Allemagne

When I was thirteen, my mother planned a vacation to Germany to visit my Aunt Ruth, but I refused to go because I thought I hated Germany after getting in a big fight with a German boy when our family friends visited us in the States. Now, 8ish years later, I finally made my first trip to Germany, and my Aunt Ruth took me to all the same sites that the rest of my family has already seen and visited. And of course I fell in love with it. Not just because it was so much fun to see my Aunt (who’s not technically my Aunt, but a really old family friend to lived with my grandparents when she studied in the states in highschool – yay exchange students!), but also because Germany is AMAZING. It’s kind of funny, because it makes me wonder how different my life might have been if I had just gone on that one family vacation back in middle school – what if I had chosen to study German, and had never gone to Italy or all the subsequent decisions that all stemmed from that year? It’s kind of a head trip.

The funniest thing about Germany was the food. (Really, food seems to be the only thing American’s abroad ever talk about!) As I was leaving for the weekend, my French host family made a comment about I was going to eat such “strong” German food – you know, the ideas of sauerkraut and mustard and sausages and all that. The first thing we did when I got off the train in Mainz was go out to eat…. At an Italian place. Except for some amazing Reisling wine and some white asparagus, I hardly ate any traditionally German food in Germany. Luckily, the Germans have embraced (what I consider) “normal food” – they even had salsa at the grocery store! It’s funny, because there is a lot of “German” food in Lorraine and Alsace because we have such a long history with Germany – here we put mustard on our white asparagus, and serve sauerkraut with our meat.

Oh yeah, the French /German history. Lorraine and Alsace have both been part of Germany; I think they’ve changed hands something like five times in the last 200 years. And Mainz, where my Aunt lives, has also been occupied by France at various points in history. There’s even this statue we saw by the Rhine, that’s up on a hill shaking her fist in defiance in the direction of France. (Apparently, this was the German version of the Statue of Liberty, but it is of course considered very politically incorrect now. But still cool to see).

With such a long history of animosity, I have been really surprised to discover how strong relations are between the two countries are currently. Nancy has the Franco-Allemande campus of one of France’s prestigious universities – ie all the classes at this school are taught in French and German, and all students are fluent in both languages, as well as half of the students are from Germany, and the French students are required to study abroad in Germany in their 3rd year. We don’t even have that good of a rapport with Canada, and we’ve never been to war against them! (wait, have we?). My Aunt (who knows EVERYTHING), explained that this was a conscious effort after by the powers that be after WWII, and that the Marshall plan was also integral in all of this because it forced all of the states to cooperate if they wanted aide. Plus, it helped that they had communism to all unite against.

Aunt Ruth and I in Heidelberg

The Sun Also Rises

I know... the title's corny. But its kind of my favorite book, and really, what better sums up a spring break that included watching bullfights in the south, and drinking in Paris?

Let me back up a bit.
I spent the last two weeks backpacking around Northern Italy, Southern France, Paris, and Geneva(Switzerland). I traveled alone, which wasn't as scary or pathetic as it seems (I always feel the need to explain my decision to travel alone, but it was actually a lot of fun - I recommend you try it at some point in your life). I adore backpacker culture, but I always feel like a bit of a fraud when I show up in a hostel with my backpack; I've never done a really long term trip, and I always meet people doing their grand tour of 6 months to a year. Anyway.

Cinque Terre in Northern Italy was the first stop on my trip. It was absolutely amazing, and all I could think about the entire time was "how have I never been here before" (you know... that whole thing where I lived in Italy for a year). It had everything I could ever want in life; hiking trails, good food, chill people, ocean to swim in, and Italian to be bad at (once again... that thing where I lived in Italy for a year - too bad when I try to speak Italian it all comes out in French now.)
(this is me watching the sunset in Cinque Terre with a couple of Aussies)


I then headed back up the coast to Nice and Monaco. The coastline is beautiful, but Nice is kind of dirty, and I'm just way to poor to ever spend more than an afternoon in Monaco. Monaco is technically a sovereign state, despite being only about 1 square mile large (the second smallest principality in the world after Vatican City). The roads are so sharp and twisty: I can't imagine how that racing grand prix takes place there. I did play /waste 5 euro on my first ever slot machine in the Monte Carlo casino in Monaco, which I'm sure my father's-las vegas-loving-side of the family would be proud of.
(This is Monaco being super glamorous)


Next I headed west to Provence, to Arles and Avignon. Avignon is a beautiful little city, with a Palais des Papes which kicks Viterbo's Palazzo Papale's ass. (Both cities were temporary residence's of the Pope during unrest in Rome back in the day). The real highlight of Provence was Arles. It has a bunch of Roman ruins and Van Gogh painted over 200 canvases there, which would be enough to merit a visit anyway. But when I arrived, I discovered that it was the beginning of the Feria de Paques (Easter Festival), and the whole town was alive with the bullfighting spirit. I went to several events, most of which involved teenage boys proving their manliness by running around with bulls, but the real event was definitely the Corrida. The Corrida consisted of 2 bullfighters who each killed 3 bulls over the course of the evening. Its a really powerful thing to watch, and I was completely captivated by the elegance of it. Its hard to justify it against the cruelty of the fate of the bulls, but the entire spectacle is equally mesmerizing as it is horrible to watch. I kind of loved it. (Even though the Frenchies next to me were worried I was going to throw up at one point).
(this is some bad ass bullfighting in Arles)


In Paris I met up with my program and ran wild with my American friends. It felt a bit bratty to be running around speaking English with such a large group, even as we sneered at other tourists for being "SO American". Oh well, I guess that's why I live in Nancy, not Paris.
(I don't think this one needs an explanation)


I spent the last part of break in Geneva Switzerland. Geneva is pretty much my ideal city. Its home to over 200 international organizations and NGOS, and I got to tour the United Nations and the red cross museum. The city is really friendly and small, and right on lake Geneva. I spent a good deal of time just sitting by the water and biking along the shore. I don't know if my love for lakes is nature (their effing pretty!) or nurture (I'm a summer camp kid - most of the best times of my life have taken place by the water) but I love lakes. Not to mention all of the amazing food and CHOCOLATE everywhere. And there was even a Starbucks as a guilty pleasure American indulgence (god I miss double tall cappuccinos).
(this is why I love Geneva)


Now its back to real life in Nancy! It feels good to be home and see my host family. I like being back in my own bed and remembering how much more French I still have to learn while trying to follow along at dinner.
I still have classes until the beginning of June, and then I'm moving to Strasbourg for the summer to do an internship. woohoo!