Au Revoir

24 Posts later, and I'm back in The United States of America.

It's been 1 month and 5 days since I left Aix, and my life has become way too normal. Nannying 9-5 and then waitressing at nights and on weekends, it's sometimes hard to remember that I spent 5 months of my life living in the South of France.

Life in America pretty much smacked me in the face. I landed at 8:30 pm on the 4th and started nannying at 8 am on the 5th. I was spun around so quickly that I didn't have time to reflect on my life back in France or process the change. I became so busy with work and with putting my life back together in the States that there were times I almost forgot that I had spent 5 amazing months galavanting around Europe. It wasn't until I couldn't find words when somebody asked me how my experience was or until I noticed how many Blonds there are up here in the Midwest that I realized France had truly affected me.

It also isn't until I look at photos from my trip or try to paint a picture of what it's like walking down the cobblestone streets that I'm brought back to the market and to the park and to the cafés. It isn't until I forget the English word for something and can only think of the French word that I miss the language. And as pessimistic as it sounds to say that I don't miss France until I'm reminded of it, the point is that I miss it. And when I do, it's more than just a fond memory. It's a gut-wrenching longing.

I miss the musty smell of my 17th century apartment.
I miss the fountain, the tree, and the grass-spotted cobblestones in my courtyard.
I miss the way people dress.
I miss the aisle in the grocery store dedicated to cheese.
I miss the line out the door of the Boulangerie every day at noon.
I miss the 4 flights of stairs I had to climb to get to my friend's apartment.
I miss the stupid tour groups and how I felt like a local because they drove me so crazy.
I miss walking into a store and - without missing a beat - saying "Bonjour" or "Bonsoir" to the owner.
I miss the way that by the end of the trip, if something didn't happen the way it was planned, I would roll my eyes and say "France..."
I miss the little old ladies and their dogs.
I miss the man at the market who sold me my broccoli and told me I was his favorite customer.
I miss the way that the smell of Herbs de Provence would fill my apartment every time I cooked with them.
I miss the colorful doors.
I miss the fountains.
I miss hating the cobblestones.
I miss sitting outside at a coffee shop, sipping on a Café au Lait and feeling the warm sun on my face.
I miss being able to take the bus to the beach.
I miss how proud I felt when a French man believed me when I told him I was French.

But most of all, I miss how whenever I was away on a trip, I couldn't wait to get back to Aix.

Although there are several things that I missed while I was in Europe (efficiency, having a car, deodorant, filter coffee, produce that lasts for more than 4 days, etc.), and although I'm very happy to have them back in my life, there will always be a special place in my heart for Rue Sallier, for Cours Mirabeau, for Jacob's Patisserie, for Le Marché à Place des Prêcheurs, for Le Scat, for Parc Jourdin, for Monoprix, for Papilles, and DEFINITELY for Crêpes-a-Go-Go :)

Overall, I'm very glad to be back in my homeland, but it will never be "too soon" for me to return to Aix-en-Provence.


Au Revoir!

Sisters Take Over Aix

Taking Madie back to Aix was one of the most bizarre experiences I've ever had. The fact that the first time Madie landed at the MP2 airport and took the Navette into the city center was the last time I would be doing the was the ultimate paradox that I could not wrap my head around. It was also the beginning of the end; the last 6 days in the city that had been my home for the past 5 months; the time when I would be saying goodbye to the friends with whom I shared an experience of a lifetime; and the time to put all 5 of my senses in high gear as I tried to memorize every scent, taste, touch, sound, and sight of the city that I had fallen in love with. 

It was also the time to check off those last things that remained on my Aix To-Do list. First stop: Cézanne's studio.

At the beginning of my blog adventure, I wrote about Paul Cézanne; the painter that grew up, studied, and painted in Aix. Now it was finally time to rekindle my fascination with him and visit the one place where he got his inspiration.

Now, I wasn't allowed to take pictures of the inside of the studio, but it was definitely interesting to see where he found his genius. And the coolest part about the studio was that it's supposed to be set up practically the way he left it, so you really get the feeling that you're connecting with the artist he was at one point. 

While I was on the property, I decided to get in touch with my inner-artist. 

I call this one Watering Can Sits on Rock.

While we were in the studio, we learned that if you walk up the road, you can travel to the hill where Cézanne used to stand and get the best views of Monte St. Victoire. We couldn't resist :)

Kind of tough to see here because of the clouds, but if you look dead-center, you can make out Monte St. Victoire (it makes a much bigger impression in person, I promise).

