Greetings from the sunny, somewhat sweltering south of France! I’ve found myself getting used to not checking the weather forecast before getting dressed and leaving the house each morning. Practically every day in Aix-en-Provence has been 80 degrees Fahrenheit with a cloudless blue sky. On the one day this week it was supposed to rain, the storm miraculously disappeared. Definitely a change from Boston!

My French host family tells me that the strong Mediterranean wind pattern, known here as le mistral, moves nearly all clouds away from the mainland. While the beautiful late-summer weather lasts, before fall arrives and le mistral becomes infamously intense, I’m going to profiter du soleil – take advantage of the sun – and explore my study abroad city while it basks in the sunlight.