Monday 23 July 2007

Tuesday; the 17th of July 2007

I took the RER to go to Mathieu’s place in Montgeron in the suburb of Paris. Of course I waited on the wrong side of the train station and I stopped one stop too late, but I finally found Math and NInie who came by car to catch me.
We had a BBQ in his garden with Julien, his brother. That was really cool and really relax in comparison with the city.
I took the train quite late to come home and I arrived around 1am at home.


Wednesday

Audrey arrived in the evening. We went in an Italian restaurant in la Défense.


Thursday

I had lunch with Audrey after her interview and went back to work. I went in an other place to upload a new software on a car (a C4 coupé) that I’ll test later. In the evening Audrey and I went to Estelle’s place close to Courcelles. Audrey already had her answer for her new job. And she has it!!! Congratulations!
Estelle and Christine (American Funky Girl) were with me in Australia during my first semester. We had couple of drinks there and went close to the Champs Elysees in Dubiz. That it a shit expensive place... We had a good time and we caught a bus randomly to go back home safely around 3am.


Friday

Hard busy day today. I sent a car to an other place with a truck and organized my planning for the following week. Several problems but everything is fine now to have a good week end!
Audrey and I went to la Gare de l’Est to meet Johanie. We took the metro down to la Seine (River) to listen to a concert of Tété. We had dinner there, on the side of the river listening to the music. Good time. Adèle (good friend from Australia from the second semester) joined us there. We went back home, walking in the city. Through the Louvre, we saw the first people waiting to buy the new Harry Potter...


Saturday

I waited for Julien (friend from my school in Lyon) at the Arche de la Défense. During that time the girls left to Porte de Clignancourt to a kind of market. We joined them later with Julien. We had cheap lunch with great cakes for dessert. The market was fun, very cheap stuffs from very luxurious brands. Why buying more expensive?! We walked to Montmartre, through Pigalle (and its Sex places) and then we took the new Vélib’, new bike system in Paris. We rode through the city, passed the Place de l’Etoile (with the Arc de Triomphe). That was fun. We finally arrived home, had dinner and went back to the city by car. We drove on the Champs Elysees (mistake...). It was really crowded. We went to the Café OZ (Australian bar). That was really packed! But I could drink a Jäger Bomb! Yeah! That was short, but cool. Then we have been walking through the city, took some funny pictures.
Finally we drove Julien to the airport at 4am, because he was going to Holland for his internship.
We were home pretty late.


Sunday

I got up quite early, 10am. I said goodbye to the girls who were still sleeping. I took the train to my sister’s place. I spent the whole day with her. We had good lunch and dinner and a nice walk in her area. That was nice and good to relax a bit after an other busy week-end :)!

Tuesday 17 July 2007

I got a Mobile Phone !

Yeah ! Finally I have it !
My number is : +33 (0) 6 37 68 21 20
Call me, send me text, pictures whatever !!! Youhou !

Sunday 15 July 2007

Week End Fikant !

Friday, the 13th of July 2007

I had to ask sooo many questions to my colleagues to understand better what I was doing and what I will have to do. It is getting better. I’m starting to understand the point of my job...
I left at 4.30pm, came home, took a mattress for the week end, borrowed the keys of the parking for the girls, had a quick look at my new mobile phone and went straight to La Défense to meet my cousin Nicolas who just arrived by train from Lyon. We talked a bit under the Arche, sitting on the stairs and then went back to my place. Mat’ (a friend from my school in Lyon, doing an internship in Paris as well) called me and came to my place too. We were now waiting for the girls who arrived quite late, around 9.15pm. We had couple of drinks and finally we left to the city, to the Bastille exactly to meet Maud (a friend from the 88 :p). There was a kind of big free Afro concert on the place, we listened to it for a while and went to a Corsican restaurant. As we were all quite a bit tired, we went home around 2am and slept (the 5 of us) in my flat around 3am.

