soooo tired

Yesterday i had class which was a minor inconvenience cause i wanted to go shopping. then i did and it was good! today, i went to fountainbleau and saw tons of cool stuff. lots of that castle was redecorated by marie antoinette so i was really really excited. then we went to lunch at some family friends of our prof. it was amazing. there was this one man that kept wanting me to drink and i kept saying sais tout but he would not take no for an answer. our entire group, including the prof and his wife were pretty tipsy by 2 pm. then we walked around their peasant village and it was awesome. we saw spots that looked like they were from the 1200s. very nice. tonight i went on a new europe pubcrawl. very fun. 4 bar and 1 club for 12 euros. twas great fun but now i must bid you adieu because i am leaving for barcelona tomorrow.

now sure how the world wide web will work there this weekend. while barcelona is certainly part of this world, i just do not know how the internets is there. anyhoo, i plan to do all the tourist stuff and go to the beach!

see y'all on the flip side.

ttyl!

Je suis desole.

here is me at the eiffel tower.

Louvre - Caesar's helper.
Eiffel Tower.
Chateau du Vincennes.
The Seine River.
The Cryptes.
Shakespeare and Co. Very very cool.
Louxemboug garden - big head?
Some pretty sweet stained glass at Notre Dame.

On the Omaha beach of Normandie, near Pointe du Hoc.
The American cemetery.
The Bayeux tapestry commissioned by Matilde and Otto.
Mont Saint Michel.
The cloister at Mont Saint Michel.

Normandy

In the town I stayed in last night they have the famous Bayeux tapestry that was made just after William the Conqueror fought the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The tapestry was so intricate and we got to have a headset with a delightful French man speaking in English to us about the tapestry. It was great; he talked about the soldiers’ hair blowing in the wind, how William ran out of time to put on his shoes, and about how priests weren’t allowed to draw blood, so they just beat people with clubs instead. Then we hopped back on the bus where I took a pretty great nap. Later, we went to Mont Saint Michel monastery and it was really beautiful! It is situated on an island that in the 900s could only be gotten to during low tide. We climbed all the way to the top (3000+ stairs!) and the view was amazing! I have a quiz tomorrow that I actually already did the reading for while on the bus. Amazing! Now I must upload some pics.
Layahs!

Churches and graves.

Man there is a lot of religion and death here. On Monday, I started out at the St. Denis Basilica. It is located where it is because rumor has it that St. Denis was beheaded and then ran all around Paris and finally stopped and died in that spot. Good story. Anyhoo, it is the church where all the French kings are buried. Later I went to St. Chapelle, the church built by Louis IX to house all his reliquaries. I saw the heart of Louis XV. It looked like a prune. Finally we went to Cluny. I thought it was the monastery and I was super excited because I am a history nerd, but it turns out it was just the Cluny Museum. Still interesting, but not the same level. At the end of the night a group of us decided to watch Mounlin Rouge because we were so excited about just having seen the thing in person.

I left for Normandy this morning at 7:30. I took three naps on the bus; good times. We went to the Normandy history museum, but had to leave because they had no power. The electric workers were on strike today. Haha, we also saw student protesters today that were blocking the street, and the RER workers did not come in today. Basically, Parisians take two hour lunches and then complain when they do not get more breaks during the day. We went and got lunch and then went back to the museum when power had been restored. After, we drove to Pointe du Hoc where the US, under the strong guidance of good ole general Ike, overtook the German forces. It was pretty cool. Then we went to Omaha beach (very very pretty), and the American cemetary filled with 10,000 graves of soldiers. kind of a downer.

Tonight we are staying at a Best Western in Bayeux and it is better than our dorm. We had crepes for dinner and ice cream for dessert. We tried to go see Angels and Demons, but it was in French. Boo. So instead I am writing this blog, and about to go drink wine and play cards.

I will post pictures tomorrow. And for those of you with Facebook, I will organize an entire album. Get excited!

Moulin Rouge

Moulin Rouge!...will post pic later.

Today I finally slept in, and it was amazing. When I finally got ready for the day, I found a little fruit and vegetable stand to buy groceries at and grabbed a baguette for breakfast/lunch. Then I went to the Pantheon and saw some cool art and the crypts where Moliere, Rousseau, and Victor Hugo are buried. I also had my first sorbet experience. Citron and passion fruit! It will probably happen again real soon. Then I went to the Jardin de Luxembourg. It was a beautiful park with lots of sculptures and a huge fountain. It was situated right next to the French Senate building, and being the poli sci nerd that I am, I was pretty excited about that. Around 10 pm, when it finally gets dark around here, I went to go see the Moulin Rouge all lit up! I loved it!!!! Very majestic. It look like an hour to get there, and I only stayed for about 20 minutes, but it was soooo worth it! I am off to bed now because I have to be on the other side of the city very early tomorrow.

