Aix and Traveling Here in France

This is going to be a bit of a stream of consciousness log

Ive been in Aix now for about a week (out of 6 weeks planned).  When I was getting on the train from Paris to Aix, something popped in my knee. Upon reaching Aix, I went to  pharmacy and got a pair of crutches—people were very helpful—and my knee is doing a little bit better each day, although for safety I still take use  crutch when walking.

I’m renting an apartment through AirBNB. The apartment is ideally located and quite functional, with a small kitchen area, including a washing machine. I rented the place for a month, and will travel to Avignon next, where I also rented an apartment.

I did buy a one-month membership at a gym here in Aix. It cost me 99 Euros, although I could have paid 15 Euros per visit instead. Lifting weights is a part of my overall health regime, although I don’t exercise as often as I should. I am using the “Loft” gym. The owner is clearly a bodybuilder.

People are friendly, but fewer people than expected speak English (some do, but it’s a hit or miss thing). My landlady is very friendly and it was her and her daughter that helped me get a medical appointment for my knee. The doctor was efficient and immediately wrote a prescription for an MRI. He understands that I want to know if and / or how much damage there is for my 3-month stay in Europe.

At the hospital, the people scheduling were helpful and curious. I understand that one or two were flirting with me, in a friendly and non-serious way, although I didn’t understand them at the time. One nurse spoke good English and she told me that.

My French is spotty and slow. If I had an eternity to think I could speak better, but the conversations keep moving and my brain quickly falls behind. I tried Italian, which I speak better than French, but no one (or very few people) seems to speak it here. I’m hoping my French is improved while here.

I did manage to do some more research, at the library this time. With help, I found a book that summarizes some of the happenings, about 100 years of history—events—in Aix and from that I can request journals (newspapers), one month at a time from their archives to learn more about what happened.

I’m using Google Translate to helpme read. I just take a photo of the page (or several paragraphs) and the image finds the text and then translates it for me—much better than me trying to work through every sentence, although sometimes I do.

I’ve noticed how much faster the battery of my phone drains here in either Aix and in Paris. I attribute it to a couple of things: 1) I use location services more and it uses power, too; 2) the phone struggles to find and keep connections more, either because the cell towers are farther apart or because the stone buildings block the signal more——or both.

At home, I can go 2 days before the phone’s battery level even get’s close to 60%. Here, I need to plug the phone in to keep the charge above 55 or 60% after just a half day.

It’s easy to switch your phone to local number, just find a service provider and buy a prepaid SIM card with the data and minutes you’ll need. I bought what was considered a 2-week card (although he card is good for 6 months) with 1000 minutes of talk time and 10GB of data for about 44 Euros from Orange (one of the largest providers in France). If I run out of data (I never use many minutes) then I can recharge it.

Getting a local SIM is much more efficient than using your US number. I will probably get a new card when I go to Italy (as usually do).You just pop the card in your phone out and insert the new one and Tah-dah you’re in business.

I use Watts Up and I also have an app that makes my phone an extension of my Vonage VOIP phone in the US, so calls (minutes) are free, but I need the data for when I am not near a free WIFI signal. I also use an encrypted VPN when using WIFI to keep my traffic secure.

To navigate the streets, I use Mapme (or is it mapsme). You download maps in advance so the system does not depend on having a signal while you’re walking, and it’s pretty good.

Oh well, another day gone.

The post Aix and Traveling Here in France appeared first on Michael Selden.