This is the largest of the many rotondes. It is at the end of the Cours Mirabeau. The water in the fountains of Aix is perfectly drinkable; in fact, bikers sometimes stop beside them to refill their water bottles! Only if there is a sign that reads Eau Non Potable is the water not drinkable. My favorite fountains are those in the center of the Cours Mirabeau; they spout warm water and moss grows on the statues. Their source is the thermal springs. During the second World War les francaises did their laundry in them.
View of the Cours Mirabeau, which is considered the second most beautiful promenade in France (the first being, bien sur, les Champs Elysees). It will look better when the trees bloom green and cast shade. In the spring, you will notice that on the right, in the shade, are all the banks, while on the left are cafes and restaurants in the sun.
Crepes a GoGo, where I ordered "le Fermière" cet après-midi, which was champignons, fromage, et oeufs (mushrooms, eggs, and cheese). I barely finished half because although the mushrooms were delicious, there was too much cheese. This creperie is actually located in a pedestrian tunnel that runs under the street.
Les rues sont tout petits ici, barely large enough for a small European car. It's bizarre. If you look in the middle of the street you will see it is indented inwards. The immediately obvious reason for this is to channel rainwater into the drain. But everyone avoids walking in them because les chiens, dogs, are allowed to poop in them (51% of the French have pets) and it gets washed away. Gross. If you look at the building on the right, you will see a very typical color scheme for homes in the old city. Nearly all the walls are a yellow or peach shade, and the shutters, or volets, are blue.
Voila le Cathedral Saint-Sauveur. It is directly across from my University. (Interestingly, out of the 140,000 Aixois, 40,000 are students! I'm in good company.) It was built in the 5th century by the Romans, added onto in the 12th century, and again in the 17th/18th century. It has Roman, Baroque, and Gothic architecture. When the Romans built cities, they always had a main North-South oriented road and a main East-West one as well. This church is built on top of the East-West one at the center of Old Aix.
The Hotel de Ville. People get married in this square every half hour in the summer. The three flags are, from gauche à droit, the flag of the European Union, the French flag (tricolor), and the flag of Provence. The colors of the last, you probably noticed, are similar to the Spanish flag. That's because the last king of Provence, Roi René, was also the Count of Barcelona. When René died in the 1400s, the rule of Provence passed to his nephew. This nephew died shortly after René, and Provence became part of France.
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After Madame went out tonight, Juliette and I sat in the kitchen drinking coffee and talking. We switched back and forth between French and English. I learned a lot about her. She has two younger sisters who live in Nice with their father and step-mother. She has a sister who is about my age and is in her third year of medical school. She also has a sister who is 1 year old! And her dad is 60! He married a French woman who is 35 and she wanted a baby, alors... Juliette is bilingual in French and Spanish because her mother's family is Spanish. She is in French business graduate school, or Grand Ecole, studying management. After February, she will be working in a hotel in Monaco to learn hotel management.
Cultural differences: When I mentioned that my younger sister is in a sorority, Juliette was shocked. I had to describe hazing so she could understand why a negative sorority stereotype exists - and to explain that my sisters sorority is nothing at all like that! She told me they do hazing in France too... But they don't have sororities, so I asked her where this happens, confused. She said they have "Integration Days" when you first come to les Grandes Ecoles, and many people are made to participate in silly or humiliating things, or drink a lot, to fit in. You can choose not to, as Juliette did, but it is not uncommon! Funny similarity :) Another awkward fact: I told you that the French sometimes use a slang called verlan, and today someone said to me jokingly, quoi de neuf, meuf? Meuf sounds like muff, so I was horrified. When I asked why meuf is a slang word for girl, Juliette told me that it is verlan for femme, meaning woman! It means what's up, or what's new, girl? In verlan, the first and second half of the word are switched, hence: les keufs are police ("f***" inside out - guess they don't aimer les policiers!) and pera for rap, or renoi for noire, or a black person. Strange! Anyways, it's 10:45 here so I have to call it a night. Gros bisou (big kiss).
Cultural differences: When I mentioned that my younger sister is in a sorority, Juliette was shocked. I had to describe hazing so she could understand why a negative sorority stereotype exists - and to explain that my sisters sorority is nothing at all like that! She told me they do hazing in France too... But they don't have sororities, so I asked her where this happens, confused. She said they have "Integration Days" when you first come to les Grandes Ecoles, and many people are made to participate in silly or humiliating things, or drink a lot, to fit in. You can choose not to, as Juliette did, but it is not uncommon! Funny similarity :) Another awkward fact: I told you that the French sometimes use a slang called verlan, and today someone said to me jokingly, quoi de neuf, meuf? Meuf sounds like muff, so I was horrified. When I asked why meuf is a slang word for girl, Juliette told me that it is verlan for femme, meaning woman! It means what's up, or what's new, girl? In verlan, the first and second half of the word are switched, hence: les keufs are police ("f***" inside out - guess they don't aimer les policiers!) and pera for rap, or renoi for noire, or a black person. Strange! Anyways, it's 10:45 here so I have to call it a night. Gros bisou (big kiss).
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