Friday, December 18, 2009
Reflections on Returning
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Ireland in Photos
Dublin: III
December 14, 2009, Monday
Michelle and I really booked this trip well, time-wise. We had the full day in Dublin on Saturday and today our flight didn't leave until night, so we had all day, until 5 p.m., in the city. That makes 3 full days in this beautiful country! We woke up early because when you stay in a hostel room with other people, when they get up early in the morning, you're pretty much up early in the morning, too. We had breakfast and were ready for the day by 8:30, which was a little ridiculous because nothing was really open and we had alllll day to do stuff. We made great friends with Stephen, a worker at Paddy's Palace. He told us that if you work for the company for 3 or 6 months, you get free lodging and you can go on tours for free! What a deal! We watched a little Irish morning news and some crappy tv to kill some time.
Finally, we left to see some sights, the first being Trinity College. It was a little colder today, so we bundled up even though it was a pretty short walk. The campus is absolutely gorgeous with huge stone buildings and a great courtyard. I'm sure I looked like a little tourist, taking photos while all the students were walking to and from class. We went there to see the Book of Kells, which is an illuminated manuscript from the 800s, containing the four gospels of the New Testament, written in Latin by Celtic monks. It was a really interesting exhibition, though I'm not sure it was worth 8 euros. I did get a coupon for a free postcard! Haha. After, we took a stroll down Grafton Street, which is the equivalent of; Rue de Rivoli (Paris), Regent Street (London), even Newbury Street (Boston); Basically, all sopping. We peeked in a few stores and bought gloves, but that's it; I behaved! We exited right next to Saint Stephen's Green, a wonderful, beautiful park in the city, and strolled all around it. It reminded me of being in Parc Monceau in Paris...just like home! As it started to get colder, we returned to Paddy's and had some time to warm up and relax before taking the 5 p.m. Bus to the airport. Our driver was the same one who had taken us from the airport to the hostel a couple days earlier, and he was so nice, too! Really, everyone there was so nice. I think we formed some pretty good bonds to be honest.
The flight home was flawless, it just took a long time. By the time I got back to the foyer it was after midnight. I got to sleep a little on the bus ride back to Paris, but I had to stay up a little later to finish working in my final paper due Wednesday.
So, to sum it all up: This weekend was definitely one of the best ones of my life! I'm so happy Michelle and I went together because we had so much fun and were silly, so that aspect was definitely fun. Plus, we got to spend a lot of time in a truly breathtaking country—one that I would love to revisit someday. I'm very fortunate to have been able to do so much traveling this semester. It really does feel like all of Europe is at your fingertips once you're over here, and it is pretty easy to get around. Even better when you can find cheap flights. Now I have to enjoy the last few days left in Paris before I head back home. What a whirlwind!
Bisous mes amis!
Dublin: II
December 13, 2009, Sunday
I forgot to mention that the reason we decided to voyage Saturday-Monday is that we would not have to miss our Friday class with Thierry, which I have already missed a lot of times. Also, our flights were SO cheap—5 euros for the flight to Dublin and 3 euros for the return trip!! I kid you not. I love RyanAir.
Anyway, we woke up today around 6 (woo hoo, got to sleep late! Haha) and had breakfast in the hostel before meeting in the lobby around 7. The Paddy Wagon had a full bus today and we got good seats near the front. The Cliffs of Moher are on the west coast of Ireland, and you can cross the whole country in about 3-4 hours, which I think is pretty cool. Still;, this means it was a long trip in the bus. Mike, our driver, was hysterical, though I don't know if he meant to be. He told us no less than 50 times how lucky we were because of the weather. It was true, even in Summer you might not get clear skies and sun like we did today. It would have been a shame to go all the way to the Cliffs and not be able to see them because of fog. And Mike made sure to repeat himself...again...and again...We passed by the field where the battle scene in Braveheart was filmed! The sun did not rise for a while, but it was beautiful when it did. It was amazing to speed by the rolling green countryside of Ireland. And speed by we did, because Mike was a maniac driver. Safe, but so fast! I wore my seatbelt. We stopped at King John's Castle on the River Shannon. There were a lot of medieval castles around, the ruins just scattered all over the countryside. It was kind of like how the ancient ruins were scattered in Athens. We were on a very strict schedule, as Mike also kept reminding us; so we did not have a ton of time for photo opportunities, though we got to take some. Luckily, we stayed on schedule all day. We drove through the parts of the country that were devastated by the Potato Famine, which the Irish call the Great Hunger because the rest of the country was well-fed, just not the peasants in the countryside who were so poor they could only live off potatoes. When they were allowed to work for their food, the government in the east made them build stone walls to literally nowhere, all day, for just one penny a day's worth of food for their family. During the time of the famine, Ireland's population decreased by 3 million, from 8 million to 5 million—1 million died and the rest fled. Today, the population is not as high as it used to be. Seeing the walls was very striking and a sad reminder of the atrocities the Irish had to endure.
