New housemates, some partying and a hot kiwi

After forking out 220 euro’s for rent each week at the crew house, a few of the girls decided to rather get an apartment. I was told we would be moving in with the craziest kiwi I would ever meet- Jenny, who was organizing the apartment. It would only cost us 75 euro’s a week each, so was a complete bargain. Well the apartment is 1 bedroom with 2 bunks that are attached to the passage wall and you couldn’t swing a cat in here. But still, it was cheap. So I was anticipating the arrival of the infamous “Jenny” and when this loud, giggling party animal burst through the door, it was friendship at first sight. 

The crazy kiwi

I had been designated the sleeper couch, but after day 1, I moved into the double bed with Jenny. That first night we sat up giggling till about 2am and I nearly wee’d in my pants. My other 2 housemates are a crazy aussie with legs like a giraffe called Liz, who drinks more beers than an Irishman and another kiwi called Dana who constantly talks about “the shower head” and how this amazing contraption has more uses than the obvious. 

Liz (on the left) with Lucy

Me and Dana

They are continuously taking the piss out of me for saying “basically....” at the beginning of almost every sentence, which I had no idea I did- until now.

I’ve messed up my back so saw an Osteopath on Wednesday who sorted me out but said that I needed to rest and take it easy for a few days. So I was sitting at home in my pj’s when Jenny burst in and tried to persuade me to go out. I was too tired, my back hurt, there was no way I was going out, I said. But then she mentioned that this hot kiwi guy that I’d always had a good vibe with at the crew house, was at the bar they were at. So, (as us girls do...) I rolled out of bed, dotted on some make up and told myself to pull it together. The bar is called “Le Happy Face” which is our “local” along with the only other 2 bars in town “Drinkers Club” and “The Hopstore” which are frequented by yachties. 

As it is now “winter” all the bars close at 12pm. Everyone was still keen to drink so they convinced Jen and I to go back to our apartment to get my 3L box wine. I decided that I was not going to give away an entire box of 8 euro wine whilst I was living like a peasant, so I decided to sell it for 2 euro’s a glass and managed to make 16 euros (Dad you always said I would be a good entrepreneur)! It was my first “big night out” since I’ve been here and I was getting pretty sozzled, loud and silly (as I’m sure you can all imagine knowing me when I’m pissed).  After bringing the party (and the hot kiwi) back to our place at the wee hours of the morning, to cut a long story short, I woke up in a pretty good mood with a smile on my face, despite the hangover. 

There was pretty much no way I was going to do anything constructive that day, and as Liz and Dana both had day work, I convinced Jen to come to Juan Le Pins with me to go and hunt down some Dermologica and go for lunch somewhere by the beach, as it was a pearler of a day. JLP is like Camps Bay but a million times better.

So we found a stunning restaurant on the beach (literally it was on the sand) and we had a gorgeous lunch with a bottle of wine. 

Jenny chilling at our table on the beach

The owner had the cutest bull dog pup you have ever seen that spent the afternoon on our laps and lying by our feet. 

Cuteness!

On the way home I dragged Jen into a shop that was having a 5 euro sale and left ecstatic with a hot dress and 2 really cool tops for 15 euros. 

Friday I decided to do some more dock walking and I traipsed all the way to La Ciotat (2hrs train ride away and cost me 100 euros return). Again, as the French public transport is such a balls-up, we got held up for 45mins because some chav didn't have a ticket and didn't want to pay the fine or get off the train (they are quite strict about train tickets and fines...) so we all had to wait for the police to arrive to get the guy off the train. What a dick. So I basically got to La Ciotat and had to bolt round for 45mins then dash back to the station to make the next train.

I had to go out that night... so we headed to the dodgiest nightclub in Antibes- Equinox. Now everyone had been slating this place to me, saying it was dark and dingy and the music was awful. So I was imagining Gandalfs or Jo’burg. But to my surprise and delight it was pretty much like a Tiger Tiger in Antibes! 

Me and B

Dana, Zalia and me

 After crawling home at 4am and then getting shunted to the couch, I woke up the next morning with the worst hangover I’ve had in ages. 

We decided to go for breakfast at The Hopstore and I was feeling horrendously  ill. I first tried to drink a coke, which just made me feel more nauseas, so then someone suggested “hair of the dog” so I ordered a glass of Rose. That went down lie a lead balloon and I ran to the bathroom to be sick. I then decided to get an orange juice, so now I’m sitting with an array of drinks around me like a beverage vendor. After a big English breakfast I needed to go back to sleep, so I came home, took a rehydrate and 2 myprodols (as you do) and passed out. When I woke up, I went to go cuddle with Dana on the sofa bed and watch Harry Potter. You have no idea how small our house is and how sound carries (we all sleep literally about 3m from each other) and I was still getting flak for keeping everyone awake till the wee hours of Thurs morning. There was definitely no way I was going anywhere or anywhere near alcohol.

