Skies, seas, and Cherbourg

I’ve been to Cherbourg in Normandy twice, each time was a three-day stay. Yet, I’ve never written about it. For a period of time, the circumstances under which I made these visits bore too much burden on my heart and my mind. After almost three years, I dug out these memories and looked back at those very peaceful days that I spent in Cherbourg, and there was nothing to regret.

Cherbourg is a port city at the tip of northwestern France, part of the department of Lower Normandy, where the sea seemed to be an indispensable part of the people’s lives in Cherbourg

The largest waterfall in Europe

I love waterfalls. Being from Toronto, I’ve seen a fair share of our very own Niagara Falls, just an hour and a half away by car, but tell me the largest waterfall in Europe is in Switzerland, and you know that there’d be no way that I’d leave Europe without paying it a visit.

The train stopped at Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall station, literally right next to the waterfall. As I stepped onto the narrow platform, I was welcomed by the roaring sound of the rushing waters. I only had to walk a few steps before the white waters appeared in front of me. Wow, what a sight!

Still that same Bordeaux

The last blog was three weeks ago. Oh my! Historically July has been the slowest month for me in terms of blogging, and it seems like it’ll be the same this year. July isn’t a big travel month for me, and this year, a huge factor has been added that hinders blog progress. Embrace the T word – THESIS.

Thesis writing, that is. I’m finally at the end stages of my PhD studies and it’s time to crunch out that thesis that supposedly encompasses the work I’ve done within the past three years. It still hasn’t sunk in that what I’m writing now is the actual thesis itself, but I think that should be another post for another day. Thesis blues, you’ve hit me hard.

It’s been a while since I’ve written a true “Bordeaux” post, about the city I’ve been calling home for almost three years. So I dug out some of my favourite Bordeaux photos (old ones and recent ones) and I realized…wow, it is still as beautiful as ever.

The autumn moon hangs in the Bordeaux sky at dusk before it gets dark, waiting for its turn to shine when night falls. Bordeaux is known as the “Port of the Moon” because of the large crescent shape of its port. How suitable for an elegant city to have such an elegant name.