Ludomesticated

Guys, it's official. I am domesticated. A large part of my days involve deciding on a dinner menu, going to the market, and making dinner. I totally don't mind because one of my goals here is to become a better cook, but this stay at home partner thing does not agree with my personality. I miss working, but trying to learn French, doing homework, and completing every day tasks (it takes twice as long to pick out laundry detergent when you don't know the language) is pretty much a full time gig. Granted, I do get to sleep in . I feel bad when Davis leaves for school every day at 7:30. : )

The house-girldriendery IS a necessity for us here though. Davis is at school 12 hours a day. This program is uber intense. SOMEONE has to make dinner because it is far to expensive to eat out regularly. The cats aren't up for the job...so I'm the only other option.

That being said, I made some pretty delicious pasta last night. I substituted leek for onion and Davis used his magic touch, adding Italian olive oil and sugar to the finished product.

PENNE WITH SAUSAGE CREAM SAUCE

1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed 1 tablespoon butter 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 medium onion, thinly sliced 4 garlic cloves,minced 2/3 cup dry white wine 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced peeled tomatoes, undrained 1 cup heavy cream 4 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley (flat leaf parsley) 1 teaspoon salt or to taste freshly ground pepper to taste 1 pound penne pasta, cooked according to package 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus additional for garnish Cook sausage in large skillet over medium-high heat. Remove sausage and set aside; drain excess grease from skillet. Melt butter and oil in skillet; add onion and sauté until softened and golden in color. Add garlic, cook and stir 1 minute. Add wine to skillet and reduce volume by half, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and simmer 3 minutes. Return cooked sausage to skillet, add cream and simmer until sauce thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Stir in parsley, salt and pepper. Place cooked Penne in a large serving bowl; pour sauce over pasta; add Parmesan cheese and toss to combine. Serve sprinkled with additional Parmesan cheese. Serves 6.

I went to the post office today because I had to get my Visa forms in and it was difficult, to say the least. It is amazing that two people who don't speak the same language can manage to communicate effectively.

The post offices (La Poste) are pretty funny here. They also serve as banks and there's even a cell phone plan that you can get through them. Weird. The employees are nothing like the ones that work for the USPS (angry!), but you can still tell that they work for the government. And it seems to be a universal thing that going to the post office is an annoying chore.

I managed to only spend 3 Euro today, which is amazing. There is this stand that makes pretzel bread sandwiches. I had one with brie, tomato, and basil. Mmmmm. I also had a couple of cigarettes today, which I am feeling guilty about. The post office was stressful and I was mad that my friend stood me up for lunch. : /

Speaking of cigarettes, the smoking here is ridiculous. EVERYONE does it and there are often lines out to the street at the tobacco shops!

Through frequenting our favorite restaurant here and watching Lebanese music videos, Davis and I have decided that we really want to go to Lebanon. Their culture seems like it's a lot of fun. And all the women are beautiful, but they all look the same!

Italy

Last weekend, we opted to not take the 10 hour bus ride to Paris and rented a car to travel east along the coast instead. The first stop was Monaco (maybe a 30 minute drive from Nice), a very beautiful place that I would only return to if I had some money in my pocket that I needed to get rid of. We stopped near the water where people dock their yachts and we visited the holiday fair that was taking place. We ate a Nutella crepe and some fries and took a ride on the Ferris wheel.

Since we didn't have the funds or connections to rent a yacht for the day :) we decided to continue on to Italy. We realized we were hanging out in the "ghetto" neighborhood as we were leaving and the appearance of women in furs increased. Davis stopped on the coast in Ventimiglia and asked the locals where we should go. They recommended two villages: Dulce Acqua and Apricale.

Apricale is an ancient village that consumes an entire hillside. You have to park outside of the village and climb hundreds of cobble stone steps to get to the highest point.

It was eerily quiet and cats were everywhere (Frenchies and Italians LOVE kitties). Residents also had these strange cat gates on their front doors. We stopped to have a drink in one of the bars and there was a picture of a cat on the wall.

The wine was delicious and cheap. Davis, of course, was speaking butchered bits of Italian in no time. We were going to eat in the village's Michelin rated restaurant but decided we were not hungry enough to enjoy it. Apricale is one of the most charming places I have ever visited. We want to take Bieke, John, and Leonard here when they visit.