However..... it then came to me that it was my bestie B’s birthday the next day, so there was not a chance in hell I was going to be able to have an early night. Stu and I got changed in a rush and it was only when we were walking to the pool bar that we realized we were both dressed in black jeans, grey t-shirts and black leather jackets. So now we looked like total morons. We headed out for drinks with some other saffa friends and friends from B’s boat and went to play some pool. There was boob groping and people doing yoga moves on the floor, it was getting out of hand! 

Me and Stu in our matching outfits

B and an aussie friend Courtney

B at The Hopstore!

Take 1

Take 2

Take 3!

Now boozed, I just HAD to go dance, so whilst the others decided to head back to the boat, I managed to persuade B to join me at Equinox for a little razzle. We met some French dudes in the queue who bought us a bottle of champagne. The night was looking promising. We had a good dance and I met some of the other yachties there (the hot kiwi included). He is set on trying to speak saffa (I mean who wouldn’t though, we are f#%@ing awesome) and take the piss out of my accent so is continuously saying “kiff as”, “lekker bru” and “ja”. 

After waking up super late on Sunday morning with the hot kiwi in my bed, I realized I was horrendously late for B’s birthday and still had to get her a present. I frantically scrambled for clothes and shot out to get her a present and then arrived an hour and a half late at her birthday do (yes in true Tiffany style), at an awesome little Mexican place in JLP. They had the best margaritas and I chowed a chilli con carne that changed my life. 

Me and Stu

Me and Stu take 2

B's birthday cake!

I started this week of feeling stressed again about money and pressure re coming home in Dec. Everyone I have met keeps saying to me “It will happen, stop stressing” and “It just takes time”. However I was running out of time- and money. But then an amazing thing happened- I got a call on Monday morning from the chief stewardess of a big superyacht in the international quay in Antibes; who said they were looking for a temp stewardess for 1 month, with a possibility of going temp-perm. I was bursting with excitement and relief. I went to see her and that evening I got told I had the job. She is a saffa from Stellies (sy praat die taal!) and is warm and bubbly and absolutely lovely. I got such a great feeling about the boat. I found out that she got my CV through one of her stews Kate, who is the one I am covering for whilst she is on leave. I met Kate (also a saffa) 2 weeks ago when I was walking around dockwalking like a dejected, lost soul. I think she felt sorry for me and took me CV, saying that if she heard of any jobs she would pass on my CV. So I was really grateful when she actually got me a job on her own boat. 

My first day was today. The boat is unbelievable. It makes the houses on MTV’s “Cribs” look like country cottages. It is pimped out to the max- jacuzzi, gym, sauna and steam room, spa, 3 speedboats, 2 jetski’s, 500 euro cushions and 100 euro dinner knives. The upholstery and interior decor is the best quality money can buy- bamboo silk and wool carpets, leather, stingray skin (yes you read correctly), silk chairs, couches and walls, marble bathrooms, tables that when you press a button, the centre comes off and there is a built in boardgame.  Rooms that have ipads next to each bed, electric blinds, curtains, different light settings and electric doors and a piano that cost more than any house I will ever own that plays itself at the press of a button. My jaw was hanging on the floor the whole day and I had to continuously remind myself to act composed and not like a gobsmacked peasant. 

Again, as is the culture on superyachts, lunch is a grand affair. Today we had roast duck, crisp roast pork, 2 different salads, grilled aubergine and crusty French loaf. The crew lounge has a TV bigger than my dad’s (most of you know how big that is...), playstation, movies/TV and ipads to control the media player. The cupboards are again stocked with every snack you can think of- chips, popcorn, nuts, dried fruit, biscuits, muesli bars and chocolates. And the kitchen is always fully stocked with beverages, fruits, cheeses and cold meats etc. Literally you could dream up anything in the world you would want to it and it would almost definitely be in that kitchen. They don’t call it a “stew arse” for nothing. If you don’t watch what you eat here and exercise, it is SO easy to put on weight! So I headed off for another run tonight and have vowed to do this every evening after work and not drink alcohol during the week (in next week’s blog post we’ll see how many days I actually managed to stick to this...)! 

xoxo