Zoomed in.

Next thing on my list was to make it to the top of Monte St. Victoire. I had kind of muddled around the base of it earlier in the semester, but I wanted to reach the cross at the top.

So on June 3rd; my last day in France, Madie and I took the bus to the base of Monte St. Victoire and began our climb. 

Croix de Provence (Cross of Provence): 2h 15

Madie and I were in a bit of a hurry because we had a dinner date with a good friend of mine that night, so instead of casually meandering up to the summit, we booked it. We made it up in 1h45, and I swear - it was a tough hike. Huge boulders - the size of two steps of stairs that you have to take over and over and over again. Imagine taking stairs 2 at a time for almost 2 hours. For one of the first times in my life, I was thanking God for the overcast. 

Finally we made it to the monastery! 

Of course the only running water up there was "pas potable" or "not drinkable."

After the monastery, there's a steep 15 minute hike up the actual summit of the mountain, where the cross is. It was insane to think that I was finally fulfilling something I had been wanting to do since the first time I had heard about (8 months ago).

We made it!!!

Aix is down there somewhere...

HI from Monte St. Victoire!

After climbing the mountain, Madie and I had worked up quite the appetite. And in perfect timing since we were going out the this Fondue restaurant with my best French friend. Seeing as it was my last night in Aix, we figured to go all out - ordered cocktails AND wine. And we even went the extra mile and got Cheese, Meat, AND Chocolate Fondue! It was an absolutely divine meal, and obviously made a statement on my experience since it's being mentioned in my blog.

Cheesin with our Melted Cheese :)

After our wonderful meal, I was forced to say a very bizarre and unreal goodbye to my friend. Julie was the type of girl who would drop anything for you if you needed her. She was always up for an adventure, and was beyond excited to show me her world in France. Why she decided to spend her time hanging out with some weird American girl, I have no idea, but I'm so blessed to have had her in my life :)

On our walk home, I could not allow myself to leave this city without crossing yet another thing off the list: I needed to jump into one of the fountains.

It's strictly forbidden to get into the fountains, but I had nothin' to lose seeing as I was leaving for the U.S. the following day. So. In I went :)

I don't really have the words to express how I feel about leaving my beloved Aix, so I'm just going to finish this post the only way I know how.

À Très Bientôt, Aix :)

À Très Bientôt!

Sisters Take Over Vatican City

Landing in Rome, I immediately fell back in love with Italy. It had only been a couple weeks since I had last been there, but man did I miss it. 

A lot of the things that we did were things that I had already done during my first trip to Roma, so this trip was primarily about showing my sister all the cool things I had learned the first time around. However, the one thing I didn't get to do on my first trip to Rome, I made sure to check off the list this time.

So Mad and I decided to head to The Vatican to see Michaelangelo's The Sistine Chapel.

On our way up to St. Peter's Cathedral, Madie and I did something I thought I would never do: We fell for one of the guided tours. And honestly, it wasn't all that bad. We got a guide, and a speedy entry into the Vatican, and it only cost us about 15€. Here are some pictures from our tour:

Some globe art thing that some guy did

The ceilings were amazing

Where Madie and I saw real-life example of "trompe l'oeil" which means "trick the eye" - a style of painting that appears to be 3D because of the very detailed shading technique

A very impressive painting in the Vatican Museum

A shot of St. Peter's Cathedral from the Vatican

Now don't think that just because I don't have any pictures of it that I didn't make it into the Sistine Chapel to check out the beautiful paintings - I did, you're just not allowed to take pictures while you're in there. It's kind of ironic, because the Chapel is indeed just that - a chapel that's used only by the Pope. It's a sacred place and should be treated that way by those who are inside; AKA silence. However! The guards who are in the chapel have no problem shouting at the top of their lungs when they spot somebody trying to sneak pictures of the ceiling. And I'll tell ya. Scares the daylights out of you.

Although the Vatican tour was definitely not the only thing we did while in Roma, I won't bore you with the details since it'll include a lot of the same things I've already written about.

So for now,

Ciao from Roma

Sisters in Piazza de la Repubblica :)

À Bientôt!

Sisters Take Over Amsterdam

Next stop on our European Tour: Amsterdam, Netherlands.


