Pomladni Pariz - Paris in Spring

Ne morem verjeti, da je že sredina februarja. Januarja je bilo konec kot bi mignil, še posebej zaradi vseh zadev, ki so se dogajale, odkar sem se vrnila v Pariz prvega januarja. Selitev iz enega stanovanja v drugega (pravzaprav sem potrebovala par tednov, da sem vse svoje stvari od vseh prijateljev, ki so jih shranili zame, prenesla v novo stanovanje), novo pripravništvo, Charlie Hebdo in ves pariški kaos, pomešan z žalostjo, strahom in jezo. Božičnih lučk ni več (hvalabogu, letos jih kar niso in niso sneli!). Malo je snežilo v Parizu, ravno toliko, da so vsi pretiravali z navdušenjem.

Prejšnji vikend je bil čudovit. Prava zima – mrzlo, a sončno. Okej, priznam, da bi moral biti sneg po vseh pravilih v tej zimski enačbi, ampak meni je čisto fino brez. V mislih sem že pri pomladi. Tulipani pripomorejo k temu, dnevi se daljšajo, in ko se vračam domov iz službe, ni več tako temno.

Ko sem zadnjič kolesarila, sem imela flashback mrzle, ampak čudovite pomladi v Kopenhagnu. Kolesarjenje po Østerbrogade, postanek na Gunnar Nu Hansens Plads za latte in tortico na sončku s sončnimi očali in odpetim plaščem, potem pa navdušeno opazovanje cvetličarn s čebulicami na poti, ki vabijo, da jih kupiš in preoblečeš svoje stanovanje v pomladno vzdušje!

V tem trenutku sem se zavedla, da očitno vsako leto enkrat februarja začnem sanjati o pomladi in vsem, kar paše zraven. Lani so me čebulice in sončno vreme spomnili na Kopenhagen pred enim letom, ko sem tudi sama dobila svojo čebulico, in zdi se, da mi je bilo to tako zelo všeč, da zdaj o tem sanjam vsako naslednje leto. Letos sem imela samo tulipane, ampak bom kmalu pogledala za kakšno čebulico, ki jo bom opazovala rasti.

Doma, v Sloveniji, pa se pomlad očitno zdi še kar daleč stran. Na Facebooku in Instagramu mojih prijateljev je nešteto snežnih in zimskih fotk. Zdi se mi precej čudno, če si poskušam predstavljati takšno vzdušje tu v Parizu. No, v vsakem primeru bom morala počakati še kakšna dva meseca, preden Ben and Jerry’s Cone Day pride v Pariz in odpre sezono sladoleda. Ampak veste kaj? Kdo pravi, da je ne morem odpreti sama? Pomlad, pridi kmalu! :)

I can’t believe it’s mid-February already. January has gone by in a flash. This was even more so given everything that has happened since I got back in Paris on the first of January. Moving from one apartment to another one (it took me several weeks actually to get all my belongings from all of my friends who had stored them for me), starting a new internship, Charlie Hebdo and Parisian chaos mixed with sadness, fear and anger. The Christmas lights are all gone by now (thanks god, they kept them forever this year!). It snowed a tiny little bit in Paris, just so everyone got overwhelmed.

The past weekend has been marvellous. The real winter – cold but sunny. Ok, I admit that snow should be in that equation too, but I am pretty happy without it. In my mind I am actually in the spring season already. Tulips contribute very much to that, days are getting longer and it’s not that dark anymore when I come back home from work.

When I was cycling the other day, I had a flashback of cold but beautiful spring in Copenhagen. Cycling down the Østerbrogade, stopping at Gunnar Nu Hansens Plads for latte and cake while sitting on the sun with sunglasses and open jacket, and then passing several flower shops with flower bulbs, inviting to buy them and bring the springish atmosphere in your apartment.

I’ve realised just now that apparently every year at some point in February I start dreaming about spring and all that comes with it. Last year the sunny weather and flower bulbs reminded me of Copenhagen a year before, when I got one for the first time, and it seems like I liked it so much that I dream of it every year since then. This year I’ve only had tulips but I will soon have a look for yet another flower bulb, which I will then watch grow.

