La defense in Christmas mood

Inès and her mother

Voila, my two favourite ladies :-)

Cathing a breath after Bergen

Back to the roots. On a far point way west...nestled between the massive Norwegian mountains and stretched right out in to the Atlantic...there lies Bergen. The scene of my student years and the rencontre of Mrs. Rahman!  Everything was great apart from losing my wallet & my head, nearly getting caught up in a fight with druggies and their respective dogs, humiliating myself by shoving my hand down a public trash bin on Festplassen and getting abandoned by my taxi at 02:00 am in a remote Bergen outback, with  a bunch of crazy-assed drunk rednecks cruising around on field, furiously smashing things, probably 100%  hammered on 98% pure alcohol - four hours before my return flight to Paris.

But great to see old friends again, stirring up good memories from the city that probably defined my future life. Thanks!

Above: Bryggeloftene og Stuene, the restaurant to which I invited Madame for the first dinner date.

Bergen - August 2009

What a weekend!

Indian food trial - 26 days

Last weekend in August 2009

FRIDAY: END WORK - GO HOME - LEAVE CAR - PICK UP RENTAL CAR - GO TO WEDDING DRESS 1st TRIAL - DRIVE TO CHARLES DE GAULLE AIRPORT - PICK UP PARENTS + BROTHER FROM OSLO - DRIVE STRAIGHT AWAY TO ROUEN - DROP OFF PARENTS AT HOTEL IN DOWNTURN - ARRIVE AT LE MESNIL ESNARD - EAT AND GO TO SLEEP.

SATURDAY: WAKE UP - CAFÉ & CLOPE - DRIVE TO OTHER END OF ROUEN - MEETING WITH NOTAIRE - PICK UP WEDDING PAPERS - DRIVE TO CHATEAU DE BELMESNIL - VISIT & INSPECTION OF PREMISES WITH BOTH FAMILIES - RETURN TO LE MESNIL ESNARD FOR LUNCH - DESSERT: RED FRUIT SALAD - RETURN TO DNWTOWN ROUEN - VISIT X STORES FOR SUITS - BUY BIRTHDAY GIFTS FOR MOM - MATCH PL: ARSENAL - MANCHESTER UNITED (1-3) - RETURN TO HOTEL TO FRESHEN UP - ARRIVAL AT INDIAN RESTAURANT - DINNER AND NO TIPS AT AFGHAN (!) RESTAURANT - RETURN TO HOTEL FOR "ADDA" AND WALK IN TOWN - PICKED UP, DRIVE HOME, GO TO SLEEP.

SUNDAY: WAKE UP - CAFE & CLOPE - BREAKFAST: FRESH CROISSANTS - PACK & LEAVE LE MESNIL ESNARD - FAREWELL TIME AT THE MERCURE HOTEL, DWNTOWN ROUEN - RETURN TO LE MESNIL ESNARD FOR LOST JACKET - RETURN TO PARIS ON A13: ACCIDENT + 30 MIN DELAY TO COURBEVOIE - ARRIVAL IN COURBEVOIE - PARKING JUGGLING WITH TWO CARS - LUNCH AT HOME: FROZEN PIZZA - SEARCH FOR LONG DISTANCE CALL TELEPHONE CARD - RENTAL CAR DROP OFF - ARRIVAL AT ROCK EN SEINE - ----- --- -- THE PRODIGY ON THE MAIN STAGE - END.

MONDAY: WAKE UP - FRESH VIENNOISERIE AT FRESH BAKERY - BREAKFAST ON BALCONY - TRAIN WITH FAMILY TO GARE ST. LAZARE - ARRIVAL AT WORK - OFF TO LUNCH WITH FAMILY - BACK TO WORK - EARLY DEPARTURE FROM WORK - TAXI FROM LA DEFENSE TO HOME - SHIP FAMILY OFF TO CHARLES DE GAULLE TERMINAL 2D - DODO - CLEAN APARTMENT - END.

Me with a moustache

A fantastic weekend draws to an end...

So, that was done! Driving down south, headed for my future wife's grandparent's home to pre-empt wedding celebrations with twenty-or-so close family members (yes, the in-laws were there). Setting was the impeccish Hotel L'Orangerie situated in Bonnat, an eventless yet beautiful village neatly nestled in Creuse. But where the heck is Creuze you say? I was pretty confused too; the town of Bonnat is in the department of Creuse in the region of Limousin (which is part of the Massif Centrale too) in the country of France. I could have showed it on a Google-map but that would have failed my point.

