Paris Holds the Key to My Heart

So Friday around 8 I headed to Parkinson steps to meet for my last Don't be a Tourist trip to PARIS! So we boarded the bus and headed to Dover to cross the English Channel on a ferry. We got into Dover around 2 am. At this moment I had at very little sleep. It was an interesting hour and half ferry ride, mostly full of sleep deprived walking about. We finally made it to France, I hopped back on the bus, and got a bit of sleep. Around 9:30 we arrived in Paris. We got in, checked into the hostel, and went straight to a pastry shop to get a bit of deliciousness. It then off onto the Metro to catch our first walking tour. We first toured around one of the richest neighborhoods in the city, seeing the opera and the jewellery street (the most expensive street in the city). We also made a stop at the place where they showed the first motion picture. Apparently the first motion picture was of a train pulling into the station. The people sat down, the show started, and as the train began to move at them, they all freaked out and ran out of the theatre.

After our tour, we ended in at the Louvre. We went in and first went to see the Mona Lisa, just to kind of get it out of the way. On the way we saw some other Leonardo Da Vinci pieces along with some other Renaissance paintings. Once we got to the Mona Lisa, there was a giant crowd around the Mona Lisa. I actually kind of found it amusing. We then went to go see some Greek and Egyptian artefacts and art, including the Venus di Milo. We then headed upstairs to take a gander at some French paintings, which was pretty cool to see.

Afterwards we had some free time to check out some sites. We first headed to the Latin quarter to grab some food. The Latin quarter is where the students live, around the universities and what not. There was this cool area where there were tons of restaurants, shops, and art galleries. I liked it a lot. We grabbed some lunch, and then headed to Notre Dame. Sadly, after seeing Sagrada Familia and St. Peter's Basilica, it wasn't quite as impressive. However, the buttresses on the side, along with the stained glass windows, were rather spectacular. They were also having mass, which was interesting to see inside the cathedral.

After Notre Dame, we headed to the Champs Elysees, Paris's equivalent to Chicago's Michigan Avenue. The Champs Elysees ends right at the Arc de Triomphe, so we got a quick look at that, and headed to the Eiffel tower to catch it at sunset. On our walk over, we passed a crepe stand. My friend and I split a chicken and cheese crepe and nutella crepe. It was delicious. We then got some shots of the Eiffel tower. After, it was time to meet our group for Champagne at the park right next to the tower to watch the light show they have once it gets dark. It was wonderful sitting there, sipping on champagne with friends, and looking at the sparkling lights all over the Eiffel tower.

Afterwards, we headed back to our hostel, which was in Bastille. We met up, and found a nice little bar where I enjoyed a glass of white wine. Afterwards we headed to a club. I didn't stay out too late, though, because I was exhausted. I got back and the minute my head hit the pillow, I passed out.

The next day I woke up, got some breakfast at the hostel (baguettes...yum!), and hopped on the bus off to Versailles. We got there an hour or so later, and I was instantly in awe at the enormous size of the palace. Because I'm a EU student, we got in for free, which was awesome. We roamed around the palace, which was full of beautiful chandeliers, an insane amount of thrones, and enormous beds. It was spectacular. Afterwards, we headed to the gardens, which were gigantic. It was crazy. I can only imagine how the revolutionists must have felt when they stormed into the castle and saw how the king and queen were living. It was truly insane and beautiful.

After Versailles, we headed to Montmarte. We took a tour, seeing the Moulin Rouge, the places where artists like Van Gogh, Edith Piaf and Picasso used to live, and sites where scenes from Amelie (one of my favorite films) were filmed. We ended at Sacre Couer. I found Montmarte to be one of the loveliest and unique areas of Paris. I really enjoyed it.

After our tour in Montmarte, we tried to go up the Eiffel tower, but by the time we got there, it was too late. We got there, took a few pictures, and then headed to Rosa Bonheur area for a nice French meal. I'm not exactly sure what I got, since it was all in French. But I recognized the word salmon, so that's what I picked. It was DELICIOUS! It was like smoked salmon with some salad. After dinner, we finally got up to the Eiffel tower. It was a gorgeous view at night. I stood there for so long simply overlooking the city. I truly think the Paris is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and it was truly remarkable at night. By the time we got down and took the Metro back to our hostel, I was wiped and ready to go home.

The next morning I woke bright and early and headed with a new a friend to go look at some Impressionist art (my favorite). The Museum D'Orsay was closed, so we headed to a smaller one, the Museum D'Orangia. there I saw eight large water lilies done by Monet, along with works by Renior, Cezanne, Rousseau, Modigliani, Picasso, Laurencin, Matisse, Derain, Utrillo and Soutine. I absolutely loved it. I was so happy looking at the pieces. So excited! We then jumped back on the metro, I grabbed some pastries and a spinach and salmon quiche, and hopped onto the bus back towards England.

We were running a bit early, so we stopped at an important Canadian site. On this site is the first place all the provinces of Canada joined together to fight. In World War I they fought to and won their battle. At this site they still have the trenches and tunnels in tact. The landscape also still held the craters from where bombs had exploded. It was pretty cool. We then hopped onto the ferry and headed back to England. I was sad to leave, but what can you do?

Dans l'amour avec Paris,
Jessica