Signs of summer in Aix-en-Provence

Bon apre-midi, mes amis, (good afternoon)

Summer seems to be breaking upon us here in Aix. It actually broke 80 degrees outside today, a beautiful day of sunshine, with a comforting breeze as well.

This week seems to be a week of transition here. Every day, we see students hurrying off to the train station/ bus depot, headed off to somewhere. At the same time, we see what we assume to be summer students (here, no doubt, to study French or for "who knows what" summer course) along with increasing numbers of tourists. Aix, and Provence in general, is a popular destination--not just for the French, but also for much of Europe ... for Australians and also for some of us Americans as well.

Yvette found a toilettage (a pet grooming business) today for Niko. We've never seen his hair this long. Next Monday, we'll take him to the toilettage for four or five hours. I don't know if dogs ever know when they need a haircut ... but, trust me, Niko needs a haircut, particuarly with the warmer summer weather coming on.

We've been enjoying the French Open on television. The women's finals are tomorrow, with the men's coming on Sunday. Speaking of tennis, we're still looking for people to play with. We've been to the city-sponsored club that we joined about three times, talked to the people that oversee the tennis, etc., but still haven't got it figured out. It may not be the right club for us. But we're going to keep trying.

Yvette has what promises to be an interesting "painting" outing tomorrow. Monique, the local painting instructor (warm personality and seems to know everybody in Aix) whom Yvette is taking classes from, has arranged for a television crew to film her class at an outdoor painting class (they call it plein air, as in the open air) at some nearby mountain destination (montagne Sainte Victoire). Apparently, some famous painters--particularly the impressionists (i.e., Paul Cezanne, for whom there is a museum here in Aix)--have painted at this Sainte Victoire sight.

We're continuing to work on the French. We can communicate pretty much whatever we need to. However, we still have a long way to go.

A bientot for now ...