Bonjour à tous!


This weekend in Grenoble has been some of the best weather we’ve had since I’ve been here: not too warm (because we all know I get hot way too easily) and sunshine! And because this is really the only weekend I have left in Grenoble (the others will be spent traveling: Geneva, Italy/Spain (if my mom can make it out), Paris, Vienne, then my Patrick comes out and we do Bordeaux, Normandy coast, Mont St. Michel, Paris and Lyon), I decided to take advantage of what I can do in this town! Friday afternoon, my CEA group went on a hike. We all met at the Bastille and we took the bulles up to the top. For me, this was my first time ever going up there, and oh my goodness, they are not lying when they say you can see for miles!


The Bastille overlooks the entire city of Grenoble and then some. It was hazy on Friday so unfortunately the Alps and Mont Blanc were not visible, but it was still gorgeous up there! Once at the top, we then started our hike, which lasted about 2 hours. Patrick, my program director, took us up to a lookout point even higher than the Bastille, where they still have some ancient ruins!

Hiking up was not bad at all, the path gradually inclined, which was nice, but on the way down, Patrick decided to take us down the face of the mountain. It wasn’t too difficult, but because it had rained the night before, the rocks and path were still damp and slippery, so we really had to be careful, especially because I was wearing running shoes, not hiking boots!

At the bottom of the hill, we took a detour into the caves. Apparently, during the wars, the troops used these caves as bunkers and hideouts. It was actually very interesting walking through them with all the secret passageways and stairs leading to yet another cavern or place in the mountain. This was my first hike here in Grenoble and it was by far one of the best!

Today, Sunday, we planned on going to the Chateau Sassenage for their flower and lace festival. To get there we have to take the tram A to the end of the line, then switch to a bus and then we are there. Well we made it to the end of the tram line and as we’re looking at the times for the bus, because it is Sunday and Spring Break for many students, the next bus didn’t come for an hour and a half! We literally were in the middle of nowhere, so we would have to sit at the bus stop and wait, which none of us wanted to do for an event that we would probably be at for no more than an hour. So we jumped back on the tram and headed back into town. On the way back home, walking through the parc, all the flowers are in bloom and I had to stop and take some pictures! It was absolutely gorgeous! Take a look!

This is also my last week of class for the month of April, then I officially only have 1 more month of class left...man time flies when you’re having fun! But I am praying and hoping that the volcanoes in Iceland stop erupting so they can clear flights from Europe to the US and vice versa! The volcano has been continuously erupting since Wednesday and they have no idea when it will stop or if the magma will cause another volcano to erupt. It really is chaotic and I am hoping that this will not affect my trip back to the US in June ( or my Mom’s trip out in a few weeks or Patrick’s flight out), but I can only think positive right now and say everything will work out! That’s it for now- Au revoir!