Au revoir!

Salut!

It has been an eventful few days. Friday we had a tour of the ancient/medieval section of the Louvre. The Louvre, people. Got to walk in through the pyramid and everything. While there we saw the very famous Venus de Milo and the Mona Lisa. Kinda overrated, but still cool. Then we went to the Chateau de Vincennes and I realized that I had no idea how I had made it through 20 years without ever being in a castle before (Cinderella’s castle aside). The chateau was pretty cool. We saw the doors that locked Marie Antoinette in her dungeon before she was beheaded. We also saw the spot on the floor where people boiled and skinned King Henry V body. Um, ew. There were lots of spirally staircases that made me feel all spinny. At night, a group of us decided to buy bottles of wine and head over to the Eiffel Tower. It is all lit up at night and very very pretty. At the beginning of the hour, it sparkles for ten minutes. Very majestic. There is also a carousel across from it. Whimsical, non?

Saturday we went back to the Eiffel Tower so we could see it during the day. Definitely not as cool as at night. Then we walked over to see the small Statue of Liberty. I was pretty impressed, given that I have never been to see the Ellis Island one. Later we headed to Notre Dame and went up to the top for some breathtaking views. Then we went to the Crypts. Dark, dank, a lil smelly, but, all in all, pretty cool. After that I went to the Shakespeare and Co bookstore, one of only 4 English bookstores in all of France. It is also known for letting poor traveling artists and writers sleep overnight in the shop for free. I bought a second hand copy of Jane Austen’s last and final novel. Tres tres excited. The last thing I did was go to the Pompidou – the colorful building that looks like it is inside out. I went to dinner at like 9:30 pm, so I was starved, but I had a chocolate banana crepe so it was okay! I stayed on campus Saturday night because there was a rugby match that apparently our team won. There were kids everywhere, playing music and hanging outside, so I enjoyed that scene.

Sorry for the obnoxiously long update. I will be sure to do it again real soon. If anyone wants a specific picture of something, let me know and I will post it. And if anyone has recommendations for what I should do or where I should go while in Paris, let me know!

And this video I posted is sideways, but you should still check it out.

<3

Just another day...in Paris!

So, enjoy this post because it is the first that I was able to make from my dorm. Last night I enjoyed delicious French ice cream. Man have we got to get some of that stateside. I was able to get about 7 hours of sleep last night so I can sorta kinda function today and everything. This morning we had orientation at ACCENT where we learned how to function and not get mugged or die while in Paris. Then we had a short break for lunch: lunch in a park! Sidenote: Dad, they have Foosball tables in the park. Then we went to Notre Dame again, but we got to see the inside. Before we entered, my prof told us he was just pickpocketed on the Metro. I felt bad, but had to enjoy the irony of it. Notre Dame was AMAZING! I also took a picture of a guy dressed up as Quasimodo. Then we saw the Martyrs Francais de la Deportation, a monument/memorial in remembrance of the French Jews killed during WW2. After, we went to the Baths. Then the Sorbonne. Then the ancient Roman stadium discovered under Paris. Little boys were playing soccer so well that I am pretty sure David Beckham would bow down. The whole day was fun. I just came back from trying to find a grocery store that is 20 minutes away. We got there finally but it was closed because today is a national French holiday. I am going out with some people tonight to the restaurant on campus. Then we are reading 200 pages tonight for a quiz tomorrow. The prof forgot to assign the readings. He apologized and then promptly told us that we will still have the quiz. C'est la vie!

I made it to Paris alive!

My flight got in at around 9:30 am Paris time. I got very little sleep but it was alright. Took a bus tour all around the city basically and then made it to the dorms. They are very efficient (read: small). Then I took my first try on the Metro and the RER (let me tell you, it is all in French. all of it). Saw the Bastille. Now I am headed to buy a cell phone and take a walking tour around part of the city. Having dinner tonight outside of Saint-Michel's, near the river Seine. Then I think I must shower and sleep because it has been a long time (gross, I know). Anyhoo, talk to all you crazy kids later!


xoxo

Prepaing to Invade

Hello All,

I am leaving for Paris on Tuesday, and I am sooo excited (except for the face that I haven't packed anything ye!)! I will try to update this regularly and post some pictures. Keep in mind that France is 7 hours ahead, so yeah, jet lag will suck. I will post again when I get there and have one free minute. I have a feeling that they will be somewhat hard to come by.

Wish y'all could come too. <3