We stopped for lunch in a very small village named Doolin, at an Irish pub that had SUCH good food for a great price—and lots of it! It was so picturesque and quiet and beautiful, especially at this time of year when there are not a lot of people around. Things are so remote that people in Doolin have to drive over an hour to get to the closest grocery store. I wonder how long it takes to get to school? Doolin is only 5 minutes from the Cliffs of Moher, which is the most-visited sight in the whole country. Of course, my camera stopped working right as we got there, to the most important part of the whole trip! I was furious. Luckily I can rely on Michelle's camera, but it was still a huge bummer. The cliffs are simply stunning, especially when you get up close and see just how high they are—440 meters or something like that. The water was a sparkling blue and it matched the sky and we had warm sun-it was perfect! There were almost no other tourists there too, which made it even more serene. In the summer I think it would be too hot and too crowded. We seem to get very lucky on trips like this. :) It was so nice also to just be silent and listen to the murmur of the waves as they hit the rocks. It's very magnetizing, and I forgot how much I missed things like this while being in Paris. We stayed for an hour and a half and got to climb both sides of the cliffs, even passing a point that is interdit (sometimes I honestly can't remember some words in English). Everyone went beyond that point, you just have to be careful. Great photos!
We made a similar to stop to another castle on the drive home, but Miche and I slept more on this trip. Since it gets dark so early, we were not missing much of the scenery outside the bus. We got back to the hostel a little after 7, a little tired but so happy that we decided to take the day trip. It was getting the best of both worlds, to be able to profit from the city and to see the famed, incredible countryside. We found an Italian place for dinner and both ordered the same dish, which Miche and I noticed we are very good at doing, haha. It was in the Temple Car area, a lively stretch full of bars and pubs with live Irish music, but it was a little pricey for us. We were really tired again so we retired to the hostel, watched more X Factor, since it was the final vote night (oh, please, just listen to me now). Went to bed early again :)
Dublin: I
This entry is all about my fabulous weekend in Ireland with Michelle! Wow. As I write this, I've been back in Paris for a couple days and I still can't get over how amazing my weekend was and how much I want to go back. I hope the following entries are not too boring for you, because I wanted to record every detail I could remember. Here goes nothing...
