On Sunday Amy and I ventured on the buses to the beach and it was wonderful. I went swimming in the Mediterranean Sea for the first time. It was just as blue as I expected, but a bit on the chilly side. Though nowhere near Oregon Beach cold. It was hot out with a light breeze and I took the opportunity to work on eradicating my tan lines... which turned into a rather uncomfortable burn. :) I've also been running a few times since I got here. I found this cute little running park a few blocks from our dorm village. It has wonderful trails though it's not very big. I've saw a female runner for the first time today too, lots of men run, but I think it's still a little unusual for women to work out here. So bizarre!
Yesterday the whole group of exchange students were taken to visit Nîmes et le Pont du Gard. Nîmes is an old city, older than Jesus, and very beautiful. We visited this old coliseum, which is now sometimes used as a rock stadium as you can see;
Norah Jones was here last week.... It seems a little strange to me. They also still have traditional Bull Fights there a couple times a year. I am torn between experiencing the culture and supporting something I think is wrong and it is just straight up animal torture. Then I think of Hemingway and the deep cultural traditions and I am tempted to spend four hours chanting Olé Olé with the locals….We then headed out to see an even older aqueduct, le Pont du Gard, that is still standing after centuries and that used to service Nîmes.
There is a river that runs under it and it was really beautiful. Amy and I ate some amazing ice cream cones (the ice cream here is going to make me go broke) and then we sat looking down at the river. It was really rather nice, except that I am super tired all the time. That should pass in a month or so I hope. This morning I started my first day of the Pré-stage, which is my three-week program of intensive grammar classes before the real semester starts. We have class from 9 till 6:30 with a break for lunch. Yuck. Luckily my professors are super nice and easy to understand. I've been pleased with my comprehension; my grammar however is dismal, so I suppose I should pay attention in class. My history professor this afternoon was especially funny, he was explaining to us that France is generally known for three things: Cheese, Wine and Strikes. Most of what he says about France is actually pretty interesting and on Wednesday we are meeting downtown for class to have a walking lesson on architecture. For our last class we are headed to a winery nearby to learn how to wine taste and learn about the wineries since they are the primary part of the local economy in the Languedoc Region. Which is also the reason that the economy in the South of France is so weak right now, due to the inundation of Californian, Australian and Chilean Wines in the global wine market. In case you were wondering… Just the same I think it's freaking sweet wine tasting is a class assignment. They sure know how to educate in France!
And this I cannot explain. We saw this tiny dog being led down a street in Nîmes on a donkey by a rather wayward looking soul who had stopped to get a drink at the Café next to us.
And here is my address (finally) if you would like it:
Cité Universitarie Vert-Bois
Rebecca Cooper
Batiment - B Étage - 5 Chambre - 12
192, rue de la chênaie
34096 Montpellier - Cedex 5
France
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