Provence et Le Côte d'Azur - ç'est magnifique!

In case the translation of my title isn't apparent, I'll state in English that our first visit to the south of France was wonderful, and I wasn't ready to leave!! It's a big region with so much to offer, and the five days we spent there barely felt like enough to scratch the surface. I'll try to sum it up by day so I don't forget anything, because we really did see a lot.

Day 1: We arrived in Nîmes late Thursday night, so Friday was our first day in the region, and that was the day the Tour de France passed through town. I'll post some stuff about the tour tomorrow, but before the tour events we had the first part of the day to explore the city. Nîmes was an important city in ancient Rome, and as a result it has some very old and well-preserved Roman ruins. We visited two of the three big sites (Maison Carée and Tour Magne, pictured), but unfortunately we ran out of time and didn't get to go into the Arena. It was quite a hike to the Tour Magne, but the view over the town, and the gardens we saw on the way there were well worth the effort!


Day 2: We picked up the car first thing in the morning and drove to Pont du Gard (pictured), the site of one of the largest and best preserved Roman aqueduct bridges in the world. It's a popular site (translation: touristy!) and gets crowded during the day, but we arrived just before 10 AM and left just as the crowds were arriving - smart move!
After that we headed towards Antibes/Juan-les-Pins, twin coastal towns a few miles west of Nice and our home base for the next three nights. We arrived in mid-afternoon, got settled into our lodging and headed for the beach in Juan-les-Pins, followed by a leisurely evening in town. It's a nice beach town with good dining and nightlife, but the beach left a little bit to be desired - it was sandy and attractive, but also narrow and crowded.

Day 3: This day we walked over the hill to Antibes, and checked out its cool Old Town, Picasso Museum (we had no idea at the time, but it was the first day it reopened after being closed for well over a year for renovations - as a result we got in free!), and a great little uncrowded beach tucked into a corner of the Old Town. The weather wasn't ideal this day, with clouds and a few showers, but we still got some sun and enjoyed a bit of R&R. (Pictures: beach in Old Town, looking into Old Town from the beach)

Provence et Le Côte d'Azur - ç'est magnifique! (Part 2)

Day 4: "Drive the coast day". In a single day, we visited Nice, Monaco, Ventimiglia (Italy) and Cannes, and drove every stretch of coast in between! I don't know whether I'd recommend doing this to others or not - for us it was okay because we had a limited amount of time and didn't mind spending a decent part of the day driving. However, the amount of distance we covered meant that we only got to spend about 1 1/2 hours in each place (except for Cannes, where we went for dinner followed by a fireworks display that was part of a competition - it was cool!), and it was a long day. Still, it was a great way to get a small flavor of each place, so that if we go back we'll know which places we'll really want to linger and spend some time (more on my thoughts there in a moment). (Pictures: rocky beach in Nice, view from the drive from Nice to Monaco, Cannes sunset view)





Day 5: We checked out of our lodging in Juan-les-Pins and spent the day driving back to Nîmes. We headed west, past Cannes and into the smaller beach communities that lie between Cannes and Saint Tropez. The drive along the coast is slow going, with windy roads that go through the center of towns with their accompanying pedestrians and local traffic, so we only made it part of the way to Saint Tropez before we headed inland and caught the Autoroute (highway) so we could get back to Nîmes in time to return the car. We stopped in a great little town called Anthéor (pictured), a beautiful spot with red cliffs, sandy beach and low-key atmosphere, where we spent our last few hours on the beach and had a nice lunch. We arrived back in Nîmes around 6:30 PM, and our train back to Brussels was the next morning. (Pictures: two views of Anthéor)