But everything was swell. The food was as audacious as a French resto can be with a level of service which always screams "improvement!". The establishment also offered a lovely terrace, a full-size pool (it was hot today) , a sumptious foresty garden and an extremely well-kept large veggie garden for keen visitors.

And the trip back to steam city Paris wasn't too agonizing either...

Alhambra - Summer 09

Thailand - Summer 08

St.Malo Spring' 08

Pictures from Prague - Spring '09

Wedding day preparations

Oh, these are stressful times :-)
 
Our wedding homepage (loading can be slow, especially with Explorer). 

The quest for the ultimate P(h)ad Thai in Paris

Let the quest begin!

Holidays!

Yes you heard me right! I came back home to Oslo today by nighttrain from Bergen. Nothing to do with travelling in style but it has advantages: No limit on luggage/weight. So the semester in Bergen is finished and now I have some time to relax at home before the 26th of December. That´s when I am going to Paris and later from there, to Belgium. I´ll keep the worries for later and just try to enjoy the holiday season now. Hopefully I will have some more time/energy to update my blog...

Cold lovebirds

On my last day in Paris I was walking down the Champs-Élysées. Just a stonethrow away from de Arc de Triomphe there was this Asian couple standing in wedding-costumes. Looked like the guy had just popped the question (who would get married on the street? ). That day was cold and the poor to-be-wed´s were probably freezing. Anyway, I guess this happens quite often in Paris,the capital of LOVE. Not the most original stuff I´ve seen ;-)

Goldfrapp+Coldplay in Paris

The concert was in Bercy, Paris on the 29th of November. Goldfrapp warmed up for the British supergroup. The overall performance of both was great. With so many hits hidden up their sleeves, I don´t think a Coldplay-show can ever go wrong. Chris Martin was in his usual "jumpy" mood and seemed to be "humping" the piano on several occasions. Sweet! Coldplay has so far released three full albums and the lastest came this year, so the playlist was a seamless flow of hits from "Parachutes" to "X&Y". This concert was nothing but impressive and I understand why this group of four modest British lads probably make up the greatest pop/rock-band at the moment.

All is swell in Paris

Paris in November: Cold,foggy and less tourists! Seriously, this time of the year is a delight because the weather adds a certain aura to the city of ligths. Yesterday we went to out to eat brunch at "Le comptoir Paris-Marrakesh". Great vibe, impeccable decor, eclectic menu and not too chic guests. If you have time to kill on a Sunday in Paris, why not go for a mixture of French and North-African cuisine? And the prices are not too steep either. "Le Comptoir Paris-Marrakesh" is situated just close to Les Halles, in walking distance from major attractions such as the Louvre. After the brunch, we went across to the Left bank and walked all over Saint-Germain and the Latin Quarter. The fresh air sure did us good. Don´t be surprised if you´re strolling alongside the Seine on a Sunday afternoon and encounter a hoard of rollerblading Parisians. Apparently every Friday and Sunday the natives take to their blades ,form a large mass and head off on to the boulevards. The whole event is carefully watched by police and medical personel and normal traffic halts while the swarm of blading people pass by. Quite an impressive sight!

Bienvenue en Belgique/ Welkom in België

So it is official then; I am going to Belgium. Yes, the treasured land of Tintin,Magritte,Poirot,French fries (!) and a whole lot of beer is going to be my homeplace for the coming semester. Sounds like a piece of Walloon cake you say? Well don´t be fooled, this will be my exchange-semester at Université catholique de Louvain (UCL). It is just a short ride from Brussels, capital and political heart of Europe. I am very excited to study abroad and from the look of it, I think it will be a great experience. I´ve heard that the studentlife is great and the proximity to cities such as London,Paris and Amsterdam means a lot of travelling! The main task now is to set up a course-plan and then to find some OK accomodation. The practical formalities can be a real pain in the you-know-what,but to quote a certain Wisenheimer: No pain,no gain!

If you are interested in finding out more about Belgium, visit the official tourism page

If you want to learn more about my adopted school (some French knowledge required),visit the webpages of UCL

If you are fed up with this article and just feeling thirsty,visit The Belgian Beer Escort

Finally a new mobilephone!

Yesterday my new mobilephone arrived in the mail. It is a Sony Ericsson K750i and quite sleek imho. The camera has got a 2.0 megapixel camera and a whole array of functions. I just have to take some time to get to know all the possibilities. At least this phone is a quantum-leap from my former one, a Nokia 2600,the most basic phone out there *blush*. Above you can see a picture taken with the phone this morning. Now I can take adequate pictures without dragging around my digital camera. Sweet!