Now, I know that the first two things that anybody thinks about when they hear "Amsterdam" are "Red Light District" and "Legal Marijuana." I want to tell you that although those two things are very prevalent in the culture of this magnificent city, Amsterdam is much MUCH more than just that. Amsterdam literally blew my mind. The people, the culture, the food, and the canals! When people think "canals," they think Venice. But Amsterdam actually has more canals than Venice, AND Amsterdam doesn't stink. Therefore, Amsterdam wins. Just to prove it, here's a picture of the map of Amsterdam:

CanalsCanalsCanalsCanalsCanalsCanalsCanalsCanalsCanalsCanals

Madie and I got there in the late afternoon of the 24th of May and decided to just do a little bit of exploring on our own. The streets were more than hoppin' that Thursday night, so Madie and I took full advantage of the prime people watching.

Restaurant on one of the many canals

The following morning, Madie and I decided to learn a little bit about the culture and history of Amsterdam. This company does free walking tours in several big cities in Europe (it's the same company through which I did the tour in Edinburgh and in Dublin). They're fantastic. A 3-hour walking tour where you can learn all you'd ever want to know about the city.

The quality of this picture isn't prime, but if you look closely, you can kind of notice that the buildings look like they're leaning in towards the street - it's because they are. Apparently, since Amsterdam's realty is so expensive, people tried to make the most out of the small amount of space they could afford - meaning they tried to make their houses as tall and narrow as they could. However, it became very challenging for the people to move heavy and bulky furniture up the narrow staircases, so they attached a hook to the top of the building and would pull the furniture up and bring it through the window. However, to prevent the furniture from breaking anything on its way up, they tilted the buildings. Why they didn't just extend the hooks...I don't know...whatever works, right?

Canal shot

So happy to be in Amsterdam :)

Classic Shot

Postcard worthy

I amsterdam

After the 3-hour walking tour, Madie and I decided to go and check out the attic where Anne Frank's family and friends hid during the Second World War. I was expecting it to just be the rooms where they hid, but it was a full-blown museum. There were videos of people involved talking about how they set it up, and there were quotes from Anne's diary all over the walls. It was actually really really cool - I would definitely recommend it for any person who's thinking about going to Amsterdam.

After taking a step into the past, Madie and I grabbed some PANCAKES before going back to relax a little bit in preparation for our Pub Crawl that night :) 

 I can't tell you how long it had been since I had had a pancake :)

Luckily, the same company that provides the walking tours also does nightly pub crawls. Conveniently, the night that Madie and I were in Amsterdam, it was our mother's 49th birthday. So, with the help of the pub crawl, we did more than a pretty good job of celebrating!!! :)

Madie and I wishing our mother a Happy 49th birthday!

The following morning, we woke with minimal amounts of sleep, but infinite amounts of fantabulous memories from the night before and had to painfully pull ourselves out of bed in order to board our flight to our next stop: Romaaaa!


One thing I noticed about Amsterdam was how incredibly nice people are. For example; when Madie and I were walking down the street, some man (probably in his 20s), stopped us and asked if we were American...the conversation evolved, and we ended up grabbing a drink with him. Then, he gave us a brief tour of the nightlife of Amsterdam and showed us where all of the popular bars were. There's no way that that would happen in France.


I also loved their policy on legality. Technically, marijuana is NOT legal in Amsterdam. Let me repeat that. Marijuana is NOT LEGAL in Amsterdam. Contrary to popular belief, there is actually a law forbidding people from being able to purchase and consume marijuana. However, since it falls under the 3 rules, the police don't put a whole lot of effort into enforcing the law. Those 3 rules are:
1. If it's discrete; Marijuana can be purchased in "Coffeeshops" - not "Marijuana Shops"  (discretion is key)
2. If it's hurting nobody; it ain't hurtin' no one
3. If it's good for business; it makes a LOT of money, and draws in a LOT of tourists


Prostitution is pretty much the same thing:
1. Discretion; they're not roaming the streets, the women are in their workspaces - you wouldn't even know you were walking through the red light district if you didn't look through the windows.
2. No harm; Sex workers regularly get tested, and Pimps are strictly illegal; the women work for themselves and themselves only
3. Good for business; ...Need I say more?


Overall, my trip to Amsterdam was even more than I had ever expected. I absolutely loved the city, and would go back in a heartbeat.


But for now, let's concentrate on the next and second-to-last stop on the journey; Rome!!!


À Bientôt!

