Sunday, June 17 2007

Friday, classes as usual in the morning. In the afternoon, we drove to nearby Menthon Saint Bernard, to visit the castle, birthplace of St Bernard (of mountain pass and large dog fame). The photo at left shows students entering the castle's main gate. The photo below shows the entire group, with the Bauges mountains in the background.

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The photo at right shows Theresa and Rachel high above the main gate before the start of the tour. We were not able to take photos inside, but toured the historic castle for an hour, seeing the 12th-century dungeon which now houses a wonderful library, as well as kitchens, the main reception hall, and the some bedrooms, one of which is lined with tapestries that have not been moved in nearly three hundred years... one has to wonder what lies behind them !

Saturday, everyone rested. Sunday, Prof Jeantet and one host parent drove six students into the Aosta valley, in northern Italy. Aosta is a French linguistic enclave in northwestern Italy, and can be reached either by mountain passes or by the very long Mt Blanc tunnel. The photo at left shows Lauren, Jeff and Rachel posing on the Italian side of the Alps just after crossing the border. We went on to Aymavilles for lunch in a typical Italian restaurant, where we sampled the local ravioli and bistecca.

We drove into Aosta, parked near the triumphal arch of Augustus and walked into the old town, which was quite calm on this Father's Day Sunday. The photo at right shows Jeff posing in front of the massive Pretorian Gate, which dates back to Roman times. Almost all of the Roman perimeter wall is still standing, and the Roman ruins in the center of town (the theater) are quite picturesque.

As we reached the center of town, on the large town hall square, we found three other UA students and their host mom lunching at the Café de la Place. We decided to sample the local ice cream which all agreed was the best they'd ever tasted !

We went to the old St Ours cathedral to view ancient mosaics and the crypt. The photo at right shows Lauren sitting in the crypt which she stated to be one of the nicest places she'd yet seen. We then walked back to the main street, where some shops were open for the tourist trade. Students bought souvenirs typical of the Aosta region, including bottles of the local chestnut liqueur whose price is unbeatable, since alcohol made in the Aosta Autonomous Region is exempt from Italian federal taxes ...

Under the arch of the Pretorian Gate, some of us waited as others completed their purchases. Rachel befriended a very old dog whose owner, a street painter, explained that "Fritz" was ten years old. Fritz seemed to appreciate Rachel's attention.

At right, one last shot of our little group in the main street of old Aosta. A medieval watchtower looms in the background under the graying skies. We headed back through the Mt Blanc tunnel in late afternoon, arriving in Faverges just over two hours later as rain began to fall.

The final week of the Program is now starting. On our schedule, classes Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. Monday evening, a benefit concert for the AFA. Tuesday evening, dinner in the mountain refuge of Pré-Vérel. Wednesday evening, a farewell party at the Staublis' house. Students will be dispersing on Thursday, most going to Geneva, others to Annecy. One more report will follow, likely at the end of the week.