Vous avez faim?

Looking back on some of the trip highlights, we won't forget the glorious food.


Forrest Cobb writes the following:

« Bon Anniversaire : A French Birthday Party »

After arriving in Aix aboard the TGV, I was soon whisked away with my new family (for two weeks at least) to a beautiful resort at the base of the mountain known as Les Baux. After a wonderful afternoon poolside, playing cards with French teenagers, the boys and I went back to our room to “suit up” for the evening’s festivities: a Birthday party for their much-beloved grandmother. We all put on our jackets and ties, and paraded—somewhat stiffer than how we’d walked just an hour earlier out at the pool—to the cars. A short drive to the restaurant ensued, where we gathered around the table for the gift-giving ceremony.
I did not realize that, at least in this family, you receive gifts from the Birthday-girl/boy. Even though I had only been with the family for a couple of hours, I was presented with a small bottle of olive oil. I was struck by how welcoming these people were, on an occasion that Americans usually use to celebrate themselves. We enjoyed a delicious four-course meal—which included rabbit and lamb.
I was replete by the time dessert came around, but I couldn’t refuse the Birthday cake of course. This turned out to be the most surprising part of the entire experience. Instead of the cakey, half-inch-of-icing-cakes Americans enjoy, their Birthday cake was closer to custard or a flan. With a fruit filling and topped with whipped cream (some things don’t change), it was nothing short of decadent, and all of this wonderful food ensured hours of pleasant sleep that night.
Although very different from American Birthday celebrations, the French Birthday party was an enlightening experience, and I am honored that I was invited to join in their family’s celebration!"

Au revoir -- but not adieu!

The time comes to leave Aix, but we will surely see our new friends again. We hope they will visit us in Atlanta, and we shall definitely return to Provence. As we say "au revoir," but certainly not "adieu."

Cassis and the Callanques

We were really lucky with our timing to Cassis. Leaving the school bus stop around 8:35, in order to catch the 9:11 train to Marseille, we changed trains and arrived in Cassis a little before noon. The local bus was waiting outside the station, and a good thing, since the port and beach are a couple of miles away, down steep roads. Our four-hour visit was well worth the effort, though. Our first activity was to take the one-hour boat tour of 5 callanques, picnicking on the boat. The rest of our time was free for the beach, and we arrived back at school in plenty of time for the farewell party.

Mont Sainte-Victoire

Our last Friday of the trip, we headed outside Aix to the Montagne Sainte-Victoire to do a little hiking and watercoloring. The trail was a little harder than imagined, and hikers are told to stay on the trails, since it's easy to get lost, even for the more experienced.
Mary Beth Bird writes about Mont Sainte Victoire:

“Friday morning, we all met together as usual in front of the chapel in school. After taking the bus to town and eating some nutritious energy food (like nutella crepes), we took a bus to the mountain. The bus ride itself was quite a challenge due to the numerous amounts of extremely curvy roads. Alive and a little queasy, we arrived at "la maison st. victoire", a little guide building that had maps, information about the mountain, and a small restaurant. The guide told us to take the black path that would eventually lead to the brown path for a medium difficulty climb of the mountain but with ambiguous signs, we ended up on the yellow path, which meant climbing. So after attempting to find different easier paths, we gave in to our growling stomachs and sat down and ate our homemade lunches, most of which consisted of french bread and ham, although there was one PB & J. We sat and ate and were told to appreciate the silence of being on the mountain, which really was incredible. We descended the mountain and attempted to use watercolors to paint the mountain. I am no Cezanne, but some of the other students’ paintings were close. We then went back to "la maison" and watched a surprisingly high-tech video on the history of Mt. St. Victoire. After the video, we had a lot of time to spare so the kids decided to try another path of the mountain. We scrambled through prickly bushes and climbed over rocks, but got pretty high and a great view of the land. Although it was clear that the kids had made the wrong decision for we returned sweaty and covered with dozens of tiny yet extremely painful scratches, while the teachers enjoyed some cold frozen yogurt.”

For a collection of photos from Mont Ste-Victoire and our visit to the beach and callanques of Cassis, check out our site: http://westminsterinfrance.shutterfly.com

Avignon, Glanum, and Les Baux

On Wednesday, we had the treat of enjoying our very own bus to Avignon. We zipped up the A8 and were dropped off just below the Palais des Papes. Forrest knew a shortcut for going up the hill, which avoided the stairs. The tour of the palace was audio self-guided, so people finished at different times. Back down the hill, to go across the Pont St. Bénezet, or the Pont d'Avignon. Great view of the city from below, as well as of the Rhone. The bus then dropped us off in Les Baux, where we headed straight for the food at the Bautezar, highly recommended for both the view and the cuisine.

Aix by Night

La Nativité scenes

Scenes from the courtyard, which serves elementary, junior high, and high school students; a technology class (sixième, or equivalent to US 6th grade); a French class (quatrième, or equivalent to US 8th grade).

