heehee... wow... lot's has happened since I last posted (not all that surprising I s'pose seeing as how I haven't posted since September ;P)... lesse... Flew in to Paris to spend some time with Nal and had fun running around to the Chateau de Vincennes and climbing Notre Dame (finally!) and just generally wreaking havoc on the city with her and Yves *evil grin* before I took off to go a-s'ploring on an epicly wirlwind (6 days :D!) train journey through Germany ;)! Met up with Claire and Zuzanna in Munich (where Zuzana hosted us :D!) - it was amazing!!!I love Munich!!! Bavarian culture is crazily-awesomely-the-best-thing-on-the-planet!!!! Heehee, everyone wears dirndle and leiderhosen!!! It's great :D! It was even especially greater as we were there for Oktoberfest *grins*!!!! People there are Crazy!!!! They start drinking at like 7 in the morning!!!! It was amazing though and the Beer Tents are sooo cool!! The beer even tastes good!!!!! (not that I can finish a Mass on my own though :P) heeheee... we even managed to get a place in one of the tents with Zuzana and her friends! - and Claire and I made loads of new friends on our roamings around town. awww Munich really is a gorgeous city! After that it was off home for Claire and up to Berlin for a couple of days for me. Berlin is a really nice city too... too young and ... new?... for me though... I just don't feel the history to it in the same way I do Rome and Paris. It is really nice though... wouldda been nice to have more time to wander through museums - even so, I miraculously managed to see everything in the day and a half I had there :D! OOOH! and I did this really amazing fre-bikie-tour of the city! It rocked! I highly reccomend it! Next I was off to Heidleberg to visit the fabled town and its pictoresque castle - and to see the jaw bone of Homo heidlebergensis :D!!!!!! It was cool!!!! and the town and castle definitely lived up to their reputation :D!!! Next was back home (or Nals home at any rate :D) to Paris for a night before I headed back off (to my home) in Ox :D!!!. Awww man, I love traveling by train! It just, being able to see all the scenery with not other cars and dirty roads blocking the window makes you feel as though you properly are covering ground and travelling. All in all it was a really beautiful trip.
School was really good this term too :D! Possibly one of my favourite terms yet. It was filled with work, but loads of other stuff too *grins*. I'm now international student rep for Hertford. OOOH!!! And I took up rowing! It's actually really really fun, I was on the Novices C's due to my crazy schedule - but I think that we were arguably the best crew *grins madly* We had the most fun at any rate ;)! Christchurch, the big novice regatta was unfortunately cancelled (again) this year due to massive ammounts of rain and high water levels - but we still managed to race and do well earlier in the week ;)!!!! After all our training in the rain too :P! lol!!! We would get soooo wet! One day was amazing though as there was a sun shower (the rain was still pelting down though!) and there was a double rainbow over christchurch meadow as we were rowing past :). heehee. lesse, what else? Still dancing as much as ever - only ballet and jazz though now, no time for ballroom. OOOH! And I just bought new point shoes (I'm back on point :D) - they're all pretty and Grishko 2007s :D!!! Still playing (european-soccer) football - OOOOHHH!!! ANd I went Kayaking in South Wales one weekend, so that was fun!!!!!! heehee, being me, I managed to fall in on a flat bit :P. What else?... OH! Watching the rugby world cup and the reactions of the english was amazingly fun ;)! As was Hallowe'en baking :D!!!! oooh!!!! And pumpkin Carving!! heehee... I got some weird looks when I had to buy the pumpkin early and bring it into the library with me before bringing it down to South Oxford for carving *grins* It was fun carving though! Especially as it was Qu's first!!!!! *shakes head laughing* I also got the sign of the cross made at me for wearing my devil horns around town on hallowe'en day *shakes head again*. OOOH!!! And X-mas baking :D!!! (not at home, though I did that with Kat at Nonna's all day on Wednesday :D!) But in Ox!!! I got a bunch of us together and we made and decorated X-mas choc-chip and rasin cookies :D!!! They were amazing!!! And they disapeared really really fast ;)!
hmm... yup, so, all in all, a very very good term :D!. Afterward Charlotte and I hung around Oxford with all those who were helping with interviews for a few days before we headed to her place so I could see her family for the night before heading off to Paris to stay with Nal again (and pack the extra suitcase of pressies she gave me to bring home for people ;P!) before heading off skiing :D!!! heehee. Paris was, once again, awesome, as I tagged along with her to some of her classes - one of which, on french comparative literature, was downright amazing! - and just hung out. OOh! We also went to a special x-mas party for Quebec-ers in Paris with her cousin and her boyfriend and friend on the last night which was loads of fun (even if I did finally develop the ear infection that had been threatening - luckily I also had anti-biotics on me ;)!) OOOH!!! and I Also got to go See Tante Janine in Louveciennes again!!! Aww I love her sooo much! So we got to share and enjoyable afternoon of Fooding anf chatting (no walk unfortunately as it was raining.)! Yupyup *nods*
Heehee Next was Skiing in Val Thorens in the French Alps :D! the largest and highest ski area in the alps! It was amazing!!!!! one of the best ski trips I have ever been on :D!!! I totally wish I had taken more pictures!!! There was just incredible amounts of powder, it was AMAZING :D!!!!!!!!! It was over my waist in places!!!! heehee, there was no visibility for the first three days, but the last three were perfectly clear - oooh! and they opened up the passes into the other 3 valleys so we got to explore there and I got to ski GLADES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yippeeeeeee :D:D:D:D!!!! heehee... awww.. a bunch of us did advanced lessons and our instructor was Great! heehee he was fun, basically got a kick out of burying us in the deepest powder he could find off piste *shakes head* It was awesome! And I now know how to ski powder as well as packed snow :D!
Heehee after that snow filled adventure I headed back to Nal's for the night so we could have X-mas dinner and exchange gifts and, then, it was off home to land in the biggest snow storm of december 'since '45 :D!!! heehee it was great to arrive in (even if ma refused to come to the airport to pick me up *wrinkles nose*), everything was all White! *grins* yupyup.
So now it's the day before Christmas (for me... eve for everyone else *wrinkles nose*) and I've finally managed an update! Heehee... decorated the house as soon as I arrived and got to see a bunch of the gifties on friday when we all turned up to see Woburn's x-mas assembly (and Mr. Rooney who was subbing for the day :D!!!) so that was all good and fun *grins* and I got to play football in the snow on the back field which was even mpore fun :D (even if I did end up in the splits at one point :P). But yeah, it's great to finially see everyone again!!! I missed you all sooo much *hugs* *plus more hugs just 'cause I've missed you all*
Went up to Burlington yesterday to have an early x-mas with Papa's side so that the Uncle Peter's could be there. It was fun *grins* aww man, Vanessa and Keith have grown sooo much, they're still adorable though ;D! And it was really good to see everyone after not getting to go cottaging this summer *pouts*
So, yeah... that's about it! Update completed I guess ;)!
MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! Hope you all have Happy Holidays!
~Ally