Ok. So I am going to write about my trip to France and Monaco (which is a country, btw) and the only way I will be able to remember everything we did is if I do it in chronological order. So.
Dad and I got to the Syracuse airport at about 11ish, maybe a little after. The plane left at 1230ish and we got to JFK a little after 1. Our flight to France boarded at 515 and we sat on the tarmac until 8ish. The AC was broke, then they fixed it and said we were going to take off. We taxied out a little ways, then they stopped, said we were going back to the airport, because the sensor was broken for the AC, and our flight would be rescheduled. They ended up finding another plane, and we were scheduled to leave at 1040pm. We ended up leaving a little after 11pm NY time, (5 am France time) and got to France around 1 pm-ish France time (7am NY time).
The drive from Nice, France to Monte Carlo, Monaco was about 30 minutes. It was a nice drive. I was in awe with the whole country. It was soo beautiful. We got to Monaco and it was even more beautiful than France. It was right on the Mediterranean. Our hotel was literally ON the Mediterranean. By the time we got there, it was time to get ready for the welcoming reception which was held on the roof (which was level with another street, which took awhile to get used to--all the layers of Monaco and France), which was across the street from Place du Casino, which was the site for filming of Ocean's 12, and THE worlds destination Casino. Monte Carlo is the playground for the richest of the rich. There are no grocery stores or laundrymat's or anything in Monaco. Just 36 Euro Burgers. ha.
The reception was nice. Hord' vours or however you spell it, and people passing around free beverages. Mostly wine, altho they had beer champagne, orange juice and water--all in wine glasses. lol. It was first class service for all of the company's events. I met Jake and Charmaine, and Anna and Jeremy. jake and Anna work on my dad's team. There were a few other's that I talked to that were nice, but mostly we hung out with Jake, Charmaine, Anna and Jeremy.
Then we went to bed. We were exhausted. It was like 11pm France time, and 5 pm NY time. The next morning we met for breakfast (the company served breakfast and dinner everyday) and went walking around town with Jake and Charmaine. I had never seen anything so beautiful. The town was just amazing. The maze of roads that crisscrossed up the mountain. The Mediterranean Sea so close, the beach was 2 ft from the hotel and the whole city was surrounded by it. Our hotel balcony hung over the Sea. We could see Italy. altho I didn't know it was Italy for a couple days.
After we walked around for a while we spent a couple hours on the roof by the pool reading and people watching. There was a topless 80 year old woman sunbathing. that was not a pleasant site.
We had the Dine around that night (sunday) with Jake, Charmaine, Anna and Jake. We went to quais de artiste or something like that. I had salad exotique for the first course which was a bowl made out of watermellon with shrimp, avocado, kiwi and mellon and lettuce in it, then I had a duck pot roast with Foie Gras (duck liver) (which was yucky) and I got Cheese Mousse encased in a darkchocolate shell with raspberry sauce for dessert and dad got creme brulee and I had some of that. that was marvelous. And we got a bottle of wine. For 6 people, dinner came to 488 Euros, which times 1.39 is the American total. holy crap. Good thing the company was paying. lol. We got back to the hotel and read for a bit, then went to bed around 1130ish.
The next morning (Monday) Charmaine and I had the cooking class in Vence, at Alain Llorca, which was super cool. There was about 12 of us, and the restaurant had a super super beautiful view. omgosh. We made Artichoke Risotto, Vegetable Baylard (or something) Salmon, and Lemon Meringue tart. SOOOO good. we learned how to cut/peel artichokes. That is like super hard to get it perfect. lol. I got to use a torch to like cook or broil or whatever the tart. Then we got served all that with champagne and wine. and Olive TAPANDA. OMGOSH. THat stuff is DELISH!! you spread it on fried garlic bread or whatever. it is sooooooo delish. omgosh.
After that we went up to St. Paul de Vence. That is a city that is up on top of the mountain that has a stone wall around it, and about 700 residents in the fall/spring/summer, but in the winter, only 15 because you can drive down the hill in the snow, but you can't get back up it, and there are no resources in the city, like a store or bakery or anything. It was beautiful. the whole town was gorgeous.
