Return "home"

I could not be more excited about the upcoming trip that has spontaneously appeared in my calendar for next weekend! Work has been crazy the past three weeks and with so much running through my head I cannot wait to escape back to Aix-en-Provence to celebrate Lilou's 25th birthday with some of the coolest people I know! Aix, hold onto your hat, cos I'm coming!

Introducing Munthof 2010

A few lift booth photos of my (ace of base) flat mates. Breaking news; Bieke is no longer pregnant; she had a beautiful baby boy on Friday at 12.27! As yet he is nameless; but he's hairy and so crazily tiny. I'm (naively?) excited about baby life ... going to be an adventure!

All photos by Natalie Hill

Return to Aix

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Heading back to Aix en Provence to see my kids, the school and my Frenchies for a big military ceremony. The last time I left this place it was wet and slobbery, I have a feeling the return might be the same.

That box game

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Have you ever played the cereal box game? The basic principal is that you have a cereal box (or a pizza box if coco pops don't float your boat) and you have to pick it up only using your mouth. Only your feet are allowed to touch the floor so you can't kneel down and just pick it up. As the game progresses inches of the box are cut off making it smaller and more difficult to pick up. Players are eliminated when then can no longer pick up the box or accidentally touch the floor with their hands/knees/bum etc. The winner is the last man standing who probably has some freaky flexibility skills and an unnatural ability to perform circus acrobat esque positions.

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At one point during our game I did get a little competitive and went to change into my pyjama bottoms; my spray on jeans were a little too constraining BUT the costume change didn't help as victory went to two (unnaturally) flexible boys who managed to retrieve a tiny 1cm box off the ground! Despite the hilarity of it my muscles are still complaining; splits fail = owch!

Provincial best bits

Provence

The lycée

Friends

Gastronomy
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Travel

French family times

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I took the kids to Palais Vendôme in Aix to see a dude playing his violin and then I promised them ice cream if the behaved themselves.

Reflex

Nice is nice

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Our mini-break to Nice was indeed very nice. We spent all day on the (albeit pebbly) beach, reading, laughing at old french men in thong speedo's (ewww) and eating copious amounts of baguette, hummus and cheese. We went on a few long walks, visited Monaco, managed to squeeze in a little retail therapy and sampled the treats of Nice's nightlife which included a hilarious run in with a Scottish football team and some table dancing in a very very seedy sweaty club.

Ceviches

Chop up your fish into nice bitesize pieces
(haddock is a good European substitute).

Cut up and squeeze a lot of limes for their JUICE.

Chop some coriander. But not your fingers.

Add the fish, then coriander, then lime juice into a bowl.
This order is important. Don't you dare put the lime juice first.

Add diced green chillies to taste.

Mix it all up with some chopped red onion. A bit of tongue always helps.

Whilst you leave the fish to marinade. Prepare the Pisco Sours.

It's a seriously deadly yet yummy cocktail.

The fish will actually cook in the lime juice so after maybe 10 to 15 mins
of marinading/cooking its time to serve up the no longer raw dinner.

Add a side of sweet potato mash and enjoy.

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My life is always full of funny and slightly complicated interconnected people and events. Alejandro is my former roommate from Montreal who is currently also living in Aix-en-Provence, France. He is originally from Peru, not a stones through away from where I used to live in Mancora, Northern Peru. For his birthday a few weeks back we celebrated by making one of my favourite dishes from the region; ceviches.

Q : Whats a llama? A : It's a sort of South African goat.

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I am not really in the least bit interested in football but any excuse to unveil a bit of English pride abroad is usually embraced. One of many World Cup parties this season included unnaturally long straws, white sangria and Uruguayan delights as prepared by Fal and Rob. Simply legendary.