A daytrip to Arras

Last Friday we booked Blablacars with two friends from school to visit Arras the next day. We wanted to - and still want to - visit Brugge, but with all the organisation we were too late and the best blablacar leaving at 8.20 in the morning was taken by Friday. Not a big surprise, when there's only 1 day between the booking and the departure itself and the method of transport is probably the cheapest way to get to the wanted destination. Since we still wished to get away for a little while from the always crowded Lille - which we love a lot - we chose the capital of the region, that we live in. And we made a good decision after all. Let's go!

We're fortunate with the weather on Saturday, it's sunny and warm, and we also find out that the market is open, so we end up buying lunch there and eating it in a nice park, after visiting the Beffroi d'Arras, the bell tower. I'm scared to walk up the 43 stairs that we have to walk after a short elevator-ride- as always, since I'm afraid of heights - but after some moments of freaking out, we end up on the top of it, alive and happy. The view is beautiful, and the weather is very windy, so we discuss how to say hairbrush in German and Hungarian, since these are our mother tongues. I still regret I'm unable to remember the word, until today I haven't been able to make friends with this language. Burstel, brustel, brastal, whatever. (And please ignore the fact if these words mean something in any other language, I'm just trying to spell the German word for a hairbrush, okay?) We talk about Oktoberfest and cities we wish to visit.

one part of the market, seen from the Beffroi

this is a real market

The park we settle in to finish our lunches, is close to the centre, small and friendly, but one doesn't always need an enormous botanical garden to have a nice picnic. We end up talking for about 3 hours about many different topics, interests, etc.

Before ditching Arras for Lille again, we do some window-shopping and admire the fact, how calm and peaceful the city is. We don't buy anything at the end, but walk to the train station to realize that we still have half an hour to kill, before the Blablacar driver shows up. I suggest having a coffee, and we sit on a caffé terrasse for some espressos, and to share the 7,60 euro price of our journeys. Blablacar is cheap in fact.

We sit in the backseat of a Fiat Punto on the highway between Arras and Lille, in Northern-France and talk about more stuff.

I buy the first bagel of my life in Lille after arriving. At Bagelstein, they are as friendly as they can be even 1-2 hours before closing time, with another 10 hours of working behind. The lady explains us how we can order, after my quite loud "wow" when entering the place. It looks good and appetizing, so sorry, I'm not sorry. It is WOW! (No, I'm not getting payed by Bagelstein. :)) I order a bagel covered in poppy-seeds, which reminds me of Hungarian patisserie and my day is complete.

Arras, mercí, c'était trés agréable. :)

Photo update 05/28:

Greetings from Arras! Oh, and bürste. I learned it! I'm getting there! Yay!

A "not my day" type of day

There is a Hungarian saying that goes something like "I woke up putting my left feet first on the floor.", which means someone is having an unlucky day. Yes, it's me and yes, it is the day that Garfield hates the most. Everything's fine now, I'm sitting on my bed with my laptop, and with my little evening snack by my side: an avocado, ricepuffs covered in black chocolate and a cup of tea. It's time to recover from the cold I have and stop sneezing, so I'm making all the efforts not to go out, even though I was invited to. Also after today I prefer not to risk having a kitchen counter falling on my head from an open window, just because I left the house. Sounds pessimistic, I know. C'est la vie.

I woke up this morning well rested to walk into the kitchen and break a glass lid as the first thing in the morning. The hostfamily hears the huge noise from downstairs and they ask: "Are you okay?" I answer: "Well, I am, but the glass lid is not." After they come upstairs, they go: "Well, not really a good start for the day." I sweap up and hoover up the little pieces of glass, so that we don't walk in it: better not to.

The day continues, I take the kiddos to school as usual, throw some dirty clothes in the washing machine and drive to the supermarket to do my weekly food shop. After cooking sweet potatoes and lemon-garlic chicken for lunch, I Skype with my grandparents and decide to take my scooter (la trotinette in French) for a short outside trip. Good idea for a while, and then there's this little hole in the pavement with grass, which I'm really concerned I can pass: haha! My scooter slips on my right side and with my last reflexes I don't take care about falling on the ground fortunately, but to keep my scooter as close to myself as I can, since there's a car on my right side. I'd rather hit myself a little, than to pay a fortune to the owner, after scratching the paint off of the vehicle, if he/she's just around the corner. I don't land too bad, nothing hurts. A lady passes by on her bycicle (le vélo) and she asks me if I was okay. I put my biggest smile and say: Yes, yes, thank you so much.

At the end, well, c'est la vie. I didn't break a bone, c'est pas grave.