The Mistral is beginning to chill

It's the middle of October and it's feeling as cold as Sydney/HK get in winter. I hear it may actually snow, which is rather magical. I have been living in my suede jacket and a number of scarves I have kindly been given for my birthday after my one and only scarf was stolen at a house party we held for a neighbour's birthday :(

Quite a lot has happened, some things I remember and some that are a little foggy. I celebrated my birthday on the 2nd of October in both Aix and Paris, which was very memorable, especially nearly missing the train back to Aix. I literally hopped into the train as the doors were closing. Most people would have shat their pants at that point but look at me, cool as a cucumber.

What strikes me about reaching a milestone in a foreign country is that all preconceptions you would have held about your birthday and social events seems to disintegrate. It's always a case of last minute plans, hoping people will turn up and generally hoping for the best. But I had a lot of fun and am very fortunate that I have met so many lovely people in Aix who were willing to dress up in theme and proceed to spend a sloppy night out at IPN.

The following weekend I was in London and it was a case of seeing things I had seen 10 years earlier with fresh eyes. I got lost in the tube and strolled around Oxford Circus (classier than the Sydney street of the same name), Portobello road and a bunch of other markets, taking in the different smells. Hemp, glass beads and string spilling over in Camden town; sweetmeats and cheeses in stunning rows in Harrod's; rusting metalwork and leather goods in Notting Hill.

Now anticipating R's visit this weekend to Aix. Hopefully we'll hit up Marseille on the saturday if we aren't too tired, as aside from the airport, I have yet to really visit it.