Le Course a Pied

To you, this may seem like an insignificant train schedule, but to me it is so much more. For me, it is proof. Sunday night, I left for my run. Now not having ran on Saturday, I wanted to get a little more in. I left around 8pm because of the hot weather, still with about two hours of sunlight left. I ran to the town center, and still feeling energized, decided to circle the town. I did it again, then as I was running along the edge of town, I noticed the sign for Pierrelatte and headed that way. I reached the outer point of town, and decided to keep going. At this point I said, "Why not, lets go to Pierrelatte". At about 5kms I reached "The Wall" for any of you athletes out there. Basically, there is a point where cramps and soreness reach their peak, then drop off completely as your body goes into a "routine". After this point, you basically become a machine and feel very little soreness. So ya, I reached that point quickly and kept going. I ran around the far side of Pierrelatte and then stopped at the trainstation to pick up this train schedule. The trainstation has no water fountain, nor does anything else in France. Public water fountains are unheard of. Coming back, I stopped at a friends house and he kindly gave me some water. I arrived back at the base just after 11pm. I ran a total of approximately (give or take 2kms) 30 kilometers in about 3 hrs. Now that is still 12kms short of a full olympic marathon, but still a personal record. Now that I am at this point, maybe sometime this fall I will actually try a full marathon. O, and if you are wondering if it is dangerous, not really. All the roads in France (well, most) have a "bike lane" on each side of the road allowing for seperate traffic, even at round-a-bouts. So even on highways there is plenty of space, plus the shoulder.

Genève, Suisse

This past Thursday, I jumped on a train and headed for the 8th most expensive city in the world, and one of the banking capitals of Europe, Geneva, Switzerland. After taking a train to the French city of Lyon, there was a two hour ride through the beginning of the Alps into Switzerland. Geneva sits literally right on the border of France and Switzerland, and throughout my two days there, I constantly crossed the border, many times without noticing. Geneva is commonly known as one of the major players in the Protestant Reformation, and during my time there I went to one of the major churches in the city where John Calvin's personal chair still remains. The architecture of the city is beautiful, especially the older part of the city. From the top of the church tower, the city is breathtaking, especially with the lake and the huge fountains. Also, Geneva definitely keeps to its rank as one of the most expensive cities in the world. I saw a mix of some of the most exotic and expensive cars, along with shops that would send most people packing. The banking district makes even wall street look bland, with its extravagant buildings and surroundings. Overall, Geneva was a great experience, and definitely worth visiting. During my time there, however, it was overcast most of the time, limiting my view of the surrounding mountains. I stayed with the family of a previous staff member for YWAM France, which turned out to be a really good experience. For example, playing cranium in French, watching the entire Bourne series in one evening / morning, and of course getting a guided tour of an awesome city.

Returning from Switzerland, I stopped in Lyon to see the city that I have traveled through multiple times without ever actually seeing. Lyon is an ancient capital of the Roman empire, and it is very obvious while visiting. First note, the metro system in Lyon, although not as extensive, is very much like that of New York's. I was impressed, seeing as Lyon has nowhere near the population. Also, another neat feature is that on every other corner, there are bicycle racks where you can insert a euro, take a bike, then return it to another rack anywhere in the city. Pretty convenient. While in Lyon, I visited an old ancient Roman theater. This amphitheater is still in pristine condition, with even the side shops being intact, with stone tables and areas for the shopkeepers. I feel like these ruins were probably in better shape than most ruins in Rome itself. Also, the ruins overlooked the entire city, make for quite a great view. Another interesting fact is that they still use the amphitheater today for concerts and such. When I was there, they were setting up for a music festival involving quite an intricate setup. I was also informed that this is quite common and that somewhere south of Lyon there is a fully intact Roman coliseum which is still used for musicals and plays, most recently, Phantom of the Opera.

John Calvin's Church in Gevena

Canons of the Swiss Guard

The Historic Part of Geneva

Shopping District

The Wall of Reformers

Praying my princess rescues me from the tower?

Some visibility

That fountain is huge!

Roman Amphitheater

Riding through the Alps on the way back this was about all I saw

The U.N. Notice the three legged chair. It represents those who have lost limbs in wars and leftover mines from wars.

University of Geneva

Lyon from the Roman Ruins

One of the side shops. Notice the table on the right still intact.

On another note, I will be heading to Oslo, Norway this Friday. So next week look for an exciting post!
A bientot

La Voiture

Let me update you on what has been happening lately. It is now Sunday, and it has been a bit since my last post, I apologize. Last week was mostly a work week after returning from the retreat. To give you an idea of a normal day, I get up at 7:30 usually and get some breakfast (cereal or eggs). I get to work at 8. My work now consist of outdoor work around the base. I recently finished an irrigation system for a row of 12 apple trees and also re-roofed the well. Also, Andy and I just finished putting in some electrical cable to light the driveway and put in the lights. Now, I am learning to make a classic drystone wall. At noon, we stop for lunch. Around two o'clock we usually have a French lesson at the base with Sandra, the wife of the co-leader of the base. That lasts about an hour. In the afternoon we are given time to simply study, depending on the day. Tuesdays and Fridays we have meetings in the afternoons, and other days we will do things with the base.

