Non Touristy Tourism

One of the most relaxing weekend trips I have taken so far was to Southern France. Right after we all finished with our Spain study tour, I immediately took the train to Agen. The whole purpose of this trip was to visit my old exchange student Thomas Drape. It had been almost two years since I last saw him, and I could hardly wait for a reunion. The trip started smoothly enough, but once I got to Bordeaux for a layover, I missed the connecting train and was told there was not another one until the morning. The police officer was very nice, however, and let me spend the night in his office. He explained to me that this was not the first time it had happened, and in fact I would be having company. There were three Canadian girls sparing the office room with me. It was pretty ironic going from Spain, where no one spoke English, to France, where a police office spoke very well, and I would be staying with other English speakers. Before they put us in the room, we went out to eat and I noticed something interesting on the menu. Half of it looked just the same as it did in Spain. There was Paella and Catalonian Crème Brule. It was interesting to see that although Toulouse is not in Spain, it still held some reminders of its Catalonian past. The rest of the night we spent playing cards and talking.

The next day I took the earliest train and met up with Thomas. It was great to finally see him again. We were so excited to begin planning everything for the weekend. We finally decided he ought to show me the things tourists normally don’t see, so that I would be able to get a sense of how normal French people actually live. This would be a major eye opening especially since all I knew about French culture came from the major tourists stops in Paris. The first place we went to was a winery where he used to intern. We got a tour and were allowed to test a variety of wines. The most interesting thing about the winery was the huge amount of diversity it took in. The owner said he took grapes from all over Southern France and blended the right ones together to make the wine. The cool part was that there were hundreds of wineries all over that did that same exact thing. The reason for all the wineries was the climate and soil. That area of France has diverse enough soil and weather patterns that grapes are able to grow differently. All that diversity in one places makes it prime grape growing real estate, therefore most people decide to grow grapes. This influences the culture, which influences back, and gives us the cultural landscape. This is why Southern France is dotted with so many vineyards and wineries.

After the winery we went to a Rugby game. It was not a major match, but it was interesting. His own club in Agen was playing a town a few kilometers to the North. Despite the lack of importance of the game, the fans were still deeply involved. They yelled and taunted the other side, and continuously cheered on their own. Many of the younger people my age were there, and I got to see how they interacted and dressed. It was surprisingly normal. I was used the strangeness of Amsterdam, Munich and Barcelona. The people in France, however, were wearing polos and T-shirts with normal shorts and pants. It was pretty refreshing. In fact, if it they weren’t speaking French, I could have easily mistaken them for Americans. After the game, a stage was erected on the field and a concert started that lasted most of the night. I had a great time meeting all of Thomas friends and learning what French people my age did. It was a nice change from just touring the major cities. I was actually able to connect and make some friends who I got along quite well with.

After this trip I will be doing the same thing. I will leave for Italy and meet all my old friends from when I was an exchange student. I cannot wait to travel like that again.