Lifestyle of the Rich and Famous

So you wanted riches, fame, and fortune?  Well, here is what you're getting...

You leave on a very rainy Friday from Rotterdam for the beaches of the French Riviera, you are accompanied by your fantastic new weekend bag.  You've got all your best sun clothes, and are ready to find a man.  Once in Nice, you catch the bus, and a Nice lady makes sure you get off at the right stop.  The air is clean and the night is clear.  You get to your room at the hostel, and quickly head out for some ice cream. It's a Nice night, and Nice to hear the ocean again.  And tomorrow... the long awaited - CANNES!

When you walk out the next morning, you find that it is raining cats and dogs, like torrential downpour, never going to let up raining. You did not pack for this, but really, it's not cold, you won't melt, and you buy an umbrella.  Flip flops may not be the best option, but it's better than ruining your cute leather boots (you only about lose your shoes in the rushing water like 3-4 times and only everyone looks at you like you're a freak).

In Cannes, it is a sea of umbrellas, if there did happen to be 1 celebrity out in that weather, it would be near impossible to see them.  You walk around, try to figure out where to go and what is open.  All the beach bars are closed, and you finally find a hotel bar that has people there.  It does... it is packed.  The bartenders are Nice (for the French), even if the wine is expensive - 9 Euros a pop...before leaving you find a place to sit and get a drink.  And there you met the cutest guy who is a producer.  He advises you to talk to people and invite yourself to join them.  He gives you his number to meet up later.

No outdoor movies :(

People were taking pictures of her, so I did too.
she looks like a pixie :) 

Before you go on, you decide to buy shoes....and some yellow jeans.  Once warmer, you head to the next hotel, where you talk to another producer, banker, and a lawyer (no, I'm not setting you up for a joke).  You're feeling more optimistic, find some dinner at an Italian restaurant (realize you gave someone the wrong number to meet up at 9, and aren't sure you can amuse yourself - or afford to drink until 12 when the late night parties start), so you acquiesce to the French guy who is nice and pays for your dinner.  You walk, he tries to talk (his English is no good), and he takes you to the casino.  He pays, and you hit it big on the slots (he loses on his machine).  You cash in the ticket, he plays (and loses) at roulette and you decide to play some blackjack...all in all, you end up ~400 in the black and he lets you keep it, but he's creepy - so you bail (you can apply for the alternate story via email if you wish). It's too late for the train, but you're too tired to be at a club until 5.  You share the cab with a couple people, and crash out.

On Sunday, you stop in Antibes on the way back to Cannes - you are determined to give it another shot.  You spend a while walking around, appreciating the scenery and the boats (e.g., floating mansions).  It's a lovely part of the day, reading in the sun and becoming dangerously too introspective for such a holiday.  You eventually head back to Cannes, and take it easy at the same bars.  You happen to run into the same lawyer from South Africa again, and tentatively make plans.  You realize you should have tried to make that work, but instead you had dinner with a relatively odd Serbian.  It was ok, but you are ready to head back to Nice.

 

Monday - you decide to go to another country.  You've had enough of France, and decide to try fantastic Monaco! The day is clear, and the ride is Nice.  The floating mansions are large, and they are setting up for the Grand Prix! Damn - you're transported back to high school with all the cool cars, and you even head to the Monte Carlo casino - at 25 a hand, you take a bit before you want to play (they are using 6 decks and continuously shuffling the used cards in the mix! Damn casino, you crazy!).  You do play, and get an enjoyable amount of time from it, plus, the bartender gives you a free glass of wine so you don't leave.  Too sweet (not the wine, the bartender).

 

You figure that the 3rd time is a charm, and head back to Cannes...it's a big premiere, and the atmosphere is electric waiting for the celebrities to arrive.  You're too short and don't get there soon enough, but the mood is much more enjoyable.  You never hear from the cute producer again, but you knew you wouldn't (I mean you DID click the link above and see how beautiful he was, right?).  You meet a nice director on the way back, and get a copy of his film... so I guess what you wanted was more about the movies and you did get an indie one for yourself, so that was kind of Nice.

Your last day in Nice is the Nicest.  You enjoy strawberries, and a walk to the top of the hill.  You (painfully) walk on the rocks to the ocean and dip your toes in the sea.