December 12, 2009, Saturday
Today started really early—I woke up at 3:45 so I could shower before leaving the foyer. Unfortunately I did not get a lot of sleep mast night because there was a huge party a couple doors down from me in the foyer, and people were being so loud. Luckily I am a morning person and can get by with little sleep. We had to leave so early because RyanAir likes to fly out of very remote airports and it was flying out of Beauvais, over an hour outside of Paris. I got all my stuff together, packed into the now-infamous brown Weekend Trip Bag, and left the foyer around 5 a.m. In order to catch the first metro at 5:30, I got to Nation around 5:20. I really don't like the walk from my foyer to that metro station early in the morning or late at night, even though it's only about 10 minutes. It's probably safe, I just get a weird feeling. I took the metro all the way to the western periphery, to Porte Maillot, and met Michelle there at the bus terminal. We were both so excited we were so talkative and giddy on the bus ride, though I think we tried to sleep a little. Beauvais is a very small airport, almost not even real in my opinion. It took us not long at all to go through security and we had some time to relax before getting on board. It's free seating, just like EasyJet, so we found a nice part on the left side and I got the window—nice! I have a baseless fear of the right side of planes so it was perfect. The flight was only an hour and a half, too! Good thing Michelle was there for me to squeeze the daylights out of her hand during take-off. She's a good sport. :)
Seeing the green fields from the airplane made Ireland really come alive. It's just like it looks in the pictures! Though during the Spring the green is more vibrant and lush, for the middle of December, we were really surprised at how much greenery there was. We booked a hostel named—wait for it—Paddy's Palace! It has such a funny name, how could we not? Actually, it is the only hostel in Europe (or the world, as Stephen, our Paddy's Palace employee friend, would tell us) that has free shuttle service to and from the airport. I can't get over the accents! And I thought it was great in England. Actually, sometimes when the Irish pilots spoke on the plane, it was as if they were speaking another language entirely. Also, did you know the language can be called Irish, too, not Garlic? I thought that was interesting because it sounds a little incorrect, like saying people speak American or Mexican, but it is correct. Everyone was so, so friendly and helpful and just generally very...cheery. What a pleasant change! The Paddy Wagon picked us up at 12; Yes...the Paddy Wagon, a bright green bus with a sheep and leprechaun on it, that says PADDY WAGON TOURS across it. We must have been quite a sight. It was hard to get used to the fact that the Irish drive on the other side of the road, too. I could already tell it was going to be a fantastic weekend! The bus took us right to the hostel, in the center of Dublin. We really picked the hostel well—great location close to the River Liffey that runs through the city. Our driver told us all about the area on the way there. This hostel really should have been considered a palace! It had great couches in the lobby, a huge flat screen tv and a computer with free internet for anyone who wanted to use it! And books and brochures...it really felt like a little hotel. If anyone is ever looking for a hostel in Dublin, I demand you stay at Paddy's Palace. We got checked into our 10-person female dorm room right downstairs, but we only ever had a couple roommates at a time. I got the top bunk. :) It was still rally early at that point so we got settled and then walked around the city to a place where we could get on a hop-on hop-off tour bus.
Dublin is even smaller than Paris, and seems to be very accessible from anywhere. There is a pretty lively population and a lot of people. It was really interesting to see the stark differences between Dublin and Paris. Dublin is not as pretty, architecturally, I would say. The buildings are nondescript brick ones, not too high, with no embellishments at all. I prefer the wrought iron balconies, flower boxes, and window shutters of Parisian apartments much more. People seem more relaxed and not as consumed with image. I think I can say in a sociological, observational way, that Dubliners are not as rigid as Parisians with self-image and clothing and looking good, and Dubliners have a more alternative style, whereas Parisians don't take as many risks and wear a lot of dark colors. We found the bus station and paid our 13 euros to get on. It was a little cold but we had sun and clear weather so Michelle and I sat on the top of the uncovered double-decker bus to get the best view. The tour was an hour and a half long, and it took us by beautiful parks, Saint Patrick's Cathedral, Christ Church, the Guinness Factory, and all sorts of historical sights. We took so many photos! Phoenix Park in Dublin is the largest enclosed park in all of Europe! It was really beautiful. The whole area around the Guinness Factory smelled like barley, thought I really thought it smelled like horse manure, haha. I think it's the number one tourist attraction the city and the beer is sold literally everywhere.
When we got off the bus around 3:15, we wandered around to some Christmas markets we had passed on the Paddy Wagon. After being to the markets along the Champs Elysées, no other markets seem as impressive, but it was still so nice! I didn't buy anything but some scones and fudge...mmm! It was so festive and it was right on the water, which was nice. That killed some time before we headed back to the hostel for a little because it was so cold out. I will admit it...we may have taken an hour nap in our beds, haha. Hey, we had been up for so long and were really tired. We got some dinner recommendations from people who worked at the hostel and tried to get into a really popular pub called the Cilt (pronounced “kilt”) but it was full until 10 p.m. We still found another Irish pub and Michelle and I both ordered Shepherd's Pie! That was one of my goals for the weekend. She had a Guinness because, well, When in Rome, and I had a coke. Even though I was in Dublin, I could not bring myself to drink the stuff. Dinner was so yummy. I had wanted to check out the temple Bar area after dinner but we were so tired that we just went back to the hostel and watched a little tv in the lobby before going to bed. The show The X-Factor was on and people are pretty nuts about it, so we got in on the fun for a little. It's like American Idol but with better accents.
