An Update from Aix

Bonjour!

I cannot believe that I have already been in Aix-en-Provence for almost a month! At times, it feels like I just stepped off the plane and got into the tiny, orange Citroen waiting for me outside of the Marseille Airport. Other times, I feel as though I have lived here for months – I have my routine, I am making friends, and I even know a few store owners in town!

Multi-storied apartment houses with allies inbetween.

However, it was not an easy road for me to achieve the comfort level and joy I have today.

The first three days after I arrived in Aix may have been the hardest three days of my life. The homesickness, anxiety, and confusion I felt were so powerful and at times, they were completely debilitating. At the time, I wanted to go home more than anything in the world.

I only say this because I promised to be totally honest in my blogs. I am not trying to deter future study abroad students, and I certainly do not want anyone to think that Aix isn’t a wonderful place to live. I just want to highlight the fact that if you are not mentally prepared enough to leave your home, your family, and your life as you know it and being again somewhere completely foreign, it will hit you like a ton of bricks… and boy does that hurt.

However, I have discovered that the key is to take it one day at a time. After the first three days, things really started to turn around for me. The Institute for American Universities (IAU) was so supportive, empathetic, informative and helpful. They understood exactly what I was enduring, and they could assure me that I was going to be OK. (Which reminds me, if you are planning to go to IAU, I highly recommend participating in the Early Start Program. It presents you with an opportunity to learn about the school, the city, and to explore the surrounding towns… it also happens to be a great time to get your homesick/shock-induced meltdowns out and over with before classes begin! Wahoo!!)

As a group, the Early Start Program took us to the Mediterranean Sea, to Chateau du Seuil (a winery), to a cooking class, to the city of Avignon, to the city of Beau de Provence, on a hike to Lac Zola, and to the wonderful food and clothing market on the Cours Mirabeau in Aix’s city center. In retrospect, the week and a half after we arrived in Aix could not have been choreographed any better. All of the activities served as a welcomed distraction from the slew of emotions I was experiencing, and by the end of the week, I felt like myself again. Additionally, I was eager to get started with classes and begin establishing a routine! Everyday got a little easier, I felt less and less overwhelmed, and I could feel my excitement for this incredible opportunity building up inside of me.

Cassidy with green trees in the background.

As of today, I am writing you from a small café in the city center. I have a hot lemon lavender tea, a freshly baked baguette, fresh raspberry jam from the market, and the sun is shining on my face. I am SO happy!

What a whirlwind of emotions, right?!  But what is the good without some bad? I’m a firm believer that there is balance in everything, and that there is something beneficial to take away from both the happy and the sad times. I have learned a lot about myself, how to have patience, how to endure the hard times, how to lean on the people that you love, and how to live and learn without giving up and going home.

One last (unrelated) thing. THIS TOWN HAS EYES. Literally! There are plastic googly eyes all over the city on signs, posters, and even the trees! I don’t know if you knew that the French had this kind of humor, but I am here to report that they do! While this succeeds to makes me smile everyday on my walk to and from school, it also reminds me to be observant – to keep my head up, my eyes open and to be present in the moment.

Googly eyes that are on street signs throughout the city of Aix.
Googly eyes that are on street signs throughout the city of Aix.

Until next time!

-Cassidy

Classes and Weekend Adventures

I have finished my first full week of classes at IAU and it has been surprisingly nice to have a routine. It was intimidating at first to walk into a new environment such as this, but it has not been as different as I expected. Class sizes are small and the professors are very personable–just like at Linfield! I was told from previous students that the workload would be small, and although it is not suffocating, there is still a decent amount. What I have found to be really cool about IAU are the staff themselves. They are very diverse and have unique stories of how they ended up where they are today. I have teachers from all over the world, not just France. This is enriching in understanding the cultural diversity that is in Southern France. I have professors from the local city of Marseille and others from outside of Europe such as Iran and Morocco.

On a side note involving school, I would recommend bringing certain school supplies to France if you are as particular as I am. I brought my folders and some pencils but no paper because my professor told me how nice it was here. The quality is great, but it is almost impossible to find lined paper. There is mainly grid paper in France that is longer than standard paper in the U.S. This is because children learn how to write with it and from there they do not switch. The paper is also cheaper in the states. It is not super-inconvenient, but I would have liked someone to tell me that beforehand.

The weekend of September 14th there was a trip associated with IAU to Monaco. You pay for the bus fare, but the rest is provided. We made stops to the palace, Monte Carlo, and a perfumery. There was a good amount of free time at each stop, but I would not do this again just because there are limitations to what can be done and one day is not enough for travel. Although, this is something easy, cheap, and fun if you have a short weekend with a class excursion. Monaco was beautiful and full of color. If you are feeling tight on money but still want to go places, know that IAU sets up fun and cheap trips such as this. (It was only 30 euros!)

Cathedral St. Pierre, Monaco
Cathedral St. Pierre, Monaco
Cathedra Sainte Pierre, Monaco
Cathedral St. Pierre, Monaco
Monaco
Monaco

The weekend of September 21st, I went on my first excursion with my Prehistoric Art and Archaeology course. At IAU they have educational excursions for courses that you are enrolled in. It was seemingly an inconvenience because of wanting to travel with friends on the weekend, but it was actually beneficial in multiple ways. For this trip specifically, we went to the recreation of la Grotte Lascaux (Lascaux Cave). In this cave there was prehistoric art created more than 400,000 years ago. The art was technical and beautiful. It was fascinating to see these creations and try to understand why humans would go into these dark, dangerous caves to create the art. There is no way of knowing why because there was no written language yet, but the theories were fascinating. This experience was also beneficial because I would not have gone to this cave nor this part of France without this push. My advice would be to take advantage of these FREE trips and take everything you can out of it. We also decided to go as close as we could to the actual cave which ended up having beautiful scenery.

