My stay in the French Riviera has sadly come to an end. To say it was a cake walk would be a lie (it was more of a pain au chocolat walk). HAHA. Joking aside, there were some ups and downs and the first week was definitely harder than I ever imagined both physically and emotionally. I think that first week taught me more about myself and how to deal with whatever life throws at you than the 23 years leading up to it. That could explain my total emotional amnesia of back home. My first week in Antibes felt like YEARS and although time has sped up since, it still feels like THIS is REAL and HOME is a DREAM. My friends here, although I don't know them well, I feel like they've been in my life forever and this has always been our way of life. Several have seconded my sentiments on the subject. It's a REALLY weird vibe. Obviously I miss you all, every last one of you...but I'm not going to lie, it feels like you are all a figment of my imagination. I'm forgetting what you all look and sound like. Talk about living in the moment!
It hasn't hit me yet that I'm NOT going back to Antibes. I've said goodbye to everyone and yet it still doesn't seem real. This fantasy life that I am living is so incredible and so filled with experiences that it's hard to believe anything else is normal. Some days I want to fly home and go back to my real life (eventhough I don't really remember what that is like) and most of the rest of the time I stop and take a look around and appreciate the culture and the history and the beauty of where I am in that moment and I never want to leave.
I will miss Antibes and Sophia Antipolis so much. I will miss my bus driver who drove me from Sophia to Place de Gaulle after the gym every night. I will miss the endless stream of Gelaterias and Patisseries and Marchés but my waistline will not! I will miss the Sun and the perfect climate, the beach and the sea water in which I can freely float around (although I still sink a bit). I will miss the "Bedrock" our perfectly located little apartment in Vieille Antibes (26 rue du Haut Castelet) and I will miss the 3 minute walk to the Port school. I will miss saying "Bonjour" and "Merci, au revoir" everytime I walk into a store or by a shop/restaurant worker. But mostly I will miss the ease in which everything flows in the Riviera (except the traffic). Nothing is hectic, everyone goes with the flow and no matter how tired, cranky or homesick you get, nothing cheers you up like spending the afternoon eating wine and cheese with your friends on the rocks by the beach.
Pulled an all-nighter before dragging myself and my luggage (I will DEFINITELY need another suitcase to come home) to the train station for my 6:52 train to Verona which will be our temporary resting place until we move in in Paris.
VIVA ITALIA!
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