Champagne Supernova

Alright, so I'm currently playing catch-up right now with this blog since other than the most recent post, it had been nearly 3 weeks since I gave an update on how things have been going, so here it goes! 

Many times, if you ask people to tell you what first comes to their minds when you mention the country "France", their responses almost always include some or all of the following: The Eiffel Tower (duh), cheese, croissants, baguettes, berets, and of course WINE. That is why this entry will deal with the latter subject, as well as my recent day trip to the region of France known as Champagne. As we all know, France is a country that has long been known for its production of quality wines that come from all over its many regions. However, the Champagne region proves to be a bit different from the others in that its wines are fermented in different ways in order to make...you guessed it: champagne (a very original name, n'est pas?). Now, what exactly is champagne and how is it that much different from regular wine? Well, to be honest, not that much. In fact, champagne is just a very fancy name for carbonated/sparkling wine that is made in this quite famous region of France, but that is not to say that it isn't absolutely delicious!

As far as I'm concerned, this could be an art exhibit

One of France's most famous champagnes

So, the trip began early on a Saturday morning in Place de Republique, Paris where myself and other API student loaded ourselves onto charter buses that would take us on a nearly 2 hour ride before reaching our first destination of Reims, France, also known as the capital city of the Champagne region. It was in this fairly small, historic town where we made our first visit to the production headquarters of the Taittinger Champagne House, one of France's most famous, largest, and oldest families that have been know for producing high quality champagnes. We arrived into the lobby of the house where we were greeted by fancy-dressed employees who led us around on a tour of the facility which included a video of the companies very long history, a walk around the underground caves (yes, legitimate caves) where the countless bottles of champagne are kept and fermented, and the piece de resistance: the TASTING. Now even though I am an avid and very dedicated fan of the classy brand of champagne that is André (both regular and all of the other wondrous flavors), I must say that Taittinger's samples were actually very good...of course what else can you expect from a bottle of champagne that costs nearly 135 euro?

Descending into the caves

Bottles after bottles of fermenting champagne.

If I could have, I would have

These racks were set up all over the cellars to hold the fermenting bottles

Finally time for the tasting

I'll take the largest one, please

Surprisingly, 135 euro champagne is actually good

After leaving the Taittinger caves, we were then given some free time to grab lunch and explore around the city center of Reims. Although we didn't have much time before we needed to be back on the bus, we were able to walk around and of course visit the Cathédrale de Notre-Dame de Reims, which as you can see looks almost identical to Notre-Dame de Paris...either way, you can't deny the church is absolutely gorgeous inside and out.

The back of Notre-Dame de Reims

A lop-sided photo taken by none other than Lexi Hoge

Facade of Notre Dame de Reims

Beautiful stained glass windows

Side area of the cathedral

Beautiful view, minus the woman who decided to plant herself right in the middle

In the center of Reims

Once getting back onto the bus, we took about a 45 minute drive to an area just a bit outside of Reims which housed even more famous champagne and wine houses, including Dom Pérignon, where we made our second visit to champagne caves of the Mercier family brand. Like Taittinger, Mercier champagne has been around for quite sometime, however all of us got the feeling that the Mercier company may not be as celebrated as Taittinger due to the cheaper priced champagne, as well as the less formal, more touristy feel of the establishment...but of course, it's not like we were complaining at all. At the Mercier house we again watched a short presentation of the company's history before descending into the champagne caves which were much different from those of Taittinger in that they seemed much larger and included a tour around the caves via a mini-train much like a children's ride that could be found at Disney World. Needless to say it was a quite bizarre, but interesting and funny experience nonetheless. Finally, like any good tour of an establishment known for making alcoholic beverages, our visit to the Mercier house ended with a champagne tasting of one of their most popular champagnes which, despite our thoughts going into the tasting, proved to be a rather good tasting drink as well.

Welcome to the Mercier Caves

Friends on the Disney inspired train ride

More and more bottles of champagne

Really though, it looks like Disney ride, no?

