Cassis
This past weekend I went to Cassis. We took the 8 am bus from Aix to arrive in Cassis nice and early. We had to switch buses in a small town called Aubagne, but after 20 minutes of waiting the bus still hadn't come. So a friend and I decided to "faire du stop," also known as hitchhiking. So we walked towards the autoroute, and a nice guy picked us up and took us on the scenic route to Cassis, which took about 20 minutes. The rest of our group ended up catching another bus, and arrived around the same time we did.
We spent the rest of the day laying out on the beach and walking through the town, which is really cute. The water was too cold for me to go swimming, so I just enjoyed the beautiful view of the sea. We didn't end up hiking out in the Calanques, which are small inlets between Cassis and Marseille, but there is always next weekend. I might take advantage of this beautiful weather as long as I can.

St. Tropez
On September 18th, I went to St. Tropez for the day. Supposedly this is where all the American celebrities go to "get away from it all." Well, I would certainly have to agree with them on that one. Yet again, St. Tropez was another beautiful French Riviera town. When we arrived, we went to The Citadel for a beautiful view of the city and the Medeterranean Sea. Then we went into town for lunch, and decided the market would be a good place to go. Let's just say the market was a little busy (so crowded that I was claustrophobic) so we decided on a really cute boulangerie instead. Then we walked around and went shopping and admired the beautiful, gigantic yachts. In the afternoon, we were off to the (sandy) beach. I really can't explain these beaches. Neither pictures nor words can really do them justice. Absolutely stunning doesn't even pull it off. The incredibly blue water there is indescribable. So we tanned on the beach for a few hours and really couldn't soak up enough of the sun. Then it was time to return to Aix.
That same weekend France offered something called "The Journey of Patriotism," wherein all of the museums are free. Well naturally, we decided to partake in this opportunity. The incredible carved doors of Aix's Cathedral were on display (they are normally covered), and we decided to take a tour of the Cathedral as well. A very nice lady decided that she wanted to show us around with about 15 other people, and since she had the key, she would show us into the Cloister. It was a lovely area - one I could look at for about 5 minutes. Well, since a key was required to enter, it was also required to exit. We couldn't leave and were, essentially, locked in the Cloister. Needless to say, we spent the rest of the day exploring on our own, and stayed away from crazy tour guides.

Nice
Hey Guys. So here is what I have been doing since I arrived.

The first weekend here, the 11th and 12th of September, our group took a trip to the French Riviera. We arrived in Nice, which is absolutely gorgeous, and walked around vieux Nice (old Nice) to the market and got lunch. Then it was off to the beach. However, the beaches in Nice are not the nice sandy beaches I expected. Instead, they are covered with small rocks. Not the most comfortable thing. But the view of the blue, clear ocean definitely made up for it. A friend and I swam a ways out in the sea, but the water was so salty we could hardly see. And let me tell you, Nice is so beautiful from the sea.
After Nice, we went to the Matisse museum. I was never a big Matisse fan, but I must admit his artwork is pretty cool. However, the building and location were really pretty. Then we travled along the coast to a perfume factory and the towm of Eze, which is an old roman town. Then it was off to Cap D'Ail to our hotel/hostel for dinner. After dinner we went to Monaco, and to the casino in Monte Carlo. All of the nice cars were parked out front (and the nice yachts were in the back), and they even had a courtesy porche.
In the morning, we could see the amazing view from the place we stayed. If any of you are ever in Southern France (and not in Cassis), I definitely recommend staying at the Centre Medeterranean in Cap D'Ail. Then it was off to St Paul and Vence to the Maeght Foundation, which is a modern art museum, and St Paul, which is another Roman town that has a view of the Alps. After that, we went to Antibes. My back was really appreciative that the beaches there were sandy. In the afternoon, we went to the Picasso museum there, which was really cool too. My favorite thing there was a metal sculpture of guitars. If any of you have been to the Experience Music Project in Seattle, you have seen the Jimi Hendrix guitar exhibit. Well, after seeing this Picasso sculpture, I am sure it was the inspiration for whoever designed the Jimi Hendrix guitar creation. Then it was time to return to Aix-en-Provence. What a great weekend.