Annecy

I will tell you about my second time to France, because the first time I went there I was on a run and just happened to run across the border. I think that is fitting that my first time would be running into a new country. Never done that before. But, I still don't have a stamp on my passport though...bummer. Anyway, so I traveled with the sisters and Ornella to Annecy, which is a beautiful town in France where the saint of the Salesians namesake comes from. He was St. Francis de Sales, and he grew up in a little community of Sales right outside of Annecy. The sisters were very excited because of this fact. St. Francis didn't actually found the Salesians, it was St. John Bosco, but that is another long story.

So I really just want to share with you my pictures because they explain a lot more than my words could about how beautiful this place is. The amazing lake is right next to the gorgeous park. Opposite the lake there is a great old town, which has the classic cobblestone European streets that I was picturing in my mind about Europe. The little river runs throughout the town and again is beautiful. We spent the whole day enjoying the cathedral which holds the remains of the famous Saint and another Saint who was also born there. Apparently there is a lot of holiness in that town. After the tour of the church and museum, we went to the lake then walked around the old town. I think anyone would fall in love with this city if they visited here. I liked this lake even better than Lake Geneva, except for the fountain of which there is no comparison.

We even heard some musicians playing music as they floated down the river. I am so glad there are lakes around here because I love seeing the water. Another highlight was the fact that there was a amateur symphony that was giving a free concert at one of the churches in town, so we went to hear them play. It was Vivaldi's "Four Seasons," which I love because of all the strings in it. It was actually my favorite composition from my Classical Music course I took at Pacific. So that was really nice to hear some music at a beautiful old church.

Enjoy the Pictures!