Home Sweet Vergons

From La Turbie we headed higher into the mountains, winding our way to the tiny village of Vergons, which would be our home for the next several nights.  I was conducting an experiment on the way to Vergons.  I know that I am prone to motion sickness, so I stocked up on supplies before leaving home.  In addition to the pills that I know work for me, I picked up these bracelets called Sea Bands, which are supposed to use acupuncture therapy to ease the symptoms of motion sickness.  Alas, I learned that they really don't work for me at all.  Thankfully Vergons was not around one more bend in the road and I made it there without getting sick, but I will not be using them again.  Sticking with what I know works!

We were introduced to our Gîte - sort of like a hostel, but much nicer.  Alas, I never did remember to take a picture of this one.  It was attached to and mostly above the Mayor's office.  It had two bedrooms with bunk beds for four people each, a sitting/dining room with a large table with benches and a double bed, a small kitchen with a table, bathroom with sink and shower, and separate bathroom with the toilet.  Since there were five girls and three guys staying here I ended up with the double bed all to myself!  The other four guys had a Gite to themselves on the other side of town.  After we all settled in, we headed off to explore Vergons, specifically to climb the hill with the sixteenth century shrine located at the top the hill on the east side of the village.

Me at the top of the hill

What an amazing view this offered. The wind almost blew us away it was so strong, but we were able to hear the whistling pine trees that grew in the area.  I've heard of them before, but it was neat to see and hear them for real.

View of the Shrine - Vergons is down the hill behind it

Bryce playing Boules

 When we came down from the hill, a game of Boule ensued.  Girls (Minda, Erica, and myself) vs. guys (Tim, Bryce, and David).  It was close for a while and Michel was doing the best he could to help everyone play the game better, but in the end the guys won.  I love this game!  I had learned to play it with my friends in Le Bourget in 2009 (only we called it petanque) and was excited to have the opportunity to play again.  This was just the first of many games throughout our trip.

Cindy, Marissa, Cullen, and Dr. O'Brien watching the game

Following our game of Boule, we headed to the local restaurant (which you can see in the background behind the Boule pit), enjoyed our dinner and then headed back to the gites for homework and bed.  

For additional photos of our first day in Vergons click here.

La Trophee des Alpes a La Turbie

Saturday 19 May 2012

I slept poorly that first night - as I expected, between jet lag and not being able to sleep well in new places, I knew it would be an interesting evening.  Tim and I made another run to the local grocery store for some breakfast items.  I learned that you must weigh your fruit before going to the check out.  Otherwise you either do not buy it or you have to go back.  Interesting process and difference between France and the US. Tim, Cindy, Marissa, Erica, Minda, Bryce, and myself took the shuttle back to the airport to meet the rest of the group.  This time I did remember to exchange my money. :)  Much better prepared to explore France now that I had money.  Most of the group met up fairly quickly - we had to wait a bit for David and Nathan. Their walk from the hostel they stayed at was much longer than they thought and they underestimated the amount of time it would take them.  Once we were all loaded up we headed out of Nice and our study abroad experience was officially started.

I tried to enjoy the view out the window of the bus, but there is something about moving vehicles that puts me straight to sleep, so I actually did not get to see too much.  Our first stop was Carrefour, which I thought was a town until it was pointed out to me that it was the name of the really, really large hypermarket store.  You name it they had it - its like their version of Walmart, only this particular store was absolutely huge!  Our mission was to purchase items for breakfast and lunch for our time in Vergons, as there was no store of any sort there.  A few of us hit the buffet in the mall for lunch.  In stead of getting your food first, you order your food, get a ticket and deliver the ticket to the grill where they make your meal.  Interesting process, but it works.  Buffets in a mall in France is very similar to at home - lots of families with small children who have meltdowns, but eh what can you do?

From Carrefour we took the bus to La Turbie.  Now La Turbie is a modern city with ancient beginnings and the roads were defiantly not designed for a large coach bus to enter on.  Giles, our driver, had to get creative on where to drop us off and hang out while waiting for us to come back.  He somehow made it work.  La Turbie itself provides an amazing view of the Mediterranean Sea and of the city of Monaco.

View of Monaco from La Turbie

Our destination in La Turbie was not actually the town itself, but the Trophee des Alpes a La Turbie, a very large monument built by the Romans in honor of Emperor Augustus following the Roman victory over the Gauls living in what is now Southern France.  It was dedicated in 7-6 B.C.  It stood on the hill for hundreds of years, but slowly was dismantled by the local people to recycle the stone in other buildings.  It was listed as a historical monument in 1860 and restoration was begun in 1905.  Interestingly enough, funds for rebuilding part of the monument were donated by an American named Edward Tuck.

