No news, Good news!

Hi fellow travelers,

It has been a while since I last posted something on this blog. Last time, it was about the flood in ym old flat. A lot of things happened since and of course for the best. With Thomas, we found a new flat in Clapham Junction (I will post pictures soon). The flat is brighter, bigger, closer to the city and to our respective girlfriends, closer to supermarket, closer to train station (especially for the airport), and easier for friends to come over.

I am flying to Dublin this weekend for a volleyball tournament. Nothing like the round the world trip, but another adventure at my doorstep.

And ... I finally received the invite for the australian citizenship ceremony. I will attend it in Melbourne on Thursday 8th Oct. They gave me a short notice, and I can only take 10 days off this time. So it will be 10 days in Sydney/Melbourne. When I am back to London, I will be French-Australian! :-D Yipeeeeee ! Wooohooo !

Flood in the flat

On Wednesday 10th of June, I was woken up at 6.30am by a bubbling noise. Half asleep, I don't bother too much, but as the noise get louder I think I should check this out. As I get up I see water coming through below the bedroom door. OMG !!! Quick in the bathroom ... sewage water is flowing quickly out the toilet and the bathtub. Damn it ! What is happening in here ??!!! I then call urgently Thames Water (the water provider), they are going to send people in the next ... 2 hours!
Within 3h, we had over 1m of sewage water in the basement (3-4 foot). Luckily I was there when it happened, I managed to save most of our belonging. Only a few boxes and bags were damaged, and even Thames Water's insurance will reimburse us for any damage items. And we should get a free rent in our next flat until the repairs complete (within the next 4-6 months). So it's not too bad in the end.

Follow this facebook link to check out the pictures of the flat under water : http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103214&id=669456775&l=39a4145045

Touring, Benelux and Germany

On the road again. I just had my motorbike for a week that I am already gone touring with mates in Europe. Starting on Wednesday evening from London, toward Belgium, then Strasbourg, the Black Forest in Germany, Amsterdam in Holland and finally back in London on Monday evening.


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Pit Stop for fuel, for both the motorbike and the riders. McDonalds is not the best option, but it was the only place open there this day. It was a public holiday so most shops and cafes were closed.

I like this sign. It means : "Welcome to motorbike riders, this road has bends. Enjoy the ride. Go right to start, watch the road as the first bend is left".
Rain Rain, go away !!! Lucky weekend, we got rain for 20 min, then sunshine for the rest of the weekend.
Allan is pausing for the picture. I am sure this photo could be the front cover of a motorbike magazine. Thank you to my little IXUS 80 IS and its wicked options.

Pension Williams, a very welcoming hotel, bikers friendly, english owner (so you get the english breakkie and the tea), calm area in the middle of the black forest.

Afternoon tea and pastries for the exhaustered bikers. A nice 4 hours ride in the black forest really empties your stomach. Food, food, food !!!

During one of our stop along the road in the Black Forest, a guy just pulled over to the side of the road next to us. He was selling strawberries ... 2 euros the box. They were huge and delicious. 100 times better than the one you can buy at Tesco.

It can't get any better than that!

Wooohooo ! Champagne !!!! It is time to celebrate. Indeed, I have just accepted the job offer from the company Sophis (french software company in the finance industry). They offered me the salary I asked, plus bonus, pension, private healthcare and 25 days holidays ... starting on the 1st of June. In addition to that, my motorbike is running like a bullet and smoothly. And to finish on a high note, I have been going out with Sambo, a fantastic french woman, for the past 3-4 weeks.

Really ... what more could I ask for? :-D

New motorbike in store ...

Hey hey, I could not resist the temptation! I saw the babe that caught my eye. I was walking down the haisle ... nice good looking body ... slick ... sporty ... but not exactly what I first planned. Yes I am talking about motorbike. I was thinking of buying a Honda VFR 800 VTEC, but just a bit too big and heavy for my liking. Instead, I went for the good Honda CBR 600 RR (not the F this time).
Sexy, sexy!!!!!