So, Paddy Wagon Tours is a touring company that also has several hostels all around Ireland, not just in Dublin. They run 1-, 2-, 4-, 6-, and 10-day tours all over the country, too. Miche and I decided to pay a little more to take a day trip to the Cliffs of Moher on the west coast. I think staying in the city all weekend would have been a little suffocating; plus we really wanted to see the countryside. Most people who stay in the hostels go on tours, or they stay in the hostel BECAUSE they went on a tour. We went to bed satisfied with our plan and still so ecstatic to be in Dublin!
Friday, December 11, 2009
Comment dit-on "hodgepodge" en francais?
Thursday, December 10, 2009
La vie continue
Sunday, December 6, 2009
The Frog and Rosbif
This post doesn't have a lot of really important updates or information; it's just a sneak-peek into my weekend, which was very nice! I figure a few "normal" (meaning, what day spending a semester abroad in Paris is "normal"?!) day-in-the-life entries are good to have, too. Also, please ignore my horrendous spelling and typing issues! I didn't realize it was so bad...
Friday I had class from 9-12 in the morning. I haven’t been in this class in forever, for various reasons (oooh does that sound mysterious? It’s really not; more of a combination of Theirry being sick and weekend trips!). But luckily we had a "field trip" day around Paris, so it was better than sitting in a classroom for 3 straight hours. Though it was cold, we had blue skies and sun so I enjoyed being outside! We walked around Belleville, which is an area not too far from where I live, in the 19th/20th arrondissements. Parts of the area are a little more run-down, and it's very working-class, but it's also the most originally "French" area in the whole city. Plus, the park at Belleville is the highest point, land-wise, in the whole city! (Walking up the steps of Sacre Coeur is technically higher, but as for landmass, Belleville wins). The view of Paris was so gorgeous, but what was the most striking was that it made the city look so close! The Eiffel Tower looked like it was two feet away when it is really on the other side of the city. We had the park to ourselves with no other tourists, which was a plus. Thierry even took us out to get tea and hot chocolate, which was really nice on a cold, autumn morning.
Monday, November 30, 2009
My Life in Ruins: Greece in Photos
Athens: Part II
(Sorry for the small font size in the previous post!) Aaaaaaand we're back!
Saturday
Saturday I woke up a little later than I wanted to but still made it to breakfast before it closed at 9:30. Breakfast included bread and some fruit. I could already tell it was going to be a hot day. We got all our things together and set out a little after 10 to....go to the Acropolis! How cool; I was so excited, especially because it's such a short walk. It was so hot, too, about 70 degrees. I was loving every minute of it, and I had even brought my sunglasses from Paris. Good thing! We did a lot of climbing, and each view of the city was more breathtaking than the one before. We kept climbing higher and higher. I had no idea how spread out the city was—it expands for several miles and you can see endless mountains and even the sea in one direction! We all would have loved to go to the beach if we had had more time. The ruins themselves were incredible. It's hard ti imagine that things can endure so long, and that we were in the very place that so many historical things happened. It's the beginning of civilization! Ah, so wonderful. And to see the Parthenon was amazing. These are the sorts of things you see pictures of in history textbooks and can't imagine actually visiting. There was sufficient construction, which was a bummer, but I was still so ecstatic to just be there. I don't think it really sunk in until after I got back to Paris.
We took a lot of photos and enjoyed the sun and the scenery and eventually had to come back down. There is simply too much to see all at once because the ruins are scattered all over the city. Get this: my art history student card from the Sorbonne got me into the Acropolis for free! Who knew that it could work internationally?! :) It all really felt like a dream and the whole time, none of us could believe were in Greece.