These were apparently used to entertain large parties thrown by the Mercier family...beats a keg if you ask me

After everyone had sufficient time to buy all kind of souvenirs from the gift shop, including numerous bottles of champagne (sorry mom and dad..couldn't bring myself to splurge) we all then loaded back on the bus to make our way back to Paris for the evening. All in all, the excursion proved to be another fun escape from the city that provided us with the pleasure to see yet another area of our host country and the ability to snack on massive amounts of free bread that our program providers gave us before and after each champagne tasting to prevent us from feeling any buzz whatsoever from the alcohol...smart thinking API!

À bientôt everyone!

Here Comes the Sun

Alright, so maybe it hasn't been that sunny in Paris this past week, but it was pretty sunny and warm for a few days, meaning that the weather can only keep improving...right? Anyway, as the weather becomes nicer as we progress into the spring season, so too does my time spent here in Paris. As I think back on all of the tedious orientations that I was forced to sit through that mentioned the ideas of culture shock, I begin to realize more and more how directly I have been following the trends of the concept. While I don't want to go into too much detail of all these steps, I can already check off some of the phases of the culture shock process such as: 1. The Honeymoon Period (usually experienced at the very beginning of the study abroad experience where wide-eyed students marvel at the wonders of their new host country) 2. Crisis/Culture Shock Period (One of the lowest points of the experience where cultural differences take over, inducing feelings of homesickness, helplessness, discontent, etc...as seen already in my blog, woops) 3. Recovery (the period in which I believe I am currently where one begins to bounce back from the depressing and exhausting emotions of the preceding stage, excepts the differences of their host country, and then moves their way towards cultural adaptation). There you have it, while I refused to believe all those facts they gave us at the numerous orientations I attended, it turns out that I am living here and following them in perfect order right down to the "T"...hooray for recovery!

Enjoying some sunshine in Parc Montsouris, right across the street from my dorm

More of Parc Montsouris

So, what's been going on this past week other than cultural nonsense? Well, to be honest, not too much other than the usual routine of class and the never ending exploring of the city. However, I did have a day this past week where I was able to share my new temporary home with some familiar faces from back home that made it to Paris for their spring break! My friend Logan from CofC decided to have a european adventure this spring with her mother where they split the week long break between Paris and Rome, pretty good choices right? Anyway they arrived early in the week when I was luckily able to meet them one day after class to have a good ole CofC reunion, as well as a massive walking tour of the city. I must say that we were a rather productive group of American tourists (yep, I still look like one as I walk around everywhere with my BRIGHT yellow North Face backpack) with visits to Montmartre, the Moulin Rouge, the Champs-Elysées and L'Arc de Triomphe, Le Tour Eiffel, some of the Latin Quarter, and a last minute happy hour in my dorm room. All in all, it was a great day to be able to see some friends from home even for just day, and a treat to be able to show them around the city as a resident with some experience!

Stolen Photo: Outside the Moulin Rouge

Taking a break at the top of Montmartre and enjoying the beautiful sunshine

Naturally.

Song, song of the South

As the title suggests, today's update is about the South! No, this is not another rant of my homesickness that I encountered last (again, sorry about that), but rather my recent and dare I say amazing venture to the south of France this past weekend. Before we get into any details, let me start by first saying that this trip could honestly not have come at a better time. With certain things having been wearing down on me lately, a weekend away from the big city to catch a breeze or two of fresh air was exactly what the doctor ordered, and the fact that the air was not only fresh, but also southern and from the sea made this trip and I a match made in heaven. Furthermore, the weather gods were certainly smiling down on us this past weekend by bestowing each and every day of our trip with plentiful amounts of sunshine and temperatures that allowed me to walk around in a t-shirt. Needless to say I was as happy as I could be while others wondered why I couldn't wipe the perpetual grin off my face for a solid 72 hours.