We drove further into another village that I don't remember the name of. The roads were one lane, super dangerous, and scary. The town was so small but we managed to find a little cheese shop owned by a nice woman (the cheese maker). She sold us half of a huge block of delicious cheese for only 10 euros. There was also a little restaurant that the locals spoke fondly of. Healdsburg fam: this woman was Italy's Gia Passalacqua. Too funny. We didn't eat here either because we still weren't hungry. We stopped at a store to buy some Italian pasta and then headed back towards Nice.

We stopped in Dulce Aqcua to have some (very bad) Italian food. So far Italian food here is nothing compared to the Italian food at Scopa or Diavola in Cali.

Getting used to it all...

There is dog poo all over the sidewalks. People also throw trash on the street. It drives me completely insane. That is my one complaint. Davis mentioned forming a weekend clean up brigade. It's not a bad idea. Maybe they would give us citizenship for our efforts. : )

We went to a Brasserie for my birthday dinner to get some Steak Frites. What did they bring us? An unseasoned hamburger patty. We learned from the waiter that it is actually called something different here (I don't thinks so...). Our waiter was complaining about American food being bad, but I have a feeling Nice is not known for its cuisine. Davis says we have to go to the countryside for good food.

On a postive note, I made my first French dish this week: Chicken with Mustard Marscapone Marsala Sauce. It was actually pretty good! I couldn't find Marsala wine at the market so I substituted Port. Don't mix the noodles with the sauce because the contrasting texture of the plain, buttery noodles is important (extremely creamy sauce). Here's the link to the recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/chicken-with-mustard-mascarpone-marsala-sauce-recipe/index.html

The wine here is so cheap. You can get good wine for about 3 USD. If we could sustain ourselves on baguettes and wine alone, we'd have quite an affordable life!

Healdsburg family: we spent as much money on dinner at a casual Vietnamese restaurant as you would spend on dinner for two at Scopa. Ridiculous! Also, Davis commented on how cheap Evian is here.

Another thing I noticed this week is how disappointing the fashion is in Nice. I am not impressed. I was expecting to feel like a scrub and I was wrong. Everyone dresses uber casually and they all have those puffy, shiny jackets. People are dressing like it's the dead of winter and I am running around in a tank top. Maybe the ladies are more stylish in the warm weather...

We are having a lot of fun though. We had a great lunch today near the ocean and we are settling in for a long study session until dinner with some of Davis' classmates tonight.

Loving the weather. Loving exploring the city.

Pictures soon. I promise!

First Impression of France

After a long and miserable flight, a stop in London, and tracking down the kitties (who were almost sent to Frankfurt had Davis not arrived a moment sooner) we are finally settled in our new apartment.

We are still adjusting to the time difference. Sometimes I wake up at one in the morning, completely alert and starving. Today we accidently slept in until one in the afternoon. The cats' schedules are even off.

Despite the jet lag, we are enjoying living in a new place. Our apartment is in the middle of the city. A little loud, but the location is worth it. We have already found a couple of good restaurants and a cute little wine shop owned by a nice woman named Grace. So far Davis has been my way of communication because I am just getting into studying the language.

Everyone here is friendly. The bread here makes you feel like you've never tasted good bread before. There is a pharmacy, a florist, a hairdresser, a bakery, and a grocery store on every block. I haven't found a place to get a manicure yet. Not sure if that is popular here. Even though it is the coldest season, the weather is enjoyable and we have been told to expect perfection starting in March. Most businesses play American music and try to charge for water. I noticed that there is a Subway, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and a Pizza Hut. People dance on top of tables in bars.

It is expensive to live here. A meal from a Chinese restaurant that would cost $7.00 in the U.S. will run you about $15.00 here. We are going to be cooking and eating at home a lot.

We will be getting back to a schedule soon...Davis starts school this week. I will be spending my time studying French, Statistics, and Managerial Accounting and becoming domesticated (tiny washer w/ no dryer). I have to earn my keep somehow.

We are planning a trip to Paris. Only 25 euros both ways by bus. We are staying with Davis' friends, Valerie and Benoit.