Final Countdown

What a weekend it has been so far!

Yesterday for Phonetics class, instead of meeting for a normal class, we went to the Jean Vilar House, a museum of Festival history. They had a special exhibit on Chekhov that we explored, and we will have to write a short paper about it. It was a really neat exhibit, full of photos, set designs, costumes, books...everything. After we'd finished looking around we were free to go, so I wandered down towards the Palais des Papes area and did a little souvenir shopping for the family. On my way back to the Center I tried some lavender ice cream, which was downright delicious and I want to learn to make it. But it turns out I made it back to the Center just in time, because I hadn't been back but for a few minutes before it started POURING. It was the first real rain I've seen since I've been here. It only lasted a few minutes but it was really storming. It was so odd to see rain here. It just doesn't rain here in the summer. And when it does it's like the Avignonnais don't know what to do with it.

Once classes were done for the day, a big group of us headed over to another American Institute nearby. Apparently a program from Bryn Mawr has been here for as long as we have and we never met any of those students until yesterday! But they are going home this weekend, so I guess it's too late. Anyhow, they were putting on a little talent show type deal, showcasing what they'd learned in their theatre, phonetics, music, and Provencal language classes. Some of it was pretty interesting, and a handful of the kids were really talented. Of course, there were some who completely and horribly destroyed French when they spoke...painful to listen to. But the best thing about it was this parody of Papperlapapp, that awful absurdist plot-less mess of a show I went to see a few weeks ago. It was a hilarious spoof, and I was so glad I wasn't the only one that thought the play was total nonsense!

After the show, I went home to eat and shower. Since Corine is out of town, she made me some food before I left. There was a gratin of salmon and spinach, and another of artichokes and potatoes. Really quite good, and different than what I'm used to. It will be the same thing tonight, with the addition of fruit, salad, and some bread I bought on the way home. Anyhow, after dinner I headed back into town to see a clown show with 3 other students. It was called "Fruit" and it was just one clown being goofy and interacting with the audience. Only about an hour long, and very entertaining. Once the show was over, we headed back to the Center to meet up with everyone. There were a couple of young guys sitting on the steps in front of the building, which is pretty typical, but only after we had been there for a few minutes did we discover they were British! So we chatted with them till the rest of the group got there. Real nice guys. We had a similar experience moments later, as we waited in line for crepes (messiest/most delicious crepe ever, by the way), with a group of Australians. So funny how we keep running into so many anglophones.

After our little snack, we all headed over to Isle Berthalasse, the little island in the Rhone, and spent the rest of the evening sitting on the grass and talking. A very chill night. Of course, I didn't get home till really late, but it was worth it to spend some time with everyone before we have to leave. I'm trying not to think about the fact that I have so little time left here.

Moving on to today, I slept in a little and headed over to the Center around noon-ish, stopping along the way at Illico, this little pasta place on the way to school that I've never tried. I got three cheese pasta and it was awesome--there was definitely goat cheese involved. So I got to the Center, ate with everyone, and then about an hour or so later it was time for our excursion to Villeneuve-lez-Avignon, the small town across the river. We took the bus there and stopped at Fort Saint-André, a huge fortress used in the Middle Ages to protect the abbey, within the fort itself, as well as the papal palace across the river in Avignon. Very well preserved and just very beautiful in general. I took A LOT of pictures.

We toured the fort for a couple of hours and then caught the bus back to town. A couple friends and I stopped to browse through the open air world market on the banks of the river. Lots of interesting things! Vintage swords, giant hammocks, jewelry, crafts...just tons of stuff. We had a good time exploring it all, but as the afternoon wore on and just got hotter and hotter, we decided to call it a day and go home. On my way back to the house, I stopped in Place de l'Horloge to see 2 street dancers doing a hip-hop type medley, very comical and with a couple pretty cool break dancing tricks. They were a lively bunch, to say the least. But I finally made it home and decided to have a quiet night. I need to do laundry, organize school stuff for my upcoming exams, and start thinking about packing. So I'm looking forward to some "me" time.

Tomorrow 3 of the girls and I are going on a day-trip...where we are going has not yet been decided. Maybe Aix, maybe Nimes, maybe some little village nearby...it all depends on how crazy the train and bus schedules are being. It's all very unpredictable, especially on weekends. But wherever we end up, it's guaranteed to be beautiful--it's Provence!

I think that's all I have...

Love and miss you all!
Natalie