by Abby Tyndall
Even though we have only been in Aix-en-Provence for three days, I feel like we have already had so many great experiences in this beautiful city. Yesterday was our first official day of class, and we spent our day getting acquainted with the IAU-ACM campus and Aix as a whole. After our orientation with the IAU staff, we took a lunch break at Cafe Med, a cafe specifically reserved for students. After lunch, we set out to explore the city, and stopped inside this stunning cathedral near campus.
Next, we were given a guided tour of the city, in which we learned about some of its history and landmarks. This glimpse into Aix helped us to better understand the environment we will be studying in during the next two weeks, and it only made me more excited! One particularly interesting stop was the Palais de Justice, where there is currently a high-profile trial taking place. Other than that, we were educated about Aix’s notable locations, as well as many beautiful fountains, which the city is known for (given its nickname, the “city of a thousand fountains.”)
That night, a large group of us had dinner at Casa Capri, an Italian restaurant in the city center, and I will definitely have to visit it again before we depart for Madrid!
On Tuesday, we began delving into the subject of health systems, which we will be studying throughout this trip. Our morning consisted of an introduction to the healthcare system as it exists across the world, including an overview of America’s approach to healthcare, which we will utilize as a point of comparison to that of the countries we plan to visit.
After our morning class, me and three other members of our group ventured out to the food, flower, and clothing markets on Cours Mirabeau and Place Richelme, where we spent the afternoon sipping our coffee and shopping in the numerous stalls. My favorite stall was a vendor selling what must have been a million different types of soap, and I could not resist buying a few for myself!
Our class session on Tuesday afternoon contained two wonderful guest speakers who provided us with greater insight into the French healthcare system. I was most captivated by the first speaker, who discussed women’s health in France, as well as Aix-en-Provence in particular. Women’s health was one of the topics I was most excited to learn about during this experience, so I am grateful that we got such an informed perspective on it from our speaker