Saturday, the 14th of July 2007

The 14th is the French National Day!!
We got up at 6am to go to the Champs Elysées. The girls staid in bed. We took the Métro and got out at George V station. The Avenue was pretty empty and people were preparing for the “Défilé”. (A big military Parade). We were standing directly next to the street to have a good view. We saw the French president :D, airplanes, helicopters, tanks and people everywhere...
We went close to the Arc de Triomphe to the Croissanterie (the place where Maud is working during the week-end). And the girls, back from their shopping joined us there. Maud offered us free lunch :) with tasty deserts. That was great when you think how expensive the food is in Paris. Later we went down the Champs Elysées, to the Concorde and to the Jardin des Tuileries to relax a bit. It was really warm outside.
We went back home to have a quick shower and go to the Champ de Mars, just next to the Eiffel Tower. Maud joined us after her work and brought us the Picnic. Soooo Cooool !!
There was a big concert here. 600,000 people here!! Unbelievable. Bob Sinclar, Laura Pausini, Nelly Furtado, Tokyo Hotel and the famous Michel Polnareff were here! For free!!
Amazing! We had really good time, and the huge half an hour firework at 10.30pm ended this wonderful evening.
Mat’ and his brother left us. You can imagine how messy it could have been to try to catch a Métro, so we walked quite a long time to the Champs Elysées to go in a bar. Culture Bière. That was a really good place, free, very good music with people playing instrument as well, not too expensive drinks and great dancers! We took the last Métro to go back. Maxime (a friend from my cousin slept with us as we were 5 again in my little flat).

Sunday, the 15th of July 2007

Maxime left at 6.30am to catch his train. The girls got up at 9.30am to buy food before leaving Paris. They left around 10.30am.
Nico and me went back to Maud to have free lunch :) and after that we went to the Town Hall, the Cathedrale, the Arabian Institut and the Jardin des Plantes. It was really hot out there! I was back in my Australian fashion style: Swim short, thongs and cap.
Nico left at 4pm and I went back home, tired.
I went back to the city, to the place where Maud was living, around 8.30pm for a birthday.
I didn’t know anyone but that was really good. Nice people, nice place. Very good time :) Most of them went out after that in a Latino bar, but it was time for me to go home, to have a rest after this Week-End bien fikant!!
The pictures are here :

Thursday 12 July 2007

Nothing special. My tutor was supposed to show me how to transfer a new software on a programmable controller of the 307 to do test on it, but it did not work... So I still don’t know how to do that and he went in holidays tonight for three weeks...

Wednesday 11 July 2007

Long day of work today, from 8.30am to 6.30pm. Lot of readings and explanation from Riccardo. I understand better what I will have to do: Develop a cheaper system to reduce the pollutant emissions for China by playing on different parameters and realising tests on roll benchs. Anyway...

Tonight I decided to go in Paris with Virginie. We met at Châtelet-les Halles and went to the Marais to find a place to eat. We went in a little restaurant, sitting outside and had some Tartines and Croque Madame. That was good :). After that we wanted to have a drink somewhere. And as soon as we suggested the idea, a girl came to us and told us that we could have drink for free here, just where we had dinner. There was a free tasting of Cognac cocktails. That was a glass with Cognac, fresh lemon juice, lemonade and fresh mint leaves. That was good and free! With a nice blue blinking ice cube in it (cf. picture).

NInie

The blinking cocktail

We went back home before midnight (no public transport after that, but I’m not sure actually).That is sooo good to walk in Paris by night, it is soooo beautiful, and way more quiet than during the day. While I was on my way home next to the Arche de la Défense, a guy was playing Saxophone inside a big empty building, that was like a dream (ok I was really tired too :p)... I love it!

Town Hall again

Arche de la Défense


Shopping Center

It is not because I do not speak about Australia that I didn’t have good times there, you know I had great time. I just don’t miss it for the moment, but I miss you guys!!!!

