Aix en Provence

My next day in the south was spent in Cannes, where the Film Festival is held each year. Tons of celebrities own a home here, which explains the ridiculous prices for absolutely everything. A normal person could never afford to live in Cannes. I did enjoy seeing the red carpet walk though and spending the day at the beach.
After Cannes, the next stop was the Pont du Gard. Currently I don’t have any pictures of it because I kayaked down the river and couldn’t bring my camera. It is the oldest aqueduct bridge in the world and rowing down was an awesome way to see the sight.
Ensuite, Arles. Arles is an ancient Roman city with an arena that once housed lions and there were bullfights and all sorts of entertainment. I walked through the underground passages and climbed the bell tower with my friend Sarah Georges from Lyon, France.
Since we were staying in Aix en Provence, I got the chance to do a little sight seeing around the city with my friend Susie. She and I even ran into two LDS missionaries while gallivanting around and one was from Sandy, Utah no less! The city is historic with a different feel than Paris, though I will always prefer Paris to the South. The region of Provence is known for its herbs, lavender, and various crafts. Market day is every Wednesday and that was an experience I’ll never forget-wandering through the rows of bustling southerners, hearing prices being shouted and my senses on overload from the countless colors, smells, and sounds. I found a darling pottery stand where a man had hand painted all sorts of homemade ceramic kitchenware and couldn’t resist buying my mom and me each a painted provincial spoon rest.
Over the weekend I got the chance to go on splits with the area’s sister missionaries. We taught a man named Pascal with his friend. It was such a touching experience. When I sat through Pascal’s interview for baptism on Sunday, he was so excited. His favorite him was ‘je sais qu’il vit mon rédempteur’ I know that my Redeemer lives-and he wanted to sing it for the opening and closing hymns at his baptism. Sunday Brother Welch gave a fireside to the Aix stake after we attended their ward. One man was specifically touched by the presentation and resolved to start attending church again. My last day in the south was quite enjoyable and in the evening our group went out for a farewell to France dinner at a really nice and authentic provincial restaurant called Le Bistroquet. We girls were thrilled to get dressed up nicely and had actually found a round brush and blow-dryer to make ourselves presentable. The menu was incredible! The first course was a cold gelatin-like purée of olives, oils, herbs, and quite honestly, I’m not sure what else. Initially it has a bitter taste, but amazingly, the longer it sits on your tongue, the sweeter it tasted! The next course was a roast cooked in a red provincial wine. Yummmm..it was so tender. The bread was traditional and the dessert was a raspberry mousse with a raspberry rum sauce. I left the restaurant so full and determined I would rather starve than go back to eating American food. I love the way the French consider mealtime a drawn out, relaxed, and classy experience.