La Vie Rendue

Afternoon Adventure to Marseille!

I had the opportunity to take an afternoon adventure to Marseille with a marvelous student named Brenna. We stopped by the only starbucks in the south of France, walked around the old port and took a bus up to the highest point in the city: Notre Dame de la Guarde. Its a Church on one of the highest points that looks over the whole of Marseille.  Called Our Lady of the Guard because a HUGE statue of Mary and the Christ child are on the top that seem to “guard” the city. You can see this church for miles and its one of the first things you see as you enter Marseille. As this city is one of the major sea ports of France, the inside of the church is full of sailing paraphernalia that people have left over the years. Its pretty incredible to see what people have left, either in thanks of a successful voyage or in memory of a loved one.

As you can see, the views were breath taking… and were made even more so as the rain stopped to let the sun peek through the clouds. Enjoy a little look at Marseille.

Ummm Excuse Me??

This is what I found shopping in France three days ago… Christmas Decor! What is going on! I feel like I’ve missed the entire month of November.  Christmas lights are going up on Cour Mirabeau as too. The fountain has stopped running and is now only a stand for the lights they are stringing up there as well.  =(  There is no Thanksgiving celebration here to stave off the Christmas Decor for another month.

I Like Christmas… a lot! I guess I will just get to enjoy it longer this year!

Joyeux Nöel tout le monde!

Ganagobie Monastery

I had the opportunity to spend a few days at the Ganagobie Monastery for a time of silence and solitude. The thing is, it was anything but silent… or solo! Even though it wasn’t what I expected, I had a wonderful time. =)

I spent a lot of time in the wilderness around the monastery. Its located on the top of this huge plateau in the foothills of the Alps and I had the opportunity to spend hours with my bible and my journal at different look out points, in the woods and near an ancient village… (There have been people living on top of this plateau for 4 thousand years!)  It was such a sweet time of rest, and peace. A time where I got to process the time I have spent in France and brainstorm ways that I can leave France well.

One of my favorite memories was getting up early, making myself a cup of tea and making my way out to a lookout that is marked by a cross. *A note about France*, there are no big mugs, and at this monastery, you drink coffee and tea out of bowls. It was a bit iffy to carry this bowl full of tea out to my spot, so I covered it in saran wrap and made the hike with my fabulously protected drink. I got to spend an hour sitting at the base of this cross, saran wrapped bowl of tea in hand, watching the sky change colors from blue to yellow to pink… and then blue and pink. (I felt like I was watching a section of Sleeping Beauty!) It was a marvelous and truly special time.

I also had the opportunity to meet some of the other people on retreat. I met 2 women in particular who are truly searching for ‘truth’ and a better understanding of Jesus. To them, I was a crazy enigma. One of the monks had remembered me from the time I had come with the other staff members from ICCP, and he told the ladies that I was a protestant pastor. He asked me to bless one of the meals, and for him to defer to me, it was a big deal! Anyway, as soon as that got out, these women kept asking me different questions about Jesus, asking me about my beliefs and what I think is ‘the truth’. We had some pretty amazing conversations… all in French!

So even though it was meant to be a time of solo silence, it really was a time full of wonderful french conversations and fellowship in the midst intense rest.

Freaky Food Friday!

It was another successful Freaky Food Friday… utilizing foods beginning with the letter “C”!  We had some very creative combination… and they all were pretty tasty!  I think my favorite involved crêpes, White Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, Carmel and Cream.  It was quite decedent!  Enjoy the photos!!

Casino, San Remo

So, funny story here.  Cassie and I were given 20 euro vouchers from our hotel to play at the casino.  So Cassie, Vegas girl that she is, takes me inside and teaches me how to play the slots.  “Why not”, we say, “its free entertainment!”  So, Cassie, in her teaching demonstration looses her money pretty quickly.  I put 10 euro into the next machine I see and Cassie pushes some buttons… I won a few credits.  She pushes some buttons again and the machine goes nuts!!!  We don’t even know how much money is being accumulated… I just keep saying “CASH OUT”!  So, we walked in for free and out with 72 euro in our pockets… Enough to cover gas and tolls to Italy!  It makes me giggle sometimes to see how God provides. =)

(Source: classycass)

Then it was off to San Remo, Italy… where we walked the town, got dolled up and went for a nice dinner.  As you can see, we had some fun with photos… =)

(Source: classycass)