We spent the rest of the afternoon doing a lot of souvenir shopping. I got lots of things that I needed for people at home—surprisingly, no souvenirs from Paris yet, oops!--and some things for myself like rings and a air of sandals. I couldn't leave Athens without a pair of Grecian sandals. It was productive. We walked around the same streets so many times that the restaurant workers and shop owners began to recognize us! We were like local friendly faces that everyone recognized, haha. It was kind of funny, but I loved it. The shop keepers are a very persistent bunch and you are almost harassed into going into people's stores, sometimes. That I didn't like as much. We headed back to the hostel to relax for a little since we had done a lot of walking during the morning and afternoon. We had also gone to a field where athletes were practicing shot put and the discus—the real roots of the Greek Olympics! Haha. It was cool to see not only the touristy sights but also some small local things like that.
Sunday
And on Sunday we woke up, had breakfast, and checked out of the hostel by 10 am. I don't know how I did it, but I managed to fit everything into my back! It was quite a feat for all of us. We had some time to explore more of Athens before we had to leave for the airport so we wandered and I found us a beautiful park. There were orange trees everywhere! Also, there are a lot of dogs in Athens, laying everywhere, in the middle of the sidewalk. Though they have collars, I don't think they all have owners. All they do is sleep. Anyway, there were gorgeous trees in the park and we took photos and enjoyed nature for a bit before heading back to the metro.
The next time I come to Greece, I'm definitely going to go to the islands. There is still so much more to see in Athens, too, and I want to see it all. We had an almost-incident on the metro when we thought we were on a direct ride to the airport when it stopped at a station. The lights went out and we didn't realize that all the other passengers had gotten off. Once we did, we scrambled to get our things together and get off the train. Julia, Courtney, and I made it but the alarm beeped and the doors shut before Monica and Leanne could get off! It started to pull away and all 5 of us were speechless and motionless until a guy banged on the door to stop the metro so they could get off. Hahaha, it was hysterical! That WOULD happen to us, right? On every trip, there's always something. :) We luckily made it to the airport very early and you can believe we went right through security and got to our gate. No taking any risks this time, though Leanne's water bottle made it through security when it definitely shouldn't have...this flight was better—aka, normal—without problems. The flight is about 3 hours but we occupied ourselves and talked the whole time; it was nice. And I have to admit; seeing the Eiffel Tower lit up from a distance as you fly into Orly—the night view really makes Paris seem like the City of Lights—is pretty cool.
I have just returned from one of the best weekends of my life. The trip was so much fun and I made new friends and became closer with others, and I couldn't be happier about it. My only regret is that we didn't do this sooner! All 5 of us traveled so well together and everyone is so sweet and fun. And to have been in Athens is just indescribable: everything about it is beautiful. I didn't want to return to Paris, especially to the freezing cold! There are some things I realized I preferred about Athens to Paris, and some things I prefer about Paris to Athens. I know that if I really want to return to Greece later in life, then I will. The photos don't do it justice. And seeing the huge Christmas tree in front of Notre Dame with its ornaments and lights was so beautiful (how many times can I use that word here?) that it made me happy to be back in my city. All in all, I had a wonderful, amazing trip! :)
(In fact, Leanne, Courtney and I all got kabobs for dinner in the Latin Quarter upon arriving back in Paris, haha! How fitting, to bring the weekend full-circle)
Athens, Part I
This weekend: ATHENS 2009! I took a trip to Greece for the weekend with two girls from my class, Julia and Monica, and two of Julia's friends from another program, Leanne and Courtney. I didn't know the other two girls before but I was confident that we would all get along and have the best time, and we did! In fact, words can't even describe how amazing it was so I will attempt to start from the beginning:
Friday
Friday began early for me, around 6 a.m. I got up early so I could shower and pack—again, just my brown bag—for a weekend away. Monica told me that she learned to always pack very lightly and not fill her bag up because she always leaves room for the things she buys on the way home. I attempted to save some room in my bag. We all planned to meet at the metro at 8:30 to catch the bus to the airport, but we arrived at slightly different times so Julia, Leanne, and Courtney went ahead on one bus and Monica and I took the next one. The airport, Orly, is only about a half hour away from Paris so the ride was quick and easy and the airport itself is much more enjoyable than Charles de Gaulle and easier to navigate. We all met up and since we had time, we got a little breakfast at a café. We were flying EasyJet, too, and we had all checked in online and already had our boarding passes. Let me tell you, that was the last time any of us will relax when we think we have a lot of time before we board. We went through security and Monica realized she didn't have her boarding pass. We think the man whom we allowed to go ahead of us in line accidentally took the container that already had her boarding pass sheet in it, so it was nowhere to be found. We started to freak out a little because our gate was all the way at the end and we were starting to board soon. While