Paris in the springtime!

On Saturday, May 26, I arrived in Paris via train from Annecy for the final leg of my French experience. One of the best things about traveling alone is that each step along the way is a new challenge and it is fun and exciting too when you figure it out. The other great thing is that total strangers reach out to give a helping hand! I'm standing on the street in front of Gare de Lyon (train station) & a French couple heard me say something in English & the husband knows a little English so wanted to help me find my bus. They did & I was so grateful. Truly, it is all about the people you meet along the way! Each day in Paris is a new adventure - I start out with an idea of where I'd like to go and then just wander and hope I can find my way home. This will continue as long as my feet hold up. Oh what I wouldn't give for a tub of ice to stick my feet in. I'm fine as long as it stays sunny because I know I'm heading in the right direction only based on the sun. Some of the things I've noticed living in France these last two months - French people are much quieter than Americans, even on their cell phones. Also, more patient & polite. Just something to think about. The advice I was given when asking where to go in France to try to learn the language was not to go to Paris because too many English speakers here was spot on! Oh, and one last thing for today, when you come to Paris PLEASE do not go to Starbucks! There are many wonderful cafes here to get your coffee and have the French experience. One not to miss is Cafes Verlet on rue Saint-Honore, in the 2nd arrondissement - definitely worth the effort. Oooh la la! It is great fun to be in this amazing city!

Annecy encore!

Sometimes you have to leave a place to know how much you liked it. So, I left Annecy for Avignon, which I didn't like except for the charming young man at the front desk of my hotel. Then off to Aix en Provence, which does have some charm and Paul Cezanne had to be on to something! It was better than Avignon. Then off to Montpellier, which the travel books like to say has an over abundance of young people and you think, well that's Ok 'cause I like young people. Then you arrive and feel like you were dropped in the middle of the biggest college town in the world. If it hadn't been for finding the very best Italian restaurant in France, it would have been a disaster. So I had two nights in this great restaurant with two of the cutest French waiters, which made for fun evenings! Then I ended my Montpellier experience by being there as they won their very first ligue 1 futbol (soccer) championship! It was fabulous to see! But, all of this travel made me realize I needed to return to Annecy. Found lodging, caught the train & am now spending my last five days before heading to Paris, in Annecy! I was so happy to return even though it was cool & rainy when I got here. This has been wonderful and I will be working hard to figure out how to return in 2013.

Au revoir to Annecy!

Well, I'm sorry for the long lapse in updates. I lost my wifi the first week in Annecy & we couldn't get it resolved. Finally I'm back at it. Of course I am sitting in the lobby of a hotel in Avignon, since that is the only place this hotel provides wifi for their guests. We have a nice little group down here doing emails, etc. Let's go back to Annecy! I really love that town - it is quite an interesting combination of architecture from the original walled old town and now the new apartment & other developments in modern style. This is the perfect city for me with my love of the outdoors & exercise. I've been walk/running around the lake (that is figuratively). Plus just walking up & down the paths to the chateau provide a good workout. As usual, I have found my favorite local hangouts for coffee, lunch, etc. Plus I met a really lovely British couple one day at the grocery store, so I stop by for tea occasionally. Then there are these fabulous buses that make stops at all the towns around the lake, so I do that & explore some other towns, etc. Had a wonderful visit from Greg, Diane, Gavin, Dylan & Kim. It was way too short, but fun seeing them enjoy Annecy like I do. We took a boat ride around the lake, which gave us all a new perspective on everything. The boys seemed to like everything we did, especially swimming in the lake. There are so many fun differences that I notice in life here. The TV stations only come on for specific programming & then they are off. So if you watched tennis one day on channel 14, it doesn't mean that same channel will cover it the next day. And, shows along with most other things, don't run on the hour. Most begin at 20 minutes or 10 minutes before the hour. Great thing is I haven't seen a drug commercial since I've been here. All their food commercials have disclaimers at the bottom of the screen, saying to eat 5 servings of fruit & veggies a day & remember to exercise. You would think that I wrote them! The people in Annecy have been wonderful and very helpful and patient with me trying to speak French. I definitely plan to return some time in the future. But, for now my time is up and I am taking the next two weeks to see what other beautiful sights there are to see. I wasn't planning to come to Avignon, but it just worked out that way. I have been traveling all day, so will give you my take on this town in a few days. I haven't been successful in posting my Annecy photos on my blog, so they are on Facebook.