Sisters Take Over Norway

After me and Madie's brief tour of the UK, we decided to take on some of our very own heritage and head to the beautiful land of blonds: Norway.

A friend of mine had told me about the 8-hour train ride from Oslo to Bergen and mentioned that it was supposed to be one of the most beautiful train rides in the world...so Madie and I decided to take on the challenge and add it to our list of adventures. 

Map of the train ride from Oslo to Bergen

We got to Oslo, Norway, on the morning of May 22nd. After making it to our hostel, we decided to grab a map and just see where the wind took us. We walked downtown towards the popular shopping streets and stopped to relax and sit in the sun in the middle of this beautiful square. 

After we rested our feet for a little while, we made our way to the historical fortress.

On our way, we found some very eco-friendly cars; and public plugs! How cool is that?!

Madie and I somehow managed to not take one single picture of the actual fortress (I know, right?), but here's a picture that I pulled off Google, just so you can see what it looks like!

Oslo Fortress from the water

After meandering around the Fortress, Madie and I decided to try and find the castle that the current King and Queen of Norway live in - didn't know they had a King and Queen? Us either.

Current castle and home to the King and Queen of Norway

There were parks rolling away from the castle in all different angles, and they were littered with college-aged students basking in the sun; it reminded me of Madison :)

Then, seeing as it was dinner time, Madie and I headed back down to the port for an all-too-expensive meal (the exchange rate from Norwegian Krone to Dollars is incredibly deceiving; it's about 6 NOK to 1 USD however, an ice cream cone costs around 60 NOK...you do the math...), and then said goodbye to the capitol city.

Sunset in Oslo

The next morning we were up way too early in order to catch our train to Bergen. We had bought a bunch of fruits and snacks the night before so we were all set for our 8-hour train ride through the Norwegian countryside.

It's impossible to put into words how unbelievably breathtaking it was. And I was only looking out of ONE of the windows :) 

We started by going through some very green and hilly farmland. Then the hills became mountains, and the tips of the mountains slowly turned white as we got further and further into the countryside. I can't remember exactly at what point it happened, but somehow along the way, the green disappeared and was replaced with an eye-burning white. There was about 6 feet of snow on the ground! In MAY!!! There were little teeny tiny houses scattered among the hills on either side of the train tracks that were completely covered in snow - you couldn't see but the roofs. 

 Beautiful sunrise over this monstrous lake - made me want to go boating :)

 White Water Rafting, anyone???

Look at how high the snow is!!!

Finally arriving in Bergen at around 3 in the afternoon, Madie and I made it to our hostel, took their advice, and took the tram up the side of the mountain so we could see the beautiful city of Bergen from a different angle.

View from the top of the mountain.

Cheese! :)

Madie and I hiked down the mountain (don't worry - it was all paved), and stumbled upon one of the weirdest trees I've ever seen in my entire life!!!

In these pictures it looks kinda like a pine tree, but trust me. Madie and I freaked out when we saw it - I've never seen another tree like it.

Weird tree.

Then, at the base of the mountain, Madie and I decided to take advantage of the daylight we had left and meandered around the beautiful city of Bergen.

I had to get the postcard shot of the houses on the port :)

Never have I ever seen a longer name for a street. 

Walking around, Madie and I stumbled on a moving art fair. There were wooden structures all over the downtown part of Bergen - you could walk on some of them, you could move others, it was actually really cool to be able to interact with the exhibit instead of just looking at it and trying to figure out what it means. 

One of the pieces in the exhibit.

On our way back to the hostel, Madie and I decided to stop in the park and watch the sunset in front of this beautiful pond.

Note all the other people watching the sunset too :)

Goodbye Bergen :) Time for us to head to the Netherlands!!!

Overall, I loved my trip to Norway. I have never seen so many tall blonds in my entire life - I felt like I was back in Minnesota! And everyone was very very nice and was not at all bitter that we didn't know how to speak Norwegian. If it wasn't so DAMN expensive, I would love to go back and spend more time there! I would definitely go back and visit Bergen. Oslo didn't feel that much different than any other American city, but Bergen took my breath away. With the architectural style, the landscape, and the lifestyle, I could definitely see myself going back and spending some more time there. But for now, Madie and I have other European cities to see :)

À Bientôt!