Back home, on the other hand, spring apparently still seems far away. Facebook and Instagram feeds of my friends are flooded with snowy photos. It seems so strange to put myself in the wintery mood again, even though those photos are usually super beautiful. Well, I guess I will still need to wait for about two months before the Ben and Jerry’s Cone Day comes in town again and opens the ice cream season. But you know what – who says I can’t open it myself? Spring, come quickly!:)

Jutro v Parizu - Morning in Paris

Danes sem šla v službo pol ure prej kot ponavadi. Prisežem, da sem kolesarila skozi drugačen Pariz kot ponavadi. Kavarne, butiki, trgovine so bili v večini še zaprti. Avtomobili dostavljalcev so bili parkirani na pločnikih (in kolesarskih stezah, khm!), promet je bil precej zgoščen. Zdelo se mi je, kot da sem prišla na zabavo, ki se je še pripravljala in kjer je vladalo vzdušje naglice. Kot da se ponavadi tiste pol ure prej vse pripravi, da lahko lepo odkolesarim v službo. Vse se mi je zdelo drugače. Temperatura, sonce, vzdušje, svetloba.

Pol ure razlike. Nisem mogla verjeti. Edino, kar je bilo enako, je bila polna Velib postaja, kjer sem morala počakati, preden sem lahko parkirala svoje kolo.

Večkrat sem si že rekla, da bom vstala malo prej in izkoristila zgodnje jutro pred službo, ampak mi kar ne uspe. Zdaj, ko vidim, da Pariz diha popolnoma drugače, si želim, da bi se šla kdaj res zelo zgodaj zjutraj sprehodit po ulicah Pariza. Večer je prav tako precej spremenjen, včasih celo mističen, ampak brez te jutranje svežine in nežnega sončnega vzhoda. Za ponoviti vsekakor.

Today I went to work half an hour earlier than usually. I swear that I was cycling through a different Paris than usually. Cafés, boutiques, shops were mostly still closed. The cars of deliverers were parked on the sidewalks (and cycling lanes, khm!), the traffic was quite heavy. It seemed as if I came to a party that was still being prepared and where the atmosphere of a rush was omnipresent. As if usually it takes this half an hour to prepare everything, so I can cycle nicely to my office. Everything seemed different. The temperature, sun, the atmosphere, the light.

A difference of half an hour. I couldn't believe it. The only thing that remained the same was a full Velib station where I needed to wait before I was able to park my bike.

So far I have said to myself several times that I would get up a bit earlier and make the most of my early morning before work, but somehow I rarely succeed. Now that I see that Paris is breathing completely differently, I wish to stroll the streets of Paris at some point very early in the morning. The evening is equally different, sometimes I would even call it mystical, but this freshness and mild sunrise is not there. I will definitely do that again!

Spring Atmosphere All Around - Pomladno vzdušje vsepovsod

After a really great spring preview with lots of sun, happy faces and positive vibes, I woke up into a rainy rainy morning today. Even though I like rain, I was really enjoying those sunny days. At several occasions I felt like in Copenhagen at the end of April, when everything moves to the streets, cycling becomes very much enjoyable again, and the idea of drinking a coffee or a mango smoothie outside on the sun actually seems amazing. Pastel colors of the shops look even better in the sunlight and you just can't stop smiling.

If I was in Copenhagen and the weather was as it was a few days ago in Paris, I would probably cycle to the lakes, sit in the Cafe 22 and drink a latte while observing people passing by and enjoying the reflection of the sun in the water. Instead I took a walk to Bastille and then continued along the Seine on the way back home from my yoga class. I stopped in the flower shop and bought myself a flower bulb that I now enjoy observing growing. I had one last year too when I wanted Spring to come earlier. It worked, I promise! :)

I have never seen so many French people walking, cycling, running or skating along the Seine. Everyone seemed happy, in love, full of energy. Street artists were at every step of the way, performing and creating a special atmosphere with their music. Oh, beautiful Spring!

I try to create the spring atmosphere even when I wake up into a rainy morning. Nice breakfast makes even rain seem nice at the end ;)

Po res čudovitem pomladnem "predogledu" z veliko sonca, veselih obrazov in pozitivnih vibracij sem se danes zbudila v res deževno jutro. Čeprav imam dež sicer rada, sem teh par sončnih in pomladnih dni res uživala. Večkrat sem se počutila kot v Kopenhagnu konec aprila, ko se vse preseli na ulice, kolesarjenje ponovno postane velik užitek in ko se kava ali mangov smoothie zunaj na soncu zdi najboljša ideja. Pastelne barve trgovin izgledajo še boljše v soju sončnih žarkov in kar ni se mogoče nehati smehljati.

