by Makenzie Bodkin
Wrapping up our time in Aix-en-Provence on Friday, May 29th, we had our last class recapping what we learned in Switzerland from our two guest speakers, the United Nations tour and the Red Cross Museum, by playing Kahoot. The class all shared their highs and lows from the past three days in Switzerland. We then transitioned into a lecture by Professor Novakovic on the Swiss health care system, and Professor Owen introduced a group project to be completed during the Spain portion of the course. I cannot believe how fast time is flying and that our time abroad is already halfway over. The IAU program in France has been incredible to experience, which is making it hard to leave because it feels like we just started.
Since it is our last couple of days in Aix, I did some souvenir shopping with my friends at stores in the city center. We really wanted to purchase some lavender since it is grown here locally in the South of France, and some postcards. After, I headed back to where we are staying to attend a Zoom meeting and work on dental school applications that open up in a couple of days. Managing my time to complete all my responsibilities while also exploring new countries with my friends is a challenge, but extremely rewarding.
In the afternoon, our class had an Olive and Cheese tasting at Marchutz with Anthony, who is a part of the IAU program. We were taken on a tour through the vineyard and learned about the agricultural background of grapes needed for the production of wine. The second half of the trip included a whole setup to try three different olives, three olive oils, and five cheeses. It was very interesting to learn the proper way to taste olive oil because it did not include any bread, which shocked me. We just drank a small amount of straight oil, breathed in, in a unique way, then swallowed. Following that, he walked us through each type of cheese, giving us a description and which fruit it pairs best with. Anthony made this event into a whole experience that everyone enjoyed.
One thing I was not expecting prior to the trip was how sore my feet would feel on a daily basis. It is very common in European culture to walk everywhere; on average, we take 25,000 steps a day. On top of that, my friends and I really enjoy going on runs in the morning through the streets of Aix. It is very relaxing and peaceful to enjoy the scenery and fresh air to start the day. This also helped us learn our way around the city because all the side streets look very similar. Going out and running without following a map was beneficial for the first couple of days. I would definitely recommend bringing cute shoes that are also very comfortable to avoid pain and blisters! I plan on keeping up with this healthy habit as we transition to Madrid next week to learn our way around another new city!