Monica went down to the desk to reprint it, we all talked to the woman at the gate. She and the others there were very rude and didn't care about our problem and really wouldn't help us. One in particular was really mean. Eventually I told the other girls to get on the plane while I waited, and time was passing. The woman kept yelling at me, “If your friend isn't here in 10 minutes/5 minutes/30 seconds/5 seconds, the plane is leaving!” Ugh, what stress! I was the only one waiting by the gate so I reluctantly got on the plane and gave the other girls the “I don't know” look when they saw me. Each subsequent person who got on the plane (the liar, the plane was NOT ready to leave!) was not Monica and I was having a heart attack. I'd been talking with her back and forth and they wouldn't let her go ahead in security. Finally, she got on the plane! She had run all the way from security, in her socks, carrying her boots, after telling the guy forcefully that she needed to get on the plane NOW. I've never been so happy to see someone! She and I sat on the right side of the plane with another woman in the window seat, with the other girls on the other side.
But the fun did not end there, no way: Apparently there was a Spanish tango/salsa/sole sort of dance team on the flight so while we were delayed 30 minutes to have a wheel changed, they put their music on their speakers and danced in the aisles! It was pretty entertaining and very different; except that the flight attendants were getting in on it and taking pictures with their iphones...I don't know, it was all kind of bizarre. The whole time I was thinking, Is this a real flight? Is this happening? Is this professional?! I was a little nervous to get in the air in case the pilot was playing tetris at the command. Oof! So finally we et in the air and this becomes the worst flight of my life. Not because it was turbulent or scary—I was fine in that sense—but there were a bunch of Greek men in the row in front of us, which happened to be the exit row. They were loud the whole flight and many would just stand in the aisle during the whole flight! The (French) flight attendants would apologize for having to pass them in the aisle, as if they were disturbing them, instead of telling them that they had to, oh, I don't know, SIT. When is it ever ok to stand in the aisle during the flight? And there were couples sitting in each other's laps making out everywhere. But the worst part was that the guys in front of us were smoking weed (!!!) I kid you not. It's a hard smell to miss, especially when it's right in front of you, and I could see them through the seats. All the guys knew we were talking about them, but I didn't care, and I gave them dirty looks. The flight attendants knew it too, because one came over to them and said, while smiling, “You don't want the other passengers to see that.” WHAT IS GOING ON? I was like, this is not real. It can't be. The only possible explanation we all arrived at: they had knives. We didn't want to get involved because we had no idea who these guys were or what they could do, but it is outrageous for that activity to be permitted—to smoke anything—on a plane. Needless to say, we were all so happy to land in Athens. Anyway, onto better things...
We took the metro from the airport to our stop, Syntagma. It was a kind of long ride, but the metro is so much cleaner than in Paris, and the view outside was gorgeous. I couldn't get over the beautiful scenes of mountains! The landscape is so picturesque. I'm proud of us for figuring out how to get into the city. When we gout out of the metro station, the first thing I saw was a palm tree. It was warm and mild and it really felt like being on a tropical vacation! It was already 5 pm so we just found the hostel and checked in. Julia, Leanne, and Courtney were in a private room together but Monica and I had gotten a 3-bed dorm, which we found out translates to 2 bunk beds and one bes, equaling 5 people. Two girls had already arrived in our room but were not there when we dropped our things off. It was my first hostel experience and I have to say, it wasn't too bad! Maybe a little cold at night. We reconvened and walked to the downtown center to find a place for dinner. April; the girl who checked us in at the hostel, gave us the name f a restaurant to go to to eat. Athens is incredible because there are ruins literally all over—the city is covered in them, laying or standing wherever they originally were. So in the middle of streets, there were ruins. Our hostel also had the prime location of being 1 or 2 blocks from the Acropolis! Does it get better than that? We found the lively streets with shops and restaurants and got intercepted by two lively hosts at one place. They had us hooked—was it that they were friendly? Exciting? Spoke English? (Everyone spoke English there) Offered to buy our wine? Whatever the case, we sat down. And so a 3 ½ hour dinner commenced. It was so nice to relax and talk and have fun with the girls. We all get along really well! Jimmy, our waiter, was hilarious! We kept asking him about the Greek meals, like souvlaki and mousaka and when we asked about the yogurt and honey dessert, he said, “Yogurt is yogurt and life is life!” It quickly became the phrase of the weekend. Dessert was delicious and we left, full, around 10:30. We walked around the streets a little bit but were so tired we came back to the hostel. We could see the Acropolis from where we lived, but the real trip to the ruins was to happen the next day. After talking a bit in the girls' room, Monica and I headed over to our dorm. It's actually behind a small courtyard and garden area. I felt badly knocking and having one of the girls let us in, but the key has to stay at the front desk when people are in the hostel, so it wasn't our fault. I climbed into bed and tried to ignore the snoring from another girl.
