Ahhhh….It’s finally springtime and life couldn’t be better. The sun is shining, people are laughing, gelato is being eaten, classes are over and my mom arrives in two weeks! I’m sitting on the terrace, drinking orange juice, looking down onto the busy streets of Menton’s summer crowd. Happiness is in the air!

The past few weeks have been busy trying to wrap up all of our class work, studying for language finals and preparation for our Arabesque show last weekend (which turned out great if I do say so!). The school year has finally wound down. We have 2 weeks off and then a week of finals.

It’s Saturday morning but honestly it could be any day and I would still be jittery with happiness and summertime exhilaration!

Yesterday after my Arabic final me and some other people got the best gelato in town and sat on the beach enjoying the sun, beach, and massive amounts of tourists. We giggled and ached for the family who had evidently been on the beach all day with their lobster-like bodies and the man (I wish this was singular) in the speedo who shouldn’t have been wearing one.  When the sun began to dip below the Basilica we picked up our stuff and headed home.

I returned to my room and cleaned a little bit before I made dinner. I was experimenting with the things in my cupboard so I threw together lentils, bell peppers, tomato and garlic and stuffed them in a hummus filled tortilla. It was absolutely delicious and I may or may not be addicted to this combination.

At about 9:45 we remembered that Carrefour (the grocery store) closed at ten and we needed (Yes, NEEDED) wine for the night so we ran-LITERALLY to the grocery store to get wine. I bought a cake and a bottle of grapefruit sauvignon. We collected Lauren’s “man friend” and walked down to the beach to meet up with some people. We reclined on the beach and laughed over ridiculous teachers, funny people, and the seaweed. We drank wine and ate cake. It was a perfect celebration.

This morning I woke up and went to this little grassy area next to the ocean where one of the girls in my villa had planned a little discussion on feminism. We sat on a blanket on the grass and about 15 people showed up with fruits, croissants, and juices.  We had an interesting discussion about women’s rights and what it means in different countries and to different people (including men!) Our Arabic professor from Egypt showed up and shared her familial background and how that inspired her to become what she is today (a pregnant, inspiring, intelligent, multi-lingual and dedicated woman). We heard about people’s own experiences in Tunisia, Mexico, Germany, Bosnia, and Wisconsin (cheers to repealing the equal pay act).

It was picturesque with a little picnic, the ocean, the mountains and the sun.

Now I’m off to embark on other adventures in order to take full advantage of this absolutely magnificent town on the French Riviera. Less than three weeks until I will have to bid an Au Revoir to my current home! Mixed feelings….

A plus!