Part II! ('Cause there was just too much good stuff to put into one post).


A few weeks ago, I went to the opera! We saw two short operas, one called "L'Éducation Manquée" and the other, "La Voix Humaine." This was the first time I had been to the old opera house, right in the middle of town.









Ceiling of the opera, with an Amazing chandelier.













Wow. I felt like I had slipped back a few hundred years, by accident!
















Hi!

















In slightly more recent history, the weekend before last contained not one but TWO adventures. I had heard tell of a dance festival that lasted the entire weekend (shades of Flurry, anyone?) and after a bit of persuading, managed to get a ride up for Sunday! It was in a little town two hours from Montpellier called Saint Jean du Gard which had been more or less infested by musician/dancer/hippie types... Basically, it was like stumbling into a little piece of heaven :)

Dancing in the streets!













:)













A group called "Le Cadavre Exquis," which consisted of drums, bass, 2 accordions and a hurdy-gurdy. God, I love those instruments! Unfortunately, it was hard to get a decent photo because it was dark and they were rocking out!








Une danse en cercle, à la Festival de Boulegan (avec Titouan et Nina qui jouent, aussi que deux mecs avec des cornemuses).


So, we stayed overnight at the festival, crashing in a room with 6 other dancers, and then headed back home to next day, via la montagne d'hortus. This is the view, of Pic Saint Loup, and you can even see a bit of the ocean.









It was a spectacular day!

















After a picnic, we went caving (of which there are no photos, for obvious reasons), but this was the aftermath...











So much mud!! Not sure if my chuck's will ever forgive me...












So, the past week has been pretty great, and Sunday was my birthday! Generally, I really dislike birthdays, but this one was perfect: got to spend the day outside in the perfect weather with Manuel (although I was dumb and got a sunburn), and the evening with my friends at a great restaurant. And, my birthday present to myself? Going to Italy on Thursday! I'm leaving in the evening, and rolling into Florence at 8:00 am. I'll be spending two days in Florence and then going to Rome for four days. Let the art-geekery begin!! I'm a little nervous, as I've never traveled alone before, but this is the time to do it, so... Carpe Diem! Stay tuned for the post coming in a week and a half :)