Cheers.

      Woah do the french spoke. I feel as if I have become a smoker myself due to all the smoke intake I have had these past couple of days. The girl I am staying with says she doesnt even smoke that much... that much being 7 plus cigarretts a day. Audrey took me to a party of her friends and the air was so thick with smoke (the whole time) that it was like your eyes were glazed over. My eyes have been blood shot for a good day because of it I think. It is so strange to me that smoking is such a large part of the culture here, everyone does it. Everyone but me that is. Yuckk, my clothes reeked of smoke after and I had to air out all my things.
      After a night of 3-4 hours of sleep and a train ride back into the city that took an hour I was feeling pretty groggy and irritable. I needed to get out of the apartment and get some fresh air, as well as get some alone time away from Audrey and her friend. They went to a dance outside of the city, 2 hours away and I decided to just stay in the city and have a night alone in the apartment. I went exploring and had researched some vintage shops I wanted to stop in so I took the metro to the area surrounding the Canal Saint-Martin. The 3 shops I wrote down I found pretty easily, one of which was a classically fantastic store! I probably could have gotten quite a few things for myself there but it was highly over priced. I wandered the streets, going into little boutiques, shops, cafes. The area is so artsy and beautiful! There are murals painted on the walls all throughout the streets, some cool, some cartoony, some graphical. It is so contrasting to the old timeless buildings that they attach themselves to. I found myself fully content and happy. The air wash fresh, there were no husstling and busstling of cars and people, the canal was beautiful shinning in the blue sunny sky, flocks or birds flew over me as the cold chills of the wintery parisian air hit my face and bunddled body. I still get looks like I am a photographer because I just walk around taking photos of everything, its funny! I found some of the coolest stores in that area, if you are ever in Paris... for SURE go to the Canal area. I also had the best supper Ive had here. It was a vegetarian restaurant, serving tofu and quinoa and all the weird hippy food I love. I found it online so it was my goal to find it... and it was so worth it. It was in the back of a dead end street that didnt have anything else besides a garden store, some apartment buildings and a book store. I had the most beautiful day Ive had in Paris yet but it ended badly because I got pick pocketed on the metro. I lost my wallet, and the apartment keys Audrey had given me were in my wallet as well. Audrey was out of the city, luckily I know a friend living in Paris so I was able to sneak onto the metro, meetup with him and bum around for the rest of the night. I had no money, no ID, no nothing! He was off to a school christmas party and invited me to come. It ended up being so fun! We were attending a gallery show that the students put on, there was endless food from all the countries of the students as well as drinks, music and dancing. Everyone was very welcoming and we ended up all partying until 1 in the morning. Students and teachers together. The school is a graduate program for photographers and the students who attend this english school come from many many countries, it is a very diverse group.
        After the christmas party, we went back to Trevors apartment to regroup and head to the clubs. Not my style, but I went along with it anyways because I had trevor screaming at me "when are you EVER in Paris!!?"... he is right. SO we ended up leaving the club at 6 in the morning! We went to a bar down where a lot of clubs are in Paris, it was crazy. SO many people down there. Trev, his gf, his brazilian friend and I got into a new club that was having a private party... Ricardo (his friend) played it cool and sweet talked our way into the club. It. Was. Sick. There was Paris' most famous photographer and a bunch of "important" looking people. You could tell there was lots of money in the club just by the clothes people were wearing and the shoes I was surrounded by. The fashionable and rich have their own world I tell you. I was out of my league for suuuure. It was really interesting watching the people tho. The club was intense, underground and brand new, the rooms wrapped all over the place. There were gold and black walls, a dance floor, bar, smoke room and coat check. here are some photos: http://www.lexpress.fr/styles/designers/david-lynch-ouvre-le-silencio-club-parisien_1025355.html.
       Overall it has been an exhausting 2 days and with 8 hours under my belt the past 2 nights I am passing out early tonight. Everything has worked out and my credit cards are cancelled, I have money and got a falafel for dinner. Life is good again. I have 2 more days in Paris... The flea market is tomorrow! Yipee :)