Alas, another five days sans post. There’s just too much Europe to see, and not enough time to write about it.
Mes amis Alex, Morgan and Hannah cruised in from London on the Eurostar this past Thursday. We kicked off their tour of Paris with a baguette, some fromage and wine chez moi. It’s always fun to see people experiencing new places that they’ve always wanted to visit. Alex was like that kid waiting in line to meet Cinderella at Disneyland… just so excited for what he knew would change his life. We tried to find an authentic restaurant in my neighborhood for dinner, however, I haven’t done enough exploring to know where all the hot spots are quite yet. We ended up in the Bastille neighborhood at a small place called Que Pasa? It wasn’t exactly what we were looking for, but authentic Spanish sangria in Paris is still pretty good.
Later that night, Hannah and I found a new roommate for my apartment. He’s pretty quiet and likes to hang from the ceiling.
He’s the Hangover Cow! And he didn’t just get his name because he hangs over my bed. He also glares down upon me during those hungover mornings with his judgmental eyes. What makes you so perfect Hangover Cow!? He’s almost like my guardian angel. It’s a love-hate relationship. Oh, the things he will see!The next morning I jetted off to the last day of my two-week preliminary course. We spent a jovial afternoon chez Lindsay, then prepared for the night. I prepared about 20 frozen shot glasses for our group to help set the mood for the night. Needless to say… mood set. Off to Le Duplex! About 100 yards from the Arc de Triomphe, this place was pretty chic. A group of about 15 (I think 10 people didn’t get in) danced the night away on the three floors of music. A cab ride and a 6-person-per-bed nap later, we caught the metro back home once it had opened again around 6am.
Saturday, we (Morgan, Alex and I) met Dave at the Sacre-Coeur.
This is definitely one of my favorite spots in Paris. We climbed the hundreds of steps to the top o
f the hill where the church rests, only to stumble upon a completely panoramic view of Paris. The sun was shining, street musicians were performing, good company was at my side. This is a great place to realize where you are and soak things up.Next we explored a little bit of the Montmartre neighborhood. We found this massive megastore called the Sexodrome, and were just too curious to pass it up. As Alex says, “We saw things that can’t be unseen.” I’ll leave it at that. We kept walking until we ran into Le Moulin Rouge.
Which, according to Alex, is French for “The Red Moulin.”Next stop on our touristy whirlwind day of Paris; Ile de la Cité, which is the island on the Seine River that supports such structures as St. Chappelle and Notre Dame. We were too late to visit St. Chappelle, but Notre Dame was still open. This structure is truly remarkable. Urban Design major, and friend, Dave, told us all that Notre Dame was built without using any metal. It’s so big and all stone! How it was built so many hundreds of years ago and still stands today is remarkable. Another fun fact thanks to Dave; you can tell which stained glass windows are original and which ones are replacements by the brightness of the colors. Even with the technology we have today, we cannot replicate the vivid colors of the stained glass that was installed when Notre Dame was first built.
Walking over towards the Marais neighborhood, where one can find some of Paris’ best boutique shopping, there was a small incident where an ATM literally ate my card and just didn’t give it back. Who’s ever heard of that happening? No worries, though. A new one’s on the way. Nothing gets between me and shopping. This was my first time exploring this neighborhood and I fell in love. I think I know what people mean now when they say love at first sight. Most of the guys bought vests at a vintage shop for 5 euro each. We meandered along the maze of quaint, narrow roads for a little bit, then split for dinner. The night was spent among friends laughing and playing games at Lindsay’s palace of an apartment.
Sunday can just be described in pictures because they say more than I could in words.
The school week started and I had my first classes of the semester. It was a bit overwhelming attending every single class in French. Listening to and trying to absorb that much French started to give me a headache. I suppose that’s how learning a language works, and I’m sure things will get easier, but for the moment, it’s still frustrating. Anyways, my schedule is nice and I enjoy most of my classmates and professors.
Last night, Will, Diana, and I had dinner at Cait’s place in the 15th. Cait and I became good friends when she said her favorite shows were Glee and Modern Family. Turns out she had Glee Season One on DVD, so we started our mission to work through the whole season last night.
And here we are, caught up to the present moment. What am I doing? Lying in bed on Wednesday afternoon (no class on Wednesdays!) blogging.
Off to do some more shopping in the Marais before the sales end this weekend!
