It was sunny almost throughout my stay in Grenoble and although this picture looks very cold and snowy, the weather improved a lot during the same morning and it became as warm as it can get at 2000m altitude in month of February.
And always remember, if you fall from a falaise, try to fall with your legs first. Otherwise, you might hurt your head which shortens the time during which you can remember and regret your sins…
It seems that for me, to stay in a city for a long time, I have to hate it on arrival. I didn’t like Bonn (3 years), Grenoble (4 years), Berlin (7 months but I started liking it after two months only), Brussel (ongoing) while I stayed only 3 months in Cape Town (loved it immediatly). But this only entre parenthèse.
Obviously, all these cities are quite different, each of it having advantages and inconveniences. Bonn is pretty small and since the government left, it’s getting more and more provenciel. Berlin is great, close to home but just like Bonn in Germany. Brussels has the right size for a buzzing, international not too big city and has many different faces to discover.
Grenoble however… The mountains alone are worth living there. The weather: Real season, i.e. hot summers and cold, snowy winters. The development in the city favouring ecological and handicap friendly policies. The universities, the theatres, the cinemas, the pubs, the people and, and, and
When I arrived, my French was hardly existing, my English was worse. The students’ hall I lived in the noisiest and inconvenienst place ever (until I saw others), university was almost impossible to follow and just everything I had to do – administrative, personal, professional task needed to be figured out first – where, who and how to say it en français. I hated it and was only waiting for the semester to finish to go home. And then I stayed for four years having some of the best and worst moments of my life. Que des bons souvenirs, quoi.
Merci.
Posted in A savoir, Ce qui pense la puce, La puce enchantée
When I lived in Grenoble, I went skiing every winter. And every winter, the first day on skis was the worst. I felt like not knowing anymore how to ski with my knowledge and my skills eventually coming back from the second day onwards.
This year, after not skiing for 3 years at all, the first day and even the very first ski-run were as I hadn’t done anything else in the last few weeks – easy, smooth and fast.
It’s weird but I like it.
I’m writing these lines using the very fancy Mac of a friend and overlooking la chaine du Vercors but I can tell you – the heart attack was but one beat away…
you may find me in the next days on the sunny side of mountain ranges covered generously in snow racing full Schuß down hill. Be careful not to get in my way 🙂
La puce, die Welt and everything else 