Nature, Nurture, and the City of Light

Students have written a few comments with their impressions on various aspects of the exchange. More will follow soon.

Jojo Olsen writes about the school:

"La Nativité is very very different to say the least. It is quite an experience! If you would like to check it out on your own, the website is http://www.la-nativite.fr/

on google earth the address is

8, rue Jean Andréani - La Beauvalle
13097
Aix-en-Provence Cedex 2

The first huge difference is the hours of the school days. They start school at 8:00 and end at 6:00 everyday except for Wednesdays, which end at noon. In the main school building (with no air conditioning) is not too different. However, lights are rarely used, they have chalk boards, and probably a total of 6 computers in the entire building. The classes are a little bigger and usually have 25-30 people. There is one big playground with basketball hoops where all the gym classes take place. On the side of this playground are the bathrooms. The bathrooms do not have doors and seeing a boy use a urinal is not that big of a deal for them. They also lack toliet seats and toliet paper which has been quite difficult for the girls. Also, all of the doors are locked during school hours so the students can not go outside school grounds. There is actually a fence with barbed wire to keep students from leaving! Before school and in-between classes, everyone smokes. That is the weirdest thing for me to understand. It is a great experience for us to see how different the school life is for different cultures! We are having so much fun!"

Aix Week Two

The second week in Aix has been full of excursions every day.
Monday, we visited the famous "santons Fouque" atelier and shop. The "little saints," were originally made to include all characters and animals in the manger scene, but quickly explanded to include traditional Provencal characters that one finds in a typical village. You can find a fancy Arlesienne, a baker, a miller, and even the village idiot! He's actually one of my favorites.

Tuesday, we traveled to Arles, touring the amphitheatre (colisseum), the Theatre Antique, and the old forum, where we had lunch in Van Gogh's cafe. The one in the famous painting, that is. When we sit down for a meal, it always takes up more time than we think, and we end up rushing back to the train or bus.

We had a private bus for our excursion to Avignon, because it simply was not possible to work out the schedule by train. We were all glad to have the flexibility of having a good visit in the Popes' Palace, and dancing on the Avignon bridge, followed by a drive through St. Remy, with a short stop in Glanum on the way to Les Baux. Since everyone was starving when we arrived, we went straight to a restaurant and had the best meal of the trip. The leg of lamb with French fries, tomate provencale and salad was delish. Then we saw the ice creams being served at other tables. We all had to order dessert. Unfortunately (or fortunately), there was no time left to shop in the cute boutiques!

Katie Gregg writes the following:

"This Thursday we took a trip to Marseille. We took the train to get there, and then walked along the major street until we reached the harbor. We next rode on a big boat to a small island with the remains on it of an old chateau! This chateau, Chateau D'If, was especially cool since it was the setting for the move "The Count of Monte Cristo". Once we arrived back on land, we grabbed a quick lunch to eat on a mini-train where we got to see a lot of the cool town of Marseille! We walked back along the main street and took the train back home to Aix! It was a great day! "

Friday, we went to the Mont Sainte Victoire for hiking, a picnic, and watercoloring. The sun was bright and hot, but there was a nice mistral blowing to keep it pleasant.

Joe Cullen writes about trip to Marseille:
On Thursday morning during our second week in Aix, we took a train to Marseille, where we met M. Mourjan, our personal tour guide. After buying snacks from McDonalds and the vending machines at the “gare”, we took off, heading down towards the seaport. Fish were everywhere, and the stench was nauseating. However, there were some pretty cool sea creatures to look at like the giant frog-looking fish . . . and escargot. YUM! Next, we took a boat ride to the Chateau D’If, a gorgeous island, which used to be a Chateau and then later used as a prison. Katie G., Kate, and I went to the very top of the chateau and took millions of photos, capturing the beautiful transparent ocean in the background. The weather was gorgeous; wind blowing, sunshine, and a sweet aroma of the sea. Disappointingly, we had to return to Marseille after about an hour and a half of visiting time at the Chateau. When we returned inland, Marybeth, Katie A. and I bought a bag full of candy for extra stamina. After a quick lunch, we had to catch a little train/ car that slowly chugged around town, showing us the tourist attractions of Marseille etc. The train/car was tiny, therefore my legs cramped during the entire ride! However, I survived. When we returned, we all had to catch a real train, departing for Aix. As always, we were all treated to a first class train ride! Most of us slept on the 40-minute train ride, while others jammed to their ipod (me). Overall, today was a blast; Marseille is a beautiful city, and a big thanks to M. Mourjan for the great tour!

Students all have different plans this weekend with their host families. Monday, when we return from our day in Cassis, all the students and families will meet at school for the farewell party. Hard to believe the time has passed so quickly.

