My first two days teaching were promptly followed by a two week break. . . Vacances de Toussaint.
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| Collioure |
During this break, I really took advantage of the time to get to know Perpignan and the surrounding area.
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| Boulangerie |
The first week, I was lucky enough to have a friend visit who is doing the same teaching program in Castres (next to Toulouse). We had a couple great day-excursions to Collioure and Villefranche-de Conflent. Both of these places are only a 1 euro ride away. Villefranche is a fortified, stone village resting at the base of Fort Libéria. This fort was built after the division of Catalogne between France and Spain in the 1600s. 734 underground stairs link the fort and the village -- we hiked up the side of the hill (maybe mountain, but not really) and went down the stairs. It was really interesting to see the fort and wind our way through the underground passages. The passages were a bit creepy and cold - maybe I was just thinking too much of Halloween coming up!
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| Fort Libéria |
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| Fort Libéria |
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| View from Fort Libéria |
We also received the opportunity to join another friend in Canet-en-Roussillon for a lovely
dîner by the
plage (beach). I had a delicious tajine, which is a traditional Moroccan dish. . . yum yum. After dinner, we stopped at an English pub quiz for the rest of the night. It was busy there!
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| Sunset in Canet |
The second week of vacation was full of afternoon café visits, delicious food and wine with friends, and sunny Perpignan. It was also Halloween . . . I was convinced to watch scary movies (which are not my cup of tea - I may have screamed a couple times) and dressed up as the Spice Girls with some other assistants. Fun!
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| Afternoons in cafés |
What a life. . .
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