French Exchange

Hey Everyone,

I was wondering what you all thought would be the nicest spot in France (besides Paris) to spend two months on an exchange. I%26#39;m from Melbourne, Australia if that helps at all and prefer big towns to small towns!

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My first suggestion would be Tours which is where I stayed as a young student the first time I spent any extended time in France. That was a very long time ago, though - just a few years after the Biblical flood had subsided, I think...

Tours is an interesting and decent-sized city with a lively older area and plenty of restaurants and cafes. Of course it is a great center to see the Loire chateaux, which can be done by train or bus from Tours. And it is only about an hour by TGV frfom Paris...

Second choice might be Rouen, which is a little smaller than Tours. Rouen would be a good base from which to make trips into Normandy, and again is only about an hour from Paris by train.

And I think my third choice would probably be Avignon, which wouild allow you to explore a lot of Provence quite easily.

Have a GREAT time! I really envy you...

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I don%26#39;t know your age, but Aix en Provence is a great University town. Marseille is France%26#39;s second biggest city and has lots of great energy. But really, where ever you end up, there will be enough to keep you busy.

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I would suggest Toulouse. Is the city with the second largest university population in France (after Paris), so lots of of young people to hang out with. It is also very close to the Pyrenees and Andorra (if you are into winter sports) and about 4 hours from Barcelona.

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The Dordogne is steeped in history plus the great

prehistory caves. Sarlat was a favorite. More of

a farming/pastoral setting. Not so much of

the hustle and bustle of the larger cities.

The Dordogne is about 80 miles east of Bordeaux.

Took the train to Bordeaux and rented a car.

Let%26#39;s face it, you really have to work hard

to mess it up in France.

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Nice as a base then travel along the coast to Saint Raphael, Cannes, one way. Monaco, Ventimiglia (Italy) the other. And everywhere else along the route, except Marseille IMO.

Have fun