Če bi bila v Kopenhagnu in bi bilo vreme tako, kot par dni nazaj v Parizu, bi najbrž odkolesarila do jezer, se usedla v Cafe 22 in spila latte, obenem pa opazovala mimoidoče ljudi in uživala ob lesketanju sonca v vodi. Namesto tega sem se sprehodila do Bastille in potem nadaljevala ob bregu Sene na poti nazaj domov z joge. Ustavila sem se v cvetličarni in si kupila čebulico rože, ki jo zdaj opazujem, ko se razvija v pravo rožo. Tudi lani sem imela eno, ko sem želela prehiteti pomlad. Delovalo je, obljubim! :)

Nikoli še nisem videla toliko Francozov, ki bi se sprehajali, kolesarili, tekli ali rolali vzdolž Sene. Vsi so se zdeli srečni, zaljubljeni, polni energije. Ulični umetniki so bili na vsakem koraku, s svojimi predstavami in glasbo pa so ustvarili res posebno vzdušje. Oh, čudovita pomlad!

Potrudim se, da si pomladno vzdušje pričaram tudi, kadar se zbudim v deževno jutro. Ob simpatičnem pomladnem zajtrku se še dež zdi simpatičen ;)

What a week!

The past few days were like a long ride on a roller coaster – fun, intense, a bit tiring and especially fast. I had been at so many different places in a short time period, cycling around Paris with a double scarf (it’s quite cold on the bike), feeling like a superwoman (catwoman maybe?) but at the end of the day just falling into my bed without any trace of insomnia problems. It all started with a weekend trip to Rennes and Mont Saint Michel (where the upper photo was taken), but I will write about that a bit later.

Zadnji dnevi so bili kot dolga vožnja na vrtiljaku – zabavni, intenzivni, malo utrujajoči in predvsem zelo hitri. V res kratkem času sem bila na čisto različnih koncih, kolesarila po Parizu z dvojnim šalom (na kolesu je kar mrzlo), se počutila kot superwoman (mogoče catwoman rajši?) in na koncu dneva samo padla v posteljo brez sledu problemov z nespečnostjo. Vse se je začelo z vikend izletom v Rennes in Mont Saint Michel (kjer je nastala zgornja fotka), ampak o tem kdaj drugič.

It seemed as if that roller coaster was a bit international too. I went to more Chinese events than in my whole life before, I believe. Apart from the Chinese New Year celebrations, Jan 27 marked the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France, and I got to know about the best events, such as a big spectacle in the Grand Palais. Chinese decorations, Chinese electric rock, Chinese culture, spring rolls – and on top of that the Chinese New Year, défilé with the dragon trying to catch the ball in front of it. Very special, even for someone like me who is usually not the biggest fan of Asia in general.

Zdelo se je, da je bil tale vrtiljak tudi malo mednaroden. Zdi se mi, da sem šla na več kitajskih dogodkov kot prej v celem življenju skupaj. Poleg praznovanja kitajskega novega leta sta Kitajska in Francija 27. januarja praznovali 50. obletnico diplomatskih vezi. V okviru tega sem izvedela za res super dogodke, kot je bil na primer spektakel v Grand Palais. Kitajski okraski, kitajski električni rock, kitajska kultura, pomladanski zavitki – in za povrh vsega tega še velik sprevod z zmajem, ki je poskušal ujeti kroglo pred seboj. Zelo posebno je bilo to vse skupaj, tudi za nekoga kot sem jaz, ki načeloma nisem največja ljubiteljica Azije na splošno.

The weather seems to be on a roller coaster too. Not such a crazy one as in Slovenia (compared to that I should actually keep quiet here), but the sun, clouds, cold and rain somehow seem not to be able to agree on whose turn it is. One moment I wake up into a beautiful sunny morning and then when I get my feet out of the apartment, it is raining. Yey.

Signing up for zumba classes on Monday morning was one of the best decisions I have taken lately. After internal fights still in bed (“Oh, it is sooo cold”, “Just 5 more minutes”, “What if I skip it today? Just today?”) I get myself out of the bed, get dressed and take a bike. Already on the bike I feel amazing. And then in the gym I just enjoy it so much! It reminds me of Copenahgen where I started with zumba and did it several times per week.

I am leaving to Birmingham for a weekend meeting for one of the projects I participate in. I am looking forward but will need to keep myself well organized with all the rest of the work since I wont have a real weekend to catch up on things. I hope the weather will be good. For the company I know already :)

Tudi vreme se zdi na vrtiljaku. Ne tako norem kot v Sloveniji (če primerjam s tem, bi morala jezik držati za zobmi, namesto da tarnam), ampak sonce, oblaki, mraz in dež se nekako ne znajo uskladiti, kdo je na vrsti in kdaj. V enem trenutku se zbudim v res čudovito sončno jutro in potem, ko pomolim svoje noge iz stanovanja, dežuje. Jej.