Tuesday 10 July 2007

At work for 9am.
We had to measure the pollutant emissions of a Peugeot 207, so for that we put the car on rolls and drive it in the building (the car doesn’t move alright?) for 20minutes, we plugged a computer to set the engine configuration. That was the only cool stuff of the day. We have to analyse the results later. I read papers again, and collected old catalyzer to do test on it later. Riccardo gave me the keys of a 307, I didn’t get really why, but he told me it is my car :D

I came home at 5.30pm again. I didn’t feel like staying there, so I went to la Défense to have a walk (under the rain of course, but I had my huuuuge umbrella, so that was ok). I went to the Fnac, watched MP3 players, cameras, TV’s, read books, listen to music… that was relaxing, and I was not alone… Then I went to the huge shopping center to check where was what. And then home at 8pm…

View of the Arc de Triomphe from la Défense

The Arche de la Défense

Monday 9 July 2007

Today is my first day at work! I got up at 7.30am for my appointment at 8.30am.
There I met the girl from the Human Resources, she gave me a card to get in and out of the site. I had a safety meeting for an hour and a half and then I finally met my tutor: Riccardo !
Young guy, Italian but lived all is life in Ireland. He is really cool! I talk to him like my friend, we joke, that is really relax. All the other team mates are like that, young, funny, friendly! That’s gonna be good!
I had lunch with him and an other guy from my school in Lyon, Sébastien. He is also doing an internship here. The lunches are quite expensive but really good. And now I’m back in France, I’m soooo hungry, so I have to eat (and do sport :p).
The afternoon, I read some papers about depolluting gas engines, catalyzer, combustion settings… That was not very interesting… But there were loads of plane flight very close to the ground from the Arche de la Défense, along the Champs Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe and I could see it from my desk, so that was distracting and really impressive!
No time to be bored!
I came home around 5.30pm, that was hard to stay awake…
I had to write my report about my exchange in Australia for tomorrow because I received an email from my school telling me I was late for that (I had to send it before the 30th of June…).
I spent my spare time to do that, eat and went to bed…

Sunday 8 July 2007

I didn’t do anything today, it was raining the whole day and I was tired…
I had a walk at the end of the afternoon to check were my working place was. And that is 400m far from my flat! So 5minutes walk! Good! I can get up late in the morning!
The neighbourhood is quite empty, a bakery, a post office, a very small grocery store and a cemetery… Nothing else… That’s ok, I’m 10min walk from la Défense (business district) and the 1st RER/Métro station.

Saturday 7 July 2007

I didn’t get up late today, I had to fill some papers and to borrow a matress from the residence manager for my cousin who will stay at my place tonight.
Then I took the subway (called métro) to go to the Louvre to meet Pierre, my cousin. I found him randomly in the subway station.
We walked in direction of the “Arc de Triomphe”, passed the Place de la Concorde and walked along the “Champs Elysées”.
Later we met Guillaume, Virginie and Thomas, friends from my school in Lyon, at the St Lazare train station. We stopped to have lunch in a cheap place (cf. picture). Then we had a long long walk in the city (12km, only by foot). We went through the Place de Clichy, to Montmartre (Sacré Coeur), down to the Gare du Nord, stopped for a beer, saw the Gare de l’Est, crossed the Canal St Martin, passed the Marais (gay quarter), to the Town Hall, the Notre Dame cathedral. Then we stopped at the Jardin du Luxembourg. Nice garden with grass, trees and small lakes. There are lot of chairs everywhere that you can take wherever you want in the park, so we decided to sit next to the little lake. We were the only one doing that, so that was a bit strange. And 5 minutes later, a policeman/guardian came to us, and told us nicely to move away from the water, because it was forbidden to do so… Alright…
After that, we went to my place, close to la Défense and had beers and delicious crepes for dinner. We met two Guadeloupean girls who were looking for an iron. I had one! So I lent it to them, and when they came back, Pierre asked them to come in to have champagne with us. Pierre talked to them for half an hour and they finally left. They are not going to be in Paris anymore, so…

The Palais des Tuileries, Louvre

A little pond next to it


What is that ?!


