Missing You Lately

I miss France, and everyone in the group would agree with me. I don't know what it is about France, but it feels like you just belong there. It's kind of how Travis explained it, "there's just an ambiance here", and you can feel it. I could feel it in Paris and Nice, and catch myself saying "you could live here". Maybe its the food, culture, or women. I will always be like a moth to the flame for France.

Romance

There's a couple definitions for romance, and I'm not talking about the falling in love kind of romance, but the other kind. The "quality or feeling of mystery, excitement, and remoteness from everyday life." (I'm not smart enough to come up with that definition on my own. My computer's dictionary app did it for me) I spent last weekend in England, doing the London thing, and while it was a lot of fun and cool to see everything, it was lacking the romance that Paris and Nice have. While we were in Paris, there was just this ambiance, this feeling like, Wow, I'm in Paris! Nice has the same thing. I can't tell you how many times within the first week of getting to Nice that I said, We're in freakin France! There's just this air of romance in France that I haven't found anywhere else. There are alotta places in the world, with a lotta things to do and see, but nowhere that I've been has been able to match the feeling that I've gotten while in France.

Bittersweet

“Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don’t be sorry.” –Jack Kerouac 

Here are a few photo ops never to forget:

A wonderful day spent in Cannes, just in time for opening night at the film festival. A few things I will never forget about this day: Caylene and her olive oil, a friendly game of truth or dare over lunch, standing in line for a Michel Gondry film, and walking out of a Michel Gondry film. 

If Tammy ever needed to get a moment to herself, all she needed to do was put us on a train; it worked like a charm every time. 

Though, walking around Paris for twelve hours a day will also do the trick.

No matter how old you are, chasing ducks is always a good time. 

If there is no shade: be creative. 

Always make sure you can see Trav when taking a picture (if only he was wearing a red and white striped shirt). 

Olive oil, meet Caylene. 

Angry birds has officially invaded every country. 

What? He was totally studying french! ;) 

Paris really is the city of love. 

It is always bittersweet when a great adventure comes to an end, but hey woof pack…

we will always have Paris. 

xoxo,

Alle

The Beach

The Beaches of Nice are something else. The water is always nice and cool, blue and shining. There are beautiful women everywhere, and since the culture is a little different, most of the women do not where bikini tops. This is very different from what I'm used to seeing at beaches, but I accept this culture and claim it as my own now. Nice also has cliffs located next to the old chateau, where the locals jump. Since I'm here, I bomb that cliff with all of my might and yell America while in the air. Damn it feels good to be in Nice, and I'm sad I have to leave.

Last week In Nice

This last week in Nice has been bitter sweet. I think we can all agree that we will be back to visit or  we will be moving to Nice. We had our last excursion to Eze.. Prettiest city built on a hill.. Close to the Sea. 

Absolutely stunning. 

Of course we have been to Amorino's every day this week for gelato. We are definitely going to miss that place. 

We all "graduated" from actilangue! I don't know what is going on in this picture... Pretty awesome people.. We have become family here! Going back to real life is going to be a big adjustment. 

Au Revoir!

Eze

A couple days ago we went to another old village called Eze. It is situated on a mountain side facing the Mediterranean, and if you look left there's Monaco and to the right is Nice. I can picture myself living in each of the cities we visit on our excursions, and the cities become more intricate and fascinating each time.

We also visited a perfume factory. All the girls loved it.

Reflections on a Semester in France: The 10 Most Important Things I Learned

As I reflect on this trip I am reminded how incredible this experience has been. I have thought countless times of moving out to this country, preferably along the French Riviera, and forgetting all my worries.  To briefly conclude this journey I will relate the 10 Most Important Things that I have learned while in France.

1. Paris is always a good time.

Sometimes restaurants are not open at midnight, like they are supposed to be, because certain girls took too long to get ready and you end up eating at some small Chinese restaurant.  Sometimes the city of Paris has different plans for you and you just have to get lost in the city. No matter where you go in Paris you are bound to have a good time. Whether the climate be cold, windy, rainy, or snowy, the city has an incredible beauty that encompasses all others.

2. French wine is divine.

I would not consider myself a wino, though every now and then I like to enjoy a glass that complements my meal.  There is no doubt in my mind that French wine is the best in the world, and for good reason, the French know their wine. 

3. French people love their cigarettes.

There is no problem with cigarettes in France, despite the fact that they still kill you according to the slogan on most cigarette packs, "Fumer Tue", "Smoking Kills", accompanied with the picture of some poor decrepit individual with a disease caused by smoking.  This does not matter though, the French will continue to smoke if it kills them.

4. The French architectural style is the most beautiful in the world.

There is no doubt. Every building is incredible, from the chateaux to the apartment complexes, to the villas and little cabins.  Each building is different in some small way, but they are all joined together by the beauty of French architecture.

5. The aristocracy did not just have a lot of money, they had A LOT of money.

Versailles is approximately the same size as Paris and each chateau houses enough rooms for a small country.  The incredible amount of architectural brilliance in cohesion with the landscape and the significant amount of artistic pieces reveal that these French counts and dukes and kings did not have a lot of money, they had an overabundant cornucopia of money that refilled itself by means of a money tree growing out of it.  The way that we know they had this much money doesn't come from the chateaux that these aristocrats built for themselves, but the ones that they built for their mistresses as well.

