First impressions of France

I arrived in France less than a week ago and on one hand it already feels like it's been months. On the other hand, I am often still in a state of shock. I know it has not fully sunk in yet. It is incredibly beautiful and calm and I love going down the road looking at all the old stone buildings and the poppies in bloom...so many that they are considered ditch weeds in certain areas. Cherry and olive trees line all the roads. Not to mention the vineyards. They are endless!

This is our villa. This is right before it started raining and the quick snap shot does not do justice to the field off our patio. Sitting outside and smelling the fresh air is incredibly peaceful. I love it. I am so comfortable with the other people here and it is such a sharing household. I am shocked that 12 people could get along so well. We actually have dinner together every night with incredible conversation and laughs. Sometimes you even forget how many people live here and then someone you haven't seen in a few hours will emerge from their room and surprise you. It's like running into an old friend in your own living room.

My friend Jess and I went on a 50k ride up to the Villes-sur-Auzon and around. It was fantastic. I tried to take a few photos along the way, but honestly I often feel like the camera just cannot capture all the little things that make Provence so interesting. Or maybe it's all the BIG things. The views are so deep and it's that whole picture that can really take your breathe away. You could bike around a bend and see an incredible vineyard, then behind that is an old stone house with brilliant blue shutters. And behind that you see the olive trees and further still the foothills of the mountain and framing it all: Mt Ventoux! One of the most famous climbs in the Tour de France. Look closely at the picture of the vines and you may be able to see the village up in the hills, just above the house.

We've all been incredibly busy with the job. Tons to read and lots of homework so we can be prepared to start in the middle of June. We have driving school, bike mechanic instruction, public speaking, leadership training, administrative/business training (HR, scheduling, etc) and that's all just in one day. Tomorrow we have all of that and then we have a simulated cocktail party so they can critique our clothing, etiquette and poise. Lord help me.

Saturday we'll do a mock ride (and learn how to "tray" and rack 20+ bikes on the vans) then Sunday I may do a hike on that mountain. It's been teasing me from a distance. I'd like to ride it, but maybe I'll wait till later in the season so my legs aren't jelly at work on Monday.

I still don't know much french, but most everyone around speaks english. Some of my co-leaders speak multiple languages and it's not uncommon to hear english, french, italian and sometimes croatian all at the same time in different rooms of the house. I love it. Something to strive toward.

Tomorrow we might learn where we are going. That will be exciting news. We can't really go wrong with any of the destinations, but it will be nice to know so we can start studying the area.

If you would like to see some more photos check them out here.

All my love,

Erin