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Published: October 15th 2008
Gare Lille Europe
I was a little camera-happy.
Kevin and Sophia put up with it ;-PAfter about a month in any place, you just need to get out. Your head is at the bursting point because of everything you have had to absorb to live. So, my friends (Sophia, Kevin, and Trixi) and I went to Reims (Rheims in English) for the weekend. I think so many years working in a museum have caused me to become somewhat of a history buff. I spent the weekend basking in the history of a city that began almost a millennia ago.
We caught a train from Gare (Station) Lille Europe to Gare Champagne-Ardenne to Reims. If you have never been on a train in Europe, it is by far one of the coolest things ever. It is much more comfortable than flying. And then there is the coolness factor of trains from when you were a child. (I've never really been on a train, so I had a rather childish enthusiasm at the thought of taking a train.) I'm pretty sure the TGV moves a lot faster than the trains we thought of when we were younger. It is a little frightening to stand on the platform when a train passes by...I think I had a mini-nightmare at
Gare Lille Europe
Sophia's suitcase... that moment.
When we arrived in Reims (pronounced like "rance" in French), we were greeted by lots of sunshine. This was the best thing about Reims because it rains ALL OF THE TIME in Lille. Not really, but it does seem like it. We decided that the first thing to do would be to go to our hotel. We chose a hotel because it was cheaper than the hostel in town and appeared to be conveniently located to everything we wanted to see. Nothing works out perfectly. We got off the bus at the edge of town and walked 10 minutes to find it. It was clean, but a little odd, not to mention in BFE...
After we checked in, we went back into town. The first thing we saw when we got off the bus was the Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Reims. Sophia and I didn't say anything for a few minutes. We just stared and then turned to each other with glazed looks on our faces. It is quite beautiful, and for someone who hasn't seen something like that in person, there were not enough words to describe it. Now I realize that the cathedrale is actually rather small
Gare Lille Europe
my suitcase...mom would be proud- it's so small for just a weekend! compared to Notre Dame de Paris and Notre Dame de Chartres. But it is still quite amazing.
That evening we had Chinese for dinner. It doesn't even come close to what we have in the States, but I was tired of bread, cheese, and wine, we all were. Ordering Chinese food in French...now that is what I call fun! Actually it was quite funny. We did a lot of pointing and butchering of the language, but we finally got our food.
We had a tour of G.H. Mumm champagne house at 9:45 Saturday morning. It is one of the most interesting things I have ever done. We chose to have our tour in French- after all we are here to learn French, might as well go the whole way. G.H. Mumm is the 3rd largest champagne house in France. It was founded back in 1827 by a pair of German brothers of aristocratic descent. Cordon Rouge, created in 1875, is the house's signature champagne. We paid about 8€ for our tour that lasted an hour. We watched a short video on the history of the house. Then we went down into the cellars. We saw how the bottles are stored
Gare Lille Europe
Sophia and me waiting for the train. and how to determine if the wine has finished it's fermentation. At the end of our tour, we got to taste some champagne. (The more you pay, the more varieties you get to try.) We tried the signature Cordon Rouge. When we left, we realized that the strong aroma in the air was the smell of champagne.
After our morning in underground, we decided to see a bit more of the city. We went on a mini-train ride to learn about the historic district. There is a sort of shopping center that was built around an old Jesuit college. Not to mention the Palais du Tau and le Basilique Saint-Remi. But like every other city in France, everything closed for dejeuner (lunch) which is typically from 12-2...and yes, they take the full 2 hours. So we had lunch as well. And we even used the full 2 hours. We found an Italian restaurant, and decided to have pizza. After we finished eating, the head chef and the bartender figured out that we were American (well, 2 of us). So we stayed and talked of the election, the mediocrity of the American education system, and why we decided to study in
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Kevin and Sophia on our train... France.
After lunch, we went to le Basilique Saint-Remi, where the kings of France were coronated up until the 18th century. I found this more impressive than the cathedrale. We wandered through the Museum first because we couldn't figure out how to get into the church, and there was a wedding going on inside. The museum showed the history of the area.
Saint Remi was the apostle of the Gauls and facilitated Clovis' conversion to Christianity in the early 6th century. The abbey was built in the 7th century, and at the end of the 8th century, benedictine rule was introduced to it. The abbey was expanded several times to protect it from viking and hungarian raids during the 10th century. In more modern history, the Benedictine monks were driven away in the 18th century, and the abbey became the Reims military hospital, and a civilian hospital from 1903 until the end of WWII.
In the museum, there were artifacts dating from not only the medieval times, but also classical times. There are sarcophagi from the Etruscans and Greeks. There is the Tapestries' Hall. This hall houses 10 huge tapestries that tell the tale of the life of Saint Remi.
Train
Kevin (I thought French was rather difficult in general...try reading ancient French peppered with a bit of Latin.) They were all made between 1523 and 1531, and given to the abbey by the bishop of Reims, Robert de Lenoncourt. There is a hall dedicated to the French military, with uniforms and weapons dating back to the Gallic Wars.
After a few hours, Sophia and I found our way into the church. It was breathtaking. The Holy Ampula is house in the sanctuary itself. It holds the holy oils used to anoint the Kings of France at their coronation. The original was smashed during the Revolution, but the current one has fragments of the original.
After the visit to le Basilique, we were quite tired. There is still much more to see in the city, but we ran out of time. I wanted to see the Palais du Tau and the Musee des Beaux Arts. The Palais was the house of the bishop in Reims, and when the kings of France came to the city for their coronation, they would stay with the bishop. Also, the Musee de la Reddition would have been nice to see. This is where the headquarters for
the allied Forces was located at the end of WWII. This is also where the Allied Forces obtained the unconditional surrender of the Third Reich. It was a great weekend, and definitely a much needed retreat from school. I have no idea where I am going next.
School is alright. Definitely not what I expected, but I'm getting used to it. Registering for classes is an absolute nightmare. If the classes I'm taking here didn't count at home, I wouldn't be so worried. But they do...so I'm not exactly peachy. Aside from classes, I am settling in fairly well. My room is still small, but it looks more like home. I have pictures from home everywhere. I received a much needed shipment of oreos and rtiz crackers from home as well. Speaking of...we went to a McDonald's this weekend. No one in this country has ever heard of biscuits. You can get pancakes with nutella. You can get amazing coffee. But things just aren't the same. The bathroom was the worst thing of all. You have to buy something to use the restroom. On the receipt, there is a code that you put into a keypad. When you get into
Train
Kevin and Sophia- I'm pretty sure the people on the train thought I was crazy...I was to an extent...hehe the restroom, you see a hole in the floor with 2 footprints as suggestions for you to squat. Then there is the complete disregard for time. Professors tend to arrive to class 10 minutes late. Everything closes early, opens late. Closes for 2 hours for lunch. When you make an appointment, even if you arrive 15 minutes late, you are still probably too early. If you know me, you know how irritating it is for me.
Anyways, that is my little rant. Some things are difficult to adapt to after having been groomed to behave a certain way. Until next time, sante et bisous!!!
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