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!
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