Here in Germany, we are already leaving summer in our rearview mirror. Temperatures are beginning to drop, days are becoming noticeably shorter, the commissary is consistently out of canned pumpkin--fall is truly upon us! So, it seems only right to talk about what I did on my summer vacations! It was perhaps the busiest summer of my life. From the south of France, to the Alps in Germany, from the Baltic coast to the Dalmation, I managed to hit twelve countries in a little less than three months. Then I came home and was immediately struck down with the absolute worst cold I have ever experienced. Two weeks straight of voicelessness, hacking coughs, an excruciatingly sore throat and fevers. But now, at long last, the time has come to recap my summer sojourns--before I forget everything completely!
Choosing completely at random, I'll start with my sisters' trip to Provence at the beginning of August. My sis and I ditched Colby and absconded with the girls for an exotic, ruins-filled trip to the Mediterranean coast. We stayed in a beautiful apartment in Marseille for the week, using it as a base to explore the city and the surrounding areas. Having already experienced the French Riviera for a week last summer, we zeroed in on western Provence, and I must say, I found it far more interesting and worthwhile than the Cote d'Azur. (Though the infinity pool and views of the cerulean Med from our vacation home last year are essentially unbeatable for relaxation purposes.)
Marseille has gotten itself a pretty negative reputation in the vacationing world, but both my sister and I fell in love with it. While it is certainly quite different from the surrounding quaintness that is the calling card of most Provencal villages, we loved the hum of electricity that buzzed through the town, the exotic, enthralling miasma of Turkish, African, Mediterranean and European culture. On our first day we visited the Arab market, a Tunisian bakery, the waterfront, La Charité Museum, the Cathédrale de la Nouvelle Major, and took in the view of the majestic Notre Dame de la Garde, perched on the highest point in Marseille.
We also had a bit of an adventure when a not so slick pickpocket strolled casually by us while we were consulting a map and attempted to palm my sister's cell phone. Eagle eyed, bold as brass Brittany spotted the move instantly and tore off after the guy, grabbing his wrist and wresting the phone back from him with a snarl as I shouted "Nice try!" from the safety of 10 feet back! Hoo boy, it is always something when you're traveling!
The next day, we headed out into the countryside to visit the Pont du Gard, a 2000 year old Roman aqueduct. The entire aqueduct was once 31 miles long, and ran largely underground, but this bridge is the only portion remaining today, preserved after the fall of the Roman Empire largely due to its purpose as a toll bridge and now as a UNESCO Heritage site. Incredibly, this bridge still stands without mortar, and up until the year 2000, traffic still flowed across it. Now, traffic has been diverted, there are gorgeous visitor's centers, a lovely beach area and it is among France's most visited tourist attractions.
We continued our tour of Roman history with a stop in Orange to visit the Théâtre antique d'Orange, one of the best preserved Roman theaters still in existence. It was built early in the 1st century AD and functioned through 391 AD when it was abandoned due to an edict from the Christian church. It went on to become a defensive structure during the Middle Ages, a refuge for townspeople during the religious wars of the 16th century, and now functions once again as a theater and major tourist draw. Before entering the theater, we hid out from some bad weather in a charming cafe, then when the coast was clear, entered the theater just in time to catch an orchestra practicing for a performance taking place later that night. History and a show--what could be better!
Ahead of us was still a visit with the former Palace of the Popes, communing with Vincent Van Gogh and a surreal visit to the red rock, Southwesternish village that we dubbed "New Franxico", but I'll save that for my next installment of the travel journal! À bientôt
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