A new side of LA

It's great to be back in LA. I immediately went into the same hectic, frenzied schedule than when I left the city only a few months ago. The only major difference is that I no longer own a car...

In the six years I've lived here, I've never tried the public transportation. It's not like New York where everyone takes the subway. But I hate bumming too much off friends so I decided to give it a try. I was a little skeptical but I'm no sissy girl!

The first leg of the trip involved the subway, which I always thought was practically non-existent. It actually goes to pretty many places. It was easy to use and my purse didn't get stolen. I chatted up a visiting Brit and before I knew it, I was already half-way across town.

The second leg of the journey involved the bus. I had lower expectations for this, but it really wasn't bad. No creepers in sight and I found myself now chatting with a visitor from Ireland. Maybe being a tourist in the city isn't so bad afterall. Purse still in hand, I made it to my destination feeling elated from my fun little LA adventure.

Italy for a Day

I woke up yesterday and asked my boyfriend Ben "What do you want to do today?" His response was something most women only dream of. "Let's go to Italy!" An hour and a half later, we were there~

San Remo is a quaint little town right past the border of France and Italy. We spent a wonderful day shopping, drinking "real Italian coffee" eating lasagna and gelato, and speaking our Frenglish in an Italian accent.

We walked by the sea, went to art galleries and even saw a street play (although neither of us understood a word they were saying.) By the light of the full moon, we were back in France that night, exhausted from our day's adventures.

Hostel Hotness

The only time I ever stayed in a hostel was in Amsterdam 2006. My itinerary got messed up and I arrived there at night 2 days before my hotel could accomodate me. There was a major soccor game going and every place was full. I finally found a hostel that would let me stay. When I ask how much, the creepy man tells me I can stay for free in his bed! I threw 50 euro at him and told him to go fuck himself. He set me up in a cot in the kitchen and I slept with a knife, ready to shank him if needbe. Luckily, I left the next morning without further incident.

Needless to say, I was hesitant to stay in a hostel in France. But my experience here is completely opposite. There are cool people from all over the world who want to have a good time, so for traveling alone it makes it super easy to make friends. Sleeping in a room with 13 other people isn't as bad as I thought it would be, but thank god the guy who snores checked out yesterday. This hostel has a bar with beers for 1 euro! There's even ample computers with free wi-fi, but no access to skype, excel, word, etc. Now I'm getting greedy. Apparently, I can't have a traveling production house as easily as I thought. But I'm probably the only traveler needing to scan documents and make business calls so if you're just looking to party, hostels are the new hotness!

A slight ammendment to this post: A man here was found watching beastiality porn in the common room. Of course the creeper is in my room. The guy tries to get me to go to the beach with him everyday and told me I look like a beautiful pig. Hmmmmmmm......

Au revoir India

My time in India has come to a close. I've had my ups and downs these last two months and parting is always such sweet sorrow. I feel like I've learned a lot here. I'll miss my walks by the Arabian sea, the Bombay party crew and the cows in the road. But I definitely won't miss the incessant honking, walking with no sidewalks and the spicy food. Now I'm on to greener pastures, back to my second home: France. I'm excited to get back to the sunny beaches, the food, wine and practicing ma francais.

I'm feeling very lucky because I have so many good things coming up. I realize that you can't always get what you want, but sometimes it sure feels like it...