Post-Program Reflection

Nearly 7 weeks ago I arrived at the JFK airport with my large suitcase, stuffed to the seams, surrounded by unfamiliar faces whom with I would spend the month of July.  At first Nice seemed so unfamiliar. I remember arriving at the residence wondering how I would ever be able to make my way around the town.  There were so many different allies and streets, winding in every direction.  Within no time, however, it was like I had been living there for a year.

One thing that was especially unique about traveling with Abbey Road was that you experience France the way the locals do.  I immediately became very familiar with old Nice, as it was loaded with shopping and gelato.  From the beginning, we spent a lot of time in old Nice, whether it was during morning classes, or afternoon free time. The living situation was another bonus to an already wonderful trip.  We each had our own room, which included a small kitchenette and bathroom.

I thought the Abbey Road staff was amazing.  Besides from being fluent in french, all of the teachers lived in France.  Our classes were based primarily on conversation, rather than grammar like we often get in school.  We spent the first half of class in the classroom, and then for the remainder of class, we applied what we had just learned outside in the city of Nice.

Additionally, the staff made every effort to work with student requests.  At the beginning of the program, some students had suggested that Pearla, our program's personal chef, would provide lunch on a more regular bases.  From then on, both lunch and dinner was offered every day.

One of my favorite aspects of the program was the weekend traveling.  Some highlights included the small village of Eze, Cannes, Saint Tropez, Antibes, San Remo (Italy!), and Isola.  All the towns were so much different.  Some towns seemed to reflect more of their old european charm, whereas other towns were more modern and heavily populated with tourists.

I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend my month of July.

San Remo, Italy

For our final weekend day trip, the staff planned a "surprise" trip to San Remo, Italy.  The main surprise of going to Italy wasn't much of a surprise because we all happened to find out about the trip before hand; however, we were greeted with another surprise when we arrived in Italy- spending the day at a private beach club! The luxury of having beach chairs was definitely one of my highlights for the day.  After settling at the beach, we broke off into separate groups and headed into town for lunch. I had a delicious procioutto pizza at an Italien restaurant for only 6 euros!  Once we finished lunch, we walked around the city for a while.  I was surprised because it seemed like the majority of the stores were closed. It was midday Saturday, so that made no sense to me.  Eventually we made our way back down to the beach, and spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing by the water.

Visiting San Remo, Italy  assured me that I had become very adjusted to French.  Even when I was ordering food at the restaurant, I would naturally say "bonjour" rather than just "hello" and then continue to order my meal in french.  I was surprised how hard it can be to switch between languages.  Of course, this was Italy so their custom language is Italian which made speaking all the more challenging.  However, I had not realized how comfortable I had become with french until I was exposed to a language I knew nothing about.

Parasailing!

When we first arrived in Nice, there were rumors floating around that we may go parasailing.  Sure enough, the rumors were true! Most of us had never been parasailing before so it was an exciting first experience!

The feeling you get when you're lifted off the ground and carried into the sky is unbeatable.  I didn't sit down correctly at the beginning so I fell deep into my harness. Although it was a little less comfortable, it didn't take away from my experience in the least.  We must have been at least 30 feet above the water.  I loved being able to just hang up in the air and watch the water beneath me.  One of the many perks to parasailing is that you get a real birds eye view of the riviera.  While up in the air, I saw a large school of fish swimming through the water.  At times, the boat driver would slow the boat down just enough so that we would skim the surface of the water.  Then, after being fully drenched in the choppy waves, he would speed up again and we would lift out of the water.  The end of the ride was maybe the most thrilling part.  The boat driver sped towards the shore and made a sharp turn at the minute while slowing down.  As soon as he cut the engine, we fell into the water.  I couldn't have asked for a better afternoon activity.

St. Paul de Vence

Last weekend, we spent a day in St. Paul de Vence.  We spent the first hour in hour bus because it was pouring outside! Within minutes the street became a river.  Once it cleared up, we walked up to the town.  Like Eze, St. Paul is largely built into rock.  When I imagine a european village, I imagine St. Paul.  Unlike newer, more superficial towns, St. Paul has held onto its old charm.  While it does have many boutiques and galleries, it is less industrialized than other French towns, which gives it unique feel.  One of my favorite aspects of the town were the hidden boutiques.  One store in particular sold small water color prints of different parts of St. Paul.  I found a beautiful painting of a village street for 8 euros! 