We came back from that and it was time to get ready for the awards ceremony. It was elegant dress and I got to wear my red dress and the guys all had to wear a tie and jacket. It was beautifully set up, and there was a red carpet to the ballroom and everything. Live music (there was live music at all the events), after they did the awards and we ate (around 1030pm) we (jake charmaine dad and I) went walking around and watched all the people at the casino, and went walking around the streets and parks. Seeing halfmillion dollar cars became normal, but then we saw a bugatti, which is the worlds fastest car and is a million and a half dollars. Everyone there takes pictures of all the cars and stuff its kinda funny. altho I did the same thing. haha. It was beautiful at night, the fountains were on and lighted and the hotel de paris was just gorgeous and the place du casino was just beyond words.
The next morning was the sailing regatta (or rigata as the french pronounce it haha) and that was fun. we got on the sailboats (about ten went out each time (morning and afternoon) with 10 on each.) and our sailor man hardly spoke english, which worried me a little since we were going out to the middle of the sea with him. haha. there wasn't enough wind for the regatta, so after our sailing lesson, and after we got out there, we just dropped anchor and jumped into the Mediterranean sea. OMGOSH. The water was sooo warm, and I just swam around and treaded water for about 30 when we had to head back, and then we had the regatta and we didn't even know where we were going. we did not win. haha. it was fun tho. I like sailing. alot. we sailed up and investigated the yachts up close. there were multimillion dollar yachts. it's nuts.
After that, dad and I went parasailing. It was at the Monte Carlo Beach Club, which had just rows and rows of halfmillion dollar cars parked in front of it. We got on the speed boat that took us off shore aways, and the water was super choppy and we were going super fast, but it was super fun. then we got all hooked up, the boat sped up, and up we went. it was such a beautiful view. omgosh. I can't even explain it. we had a great view of Italy as well.
After that, dad and I went and got pizza (where they only gave us one plate, again, what is up with the french and lack of plates) and then we went to a little shop and I got a purse that has a picture of the Place du casino and Hotel de Paris on it. I got shirts for the girls and Vin. Then we walked all around, in the opposite direction than before, and discovered yacht land, where all the yachts dock and people get off. Super crazy down there, and more expensive than other places. altho the general area is 4x the price of here. lol.
Then dad and I went walking around 8pmish and found a mexican restaurant and we had dinner there. it was really good. Really good. lol. Then we went and packed and passed out before we had to get up at quarter to 6 to leave and head to the airport.
our flight to JFK was delayed like 40 minutes, and that threw off everything. we got to NY around 2ish. Our flight was supposed to leave at 345. however, by the time we got off the plane, it was 230, and then we had to go thru customs and baggage claim, and recheck our bag and go BACK thru security. Thankfully, they moved us to the "late for your plane" line, which was only about 15 minutes long, instead of 3 hours. Then we RAN and got our plane. We arrived at Syracuse about 45 mins later and discovered that our baggage did not run to the plane as well. ha. I am hoping to get it sometime today.
on the plane on the way home, I watched "date night", "cop out", "the bounty hunter" and part of "when in rome", oh and "two and a half men". haha. They were all good movies.
It was a great trip, altho I am incredibly happy to be home. The french are incredibly rude, or maybe it is just in Monaco, because they are all overly rich. They don't use plates, or ice, and their butter is always frozen, when there is actually butter. The bread is french bead, and hard enough to break teeth. They don't use mayonnaise, and are awful drivers. I can't tell you how many times our shuttle drivers almost hit people, or cars, and cars that drove on the wrong side of the road to speed ahead 20 other cars. scooters that drive whereever they want, whenever and park wherever they want. scooters galore. Crossing the road is a dangerous choice down there. Hell, standing on the sidewalk is a dangerous choice. lol. It was hotter than dickens down there, but it was a nice experience. I wish we had one more day tho. It woulda been nice to go to Nice and do some shopping at their outdoor markets, but I chose Parasailing instead, which was nice. I wish I had been able to go hiking with dad and Jake, but they went when Charmaine and I went to St Paul de Vence.
I missed the girls and Vin an awful lot. One of the nights that I talked to Gracie I asked her what she did at ms. gretchens. she said "well...I didn't color. I didn't swim, either. I didn't paint" I was like what DID you do. and continues "I did't eat pizza, I didn't play with playdoh..." hahaha.
I missed Vin so much. We met them at Denny's after the airport, and Madalyn wouldn't stop hugging me. haha. I just wanted to hug Vin and never let him go. He keeps texting and calling me today saying he misses me cuz we didn't really have time to talk or anything when I got back. I was so exhausted that I passed out the second I got the girls in bed. It had been almost 24 hours since I had slept.
Now I am catching up on my L word. I missed it. I am almost done. one more episode, I think.
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