Fougeres et fraises fraîches!

"When you focus on being a blessing, God makes sure you are always blessed in abundance."

I know I sound like a broken record, but I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful life. Sometimes I have to pinch myself and say a little prayer to remind my self to be appreciative. 

The last 2 and a half weeks have been so amazing. I've seen so many beautiful places and seen some incredible things. The time has also flown by! Only 12 more days until I'm home free! 

And 5 more days until I'm off alone again traveling to Belgium.

Id be lying if I said I wasn't ready for French classes to end though. I've definitely learned a lot, but I'm ready to be done with school for good. This is the final week of college classes for me forever! We have 2 tests and then on Friday were going to Mont St. Michel which is going to be absolutely amazing! 

Oh and Happy -late- Fourth of July to everyone back at home! It was a little weird not seeing fireworks for the first time, but I enjoyed everyone's photos. :) This weeks classes flew by. I went on a run in the beautiful Parc du Thabor down the street. Which is honestly one of the most picturesque places I've ever been. 

The photos don't even do it justice. Then we explored some more through out the week and went out on July 4th to celebrate American style! We went to an Irish pub in the square which was refreshing because they could speak english. One bar I went to I tried ordering wine and got fruit punch -_- Vin? & Punch? I mean they're close right...

On Friday there was an excursion to the Enchanted forest in Broceliande. The forest is apparently a large part in Authorian legends and there was a grave said to be the grave of Merlin. The legend is that he would go back and forth between England and this forest to visit Vivien, a fairy who loved Merlin. The story goes that she eventually used magic to trap him in the forest to be with her forever. 

(View from the entrance into the forest of Broceliande)

Yesterday my roommate Terryn and I had an adventure. We first woke up and went to the huge market they have here every Saturday. It's called the Marche de Lices and it's pretty famous. I've never seen a market this big in my life. It was incredible. I could really see the French culture. There were just tables and tables of beautiful flowers and fresh fruit everywhere! There was soo much cheese, bread, meat, vegetables and everything! And everyone walks around with wicker baskets buying fresh food for the week :) it was darling. The lifestyle here is incredible.

I bought a small slice of Tomme cheese, a link of sausage, some fresh strawberries and a delicious peach and we took it to Fougeres to have a picnic. 

Fougeres is a small town about an hour away from Rennes that's known for a well preserved castle. The town is built on a hill and had truly spectacular views.

We sat in the grass next to the river with the view of the castle surrounded by flowers. 

I would highly recommend visiting Fougeres for anyone that's ever in the western region of France. It's a beautiful small town surrounded by some very picturesque small villes as well.

Later on that night after coming back we went out and this time we tried a new club called L'Espace. I again felt like I was in a movie. It was the coolest club we had ever been into! The music was amazing the lights were crazy and they would spray foam out of the ceiling while everyone was dancing! We stayed until 3:30am and people were just now heading to the club. It was insane, but totally worth it and so much fun! We just danced all night. 

Since this will probably be one of my last posts from Rennes I want to give a little recommendation list for anyone who ever travels around France. 

If you come to the western part of France in the region of Brittany you won't regret it! The region was once ruled by the Brirish, hence the name Brittany so the culture is an interesting mix.The medieval   architecture here is one of the only places in France where you can find it. 

I recommend the cities of Dinaar, Dinaan, Fougeres and St Malo. Also the Marche de Lices market in Rennes and the Parc du Thabor in Rennes. 

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! I would love to tell more, but there is just so much and I'm tired of typing. I can't wait to be home and see everyone! Hopefully my next post will be from Belgium. xox

-M