LE GRAND DEBUT

MARCH 22 2010…..LE GRAND DEBUT

As I type this I'm still torn between two wills.

The first is to curl up on my bed and sleep. The second is to write this and at least envisage me posting it tonite as well even if I don’t do it physically!

However, I'm genuinely tired… not that I had a helluva day at school but it was the events that followed after I think?…coupled with the fact I am mega hungry now and…in fact I have a third battle of the wills…I want to cook some pasta with my leftover sauce from Sunday as I have not eaten proper food today except cheese and baguette!( And blood oranges...) but I’m so tired… I'm sitting here… almost motionless*sigh*

I just finished labeling some of my things from school and mehn am I tired! Mehn do I miss my RIO!!! Pls Folashayo and Adeiye shey u feel me?! My pinky toe has developed yet another acutely excruciating blister!!! Which kain whahala bi dis! My right foot is sore as well and it’s so painful walking! And for this zones u no fit slow-walk at all o u go dey waka like say na Olympics!

(The above was being typed until my Skype pops up with my aunty Tosin calling me…a surge of energy somehow rushed through me! We talk for about 30mins and during that time I cooked my fantasy pasta that had a generous sprinkling of parsley and Good Lord was it DELICIOUS!!!)

The vibration from my BB did more than wake me up this morning…it reminded me that today was a day I couldn’t afford to be late!

Yes…today was my first day of school… on the surface...but at the root of my mind…today marked the beginning of the sprout/bud of a new phase of destiny for me.

Since my alarm went off at 6.00am I snooze it for a bit and sleep small…yes chefs need their rest! But at 6:20 I finally get up, staring back at my bed for a bit like it could do with some more lying down…but I motion further to allow my feet touch the floor so I could prise myself up…as I get on my feet I start worshipping……my my my! Early morning worship is sweet!

Like Pastor Tosin Sowemimo would put it…I officially prayerlize my year ahead! Anyway...details between Jesus and I!

After my good morning Jesus session…I move to get out all my documents I think I would probably use at school; so as taking out what I would wear…ok what am really saying is… I launch one plaid shirt I had been dying to wear out! Lol! After that’s done I glance at the time and see its 7:38am! Yeh!!! Sorry Ouussh!! I dart into the bathroom and like lighting I'm done bathing. The way I changed into my clothes mad Clark Kent look like a millipede! 8.00am I was out and for some strange reason I locked my door fast even if I still don’t know which key locks up or down instead I got it on the first tries.

Then the Parisian-walk begins...aka “the running walk” all the way to the Pantheon bus stop, however I stop to get a baguette because I didn’t have change to buy a one way ticket to school…as my week pass had expired! I choose a healthy variety with lots of seeds and natural stuff in it...and oh my was is hot and delicious! Exiting the shop, I also execute another Parisian tradition…”eating as you walk at 100km/h!” I briskly progress towards the Pantheon and when I have the Pantheon in view I steal a few moments to awe at the colossal splendor, when another structure shows up and seems to block my view too..in the middle of my awe and confusion… I realize its moving…”YEH THE BUS!!” omo I did the only logical thing…I RAN!!!! Paris tradition or not! Omo Bolt for fear sprinting na! Mehn! I sprint sote I fest the bus! LOL!!!

I dey wonder before “why dey dey sprint for dis place sef?”omo…I learn am today!

An out-of-breath-baguette-holding-me eventually gets on the bus and I'm Vaugirard bound. With my timer on I relax but simultaneously look out as well before I miss my stop. On the way I tried to think of what my first day would be like?

1. Would I make good friends today?

2. Would I find another at least African student? I trust that the possibility of me seeing another Nigerian was 0.1%...ok I'm being polite...0%!

3. Is my blood now rising? Is my heart rate any faster?

Then….nothing…really nothing….*sighs*.

My baguette starts to bore my taste buds at that point and actually started drying my mouth! So I put it away and down the bottle of water I had carried with me.

I get of my stop and start walking to school…I look at my watch and timer. The timer said 20 mins etc seconds..and the watch said 8:20am. At that point the following thoughts ran through my mind

1. “Guy now?!!! How faar?!! Which one u dey puma like this? School na 9:30am, u don land one hour before!”

2. “Omo na Covenant Univeristy blood o!

3. LWKMD! (Laff Wan Kill Me Die)

4. Hope say dey no go vex say I too early o! they do dey look me like I say my blood to dey hot?!

I put an end to all those thought when I realized I was in front of my school.

I entered with the pride and confidence of a prospective Prime Minister or the about-to- be-crowned Prince of Wales! I felt like this was the day I would be initiated to a fraternity or Knighted more like! On my inside I was probably dancing “Alanta” and doing the “Chicken Noodle Soup”…But my outward appearance played it cool…placing my phone on silent, I push the glass door and meet one of the ladies who hands me some forms and with her poor English jamming my poor French we figure out my name sha and By the way for my school I used my full name..ORITSEGBUBEMI…even some Nigerians I'm sure can’t pronounce that! (I now felt sorry for all these French, Japanese and all the endless nationalities that worked with the administration!) So she didn’t bother she just used my surname which was better for her and looked for my ID card; when she found it was missing my picture!

