Friday Free Time

Good morning from France!   

I wanted to give you a better report from yesterday. We were finally at a hotel with good wireless for uploading, but  -- we were out so late last night that I could not keep my eyes open as I typed. 

We had a great day yesterday!  Although we were sad about the events in Nice, there was so much cool stuff to do, and we are trying to make the most of our time in France, so we dove in to the day. 

We woke up very early for a 5:30am breakfast because the bus was leaving for the train station at 6am.  We ate quickly and discussed the events in Nice before boarding the bus.  We arrived at the train station with some time to spare and the kids had a chance to look around. (I grabbed the largest coffee I could find!)   Paris was going about its business and the only sign that something had happened in Nice was a small squad of military in the train station, but I understand that they have been there since the Charlie Hebdo attack.  

We got on the train and settled in.  The French TGV (trains de grande vitesse) are the fastest trains in the world, and very comfortable.  Some kids slept (it was an EARLY morning!) and the rest of us watched the French country side rush by.   We arrived in Avignon in only two hours and got off the train to be met by our bus. 

Avignon is famous as the home of the French Popes.  From 1305, through the Great Schism of the Church (1429-ish?) there were a series of French Popes/  Pope Clement didn't trust the people of Rome who didn't like having a French Pope and he moved the papal court to Avignon.    The Papal palace was built a few popes later and the 14th century building is still standing today, as is the entire city wall that enclosed Avignon during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.  

The old city of Avignon still has its many of its buildings from the Middle Ages and the Rennaissance period and they are still in use, a fact which I find absolutely AMAZING.  The town wall is intact and the area is small, so the kids were able to have "free time" to choose what they wanted to do.   The kids who like history focused on some of that.  Avignon is also in the heart of Provence, which is known for its lavendar, herbs, oils, sunflowers, textiles...and...locusts.   The girls did some shopping in the local artisan stores (You should expect some nicely scented products coming home!)  There is also a national theater festival held in Avignon each year and we were lucky enough to catch it.  The tickets can be quite expensive, but in the off-times, the theater companies also do free street performances and there are a lot of other performance artists out on the street.   The kids ate in cafes on the terraces of the town square and watched free performances.  

Here is a little bit about the Old Town of Avignon:     click here to learn about Avignon

Here is a link for Google Maps if you want to make your own "virtual visit" to the papal palace, just put your little man on the red pin:  Click here to "visit" papal palace:

For information about the theater festival:  http://www.festival-avignon.com/en/

After wrapping it up in Avignon, we reboarded our bus and headed on to Nimes.  Nimes is a small town in Provence.  They are well known for the state of their Roman ruins.  The Romans were at their most powerful in France around the time of the birth of Christ and built prolifically.  There are Roman ruins throughout Europe, of course, but in this area of France, when the Romans declined, the people of the area did not abandon their buildings, nor tear them down to harvest the stone for other projects, but rather repurposed the buildings for their own use.  After checking into our hotel, we did a quick walking tour of Nimes before dinner.   We had a lovely dinner of local specialties.  The salad was topped by un rond de chevre frais. (a round of newly-made goat cheese) and I did not expect the kids to enjoy it… but ALL THREE OF THEM LOVED IT!!!   I was proud and happy.  I LOVE French cheese, but most American students do not.  I have been really happy that all three of these guys have joined me in the cheeses that have been presented to us each day, and that they share my appreciation of them.  Now, to be honest, we have been presented pretty “safe” cheeses – mild and unoffensive, but… still….    I am so glad that I finally have some students in France with whom I can share my love of French cheese!  