All in all, it was a fantastic day and I was so happy to be in Greece!
Thursday, November 26, 2009
M and G come to town!
They arrived on Tuesday morning, the 16th, and went straight to their apartment in the Marais. I had an interview with an author in the morning so I could not see them right away. I headed over to their place after (the interview went really well, too, which was great!) It was so nice to see them both after 3 months! Wow, what a long time. The apartment itself is quite nice, too, with lots of space. It was my first time ever in a Parisian apartment, and it didn't seem to be as small as they supposedly are. I had to get to class so we had a quick lunch in a nearby café before I jetted off. During their trip, I fortunately had a lot of time to spend with them because I didn't have class Friday morning, nor my internship on Thursday.
It was a week filled with fine dining, which was delicious. I can never allow myself to eat out so much on a normal basis! We went to one fancy restaurant whose pickings were a little too slim for me: out of 5 choices for entrées, there was seafood, seafood, seafood, rabbit, and deer. For a girl who does not like seafood, it was a little unnerving. Michelle had joined us, which was so nice, and she helped me through it, though I will not tell you which one I chose. We went out to lunch during the days before i had to get to my afternoon class. And i got to spend most nights sleeping over in the apartment, which made it really feel like a real vacation. It was a little nicer than my foyer, haha.
We did a little shopping (HA how many of you believe we just did a "little"?) and it was nice to walk along Boulevard St. Germain, and we even visited Galleries LaFayette. I got a new umbrella, as my last one died in the Oxford Wind Storm of 2009 last weekend. This one is cute and promises to never flip inside out. The weather was so nice and unseasonably mild the whole week, which made it pleasant to be outside. We went ot the Eiffel Tower at night, which really never gets old. It was glittering and flashing multicolors, which was pretty cool. One day we went to the Louvre, and I saw some French paintings I've wanted to see for a while. I got to cross a lot of thigns off my To See list, like the Centre Pompidou, though I did not enjoy it at all. We saw a lot of modern and contemporary art, which I have probably mentioned before that I do not like. Did you know it's the second-most visited attraction in the city, after the Eiffel Tower?
Emily came with us to dinner one night, too, to Café Louise where I had been a few weekends ago with friends from my class. I loved it! And Iliana came with us to another restaurant another night. I hadn't seen her since the first week in Paris, so it was so nice to catch up and see how her semester has been going. We also dined at Le Grand Colbert, a place popular with Parisians that was also made more famous by the movie "Something's Gotta Give." There is even a poster of the movie in the window, haha.
We went to Victor Hugo's house, which I had wanted to see, too. And I turned M and G into bus experts! Haha. They were able to go around the city and do their own thing while I was in class, too, which was nice. I took their guide book which is a gift and a curse because now there are so many more things I have to see in Paris before I leave! Ah, never enough time. All in all, it was a really nice visit and I'm glad I got to see them both, and I'm glad we got to spend so much time together. Now it's time to get back to work and focus on finals...well, after this weekend in Greece :)
Bisous!
Monday, November 16, 2009
London and Oxford: Part II


Ok, and we're back for Saturday: