So as mentioned last time, France has a new president: François Hollande. It was fairly close, but of course there were people who were angry and some who were happy. For the moment, we basically just have to sit and wait and see how it all plays out to know if he was actually a good choice or not (That's my attempt at trying to not be biased on my blog!)
I finally finished all my classes and tests, but as happy as I was to be able to say that, I was a bit sad as well because that means my departure is right around the corner. I'm doing my best to try and not think about it, so to do this I've been trying to keep myself as busy as possible - and I can say that so far I've succeeded! I got the chance to go the beach with Manon and her mom for the weekend and it was great. We arrived with clouds and hail but not even an hour afterwards we had clear skies and sunshine. So we took advantage of the beautiful weather and ate lunch outside and shortly after, we went out onto the beach and played a bit of frisbee and tried to get some what of a tan! That Friday, Manon and I left the beach house to go visit her dad since she hadn't seen him in a while. We stayed at his house and amused ourselves with Manon's half-sister and half-brother - I can say I did much more of the amusing part rather than being amused..!
On Sunday, Manon's mom came to pick us up on her way back home from the beach house and after we left from there - we spent nearly 8 hours on the road for what was supposed to be a 3 hour trip!! We got stuck in traffic for nearly 4 hours. It was horrible and we finally got home around 9 or 10 at night and we were all completely wiped. The following week, I finally got around to seeing Avengers, which turned out to be a pretty good movie with more humor than I was thinking. But I think I would have enjoyed it a bit more had I seen it in English. I also got eat lunch with Dimitri and Camille and their aunt, and we also had dinner one night for their dad's birthday. Then, I also had dinner with Dimitri, Manon, Claire, Lilian, and Amelie one night which was really fun.
This past week was when it started to get busy. The Roland Garros tennis tournament started this week so, like every year, I've been watching that and Monday, Manon and I decided to play a little match of our own at the park. It had been a while since I actually played tennis so I had to get back into the groove, but I wasn't too bad! Then finally Tuesday we made our way up to Paris to see Dimitri so we could leave on vacation. However, there was a few pit-stops to make before leaving. The first being Chipotle. I've waited 10 months for the restaurant to open in Paris. First, it was supposed to open in February, then March, then end of May. But when the end of May rolled around, more specifically, Tuesday - it actually opened!!
It felt so good to finally be in a food coma again like that - but more importantly - to have an actual spicy salsa! I got the chance to talk to the owner who's been with the company for 9 years and worked in a bit in the Chipotle in London. He told me the reason for the delay was that after they had installed the counter, the CEOs decided it would be more functional to have it in the other direction, however, that meant having to build a brand new one in order for it to fit. But the places looks really good and it was super busy so I'm glad it's working out!
Later that night, much later considering the food coma that I was in, we had a midnight picnic next to the Paris Canal with Alex, Lou, and Tanguy. The nice weather helped make it that much more enjoyable.
Wednesday, Dimitri, Manon and I left Paris to pass a couple days at his Great-aunt's house in the Bourgogne region. This was the first time I was able to go in the region, and I can say without a doubt it will not be my last. I can say that I've never seen anything so open and so beautiful as this region. We actually arrived just when a huge thunderstorm was pounding right on top of where we were staying. It's been a long time since I've gotten to see a storm like that where you can barely see in front of you because it's raining so hard and it was awesome! But as soon as we parked the car to unload our bags, the rain stopped. So we ate dinner with his great-aunt and uncle and then the three of us slept in the barn next to the house. The next morning, we had only a blue sky and a sun that just tapped our skin. After we finished our breakfast, we went to the grocery store to get everything we needed for our stay and came back to the house and started up the barbeque for a nice lunch. After the lunch, we went for a walk and found ourselves talking with cows, and walking through a village that was much farther than we thought.
Then before dinner, we went to look around a chapel that was closed off. The oldest grave that we found dated back to the 1830s. It was pretty incredible.
Friday, we woke up and cooked a nice big brunch with cereal, bacon, fruits, and pancakes. It was the most "American breakfast" I had had since being in France. Shortly after, we made a short drive out to a waterfall and river that was surrounded by a forest. It was indescribably beautiful.
After a quick stroll through the woods, we drove to the Chateau de Chastellux. The history of the chateau was really interesting with a lot of ties to the United States. It was really beautiful on an even more beautiful plot of land.
After the visit of the chateau, we drove to the city of Vézeley. It was a nice, little, city on top of a hill. There, we enjoyed a cup of tea and took the opportunity to take some photos from such a great viewpoint.
That night, we went to family owned restaurant where we all enjoyed an amazing dinner - even if Dimitri had no sense of smell or taste because of his allergies, he still knew it was amazing.
It's true that I can find the same scenery in the United States, but as I tried to explain to Manon and Dimitri, it isn't the same feel. Here, you pass by castles and tiny villages that have been in the same family, in the same spot since several centuries. When you think about that aspect, and the fact that a country as small as France and you can still find such a variety of scenery, that's what make this country so beautiful.
