I must have jinxed it with my last post, because this weekend, our sortie en Camargue was cancelled because of the rain. The clouds were threatening all last week, and so everyone was sure the weather was right when it was predicted to have le temps des grenouilles, or weather for frogs, on Saturday. However, it wasn't nearly as bad as was predicted, and while it was nice to sleep in for a bit, we were upset that the weather didn't give a real reason not to go.
Instead, we went into down for the day. After lunch, we did a bit of shopping and spent quite a bit of time browsing through books at FNAC, the French equivalent of Borders. Hannah and I decided the French really need to get with it and add a café to their bookstores... they'd get a lot more money out of us! Actually, there is a bookstore with a café where we really like to go and do work. Unfortunately, it's an English bookstore so we can't peruse French books while sipping our noisettes. Anyway, we headed after to the Renoir to see Cheri. It is based off of a famous French book from the 18th century. The plot was horrible, but the cinematography and costumes were beautiful, so at least it was pleasing to the eye.
For Easter, I went with my family to my host mom's brother's house. I was slightly nervous beforehand when Laurence casually mentioned "we are 18," but it wasn't as nervewracking as expected. There were a several children so there was a chasse des oeufs, or Easter egg hunt. However, the French don't have an Easter bunny, so it is just the parents that give chocolate and little toys. I made friends with Ninoun, an adorable barely two-year old who kept bringing me the Easter eggs from the hunt. It was adorable, she kept on smacking her lips pretending to eat them and then she'd give them to me. Later, I made friends with Heloise, the "almost five year old" who wanted to play kitchen with me. It was my job to gather all the flowers and then we started cooking. When I asked was we were making, she responded matter-of-factly, un gateau aux haricots! As if bean cake were the most natural thing in the world to make. "Oh, but doesn't it smell good?" she asked after she added the "salt" and the "pepper" and mixed the ingredients together. I also introduced Coline to the two-player version of cat's cradle, which she seemed to like just as much as I did as a 10 year old. Even now it's addicting!
Monday was a jour férié, or national holiday, so we didn't have classes. Instead, Hannah, Kari, Courtney, and I went to Nimes, upon the request of Hannah. Loved loved loved it! It helped that the weather had cleared up and so the sunshine was back. The tree lined streets lead us to the garden where we ate our lunch:
After picnicking on the grass, we started to explore the garden, which was so much bigger and more beautiful than we first expected!
It has two Roman ruins: the Temple of Diane and the Tour Magne, which was originally built by the Gauls and then used by the Romans. We climbed the very narrow staircase to the top of the tower and got a wonderful view of the city!
On the way back from the garden, we stopped at the Maison Carée, which was apparently the inspiration for the design of the White House. Look familiar?
Surprisingly, you couldn't go inside. Instead, there was a 3D film, a Nimes through the ages type deal that traced the history from the times of the Romans. A little over the top, but nice to have a little rest.
Our last tourist stop was the arena, which is the best conserved Roman arena. It is so amazing to be in a place where having all of these ruins around is the norm! It is still used today for bull fights, but we were able to go and explore all levels. ...And may have even had the obligatory bull fight and gladiator battle.
The short week this week is a good introduction to vacation, which starts tomorrow! We head tomorrow to Nice and then take the train to Florence on Saturday. On Thursday, I'll officially be on vacation with my parents for a week in Southern France!
