#11. Visit 10 new countries.
One thing I knew I had to put on my list while making this 30 before 30 was traveling! While I was in youth orchestra, I was lucky to go on three international tours that showed me Spain, Australia, New Zealand, and China. I thought that continuing to see the world would be a great thing to do before I'm 30, though of course it doesn't have to stop there!
11.1: FRANCE
So, on Thursday May 25, we all piled into the car and drove to the airport. Firstly, I forgot that international travel is time consuming. Flying from Denver, we connected in Cincinnati, flew into Paris, took a train to Aix-en-Provence, then drove 20 minutes into town. Whew. It was exhausting. And stressful. Very glad we left the driving to my dad (though I'm not sure he's so thankful for that.....)!
But, once we got into our apartment (which is right downtown), it was like a dream. Even walking down the streets to get to the apartment was really incredible. We had a late dinner at a little cafe called Chez Laurette, where the guys had burgers, mom had a seafood stew, and I had a salad/quiche/goat cheese dish, which was excellent. We waddled happily back to our apartment, and promptly dropped into bed.
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| First French meal! |
Day 1, May 27: We grabbed breakfast at an adorable little bakery around the corner called Paul and brought it back to our apartment. The other three had a half baguette with jam, coffee, and orange juice. I got a chocolate croissant with tea. After breakfast, we set out to explore Aix! Since it was Saturday, there were tons of markets going on around town. We stumbled upon an amazing farmer's market first, then went to a flower market, and then ended up at a textile and crafts market. I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the markets--the produce at the farmers market was beautiful and so delicious, the clothing at the textile market was varied and cheap, and the flower market was just magnificent.
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| Very famous fountain in the middle of Aix. |
Day 2, May 28: We got breakfast at a different adorable bakery down the street from us (this will continue to be a theme) named Jacob and brought it back to the apartment to eat. After breakfast, we hopped into the car and drove to Pont du Gard to see some ancient Roman ruins. First up was the museum for the aqueduct built in the 14th century. The museum was good but I quickly got information overload and was anxious to see the actual thing. We got lunch at the museum cafe (crepes all around) and then walked about a 1/4 mile to the actual aqueduct. It was extremely impressive, and a beautiful day to experience it.
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| Being in France after all that has happened to them recently was a very sobering experience. This plaque was next to an olive tree planted outside the Pont du Gard. |
After exploring, we got back into the car and went to Avignon, a city 30 minutes away where we explored the Popes' Palace. Also built in the 14th century, this palace is MASSIVE. WOW. I would've been content just wandering around for hours, imagining what went on in the gigantic halls!
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| Popes' Palace from the outside |
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| The Great Hall |
Views of Avignon from the top of the Palace:
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For dinner we found a cafe that had outside seating in front of Basilisque Saint-Pierre. What an amazing experience to dine in the shadow of a church that has been around for hundreds of years!
Day 3, May 29: Today we walked over to the car and drove 40 minutes to L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, a little village that Rick Steves called "a vacation away from your vacation." Not much was going on here, since it was Monday (apparently markets happen on Sundays, so everyone recovers on Mondays), but we walked around, saw a giant church, had some lunch, and then headed back to Aix. The afternoon saw another sieste. Dinner was at an Italian restaurant, which we had wanted to try since we're so close to the Italian border! It did not disappoint!
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| My beautiful mama in some gardens! |
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| These waterwheels were all around town. Mom and I only found one, but Max and my dad found ten! |
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| My spaghetti carbonara. Delicious! |
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| Dad loves his strawberries! |
Day 4, May 30: This was the day of our wine tasting and vineyard tour! Since this was a separate item on my list, check out my full account HERE.
Day 5, May 31: Today we drove to a little port town called Cassis, where we were also hoping to do some "hiking" in a French national park called Calanques. Cassis was a beautiful if somewhat snobby port town, and the view of the Mediterranean was stunning. We had lunch next to the water (where we found out it's frowned upon to just drink without ordering food, as my brother and dad did), and then started our hike, which we should've started hours earlier to get the full effect. But, we were able to view some fjords and get a better view of the Mediterranean, which was definitely worth it!
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| On our hike in Calanques |
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| Sailboats up the fjord |
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| Portside! |
Once getting back to Aix, we rested a bit and then set out around 8 o'clock to find dinner. We walked around for an HOUR before finding a place (partly looking for a specific dish, partly because places were full) and finally settled into a restaurant at 9pm. The food was unbelievably good, and we found out they had only been open for 3 weeks. We ordered two bottles of wine, then some limoncello, and another round on the house. An excellent find!
Day 6, June 1: Our last day in France! We spent today shopping, where I bought souvenirs for others and myself. Lunch was at a cheese shop; probably one of the best meals we had. Dinner was at a tiny little restaurant off the beaten path which was equally amazing.
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| Charcuterie board from the cheese shop! |
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| Amy the cat (so named for Amy Winehouse) joined us for our last dinner. |
It was an absolutely amazing trip to France and you should all go because French culture and cuisine is just magnificent. And I'd be happy to join you!