In my mind…

1. “hey…ermm auntie…hhmmm….if na play make e stop o!!! Na complete school fees I pay na! if na joke..make e stop o!”

2. “Ah! I sure say sen my pishur juoin na?”

But my mouth blurts out…”do you need me to give you a passport picture?” (with a tone that was filled half fear and half confidence) And she said I could do so. I whip out a passport from the stash I carry about, hand it to her and feel at ease!

I go to the winter garden and start filling out the survey and some other forms some old student s that passed me looked unhappy and unflustered…

I thought to myself “shet! That’s going to be me in a few months…yuck!”*sighs*

After I had finished, I was moved to the demonstration room where we were offered tea coffee and croissants and juice...omo I was shy at first to drink anything but oh well I gave in to coffee first with a croissant….the room started filling in small by small…people started trickling in bit by bit…I had met a guy named Antonio by the way…he’s Portugese but speaks fluent French as his mother is French..at that point he mentioned that I thought to myself “darn it! My wasn’t my mother French?!” oh well at 9:35am the room had considerably filled up…from Japan to Australia to Brazil and the Americans they came in..excpet any African... why was I getting my hopes high sef? Hmmm… Ifelt both bad and good… bad because every other person has someone from their place, why not me?...then good because I was the shining star for Nigeria and Africa!

The introduction was done in French first then translated in English…and everyone of us whether you understand French or not you look at the French woman talk whether you dey grab or not u go just dey look sha, the when the English own go land I go hear join! The intro went on for like an hour 20 mins during which we all introduced ourselves and where we were coming from and what we would be studying; we were about 50 of us and after which everybody “un-shyly clawed” at the croissants and drinks!

During the introduction, a guy in front of me mentioned he was from the Philippines and I cast my mind back to Edith my cousin’s nanny(…I became somewhat alert in my mind...”ooh…I know someone from your country you know”…like…like that made me his best pal now…mcheww was I thinking) then I noticed him heading for the orange juice and voraciously ripping the cap of the tetra pack and since I was heading for the juice too I wait behind him and introduce myself and we start talking…and gosh do I fall in love…(straight-chef-respect love o!)

1. He was 21..just a year younger..but what the hell!

2. He has been working professionally in a hotel in the Philippines since he was 19!

3. Hes been cooking un-professionally since 10!

4. He had visited all the Michelin Starred Restaurants in Paris and started saving money to go and eat there! I hadn’t even thought of that!!!

See why I love this guy already!!!! He’s my kind of guy!!!!!!

Did I mention also

1. AND HE IS DOING THE GRANDE DIPLOME!!!!!!! 50 TAAAASAAAN DOOLLLAAHHHSSSS! JUSSSTSS LYS DASTS! GOLSH!

2. YELSK!!! $50,000!!!

3. OMO U GO FEAR PASSION!

4. ME whey dey do cuisine diploma I know wetin I pay…ah! He is really styrings!!!!

So yes my first made friend…as time went on I met Leticia an Athenes girl, Kristen an elderly lady from the States, Jeff from Taiwan, Wiji from Taiwan as well and a Brazilian guy who I can’t remember his name now.

Then my blood really started to rise when we receive our uniforms…my my my my!!!!!

Strolling into the locker room…I had never been so excited about getting dressed…for the first time I didn’t care whether I didn’t have a six-pac or at least a flat stomach, or that my chest wasn’t like a NACK model’s own or that my love handles or lower belly fat was exposed!…I take of my clothes and Try on my uniforms…I was nervous also because I couldn’t remember the measurement I sent and was praying so hard that all this weight I had put on would not further embarrass me destroying my freshly mustered confidence in the process!!!!!!!

But to my comforting surprise… the chef jacket was 2 sizes bigger than me! It was like a canopy on me!!!

HUURRAAAYYY!!!!!! For the first time in Paris something was ACTUALLY BIGGER than me!!!! FELT LIKE I WAS A SIZE DOUBLE ZERO SEF! With all confidence I IMMEDIATELY complain it’s not my size, my size is guessed by the ladies and I get my fit for my top on the spot and I got the trousers later…

After our small break we have our first class…but it’s an introductory one..Briefing us on all the rules and regulation...omo some kain CU tins...if you are 10mins late forget class and if you’re absent more than 6 times…forget your exams!!

By 3:00pm I had finished my class and collected my uniforms and locked them away in my locker…then Leticia and I got chumsy and hooked up to go and get my security shoes…with all our excess baggage of knives and uniforms we waddle through the metro and finally arrive at the store and they had my size thankfully…then she went home and I went to H&M AND DELAVEINE to find some knock about shoes for evrydayin Paris…picked up a black pair of tennis shoes at H&M and started to head home…I do so by trying to look for a bus first...but it proved uneventful so without no other option; the train I board.

I get home and I'm soooooo tttiirreeeddd!!!!!!! I drop all my load on my bed and just sit and open my laptop to YouTube a bit….then start labeling all my stuff from school….

Tomorrow there no school so I'm free but still have few things to do…mail aunty Toyin, check out something for Taiye and Alero, open an account…abit sha…

Now I can go to bed with a oversize sense of purpose…school has started….ii ask God to bless and help finish and ave

To all my family…Grandpa…all those that called before and after, spent nights at my place, sent/gave money…LOVE U TO BITS!

Bon Nuit