au bord de la mer

I've just gotten back from approximately 24 hours at my host family's weekend getaway: Sausset, which is a little fisherman's town just along the coast from Marseille–in fact, it's got a stellar view of Marseille during the day or, even better, at night, when Notre Dame de la Garde is lit up above the skyline. I was 'tellement heureuse' to get away for a bit, from the windy 30 minute drive there, to the peaceful hour long walk my host mom & I took into town with 'Jipeur,' her brother's friendly & energetic dog, to the cozy-watch-for-the-snow ambiance we had all afternoon there today.

The whole weekend was like a mirror image of what my family does at home: going to our house in the country is one of the nicest luxuries we know. As many fun and relaxing things there may be to do at home, going out in the country is always peaceful & brings you back to the good ole times, where you read children's books for fun and play their games, too.

As I hit the 2 week mark (or the 48 hours X 7 as I like to call it), I continually find myself straddling this rope of happiness & nostalgia for leaving. There are SO many things I can't wait to do (or not do...like catch up on sleep!) when I get home, people to see, winter traditions to partake in, the like. But at the same time, I'm getting closer & closer to my host family, and it's sad to see this chapter of my life come to a close. Even yesterday–probably the 100th time I walked through a 'marché,' and I had a sense of just wanting to photograph every little bit of it, taste each type of fresh vegetable, somehow be able to bring it all back with me to show everyone what it's like. I have to keep telling myself that I'll be back & be able to live it again. Because one thing the French know, that's how to live.

xoxoxo, c

"It's character that makes the beauty of the soul"