While your trip involved no fame, and only a small fortune, you come out having a had a lot of time to think.  You grew a little, but also felt sorry for yourself too much.  You die of an unused heart, and a wine soaked liver.

Beers.Brussels.Belgian Waffles

So you want to go to Brussels, huh? Well, like most of my adventures, you have a little rocky of a time getting there.  Your train from Rotterdam was cancelled, but luckily, you overhear a conversation to learn  how to get there via Antwerpen - albeit an hour later.  And despite not knowing which track line to take out of Antwerp, you make a train that does end up in Brussels!

Finally to your destination, with 30 min to spare, you found your hotel (right off the Grand Place).  It was definitely worth the visit.  Such a beautiful old square, even amidst all the tourists.  Luckily, you don't often stand out as a tourist, as you're good at being respectful when you stop to take pictures, and don't talk like a loud American (though you get a few strange looks while you talk to yourself).  You find yourself lucky to be part of the Aryan race that does not stand out in this part of Europe.

After a slight detour of the mind, you ironically find your tour starting point in front of the Tourist Information office! Your guide, Caesar, appears and you learn he hates people.  But not to fear, there were just a few bad TripAdvisor reviews, and he is actually a great guide.  Who is both entertaining and very knowledgeable about beer, politics, and the politics of beer.

You enjoy the small group of 8-9, and for once are not the only single girl on the tour!  There was another girl from Cali, who was living in Germany, and a girl from Jo-Burg.  It was nice to not get the "you're here all alone?" questions.

The "Brussels Beer Tour" started at an estaminet (a beer bar) from the 1695, where you picked your poison - light, amber, or dark.  You, of course, wanted to see what qualified as "dark".  There you sat for the next hour sipping the beers, learning about the beers and each other (sweet huh?).  You are warned of the DANGERS of Palm, and other pretend Trappist beers, and how to tell which ones were made by monks or not.

Since Belgian beer has a rather high alcohol content - I mean 4% in most Dutch beers will do... nothing to you, you left the bar with a nice little "beer head".  And on the walk to the distillery, learned from someone who read the TripAdvisor review that you should have eaten before the tour.  Yikes!  But the long walk to Cantillon (a 113 yr old brewery which "makes the most unusual, and arguably, best beer in the world - the Lambic) makes you feel more sober.

There you learned how beer was made in a more natural way, and how they let nature take it's coarse in the beer making process.  The building was old, with an innumerable amount of cobwebs (the spiders eat the cherry flies), and apparently a few cats to catch the mice.  The yeast process took place in a large, flat, open container, where the natural yeast in the air is allowed to mix with the beer.  Definitely not your 21st century sterile environment, and it seemed like it was the better way to go...

You get to sample 2 beers at Cantillon - the Lambaic (cask beer) and one of your choice (a hoppy, a cherry, or a classic champagne style), you wisely chose the champagne style - both were great, you're not sure you would want a whole glass of either, very unique things happen in the back of your mouth...

With more beer in your belly, and having pleasantly avoided the rain, you head back towards the center to a much newer establishment with 38 beers on tap (wow, that's a "lot" of beer :)).  The guide picked the first beer, and then you could pick your next one (you are happy to have so many choices to make on this adventure).  And you are rewarded with a chance to pad your stomach a little, definitely a bar worth going to!

Well after the 3.5-4 hrs as promised, you leave to meet up with an ex-Deloitte colleague.  So you bowed out of the conversation, and went off to enjoy some Belgian frites (with the classic GOBS of sauce on top and the little fork to eat with).  Megan took you to some fun places you would have never found, but you ended up being out until 3.. oops!

Luckily, there was nothing you had to do on Sunday and you slept in, and wandered... basically all over.

 Wasn't in the mood for any museums, so you just walked around the parks, the city, found Manneken Pis (which was not nearly as cool as Jeanneken Pis).


Then you found the mecca of beer buying, here you find the world's best beer, and the most expensive beer  (well at least in the states) - at Canon they have it for $99.  But in Belgium - it was only 12 euros for a bottle (technically, your beer guide told you they aren't supposed to re-sell it outside of the brewery - tsk tsk) - you shouldn't have bought it either...

If you chose this story for your adventure, you chose wrong, you made a bad decision to get off the train in Antwerp and get sucked into a stupid conversation with 5 boys all trying to talk to you at once, including one asking for a needle.  At least you died with your liver (almost) in tact.