What a whirlwind it has been since I first arrived in France! It’s no longer a dream for me, as I fall asleep instantly each night from exhaustion. They're keeping me busy, that's for sure!
As I said in my last blog, my family has had a long-standing friendship with a family in France, the Moreaus, and so I am visiting them this first week. The families decided that I would spend half the week with their son Julien's family in Bordeaux and half the week with their daughter Lucie and her family in Clermont l’Hérault. Each destination would bring me closer to the end destination of Montpellier:
As I said in my last blog, my family has had a long-standing friendship with a family in France, the Moreaus, and so I am visiting them this first week. The families decided that I would spend half the week with their son Julien's family in Bordeaux and half the week with their daughter Lucie and her family in Clermont l’Hérault. Each destination would bring me closer to the end destination of Montpellier:
After my plane arrived at Charles de Gaulle (CDG), I was to take the TGV (the train system that runs throughout France) on a direct ride to Bordeaux, where Julien’s family resides. There was a slight problem with this, however: I missed the train!
My plane had a delay leaving from Minneapolis *and* customs at CDG took a long time, so it couldn’t have worked. Once I finally got through all the lines and retrieved my checked suitcase, I had to find the train area and ask for a change in ticket. The train representative thankfully spoke English for what turned out to be a complicated transaction, and I was able to breathe a sigh of relief as I sat down on the train.
At the train station in Bordeaux, all Julien’s family was there to meet me. We squished into their car and drove only ten minutes, as they lived in a “suburb” of the larger town. Here’s a map of Bordeaux area:
My plane had a delay leaving from Minneapolis *and* customs at CDG took a long time, so it couldn’t have worked. Once I finally got through all the lines and retrieved my checked suitcase, I had to find the train area and ask for a change in ticket. The train representative thankfully spoke English for what turned out to be a complicated transaction, and I was able to breathe a sigh of relief as I sat down on the train.
At the train station in Bordeaux, all Julien’s family was there to meet me. We squished into their car and drove only ten minutes, as they lived in a “suburb” of the larger town. Here’s a map of Bordeaux area:
Once we arrived at their home, I was given time to freshen up while they prepared dinner. We ate the evening meal then at 10:00, which is typical for Julien’s family and many others in France.
For my first day, the family took me 60km away from Bordeaux to “La Dune du Pilat”, the highest dune in Europe. It stands at 110 meters above sea level:
And spans about 3km along the Atlantic coast:
We had a lovely picnic of goat cheese & cucumber sandwiches and mini quiches! Names from left to right: Marc, Julien, Ederne, Oriane, and Aude
Here’s some more information about the dune for those who are curious: http://www.azurwelcomeservices.com/eng/news.php?id=41
From the dune one can also see the “Landes de Gascogne”, a very large forest in France:
The kids had lots of fun playing in the sand:
For my second day, we visited the city proper of Bordeaux. Aude, Julien’s wife, was my tour guide throughout the trip. Mostly in French, however, so I had to concentrate to keep up. She would break into English when I didn’t understand something, but was understandably more comfortable in her mother tongue.
We first saw the "Place des Quinconces”:
Luckily there was a plaque in English for my benefit, and it also saves me some time now in explaining it to you all. In short, it marked the Charles VII's victory of obtaining Bordeaux from the British:
Next onto the "Place de la Bourse", the main square in Bordeaux. Julien described the following as a "water mirror", but it is known more formally as the "Miroir des Quais":
The "Place de la Bourse" either manages or used to manage wine commerce in France. Today, it is also the home of the Bordeaux Wine Celebration every two years.
Ederne hitching a ride again:
A very old covered shopping area. Parts of the ceilings were reminiscent of L'Arc de Triomphe:
The streets:
The fashion:
The... Apple store??
When we returned to their home, I shared the cherished American pastime of making brownies with Oriane, as it was her birthday:
They turned out pretty well, considering. And just like in the US, anything with chocolate goes over pretty well with kids!
Surprising French fact: whereas in the US, driving lessons cost $300-$400, driving lessons in France cost around 4000€ !!!
Suffice to say, I had a wonderful time in Bordeaux. Julien's family was lovely, even if all their activities and French speaking did tire me out. But no time to rest, it's just a train ride away to Clermont-l'Hérault!
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