Alex Weber – alxwbr.com

"I’m sorry, we cannot give you the tickets now. It is impossible."

Even though she’s speaking english as her second language, hearing ‘impossible’ is not a promising sign.

"You were supposed to check in 2 hours before your flight."
"Even though it was delayed by 4 hours? How could we know that?!"
"It’s okay, let’s just relax. We need to get on this plane before it leaves, so how else can you help us?"

My traveling companion is getting heated and almost just yelled at the RyanAir service desk employee. Doing that would get us nowhere, so I appeal to her for help in our situation.

If I said that the same thing could get you discounts, preferential treatment at bars and restaurants, help you make more friends, do better at business, and get free stuff, would you want it?

If it were free to learn and practice, and would make you a happier person, would you do it?
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I believe that taking trips makes you learn things about yourself, especially when traveling solo. For instance, on this trip, I fully realized how much I like being in huge cities—New York, Paris, Barcelona… the culture is fascinating and I get a kick out of how some things are the same wherever you are. For instance: the attitude of a big-city-dweller seems quite similar from NYC to Paris.

That said, I think that Vannes (population around 55,000) provided a more authentic experience.

Little towns have their own culture, history, and way of life. It’s a far cry from the hustle of visiting one of the aforementioned cities!

So then, here’s how to have the most fun while you’re there:
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Tiny French bar on a peninsula near Vannes

Bars in France strike me as being really different than the U.S. When a group goes out to a bar, they usually sit at a table and don’t meet new people. What? No meeting new people? This is completely unacceptable for me.

I’ve just gotten to Vannes about two days ago, and we’re now out at a pretty cool bar. Good ambiance, solid music, not too well-lit. Four or five girls and myself comprise the group.

Whenever I’ve gone out this way in the past, there are some ‘suitors’ who come and try to befriend the group (especially the girls). Making friends, even attempting to make more than friends, is fine by me. I actually encourage it. That’s the point of going out to a bar in the first place, right?

I’m thoroughly surprised by the quantity of men who do this to our group. The number of guys who come over to say hello tonight? Zero.

My stereotypical French man is supposed to be a ladies man (tombeur in french), wooing them all off their feet until the women can do nothing but swoon for them! In reality, I find most people have a demeanor about them that says "don’t come talk to me" and their body language agrees with it. This holds true for guys and is especially pronounced in girls. Gah! This is frustrating. HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO MEET NEW PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY?!
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Tour Eiffel at night. Photo by me.

Certain phrases in a language get used significantly more than others. When I’m learning a new one, I focus on picking up these phrases that make me sound like I know what I’m talking about, as well as the accent.

"Ouai, je peux parle un peu de Francais, mais… parlez-moi comme un enfant, moin rapide!"

This one is good because it usually gets a laugh, especially if you say it with good pronunciation. Right now I’m in an excellent cafe/restaurant that I’ve found through XLR8R magazine’s "Paris" issue.

 "D’aaaaccooooorrd"

The dude working at the restaurant smiles as he says it. I like this place already.
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Let’s recap: It’s my first day in France and I’ve finally met up with my CouchSurfing host, Raphael. He graciously took me to his apartment to drop off my bags, and now I’ve been kicked out and must entertain myself until tonight when we meet up again.

1. Walk around until you are lost, and then find your way back

This serves a few purposes—you’ll better acquaint yourself with the neighborhood and you will develop more of a sense of direction for the future. Also, you’ll find numerous useful things: metro stops, bars/cafes/tobacco shops, cool stores, parks… If the place you spy is open, go in and check it out! If not, just take note of where it is and come back later.

This was an awesome store that I found in Paris, right by the Canal. The name was exactly what it was—a store devoted exclusively to design books! If I lived near here, I’m sure that place would become a very expensive habit; all the books they stocked were awesome! There was an entire section devoted to books on typography and another exclusively about color. I browsed this tiny store for about an hour.

When you get tired of walking and browsing, it’s time to take a break.
  
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(this post is continuing from my last post, How To Break Rules Without Even Trying)

Photo by Aaron Geller

I’m Late

"Pardonnez-moi, est-ce que vous connaisez ou est le numero 48?"
She looks up from her phone and seems less than thrilled to be helping me out.
She says, "Je crois que pour là," and points in the direction from which I have just come.
"Uh… merci. Au revoir."

I check my watch. It’s 12:15 and I was supposed to meet Raphael, my host from CouchSurfing, 15 minutes ago. I’m worried that he’s already left to go to his business meeting, and I’ll have to explain myself to his co-workers who don’t speak English. No pressure.
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Newark Airport Photo from ElektraCute

"This feels weird."
"Yeah, you’ll get used to the pack after carrying it around for
a few weeks!"
"Haha… I meant the feeling of having my whole life strapped
to my back"
"Oh, yeah"
"Well hey, wish me luck!"
"Good luck man, I’ll see you when you get back"
"Thanks. Okay, Bye!"

My anxiousness increased as I walked into the airport terminal and saw Jon drive away. I was lightheaded, too. I guess buying a one-way ticket to a foreign country with almost no plans will do that to you.
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Here are the photos that I’ve taken so far on this trip. This post will update with more photos as I add more to the set on Flickr.

Most of these happened in Paris and Vannes. I think I’m going to have to upgrade my Flickr account, because having only 3 photosets is completely unacceptable. Hope you enjoy them!

Edit: updated to only show photos from France