Sunday, January 24, 2010

Things I Miss About Europe...

Peeps, I say, why study for my certification exam tomorrow when I can procrastinate for fifteen minutes and write this post instead?? Isn't that a good use of my time? To that I lift my cup of Jasmine Tea and say, "Heck, yes!"

No, I don't miss street vendors. But I do miss Paris. & who woulda thunk it. Paris didn't exactly rub me right. It wasn't love at first sight for me the way Rome was. But as I sit here, with hair washed clean with leftover shampoo from the french pharmacy down the street from our little rented apartment, I feel the need to indulge myself in a little list of what I miss about the City of Lights.

1. French pharmacies and their products. OMG. Why even trudge to Sephora when the pharmacy a five-minute walk away holds heavenly products.

2. The boulangerie's daily dose of baguettes and the little grocery stores with their "gourmet" foods. Mais bien sur, the little french grocer on the corner is an American food snob's delight. & I'm not a cook, but I know what's good and I can eat. I miss the greek yogurt, the prosciutto, and everything else in between that was priced so well and tasted so good.

3. The wine bottles for 100 Euro. Yeah, it roughly equates to Two-Buck-Chuck from Trader Joe's. But seriously, I've paid more here for worse rot-gut here. I'm an Italian vino type of gal and can't tell you diddly about French wines anyway. For 100 Euros, I had my fill.

Now...for what I miss about my short stay in Rome.

1. The color of the sky. It was gorgeously clear and blue, with the whitest clouds. I'll never forget it.

2. The streets and the sites. The amount of history that is packed in here is amazing. & life just seems to still go on around it all.

3. The coffee, the wine, the food... need I go on? I ate and drank my way through Rome. I loved the breakfasts, the lunches and the dinners. I was on a permanent Lavazza high, for sheezy.

4. The cobblestones. I hated them and totally cursed them out as I rolled my suitcase over them. Or should I say as I attempted to roll my suit case. Roll-y suitcases don't do well on stones. But at night when the sun has gone down and you're walking along the cobblestones, you can't help but get all romantic about who's walked there before you.

Well, that's my thoughts for tonight. I need to go back to studying now. Yuck.

I've left it a month ago and I'm ready to go back!

12 comments:

  1. Nice post. I felt the same way when I went years ago, a mix of feelings!
    I couldn't concentrate on my books this weekend...I feel guilt!

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  2. I do too because I feel like I'm only glancing at the info and not really taking it all in. Like my heart's not into it. Wish I was taking it with other people. I need the motivation! Tomorrow is Mod II so this should be fun! I cannot wait until Wed when all this drama is over.

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  3. You are so right and are taking me back to my short stay in Paris with my dad. It was just amazing, the small streets, the snootines of Parisians, the fresh baguettes that were out of this world crispy, and the cafes everywhere where I could literally spend hours sitting and sipping. Gosh, just the history of the place!! I walk around big cities here are it still doesn't have that.......that!
    Great post, good reminder of some dreamy times.

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  4. Sigh... I love Rome.. we took the kids to Paris this summer & they are S T I L L talking about it... Eva often ask when we can go back...kinda like asking to go to Cucky Cheese's lol... Now go hit the books! : )

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  5. that was CHUcky cheeses...not CUCKY..

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  6. DEA, thanks for adding the great comment about what you remember. & you hit the nail on the head --- CRISPY baguettes. You can't count on that everywhere else. It was dreamy you are absolutely right.

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  7. LOL American in Norway my son is still talking about it, too. He wants to eat french bread everyday (hence my search for crispy bread)... he talks incessantly about it all. *sigh* hate hitting the books. & I was a good student, I swear! Just not feeling the subject matter! Have a good week!

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  8. Ahh, when I was in France in 2002, I fell in love with the pharmacies! The small sizes, the great stuff from luxe cosmetics to the cough drops that did the job perfectly & tasted divine. Regarding the cobblestones, try rolling luggage with high heeled shoes on! And the way a 500 year old building is both honored and still used for day to day activities.
    And don't get me started on the croissants!

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  9. Jen, exactly my feeling about the 500 year old buildings still used. That is absolutely mind-blowing. Thanks for sharing your memories! & I didn't get to do the cobblestones with heels though I have heard some serious stories about that!!

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  10. Your pic of the Eiffel Tower trinkets cracked me up. My husband and I had dreams of those hustlers and the jingle jangle of cheap tin when we were in Paris.

    We so want to go to Italy. Maybe in 2010 or 2011. Sigh.

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  11. Suze, they're like crazy key-keepers, or something! It was like the minute you heard the jingle jangle you were sprinting the other direction. Though *sigh* I do wish I had a little eiffel tower for desk at work. I just can't handle the hustle! Hubs had to take a pic of the little towers all sitting on the sad and sorry blanket. Surprising that he wasn't subjected to haggling so he could take the photo!

    Go to Italy, girl. The motherland. Gorg. Food. 2011 it's calling your name.

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  12. Srsly so jealous. I love Europe. I love food even more.

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