Aix-en-Vacances
For those of you who haven’t seen my other blogs, I am currently studying abroad in Southern France in a city called Aix-en-Provence. However, sometimes students like to joke around…even some of the host families tell us to remember that while our studies are important, it is also essential to recognize that we are on “Aix-en-Vacances” aka vacation!
We arrived on Friday last week. So today marks exactly one week. We had orientation from Saturday until Tuesday, which included a tour of the city, a brief tour of the market by a company called Taste of Provence, a trip to Marseille (one of the largest cities in France that is only 30 minutes away by bus), and choosing our courses. Class started on Wednesday and only went to Thursday. That’s right, we never have classes on Friday! This is to allow us to make the most of being in Europe (aka traveling).
I am taking a course on French Press and Media (FR218) on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, a class on the history and culture of Northern Africa (FR268) on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, and a class at a local university called “Environment, Health: the Actual Issues” (SciencesPo) and a class on the region I’m in, Provence, (FR215) on Wednesdays. My Mondays will be taken up by taking a bus to Marseille to intern at the children’s hospital there. Every night Monday-Thursday, we all go eat at a French family’s house for dinner. This lets us not only actually get nourished (I think most of us are saving our money for things other than food), but also get to taste the deliciousness of French cuisine!
Here’s to a great semester!