Ile du Frioul (Marseille)

Towards the end of the spring semester, the weather finally started getting warm enough to think about a beach and swimming.  With some last minute plans, a friend and I set out for Marseille to find a beach.  After arriving at the train station, we ran into a large group of students heading to the island just off of Marseille so we joined them.

We arrived at the Old Port in Marseille to catch a ferry.  It was a nice ride and we went past the Chateau d'If, made famous with the Count of Monte Cristo, and arrived at the second island, l'ile du Frioul.  Here, we took a short hike in the sweltering heat, past the main beach, and to a private cove.  It was worth it even after having to deal with some dive-bombing seagulls... their young were walking around on the top of the hill after-all.

It was surreal with the blues and greens in the water and now I can check "swimming in the Mediterranean" off of my list!

In the distance you can see Chateau d'If.

Our cove.

Everyday Aix

While I took many amazing trips to areas in Provence, France, and other European countries, something has to be said about the pleasure I found in my everyday life.  Walking through Aix and seeing history unfold, stumbling upon markets every day, and enjoying a spot in the sun were some of life's little pleasures.

Here are some of the highlights of my "everyday Aix."

Place de l'Universite... (right outside my school)

A typical Aix street... my school is just down on the left.

The path I took to get to my afternoon art class at Marchutz.

Pavillon de Vendome... a parc steeped in history.

Aix trees.

Host family (Mireille et Robert) with my housemate Cate at an end of the year school picnic.

Fontaine de Vaucluse

My last school excursion this spring was to Fontaine de Vaucluse.  It was a beautiful area.  We walked along a river a ways in the shade of the trees and shortly arrived at a natural spring.  The water is an incredible blue-green and it is melt-off from the Alps.  It travels underground for hundreds of miles before popping up at this incredible little spot.  Just like magic.

Right at the source of the spring.  The water is so cold I could only get a toe in!

What am I drinking? Oh Pschitt, ok...

The village of Fontaine de Vaucluse.  Here is a water fountain... and yes you can drink the water coming right out of it!

French Markets

Well now that I'm home, people keep asking what I miss.  I miss friends, I miss traveling, I miss wine in the afternoon at an open air cafe, and I miss my art class.  Well that's not all, I miss the French life, and one of those things embedded in my life in Aix-en-Provence was the countless markets throughout the city.

There is really something to be said about the open air markets in France.  They span entire squares, taking up life as you stroll down the rows upon rows of vegetables, flowers, breads, cheeses, clothing, and souvenirs.  Some markets have only a specific item, such as the daily flower market outside the Hotel de Ville (City Hall) in Aix, after which they clean the square and fill it with tables from the local cafes.  Some wrap around an entire city, such as that I saw on my excursion to Isle sur la Sorgue.  No matter where you stumble upon one though, which will undoubtedly happen, there is always some treasure to find.  Don't forget to try the strawberries that are in season, the delectable French cheeses, and the saucisson for an unforgettable picnic.

Cezanne

Aix is all about Cezanne.  He was a post-impressionist painter that lived for many years in Aix-en-Provence, France.  His statue sits right at la Rotonde in the center of town for all to be seen.

Throughout his time in Provence, Cezanne chose Mont St. Victoire as a motif.  It was a motif of untouched nature and constantly changing perception.  During my time in Aix, I had the privilege of painting the mountain twice in my art class.   We would drive out to the middle of nowhere, onto a kind farmer's property and set up out easels and paints for an afternoon as we strove to paint what we saw.  This was definitely one of my most incredible moments of a semester as I sank into Cezanne's footsteps.

Home from Aix

Well I am now home after a whirlwind 4 months of French, food, and fun.  It was a semester that I will never forget and that continues to shape my future.
Over the next couple weeks, I will try to catch up with my blogs of what happened in the past few weeks... It was go hard, and then go home.
Needless to say, I arrived home pretty tired after a long 17 hours of traveling.  My mom mentioned that I was speaking a little gibberish... but I guess that's what no sleep and a head full of French do to someone when they suddenly switch to English.
I can tell that my French has definitely improved over the last four months... why else would I switch 3 of my 4 airplane movies over the French and read my French newspaper Le Monde during the flight?  I'm now still trying to figure out how to keep up my language.  Colorado doesn't provide as many opportunities for French speakers.  On that note, it is also strange to hear English everywhere.  On my way home, I had countless doubletakes when I heard English- speakers because I was looking if they were students in my school in Aix.  And nope, they weren't.
Well as the adjustment continues, I will continue my blogs...
I don't yet know what my next great adventure will be, but I know there will be one.  There is always more to come!

Family Visit

Last week I had a wonderful time during my spring break when some of my family flew out to visit me!  We had a whirlwind trip seeing Nice, Monaco, Antibes, Cannes, les Baux-de-Provence, and definitely lots of Aix-en-Provence!

Here are some pictures from our adventures:

First up is les Baux-de-Provence.  I absolutely loved this medieval city with a castle at the top.  It was fun to explore around the ruins.

Here I am with some of the artwork there!

 This is the castle.

...and the view from the top.  Pretty neat huh?  You can see a lot of the grape vines.

Next, here's my Dad and I spending some time in sunny nice.  It was beautiful!

 Soaking up some sun on the road to Monaco!

 Monte Carlo was all about the fancy cars.  We just happened to arrive on the day of a car show.

 Here are my grandma and I back in Nice.  We found some beautiful mosaics while wondering around at the top of a lookout.  Grandma, you're awesome!

 A stop in Antibes for lunch.  Lots of fancy yachts... and it was interesting to see snow-capped mountains beyond the yachts gleaming in the sun.

 My aunt and I had to take advantage of the red carpet in Cannes!

 This was at Santons Fouque... a specialty of Aix.  Isn't this guy neat?

 Chilling in Cassis!

 Loving the boats, the city, the sun!