Hello from the South of France - Chateaus, Small Towns, and Bright Yellow Sunflowers

My family and I have been traveling south from Paris for the past week and a half. I apologize for the lack of the posts in the meantime - between sightseeing by day and spotty internet at night, I just didn't get a chance. That and I realized I have completely turned off my brain ever since I left Paris. Why, I'm not sure - it could be that I'm with my parents or that my classes are over, or it could just be that smaller towns and pretty country scenes just lull my brain to sleep. Either way, I just haven't had enough mental activity lately to come up with anything all too worthwhile to say - thus, I'll leave the bulk of this post to images, to show you all what I have been seeing for the past few days.

The beautiful gardens at the chateau de Villandry.

A gorgeous sunset on the Loire River, as seen from the adorable town of Chinon.

Sunflowers abound across the French countryside and, true to their name, they face the east in the morning and the west after noon, eventually drooping their heads around 4pm when they've had their fill. Beautiful. (And here's my mom, hehe.)

Geese! At a goose farm in the Dordogne region, where I saw the force-feeding of the ducks and geese for foie gras production (although the force-feeding is used to make all parts of the duck or goose tastier, as I learned). Yes they were cute. Yes it was sad. Yes I still love foie gras. Watching the force-feeding demonstration was, if nothing else, a great eye-opener to the basic practical nature of making of a living. You produce geese. Fat geese sell better. You make the geese fat and you make a living. Such is life.

Huge Roman aqueduct in the south of France, near Nîmes. Ingenious engineering and masonry, 2000 years ago. I was impressed.

And to finish off, a goodbye from Arles, where I am currently: the "Rome of France," set in the heart of Provence, and (most importantly) where Van Gogh painted some of his most famous works (like Starry Night over the Rhone and Café Terrace at Night). I went today to find the café made timeless by his painting and it was utterly disappointing - all tourist-fare and souvenir-fodder - though I did take a couple photos to prove I found the spot (one of my goals for this trip). However, I was able to get some amazing photos of lamplit Arles at dusk which, by complete luck and good timing, managed to bear striking resemblance to some of our dear VG's pieces. Staring up at this murky sky framed by the yellow-bathed and dusty walls of ancient Arles, I can imagine what may have inspired the tortured artist to paint as he did. Small and touristy as this town may be today, I have to admit, it has charmed me with its bright sun, warm colors, and vibrant atmosphere.

Tomorrow we move on one more small town in Provence, then Nice for some French sunbathing - c'est la vie! And after that, we fly - home. It's been a whirlwind tour of France, and there is no doubt still lots to see, but to be honest I've been ready to go home ever since we left Paris. For I'm still a big city girl at heart. After all, how can you compare with never-ending nightlife, around-the-corner convenience, and most of all, that world-class culture right at your doorstep? My answer: you can't. Though a beautiful sunset sure does help.

With that, bonne nuit, à bientot, and gros bisous to all.