Beaujolais

Today we are going to the Beaujolais region for a tour and winetasting at the Georges DuBoeuf vineyards. Hooray! Tomorrow is the last day of the program. What a fabulous experience. I have learned so much and made new friends and contacts in my field. I have also made some good progress on gathering data for my dissertation. I will take the TGV to Paris tomorrow, where I'll spend 3 days with Jean-Claude, Viviane, and Delphine.

Wrapping it up

Only a few days left. I have made a few really good friends from Iowa and Minneapolis that I'm sure to keep in touch. with.

I'll be in Paris for the last day of the Tour de France! Gotta go!

Weekend in the south

I have had nearly no computer access for several days and only have a second now...We spent a beautiful Sunday on the Mediterranean coast in Cassis. Then we visited the grand canyon of France in Roussillon. More later!

Week-end en Provence

Yesterday we left for our group excursion to Provence. It was probably my favorite day so far. I don't have much time, but I'll just make a list of what we saw:
-Le Pont du Gard: A roman aqueduct (see photo). Fantastic!
-Avignon : Bustling with people because there's a theatre festival.
-Arles: We saw the cafe where Van Gogh painted Cafe Terrace at Night. Also ruins of a Greek theatre and a roman arena.
-We're staying in Aix-en-Provence.
Everywhere we go, we see lavender, soap, perfume, bright colors, etc. Gorgeous!

hot!

This morning we went to the Resistance Museum in Lyon. It is extremely well presented and gives one a good idea of what it may have been like to live through the war and in concentration camps.

It is REALLY hot and humid here now. Wow. I don't even know what else to say about that...

Lyon

See photo of Lyon below viewed from the hill called Fourviere. Two rivers join together in Lyon, Le Rhone and La Saone. Gorgeous!

colo

What a great experience this is. I'm spending my time with people who love France and French as much as I do, and then with the French themselves. I'm learning a lot of new vocab and hope to figure out ways to remember and practice it. The other teachers here are becoming good friends - it's a lot like camp. I'll probably cry at the end, just like when I was at Ewalu or Dorian!

The Cariot family is just fabulous (my hosts). We spend hours chatting each night and comparing our cultures and countries. Last night we had raclettes, a specialty from the Savoie region, and a cousin of fondue. Delicious. We are drinking a lot of rose wine from Provence because it's summer and quite humid. Nice way to cool off!