Building up to the day I left Cape Town on April 17th 2016 my mind was at a cross road. This year was supposed to be just another year at university, I was supposed to still be in a relationship, I was supposed to start taking job hunting seriously, I was supposed to do many things this year. A trip up the east coast in January, a night back home and a few cups of coffee later I found myself with one plane ticket half way across the world, leaving everyone behind.
I was so set on that comfort of having things going according to plan that when everything flipped upside down I was in a frail limbo, waiting to leave. Waiting to run away from my doubts. Long story short I'm now in Monte Carlo, Monaco writing a short catch up of my experiences one week at a time and to say that I know where I want to be.
I landed in Nice, France on the 18th and headed to Antibes, Old Town for a few nights. If you ever go to Antibes expect to go into a lot of things head first. A Wolf of Wall Street atmosphere combined with a beach lifestyle is how I viewed this small town. An addictive hustle resonates the streets from Le Blue Lady Pub to the games of footie played near the docks. Everyone is there to network. Everyone is wanting to meet new people, develop all kinds of relationships and ultimately, pursue their goal in this vibrant town.
Side note: In Antibes a pint of beer ranges between 5 to 7 euros and coffee between 2.5 to 4 euros. Let that sink in Saffas.
It wasn't long before I was roped into a day mission with some new friends to France's neighbour Italy. San Remo to be exact. First things first, my wallet managed to breath again because of how much cheaper everything was. In a much more laidback setting, 1 day became 5 as I took refuge on a 30m yacht with 3 fellow South Africans who treated me to many braais (barbeques) and beer of course. Meat for days. Meat. For. Days. I grew close to a few people in my short stay in San Remo after a night of skating the docks - beer in hand and foraging for the best pizza in town! When in San Remo? Is that a thing? It should be. Thanks Shannon, John, Ryan, Tiffany, Lian, Shane and Yasmin for being absolute legends.!
It hit me I hadn't been truly alone since I arrived in Europe, I was always accompanied by my second mom Tiffany or with a group of backpackers similar to me. So I moved on from San Remo saying to myself "I'll take it from here" and cracked on. Alone and very incapable of speaking Italian, Genoa somehow happened. A dodgy city with unique old urban character and nippy weather rife! I fell in love with the heart and soul of this city because there were gelato shops EVERYWHERE, food was affordable and the people actually smiled when you mixed up the words "Wi", "Si" and "Pee" in failed attempts at finding a toilet. A few quick highlights of my stay in Genoa :
Tasted Italy's best Gelato of 2015 (OMF)
Scored a pizza and pint of beer for just 9 euros!
Stabilised a man who had a stroke in the harbour market
My backpackers had a guitar which obviously meant #serenadeSaturdays
Managed to stick in a 14km run around the city!
Hopefully my future posts will be in more detail and more consistent (every Sunday) from now on, and some pictures get taken (I've been awful with my camera) but until then thanks for reading!
***I can't find all my original photos but if you'd like to see them head over to my wordpress site:
https://waynesworldza.com/2016/05/08/ill-take-it-from-here/
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