On Wednesday, we were given the job of repairing the base van. Earlier in the year someone was driving during one of the famed "Mistral Winds". The wind was around 100km an hour and someone got out just as a gust came. They lost their grip and the driver door flew all the way around and slammed into the side of the van, breaking the safety stop as well. After this, every time you opened the door, it would hit the side panel and not allow the door to open properly. Andy worked as a Peugeot mechanic in London before mission work, and seeing as this was a Peugeot van, he was right at home. We set to work taking the door and side panel off and then resetting the hinges and hammering the large dents out of the panel and door. The most in depth work I had done on a car before involved replacing an oil filter, so this was an interesting experience for me. Surprisingly, there wasn't that much to it. The door came off easily, and the side panel, although secured in more than a dozen places, took time but was not at all difficult. Andy set to work on the door while I worked on the side panel. Using tons of scotch tape (as not to damage the paint), small hammers, and some welding, we actually got the parts looking fairly nice. Now the paint was still missing in some areas, especially where the door continuously rubbed against the panel, so we searched the shop. The closest paint was very much lighter than the cars paint, but it would have to door. We are planning on stopping by Peugeot and ordering a small can to match.

Our nicely opening door...

On Saturday I met a friend in Avignon who just happened to be traveling Europe. I was in Costa Rica about a year ago and met her there. She is from Norway, and her and a friend are traveling southern Europe by rail. So I got to go back to Avignon (which is awesome) and show her around town. Trying to get back is where this gets really interesting. When I got the the train station in Avignon at 8 to catch my 8:15 train, I found out that the tracks were being worked on and there was no train that night. I quickly looked around for someone to talk to and asked a man who works there how and when I could get back to Pierrelatte. He told me that a bus was leaving now and that my ticket would cover the bus ride. As I walked out the door it was pulling out, so I quickly jumped on. On this 14 meter bus (impossible to drive on these roads), it was me and two other passengers. They got off at the first stop (Pierrelatte is 1.5 hours by bus, 30 mins by train), leaving just me and the driver. The driver just happened to be from Central America and we quickly began talking in a French / Spanish mix. It was a really interesting ride back, and I must admit, driving a bus in Europe is a very demanding job.

Today we had a church service here on the base grounds. All five non-catholic churches in the area got together, making for well over a hundred people. It was a good time, and a lot of the people from the retreat were there. The Mistral winds were still blowing, making it a bit chilly, but just more interesting overall.


On another note, the lavender here in France is in full bloom. It is everywhere.

A plus...

Les Montagne

This weekend I left for the Alpage Mountain range for a retreat with a church in town. These mountains are just a small strip of mountains that some refer to as the "Pre-alps", as they are the buffer zone between the Rhone Valley and the French Alps. The retreat was just a one night retreat, lasting all day Saturday until Sunday afternoon. We arrived at the place we were staying at about noon on saturday after about an 1 1/2 hour drive (which is considered very long in France). Where we were staying was a Christian camp for churches and youth groups. It had a soccer field, pool, ping pong tables, plenty of space, and comfortable arrangements. The location was great, nestled right in the mountains with an awesome view all around. The nearest town was the town of Die (pronounced "dee"). The first day, I got to know everyone (on a limited French basis of course) and really enjoyed the surroundings. Hiking trails were everywhere, and the soccer field became useful. That night, we all sat down and played card games and told jokes. Of course, they would tell the joke twice, once quickly, and once slowly pour moi. Sunday morning after breakfast, we had a makeshift church service. It really went well, and I ended up playing guitar for the service. Overall, my stay was great, and I got to know some really cool people who go to the church.

After church, myself and two other decided to drive up the mountain to a place where two trails start. The trails lead to the top of one of the tallest mountains in the area for an incredible view. However, as great at the view was, the drive up was just as amazing. The roads fit the perfect stereotype for the Alps. Long, curvy stretches followed by a tight hairpin turn. It was this way for miles as it went up and over the mountains. No guardrails at any point, with drops that take your breath away just looking down. We arrived to the trail entrance and began our two hour hike to the top and back. The hike was on a well maintained path that serves as a sheep herding path during the later summer for thousands of sheep. It overlooked the roads as it ascended just before entering into a wide open meadow. The meadow was gorgeous and had signs up about respecting the sheep. It actually said, if you respect the sheep, you eat better. As for this hike, I will let the pictures tell the rest of the story.

We left for home at about 6. The trip back we drove through lavender fields and wine vineyards, which made for a very scenic route. Also, this Thursday I will have been here a month now. I have really enjoyed my time so far and have had a great experience! I want to thank everyone for reading! Also, this next weekend I am really considering going to Switzerland to see the Alps, so I will keep everyone posted!

Basically says share the mountain with the sheep

Click on the picture and look at these roads!

The tallest mountain in the range

The hills are alive...!!!

Instead of helping me...

If your dog is not a sheep herding dog... put it on a leash while sheep are present

Ok... Two 4x4s came down this small rock path. What?? This guy must have dented every part of his car as he came down this path. He was scraping the walls on both sides, and I really have no idea how he got past some of the later areas, I almost wanted to follow him to see.

The walkway carved out of the side of the mountain

If you are a car enthusiast, this is your ultimate playground.

After I got back, I realized I took almost no pictures of the actual place we were staying, only the surrounds. Here we are eating lunch.

This was a small stream beside the base

The ride back! Notice where the lavender meets the vineyard

Southern French Vineyards

Pronounced "dee"

The view from the porch