Observations:
-The French Riviera has a little bit of everthing; beaches (sandy and rocky), hills, modern cities, old towns, high fashion and a lot of seriously rich people!
-As a general rule, most of the beaches east of Antibes (Nice to the Italian border) are rocky, so if you're looking for fine sand, look to the west!
-The well-known towns/cities in the region (meaning practically every inch of land in between Cannes and the Italian border) are CROWDED!! If you know that going in you'll enjoy all the different flavors of each city, but if you go there expecting an idyllic, relaxing beach vacation you'll probably be disappointed.
-If you ARE looking for said idyllic, relaxing beach vacation, head for one of the small, lesser-known communities west of Cannes. After all the hustle and bustle of Nice, Monaco, etc., this part of the coast was refreshing, and was a surprise favorite for me. The air and water are clearer too, as a result of less people and traffic!
-Ventimiglia (just across the Italian border) was unfortunately a dissapointment. The town wasn't terribly attractive, the beach was super rocky (killed our feet to go in the water!) and absolutely crawling with hawkers trying to sell you stuff. Seriously, we were on the beach for maybe 30 minutes, and we had at least six different people trying to sell us hats, jewelry, sunglasses, you name it...really annoying. The water also got deep REALLY fast, with relatively strong currents to go with it. Ayzsha had some gelato which she said was great, but other than that it was not worth the drive.
-Off the beach, the inland towns and cities of the region have a lot to offer as well. We only had time to visit Nîmes and the Pont du Gard aqueduct, but there are innumerable cities, hill towns and natural sites, enough that I'm not even sure a few months would allow time to see it all!
-If you like good food and wine, you will LOVE it here! We had some awesome meals, and I tried some of the local wines, which were very good as well. The inland area around the city of Grasse (just north of Antibes) is also famous for fragrances and perfumes.

We need a miracle!!!

We got back from the south of France yesterday (which was GREAT by the way - more on that tomorrow, including pictures - I promise!), and Carl's niece Ayzsha flew home this morning, so we are at home and by ourselves again, with the due date for Carl's dissertation quickly approaching. Seventeen days and counting!!

I haven't mentioned much lately about our status here in Belgium, partly because I didn't have anything definitive to report, but also because I didn't want to jinx an opportunity that had recently presented itself. Carl had a job interview a few weeks ago, with a trade association here in Brussels, much like the one he worked for in his internship. We just found out today that he he did not get the position (their loss!), and although both of us have applied for a number of other jobs, we don't currently have any other imminent prospects. That means that we must now begin making preparations to return to the United States in a little over a month's time. We can legally remain in Belgium until the end of October, but our dwindling resources make it rather imprudent to do so. We're disappointed for sure, but by no means does that mean we're giving up on our hopes of remaining in (or perhaps coming back to) Europe. We're continuing to think positively, but we're also prepared to accept that perhaps it just wasn't meant to be...and if that's the case, that'll be okay. Still, keep your fingers crossed, pray, think happy thoughts - whatever you do to bring good things, maybe send a little bit of it our way!

The Latest Happenings

I gave my first "on my own" English lessons today - three of them to be exact. They went very well; teaching is actually easier than I thought it would be! Obviously I know the subject matter, but knowing something and knowing how to teach it to someone are two different things. I'll admit that I was a bit nervous about whether I'd be able to explain things clearly, come up with good examples to practice with the students, and generally think on my feet. I feel pretty confident now though, and I think I'm going to enjoy the experience.

It's interesting, the perspective you gain on your own language when you teach it to someone else. You start to notice all the idiosyncratic, non-intuitive things in English that you've never really thought about, because you just take them for granted as obvious...for instance, why is the plural form of knife 'knives' and not just 'knifes'? Anyway, its interesting to see the things that people find difficult about learning English as a second language, and did I mention the money's not bad either?

So on to other happenings...Carl's niece has been with us since Saturday, and we've been having a great time showing her around the country (we even took her into Germany a bit on Sunday!) and introducing to some of our friends here. Tomorrow evening we're off to France, first to Nîmes and then Antibes/Nice. I couldn't be more excited to get some warm weather and water, and also just to get back to France! We'll be there until next Wednesday, so look for a trip report by next Thursday at the latest. Au revoir!

Bad News for Belgium

Hi everyone! I'll write more tomorrow about what's going on with us, but for now I wanted to tell you about some big (and unfortunately not good) political news out of Belgium today. I copied the following article from the BBC website...

Belgian PM offers his resignation

Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme has tendered his government's resignation to the king after failing to carry out political reforms. Mr Leterme had set a 15 July deadline to push through measures to devolve more power to the regions. He took office in March - after nine months of political deadlock - as the head of a coalition of Dutch and French-speaking parties.
King Albert II has yet to decide whether to accept the resignation. The government coalition includes Mr Leterme's Flemish Christian Democrats from the north as well as Socialists from the French-speaking region of Wallonia in the south.

The prime minister was due to present a state reform deal in a speech to parliament on Tuesday. Before last June's general election, Mr Leterme had promised his supporters even more devolved powers for regional governments in a country that is already Europe's most decentralised state. In French-speaking Wallonia - where unemployment is higher and the economy sluggish - there are fears this would leave their region worse off. "It appears that the communities' conflicting visions of how to give a new equilibrium to our state have become incompatible," Mr Leterme said in a statement. He added that "state reform remains essential".

