Vacation #1
So in this lovely land called France, every 6 weeks of work is followed by 2 weeks of vacation. So, I've been on vacation for the last week and a half and I still have a few more days to go. While many days were spent wandering around my own city, Angers, sipping coffee and wine, and recovering with Netflix, I was also fortunate enough to skip town for a few days and explore some more of France.
Three other assistants and I flew from Nantes to Marseille on a short 1 hour flight. From there we jumped on a 40 minute bus ride to Aix-en-Provence, our first official stop. We decided to head south for the first vacation in hopes of warmer weather, and thankfully we lucked out. While we did experience some rain, the temperature overall was very warm in each of the cities we visited. Also, due to the southern location, there were a lot of Italian influences within these cities. Aix, (pronounced axe) was filled with beautiful Italian looking squares and fountains and old buildings with more colors than just your average French cream and white. It was truly beautiful and it was a perfect city to walk around and explore. (Also, Aix is more of a touristy city and for the first time we began to hear English speakers...quite the difference from Angers).
Our second stop began with another short train ride to Montpellier, the city I hope to live in for the rest of my life. Yes, it was that good. Greeted with palm trees and tall white french buildings, trendy restaurants, beautiful squares and statues, grand arches and parks and ruins...I cannot say enough about Montpellier. Aside from having the best frozen yogurt (and probably the best food) I have ever had in my entire life, the city was a dream. Every where you looked there was a beautiful building and amazing history. I cannot put it into words and I won't even try. (Sorry mom and dad but I am looking for jobs there... don't hate me). **Montpellier is the first photo on this post
We visited the famous Palais de Papes (Popes), a bridge that had collapsed, and other famous ruins. It still blows my mind that when I go to these places and touch a random rock in the castle, it is from about 15 BC... (poof mind blown).After the small town of Avignon, we shifted gears and traveled to Lyon. Lyon is a city I have always dreamed of going to and it definitely lived up to its expectations. (Definitely either tied with Montpellier for living arrangements or the smallest margin for a close second). Lyon was filled with beautiful buildings, rivers, views, a basilica (that I personally believe) rivals the Vatican, amazing food, and more. It was even cloudy and rainy on the days I visited, so that goes to show how much I love it. (Mr. and Mrs. Doerr, I was jealous you lived there before I visited...now I cannot believe I wasn't a part of your family during your years there....UGH).
Our time in Lyon came to an end and we still hadn't figured out how or when we were getting home. Train tickets from Lyon to Angers were long and expensive and the 6 hour train ride didn't sound too pleasing after a tiring 6 days. So, naturally we decided to go to Paris because Paris is always a good idea...
It also was closer so we were able to take a 2 hour train to Paris from Lyon, and then another 1h40 minute train from Paris to Angers. SO yeah, we just went to Paris for the day ¯\_(ツ)_/¯It was really nice to return to Paris and not have an agenda. Last time I visited we had every minute booked with the eiffel tower, the louvre, the orsay, the love lock bridge, etc. But now I just got to wander the streets, get a gluten free crepe from a random pop up shop, and more.
Overall, as you can tell the trips were amazing and vacation is going well. It's hard for me to put this all into words (partially because I'm tired but mainly because these places cannot be described. I hope most people get the chances to experience what I am seeing.
A bientot,
Libby
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