Postcard Picture of the Trophy

The Trophy itself is isolated from the rest of La Turbie by a nice park and grounds with a fence surrounding it.  We were able to have a quick look at the one room museum with the artist rendition of what they think the Trophy may have looked like when it was first built.

What the Trophy may have looked like

Following our time in the museum, we were able to explore the grounds and see the monument for ourselves.  The most impressive part for me was the sheer size of the monument.  Do not let my photographs fool you - it took some creativity to get the whole thing in one picture.  For reference check out what it looks like when I stand next to it.

Cullen and I standing at the base of the Trophy

How on earth were they able to construct such a large monument?  I would be impressed if someone accomplished this feat today, but can you imagine doing this without the aide of modern machines?  The monument was designed to impress, intimidate, and tell the world without words that the Romans conquered the entire people in this land.  You can't read it in the photograph, but the smooth part above our heads is full of the names of the different tribes of Gauls that were conquered by Rome.  Message received - don't mess with Rome!  We were able to climb to the upper part of the monument, but this was not quite as enjoyable as it sounds.  For by this time the rain had arrived and it was windy and wet at the top.  Thankfully it did not last long, but we did not linger at the top.

Before we left La Turbie we walked a little through town, following the part of what was the original Roman Road to the local Catholic Church, seeing the WWI memorial inside before heading back to the bus and continuing on our way to our next destination - the tiny village of Vergons, which would be our home for the next several days.

Archway over the Roman Road.

For more pictures go here.

Detour to Monaco

The long flight from JFK to NCE went fairly well.  A long haul, but being the red eye flight I was able to "sleep" for most of it.  I did watch We Bought A Zoo (which I totally recommend) somewhere in the middle.  We landed at NCE at about 10:30 a.m.  No trouble going through security and they actually even stamped my passport!  I've been to Europe three times now, and I have never gotten my passport stamped on my way in before this.  Always on the way home, but I know I've been to the United States.  Now I have actual proof that I've been somewhere. :)

It took us a little bit, but Cindy, Bryce, and I made it to the hotel.  We took a minor detour to the wrong Novotel location, but they helped us sort it out.  During the time we were checking in, I got a phone call at the front desk - it was Tim, another classmate, he was at the airport and would arrive shortly.  He had found Minda and Erica somewhere along the way.  It was beginning to look like we would find a nice group of classmates even before we officially began.

After we all checked in and had some down time to freshen up we walked over to the train station and began our side adventure to the Principality of Monaco, a sovereign city state located about fifteen miles to the west of Nice.  We learned a couple of interesting lessons while trying to catch the train.  First, our credit cards do not have the necessary chip in them to purchase tickets at the kiosk outside of the train station.  It took about four of us trying it to come to that conclusion.  Second, we had our first taste of town shutting down after the lunch hour.  Eventually the people working inside the office returned and opened their booth and we were able to purchase our tickets.

Once arriving in Monaco, we walked from the train station to the Palais Princier de Monaco - our tourist destination of the day.  Along the way we learned that the Monaco Grand Prix was just around the corner and the city was busy getting ready.

View of the street/racetrack

After climbing a huge hill (we later realized that this was just the first of many during the course of our stay in France) we arrived at the Prince's Palace.  The great thing about being a student is the discounts - 3.50 Euro for a self-guided audio tour.  That helped me out a ton, as I had forgotten to exchange my money when I was at the airport that morning.  We were officially meeting with the group at the airport the next day, so I was not worried about this, but it did I either had to bum from friends or use the little bit of change left in my pockets from the last time I was in France.  The palace had a no photography rule once inside, so alas, no spectacular pictures to show you there, but it was pretty neat.  Absolutly beautiful archetecture, paintings, and furnishings.  Lots of references to Grace Kelly - American  actress turned Princess of Monaco upon her marriage in 1956.  You can tell she is still well loved.  It is her son who is on the throne today.

Me outside of the Prince's Palace

View of the harbor and the Mediterranean Sea

Following our tour and exploring the nearby park, we were exhausted and decided to head back to Nice.  We could not take the train back to the station near our hotel (they did not stop there that late) so we caught a cab at the main station rather than trying to figure out how to catch the bus.  The bus would have been cheaper, but the cab only cost us about 8 Euro a piece, so it was not too bad.  At the hotel we picked up Marissa, who arrived while we were in Monaco, then found a restaurant at the nearby shopping mall and struggled through ordering some dinner.  Our waiter spoke pretty good English and had even heard of Minnesota so it turned out alright.  It was not the best meal, but it worked.  The rest of the evening was spent relaxing at the hotel and attempting to do some last minute homework prior to meeting up with the group the next morning.

