Traveling is a pleasant experience; changing environments can uplift one's mood and offer a good opportunity to relax both body and mind.
For Albert, a vacation in France was undoubtedly a brand-new experience.
This trip was planned by Herb and Daisy; British people enjoy traveling, and the couple was very experienced in this regard.
When they decided to take the family on a trip, they tacitly chose France as their destination.
Why?
Albert speaks French!
That's right, that's why Herb and Daisy chose to travel to France.
When traveling abroad, language barriers can be a hassle.
Now, they don't have to worry about this issue at all, nor do they need to follow a disliked travel agency; they can go wherever they want, and as for translation, isn't there Albert?
The couple's excuse was to improve Albert's French.
As soon as the plane landed at the airport, the tiny translator truly stunned the customs staff.
Herb and Daisy loved seeing the French people's surprised and shocked expressions; it greatly satisfied their vanity.
As an aside, the book-tracking app I've been using recently, [Mimi Reading App], caches books for offline reading!
In the first few days after arriving in France, the The Anderson Family family visited several famous Frenchattractions, such as the Champs-Élysées, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Seine River… and they didn't forget to take a lot of photos as souvenirs.
Of course, this might be related to Albert's offer to select some good-looking photos and help turn them into animated magic photos.
The remaining time was spent vacationing at the pre-booked Basque Beach.
Feeling the sea breeze, sunbathing, and watching swimsuit beauties was truly a delightful experience for both body and mind.
However, Albert's favorite activities were surfing and swimming; in his previous life, he was a landlubber who rarely even had the chance to go to a swimming pool.
Since he had the rare opportunity to use the panel to teach himself how to swim, how could Albert easily give up the joy of swimming by the sea?
In the scorching summer, playing in the water by the sea is quite comfortable.
Albert often surfed with the French people, and as his French language skills and experience increased, he became more proficient in using French; ordinary reading, writing, and communication were no longer a problem.
Of course, the surfboard was borrowed from someone else.
Albert was quite popular here; for the romantic French, this friendly British boy who spoke French and surfed was full of mystery.
"Albert, Albert, help me put on sunscreen," Nia threw down her half-built sandcastle and ran towards Albert, holding a towel and sunscreen.
"Why don't you ask Mom to help you put on sunscreen?" Albert took a sip of juice and took the towel to wipe the water from his body.
"They're chatting with someone," Nia gestured in a certain direction, indicating for Albert to see for himself.
Under the parasol, Herb and Daisy were chatting with a young couple who had also come to France for vacation; they were talking animatedly, though it was unclear about what.
"Oh, how unreliable," Albert mumbled.
"Yeah, yeah!" Nia also nodded in agreement.
"Come here, lie down on the beach chair, and I'll help you put on sunscreen." Albert took the sunscreen and had Nia lie down on the beach chair, then began to carefully apply sunscreen to her.
In such a hot summer, if you sunbathe without sunscreen, your skin will get sunburned.
"Albert, are there also Schools of magic in France?" Niacomfortably squinted her eyes and asked curiously.
"Yes, there are three main Schools of magic in Europe: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Britain, Beauxbatons Academy of Magic in France, and the last one in the Scandinavian region of Northern Europe, called Durmstrang Institute," Albert said softly while applying sunscreen to Nia.
"How do you know that?" Nia asked again.
"There are relevant records in the Hogwarts Library; the three schools have always had a good relationship," Albert replied.
"Then why do you think we haven't encountered anything related to magic since we came to France?" Niaasked again.
"Because the lives of ordinary people and Wizards don't intersect, so naturally, you won't come into contact with it.
Done," Albert suddenly said, "I'll go get you some juice."
"Schools of magic?" The young couple looked over at Albert with somewhat strange expressions when they heard that.
"He likes to read," Daisy explained.
"I'm planning to write a book myself," Albert said with a smile, nodding to the young couple, "a story about magic."
The young couple looked at Albert in surprise, not expecting this child, who was not yet twelve, to already be planning to write a book.
"We support him greatly in this," Herb cleared his throat, "just as we supported him in learning French."
Speaking of this, Herb began to boast about Albertagain, even preparing to have Albert say a few words in French for everyone to hear.
Albert couldn't help but want to cover his face when he heard that, and quickly walked away.
"Why aren't you continuing to sunbathe?" Albert asked, looking at Nia who had stood up.
"This time, it's my turn to help you put on sunscreen," Nia said.
"No need, I can do it myself." Just as Albert was about to apply sunscreen to himself, a voice suddenly sounded in his ear.
"Handsome boy, would you like me to help you put on sunscreen?"
Several young women in swimsuits passed by with surfboards, smiling and greeting Albert.
"No, thank you," Albert politely refused, "Let's surf together sometime."
"Oh dear, he's shy," the swimsuit ladies giggled and left.
"See? Albert's French is indeed very good, isn't it!" Herbsaid to the young husband.
The young couple, who had been half-skeptical, now truly believed it.
"Who are they?" Nia watched the retreating figures of the swimsuit ladies warily.
"Friends I met while surfing."
"So, you like that type?" Nia looked down at her flat body and mumbled, "I'll grow up eventually…"
"Alright, stop fussing, lie down and sunbathe obediently."
"I want to help you put on sunscreen," Nia insisted.
"Okay, okay," Albert agreed helplessly.
In reality, Nia's technique was really not good.
Finally, Daisy had to reapply it for Albert.
At dinner, Albert stared at the French fish soup served by the waiter and asked, "Where's Dad?"
"He went to book tickets for the Opéra," Daisy said.
"Opéra? Which Opéra?" Albert felt he couldn't appreciate such high-class things.
"Opéra Bastille."
"The tickets there aren't cheap, are they?" Albertfrowned.
As the second-largest Opéra house in France, the tickets there were not cheap.
"Herb said since we're already in France, we shouldn't miss it," Daisy comforted him, "Besides, we still have plenty of budget; this vacation is cheaper than we expected."
"When is it?" Albert asked again.
"Just before we go back, right after seeing the Opéra, we'll take the plane home," Daisy said with a smile, "Does Nia like Opéra?"
"I don't know, I haven't seen one," Nia shook her head, "Is it good?"
"I really can't appreciate this kind of art.
How about we go to the cinema to watch a movie instead?" Albert suggested.
"I'm afraid not," Herb replied.
"You already bought the tickets?" Albert asked incredulously.
"I booked the tickets, they can't be refunded, and how can we miss an Opéra when we've come all the way to France?" Herb said.
"Alright, as long as you're happy." Albert couldn't help but roll his eyes and decided not to dwell on the matter anymore.