The deserts at the cheap restaurant

Guillaume and the cheap restaurant


The Simpsons !


The speaking café


A statue of Dalida, famous French singer



On the way to Montmartre

This guy could walk through walls, but he got stucked ! Haha !


Close to Montmartre


View from Montmartre


An other one


The Métro crossing a bridge


A Eurostar arriving in the gare du Nord



Signs in front of the gare du Nord


NInie and me


Tents along the Canal St Martin



Hotel Dieu

Boat on the Canal St Martin


Pain, Vin, Fromage, French Moto


Town Hall

Close up of Pierre

Notre Dame

Sénat


In the Jardin du Luxembourg

Same place

In my flat

Friday 6 July 2007

So I moved in my little flat which is actually 21m² instead of 19 I should have had.
My address in « Paris » will be:

Appt. 220, Résidence PYTHAGORE
54 Avenue Puvis de Chavannes
92400 COURBEVOIE

FRANCE

In the evening I went to my sister’s place with my parents to have dinner. We ate a “fondue”! hmmm! Delicious! Then I took the local train (called RER) to go back to my place, I was alone now L. I felt asleep several times and was afraid to miss the other train I had to take, but it was alright. The trip from my sister’s place to my place takes about an hour. That was good to reach home around 12.20am. I felt asleep straight after I lied in my bed.


My place:


The main room



From the other side




Hall and kitchen




Bathroom


The Fondue

Thursday 5 July 2007

Préambule

Après NOno in Australia, NOno back in da 88, voici NOno in Paris !!!
Vous vous doutez bien que je ne vais pas vous raconter mon boulot à longueur de page, mais plutot mes visites, rencontres et soirées que je ferai ici, dans cette magnifique ville ! Enfin je dis ça, mais peut-être que ce blog va vite tomber dans l'oubli...

Bref !

Donc après mon retour d'Australie le Dimanche soir, j'ai directement enchainé sur cette fameuse Birthday Party prévue depuis plus de 8mois auparavant.
Nous étions 27 joyeux lurons, bonne ambiance, alcoolisé (trop pour certain). Ca faisait super plaisir de revoir les copains !

Rien n'avait changé, et c'était un peu comme si je n'étais jamais parti. Je n'avais pas perdu mes petites habitudes, rouler à droite toujours aussi normal, parler français.
Enfin on se rend compte ici que les discussions sont beaucoup moins superficielles qu'elles n'avaient pu l'être en Australie. Ca fait chaud au coeur et ça me rend happy d'être en France et surtout dans le 88 :)

Bon hé bien même si j'ai un nouvel IXUS 850 IS, je n'ai pas de photos intéressantes de mon anniversaire !

J'ai eut comme cadeau : un ticket pour aller à Disney Land Paris, un réveil Bob l'Eponge, un T-shirt Cliché, un sac en coeur, des bières Mort Subite accompagnées de leurs verres, une bouteille de champagne Mumm, des Skittles, une cible de jeu de flechpsules de bières, un T-shirt José Bové, un shaker, un verre anniversaire, des petits canards pour mettre dans ma baignoire, des guides sur Paris... Enfin j'ai été bien gâté !!!

On était 14 à dormir à la maison, autant dire que ça dormait un peu partout !

Ensuite c'était la course toute la semaine. Coiffeur, dentiste, Ophtalmo et paperasse en tout genre.

On est allé voir Pauline chanté Titanic avec l'Harmonie d'Epinal, on s'est fait une Pizza au Capri, on a squatté chez Audrey, avec Johanie et le terrible Hadrien, Ciné, repas en famille etc...

Puis emménagement vendredi à Paris !!!!

C'est là que débute mes aventures...