JONIZZLE

It's 730 am kiddies and I can't sleep. So I lay in bed, think about things, and now I arise from my non-slumber to blog. And I feel like talking about my trip to Europe last year.

The more I think about it, the more ridiculously improbable and impromptu the whole thing was. It all started with me not getting my plane tickets due to unavailability until less than a week before I actually left. Christine and I had originally planned this whole thing, and others joined, but it seemed as if i wasnt going to go, until of course the last minute. So I had gotten my tickets, and like 6 days later, I was flying off to France.

After arriving, I remember just sitting around in a cold train station for like...hours. Somehow my iPod battery lasted with me the whole time. And then Jenny came! And you know, Jenny and I didnt reaaaally know each other at that time. I mean, we knew each other from TAF and all that, but never had we hung out or spoken outside of a TAF setting. And there we were, sipping on leetle eety beety cups of French "cafe", small talking, waiting for the others to arrive. And after an hour or so, maybe more...they did.

And we all merrily went to Jenny's host's house...a gorgeous maison on the outskirts of Lyon that had plenty of space where we could make all this noise and they had a fireplace and blah blah blah...it was like the French Martha Stewart lived there. Except Philip and Helene are cooler and bought their stuff at IKEA. No really...IKEA. It makes sense, Lyon is closer to Sweden than Schaumburg after all.

And then after a jolly good white Christmas in France sitting around a fire and getting a pair of fuzzy slippers from Philip and Helene, which was something I actually wanted to get in the States, and I still wear them now, we Americans headed off to Barcelona.

Ah Barcelona, the city where I spotted an old couple scoping us out to most likely pickpocket us. No really, they followed us into three different banks as we tried to get better exchange rates, and only came in and looked at us, or talked to us, and then stood around and left. Then I stared the old man down. And he left. Como estas now OLD MAN?!?!?!

And not to forget the incident with the two singing men who tried to dance with me in the dark alley and whos hand went towards my behind and I felt him nip the top of my jean pocket with my wallet. Maybe he though I was rich. Or maybe he just thought I had a nice butt.

Anyways, I'm really surprised we didnt get robbed in Barcelona, because it seems like we probably could have. And to add to the sheer perfectness of this trip, our Barcelona bungalow was so cool. And chorizo! Oh how I loved my newly discovered chorizo. It's like that chinese sausage, only spicy. And probably worse for you. Mmm...

As everyone else left us in Barcelona, it was once again, just Ms. Jennifer and I. Now we were closer friends! Oh and not to forget, that whilst in Barcelona, her and I pretended to be "together". Emphasis on the word "pretended" kids. I think we wanted to see if we could mess with anyone (ie: Christine) or see how/if it would have a bad effect on the group dynamics (ie: Wil). Some people picked up on it and thought we were idiots (ie: Kathy), and some people didn't notice (ie: Patty). Christine claims to have known all along, but it was still fun sort of tricking her. And Wil...well Wil...you...had this one moment on the last night at dinner where you just stared at me for oh, 5 minute straight. Not from across the room, but from right across the dinner table. It was scary. Everyone else was scared too. I thought you were going to...kill me.

ANYWAYS as I was saying, Jenny and I went back to Lyon to spend New Years Eve because we were tired of Barcelona and as said, we now had this cozy French maison to go back to. We traveled all day and all night and got back to St. Genis les Ollieres before midnight. We showered and grudgingly waiting till midnight so we wouldnt be total tired losers on New Years Eve. And then...Jenny and I got into a fight.

So, you know on New Years Eve, its pretty customary for people to kiss. Nothing real, not even a real kiss, just a little peck on the lips. So midnight rolls around, and I think I say, or maybe jokingly demand her, to kiss me. And...she runs away! Screaming! WHAT?!?!?! And I recall thinking, "Holy sh*t what is wrong with this girl". And So I start freaking out because I think shes freaking out that I wanted to really kiss her and shes already freaking about because of God knows what, and then we yell at each other and she says "FINE!" and we do the little New Years close-lipped kiss on the lips and settle down. And then we both say ok I'm going to bed goodnight. But before we get back to our room we both wonder...what the hell just happened? Somehow we realized it was somehow a misunderstanding and it is both normal within our circle of friends to kiss each other like that, like grown adults.

So...that was over. Weirdo. So we hung out for a day or two and I got to see Lyon. And me like Lyon! It's a nice place, did you know it is the second largest city in France? Today while I was walking into Circuit City I turned to say something to Brian, and I looked past him and saw the vastness of chainstores and chain restaurants with their big brandname signs that surrounded us as we walked into another chainstore with its big brandname sign-turned-maroon doorway, and I wondered what it was like for Europeans to come to the US and see how our shopping works, with big parking lots and big big stores spread out over lots of acres, and traffic going by on three lane roads in every direction. Because you know, I just like how the roll in Lyon better. Nice cobblestone walkways, autotraffic kept away for the most part, 4 story buildings with the looks of character and classiness, its nice I tell you.

And then I went to teach English to French kids...again, random and improbable, even if it was Jenny's purpose in Lyon and France. But anways, THEY LOVED ME! It was fun, a good time, and maybe I'll do it for a whole year (though the window is closing and looking less and less likely for those of you keeping score at home). For the advanced and older students, we had them run Davef-style debate sprints. Har har. One student kept saying, to fight for her argument, not about the activity, "thees ees bullsheet! bullsheet!". That was funny.

Oh, and of course, every class I helped teach asked me if I was Jenny's boyfriend. Non, c'est tres desolee, je ne suis pas ton petit ami.

And this is getting long. So next, we went to Frankfurt where:
1) We met up with Margaret and Alex, as they were on the continent too, we had to meet up.
2) We stayed at a Buddhist Temple, which is again, something completly random and cool and unique.
3) We went to a German-Asian (say it out loud, it sounds funny) club party where,
4) A guy stole my camera but,
5) We found him, got it back, and got him arrested, and then took pictures of him with my newly recovered camera while he was in custody.

Crazy. And then I got owned by Thao, our German friend who had a background in masseuse-ology, and made me cry in the middle of a Starbucks. yes, Starbacks, everywhere in Germany. Only rivaled by...H&M?!?

And then we left, Jenny and I trained it back to Lyon, where I slept and left in the morning...for London. London? I was supposed to leave a week earlier from Lyon! But then I begged United to let me stay longer! Which only adds to the hectic crazyness of the trip.

So London. Made my way to Margaret Yoo's flat without getting lost (lucky). Experiences the London rain (a good song by The Profits as well as the weather that day), and found out Tiffany Sun was in London via Julie Weng, and then ventured out into the London evening by myself to go meet up with Tiffany for an hour or two. whaaaat?! Random TAF meeting in London? Yea, we're that cool arent we?

Its 830 now. Ive been typing for an hour. Nothing else happened. I left. It was good. A year later, I aint going anywhere. I'm still broke from traveling to four countries in two weeks and eating lots of bread and cheese and wienerschnitzels and moule frites (OHMOULEFRITES!). Hah. But it was worth it. And how incredibly amazing it was all considering how it might not have been so many times.


In Lyon, where they call me Jönizzlé


In Barcelona, where they call me Juanizzlo


In Frankfurt, where they call me Joni?lestein


In Margarets flat.


In Tiff's dorm room.

Word.

PS: Jenny might post a comment denying her antics in the infamous "New Years Eve Incident". But she be a crazy womyn.