Paris, je'taime

June 23rd-June 26th
I know I'm late, but it's been a crazy week and I finally have time to update the blog, so 2 posts are coming, starting with Paris!
Ah Paris, how could you not love that city?! I loved it so much I'm going back in a week (more on that later!)Once you get over the smell, the fact that they charge for baggage when taking a Taxi, the no personal space issue, and the grabby men it's one of the most remarkable places you can visit.
When we finally made it into Paris from Amsterdam we were all taken aback by how ugly the train station was, but we quickly realized we were on the back side and the "Paris" we knew was directly ahead of us. Despite the fact that we had all agreed to take a Taxi to the hotel Kenley somehow got separated from us (his backpack instead of suitcase allows him to go a bit faster than us) and we experienced our first true panic of the trip. Mike, Justin, and I spent the next hour and a half at the train station searching for Kenley (the one member of the trip who does not have a cell phone or computer) dodging Gypsies (travel tip: if they ask if you speak English, just don't answer)learning that accueil means help/reception and that's where you go to page someones name over the intercom system, and eventually taking a cab to the hotel praying that somehow Kenley knew where he was supposed to go. Low and behold, upon our arrival at the hotel we discovered Kenley was already there and settled in at the shower. Despite some initial questioning, Kenley assured us that the room with one full size bed was indeed the triple and we were where we were supposed to be. (Turns out they had put us in a double, like Mike and I had thought, and one of us ended up sleeping on the floor every night)

The view from the hotel balcony was great and after we all took some time taking initial pictures we decided to head out, grab some dinner and do some night time exploring. We went to a cute sidewalk cafe where we had our first experience with the true language barrier. Trying to get across the point that we wanted something besides drinks was a task, but we eventually managed to order our way too expensive food and get out of there. Justin headed back to his hotel and the other boys and I went to explore the night scene around our hotel. We walked along the river, through the statue gardens, towards the Notre Dame and I caught my first glimpses of the Eiffel Tower (it's true you can see it from pretty much any location in France)The river was packed with people and we managed to stumble upon a group of people Tangoing on the river banks. The city is absolutely mesmerizing at night and I fell in love right then and there. We walked around a bit more, tried to figure out how to take pictures at night that could actually capture the amazing lighting of the buildings and eventually found our way back to the hotel where I had my first encounter with the truly creepy young french men. (think two young guys, figuring out what room we were in, asking if I was dating either of the boys and going from there)

The next morning we headed out bright and early to explore all of the big ticket Paris places and to grab our first real "pan au chocolat" (chocolate croissants). First stop was Notre Dame (well actually first stop was some random fountain I found that I wanted to take a picture with) which is next to impossible to impossible to describe adequately. Everything about it is majestic and I could have stayed there for an entire day and not had enough time to take in the architecture and artistry of the building. We stood in line to be able to walk in and I took the next hour to explore the stained glass windows, candles, art work, and religious items, taking note of the detail of each one. Even being Jewish, you could see how this was a holy building where people feel more spiritual. I absolutely loved it and it is a must return to on my trip back.




Next stop on our trip was the Louvre, one of the most famous museums there is. We all went in fully knowing we didn't have enough time to explore everything so we would hit the big stuff and see what we could in the two and a half hours we allotted ourselves. The museum is an art lovers dream, covering every decade and century with great detail. Despite being horrendously hot in there, the crowds were relatively decent and we made our way through the four sections fairly quickly with stops at the Roman and Egypt sculptures, Hammurabi's code, decorative arts section, and eventually working our way to the prints and paintings where we saw the Madonna and child, the Venus de Milo, and of course the Mona Lisa (yes, it is true what everyone says, it is small and somewhat disappointing, but a definite must see when you're there.) As we were leaving the museum we witnessed a woman get her camera get stolen and despite a valiant effort Kenley was unable to stop the guy, though he did knock his shoes off.




After the Louvre we headed off for the furthest stop, the Arc De Triomphe, commissioned by Napoleon in 1806 to commemorate his victories. Due to filming that was taking place, and a LONG line of people waiting to climb to the observatory, we didn't take too much time here, just going to see it, take a few pictures and then go on our merry way. Mike accidentally led us to the Grand Arch which is MUCH further down Champs-Elysees but we got to see an interesting thumbs up statue and found a great view of the city.


From the Arc we headed towards a museum that offers the best view of the Eiffel tower where we stopped and ate lunch from a street vendor, took some quick pictures, and then headed back to the hotel to get a much needed break from the sun.

After naps and showers we grabbed a picnic dinner and some bottles of wine from one of the street markets, reconnected with Justin, and headed off to the park at the Eiffel Tower for the night. This was by far my favorite time in Paris, simply enjoying our time with each other, laughing at the french antics, and watching as the night sky lit up. It was true perfection in Paris, and another one of those pinch me moments. (All of the great pictures from then are on the camera I don't have the cord for, but don't worry its being mailed to me! Thanks Mom and Dad!)After we saw the tower light up and got a quick group shot of the four of us we headed back to the Metro to head home. Little did we know that a strike was about to occur and despite not being anywhere close to our hotel we were promptly kicked off the subway and told to find our way back a different way, cue creepy French man situation number 2 (not including the many grabs and stares while walking throughout the day)After a proposal, an invitation for me to bring him home, and a picture session where he made Justin use his cell phone to capture the moment, we finally separated from my new "French Fiance" and started the LONG walk back to the hotel. After a good 30 minutes of walking, I was completely over it and hopped in a cab with Justin back to the hotel, where luckily there were no visits from the guys from the night before.
The next morning, after sleeping in a bit (meaning more than 5 hours of sleep in one night) we hopped on the trains and headed out to spend the day in Versailles. Thanks to a friendly family from New York we learned we could skip the horrendously long ticket sales line, and simply sign up for the guided tour, something we all wanted to do anyway. We spent the hour before our tour was to begin, trying not to melt in the heat, or trip on the cobblestone pathways, and exploring the gardens of Versailles. Because it was so unbelievably hot that day we didn't go too far out into the maze of gardens, but observed from the top near the, for lack of a better word, mansion. The gardens were absolutely beautiful, and the fact that something like that was originally commissioned as a summer house, is kind of hard to believe, but I guess if you have the money, why not? We joined up with some fellow American tourists and began our guided tour through the private rooms of Versailles, learning about the history of the expansion of the different wings, and the aristocracy that lived there. My favorite parts were easily the Opera Hall and Hall of Mirrors, both of which are absolutely incredible pieces of artistry. Everywhere you looked there was something extraordinary, that I couldn't believe was in a house. The whole experience made me want to learn more about the time period and go home and watch Marie Antoinette (I'm sure Jules will appreciate that one). Learning about the life they lived and how everything was in public, kind of made you feel bad for them and question how a society like that would operate today, I don't think it would.



After Versailles, we stopped at McDonalds so the boys could have a hamburger, and then headed back into Paris and enjoyed our final night at the street side cafe. We packed up our bags one more time,and after an intense game of Bada Bada I ended up getting the distinct pleasure of sleeping on the floor. We woke up SUPER early the next morning, grabbed one more pan au chocolat and hit the trains for the longest ride so far to our home for the next month NICE!