La vie, la vie

Bonjour tout le monde,
Je suis malaaaade cette fin de semaine donc je n'ai pas fait grand chose. Le travail s'empile et je me sens un peu comme un hamster dans une cage - ouf! Il faut parfois faire le vide, fermer les yeux, et méditer. Oublier les dates de tombée, les présentations, les essais et la recherche d'emploi. Faire du temps pour soi et apprécier la vie.

J'ai quand même passé une semaine très agréable. Ma copine colombiana, La Ñoña, m'a invité à un concert de Prokofiev interprété par la London Philarmonic Orchestra. Les billets étudiants étant seulement 4 pounds, elle a invité un grand group, nous étions une douzaine!! J'ai adoré retourner au Southbank Centre, la salle de spectacle est vraiment chouette et du 4e étage vitré, l'on a une vue spectaculaire de la Thamise.
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I thought the LPO concert would be my only fun outing of the week, given the work I need to catch up on, but the same friend was kind enough to invite me to her Colombian party on Friday. Her friends are so fun, and of course there was salsa dancing! Plus I got to practise my Spanish a bit, which is quite rusty and terribly French-accented, but hopefully understandable. My friend A from Miami is much better than I, and I'm surrounded by Mexicans and Colombians so there's no excuse not to become more fluent.

I'm planning a weekend in Oxford in February (for the Oxford Forum for International Development), and maybe a trip to Istanbul in March! so lots to look forward to. Now back to the mountain of essays and readings...

xox Miss Engagée

Like Alice Down the Rabbit Hole

Photo credit: Camomille

Like Alice's Mad Hatter friend, I often want to look at my clock (or agenda) and exclaim: "No wonder you're late. Why, this watch is exactly two days slow. " or some other delightful nonsense about the funny way time works. Like in Alice's mad world, my world is filled with tea parties and metaphysical discussions. 


London is filled with wondrous little places that make you feel like you stepped into another world. I had a great time this weekend, exploring Camden Town and the East End with a guest from Brighton. We found this amazing teeny-tiny piano repair shop (see picture above) and walked around the old Stables (which were used back when the train station would unload in Camden and the cargo would be sent around the city on horse-drawn carts). 

We visited Brighton last weekend, on a warm-ish Saturday. It feels very "hippy" and peaceful compared to London. I really enjoyed exploring the North Laines (a maze of pedestrian streets with lots of vintage stores, an old weaponry and uniform store, pubs, cafés, record shops, etc.) and climbing up and down the hill overlooking the University of Sussex.

I love living in England. Time is flying by so fast!!

Got to go plan a presentation on the topic of "Economic restructuring and the informal economy".
Much love,
Miss Engagée xoxo

Me encanta Barcelona

Buenos Dias!
I'm back in London after a wonderful few weeks back home and a 5-day escapade in Barcelona.

Here are a few highlights of the trip to the beautiful capital of Catalunia:
-a day at Montjuïc exploring the Olympic Park, the Castle, the Funincular, the Palau Nacional and the Grec Theater...

Castel - à Montjuïc

 -eating tapas every night in the company of my charming brothers

Taller de Tapas, on Carrer Argenteria - yum yum!

 -Exploring surprising and inventive Modernista buildings like Casa Batllo, designed by the famous Gaudi

Casa Batllo

- Checking out the Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's masterpiece, which will be hopefully completed sometime around 2030...Gaudi was inspired by nature. As you can see, the columns look like tree trunks, and all throughout the building there are structures inspired by honeycombs, flowers, lizards and amphibiens, and even skeletons!

Inside La Sagrada Familia - l'intérieur de la Sagrada Familia

-Catching the sunset from the roof top of La Pedrera, another Gaudian beauty!

Rooftop of La Pedrera

I also enjoyed the Museu Picasso as well as our little auberge, Pensio 2000, which was quite central and very charming. Orlando and Manuela gave us tips on neighbourhoods to avoid and to explore and even gave us an impromptu lesson on Catalan, the language which is most spoken in Barcelona. 

De retour à Londres! J'ai passé un séjour formidable à Barcelone, où nous avons mangé des tapas incroyables et vu des édifices magnifiques. Les endroits que j'ai le plus appréciés? Le Musée Picasso, le restaurant Taller de Tapas, la Sagrada Familia et la Pedrera ainsi que le parc Montjuïc qui offre une vue magnifique sur la ville. 

xoxo Miss Engagée