Vpisala sem se na zumbo ob ponedeljkih zjutraj. To je bila ena izmed boljših odločitev v zadnjem času. Čeprav se zjutraj v postelji bojujem sama s sabo (“Oh, kako je mrzlo”, “Samo še pet minut”, “Kaj pa, če danes ne grem? Samo danes?”), se nekako spravim iz postelje, se oblečem in grem na kolo. Že na kolesu se počutim odlično, potem v dvorani pa enostavno uživam! Spomnim se na Kopenhagen, kjer sem začela z zumbo in sem šla v fitness večkrat na teden.

Ta vikend grem v Birmingham na vikend sestanek za enega izmed projektov, v katerih sodelujem. Veselim se, ampak se bom morala dobro organizirati glede ostalega dela, ker ne bom imela vikenda v pravem smislu, da bi nadoknadila stvari. Upam, da bo vreme super. Družba bo gotovo :)

Winter in Paris - Zima v Parizu

I guess it is the time for me to take winter clothes from the last non-unpacked box. And prepare a cup of cinnamon&apple tea. And put some warm socks on. I smelled it tonight, the winter. The temperatures went down, the winter is coming into town. Slowly. I like it.

Cold and windy Copenhagen prepared me well for Paris weather. It is nothing compared to last year’s Danish weather, but sometimes it doesn’t seem that far from it, to be honest. So I keep cycling instead of using the metro, even if I go a bit farther, and I keep enjoying it.

Today, on a Saturday, I went to the groceries. Riding the bike back home with a full basket and passing the Louvre and then one of the bridges over Seine, I was thinking that even the most ordinary thing, such as shopping for food on a Saturday morning, seems special in Paris. Or maybe it is just me seeing it as special.

Anyhow, I enjoy Paris a lot. I am getting better in remembering the one-way streets (oh, they are just so many here!!), avoiding the tourists and rather take some smaller but nicer streets and boulevards. I am not waiting at the red light but pass when I see it is safe to do so.

A friend of mine, a non-French, told me the other day: “You are so French!” When I asked him why, he went on: “The way you say this and that, the body language you have – you just seem so French.” I took that rather as a compliment. Some people have said so far that I have a French accent in English. This is rather not a compliment :D And it is not true, just to be clear on that :D

But I wouldn’t want to argue about my immersion into another culture. I think it is a great thing one can do when living in a foreign country for some time. A lady I talked to for a very short while in Paris, two or three years ago, told me: “When you are in another country, you must eat what people there eat.” She wanted to emphasize the importance of immersion into another culture, and that it makes no sense comparing all the time with your home country, criticizing instead of accepting, avoiding instead of trying. I think she had a very good point there.

And not-good point of the day: in the shops they already sell chocolate advent calendars. And what is even worse – I saw some people buying them! :D Crazy world.

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Mislim, da je čas, da odpakiram še zadnjo ne-odpakirano škatlo, škatlo z zimskimi oblekami. In čas, da si pripravim skodelico cimetovega in jabolčnega čaja. In oblečem tople nogavice. Začutila sem vonj po zimi, danes zvečer. Temperature so se spustile, zima se bliža. Počasi. Všeč mi je!

Mrzel in vertoven Kopenhagen me je dobro pripravil na pariško vreme. Ne more se primerjati z lanskim danskim vremenom, ampak moram vseeno priznati, da se včasih ne zdi tako daleč. Še naprej torej kolesarim namesto vožnje z metrojem, tudi če grem malo dlje, in še naprej uživam v tem.

Danes, v soboto, sem šla v trgovino po hrano. Ko sem se peljala domov s polno košarico na kolesu in sem šla mimo Louvra pa potem čez enega od mostov čez Seine, sem razmišljala o tem, da se tudi najbolj enostavna stvar, kot je nakupovanje hrane v soboto zjutraj, zdi posebna v Parizu. Ali pa se samo meni zdi posebna.

Kakor koli, Pariz mi je res všeč. Vse boljša postajam v tem, da si zapomnim enosmerne ulice (ki jih je tu res veliko!!), da se izognem turistom in raje kolesarim po manjših in simpatičnih ulicah in avenijah. Ne čakam več pri rdeči luči na semaforju, ampak prečkam cesto, ko vidim, da jo je varno prečkati.

