instruments:piano, drums, voice
Nationality: Canadian
Brigitte joined the crew on the tail of The Horse with a suitcase full of experience and talent. She rounded out the band this year with her piano.... Oh no!
Brigitte has moved on to Paris. Boohoo!!
Wednesday, July 27, 2005 9:47 AM
Hello girlzzz!
How is your summer everyone? Just wanted to let you know that I was thinking
of all of youz.
Two weeks ago, july 14th, was France's birthday. Manu and i took this chance
to go to Bretagne and Normandy with a couple of friends. We went to visit
the Mont Saint Michel in Normandy. It is a special place because it is a
Gothic-style Benedictine abbey built on an islet, but when the tide goes
out, you can reach it by foot from the mainland on the vast sandbanks. You
have to be careful because there is quick-sand in several spots. We had
a guide, along with 60 or so others. It took an hour and a half to get there,
and the same to get back.
There is of course, another way to
get to the islet, they built a road in the past few years leading from the
mainland which is still accessible when the tide is high. We thought it
would be more special to go by foot to visit this UNESCO heritage site.
We also visited Saint-Malo, in Bretagne, which is where Jacques
Cartier was born and navigated from before he came to New Foundland for
the first time in 1534. The birth of the "White" Canada. There
is a Maison du Québec in Saint-Malo where they provide folks with
information on the province of Québec and show a video of Québec's
highlights.
Lots of love to you all!
Brigitte
Monday, April 25, 2005 7:18 PM
Hello Everyone!
So, the job thing...oh my, oh my, is all I can say...well I will elaborate to make myself more understandable. I just started today as a matter of fact. I am working for an English teaching entreprise which sends out English teachers to various French companies in need of English language training. I have been installed at Alcatel four days a week, 6 hours a day. It's a pretty big French phone company, (the same one that Emmanuel works for, but at another branch, unfortunately).
I woke up very early this morning, about 6:30, which is super early for me, walked my tired body over to the train station, went 20 mins north to La Défence then grabbed the 20 min. company shuttle bus to Alcatel. An hour in total just to get to work! I am definitely new to this commuting thing and I don't know if I am ever going to get used to it! I miss my scooter in Taiwan...more mobility. It is a funny situation at this Alcatel place because they have had massive turnover with their English teachers...for reasons I am unaware of, thus explaining the frustration with the students...complaining that there is too much changing around with little follow up on what they have learned previously. The pay is not that amazing, and they don't account for prep-time in their monthly pay! So, I don't know how long I can take this kind of work. To look at this on the bright side, I tell myself that this is a paid experience and that I will learn what it is like to work for a large company, get to know the business kind of folks, as well as French culture. I just feel totally out of my element there...teaching Business English...corporate stuff...it is all very foreign to me.
...thinking that I would really like to go back to school to study something interesting that will give me a brighter future career-wise...but the big question is IN WHAT?!? It's tough for young people these days...especially for those who are interested in too many things.
Oh yes, I forgot to mention that the teacher who I have replaced is a Canadian. She's a translator/English teacher. Her name is Nadine!!! She is very nice and of course we had a lot to talk about since we are both new to this city. I have made my very first new friend in France! Yippee!
Gotta go prepare for tomorrow's very thrilling business English classes!!!!
Miss yuzz, Brigitte
Bosphoe River
Monday, April 11, 2005 10:25 AM
Yo SISTAHZ!
Lately, I am bumping into signs of 69 and you are popping into my dreams
which tell me it's a SIGN that I need to touch base with you all.
Yesterday was my Irish grandpa's birthday, April 10th. He lived to be a
healthy 91 man who enjoyed singing Irish songs as well as playing Juker
and the juice harp. I miss him.
But yesterday was also a special day for me, the kind of inspiring day which
gives you a warm- energizing feeling in the body, simply happy to be alive.
it was a perfect day. I met a friend of Manu's, named Flo, short for Florence,
in the north of Paris in the late afternoon and we walked around the largest
market in the city, Marché d'Ouen. Flo's friend, Marie met up with
us on her rickety rackety bicycle. She had heard of a small cafe-bar where
on Sundays there is live jazz music from 2-7pm. Not only was this a small
place, but it was completely jammed packed with all kinds of folks. I found
a cozy spot standing front row, 1 ft away from the guitarist as he was playing
his solo. Not bad for arriving late.
We walked for a while around the outskirst of the main market through an
antique shop alley until we came upon a loud cafe-restaurant. This place
came straight out of an old movie with old ladies with horrendous dye jobs
smoking cigarettes and chatting while moving around in their chairs excitedly.
the ceiling was generously decorated with gaudy Christmas garlands. the
band playing consisted of an accordian player, keyboardist and singer. The
music was so horrific and outdated to my young ears that it was groovy!
