Showing posts with label europe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label europe. Show all posts

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Midway through March

Alrighty, let's continue with the whole European theme. This is a picture of the cathedral Sacre Coeur in lovely old Paris...in famous Montmartre. I climbed all the steps to the top, and when I turned around the view was absolutely incredible. That day was quite misty, so the view of the city was, for want of a better word, almost fluid. Kind of glimmering and melting rather than solid and clear.

The weekend's pretty much over, yikes! I've been doing lots of homework and lesson planning, but I did fit in a film at the Social Justice Film Festival (I'll try to write about it later, it was very thought-provoking and interesting), made a giant pot of red pepper soup (with lots of other veggies thrown in as well), and caught up with a friend I hadn't seen in ages. We had lunch at a brand new Whole Foods that recently opened in Vancouver. I can't really afford to do much food shopping there - Vancouver is expensive as it is, and Whole Foods especially targets a particular segment of the population rather than a diverse crowd (unlike the Whole Foods I went to in California - it was always bustling, all sorts of people of all ages and professions shopped there, and it was affordable). But it's still fun to visit and enjoy the brand new sparkliness of the store - it's huge, has tons of seating space, and has a pleasant atmosphere :) And of course lunch is always tasty at WF :)

In other news, on Friday I switched over to the Intermediate class. That day we just did some fun icebreakers to get to know each other and I already love my new students. Tomorrow I'm teaching a 40 minute lesson (yikes!) and I'm hoping that the material will be challenging enough for them. Oh, on Friday I tried a pretty tasty feta veggie flax roll, I've had other flavours before - these babies can be found in coffee shops all over Vancouver - and they've all been pretty decent though nothing worth calling home about :)

Do you have a favourite snack that you treat yourself to when hunger strikes unexpectedly?

Cheerio!

Sunday, August 30, 2009

In a new moment

My, has it been a long time! And yet, this being Summer (for a little while longer at least), it still feels like the same sunny, relaxing moment it was during my last entry. Even more relaxing actually, since I am now finished handing in case studies and writing my final exam at school, hooray! I love the feeling of relief, freedom, and excited energy that I get whenever a big project/assignment/exam is completely done and finished with. Whew. And then it's on to the next thing :) It is fantastic that we are always able to grow, expand, learn new things, and find new directions to go in no matter where we happen to be in life. The opportunities are literally infinite.

My next adventure will involve some traveling, hopefully in Europe and California. I have always loved traveling. It amazes me how differently people live all over the world, and really brings a new perspective on life seeing that the way you grew up is completely not the only way, but just a tiny option in a sea of possibilities. Getting immersed in a new environment, experiencing new sights, sounds, tastes, interactions makes me feel very alive and it forces me to live in the moment, discovering everything in the now as if I was a child again. I love the history, architecture, deeply rooted culture, and slower pace of Europe. The food isn't bad either :)

Now that Summer is slowly coming to an end, it is a great time to make some plans and goals for a brand new year. During Autumn we will begin to go inward and gather everything we need like little squirrels preparing for a long winter. My preparations this year will include much packing and trip-planning. How we prepare sets the tone for what is to come, and I hope this coming time will be filled with passion, growth, beauty, and eye-opening experiences :)