Cassis et Aix-en-Provence

Last weekend I fell in love with France again. Not that I ever fell out of love, but it's been hard to see the beauty when I'm overwhelmed and stressed out. All that went away as I headed to the South of France with some girls from my program to enjoy some sunshine and explore unfamiliar cities. Well, sort of unfamiliar. We went to Cassis, a little sea village on the Mediterranean just a 40 minute bus ride from Marseille that none of us had ever been to before. After our stint at the coast we headed inland to Aix-en-Provence, the famed French ville known for its lavender, cafés, and artists. I'd been to Aix before with my mother, two years ago this past summer, so it was interesting to be back with a different crowd.

Cassis

Now that you have a small synopsis of the trip, I'll go into more depth about it and why I have a renewed appreciation for France. First of all, the idea to go down there sprung up when we discovered Ouigo, a subsidiary of the French national rail line, SNCF. Ouigo offers fairly inexpensive (in European terms- for me and other USD dependent folks, everything is expensive here) train tickets throughout the South of France. Our tickets from Lyon to Marseille were 10 euros, quite a steal if you ask me. I could easily spend that amount on a drink in a bar. Our tickets for the way back were slightly more expensive but it was worth it to see 2 cities (or towns?) in 2 1/2 days.

We arrived in Marseille bright and early, before the tourist office even opened, so naturally we sat down and had coffee and pastries. We walked near the port for a little bit and stood underneath this really trippy mirror reflection roof thing. Yes, I realize that was really articulate but I'm not even sure what it was. After dillydallying around for a little bit we found the bus headed for Cassis and hopped on it. The drive there was through green and rocky terrain. It reminded me of the movie "Manon des Sources", a French film starring Gerard Depardieu I watched several times in my high school French class.

Reflecting roof near the port in Marseille

Once we arrived in Cassis we checked into our boutique hotel and wandered through the town streets. Naturally, I gravitated towards the sea as it'd been a while since I'd been near a large body of water (if you don't count Lyon's two rivers, the Rhone and the Saone). The water, as expected with this region's name (the Côte d'Azur), was a brilliant blue. It wasn't as inviting as I hoped what with the heavy breeze and choppy waves but I was tempted to go in nevertheless. Before going in, however, we decided to explore and made our way towards Port Miou, one of the three "calanques" Cassis is so famous for. It's hard to describe so here are some pictures to give you an idea of what a calanque is.

On our way back from the Port Miou we stopped at a rocky beach and finally decided to take the plunge. Well, Kirsten and me that is. I had been wanting to go in all day but when the time finally came I almost chickened out due to the small waves that were present but Kirsten put things into perspective and finally convinced me to go in. I'm so glad that I did. That would have been a shame to be at the Mediterranean and not go in the water.

Kirsten and me waving from the Mediterranean

Cote d'Azur

Port Miou Calanque

After spending a full day and a morning in Cassis we made our way (via train) to Aix-en-Provence. Like I said, I'd been there before but very briefly so it was nice to be back and do things that I hadn't done before. We basically spent all Saturday afternoon strolling around the very French streets of Aix, basking in the sunshine, eating Mexican food and ice cream, and eventually finding our hostel (which ended up being much farther away than we expected...oh well). The thing that I found the most exciting though was, believe it or not, finding decent Mexican food! Yes, I know, I should embrace French culture and leave my Mexican food cravings behind in California but I couldn't help but be excited to stumble upon this treasure. Below are some funny posters that were in the restaurant/take-out place. 

For dinner we went to a very quaint restaurant that Kirsten found in her guidebook. It wasn't too expensive for what we got and had a very authentic atmosphere, which I liked. The best part was that we were seated outside in what felt like a backyard, with ivy growing all around and nothing but French being spoken around us. It was nice to get away from the tourists and feel more immersed in la vie française.

On our last day in Aix we spent the morning at the Musée Granet, which holds collections from artists such as Cezanne, Picasso, Dali, and other famous painters that were known to have spent some time in Aix. I'm no art connoisseur but I really enjoyed the exhibit and would definitely recommend it. 

Overall the weekend was pretty great and I'm glad I was able to spend some time in the South of France before it got chilly (as it is right now, raining and about 50 degrees). I would love to go back to Cassis in the Spring or Summer when it's warmer and visit the two other calanques that I never made it to! 

Below are some more pics from the trip. 

Cassis

Aix-en-Provence, also known as the city of 1,000 fountains

Beaujolais

This past Saturday all 40+ students in my program went to a winery in Beaujolais, France, just 45 minutes from Lyon. Beaujolais is one of the many famous regions in France known for it's wine. I had heard of it before coming here, but only because my mother, a culinary enthusiast, bought a bottle of Beaujolais wine for me and told me about it. Needless to say, it was nice to get out of Lyon for the day and get a little taste of the French countryside.