I paid for the deposit this morning and will pick it up next week once they have serviced it and once I have paid the remaining balance. I have to wait for a few days for the money to be transferred from Oz to UK.

Can't wait to take her for a ride ... Grrrrr! I like it!

I found a job !!

Good news! After 2 months in London looking for a job, I finally got one (which is not bad considering the financial crisis). I haven't signed the contract yet, neither negociated the salary or the start date, but they called me this Friday to tell me they were working on an offer for me. The company is called Sophis, a french company with offices all around the world (might involve a few overseas trips ... wicked!). Thank you to my friend Risto who work for them and forwarded my CV to their HR.

It has been 6.5 months since I last worked. I know it will be hard to get back into it. But I have a motivation ... a motorbike! I have started looking, calling and emailing people to view bikes this weekend or next week. It is going to be a Honda VFR 800 VTEC :-) Now, my mission is to find the best deal!

Hiking in the Peak District

With a few friends (Thomas & Yumi, Seb & Nat, Cris, myself), we head to the Peak District for the weekend. First, on Saturday we watch Yumi and Cris play the England Cup Final (equivalent of the FA Cup for volleyball).

Then Sunday early morning ... 11am ... heading to the Peak District for a day hike. What's the plan? Hike for 4-5 hours then head back to London in the evening. The forecast was : "Sun with a few clouds", but considering the extremely changing weather here, I would not trust them. They usually can't get the next day forecast right.

the reservoir at the beginning of the hike

Nico the sheep whisperer ... or Am I looking at it thinking I could turn it into a great roast!?

This way !! .... no the other way !!! .... Nooooo we are lost !!

Yumi always has an extra arm or two to help

I would not venture this way, you may go but I stay behind with the food

Seb! Your girlfriend isn't going to jump. She just enjoys the view from up there.

"I believe I can fly ...."

Almost at the top Thomas. So him, always want to be on top of everything

This is it! Almost over ... we now find our way back to the car.

Job Update

Good news on the job side of life. Yesterday, I got my first interview in 2 months with a french company, Sophis. Yipeee! Thank you to Risto who works there and knows everyone. They have a permanent position (not so lucky to have a contracting role yet) as an IT Technical Consultant. The job sounds great and interesting. What now? I am waiting for the next round and the HR interview. Fingers crossed !

When a good news doesn't arrive alone, I should also get an interview with another company (in the insurance industry) sometimes next week.

On top of that, to keep the moral right at the top, the weather is amazing at the moment in the UK : sunshine, 20 degrees temperatures (almost like in summer).

I am so excited right now. Not so much because I could have a job soon, but more because with a job, I will be able to buy a motorbike. He he! A Honda VFR 800 VTEC ... look at this one, doesn't it look gorgeous?
http://www.motorcyclenews.com/MCN/bikesforsale/searchresults/detail/?R=NXGN-7520882&mfy=

Updated pics of the flat

Now that everything is sorted, all the items out of the boxes, everything in the wardrobes ... I can show you the flat in its (most likely) definitive state. It has now been 1.5 month since I moved in, but only 3 weeks since I have my furnitures. Bloody movers ... yes they notified me, by sending a letter to the old address. So I didn't get any news, I waited, waited and waited. Of course, I was expecting a phone call, but nothing! Finally, I decided to contact the uk company. And you know what they said? "Oh yeah, we have had your stuff for 3 weeks now". Grrrrrr!!!

Zee Kitchen

Ze Living Room (thomas dvd's on the left - 163 so far, movie bean bag in the center)

Ze Living Room - part 2 (big plasma TV 42" and my dvd's below - only 147, so close but so far)

My bedroom (bright and sunny, with paintings I bought in Sydney a few years ago)

My London Bicycle

Atfer many requests from Jewlz to have a picture of my bike on this blog, here it is. Thanks to London thieves, I have had my lights stolen once (hopefully it will be the only time). My unlucky friend Seb got his stolen behind a gate and locked to a pole after only 1 week of ownership. If you ever have a bike in London, you better triple lock it, remove the wheels and seat, the chain and pedals .... basically within 2 weeks you are an expert in assembling it!


