Bon dimanche à tous! This was a very eventful and productive week, between class, planning and traveling. Classes have been going well; my favorite so far is phonetics where we learn proper pronunciation of French words and get to use a computer program to hear ourselves repeat words and phrases. Friday afternoon was spent planning our spring break trip, and after five hours of searching for planes and typing in credit card information (where three of our banks put holds on our accounts for spending too much at once), we finally have our trip finalized. We are going to Rome for Easter, flying to Istanbul for three days, jumping over to Athens and Aegina, then heading back to Italy to see Florence. After these sixteen days of traveling, we will be more than ready to head back to Angers and relax back into our routine. I have never been on vacation for more than six or seven days, much less planned one myself, so this was quite the learning experience. I cannot wait for the traveling to begin so I can finally see these places that I have always dreamed about.
Saturday we had our first CIDEF excursion, meaning the trip was not just for the Notre Dame students but for all the international students at our university. There were about 200 of us, so the group took over the sights as total tourists. After waking up at 6:30 a.m. and sleeping during the three and a half hour bus ride, we arrived in Saint Malo, a beautiful town in Brittany on the English channel. There was a gorgeous beach, a walled city full of creperies and boutiques and a huge port with sailboats sitting on the water. We did not have a ton of time here, so we ended up sitting in a creperie the whole two hours and enjoying some delicious crepes and galettes. The restaurant was owned by an older French couple, and they were shocked to find out we all spoke French being from America and visiting such a touristy town. I ordered a galette (savory crepe) with potatoes, zucchini, spinach, emmental, goat cheese and tomato. For dessert, I ordered the "Crepe L'Ile", a sweet crepe with coconut, chocolate and banana sorbet. It was the best meal I have had yet in France, by far. Saint Malo is somewhere I would like to return to when I have more time to explore, and when the weather is warm enough to enjoy the beach!
Next we drove to Mont St. Michel, an island community in Normandy, with buildings dating back to the eighth century. The weather was beautiful with clear blue skies and warm temperatures, so the climb up all the stairs was pleasant and scenic. The main building on the island is an abby, so there were many chapels and religious references. Although we were rushed through the island due to a lack of time and the size of our group, we were still able to snap photos and get an overall understanding of the location. Our trip ended after walking through souvenir shops and small cafes, and once we got back to Angers all the American students went to our favorite Irish pub, Inishmore, for a pint of beer. I enjoyed the two locations and would definitely return to both to spend more than just a few hours there because they were so full of history and beauty.
Next weekend we are taking a little trip to Paris - I am so excited to see this city that I have been reading about and seeing pictures of for years. I hope it lives up to my expectations! Au revoir mes amis!
Saturday we had our first CIDEF excursion, meaning the trip was not just for the Notre Dame students but for all the international students at our university. There were about 200 of us, so the group took over the sights as total tourists. After waking up at 6:30 a.m. and sleeping during the three and a half hour bus ride, we arrived in Saint Malo, a beautiful town in Brittany on the English channel. There was a gorgeous beach, a walled city full of creperies and boutiques and a huge port with sailboats sitting on the water. We did not have a ton of time here, so we ended up sitting in a creperie the whole two hours and enjoying some delicious crepes and galettes. The restaurant was owned by an older French couple, and they were shocked to find out we all spoke French being from America and visiting such a touristy town. I ordered a galette (savory crepe) with potatoes, zucchini, spinach, emmental, goat cheese and tomato. For dessert, I ordered the "Crepe L'Ile", a sweet crepe with coconut, chocolate and banana sorbet. It was the best meal I have had yet in France, by far. Saint Malo is somewhere I would like to return to when I have more time to explore, and when the weather is warm enough to enjoy the beach!
Next we drove to Mont St. Michel, an island community in Normandy, with buildings dating back to the eighth century. The weather was beautiful with clear blue skies and warm temperatures, so the climb up all the stairs was pleasant and scenic. The main building on the island is an abby, so there were many chapels and religious references. Although we were rushed through the island due to a lack of time and the size of our group, we were still able to snap photos and get an overall understanding of the location. Our trip ended after walking through souvenir shops and small cafes, and once we got back to Angers all the American students went to our favorite Irish pub, Inishmore, for a pint of beer. I enjoyed the two locations and would definitely return to both to spend more than just a few hours there because they were so full of history and beauty.
Next weekend we are taking a little trip to Paris - I am so excited to see this city that I have been reading about and seeing pictures of for years. I hope it lives up to my expectations! Au revoir mes amis!