After the brief bus ride there, we all made our way into a rustic looking building where the owners of the small winery told us about the kinds of wine they make. We then tasted three wines, accompanied by some delicious hors d'oeuvres fresh out of the oven. The owner gave an explanation of the vineyards and what we were drinking, all in French. By the way, besides when I hang out with all Americans, most of my interactions are in French, unless I say otherwise. I'd like to think I understood everything he said but I kind of zoned out halfway through and ended up having a mini photo-shoot with Ana and Katie. Oops.

After we tasted wine we all headed hungrily towards a giant wine cellar-turned-banquet hall where tables were set in a classic, country-French manner. Each table had a blue and yellow flower-patterned table cloth. So French. It reminded me of the curtains in my sister's room haha. We all sat down for two hours and were treated to a series of typically French food, including pâté (which I personally despise but I tried it anyway just to be polite), salad, beef (perhaps bourguignon? not sure but if my mother were there she would have been able to tell me), potatoes, cheese, three kinds of sweet treats, and of course, bread. Lots and lots of bread. Oh, and since we were at a winery, our meal was accompanied by plenty of wine. It was very lovely and nice of this couple to open their winery/vineyard/home to us and treat us so nicely. I know part of our program dues went towards this excursion, but it was nice nonetheless to have what felt like such an authentic experience.

After stuffing ourselves silly we went out into the vineyard and had a photo shoot. Below are some pictures from this part of the day.

My roommate Ana and I

At this point in the day, we were all sleepy and ready to go into a food coma but our program director kept reminding us that the day was not over. We were led to a traditional brick oven where, to our delight, fresh bread was being made. A couple of people got to take the giant wood spatula and take bread out of the oven. I wasn't one of the lucky ones, but we did however, get to all take home a mini-loaf of bread. It was delicious and warm and an awesome way to end the day. The couple who hosted us and made all this delicious food was adorable and we were all appreciative of their graciousness. I bought a jar of homemade apricot jam and ate it with my warm bread when I got home.

The bread baking process.

Overall, it was a lovely day out with the kids from my program and I'm glad I got to experience the delight of a French winery!

Wifi and language in Lyon

I'm alive! Haha, not that people couldn't infer that from my Facebook presence...but I haven't blogged as much as I hoped to mostly due to the fact that access to Wifi has been infrequent. Still waiting to officially have it in my apartment but hopefully that will be soon. I'm crossing my fingers!

Well, I'm finally moved into my apartment and waiting for a few things to come together and then my life will finally be established here. As soon as I have real internet I shall document my experiences more thoroughly. Until then, sporadic updates it is!

The apartment is great. I absolutely love the view, my roommates are awesome, and we have a nice big kitchen to cook in. I'm excited to invite people over during the holiday season to make Christmas cookies : ) . I'm hoping it will snow so a) I can have a real Christmas and b) I get to take advantage of my view and see all the rooftops covered with snow. We shall see.

Anyway, life in Lyon has been interesting. I'm so glad I'm here for a year. I feel like I tell myself that every day but it's true. This whole experience wouldn't be as gratifying if I were to leave in 3 mere months. It's already taken me 1 month to start to feel established, so 3 more would go by way too quickly. My language skills could definitely use the full 10 or so months!

Speaking of language, I suppose I've been improving, but it's hard to tell. Some people are easier to understand than others. The most difficult part for me is not having a broad enough vocabulary. Or when I can't understand someone. That is really frustrating but I know as time goes on it will only become easier. Also, sometimes I know the right words or phrases for something but I mispronounce them so people don't understand me. It's slightly embarrassing, but all part of the process nonetheless. Being in a city where the majority of people do not speak fluent English is a humbling experience, I must say.

I speak French with my roommates because Ona (the Spanish one) speaks French better than English and because we are all here to improve our French, after all. I also meet with a French friend, Manon, once a week just to have conversations in French (and I help her a little bit with English). I met her through the apartment-search process. I think having full conversations is particularly helpful because it involves more than just asking to buy a baguette or inquiring where the nearest restroom is.

Overall I'm really pleased that I chose Lyon because it's a big enough city that keeps things interesting but it's also not overwhelming like I fear Paris might have felt. It feels very comfortable. And not everyone speaks English so that forces me to speak French, another benefit. I'm excited to discover what more this city has to offer : )

Below are some photos from my time here so far.

Lyon sunset

Delicious gelato/ice cream made from local, organic ingredients!

Artsy pic from my apartment