Ma Première Visit to France
Introduction
This summer of 2022, my family and I went on a beautiful two-week vacation to many different countries in Europe, starting with the delicious dessert capital of the world: France. Of course, it cannot be denied that this country has wonderful baked goods (yes, that means croissants), but we quickly discovered that it has more than meets the eye, or mouth, in this case.
Aix-en-Provence
On our very first excursion of the cruise, we started off with a long tour through the local gems of Aix-en-Provence and stopped at the gigantic elegant Cathedrale Saint-Sauveur, my favorite historical monument in all of France. This cathedral had numerous artifacts: pretty paintings, mature confessionals, and tarnished organs. Our group then took a long walk through the tiny passageways of the city and encountered many cute neighborhood shops carrying famous French items, many made of lavender.
Marseille
Next was a quick visit to Marseille in the Abbaye of Saint-Victor, learning many historical facts about the famous Victor of Marseilles, a local soldier saint, and martyr.
Notre Dame de la Garde
We finished off this French outing with the most famous site we were close enough to visit. The stairs up to the Notre Dame de la Garde were pretty crazy, but its charm was even crazier. It had 200 steep steps leading up to multiple floors for one to view its gorgeous Catholic themes, with unique designs which I have never seen. My mom and I’s favorite part was the direct, in-your-face, forest green horizontal lines covering its entire length, adding a newfound artistic sense to this structure.
Conclusion
In the end, I was quite delighted with my first taste of Europe. I loved the homey feeling I received as I basked in such a culture-rich location, a rarity I adore experiencing. Furthermore, I felt fortunate to experience so many age-old French traditions in the modern-day, which is always a fascinating vacation experience. In addition to this, I absolutely cannot deny that the food was pretty great, as well as the kind people who were always nice to us tourists and open to speaking English when we needed the help!
Aix-en-Provence
Marseille
Notre Dame de la Garde
