PARIS!!!!!!

This past weekend in Paris was the best weekend of my time in Europe thus far. Here is a recount of my time in the most amazing city on earth:

Friday:

My friend Kim and I met up around 4:30pm to head to the airport. We caught the airport bus and headed to the Sevilla airport! We had already printed our boarding passes, so we walked in and went straight to security- thank goodness we had already printed our boarding passes because the desk for Vueling airlines was SO LONG. Security was a different experience, we got to keep our shoes on... it was super easy, but at the same time I was a little scared for my life because it was so easy to get through security... sometimes I wonder if it´s bad to constantly be suspecting other people as terrorists...

We got on the plane and ended up sitting in the back. I was in the middle in between this older man and a girl about my age. They were both French, but the man next to me spoke English really well, so we chatted about Dallas (he works for Nortel and had been to Dallas and the States many times) and we talked about where to go in Paris and all that. He helped us find the way to get to the Metro from the airport, it was so

amazing!! He was so nice!

The Metro was easy to manage, we got to Alice´s stop and got off. The only problem was that I couldn´t figure out how to call her. I had her number, but my cell phone is from Spain and I had to call France.. I didn´t know how to do the +33... now I know. While we were wandering around thinking about what we could do about finding a way to call Alice, we passed by a Crepe place and split a Banana/Chocolate/Coconut crepe- so amazing!!!! We found her dorms, but we couldn´t get in, so we waited outside until someone left and then we snuck in and then we were waiting in the lobby and these people rounded the corner speaking English and they knew Alice!!!! So they took us up to her room and she was so relieved to see us because she figured we should be getting to her place soon. Alice is probably the most awesome girl ever!! She also totally has the hook up in her room. She has a single with a kitchen and her own bathroom!! Kim and I stayed there that night and then left early in the morning to start our adventure!!!

Saturday:

We woke up early and were on the metro by 10am heading toward the Notre-Dame. On our way to the metro, we stopped in a pastry shop and I got a french version of a cinnamon roll type thing with raisins, it was SO amazing!!! When we got off the metro we couldn´t believe how beautiful the Seine River was and the views of the city! We took 230498234 pictures and walked so much!!

We toured the Notre-Dame, very beautiful! After, we walked around in the Latin Quarter and got pastries.. I got this chocolate chip cookie thing (amazing!!) and Kim got an eclair (also amazing!!) and then we walked around and ended up running in to the Louvre! It´s so beautiful from the outside!! We took the tour bus to Musee D' Orsay- I'm so glad we went there. The galleries had many Impressionist paintings- definitely my favorite! Monet is definitely my favorite, but I really enjoy Degas, Van Gogh, and Renoir as well.

Then we decided it was time to go get Falafel for lunch!! So we hopped on the metro and took it to the jewish area and stood in line for about 30 mins to get Falafel- it was totally worth it. Most amazing sandwich ever!! It was a pita filled with cabbage, lettuce, eggplant, this special sauce and the falafel! It was delicious. I´m so glad I finally got Falafel!! (Ever since I saw The throwdown with Bobby Flay over Falafel, I´ve been wanting some!!!) After we ate, we took the subway to Alice´s, warmed up a bit, got our stuff, and headed out to St. Christopher´s Inn Hostels to check in. These hostels were SO nice!! It was essentially a dorm room/hotel in great condition, they even have free breakfast!! We dropped our stuff off there and then headed out to the metro station to go to the Champs ellysee! We walked out of the metro station and was the Arc de Triomphe lit up in all it´s majesty!

They were doing a salute to the grave of the unnamed soldier and they had a band and everything there with lots of flowers and fire and everything. It was really nice. We walked under to the middle of the Arc and then passed to the other side. We decided to go to the Eiffel Tower. We walked a good ways to the Eiffel Tower and then (while freezing to death) waited in line and waited to go up to the top of the Eiffel Tower. This process took about 2 hours, but it was so neat!

We froze to death, but we got to see the city of lights all lit up! Every hour on the hour the Tower flashes and we were up on the top and saw it flashing 2 times! It was so beautiful! After the tower, we found a little restaurant on a side street and went. I got a Croque Madame sandwich and it was SO amazing!! It´s basically grilled cheese with ham and tomatoes with a fried egg on top.

Seriously the best thing I´ve ever had in my life. Then we went back to the metro station and headed to our hostel! We got there and immediately fell asleep- definitely needed to rest up for the next day of Paris!!!

