I hear Nice is nice this time of year...

This past weekend, five of us traveled into the magical world of Nice in southern France. It was so amazingly like Miami that I had hope for a second that we had found a portal of sorts into Florida. Only I think Nice is better than Miami, it has the most beautiful beach, wonderful weather, and the people are actually nice. According to an old man I met the Italians are to Nice as Cubans are to Miami. I'm not sure if there's truth to that, but he seemed quite sure haha.

We traveled there for a carnival of sports that they host every year and it was quite an event. There was a huge parade, people everywhere, music, silly string, and confetti. More than once strangers approached only to spray us with silly string and run away laughing. It was a very common practice during the parade, and one I did not enjoy so much, but all in all it was a good experience.

We stopped in Aix on the way back, home to Cezanne's school of art and hit a few museums. It was amazing!!! They had three original Picasso's, a Monet, a Van Gogh, and countless other lesser known but equally awesome works. I wasn't able to take photos, unsurprisingly, but it was amazing nonetheless. After, we explored an old church nearby and got some cool photos of that. I'll never tire of cathedrals.

I'm so glad I have such good friends to enjoy these things with. I don't know what I would do without them!

Tonight over dinner Mme Catherine was telling me how it's fairly common for french people to go away for the summer to a summer home or just vacation. She herself does a kind of house-swap with a family in Italy or Belgium and lives in their house while she lives in theirs. I found this very bizarre, but what puzzled me even more is that she leaves the dog, cat, and birds here for the strangers to look after. I don't think I could do that and I know that my parents could not. We would worry over our pets too much, more than our house. I suppose it's a cultural thing.

I can't imagine what I'll discover next, but I cannot wait. I'm enjoying my time here and anxiously awaiting the spring. Although March has finally begun, it is still winter here and will be until early April. I miss Florida's short winter, but I can hold out a little longer for warmer weather!

Now, pictures:

My traveling companions!