Sete/bike trip!

03.01.09

This weekend has been much more relaxed, but it was great to spend time exploring the city! Friday me and a few girls (Lexi, Tyra, and Lily) went to Sete for a little day trip! It was only a 25 minute train ride, which was AMAZING compared to the 4 hour train ride we had the other weekend. It was a very quaint little canal town, with tons of markets and little streets. We first made our way to the old port and it was a perfect day to explore! The weather was gorgeous, not a cloud in the sky. We grabbed lunch at a nearby restaurant and we were able to sit outside! I had shrimp first, they had eyes still, a little frightening but delicious! Then I had a fish (we still have no idea what kind it was) with a yummy cream sauce! After lunch, we went to the tourism office, got a map, and were in search of this great lookout spot. It was a 45 minute hike (basically all uphill and we climbed TONS of stairs), but it was way worth it! The view was incredible; we were able to see the entire city! We hiked back down and went to this nearby cemetery where Paul Valery is buried. Paul Valery was a poet/artist and our school is named after him, so we wanted to find it! The graveyard was actually beautiful, with all the graves above ground with very intricate flowers decorating each. Afterward, we ventured back to the center part of town and decided to go to a museum quick before our train arrived. Lily’s travel book recommended the Museum of International Art, since it was supposed to be a collection of art made out of recycled things. We thought this sounded cool, went in and it was nothing like we expected! We walked inside; there was this giant wresting ring and tons of wrestling masks on the first level. We laughed went to the next level, which was even stranger, had a good laugh and made it back to the train station. That night we hung out at Maddie’s apartment and went into town afterwards.

Before I went out, I got a surprise call from my roomie back home, Katie! She is studying abroad in Barcelona for the semester and it was great to talk with her. We were both having a rough day, dealing with issues back home, so it was great to catch up and chat. This weekend I am actually going to Barcelona to see her! My friend Kristen, who is studying in Granada, Spain, and Tara, who is in Milan, Italy, will be meeting us there too! I am SOOOO excited and can’t even wait! I leave Friday morning around 7:30 am and return late Sunday night. Katie is meeting me at the train station, so I won’t be wandering around attempting to speak Spanish. Kristen and I are booking a hostel together, which should be sooo much fun! This ended up to be the perfect weekend to see eachother; I’m literally counting down the days! Vero was very excited to hear where I was going, since she apparently LOVES Barcelona. She keeps reminding me how jealous she is of me.

Saturday Morning a few girls and myself (Lauren, Maddie, Lily, and Lexi) decided to go rent bikes for the day and bike to the beach! We got a little lost on the way there, but it was a fun, relaxing ride! On the way there we saw tons of white horses and flamingos! We finally arrived, grabbed a quick lunch on the port and went to the beach! The only problem was that it was a little cold and cloudy, but we still went and sat on the sand for about thirty minutes and then grabbed ice cream at a local shop. We were not too excited about biking back, since it was 7 miles to get there, and took us around an hour and a half. BUT luckily we found a shortcut on the way back and it took us a little under an hour!

There was another strike this week! It was bizarre and I have no idea what it was about, but there was a large group of people in yellow vests, walking in front of the tram directly on the tracks. It took about 10 minutes to even get to the next stop, when normally it takes around 10 minutes to get to the Corum, the place to switch trams. It ended up taking me an hour to get home, but I guess that’s France!

Ciao for now! I heard about all the snow in MN.. I’m lucky to have such nice weather here :)

Xxx Sara