The first of many postcards purchased

For more pictures from my day in Monaco click here.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

My study abroad experience officially started on Saturday May 19th, but my adventure actually began a few days earlier.  Wednesday evening, May 16th, I loaded up my car after work and drove the two hours south to my parent's house in Burnsville.  They were to take care of my cat, Harvey, while I was a way and give me a ride to the airport for my flight the next morning.  It is very handy having a father who works there and has to be at work at approximately the same time that I need to be there to make my flight.

My first flight of the day left MSP at about 7:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 17th.  When I checked in there was an error concerning my checked bag, which should be free for international flights, but it was quickly resolved and my credit card refunded.  I just had to re-check it once I arrived at JFK.  One of my classmates, Cindy, was on the same flights as me, so I had someone to chat with while we waited to board.  Amazingly our flight arrived at JFK early and all my airport business was quickly taken care of.

Since Cindy and I had such a long layover, we decided to take the train to the Lower East Site Tenement Museum.  I had heard so many great things about this site and it lived up to its reputation.  A must see if you get the chance.  I really need to go back as we were only able to take one of their tour options.  After a great lunch at a little cafe up the bock, Cindy and I took the "Hard Times" tour at 2:00 p.m.  The tour featured the stories of two families, one from the 1870s and one from the 1930s, and their experience living in the community during hard economic times.  This tour is a version of the site's original tour from when they first opened.

Our guide on the front steps before entering the building.

The tour was well done, but our guide did run a little long, which made us nervous.  We needed to leave as close to 3:00 p.m. as possible to make the train back to the airport in time to get ready for our flight.  Even with the beginning of rush hour traffic, we made it back on time.  We returned to JFK with plenty of time to get through security, grab some dinner, and catch our 7:55 p.m. flight.  Once aboard the airplane, we were pleasantly surprised to find yet another of our classmates aboard.  Bryce was sitting a row behind me and recognized us as we boarded.  He did confess that he double checked our identity by consulting our "mug shot" sheet that the university set out to us.  After some delays on the runway, we were in the air by 9:00 p.m.  I was really headed to France!!!

Let The Adventure Begin

This past fall I learned about an amazing opportunity.  The history department of St. Cloud State University (SCSU), where I am currently a Public History Graduate Student, was leading a short-term study abroad trip to the South of France to study "Ancient & Medieval Southern France" and "Monuments and Memory in France".  How cool would that be to be able to participate in something like this?  I missed my chance to study abroad when I was an undergrad and it has been something I have wished I would have done ever since graduating six years ago.  When else would I have the chance to live in another country, learn its customs and traditions, and truly experience another culture?  I have begun that journey through participating in the Little Falls Sister City Committee and getting to know people from Le Bourget, France, but I want more.  Oh how I wanted to go on this Study Abroad - but I had to overcome one major obstacle.  The three weeks of the trip are the busiest three weeks of the season at the Charles A. Lindbergh Historic Site where I work.  The end of May into early June is the transition period between school season and the regular touring season.  I assumed that this would be the end of my hope, as I could not imagine my boss agreeing to me taking that much vacation at that time.  Well you know what they say about assuming - and I could not have been farther from the truth about my boss' reaction.  While he was not thrilled with the timing, he too loves traveling and experiencing other cultures and agreed that this would be an amazing opportunity for me.  France was a reality.

After months of planning, I had an amazing experience abroad.  My adventure began on May 17th, 2012, and I am so glad for each moment of it.  I left behind the worries and cares (mostly anyways) of work and life in general and soaked up each moment with new friends in spectacular places.  To not be in contact with the rest of the world 24/7 through internet and social media - provided a respite and reminded me that I can live without some of my favorite pieces of technology that have ever increasingly consume my time and energy.  To go three weeks with only watching tv once, checking email when I could mooch some free wifi, and going cold turkey on facebook game - oh how wonderful.  I traded them in for competitive games of Carcassonne, climbing mountains to discover ruins of medieval castles and cities.

Since so many wish to hear my tales of adventure, mishap, and fun - I figured a blog would be the easiest way to capture and share my experience and stories.  So come along with me as I relive my adventure in Discovering Undiscovered France!