I had my doubts, but I made it to the early train

Now, down to the details. This past weekend, I participated in an excursion organized by my program  that took myself and other students to the southern region of France known as Provence, or paradise as far as I'm concerned. Our adventure began early Friday morning at around 5:30 AM when I had to prepare to catch a train that was scheduled to depart at 7:25 AM, and though I wasn't at all enthusiastic to be riding the metro at such an early hour, it proved to be worth the trouble tenfold. After a 3 hour train ride and a 20 minute bus ride, we arrived in the small town of Aix-en-Provence, or Aix as many locals call it, which is located only about 45 minutes by bus away from the coastal capital of Marseille. Immediately upon arriving in Aix, I starting falling in love with the quaint, picturesque town that exhibited the standard Mediterranean colored buildings and beautiful, intricate water fountains located in the countless tiny squares scattered among its winding, cobblestone streets. Needless to say, the town gave off a completely different vibe than Paris, a very fresh and relaxed change that I welcomed with arms wide open. Once settled into our hotel, we were provided with some time to freely explore the city and grab some lunch (which included bread nevertheless), before meeting as a group to partake in professional tours of the area led by Provence natives who raved about the relaxing, charming culture of the south, an idea I was definitely already accustomed too and that only made me love the town even more. Later that evening, we were again provided with free time to do as we pleased, during which some friends and I decided to split the remainder of the night between an amazing tapas bar where I had my first taste of authentic sangria (or as authentic as sangria can get in France) and another bar offering free karaoke where I surprisingly learned of my tone-deafness while trying to sing "Don't go breaking my heart" after sufficient peer pressure, as well as some liquid courage.

First views of Aix-en-Provence. The whole town is filled with these quaint, winding streets

Fountain in the city center of Aix

Yet another fountain of the many in Aix

Caught in action during karaoke from the first night

On Saturday, the trip only got better as we were greeted with another beautiful sunshine filled day and some of the warmest weather I have encountered thus far in France. For the first half of the day, we were able to peruse around Aix's famous "Grande Marché", or big market in english, an amazing outdoor presentation of more products ranging anywhere from seafood to soaps than one could ever imagine. Honestly, I could have utilized the entire day exploring each and every square in Aix that housed a different market from the last, taking picture after picture of all the brightly colored flowers, vintage trinkets, cheap clothes, and assorted foods (all of which were both beautiful and DELICIOUS). Moving on, later that day around 3 PM the whole group of API students gathered again to take a bus to where we would be spending the remainder of the day in the small harbor town of Cassis. Now, to say that Cassis is absolutely amazing would be an understatement in my opinion. Whether it was because I got my first views of the perfectly blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea or the fact that the area containing the old harbor and rock-lined beach was surrounded by high-rising sea cliffs, the picturesque scenery of Cassis literally resembled a page out of a travel magazine with only the words "Welcome to Paradise" written across the top. As I could go on forever about Cassis, I will let the pictures do the talking for me, however I will say that even though I was only in Cassis for a total of maybe 3-4 hours, I feel that I must return one day to find the part of my soul that I lost when we left to go back to Aix.

Le grande marché

Delicious Paella bought at the marché for lunch

Translation: I love Provence. It's true

Video of a one man band we saw in the streets during Saturday's markets

View right off the main beach of Cassis, absolutely beautiful

Very excited to be back on the coast

Waterfront restaurants and homes of Cassis

Old harbor of Cassis, surrounded by hills and seaside cliffs

Unfortunately, Sunday was our last day in Provence, and after waking up early to have breakfast and move out of our hotel, we hopped back on our bus to make our way to the city of Marseille. Unlike our days in Aix and Cassis, our tour through Marseille was a bit different in that we were in a bus for nearly the majority just because the city is rather large and less manageable on foot. However, even though bus tours can prove to be a bit boring and redundant, the beautiful scenery and weather of Marseille delivered far beyond the stuffy bus ride. Throughout the tour we were able to see major sites of the city such as the vieux port, gorgeous residential areas of town adorned with the typical 3 window townhouse (covered in all shades of Mediterranean yellows, oranges, and pinks), and the hill-top basilica of Notre-Dame de la Garde which offers one the most breath-taking views of France's southern, coastal capital. Finally, we ended the day with some free time along one of Marseille's downtown beach areas where I was able to have the traditional salade nicoise for lunch and sit along the waters of the ocean as we caught the last few hours of afternoon light before the sun would set and we would be on our return train  towards Paris.

