting changed from dorm-wear, jeans, sweatshirt and a ballcap. Once Highlander alerted us of last call, Erin strikes again. "just one hour at Meta". FINE. Anyway, long story short, I was peer pressured all frigging night and didn't get home until 4, AND ended up at a NIGHT CLUB wearing afore-mentioned BALLCAP. oh well, its europe so you can do what you want. Since I wasted that night, I was starting to feel the pressure a little for the presentations. I smartened up and hit the library and even fit in all my workouts as well so I can forgive myself for Tuesdays ridiculousness. On my way home, the summer race season flashed before my eyes due to the snapping and growling of an unfriendly beast without leash or owner. I love dogs so it really pisses me off when they snap at me for no reason. It goes deeper than just being annoyed by unwarranted threat. it actually hurts my feelings for some stupid girly reason. Anyway, I was quite upset, a little at a loss for what to do about the snarling beast, and quite sure I was going to lose the quadraceps I have been working so hard to build. Luckily, the owner came and got him to leave me alone. It looked like a mini pit bull or something. Speaking of which, I hear they're not allowed in Ontario anymore. Whoa.
the presentations ended up going ok, because this school has the lowest standards ever. I have a feeling that when u of t sees the work I have been doing, they'll say congratulations: you can have 3 gr. 12 credits. Honestly, if you are serious about academics, i don't think I would come here. luckily, the academic portion of my degree is fulfilled, so I don't have to dwell on what a waste of time this is. I am not the only one who thinks this way though...every north american student has said similar things about the european post-secondary system. EASY. its weird because I have experienced the primary/secondary school system as well, and it is WAY more advanced than hours. Somewhere after highschool though, it takes a dive.
Case in Point: I ended up studying for 1/2 an hour for my globalisation exam and didn't really feel like I was screwed for it. Half the questions began with the words "how do you feel about..." or else, "what is your opinion..." honestly. Erin spends 2 hours on final papers and gets 8.5s which we were told not to ever expect (scale of 10). Most students here are happy with 6s and 7s. I have no marks back yet, so maybe i should shut my mouth. but i certainly don't feel too stressed.
Nothing else very exciting happened this week in Holland. Everyone is freaked about the snow. I saw some footage of some really horrible accidents in britain and the snow was falling like it does in Canada in October, so clearly they just aren't used to this.
Friday, besides the exam, was a great day. I had been planning a nap for Friday since Wednesday and fought for it at all costs. I got through coffee invites, shopping suggestions and lunch dates and once I had finished my workout, I settled into bed for my much-anticipated nap. I woke up after an hour and was very disappointed. I thought for sure I had more nap in my than that. So i layed there, looked at the pictures on my wall, thought about things, and drifted off again. i didn't wake up for another 3 hours. Heaven.
last night was slow to start, but turned out to be alright. Erin was writing a paper last minute, so when i woke up, cam and i went to the coffeeshop/internet cafe to check email and get checked out by creepy potheads. then we had our first trip to Albert Heijn. First of many. It is by far the superior grocery store. We made a nice dinner for the three of us, as Fenna was back in Amsterdam with her family for the weekend. Miss that girl...anyway, fresh pasta, meat sauce, a lovely salad and also some mussels left over from the Swedes' dinner. They make really good mussels btw. we were stuffed. It was snowing which was a deterrent to go out, but we ended up out anyway. Cam decided to hang out with her guitar (a new purchase...we have nicknamed it her boyfriend since she spends so much time with it) and Erin and I went to Highlander. good times. After last call, we went to Backstage (why is Meta closed on FRIDAY night?!) and were met with a very odd scene. It was just me, Erin and Marco and the mission was pool. However, it must have been goth night or something because everyone was dressed in PVC and buckles and scary makeup and hair. black black black. and yet, we were the ones who felt weird. Anyway, we played one game and then Backstage too closed and all the vampires went home to hurt each other in S and M practices or else just grab a plasma snack. I am so close minded. I guess we just went to the wrong place, because once I got home, and into bed asleep, I was awakened at 3, 4, and 4:30 by my cell phone. damn. should have gone to Alla (another club). then again, all that napping really tired me out. ;)

Thursday, March 03, 2005

Pre-trip photos...

Just for fun, here are some shots I took before I left.
Peektures!!

Wednesday, March 02, 2005

My tale of Row.

So sad so sad. No rowing for me in Holland. The Dutch take their rowing clubs very seriously and they are more like fraternities than clubs. Their athletes are all very tight and apparently there is no room at the Inn, as it were. the only way to join is to come out in September, without exception, so that you can be properly hazed. no haze, no row. I tried my best, called every week since I got here, sought out other athletes and made them call, even prowled for the boat house, but there is just no making them budge. I don't think I have it in me to give up on it, but there comes a time when you just start to feel silly about it. I am sure I am the biggest joke in their office..."oh that Canadian girl called again...who does she think she is?!" Anyway, life goes on. I am still erging, my back is holding up, my hips are happy and I am at weight. so just in case they miracuoulsy relent, i'll be ready.
On the bright side, the Dutch MTB team DID accept my membership and I am officially a member as of yesterday. It is a good bunch of people although the MTB side of the bike team is kind of small. there are three of us who will be racing when the weather gets a little better. Apparently we can only race in the fun class for some reason, but that's fine. I will be grateful just to be allowed to play. Uniform fitting this week, and those are always the best souvenirs. Maybe a U of T jersey could be sent here for a little trade??
Back to rowing, more bad luck. the good news is, I got a good price on my flight to Monaco. the bad news, I unwittingly booked it the same day as the Boat Race (Oxford vs Cambridge)! I am such a moron! Perhaps I will have to see about switching that. Or else console myself by extending my return until after the Royal Henley. I think the weather is better in July, so maybe that will be the plan. It is clearly the superior event...at least I think so.
Finally, while on the topic of rowing and Europe, I heard a rumour that there might be a U of Tcrew coming to this side of the pond this spring...true?