Oui, un peu

Bonsoir!

Are you in this just for the pics? If so, read no further. Here is a link to my picasa album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/104075353963997070835


Its been a bit since my last post, but to be honest the trip to Paris was AMAZING and I don't know if it can be topped. I promise to consistently try, however. The weeks are pretty standard for me- eat, sleep, work- so nothing new to report there. Work is going really well and I'm definitely learning a lot about Consulates, The State Department, the role of the US abroad, etc. Pretty interesting stuff if I do say so myself.

Thursday I have the ultimate trip for work. Now for a little "choose your own adventure" style writing. If you have no love for the good 'ole University of Virginia (*ahem all you Hokies reading this), no respect for one of our great founding fathers, or no soul- please skip onto the next paragraph..... Now for those still reading, I get to go to Béziers on Thursday! Yeah I hadn't heard of it either, BUT apparently Thomas Jefferson visited there and even based his design for the canal that links the Potomac river with Lake Erie on the one in Béziers. In a nutshell there is a full day of events planned to celebrate the life and works of TJ, une fête, non? What more could a girl in pearls want? WAHOOWA! Check the next blog post for updates on this historic trip- I was even promised that there is a TJ plaque. Stay tuned for more...

Now that all of those with culture and agriculture are back to reading this together, let me update you on my weekend. Friday evening Brooke and I took another stab at making friends. One Irish Pub, free drink, and 45min speech by a 55yr old Englishman about the Corsica Mafia later, we decided to call it a night.

Saturday the weather was beautiful minus "le mistral". I had heard about this downfall of Provence, but I did not think it would start so early in the Fall. Le mistral is the winter wind that blows through Provence, and boy does it blow. A consistent wind for a few days straight that honestly made it quite difficult to walk sometimes. After realizing that neither of us had really discovered Marseille outside of our work and grocery store route, we decided to venture out into the city a bit! To be honest, I had not been the biggest fan of the city, but seeing more of it Saturday definitely changed my mind. From the locals I've heard that people generally either love or hate Marseille. Its very different from all the other places I've been to in France in that its not quaint and touristy. It is a residential, industrial, working port city that you appreciate if you live here, not so much if you're just visiting for a couple of days. After being here for two weeks, I am starting to consider myself living here instead of just visiting, allowing the city to definitely grow on me.

We started our day off with a trip to Notre Dame de la Garde. One of the most recognizable features of Marseille, this church sits atop the highest point in the city, offering fantastic 360degree views. My favorite part of it was not the completly gold leafed Madonna and Child reflecting the Provencal sun, but the sailboats that hung from the ceiling of the cathedral. Typical Marseille.

Notre Dame de la Garde

Brooke and I at the top (note the wind)

Best sites of the city/sea by far. Afterwards we ventured back to le Vieux Port and headed to Le Panier, the oldest neighborhood in Marseille. In writing all of this, I realize you probably want some quick facts about the city:

1. Second most populous city in France
2. France's largest commercial port
3. 1.6 mil people live in the metropolitan area
4. Humans have inhabited Marseille for 30,000 yrs (?!?!)
5. Oldest city in France, founded in 600 BC (and according to our old English friend, one of the oldest in Europe)

Anywhoo, Le Panier was very quaint and fulfilled my desire for typical Provence style France. Its hilly windy streets were populated with hanging flower baskets, drying laundry, soap/olive oil shops, and pâtisseries (oldest bakery i Marseille is here, Mom!) To fulfill our church count for the day we headed a few blocks away to le cathedrale de la major- standard Basilica business ensued. Weird French moment: On the way home we walked past the starbucks, and the line was OUT THE DOOR. Don't they realize they have much better espresso in France?? To top it off, they don't even have Pumpkin Spice Laté. 


Sunday morning we left bright and early to St Raphael/St Tropez/Cannes area for an American Legion ceremony of eight fallen airman of WWII. It was pretty impressive the amount of effort put into these ceremonies every year to keep the memory alive. Fun Fact: Two of the American Legion guys I talked to met their wives in France during the war and haven't been back to the US for 65 years. Their French is now better than their English. On the way home we drove along the coast, confirming my desire to retire in the south of France. The drive was absolutely gorgeous, and luckily the bullet proof glass didn't distort my view too much :)


Pretty much another awesome weekend. This weekend we're either going to Paris again (if Brooke can get a seat for the Foreign Service Officers Test) or Aix-en-Provence/Avignon.


Too tired to write anymore... bonne nuit!