Post #3

Okay so we leave for Paris in 2 days and I am so excited. There is so much that I want to do in Paris and I also could use some extra cash. I burned so much money on food and wine that its ridiculous. I rode a roller coaster in Albi that coasted me five euros, plus I paid my friend's admission ticket. It was a blast though. I am probably the only person here who never uses skpe to talk to my parents. Everyone else skypes their parents at least once every day or every other day and I find it so annoying. We are college students for crying out loud. I hope we can handle one semester without skpying Mommy every five minutes. I learned so much about architecture through my required readings and the papers I had to write. I love to art field so much and once I am back in Philadelphia I will definitely revisit some of the city's museums and cathedrals. My roommate Will plays his guitars nonstop but its okay because I am getting used to it and some of his songs actually sound good. I am not completely sure what I am doing for spring break yet but once I know whatever it is it will be a blast. I have a huge French exam tomorrow and I hope I do well in it considering the fact that I studied for two hours for it. That is all I can think of for right now. Talk to you soon.

Post #2

Okay. I have the complete list of everywhere we have been thus far. For our excursions, we have visited the St Cecelia Cathedral in Albi. I thought it was amazing and the art inside was incredible. We also checked out Saint Raymond Museum in Toulouse, and the Dominican houses which are also in Toulouse. The next week we checked out the Cathedral of Sainte Foy de Conques. Then on down to a small town called Moissac which is known for its artistic heritage and I learned a ton about analyzing sculptors and art. I never actually stopped and gazed at art and sculptors back in the USA to try and figure out the meaning behind them. Then we booked it for Carcassonne, which is a fortified city. This was by far my favorite excursion because I could actually picture myself living in with the castle walls centuries ago. It was amazing and I loved the view from the castle. We then checked out the Church within the city and I learned that religious figures are always buried with their feet pointing east because according to biblical tradition Jesus will come from the east, hence the reason why the feet is pointing towards Jesus. This one guy was buried but we noticed his clothes were not wrinkled and the reason for this is because he was apparently standing in line waiting for Jesus to arrive, despite the fact that he is depicted buried. I found all of this intriguing. We checked out more Cathar castles and then visited the Cistercian Abbey of Fontfroide, which was an old monastery where monks used to live until the Black Death wiped out the majority of them. I was half sleepy during that trip and dozed on and off while touring it. I did not like it too much. We also checked out the WW II Resistance museum and learned firsthand how average French and Jewish civilians worked together to try and resist Nazi German occupation and invasion. We then traveled to a small town called Gaillac which is known historically for their wine making but unfortunately technology and modern innovation put them out of business. I can’t say it’s a bad thing though. We met some French students there studying to become wine makers themselves and they came to our home monastery to hold a wine tasting ceremony for us. I somehow got slightly buzzed from this event. We then challenged them to a wine drinking competition at dinner in which they one but at least we were all drunk. They then sung the French national anthem and we sung the American national anthem. It was fun. One of the French girls kept staring at me weirdly. I’m not sure what that was about. A few days later in Albi we visited our professor Gerald’s house and ate out on the balcony. I love the way the French live.

First Blog

Alright France has been exciting so far. But Barcelona was incredible as well. After checking out amazing paintings at the Picasso and Dali museums, we toured the city and played with a gold statute guy. We then checked out the clubs and hung out in the Hostel lounge where we met two gold digging American girls from the actual city of Columbine Colorado. We partied all over town and checked out the beach. It was amazing. In France so far we have visited so many Cathedrals that I cannot remember the name of half of them. All I know is that they have relics and rounded arches symbolize Roman influence and pointed arches at the top symbolize Gothic architectural style. I also met a girl in France who has actually been to Antarctica, which I thought was amazing. I am slowly picking up on French day by day but I miss American food a lot. I enjoy visiting the city of Albi on weekends, especially since there are so many hot French girls there. I want to rent a scooter bike so badly and just go cruising around the city. I also lived with a French couple for a day and it was fun. They took me to the city of Toulouse for an Ultimate Frisbee competition and I met their 22 year old granddaughter. They also took me to a church called Rabastens, a town called Cordes, Sylvanes, and Saint Affrique. I also visited an abandoned village called Combret, which I thought was an amazing place. I also ate some authentic French cuisine called "Choux Farci", which is some form of vegetable wrapped over a strange brown meat. It was quite tasty I admit. I learned about the local indigenous but Romance language descendants groups of people living in South France called Occitans, who want greater recognition and respect in France for their culture and history. I think France is perhaps the most gorgeous country I have ever seen. I love the friendly atmosphere, something I am not used to in Philadelphia or anywhere in the USA. The French seem very intrigued every time I tell them I am from the USA. I love conversing with those that can speak English because they teach me so much about France that I did not know. Apparently the French view Americans as fat, obnoxious, and too eager to engage in war. I cannot wait to go to Paris. I want to climb the Eiffel tower and tour the best city in Europe. I do not understand why many French people in Southern France do not like Paris. Its strange but I plan on finding the true reason. Everyday that I can go out and view the mountains from the monastery is a blessing, because I know this is a once in a lifetime experience. I do not even miss television while I am here. We were able to watch the Superbowl however despite having very poor quality internet connection at the time. I was disappointed with the Colts 4th quarter performance. This trip has been amazing thus far and can only get better from here. I cannot wait.