I forgot to mention that the frame is 22.5" tall (or 57 cm)

My London flat

I now have a flat in London and I moved in early March. So far, I haven't received my shipment from Australia and the main thing missing is my bed. So I have to sleep on the living room sofa. Luckily it's quite big and comfortable.
Then the view of the garden (shared between all the flats of the building) from our office/spare bedroom. It looks like no one is using it, so we already planned to do my 30th birthday in the garden.
The rest of the office with the desk and all kinds of maps attached to the wall to keep track of our journeys around the world.
And the wonderful bathroom with a spa. It feels "deja vu" as I had one in Melbourne too ... he he he!

House warming party at my house in 1.5 week ...

Back in London ... for now!

After 2 weeks in Australia of eating and meeting friends one last time, I finally arrived in London. Now with a flat to settle in (you don't know how good it feels to open the suitcases), a mobile phone to call friends (not many left after 3.5 years), and no job yet. Of course, London won't be the final stop, it is only a city for at least a year, 3 or 4 at max. Then what? Maybe more traveling, maybe France, maybe back in Melbourne ... Joker! I will decide that later! :-)

Food, food and more food in Hong Kong

Thank you to my friend Iris and Kathy who showed me Hong Kong from the local view. I should have stayed at least 8 days, but due to interviews in London I had to shorten my HK adventures to 4 days (from the 15th to 18th of Feb). But still, it was really worthwhile and I am happy I came. So what is so special in HK about food? I tried, for experiment, a couple of local dishes, such as Chicken Feet. I am sure you are wondering what can you eat and why in hell you would do that. Still, I had 1 foot and ... it was ok. Nothing bad, nothing exceptional, but good experience. Then later on, my worst fear was the "durian". This is the deadliest fruit ever by its smell and compared to that fruit a rat dead for 1 month smells good.
I stayed with Iris' family in the New Territories (north West), in Yuen Long. It is actually closer to China than it is to the CBD and no tourist can be found there, which means everything (except for the direction signs) was written in Chinese. That made it really challenging when I was hungry and wanted to order food in a restaurant. To resume the situation, I would say that my Sweedish is as good as my Chinese, it's null! Luckily I had my HongKongese friends with me who ordered everything and I just ate whatever was coming.
Let's face it, if you stay in a central part of Hong Kong, you will be fine as most of people will speak a langage that can be assimilated to english. However, if you get lost elsewhere ... you are fucked and start praying! However, people there are very friendly and helpful.

Pau and the Pyrenees

5 days in Pau with Yannick (my friend and flatmate from Nice). We spend a sporty weekend with fantastic weather as you can see on the pictures below. Starting with snow rackets, then snowbarding/skiing the next day, and indoor rock climbing the day after ... we well deserved a break with a spa/sauna session on the last day.
This is in this moment that you realise how small we are, but how great the nature is (i am only saying this words because of the lack of oxygen) ;-P

Marseille under heavy snow

After 10 days in Morocco, I head back to Marrakech airport, catch my flight and return to Marseille. However, my flight was canceled. The only flight of the day to Marseille was CANCELED. Noooooooooo! After discussing with other people like me and the airport employees, apparently Marseille airport is closed due to snow. I can believe it! It can't be true, we only get snow once every 20 years. Thank you to Royal Air Maroc who organised 4**** hotel and pickup from/to airport for absolutly nothing. A great way to finish the trip! Many airline would have told us to bugger off and do it ourselves. But Royal Air Maroc provided excellent service and efficiency.