Aix-en-Provence Week One

We were warmly greeted on Sunday afternoon at the TVG station in Aix by ALL the families, as well as Bernard and Fabienne. Our students were a little nervous about having to communicate in French with their families. But the fact that they already knew their "correspondents," as the French call them, helped a lot. Since June 1 was a national holiday (Pentecost), Axel Arnal invited everyone over to his house for swimming, etc., followed by pizza (18 in all, made by him!), cooked in the pizza oven in the garden. Madame Arnal explained that when they bought the lot about 3 years ago, Monsieur Arnal was adamant that the first thing planned on the property would be the pizza oven. Then, think about the house. I like the sense of priorities!

The chaperones and French teachers were invited to join the party at 6:30, along with all the other parents. The cutest moment was when all our students and the French students were in the TV room absorbed by a movie (can't remember name, but it was in the "horror" category). It's always a challenge to get the students to mingle, when faced with the temptation of sticking together and speaking English, and vice versa for the French. Our students think that the French students' English is better than their French, but I'm not sure. The French would probably say just the opposite.

In the French school system, school is for academics, and that's all day, often from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Some days an individual student might start at 9:00 and get out at 4 or 5. No sports at school, except for gym class, which is held out in the main courtyard. They don't have a gym yet (the present facility is only 10 years old), but they are trying to get it worked out that they can use a field behind the school to build one.

The girls who live in the dorm seem to love it. They are very animated and have fun, even at breakfast--as well as dinner. Their life seems to be fairly regimented, and they study a lot. Last night they had a special buffet out in the courtyard to mark the retirement of the dorm supervisor who is retiring. They played all sorts of silly games, such as "Simon Says" (Jacques a dit), so it's not all serious. Next year there will be both girls and boys in the dorm. They will have room for 50 girls and 50 boys. I have been promised a tour of the premises next week.

Some Paris Musts

Westminster students at the Musee d'Orsay

The impressionists were a favorite with a majority of the students, but notice that there is some variety. All paintings being commented were chosen by the student making the presentation.

Highlights from Paris

After three days in Paris, filled with the traditional sites, and a few off the beaten path, we all agree with Hemingway that Paris is a Moveable Feast, or as the French translation has it, "Paris est un festin," -- Paris IS a feast--for the eyes, mind, and, of course, tastebuds. Of all the different foods tasted, the crepes probably came out as being number one, but the Berthillon ice creams were definitely second.

Our first day, we left our bags at the hotel, after our taxi ride in from the airport, about 8 a.m. (the taxi ride being "baptism by fire"), and immediately set out touring the Latin Quarter. Our hotel couldn't have been more centrally located in this bustling neighborhood. The tour included the Luxembourg Gardens, and in the Montparnasse area on the other side of the jardin, we stopped by La Closerie des Lilas, and were able to see the booths which had been occupied by Hemingway, Picasso, Lenin, and other writers, artists and intellectuals early in the twentieth century. Passing by Le Select, La Rotonde, and La Coupole on the Boulevard du Montparnasse, we eventually ended up at St. Sulpice church, where tourists are still coming to see the "Rose Line" mentioned in Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code. There's a disclaimer sign which points out to the visitors that none of what he said was true, of course. Mr. Finsthwait took us by number 27, rue de Fleurus, where Gertrude Stein had her "salon" and was an early collector of Picasso and other artists who stopped by regularly. We were even able to go into the inner courtyard, thanks to a repairman who had left the door open.

On our second day, we visited the Musee d'Orsay, where each student selected an artist, then one painting of that artist, to make a little presentation, in French of course, to the group. They demonstrated a lot of courage, since this was in front of any other visitors who happened to be passing by at that moment. They all did a great job! Pictures will be added as soon as I can get the USB key to work. Sorry for the delay, since pictures are the most important part of a blog. The Eiffel Tower was an obvious follow-up to the d'Orsay, since they are just a couple of stops apart on the RER. Since Rolland Garros was only a few stops further on the metro, we went out with the intention of at least buying a few French Open t-shirts. No way to get in! We figured Mr. Finsthwait was the most likely to be able to worm his way in, and he almost made it when he was spotted by an entrance guard. "Monsieur, s'il vous plait!" But we did get a few photos over the fence.

Saturday was devoted to the Rive Droite (right bank), starting with the Arc de Triomphe, working our way down the Champs-Elysees to the Place de la Concorde, la Madeleine, and l'Opera Garnier. The day ended in Montmartre, with dinner at restaurant in the middle of the Place du Tertre. Jojo got a funny caricature done of her, and Taylor had a hard time resisting buying a small painting. She might have to go back for it.

Welcome to the Westminster in France blog

Welcome! Bienvenue! Follow along as Westminster students tour Paris, take the TGV to Aix, and study and travel in Provence. Tools you may find interesting or useful, such as French weather, currency exchange rates, and current events, are on the sidebar to your left. We hope you enjoy the trip! Bon voyage!