A long weekend in Bordeaux...

 Every place I visit makes me fall in love with France all over again...this time it was in the beautiful city of Bordeaux in the south-west of France. In general, it is very different from my world in Aix en Provence but I loved it just the same! For one of my language classes, I have to do an exposé on the Aquitaine region. This trip was perfect because I could gather the information I needed and have fun at the same time! Perfect! :)

My friend Katherine and I took the train from Aix to Bordeaux and even though it took 8 hours, I officially love traveling by train. It allows you to see so much more of the countryside! We passed through 4 different regions before arriving in the Aquitaine and it is a STUNNING region. Fall colors were everywhere and the countryside was full of vineyards! Amazing! Here are a few pictures of things we saw and places we visited...

We arrived in the afternoon of our first day so we took off walking to see what we could find. We found this beautiful park! Look at those fall colors! I have never seen colors like this in San Diego! We walked around for about 2 hours just enjoying the scenery. 

Place de la Bourse...at night! This is one of the most beautiful places I have seen...it is even more amazing during the day! (pictures below) There was a group of 6 men playing French horns so of course, we sat and listened to them for as long as we could!

Ok so when in Bordeaux what must you do? Go visit Châteaux! In the vineyards :) All of the grapes are harvested between September and October so the vines were empty but dressed in their fall colors! 

The exterior....beautiful right? Every wine we tasted was amazing! Obviously...I was in the heart of wine country so of course they were all great! 

I loved the countryside...and the wine!

Place de la Bourse...during the day! This is what makes it so amazing...the reflection! You have to wait for almost all of the water to be gone in order to see it but when you do, it is beautiful! The construction is sort of annoying but at least you all can see what I mean!

 Breast Cancer awareness...French style...AWESOME! The water in the fountain was also pink :)

This is Katherine! She is from Australia...Thanks for coming with me on this great trip! 

So what's next? It's currently Toussaint vacation in France so I have another week off. I will be spending it in Aix...studying! I have lots of exams and exposés to give in the coming weeks so I need the time to prepare! Nerdy but all of my studying has been paying off...nothing is more rewarding then when I am able to speak French without too much extra thought! 

Happy Halloween!!

Bisous :)

Arles & St. Maries de la Mer

Time for an update! Here is how I spent my weekend...we went to Arles and St. Maries de la Mer!

We left Aix Saturday morning and headed to Arles. It reminded me of Aix a little bit but at the same time it is very different. I love all the bright shutters! Our hotel was on this little street!

Arles is famous for its Roman ruins. This is the exterior of an old Roman theater. This portion has not been restored so it gives you a hint of just how tall this structure was. 

Bull fighting arena! This is the old Roman amphitheater and now it hosts bull fights. Did you know that there are two kinds of bull fights? One, is a spanish variation in which the bull is killed at the end of the fight. The other is a french variation where they tie a ribbon between the bulls horns and the object is to cut the ribbon and not hurt the bull. The season just ended but we still got to appreciate the historical background of this arena. 

We saw the beautiful Van Gogh café where Van Gogh painted Café la Nuit. 

Don't you just love this little building!!! I do!!!!!!!

After spending the night in Arles, we headed to St. Maries de la Mer to witness a very old tradition. According to tradition, the three Mary's (of biblical times) were banished on a boat with no oars. They landed in this town unharmed and now each year, the people hold a ceremony in their honor. The purpose is to thank and bless the waters of the Mediterranean for providing safe passage.

This church is over a thousand years old! We waited outside for mass to end so we could follow the procession down to the ocean.

The horses ridden by guardians, accompanied the priests into the water to bless it. Very traditional!

Shell hunting :)

Hello ocean! It was a cold and windy day but it was still beautiful. It was so nice to smell the ocean. I will admit that I miss that smell! 

Family photo! From left to right: Jessica, Claire, Kreya, Dylan, Colin, Olivia and me!

After the ceremony we had a little bit of free time and then....we went horseback riding!

This was my horse...Il s'appelle Carmuzze. We got to ride for an hour and a half along the coast and through groups of wild pink flamingos! It was beautiful! It was so fun!

What's next? We have a vacation from the 27th of October to the 6th of November. Plans? I'm still undecided but I think I am headed to Bordeaux for 3 days with my friend Katherine from Australia. It should be fun!

School is still going well and I am loving everything about Aix. They started to line the main street, the Cours Mirabeau, with Christmas lights! I can't wait for it to be done! It has started to cool off and now it is only about 65 degrees (average) everyday. The Mistral wind is insane...I thought I was ready for it but I was wrong! Layers and scarves are the thing to have here! 

What do you all want to know about life in Aix? I try to write as much as I can but I don't know what to write half the time! 

Bises :)

This week in Aix...

Salut tous! This was the first real week of classes and everything is still going great!

This is what else I have been up to...

Meet the St. Victoire mountain...It is only about 6km outside of Aix and it is beautiful. There are tons of different trails to hike and explore. Near the mountain is the water reservoir that delivers water to most of Provence. You can't swim in it but it is still beautiful to look at. 

Fun Fact!!!! Can you see the red rock in the photo? This area is famous for fossilized dinosaur eggs. Many areas of the mountain are off limits for that reason but you can go with a guide who can show you some prehistoric history.

Beautiful isn't it????!!!!!?!?!

One of the trails we plan to do takes you up to the top of the St Victoire. That trail takes about 2 hours to get up but once you make it, you have a great view of Aix en Provence, Marseille and some of the surrounding smaller towns.

Other happenings...

Not to much to report on the rest of the week. We went to a comedy show (in french) and dinner with the CEA group. It was hilarious...well, the parts I understood were hilarious! I understood most of it....really!

I did some more exploring in the markets and I've decided that just about anything you buy from the local farmers is amazing! I will take pictures of the markets this weekend and post about them more then. They are packed and full of all sorts of fun things...not just food! 

Plans for this weekend: Markets, CEA fam picnic in the park, and maybe a day trip to somewhere close 

:)

grosses bises de France!!!

French University in Aix

My university is beautiful! Don't get me wrong...Cal State San Marcos is pretty great too but now I get to go to classes in an amazing old building! :)

My classes are great and I really think my French is going to improve so much! No English is spoken at school so it really forces you to speak...The first week has been a little exhausting but I love it! I don't mind listening to French all day long! :) unlike at home, I am in class everyday. Even Fridays...so far it's not too shabby. Maybe it's just because I love the language so much...nerdy I know!

Time to head to class!!

À bientôt!!

Les Baux en Provence and St. Remy

Quick update!!!

Today, I got to go to Les Baux. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen! Sorry, some of the pictures got mixed up as I uploaded them :)

View from the bottom looking up at Les Baux. The weather has been fantastic!

It's me!!!!!! G'ma...I know you love this place and if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have been able to experience it. Than you for making all of this possible! I love you!!!

View into the valley from up on one of the towers. The valley is filled with olive trees and it produces some of the best olive oil in France. 

Old Roman architecture! This was in St. Remy which was about a 5 minute drive from Les Baux.

This is where Van Gough spent a year in a mental institution! Not too shabby right?

More Les Baux...I have so many more pictures but this place is magical! I loved everything about it! Check out my Aix en Provence facebook album to see all of the pictures!!! 

:)