6. The Alpes-Maritimes has the best view in the world.

 
The ancient towns like Eze, St. Paul, and Cagnes-Sur-Mer, provide an incredible contrast with the more modern cities like Nice and the Principality of Monaco.  These contrasts seem to complement the scenery of the mountains on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It does not matter where you go in this area, the view is always incredible.

7. Disney movies lie to you, particularly about happiness and intercultural competence.  Romani people are not fun to deal with.

My first realization came in the Loire Valley, after I had finished reading Victor Hugo's "Notre Dame de Paris", when I wanted to watch the Disney interpretation to make comparisons.  The two renditions are completely different and I criticize Disney for trying to make such a tragic story into a children's story, as the two plots did not even reveal an inkling of similarity.  My second revelation came through Caylene, when she explained to me that Native Americans do not live like Pocahontas, instead, they like Twilight and cannot talk to the plants.  The third revelation came through my experiences with the romani people, or gypsies, in Paris.  I was accosted at several times by these troublesome nomads who tried to pickpocket me, then steal my money. If someone asks you to sign something for a donation, put your hands in your pockets, hold on to your valuables, don't acknowledge anyone, and whatever you do, keep walking... 

8. Everyone wants to get a picture of the exact same thing.

Everything in France is incredible and everyone wants to get a picture of it.  On many occasions people will fight to get this picture. If someone were to look through all the students' pictures, they would find the exact same picture somewhere.  All of the people in this image are at some stage of taking the same photograph...

9. French cuisine is incredible. Everything tastes delicious.

There is nothing to say that can describe the cuisine here.  Everything tastes incredible. You cannot simply say, "Let's go to that good restaurant," because all the restaurants are delicious. This picture is a special tribute to Amorino's Gelato, as it will be missed, along with all the other French foods, when I have to go back to America and eat food that doesn't even compare to the same caliber of cuisine.

10. Bring a bigger bag next time, or just move here.

Everyone in the group bought a bunch of stuff in France, or along the trip. There are flea markets and street vendors everywhere, and the quality of the stores here makes the products in American stores look like posh and prepped up pieces of garbage. Ultimately, everyone in the group needed a larger suitcase to contain all of their original items and new purchases.  My advice would be to save yourself the trouble and just move out here. I am looking for some new roommates... The picture should act as a hyperlink for one of the pieces of real estate I plan on obtaining...

Excursion to Vence

Yup, another excursion where we walk around forever, and I nod my head and wink at Blondine. Vence has this town called Saint Paul, and I understand why they built a huge wall around it with a cannon guarding the door, because the view is très belle. My favorite part was waiting outside, where these old men played joule de boule (I think that's what it's called), and watching them bicker was amusing. I now know what to do as an old man, when I can't golf. Oh and matisse museum was alright, I just don't understand that kind of art...#idontgetit.

Vence

Another excursion. This weekend we went to Vence. Again.. the "veille ville" was gorgeous. The architecture is really pretty. The is an amazing panoramic view! I love everything about this place! We went to Saint Paul's and went to the Church designed by Matisse. His art is always amazing! 

Whenever they have the slightest amount of space.. they fill it with some kind of a plant. Their doorways and windows are always filled with pretty plants and flowers!

Vielle Ville houses!

Side of the hill... The Hollywood "Vence" sign is in there. Kind of hard to spot. 

And of course we finished the day off at Amorino's for some gelato! 

Ticking clocks, drinking water, and Italian underwear

The Port of Antibes

This was a week of excursions. We went on three excursions with the school and one of our own. On Monday Blandine took us to Cagnes-Sur-Mer, where we looked at a bit of the small French town feel dating back to the Middle Ages. On Wednesday we headed to Antibes, where we got another feel of the Vielle Ville style French culture. Antibes houses a Picasso museum, an Archaeology museum, and the largest port in Europe. The Picasso museum did not have a lot of Picasso paintings, but it did have a decent amount of other works of Picasso's style and tributes to the famous artist. The port was very interesting, mainly because the yachts looked like they cost more than the whole area of the Mediterranean. One yacht had a helicopter port on it and I have made it my lifelong goal to procure that vessel.

Beepiby Bobibdy Italy

Yesterday we caught a train for like 45 minutes and ended up in Italy. Nice just got so much cooler to me. It was great experience, had my first canoli, bought sexy underwear, and had pizza next to the beach. I went with a group of girls, which means I walked around while they shopped and looked at everything. Even with this inhibition, I had fun. Great adventure and worth the trip. And get ready to understand nothing of what people say. Unless you know Italian.

Italia!!

Well we all decided to go to Ventimiglia today. We all hopped on the train and went to Italy. The train ride was only about 45 minutes. We hit up a bunch of markets. 

This is the view from the train on the way to Italy. I love all the houses that are built into the side of a hill right one the Mediterranean! 

There are are always street performers when you 

go anywhere with a large crowd. 

Its pretty amazing how still they stay!

 

Of course we had to have pizza in Italy! 

Theses are the markets we went to. All of us girls were in heaven... The boys probably not so much.