Le vieux port of Marseille

Your typical style of home in Marseille

View of Marseille from the hill top Cathedral of Notre-Dame de la Garde

Inside the cathedral with mosaics everywhere

Notre-Dame de la Garde

View of Marseille from the beach in downtown

View from the beach in downtown Marseille

So, would I recommend visiting any of these places, or anywhere in the south of France for that matter? Absolutely. While Paris is always a staple in the itinerary of someone visiting this country, the slower-paced and sun-soaked shores of provence are definitely places to include where you'll be able to experience southern comfort and hospitality, French style.

Put Provence on your list of places to visit, hopefully you'll love it just as much as I did

Semi-Charmed Life

My first attempt as a French teacher: Repeat after me, "le choc culturelle". Qu'est ce que c'est? No, not some bourgeois french saying that I learned this past week in my grammar class. Rather, it's a simple term frequently used among travelers, whether they be professionals, students, adults, or adolescents, that when translated back to English simply means "culture shock". All of us have seen this expression before and all of us know what it means, and as told to me by the staff of Academic Programs International, culture shock affects different individuals in different ways, as well as at different times during their study abroad experience whether it be at the beginning, at the end, or somewhere in between. Furthermore, this sense of emotional shock can be categorized into different phases that can generate an array of different emotions ranging anywhere from extreme joy, to discontent, confusion, helplessness, etc...you get the idea.

Missing family

Anyway, what does all of this nonsense have to do with me and my time here in Paris? Well everyone to put it simply, I've been hit by culture shock, and I've been hit hard. Not only this, but while I tried to ready myself for the negative effects of said scenario, no amount of preparation could have braced me for the emotions I encountered over the past 10 days or so. To spare you unnecessary and lengthy details, lately Paris has not been living up to the bar of expectations I had set during the time leading up to my departure, something that while you are told never to do before studying abroad, it's almost nearly impossible not to. After hearing detailed accounts of others' amazing experiences abroad I couldn't help but fantasize about a glorious 4 months in a glamorous metropolis with travels on the side to some of the most beautiful and culturally rich places in Europe, an experience that I could share with others for the rest of my life. This unrealistic dream, however, was short-lived upon my arrival to Paris, a city that even with its re-known reputation as a beautiful, high fashion, historically rich capital, is still an absurdly large, nearly unmanageable metro area densely populated by the sometimes the less than hospitable French.

Missing friends

Atop the geographical differences, the factors associated with being in a foreign country that also accompany this journey have also added to the stress of culture shock. From the language barrier, to the nonchalant approach to hygiene, to the supplier oriented economy that stereotypes the French culture, countless aspects of life here have brought upon me a feeling a homesickness unlike any other, making the charming, southern way of life I grew up with seem like the soul solution to all my problems here in France. I say "yall" whenever I can, I bring out the drawl whenever I talk to my parents, and I certainly wish everyday to be in a place as warm and sunny as I believe Augusta, GA or Charleston, SC to be at the very moment I see the forecast to be another overcast, cold, and dreary Parisian day. Let me go ahead and say it: I MISS THE SOUTH (and all the family, friends, sunshine, food, etc. that came with it).

Missing school

There you have it, I not only admitted, but published my longing to be back home in my comfort zone. BUT, now that I have sufficiently bitched enough about my experience abroad so far, it's now time to practice being an optimist and turn this situation around. Yes, I have been frustrated with the weather, the cleanliness and weird toilets of France, the rudeness of the people on the metro, the challenge of going on a simple run in the city, and countless other things. However, I have realized that while I feel helpless, stressed, and sad, there is still nothing I can do about any of these things that are bringing me down. Rather, I can only accept them for what they are and adapt to this new environment that I have been presented with. My experience thus far has not yet been what I envisioned by any means, but it still remains what studying abroad is all about: a LEARNING experience that challenges one to open their mind to new perspectives of the world. Whether or not I will have embraced Paris and all its glory by the end of these next 3 months it is hard to tell (although, I am hoping for an absolute yes), but one thing I know is still for certain: that this experience will help me to learn more about myself than any other I have had thus far in my 20 years, and that I will always be appreciative of no matter what.

Missing home

P.S. Don't worry, a much less morbid/annoying post is on its way..sorry for getting homesick!