This type of music has a name: bal musette. French : bal, dance + musette,
musette. This place was where Edith Piaff began her singing career.
Afterwards, we walked towards Monmartre and another friend named, Solène,
joined us. As we were walking and talking, I kept noticing places I recall
having seen when i visited Paris in the summer of 2003. It was fantastic.
I absolutely love the feeling of connecting the dots from my memory to the
present moment. Montmartre is a quaint area with cobbled narrow streets
where artists, poets and musicians used to retreat and collaborate, share
ideas back in the days of the Moulin Rouge. It is removed from the centre
of Paris on a hill. You could say that Montmartre is to Paris as Dong Hai
art street is to Taichung.
We chose a place to listen to the music of an accordian player and drank
Monacos. We chatted about this and about that...Florence is a consultant
for companies who wants to quit her well-paid job to return to school and
study sustainable development; Marie is a writer-poet who works as a floating
secretary to make ends meet; and Solène works in administration at
a theater but soon plans to quit and go to Comedian school! This all took
place outisde a bar at table # 69.
" Monaco " Recipe
Ingredients
1 splash Grenadine
2/3 glass Beer
1/3 glass 7-Up
Mixing Instruction
Start with the grenadine, then beer, then 7up. Stir well on the rocks, and
you're good to go.
Miss youz.
Greetings from cold and wet France!
Emmanuel and I just moved into an apartment on the outskirst of Paris. I
have attached a map with more detail for you to see exactly where.
So, do you wanna know the latest in me life? I've only been in this neighborhood
for a week and if you have heard Paris' sidewalks are filled with dog stuff,
well it is very true. You have to watch where you are walk at all times
or else.....ta dah!!!!!
We live on a quiet street filled with old buildings similar to ours. We
are on the 2nd floor and have a cute view of other buildings and sky. We
just take a 2 min. walk down the alley and there I am, in front of a bakery
where we get our baguettes.
The first few days I spent in the apart. sorting and arranging while Emmanuel
was at work. I finished putting together our IKEA tables as a couple of
guys fixed our water heater. We have a problem with the hot water in the
shower, lasts only 3 mins. After two days of fixing, the heater is working
properly, but it only holds 15 litres, which is why it lasts a mere 3 mins.
We are going to have it changed in the very near future for a larger tank.
Tonight we are helping a friend move into her new apart. And tomorrow we
are headed to the countryside where Manu's mom lives.
That's all for now,
love, Brigitte
08 Dec 2004
Hello Everyone!!!!
I am in France! Yes, for those of you who are unaware of my latest adventure, I have left my beautiful Taichung, Taiwan, where I have been living for the past three years and have moved to another continent. France is great, but very cold. My boyfriend, Manu just got the job he wanted and we are apartment hunting...taking a while to find the right one, but I think we're getting very close. I don't have a job or school to attend yet, but I have faith that I will find my niche here. Today I met the owner of an apartment we looked at and she said Paris is in dyre need of English teachers, so I think there is opportunity to be had. Manu and I are staying with his mom until next week. We are in the country side about 200km south west of Paris in a hamlet called Vauracon. Farms and fields are abound. I have gotten to know Manu's family better in the past week and am becoming more and more at ease with them and my new surroundings.
The food is wonderful and the French I have met are warm.
Last Saturday we went to an old school mate of Manu's. It took place on her parents' farm, in an old house that is now used by her father as a kind of hungting lodge. This old classmate hosted a pizza party for around 40 people, many of whom were her Paris friends where she now lives. She made pizza dough from scratch and rolled it out on a table for everyone to see. She was so quick in rolling the dough making it seem as though she had been doing this since she was a child. As the music played on the sound system she called out everybody's name in twos to share a platter of pizza dough. Each couple of people needed to add their favorite toppings and hand it over to a guy who placed them on a long wooden "flipper/spatula-thing", pushing the pizzas deep into an old-fashioned brick oven built in the wall. A tricky procedure I tell ya, what with the fear of burning oneself taking out the scorching hot pizzq latter and placing it carefully on the counter to cool off before one eats it. Oh, and by the way, the toppings were various kinds of french cheeses, sausages, peppers, olive oil, onions,etc, the cheese part being novelty for me after being in Taiwan where tofu was the closest substitute.
Of the 40 people I conversed with about 4, none of whom were teachers of english!? Yet another change for me. I met a musician who plays in an African style band with drums, a psychologist for mentally challenged people, and a married couple who work as tax people. As the cows stood in the barn next door, we ate, danced, drank hot wine, kept warm by a couple of fireplaces. I felt lucky to experience such a unique pizza party.
ok, I am tired so goodbye for now!!!!
Brigitte
The summer of 2004 began in Malaysia...
