Here I am, sitting on my bed in Aix-en-Provence, eating my last fromage blanc and brioche sucre, holding back tears. I leave tomorrow morning and should be packing, but right now I’m soaking it all in. I tried very hard not to fall too in love with this place, and the people I’ve met, because I knew I would have to leave eventually. It’d be easier that way, I thought. But, it was inevitable, I couldn’t avoid it, and I can’t hide it. I am blessed with a family and friends who I love back home, and an exciting time of year to return home to, but I will really miss Aix-en-Provence. Last night was a whirlwind of emotions; the majority of students left and the rest remaining went out. We had an unbelievable night and checked a lot off our bucket lists. It had all the characteristics of a good final night– dancing, reminiscing, and our usual craziness, followed by meeting french people on the way back and emotional hugs and kisses goodbye. Today I said my final “au revoirs” to the french students’ grandmother, returned my books and key, and strolled down Cours Mirabeau reminiscent and sentimental. I ran into my french friends from Sciences Po, saw the bouncer from O’Shannons walking down the street, and walked past street performers. I ran into my American friend Kate who I met my first week here; she had helped me translate in the french phone store when I was struggling. I couldn’t help but think, when walking down Rue D’Italie on my way home, how I’ll never have this type of freedom and childhood ever again. Listening to the Shins on my ipod I looked around at the ancient architecture, french teenagers, and the countryside in sight ahead of me. I can’t help at reminisce all of the many times I walked home in the crazy hours of the morning, running into friends along the way. How short it seems, this time I’ve spent here, and how special and unique it is.
Watching the pigeons fly over the carousel, our meeting spot in our first few weeks, I wondered to myself, will this still be here in the future? Will those inscriptions we made on the bathroom door in O’Shannon’s be there when we return one day? I don’t know these things, but as I walked down I thought to myself how lucky I am to have had this experience. As my boss from my beloved camp in the blue ridge mountains of Virginia would always tell us, “For now the bell is silent, but the memories will ring on forever”. I will cherish these memories for the rest of my life.
Here’s a list of 75, of the many things I’ve Learned From France
A plus. A toute suite.
Tres cordialement,
An American-en-Provence
Watching the pigeons fly over the carousel, our meeting spot in our first few weeks, I wondered to myself, will this still be here in the future? Will those inscriptions we made on the bathroom door in O’Shannon’s be there when we return one day? I don’t know these things, but as I walked down I thought to myself how lucky I am to have had this experience. As my boss from my beloved camp in the blue ridge mountains of Virginia would always tell us, “For now the bell is silent, but the memories will ring on forever”. I will cherish these memories for the rest of my life.
Here’s a list of 75, of the many things I’ve Learned From France
- The art of flaneurie
- How to Bisous, and anticipate how many depending on the region
- How to sit next to a dog on a train; yes: a real, smelly, breathing one
- Where to find the best pain au chocolat
- How to French Kiss ; )
- How to eat multiple servings of bread on a daily basis, and not gain 500 pounds
- How to not exercise on a regular basis and somehow not gain 500 pounds
- That after not running for longer than ever before, I truly miss running
- How to drink good wine, and professionally taste it in a vineyard
- How to speak french
- How to teach children to speak english
- How to deal with people smoking in my face (though I’ll never really be okay with it)
- What speculoos and fois gras are
- How to get highlights and a haircut in France…with cottonballs and clingwrap
- That dinosaurs roamed here
- That the water here is pretty darn special
- That sometimes it’s okay not to shower, people will think you planned your hair that way
- That European guys really like blonds, and brunettes, and redheads… and pretty much every girl from America
- How to do laundry without a dryer
- How to take a short shower, and freeze my butt off in the process
- That the muscat grapes here are really freaking delicious, even with their seeds
- Goat cheese makes everyone happy
- That it’s actually completely unnecessary to leave your lights on during the day
- Toast and butter is naked unless there is confiture on top
- It’s okay to drink hot chocolate and coffee in a bowl, in fact, it’s “normal”
- People won’t judge you if you go grocery shopping while walking your dog
- What a mistral is
- How to get to Mistral
- That thyme and lemon in hot water makes a darn good recovery tea
- How to drink Baileys from a shoe… just kidding..well, I wish
- How to stare at a painting for 3 hours, and actually like it better
- How to validate a TGV ticket
- That everyone else on the plane is just as scared of crashing as you are
- That my ears will hurt really badly 15 minutes before landing unless I take Advil and swallow a lot to relieve the pressure
- That French accents are so cute
- That Dutch accents are so cute
- That Belgian accents are really cute
- That Norwegian accents… that Australian accents.. that..
- That I really like boys from different countries.
- That the pronunciation for penguin is the same in France
- That men always lie about their age
- Europeans really know how to build cathedrals
- Americans really know how to party in front of them
- The art of the Mono-prix-game
- What a Giraffe really is
- That people say “je prends” instead of “je voudrais” at patisseries
- That “Bonjour” or “Bonsoir” is essential when you walk in any store
- That “Merci, Au Revoir” is common courtesy when you leave
- That people don’t do quotation marks like this ” ” with their fingers, they do << >> with their hands.. just kidding… or am I?
- That no one says “tortue maladroite” instead of awkward turtle, and that awkward turtle is not a thing
- “Check” means pound it!
- “Chin chin” instead of “Cheers”
- It’s okay to say “okay” instead of d’accord
- Nutella is really freaking good in a beignet, or anything else for that matter
- Homemade yogurt is so much better than store bought
- Everyone has doors instead of regular windows, hence, the French doors my mom always talked about when I was little that I never understood
- That it’s pronounced like Leeon not Lion, and it has nothing to do with the animal
- That I really like meeting new people, and will literally get lost in conversation. like lost lost
- That duck sausage is really freaking good
- That the French countryside is just like the storybooks
- That I now say things with a “Southern French” accent, and am proud of it
- That paying to use the bathroom really really stinks
- That the green button at the bank is not to get their attention, but actually calls the Fire Department
- That the entire fire department will show up ten minutes later because you set it off
- That you should run, or briskly walk if you accidentally set off a fire alarm…. yes. run.
- That Mt. St. Victoire is a beast to climb, but very worth it
- That we can all do with a little less
- How organic Rose wine is made, and why non-organic Rose is crap
- That Parisian pigeons are just as ugly as the ones in New York
- How to avoid getting run over by a car, when walking down a cobblestone sidewalk
- How to swim in the Rotonde
- The Patrick Sebastian routine
- How to throw an espionage themed birthday party for ten year old french boys at an art gallery
- That “Anyone can find places, but the finding of people is a gift from God”
- How to say I love you in French
A plus. A toute suite.
Tres cordialement,
An American-en-Provence