Sisters Take Over Wales and England

After ridding myself of my mother and my grandmother (just kidding, Mom), it was time to conquer Europe with my baby sister J

Two hours after my last final exam on the 16^th of May, I got on a train to Paris to stay overnight at my friend, Liz’s. I’ve stayed at 3 friends’ apartments and 1 hostel in Paris, and they’ve all been unbelievably different experiences; which just goes to show that Paris is one of those cities that becomes whatever you make it. If you want it to be a swanky, posh city, it can be; and if you want it to be a hip city centered around nightlife, it definitely has the ability to be that as well.

However, my night with Liz was exactly what I needed; we went to a “beach” themed party at her friends, and I got to try Get 27; a mint-flavored liquor. Imagine sipping on Listerine, but getting a buzz from it. You’ll never be self-conscious about your breath while you’re drinking it, that’s for sure! I might even have to order some to the states :)

Anyway, the following morning, I was due to pick Madie up at the airport at 8:30; meaning I had to leave Liz’s at around 7:30. But in good French fashion, line 1 of the Parisian Metro was closed so I had to find another means of getting to the airport. With my crafty metro skills I managed to find my way there (only about 15 minutes late), and it was then that I realized how HUGE Charles De Gaulles airport is. They don’t just have Terminals 1 and 2. They have 3 terminals, and each terminal has an A through H. Thinking about trying to find my sister with these odds made me sick to my stomach. Somehow, I managed to figure out which terminal she was in and made my way to the arrivals gate…by some miracle, she spotted me, and we were reunited at last!

I brought her back to Liz’s so she could leave her bags there before we were off to Versailles for the day. Versailles was one thing I had never seen before, and everyone told me that if I was going to see it, I needed to go during the Spring. Madie and I waited in line for 2 hours to get tickets and entry, and finally made our way in. And let me tell you. The place. Is. HUGE! There were several apartments for his guests to stay in, and then there were his eating quarters, sleeping quarters, meeting quarters, and Marie Antoinette’s quarters. Each bedroom was like the size of one of the floors in my house. It was insane. And not one single inch was left undecorated.

Golden Gate at Versailles

Me and Madie in front of Versailles

Paintings on the ceiling

Where the Sun God slept

Marie Antoinette's bed

Casual Dining Room

The Sun God definitely knew what he was doing.

Madie and I made it back to Liz’s to grab our bags before heading back to CDG to catch our flight to London!

We were only in England for a couple hours sleeping before we caught our bus to Cardiff, Wales the following day.

I’m gonna be completely honest – Cardiff…not the most impressive city. There’s a pretty cool castle, and there are some pretty cool pubs and clothing stores, and they’ve got some pretty cool art museums (even some of Paul Cézanne’s work is in their museum!), but as far as a city goes, I wasn’t super thrilled about it.

Madie and I tried to soak in as much as we could, and we went on one of those Hop-on-Hop-off tours. We learned some pretty cool history, but I’ve been pretty spoiled with cool stuff this semester, so it wasn’t anything that really astounded me.

Cardiff Castle

Wall surrounding the Cardiff Castle

Bus Tour!!!

One of Paul Cézanne's paintings!!!

Apparently if you go to Wales, you’re supposed to go to Northern Wales – that’s where the beautiful countryside is…Next time.

Saturday night, we took the bus back to London and finally got to spend some quality time with Ninie, Chris, and Maeva.

Sunday, Madie and I ventured into downtown London to go on another one of the Hop-on-Hop-off bus tours. We saw the aftermath of the changing of the guards and I got to recount everything that I managed to remember from my past two trips to London. We stopped for some fantastic Thai food, meandered around in Camdentown and somehow managed to find my beloved Ben’s cookies before taking the train back to Ware for curry at Chris and Ninie’s favorite place.

Aftermath of the Changing of the Guards

Me and Madie in front of Big Ben

(Found out that Big Ben isn't actually the name of the clocktower - it's the name of the bell INSIDE of the clock tower)

Tower Bridge

Stupid Wind ruined me and Madie's picture in Trafalgar's Square

The following day was Maeva’s first birthday, and I’m so happy I got to be there to celebrate it! We got to spend the day relaxing in the house, and got to meet some of Chris’s family who came over for cake. Then we ordered in Papa John’s (oh how long it had been since I had had Papa John’s) and Ninie introduced me to a HILARIOUS French comedian before we went to bed in preparation for our next stop: Oslo, Norway.

Me and Maeva on her 1st birthday!!!

À Bientôt!

Elie and Maeva :)