His French-speaking coalition partners said they hoped the government could be kept together. "I think we still have time to find a solution in the hours and next few days within the framework of what we already have," said Deputy Prime Minister Didier Reynders. "Otherwise we'll have to look for something else." "The king now has to be given time to consult a number of people. It's far too early to say what will happen next." The newspapers reflected the atmosphere under headlines like "Total Chaos". "No one can predict what is going to happen now," said the centre-left daily De Morgen.

Belgium's Dutch and French-speaking communities seem to exist side-by-side, but with little interaction, says the BBC's Dominic Hughes in Brussels. No single party bridges the linguistic and geographic gulf between Belgium's two regions. Traditionally, the prime minister comes from one of the majority Flemish parties.


DIVIDED BELGIUM
-Three federal regions: Dutch-speaking Flanders in the north; French-speaking Wallonia in the south (which has a German-speaking minority); Brussels, the capital, officially bilingual
-Federal state has national responsibility for justice, defence, federal police, social security, nuclear energy, monetary policy
-Regional governments oversee education, employment, agriculture, transport, environment

Summer Runnin'...

had us a blast!! :-)

We did have a good time actually, as the pictures kinda show. We went to Bruges/Brugge on Sunday afternoon, to run in the "Guldensporen 10 Mijl van Vlaanderen" (sorry but the link is in French and Dutch only). The race was at 3:00 PM, which was nice because it's an hour long train ride to get there, so we fortunately didn't have to get up really early! Our friend Margaret ran as well, and we did pretty well - all three of us finished in the 95-97 minute range, which means we ran between 9:30 and 9:45 per mile. Not very fast, but respectable, and we're pretty happy with it!

Our running "calendar" is now empty as we wait to figure out where we're going to be come September. If we stay here we have our eyes on an early November marathon that runs along the coast from Nice to Cannes in France...I know, another one already?!?! I was a little reluctant to do another so soon, but the opportunity to run in such a beautiful place isn't one I can turn down easily!

Oh, and a follow-up on the 4th of July party last Friday. It went well, we had a group of about 20 turn out and there was lots of food, beer and Wii Guitar Hero (yes, thanks to the generosity of Carl's sister we now have a Wii - more on that in a later post). I was a total lame-o of course and took only a couple of photos, none of which really turned out. Sorry to have fallen down on the job there!!

We're having a...

PARTY!!!!

(you didn't think I was going to say "baby", did ya??) :-)

In honor of American Independence Day tomorrow we are hosting our first party here in Brussels! It seemed appropriate since we've attended quite a few get-togethers hosted by others...we figured it's our turn to host! Our place isn't large but I think it'll be fine for the 18-25 people we're expecting. Everyone is bringing something so I don't have to do too much cooking, and we also have a good-sized balcony on which we'll be able to cook with a borrowed hibachi grill. Should be fun!!

So between prepping the apartment, buying all the stuff we need and going to our three-hour French class tomorrow morning, the next 24 hours are going to be VERY busy! We're also attending a birthday picnic on Saturday afternoon, and running in a 10-mile race in Bruges on Sunday afternoon...what were we thinking when we scheduled that?!?!

Other upcoming events: Carl's niece Ayzsha arrives next Saturday! She'll be here in Brussels with us until Thursday, when the three of us board a train to Nîmes, in the south of France. We'll be there two nights, then we're off to Antibes (just west of Nice) for three nights, then one more night in Nîmes before taking the train back here on the 23rd. We're so excited, especially because one of the nights we're in Nîmes the Tour de France will be stopping there! So if you watch the coverage, look for us in the crowd at the end of the stage on July 18th!!

Carl's internship ends on the 17th (the day we head to France), so when we get back and Ayzsha departs, it'll be time for him to focus, FOCUS, FOCUS on finishing his dissertation! It's due August 11th and he's got a decent start on it already, so it shouldn't be a problem...it's still a lot of work though! During that time I'll have several students going with my English teaching as well, so it will be a busy month. My dad and his wife Cathryn arrive the same day that Carl's dissertation is due too, so it'll be nice to celebrate this milestone with them!

Needless to say we've got a busy two months ahead of us...it's exciting though, and we're enjoying every minute of it!!