A long post ahead

Its been really tough for me to get on a PC these last couple of months which is why I haven't been able to update as often as I could. So i have been writing bits and pieces here and there and trying to upload whatever I can whenever I can.

Anyway, the following post was done over the last two weeks or so. It'll come in two parts - here goes:

So what’s new…hmm…loads….loads and loads….

I have been horrible about updating this blog this year for a number of reasons. The main one being that I have been really uninspired to write.

Why have I been uninspired to write? Hmm…that’s a question I have pondered this last week or so. I guess the easy answer is that I have just been simply uninspired. Nothing to write about. Don’t know what t write about. My life, afterall is so boring.

But then again, that’s not quite true. I happen to think I have quite an exciting life actually. I work. I go out. I travel. And I have some interesting err, extra curricular activities. Wait, let me change that. I USED TO have interesting extra curricular activities. But even so, I still do many things.

Don’t believe me? Let me just show you. In words and pictures. From this year.

Let’s start in February, shall we?
February marked my new social life. Met some nice new people and started going out drinking and dancing again. Around end of Feb, early March, I was introduced to the music of Stereophonics. Good band. The lead singer has THE sexiest voice ; ).


This was taken at a place called the Orangerie. It was a really fun evening I remeber

March
I went to the prestigious LSE in London for a week to do a shot course on Regulation. Was pretty cool and it was nice to be able to hang out with Gloria in a different, “i-am-only-here-for-the-weekend-so-must-make-the-most-of-it” fashion. The only downside the was the food in the LSE teachers cafeteria (I really cannot imagine how disgusting the food in the students caf must be) and the dinky hotel room I stayed in for 6 nights. The most awful thing about the trip was that I missed Chiara desperately.


Dinner at Marketplace...you wouldn't believe what time we ended that night...shame...

April….
Easter holidays with Vivian and family. We went to Orange – as in William of Orange – in the South of France. Ok, so it wasn’t really our first choice but it was a good halfway point between Toulouse and Geneva (by car). You see, as usual, we are so bad at forward planning, that taking a plane was really out of the question. Also, Carla was still pretty small then and it was nice to have Vi’s helper, Hadijah, with us.

It was really lovely. It was cool to spend time with Vi and the girls, and also meet little Carla for the first time. Chiara totally fell in love Tia and still keeps asking to see her. I hope we can do it again next year.


Yup...now we're mums...ehehhee


Easter egg hunting in the garden of the Mas we rented...had the place ALL to ourselves...was great!


Tia and Chiara playing...Chiara absolutely loved jumping on Tia


Aunty Vi, Carla and Chiara


Babies in a buggy


Little gals ready to go biking

Then came May. Hmm. I remember going for a great pre-World Cup party here in Geneva.


Pre World Cup party at Bypass

And oh! I also went to Milan and then Rome for a weekend.

Splendid stuff.

Milan as usual was great. Meeting Gigi was as usual fantastic and we finally got closure on our story. I don’t know when I will ever see him again but I have to say that hearing his girlfriend was going to move in with him in October really broke my heart. Why you ask? Well, he was one of those that was on my “The One” list I guess. We just had such bad timing. Aries men and Leo women. What can I say?

Meeting him for the first time in two years was really bizarre (The last time we saw each other was May 2004 when I was there with Jude and Glo – yup, I was seven months pregnant). It’s like we had seen each other just the day before you know? And that certainly didn’t help me feeling more like shit when we left each other at the train station. But what can I say? I had choices to make and making choices is what I did. Now I am going to stick by them. Eventhough I sometimes dream about the gorgeous Italian wedding I could have had. Yeah, I wish.

So after Milan, I went to Rome. Shopping eating, more shopping and more eating. Some business meetings chucked in between. I didn’t stay in the centre of Rome this time but the hotel was certainly not as far as the one I stayed in the second time I went to Rome. Hehhe.

Rome was fantastic. I saw the most handsome busker on Piazza Navona playing his version of Wish You Were Here, Angie and other classic rock songs you can play when u only have your electric guitar, amplifier and beautiful long black hair. (hmm, sound familiar anyone??).

I have to say that that night was one of those magical nights that will stay seared in my memory for as long as I have it. You see, for those of you who have been to Rome, you will understand the magic of Piazza Navona once you overlook the cheesy tourist-ness of the place. It was pretty late at night and most of those tourist trap restos were closed leaving the square to be beautifully illuminated by the two fountains, Neptune and the Four Rivers.

This guy started strumming and a small crowd, mostly made up of young Italians, gathered around and started singing along. In a short time, the small crown grew to about one hundred. And everyone was quietly sitting on the ground, or standing in the arms of a loved one and singing along with this lone six string and its beautiful master.

It was truly magical.

Oh and by the way, my love affair with Stereophonics kinda petered out around here as well.

Then came June and I was lucky enough to have been able to travel to Scotland. St. Andrews to be precise. You know, where, the lovely young Prince William went to Uni. Yeah, there. We had a week long global meeting there and I took the opportunity to spend a weekend traveling around Edinburgh and the Highlands. Now say what you will about the UK, but we were blessed with fantastic weather and I have to say that Scotland blew me away. The first time I visited the a place in the UK other than London and I have to say it was fantastic. The highlands are really magnificent. Not quite the same as Swiss scenery so it’s difficult to compare. People are ridiculously friendly and we even had really nice food to eat. Loads of seafood.

I would definitely recommend anyone coming to Europe to go visit. I think the trick is to go in summer. When its warm and (maybe) sunny and you can stand outside any bar, resto, pub to have a smoke (smoking bans in public places you see). Rent a car and just drive.


Check it out…me actually shooting a rifle…I was pretty damn good at it too…hehhe
I have another onr of me shooting a bow and arrow - another sport I found out that I am pretty good at

The meeting went really really well as well. For the first time in my life since I started out on my “career”, I was actually shit scared of giving a presentation (workshop to be precise). I don’t really know why to be exact but I was nervous as hell. I actually practiced my speeches in front of a mirror and things the week before I had to deliver. That morning I was sweating away in my suit but I have to say that I pulled it off. It was a resounding success! Hehhee. I hardly drank at all that week at the after meeting festivities. Too much pressure. But on the last day, I did join in the revelry and got properly pissed (well, as much as one can get at these corporate gatherings) and released the pressure.

June also marked World Cup time. My goodness me. Too much screaming, excessive beer drinking and loads of sun contributed to June whizzing by.

OK, will end here for now. The monster in the bed is huffing and puffinf at my tip tapping nails. Sometimes I could just kill him. Really.

Second half of the year coming up real soon.
Ciao ,lovelies. Hope you enjoyed the pictures