The buzz of Marrakech

To describe Marrakech in a few words ... it's busy, noisy and not quite like the rest of Morocco.
We arrived there after 5 days in the wild, so the choc was extreme. We had peace, quiet and tranquility and we get noise and pollution. Starting with the big square in the middle of the city, Djemaa El Fna, where you have activities all day long. During the day, some locals make the snakes dance at the sound of their flute ; the food stands sell you dried fruits (dates, nuts, apricots, figues, ...).
At night, the square is transformed and many stands are setup to make food for both locals and tourists. On the side of that, the story tellers narrate fables or legend but you need to understand arabic to understand anything ... we didn't! :-(
And within the Medina (the old town), you find the souk and the narrow streets. A real (non organised) mess for the inexperienced eye. We navigated for about 1 hour in the streets, zig zagging between tourists, locals, mopeds, donkeys and un-defined things. Basically, the same kind of stores can be found every 10 meters (babouches, souvenirs, tajins and typical clothes).
But Marrakech is still an experience to live ... but not for too long. You can get dizzy quickly with this crowd and still we went there during a more quiet time. Not for faint hearted! But the best thing in Morocco is the bargaining. You can reduce the price 2 or 3 times easily. They don't mind and in the end everyone is happy. You think you made a bargain (even if it is not true) and the shop keeper sold you an item.

Les noms rigolo au Maroc

Presque tous les jours, nous trouvions des magasins, des voitures, des immeubles, des publicites rigolotes. Les noms sont soit vraiment marrants, soit il y a des fautes d'ortographe.

Ca donne pas envie d'y aller ...

La FNAC comme en France, mais different ...

Berbers of the North

Even though we were tourist, we camped everywhere. And the berbers (either sincere or just to please us and get some money) told us that we acted like berbers.
We are the berbers of the north!

Ok, Thomas looks better than I. But I didn't "troc" / "deal" my mum and the car for a piece of fabric bought for 10 dirhams at the local market. ;-)


The ground from above (1 meter high), the shape of heart in the ground. This is so cute! ;-P

Sand dunes at the Erg Chebbi

On new year's day, the wake up call at 7.30am to see the sunrise was awfully hard, especially when we realized we slept only 4 hours and the weather was overcast. But one thing was worth it, the view of the dunes and a good breakfast.
Back on the camels (also called the 8x8 by the berber), we head back to the car (1.5h ride). This is way enough for me, my butt and legs are sore toward the end. But the sky is clearing out and we can enjoy even more the view of the dunes.

Happy New Year 2009

Happy New Year everyone! This was a good way to start 2009. New Year Eve at the Erg Chebbi in Morocco with the Berbers of the dunes.

On the roads of Morocco

As you can see below, the roads in Morocco aren't always straight or in good condition.
This first photo is happening in the Dades Gorges, very windy. What we don't know at this point in time is that we are going to set the tent next to a village. After setting up the tent and preparing the wood for the fire, a woman of a nearby house invites us for tea and dinner with her and her family. We spent the whole evening speaking with this Berber family (in French), drinking mint green tea and eating a chiken/veggies tajine with homemade bread.
In the Troda Gorges, we could not go any further that here. First, the road is in poor condition, then it turns into a dirt track later on and we don't have a 4x4. After a 1.28s discussion, we agree to head back the other way.
On this one, we are in the car (also called "The Scorpion" by our berber guide) on our way to the Erg Chebbi. I am not very confident that we can cross the river, but the guide is and tells us there is no risk. No problem at all! And we spend New Year Eve in the dunes of the Erg Chebbi with a bunch of 6 Berber guides (most of them drunk by the end of the night).

Morocco and the survival kit

10 days in Morocco for NYE (Thomas and myself)
Our plan , "No Plan"
We like to go "Adventure"
We don't like Tourists
We started the trip with 1 tent for 2, 1 sleeping bag each, 1 sleep mat each, 1 swiss army knife, 1 bottle of Pastis and lots of wood for the evening fire.

Did I mention the Foie Gras? :-)

Job done! The car is loaded with wood, we can keep moving and find a nice place to set camp.