Prijatelj, ne-Francoz, mi je pred kratkim rekel: “Ti si tako francoska.” Ko sem ga vprašala, kaj me naredi francosko, je nadaljeval: “Način, kako rečeš to in tisto, kako to poveš s celim telesom – enostavno francoska se zdiš.” To sem vzela kot kompliment. Zgodilo se je že, da mi je kdo rekel, da imam francoski naglas, ko govorim angleško. To, na primer, ni kompliment :D In samo da je jasno – ni res :D

Kar pa se tiče moje “potopitve” v tujo kulturo, mislim, da je imel moj prijatelj prav. Zdi se mi, da je ena izmed najboljših stvari, ki jih lahko naredimo, ko živimo v tuji državi, ta, da se “potopimo” v kulturo te države. Gospa, s katero sem se pred leti za kratek čas pogovarjala v Parizu, mi je rekla: “Ko si v tuji državi, moraš jesti to, kar jedo prebivalci te države.” Kar je želela poudariti, je ravno ta pomembnost “potopitve” v tujo kulturo in to, da nima smisla stalno primerjati stvari s svojo domovino, kritizirati namesto sprejemati, izogibati se namesto preizkušati. Mislim, da je gospa z menoj delila zelo pomembno modrost.

In ne-dober utrinek dneva: v trgovinah že prodajajo čokoladne adventne koledarje. In kar je še hujše – videla sem ljudi, ki so jih dejansko kupovali! :D Narobe svet.

Autumn in Paris - Jesen v Parizu

On the first day of autumn summer came back to Paris. And not just for a day. After a just too quick change from summer to rainy and grey autumn, we apparently got a second chance, the one letting us slowly get used to the autumn and its beautiful colors. Walking to the university and riding a bike elsewhere on the streets of Paris – the winning combination.

Na prvi jesenski dan se je poletje vrnilo v Pariz. In to ne za samo en dan. Po čisto prehitrem preskoku s poletja na deževno in sivo jesen smo očitno dobili še eno priložnost, da se jesen počasi obleče v jesenske barve. Peš na faks in s kolesom po ostalih ulicah Pariza – najboljša kombinacija.

Boulevard Saint Germain is between 12h and 14h, when I go home and prepare lunch, extremely lively. And I don’t mean lively in the sense of hysteric running and hurrying. Not at all. In France, this is the time dedicated to lunch. Even if people are enthusiastic, they are calm. Restaurants get filled up, cafés with a “terrace” on the sidewalks change to a place, which reminds me of a box of sardines, and everywhere the atmosphere is lively. Add to that super great sunny weather – you get the picture.

Boulevard Saint Germain je med 12h in 14h, ko odidem domov in si skuham kosilo, izjemno živahen. Pa ne v smislu brezglavega tekanja in hitenja. Sploh ne. V Franciji je namreč ta čas rezerviran za kosilo. Čeprav so ljudje navdušeni, so umirjeni. Restavracije se zapolnijo, kavarne s “teraso” na pločniku se spremenijo v konzervi s sardelicami podoben prostor, povsod pa prevladuje živahno vzdušje. Dodaj k temu še super sončno vreme – you get the picture.

The queues in the supermarkets are infinite. Lunch only rarely means real lunch for French people. This real lunch comes later, in the form of an early dinner. In between people just eat something quickly. A sandwich, a salad, in a restaurant or in a park, on a bench or simply on the way back to work or university.

Vrste v trgovinah so neskončne. Kosilo za Francoze redko pomeni pravo kosilo. To pride kasneje, ko se pozno kosilo združi z zgodnjo večerjo. Vmes pa se poje nekaj na hitro. Sendvič, solato, v restavraciji ali pa v parku, na klopci oziroma kar na poti nazaj v službo ali na faks.

The streets too are full of cars and scoters (French really drive lots of scoters. I guess they see it as the best way to avoid traffic and are at the same time still quicker than cyclers), but I am going with a bike. After a year in Copenhagen I cannot imagine a city without a bike (even though the cobbled stones in Paris sometimes become just too annoying). In the beautiful weather and hundred of cars everywhere I feel extremely light and extremely happy on a bike on a cycling lane.

Tudi ceste so polne avtov in skuterjev (Francozi se res veliko vozijo s skuterji. Najbrž se jim zdi najboljši način, da se izognejo gneči, a so še vedno hitrejši od kolesarjev), a sama prisegam na kolo. Po letu v Kopenhagnu si mesta brez kolesa ne znam več predstavljati (čeprav so sem in tja tlakovci v Parizu lahko precej nadležni). Ob čudovitem vremenu in vrstah avtov se na kolesu na kolesarski stezi počutim izjemno lahkotno in z vetrom v laseh izjemno srečno.

A sunny day like that finishes with a sunset in the same style, of course. Oh, Paris.

Tak sončen dan se, seveda, konča se s sončnim zahodom v podobnem stilu. Oh, Pariz.