Sunday:

Woke up around 7:30am and went downstairs for our free breakfast! We ate bread (of course) with nutella, butter and jam- it was so great! Our first stop of the day was the Opera. We weren't sure if we wanted to go inside or not because- like everything else in Paris, you have to pay to go in if you are not a European Union student/citizen- but we decided we're in Paris, we might as well. BEST DECISION OF MY LIFE. The Opera was my absolute favorite part of Paris. The inside was so regal and rich and beautiful and perfect. We even got to go inside the auditorium and they were setting up the stage to rehearse for an opera. The chandelier was amazing- it's the one that falls in the Phantom of the Opera!! I was so enchanted by the Opera. I definitely want prints of the place to put on my wall. Absolutely the most beautiful place in Paris.

Then, we headed out to the metro station and headed for the Champs eslysee! We got off the bus and walked down the street and saw all the famous shops and bakeries and of course, McDonalds. I don't understand why you would go to Paris and then eat at McDonalds!!
We walked past La Duree, a famous shop for macaroons and tea, but the line was too long to wait.

Then we went to the Arc de Triomphe and climbed up to the top! The climb was rough, but the view was absolutely worth it! We got some neat pictures from on top! You could see the Eiffel Tower in the distance, it would be really neat to go up at night to see the Eiffel Tower lit up- definitely something to do next time I visit Paris!

After, we got on our bus and took it to the Grand Palais and the Trocadero. The Trocadero was really neat- we didn't go inside, but we did get some really neat pictures with the Eiffel Tower in the background!!

After that, we walked across the river and then got crepes right outside the Eiffel Tower and walked to the bus and took it to the Louvre! We took some pictures outside and then toured the Louvre. The Louvre wasn't my favorite, honestly. The sculptures and the building itself made the visit worth it. I'm not really a huge fan of religious art... renaissance stuff, not a huuuge fan, but it was still a really awesome experience to see the original artwork!! I saw the Mona Lisa- and it's true, it's really really small and there isn't all that much splendor, but it was still cool to say that I've seen the Mona Lisa!

After the lovely Louvre, we walked back to the Latin district to get some eclairs and cookies to bring back to Jenny! and then we took the metro to meet up with Alice at Angelina's- we waited outside in line for about 30 minutes and then got a table on the second floor by the window. It was such a cute place! Alice told us we needed to get hot chocolate and then we got some tropical fruit tarts to go with- so delicious! Thank goodness Alice was there- she ordered for us in French, that was really helpful.

When the hot chocolate came, it was like straight melted chocolate and then they gave us a cup of whipped cream (real whipped cream) to put in our cups. I think it was probably the most unhealthy thing possible, along with my sandwiches and crepes that I ate daily...

We said our goodbyes and headed to the airport. The plane ride wasn't bad and we had to take a taxi home because we missed the last bus by 5 minutes. SO SAD!!!

Overall, spending my weekend in Paris was amazing. I absolutely love the city and the sights, but it's really nice being back in Sevilla. It's extremely difficult to go to a country where you really don't know the language at all. I'm really getting the hang of Spanish, so I feel like I'm able to get my point across, have conversations, and understand what everyone is saying; but in France, you have no idea what's going on. I don't think you necessarily have to speak French to live in Paris, but it sure does help a lot!

Of course we arrive after midnight and my final exam for my conversation class is at 9:20am... I didn't have time to study at all, but I wasn't too worried about it. It was just an oral exam and my teacher is the nicest guy in the universe. I ended up talking about my weekend in Paris and a little bit about the movies we watched in class. I think I did well! I have another oral exam tomorrow, but this one is based on grammar we have learned in the class. My final written exam is on Wednesday, so I can't wait to have all that done. Then we go to Lisbon (it's apparently flooding there now- awesome) and then the 2nd half of the semester starts and we change to different classes! I'm excited, but at the same time I know there is going to be a lot of homework involved and it's going to be more reading and writing than speaking, so we'll see how those end up.

Time is FLYING by, I can't believe we are almost halfway done with this semester. I feel like my time in Spain is dwindling and it makes me really sad to think I have to leave soon :(

Today, my house mom had a thyroidectomy (had one of her thyroids removed), so she won't be coming home until Wednesday. She made us like 2 weeks worth of food for 2 days that she will be gone. SO MUCH food. Jenny and I will definitely miss her! and hope that she comes back healthy and in good condition!

This has been a recount of my weekend in Paris and various stories that I've remembered! I hope you have enjoyed them!

Love,
Merick :)