It's been a while since we last spoke! This past weekend our group took a little trip to Normandy and Brittany for the weekend. They were both such beautiful places! I'd seen the French country side before, but I found it breathtaking all over again.
On Friday afternoon, after literature class, we all left on a big bus to drive to Normandy. The ride was about 4 hours long, but I didn't mind because I love bus rides and observing the countryside. We stopped at a rest stop to find some food and the restrooms, I was really surprised by how luxurious the building was, and how much food they offered! It was like a mini supermarket in the middle of nowhere, with a scrumptious cafe in the middle. Many bought croissants (which I admit, I was tempted by), but I stuck with a bit more of the daily stuff: cookies and chocolate from the region (much healthier..?). From there we continued on until we reached our hotel which was located in a small town near Mont-Saint-Michel. There we ate a delicious dinner, with salad, fish, cheese, and dessert ordered for us by Madame Masson, the head of our group. And of course, we drank wonderful wine! It was a very memorable meal, with such great company! I really enjoyed getting to know the girls more.
The second day we woke up early to travel to Mont-Saint-Michel, which is a beautiful monastery build on top of a rock in the middle of floor plains. It is a stunning building. I'd seen it once before with my family, but was only too happy to be able to see it again! We arrived very early, before the museum opened and before tourists arrived, so we got to explore the town and ramparts of the monastery alone before our tour. It was a cold, grey, and rainy day, which was unfortunate, but it resulted in very few tourists being around. This was very nice, and our private tour got to see things that we wouldn't have been able to get close enough to during peak season! After the tour we had a bit of free time, where we explored the shops. Then we all loaded back onto the bus (like little ducklings) and went to a creperie for lunch, where madame again ordered us delicious fare, with plenty of fermented apple cider of the region. I had a great galette with sausage and ratatouille, with an ENORMOUS chocolate and almond crepe for dessert (which I ate all of, of course!).
After this, we travelled to Brittany and the old coastal town of Saint-Malo. I had no idea the French coast was so beautiful, the water so aqua! I understand how it is a luxury visit in the summertime. There are to parts to the city of Saint-Malo: one new, the other old and surrounded by stone wall. The city dates back to the middle ages, before Brittany was a part of France. It is a spectacular town, with cobblestone walkways, small roads, tall houses, old churches, and high walls with ramparts all around. There we stayed in a very cute hotel right on the edge, with views of the harbor. After getting settled, we quickly set out on a private tour of the city. I loved hearing about the history! When we finished our tour at six, we had a little time before the shops closed, we we did some shopping. A few of us tried some of the local sweets- a must!- and went hunting for discount shoes, which we found. Then a group of twelve of us went to dinner in a great cafe, where we all ate seafood (St. Malo is renown for its seafood). I had the famous delicacy of the region, fresh mussels, with a glass of wine recommended specifically by Madame Masson. The mussels were delicious, and tasted all together different than the mussels I'm used to! From there, a few of us broke off from the group in search of a pub, but to no avail. We were too tired anyway, I think, so we just ended up walking around the city. Then, to bed! We were all exhausted from the long day.
The final morning we woke up, had a quick breakfast, then loaded onto the bus once again to go back to Normandy to visit the small town of Colleville, whose beach was one of the major locations of the beach invasion on D Day. We ate lunch there, once again hosted by madame (with more wine!), explored to beach a bit, and then left to visit the American cemetery. We had a short visit of the cemetery (we were unfortunately running out of time, as is always the case), and then started our journey back to Paris. What a weekend! I enjoyed myself tremendously, and felt so much closer to everyone in the group after that (including Madame and her husband!)
Today we had class in the morning, after which I took a nap, and then a friend and I went walking around Paris to find the Opéra Garnier. We found it all by ourselves! We were so proud. We met up with the group and had a tour of the opera, which is a magnificent building, full of gold, marble, mirrors, statues, and mosaics. It's like a mini Versailles, and in fact was modeled after it! I could have spent hours in that building. I'm going to look into seeing an opera there, actually. I think it would be an incredible experience, and I'd use any excuse the see the building again!
From there, my friend and I went to eat lunch, then did a little shopping, and returned to the hotel. I bought a pair of pants, which I needed desperately, and a novel that was written in the 17th century, called " La Princesse de Clèves". It's all about the the duel between passion and virtue in French court, and we read a bit of it in our class here...I'm really looking forward to starting it! I think it's only fitting, also, that I be reading in French swell as speaking it!
When we got back, I rested for a little bit, then went out with some friends for Indian food. It was a great time!
Tomorrow: class, and a tour of the Musée de Victor Hugo. I'm excited and ready to go!
love to you all <3
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| l'Opéra Garnier |
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| the Seine at dusk |
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