When we were walking back to the bus, the rain picked up again.  At first it was a light mist, but within minutes it became a heavy down pour. We were soaked from head to foot.  On the bright side though, we were lucky to have had such great weather while touring the town.  The day just couldn't have ended any more similar to how it started!

Isola- French Alps

One of the most unique aspects of France is the variety of landscape.  In just two hours, one could see both the beach and snow.  For a weekend day trip, we traveled to Isola, a resort village located in the French Alps.  The drive up to Isola was nearly 2 1/2 hours, primarily through narrow mountain passes.  When we arrived in the village, we picnicked for lunch.  Because it's primarily a ski village, the area was very quiet, allowing me to truly appreciate the beauty of the Alps.

My afternoon in Isola only got better as the day went on.  After lunch, several of us signed up for Parkour, a zipline challenge through the forest.  The parkour course was set up at least 20 feet up in the trees.  It consited of various zipline, balance, and climbing challenges that stretched between two trees.  Before beginning the challenge, we all needed to pass a safety test to make sure that we were capable of handeling the course safely.  We were tested on whether or not we could remove ourself from a zipline safely without any risk of falling. Everyone passed!  Once beginning the challenge, I found the course to be more nervewrecking than challenging.  Although it was completely safe, the idea of falling in a secure harness was even scary.  My favorite challenge was the rope swing zip line.  It was very similar to a zipline, but rather than holding onto our caribeans, we held on to a rope attached to the zip line, giving the sensation of a freehanded rope swing.

The challenge lasted nearly a full hour.  Once finished, we made our way back to the bus.  While I would have loved to have spent the rest of the day in Isola, I couldn't have spent my afternoon any better than taking on the challenging Parkour course.

Snorkeling in Villefranche

One of my favorite excursions so far has been snorkeling.  During afternoon free time, a group of us traveled to Villefranche to snorkel.  We began by getting outfitted in full gear- wetsuits, goggles, and snorkels.  At first I was dreading having to wear a wetsuit, but I later realized that it was much needed! After getting fully outfitted, we took a 10 minute boat ride to a beautiful reef.  Once we all were in the water, we split into two groups (although we all ultimately ended up swimming together).  While snorkeling, I saw several sea urchins, a small octopus, and a variety of small fish.  The reef was just as beautiful as the sea life. It was narrow, hugging the cliffs that faced the water, and after no more than 15 feet from the shore, it disappeared and the water dropped infinitely.

Snorkeling has definitely made the highlights of my trip so far.  Coming from the mountains, I do not have the opportunity to snorkel very often, so I immediately jumped on this opportunity.  The water and reef was beautiful; all in all a perfect way to spend my afternoon.

Weekend Trip to Monaco and Eze

Palace of Monaco

Yesterday, I visited Monaco and Eze.   It was my third time to Monaco, as I had already been there for photography twice before.  To begin our day, we visited the Palace of Monaco.  Each room was its own master piece, decorated with intricate designs and painted with rich colors.  After the tour, we walked down to an aquarium.  The aquarium reflected sea life in the riviera, so I found it interesting to see all the sea creatures that exist in the area.

Aquarium in Monaco

My highlight of the day (if not trip) was Eze.  We visited a perfumery where they make perfumes, lotions and soaps.  The perfumery was split into two sections: a shop and a factory.  The factory is now used for touring purposes, but it clearly shows the process of how the perfumes are made.  After touring the factory, we were set free to roam the shop.  I was most interested in smelling different perfume samples and soaps.

The perfumery is located right below the town of Eze.  Eze itself is tucked into a mountain.  It was one of the most pretty towns I have ever seen because it truly maintained its old, european charm.  There were little boutiques hidden in nearly ever corner, and great cafes throughout the village.  I bought freshly squeezed orange juice and homemade sugared almonds.  My favorite part of the entire day was the garden that overlooked the riviera.  The view was amazing.   I could see all the way to the Nice Airport located far up the riviera.  The garden
reminded me of one I would see in a desert.  There were many cactuses and dry grasses, but also beautiful wild flowers.  Narrow steps and balconies wove through the garden.  Because it gets to be so hot, there were mist showers around the garden that sprayed a cool, refreshing mist into the air.  Eze will definitely remain one of my most favorite highlights of France!

Perfumery- Eze

View of Riviera from garden in Eze