In Nimes, there is a Roman arena intact enough to still use for theater and performances, and a number of other structures that date to Roman times.    There was a show on the arena yesterday ( a play, not a gladiator event, haha), so we were unable to enter the arena, but we did visit the outside.  All over France, there are also history signs (because all over France there is so much history)  which I read with Kyle while the girls sat at a café on the square to get a drink.  The square is right by the hotel, so the girls went back to their room afterwards while Kyle and I went on a walk through town.  The sun goes down suddenly in this part of France and it was suddenly night.  We continued our walk past all of the French enjoying the beautiful evening on the terraces of the cafes.   We walked in the warm night into the old town on marble tile sidewalks. A three-quarter moon hung in the navy blue velvet sky.   The north star appeared as we walked and the Mistral blew through the Sycamore trees overhead, sounding like waves crashing vaguely on a distant beach.  It was a perfect night.  As we came into the old town, we saw our destination, the Maison Carree. A glowing white Roman pillared edifice built by Augustus Caesar in honor of his two grandsons.   It has been in use since it was built 2-4 years before the birth of Christ.  It is currently a museum.  On this night, of course it was closed.  As we approached it, it seemed to glow in the moonlight and the contrast with the navy sky was beautiful beyond description. Kyle could not resist the opportunity to photograph it from every angle.  (I will try to upload some of his pictures, when I find solid wireless access again.  We are down in La Camargue which is a wild region known for wild horses and flamingos.  Very beautiful, but not great for wireless bandwidth.)   

We climbed the stairs of the monument and touched the pillars.  It is difficult to describe these things but... when you touch things in Europe, you can feel history beneath your fingers.  We thought about the two millenia of things that the pillars have looked down on. There was nothing to say. We read the sign telling the history of the building and translated the Latin engravings.  Then we headed back across town towards the hotel.  Everywhere we looked, there was history standing silently under the stars.  Roman ruins.  An eleventh century church.  A monument to a French queen. Seventeenth Century houses.  And a modern fountain, next to a street lined with parked cars.  In Europe, the people live with their history and new history always unfolds on top of the ancient  and the two coexist together, sometimes in tension and yet somehow also in Harmony.  It is one of my teaching frustrations that I never can find accurate words to convey this properly to students... in fact, this is one of the reasons that I started offering this trip.  Because there are so many of these experiences and so many of these things to see and do (and eat!) that can only really be understood when we are here.  All three students have said that, and they are trying to figure out how to get you guys to come back with them, so that they can share these things with YOU!    Especially the French students been remarking frequently that being here lends a whole different level of understanding to the things we talked about in class, but I think it is particularly meaningful to Kyle. He just smiles and shakes his head like he can't believe that this is all real.  He says over and over "This is another thing that you just can't ever describe."   It makes me so happy when the students say things like that... it makes all of the planning and paperwork that goes into a trip like this worthwhile!   The students who got to attend this trip are really lucky, and you have done them an immeasurable service by supporting them to have this experience.   They are not only having a great time, but they are having experiences that can't be had other places, and learning things that can only be understood here.  It is an extraordinary opportunity and they are truly grabbing it with both hands to wring every drop out of it -- they have been game to try everything and experience as much as possible.  

We are on the bus now and in the Alpes region, so wireless reception is not great and we have a busy day planned, but we should have decent reception in the hotel.  I will update you again and try to get our pictures loaded, as well!  

We are making our way towards Nice, as we had planned.  Nice is perfectly safe – as safe as anywhere else in the world these days and, overall, quite a bit safer than Fort Wayne, really – so there is no concern in that regard, but I do expect Nice to be very sad. Also, I understand that you are concerned for your children because they are far from you in a place you do not really know.  So, I have been working with the travel company, the tour manager and the other group leaders to make some adjustments to the plan.  We have added visits to other towns on the way to Nice, so rather than going straight to Nice this morning, we stopped at Sainte-Marie-de-la-Mer and drove through La Camargue to see the flamingos, wild horses, and black bulls.   We are going to lunch in Aix-en-Provence and spend an hour there, then stop again in Antibes to enjoy the beach there.  Tomorrow we are going to get up early and go out to Saint-Paul-de-Vence, a lovely little town on the coast in the Maritime Alps region (more info here)  

We will try to be there by 9:00 and attend mass in a Dominican convent  before taking a guided tour of the town (walking tour info) in the morning and spending the afternoon there at the beach. We will head back to Nice to a hotel. 

On the last day, we will stay in Nice and do a sight-seeing tour of the city in the morning and have a petanque lesson in the afternoon.  

These are the current plans, but we are watching the situation and keeping up with any updates in the news.  I see no reason for concern but will continue to exercise an excess of caution and will keep you updated.  

Hope all is well at home.  Things are GREAT here, and though we are sad for the losses in Nice, we understand that this is possibly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (maybe-- they are plotting to get you to come back with them, haha)  and we are taking advantage of every opportunity!