Pont d'Arc
Pont d’Arc is a natural bridge over a river that was important for migration/hunting. It is near the site of the actual cave of Lascaux.

Sierra

An Aix-citing week in Aix-en-Provence

It has been a week and a half since being in France and I can already say it has been one of the best experiences. The trip here was long, but be prepared to hit the ground running. When picked up from the airport I was immediately immersed in the French language. Although drained, I was speaking to my host mom in French the whole way home.

The living dynamic in Aix is different from what I expected. I have three housemates and live with a retired couple. We are in a large two-story home with a bathroom the four of us share. I have found that every homestay is different. Some people live in small apartments in the city while others live in more of a suburb-like neighborhood. It is important is to come in with no expectations of the living conditions nor the relationship you will have with your homestay. Some have bonded easily with their homestay family while others have distant hosts. Stay open-minded and eventually you will be settled in. IAU is very accommodating and does the most to make sure the stay is comfortable. For example, all four of us living in the house are vegetarian and our homestay parents cook THE BEST food for our needs.

The early start program is the best way to get adjusted and make friends before school starts. IAU had many activities and practical french classes to help with cultural adjustment. There are also excursions to places such as a vineyard and the beach. This is a great time to make friends and get a taste for the variety of beauty that France has. During class, there are small trips to the market as well. There are food, clothes, and flower markets. I would highly recommend trying the cantaloupe and tomatoes. The produce in general is a lot better than what is in the U.S. and not badly priced. This week of orientation has also helped a lot with my navigation of the city. At first it seems overwhelming and all the streets are the same, but it becomes easy after the week. The early start participants grow close to each other very quickly and it is nice to have friends before school even starts. Early start was well worth it and I am glad Linfield required it.

On a Sunday we had free, my friends and I climbed up Mount Sainte-Victoire and swam in a lake. There were wild goats and beautiful scenery. It is something free and easy to do for the day. There are infinite trails and the scenery is amazing.

The best advice I can give for the first week in Aix is to be open-minded and willing to get out of your comfort zone. There is a lot of socialization and activities that are draining, but well worth it. I have already made great friends and have experienced so much that Aix and France have to offer. The French culture is different but in the best kind of way. Have no expectations, go with the flow and you are bound to have an Aix-citing week in Aix!

A typical street in Aix
A typical street in Aix
Made friends with goats on Sainte-Victoire
Made friends with goats on Sainte-Victoire
Sainte-Victoire
Sainte-Victoire
Spices at the market
Spices at the market
Fresh offerings at the market.
Fresh offerings at the market.

Sierra

The Countdown Begins!

Hello and Welcome to the semester abroad at IAU (Institute for American Universities) College in Aix-en-Provence blog!! (What a mouthful, ha!)  I would like to thank you in advance for following me on this journey – I  am excited to share it with you!

Now, a quick (and what I deem a necessary) disclaimer:

I promise to keep these posts truthful, raw, and sincere so as to best capture and preserve this time in my life. 

– Cassidy Robinson

 

The Countdown Begins!

We are officially 13 days away from the highly anticipated take-off date of August 30th! As you might imagine, there are a number of emotions running through me right now… Excitement, nervousness, gratitude, happiness, fear, sadness…  with no one emotion reigning more powerful than another.  I don’t think that I have ever felt this many mixed emotions before, and I especially did not expect that I would be SAD of all things! However, after some serious reflecting on myself and where I am at in life, the sadness makes sense.

I feel sad because I already know how much I will miss the people I love, the place I have come to call home, and the comfortable routine I have established.  I will miss the ease of contacting my friends and family, and the familiarity of American culture. Most of all, I will miss the person I am now in this time and place because I know I will never be the same again. That said, I plan to hold on to the overwhelming happiness and peace that I have cultivated over this past year, and use it as a foundation to my growth while in France.

(For those of you who think that I shouldn’t be sad, you’re right! I shouldn’t be bummed out with this amazing opportunity at my fingertips… and just so you know, I truly am getting excited to travel to France to study WINE!!!!  However, please understand that the sadness is just one facet of my emotions right now. Additionally, I would like to acknowledge the fact that it is only three and a half months away from home and I know everything that I will be leaving behind will still be here when I get back! Thank goodness!) 

At this point in the pre-departure stage, I am most focused on getting all of my ducks in a row. That entails everything from traveling down to San Francisco to obtain my long-stay Visa, to inquiring about who my host family is and where they live in relation to the town center. A few other small things that I am working on is finding a debit or credit card that I can use while abroad that does not incur a foreign transaction fee, making sure that I have European adaptors, and that I have the appropriate clothes.

I am not sure if she will ever read this, but I would just like to give a shout out to the Linfield student traveling with me to IAU this fall… She has been so helpful in reminding me to do things, making suggestions on what to bring, and most of all, she has been so kind in making an effort to get me excited for this trip! I look forward to traveling with you, and am already grateful for your familiar face! Thank you!!!

That’s all for now, and hopefully the next time I write will be from a small, quaint cafe in the town center of Aix!

Take care,

-Cassidy