Horseback-Riding on the Beach

"On Tuesday, July 5, we traveled to the Camargue nature preserve. It is a unique natural environment, an estuary, where the Rhone River meets the Mediterranean Sea, and as such has fresh water fauna and flora on one side, with salt water animals and vegetation on the other. The area is populated by flocks of wild pink flamingos and a special breed of "Camargaise" horses, stocky white spotted horses unique to this area.

After riding horses on the beach and watching wild flamingos and herons fly by, we went into the town of Les Saintes Maries de la Mer, a small quaint sea-side village made historic by St. Sara and the three "Marys of the Sea", including Mary Magdelene. According to legend and local history, some 40 years after the crucifixion of Christ, the three Marys escaped from Palestine and landed here with St. Sara - one of the famous Black Madonnas. It is from this tiny quaint village by the sea that Christianity spread throughout Europe. St. Sara la Noire is the patron saint of the Gypsies, and each year a pilgrimmage of gypsies from all over the world gather here to celebrate her." Chandri Barat

note by Nayyirah Sabir, student at Newark Collegiate Academy, Newark, NJ:

"Today we went horseback riding, and it was a remarkable adventure. I rode a horse once before in my life, but it could not compare to this experience in France. The horses were free spirited and all had unique names, such as Lulu and Oakland. The horse I rode was called Ahamise and had dark spots all over. Later we went to the beach and there were many shops to browse through. We then went to a church in Les-Saintes-De-La-Mer and the architecture was extraordinary in that it looked like a Medieval building because it was made hundreds of years ago. No day at the beach is complete without ice cream, which is why my friend and I chose two alternative flavors including Lavender and Nutella. As we expected, both were delicious. We then walked along the beach and found many beautiful seashells which I've never seen in America. The feeling of the cool blue water of the Mediterranean Sea was refreshing after a day in the sun."