The "magical" service of Disney

I had been planning this Disneyland trip to Paris for one month... one whole month. I thought I had everything set: the group of friends, the train ticket, the entrance pass and most of all the excitement.

The anticipated day finally came, and it did not start quite as I hoped.

I arrived at the train station at 8:15am (half and hour before the departure), so I went to the closest boulangerie and got a hot chocolate and croissant. While I was enjoying my petit-
déjeuner, I was casually looking at the departure board and could not find my train number or time. Panicked, I checked my ticket, and sure enough, I was at the wrong station.

Thankfully, the Gare Lille Europe is less than five minutes walking distance from Gare Lille Flandres so I made my way there. As soon as I joined my group of international friends, I checked my purse for my carte 12-25, a reduction card for travellers between the ages of 12 and 25, so I could have it ready to show during the ride.


Just my luck, I did not have it on me. I was positive I had put it in my purse the night before, but I must have forgotten it. Oh well I thought, it could happen to anyone, so I will explain to the controleur my situation and hopefully, he will take pity on a foreign student.

No, he did not take pity (with good reason because he was only doing his job), and I paid a fine of 66€ (euros). That was double the amount of money I paid for my roundtrip ticket there. I tried not to think about it too much because there was a petite chance I could get a reimbursement at the train station if I explained what happened.
I was feeling a bit squirmish, but I knew that going to EuroDisney would change that. After all, it was a magical world. If I got lost, I would be with friends, and there were no fines to ride the trains in Disney.

I got there and of course, I had printed the online payment to the park (not the actual ticket with the bar-code as all my friends had). While everyone went inside, my friend Randi stayed with me in the visitor's line, so they could print my entrance billet.

Forty-five minutes later, I went inside the park with Randi and made our way to the "Indiana Jones" ride. The roller coaster was a great stress-reliever... I felt the adrenaline rush through my body and my tension from before was beginning to dissipate.


I did not actually feel the "magic" until I ate lunch at a 50s American-looking diner in the Village Disney. And surprisingly, it wasn't the nourishment that raised my feelings but the service.

I ordered a classic amusement park lunch of chicken nuggets and fries. My American visa or carte bleu did not work at the cash register, so I decided to settle for a 2€ hot chocolate (if I'm starting on a diet, might as well be here with all the walking). I was taking mon chocolat chaud when the Disney worker who took my order handed me a "Mickey" bag of the food I had originally wanted.

"Bonne journée! Bon appetit!" she said with a smile. =)

And that was how I began to have a good day... the kindness of strangers can truly make a difference in one's life no matter how small the act.

Waka waka... guacamole!

Tortillas. Guacamole. Salsa bandera.

Mexican food has arrived in France. The source: moi.

For the past two weekends, I have made some of my Mexican background's traditional food. I stayed with my French friend and his family at Linselles (30 minutes from Lille) where I attempted to make tortillas or galettes from scratch... for the first time.

I asked my mom for the recipe knowing very well that she would not have the exact measures for the flour, salt and vinegar oil (because she knows it by heart). Either way, I tried making the mélange with these three ingredients and adding water as I kept mixing. This made about 10 small balls of dough.

Yes, like my mom said, I did regret not paying attention to the tortilla-making when I was back home helping my abuela. For having only a few ingredients, tortillas are certainly a compliqué task especially if you want to make them round. I truly value my grandma's cooking skills that probably took a lot of practice to perfect.

Thankfully, my friend's dad came to the rescue by pressing the dough with a rounded cup. He made them thin until the the balls where evenly flattened. Once done, we put them into a frying pan, and they started to rise (good sign of a tortilla we realized). If the pan is greased beforehand, then the tortilla will be thick and eventually harden.

In between the tortilla-making, I made some salsa bandera (tomatoes, onions fresh from their jardin, salt and pepper). With some ripe avocados bought from le supermarché, my friend's 11-year-old sister (mon assistante) and I made some guacamole.

I was contente to share this experience and my culture with my friend's family. They were happy as well to eat some of this Mexican cuisine for the apperitif.

Next on the menu is... well, on verra (we shall see)!

Pick your language and let's eat à la française

It is a night to speak any language you choose. It is a night to meet people from all over the world.

The language coffee, A La Bonne franquette, is a place to meet international students and learn about their culture while enjoying some traditional French food like pain, vin, fromage and saucisson.

The international club, Oh My Globe, from the School of Management (IÉSEG) organized this event with over 50 international students in attendance. They picked a table based on their flags or drapeaux to speak the language of that country.

Needless to say, there was a lot of chatter, wine and cheese in the air!

Meet these international students in the video, who like me, are doing a foreign exchange in Lille. Some are staying for six months and others for one year.