Nice, France

Sorry it's been so long since I've blogged. Busy having fun!

Let me begin with my Nice adventure...

First off, the train system in France is rather horrible. On the way there our train broke down twice, making us an hour and a half later than we should have been. However, on the train ride I met some new friends and became closer to people who I had only run into before. I had met Cullen before but never really hung out with him. Well, he wanted to go to Nice so he booked Elliot and I's tickets for the trip so we got to ride with him. Then, this guy Josh just so happened to be in the same car as us so he came and sat next to us. I had never met him before but apparently Elliot and Cullen knew him.

We changed trains in Marseilles and then this girl, Sarah, who is in two of my classes this summer, ended up being on the same train. Apparently she's traveling with Josh. So I got to know her better. And then another guy from Elliot's section in law school, Matt, was on the same train. So we all sat together on the train to Nice and it was neat. Until the train broke down... twice. Ugh. And these two trashy girls were blaring their iPod music (Which played American music of course. I swear, these French listen to mostly American music. I don't know how all of them aren't fluent in English already.). If it hadn't been Lady Gaga, I would have punched them.

Anywho, it also turned out that we were all staying in the same hostel. So we talked to the lady at the desk and she put us all in the same room! Then Sarah and Josh's friend, Bradford, ended up catching up with us and he stayed with us as well. Then guess who was staying next door to us... Elliot's roommates: David, Jacob, and Devin! So we were just one big group! :)

When we got our stuff put up in the hostel, we changed and headed to the beach. Apparently Nice is celebrating its bicentennial so I think it was a bit more festive around there than usual.

Sarah and I

The group!

From left to right: David, Devin, Bradford, Josh, Cullen, Matt, Elliot, me, Sarah, and Jacob

We were only on the beach for about an hour because it was late and we wanted to go out. So we went back to the hostel, changed and went out to get dinner. The city was so pretty at night!

Me, Sarah, and Matt at dinner.

Unfortunately, we had an inept waitress and Matt ended up not getting half his meal and paying for it, and we were there for 3 hours :( But it was nice hanging out with everyone.

The next day we slept kinda late, but then hurried out to the beach! This time we took a short train ride to a sandy beach, since the pebble kinda hurt your feet at the Nice beach. It was absolutely gorgeous.

I should mention that once again, our train broke down on the way to this sandy beach. We were just one stop away from the beach and the sign at the train station said it would be at least an hour until it was fixed, so we decided to walk. Hey, it was exercise! But we weren't too happy when we finally arrived at the other station and the train that we were on was just pulling up. Boo on French trains.

The gang.

Btw, in France, women don't always wear tops... mainly the really older women... not the most pleasant sight. lol.

After a lovely day at the beach, and getting a sunburn on one side on my part, we went home to get ready to watch the World Cup! It was fun watching in France. People in Europe make such a bigger deal of it. And this was the night that US was playing England. There were definitely people who were hardcore fans on both sides. It was fun.

Watching the World Cup.

However, after the World Cup, we attempted to go out. The nightlife in Nice kinda stinks. Too crowded, overpriced, and just not a good time. If you go there, wake up early, go to the beach, grab a bite to eat, and then hit the sack. No need to experience the nightlife. :/

It was sad leaving the next day because we had had so much fun with our new friends in such a lovely place! But hopefully we will have more fun adventures together on the trip.

Today, back in Lyon, I went to the equivalent of Walmart, which is actually in a huge mall! They had some neat little restaurants in there and the "Walmart" made me feel right at home. Except they had a HUGE bread and cheese selection. I could have just gotten lost in there and have been perfectly happy. :) The mall in general reminded me of home, but with a French twist. I really liked it. Oh! And I got straws!!!!!! So excited. I screamed when I found them. Elliot was embarrassed... lol. 

That's about all for now. Ta-ta!