Competences et Talents Visa – not free anymore

24 03 2010

According to a friend of mine, the competence & talent visa that has been issued to us before is not free anymore. Once your application is approved, you have to pay the amount of 99 euros – the same thing you pay for when you apply for a long stay visa.

And that’s not all, you have to submit more documents this time such as a health insurance coverage, proof of financial capability like bank statements, certificates, guarantor), and attestation d’accueil for proof of accomodation in France. The person you are staying with in France has to get this in the mayor’s office and it is indeed a painful process – you have to measure the size of the apartment/house – the rooms and how much square meter you have. I think each person staying in the apartment should have an allotted space of 9 square meters.

Anyway, to know more about this stuff, contact the local French embassy in your place of residence. Check out this link as well.


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Winter and Goodbye

6 01 2010

Time flies.

Winter in Strasbourg this time. It was awesome – the Christmas markets were nicely decorated and I couldn’t get enough of the vin chaud and the authentic hot chocolate sold in front of the cathedral.

Let it snow…


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I’ve Never Been to Rome

21 11 2009

Last night, at a party, I met a couple of Italian guys. One from Rome and one from Venice. Interesting fellas. One of them didn’t want to speak English with me because he wants to improve his French. And the the other preferred to speak in English or Spanish.

We talked about places we have been to. The English/Spanish speaking Italian told me he’s been around Asia a lot, that he has a Japanese baby living in Japan, and that he chose to go to Brazil instead of the Philippines. He asked me if I have been to Italy and I said never.

“You mean, you’ve never been to Roma?” he asked me, eyes wide open.

“No, I chose to go to Berlin instead for my last Eurotrip this year,” I answered, confused. Maybe something’s wrong with his emerald green eyes.

“But you won’t even go to Roma?” he asked again.

‘”You know,”‘ I began to say, ‘”Rome is not the center of the world.”‘

‘”What is, then?’” he asked.

‘”Actually, it’s Paris.”‘

But of course, I didn’t say that. Because it’s not true. And I read somewhere that only Parisians think that Paris is the center of the world.

Seriously, what is the big deal if I don’t go to Rome during my stay in Europe? I should ask the same thing to him about not visiting the paradise that is the Philippines while he was in Asia.

I was sick of having to explain myself why I’ve never been to “Roma”.

And so, I answered, “Because, I don’t speak Latin.”

And then they all laughed.


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Scattered Gold

18 11 2009

I am in love with autumn’s colors!

Outside Alliance Francaise Strasbourg is a tree of gold. I sit down here some days with a good book, jacket wrapped tightly around my body. No matter what, I am always cold from autumn until the beginning of spring. But that wouldn’t stop me from rolling over the golden leaves. Too bad my groovy Greek friend Athina beat me to it (another one who came from a sunny country – we just love cold Alsatian weather! We’re crazy like that.)

 


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Verdun Cathedral

18 11 2009


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Through the Fog

24 10 2009

One morning, we woke up and there was a heavy fog settling in over the courtyard and the garden. It was so beautiful.

DPP_1818

I realized a lot of things then – the most important of all is that I should stop complaining about everything, especially complaining about the place where I live in. For someone who grew up in a big city, I am used to all the action, excitement, danger, and all that. When I get hungry during the night, I know that MiniStop is just around the corner.

Moving to Paris was also not what I expected it to be. Sure they say it’s the City of Lights, but everything goes dark around 3AM. The metro stops at around 1AM and then if you don’t have a car, you’re stuck, unless you take a velib or a taxi that will burn holes in your pocket. But still, there’s a lot to do in this city.

I decided to learn French again and to be really fluent when I leave France, even if it means paying for expensive courses in Alliance Francaise Strasbourg. It’s never a waste when you pay for something that will make you learn. It’s time to stop being bored and to integrate myself into the Strasbourgoise lifestyle.

Hopla. Nichts mehr.


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Autumn

12 10 2009

I’ll be cold again from October til May, but hopefully just til January…

The good thing about autumn is that the colors of nature are softer and more pleasing to the eye.

Route du Vins

weeping willow

Kayserberg

Kayserberg small street

Kayserberg

blueberry - leaves turn red

bee

Strasbourg - end of summer

Colmar

Maison des Tetes, Colmar

Three


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Mont Saint Odile

22 07 2009

Once again, we went to the Vosges mountain. I felt like I was on top of the world. The view was spectacular and the atmosphere was very serene. A convent/monastery rests on the top of the mountain – Mont Saint Odile.

saint odile

saint odile

winner

winner

i would like to live in that house

i would like to live there - in one of those houses

Isolation – I love it, but there are times when I just wanted to get out of where I am right now and go someplace more alive.

cool view

cool view

Flowers are nice sometimes, like the photo here. But I still think it’s a waste of money to buy a girl stuff that won’t be of any use anymore after a week or so. Except for sunflowers. But it’s best to just see it in a field.

flowery

flowery

rows of benches

rows of benches

inside a chapel

inside a chapel

After the visit, we went in the middle of the mountain and drank coffee in a thermos. It was cheap, but nice.

huge trees!

huge trees!

And the trees were huge! The little Peugeot looked so small parked in the middle of these trees. Well, we actually went more inside the forest, ate there, and slept a little. It was freaky. I had one of those sleep paralysis thingy again and dreamed there were gypsies outside peering inside the car.

:-)

:-)


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Hot! Hot!

29 06 2009

Yesterday, all the stores were open in Strasbourg. Remember when Obama visited? All the stores closed down for a day because there were people and police everywhere so they made up for the lost sales yesterday. I took advantage of the summer sale and came back with two full bags of books and clothes. I got 6 books for the price of 1 euro each. And well, the clothes were just amazing. There were too many people and I didn’t have time to fall in line to the fitting room and try every item I purchased.

After a couple of hours of shopping and browsing and wanting to buy everything in sight, I went to the centre ville to meet my faux in laws. The scene that greeted me was festive and happy. Kids were playing in the water fountain – swimming, splashing, running, and shouting.

Centre Ville Strasbourg

Centre Ville Strasbourg

I gotta admit that it was a hot day. My hands got sticky and my face got a little bit oily. I began to feel the tingling sensation of a headache caused only by intense heat. It’s like Manila, but people didn’t carry umbrellas and I wished I had bought that sunglasses I’ve seen in Zara.

We went to look for ice cream to cool us down, but all the shops were full. Lines were long and extended until the tram rails until a police came and instructed the people to bend the line a little bit. We head to the Cathedral and saw Amorici, fell in line for that mouthwatering Gelato (pistache and chocolat noir), and ate until I wanted to gulp down loads and loads of water.

Gelato

Gelato

I went home happy. I fit all my purchases and thought to myself that I was kinda thick to buy shirts in small sizes, but hey it fits! And books for 1 euro each – I just wanna read the whole day and listen to music and not worry about a thing!


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A New Season

28 06 2009

A day before summer’s celebration, Fete de la Musique. The evening air was charged with enthusiastic energy as people (mostly students, I think) gather around one of the bridges over the Seine in Paris.

It was a cheap gimmick. Buy a bottle of wine in any Monoprix and drink it along the Seine river while listening to musicians from all over Europe making summer gigs in Paris.

IMG_1312_moon


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