When in Paris

Another busy day: on Monday Paige, Meredith and Kristen went to the Louvre in the morning when I went to class. Well that's not completely true, because after I went back home to my apartment I checked my class and thought it had been cancelled for the day. I met up with Paige, Mere, and Kristen at the Musee de l'Orangerie when they finished at the Louvre, But right when I got there, my friend from school texted me that we actually were having class, oops. Oh well, the Musee de l'Orangerie is one of my favorites! This is where Monet's Water Lilies are.

After this museum, we walked back through the Tuileries Gardens and caught the metro to the Arc de Triomphe. We climbed our way to the top for a great view.

A very windy view from the Arc de Triomphe!

We next headed to the Opera area for some shopping, and went to the Galeries Lafayette. This is one of the best places for shopping in Paris - it's a huge, huge store with everything you could ever think of. My favorite thing to see here is on the roof actually, where you can look out over Paris. It is so close to the Opera Garnier that you feel like you can almost reach out and touch it - the Opera is one of my favorite buildings (think Phantom of the Opera, this is the place). We were getting ready for our afternoon break, so we stopped on the top floor for some French pastries... and gelato. Yum.

It was getting late fast, and we had planned to go back to my apartment and for the girls to meet Lillian and Gutenberg, the couple I had been living with. Lillian had made us one of her delicious apple tarts and served us cider in her champagne glasses! She was so excited to have us and to meet my friends. Adele even stopped by to say hello! I was very busy trying to interpret for both sides, I did my best. Gutenberg was happy as always and loved having the four of us girls over. I gave them a tour of where I was staying, which didn't take long. We stayed and talked some bit more, then headed off to another one of our fun French dinners...  

Gutenberg dancing for us! 

à bientôt!

Happy Birthday Paige!

So I missed a few birthdays first semester when I was in Paris - Meredith turned 21 at the end of January and then Kristen turned 21 at the end of February. Paige waited to turn 21 until she was in Paris, so I was lucky enough to finally get to celebrate a birthday with them! I tried to make up for missing Meredith's and Kristen's, so we turned our trip into a big birthday celebration... 

So March 6th we woke up in Paris to celebrate Paige's birthday! It was a Sunday, so we went to Hillsong for church in the morning. I loved this church so much and looked forward to going every week, I was so glad for them to go with me! It was probably a little difficult because the worship songs were in French, and the sermon was translated, but I think they really enjoyed it. I miss this place so much and hope to go back someday!

After church we headed to the Louvre, not actually going inside, but just to see the Tuileries Gardens and the courtyard. It was a beautiful day!

Louvre Courtyard

As we were crossing the street to the Louvre, all of a sudden Kristen screamed "James Blunt"!! Yep, she saw James Blunt crossing the street and he walked right passed her. So of course we all ran back across the street and tried to catch up with him. We had just missed him! James Blunt is one of Kristen's favorites, so she was a bit star-struck. We saw our celebrity! He was there for Paige's birthday, naturally. 

Fountains at the Pyramid

We walked down rue Rivoli to slowly make our way to the Champs-Elysees for some birthday shopping. You can't get much better than that if you ask me! We stopped along the way in the middle of the Place de la Concorde. This is one of the best places in Paris to see the city. From the middle of the square you can see the Eglise Madeleine, the Musee de l'Orangerie and the Tuileries Gardens (with the Louvre behind), the Eiffel Tower, the Hotel de Crillon, the U.S. Embassy, the Assemblee Nationale across the Seine, the Champs-Elysees and the Arc de Triomphe, and of course, the Obelisk de Luxor and the famous fountains in the middle of the square. It's quite a sight!

Place de la Concorde

Paige was especially excited to see the fountains. This is where a scene from The Devil Wears Prada was filmed, and Anne Hathaway was filmed at one of these fountains. It was fun for Paige to come here on her birthday! We all four climbed up on the fountain and just sat and enjoyed ourselves and the view. One of our best memories of the trip for sure. 

Sitting at the Fountain in the Place de la Concorde 

After soaking in as much as we could, we crossed the street to begin our walk down the Champs-Elysees. First stop: Louis Vuitton. 

Louis Vuitton!

Champs-Elysees and the Arc de Triomphe

After a full afternoon, we headed back to our apartment to get ready for dinner. We went to one of my favorite restaurants over by the Eiffel Tower, Cafe Constant. Since this restaurant doesn't take reservations, we put our name down for a table and wandered over to the Eiffel Tower since we had some time. It's so beautiful at night!

 Eiffel Tower at Night

We made our way back to the restaurant right in time. We sat upstairs and had an amazing dinner, and of course followed by delicious dessert! The perfect birthday dinner, happy birthday Paige! After dinner we headed back to the Eiffel Tower, but this time we were going to the top! Thankfully there was almost no line (one of the perks about Paris in March) so we quickly bought our tickets and filed into the elevator. We made friends with some nice people from Dallas, such a small world! They were more than happy to celebrate Paige's birthday with us, the more the merrier! We made it to the top and what a view! It was much higher than I expected though, and very windy! We all were convinced we were going to blow away, thankfully we didn't. 

Us on the top of the Eiffel Tower!

Paris at Night - View from the Top

It was a great day and the best way I could think to spend Paige's 21st birthday!

Day 2 - Les Puces de St. Ouen and our Montmarte Adventure

After our first night in Paris, we started the day early to go to the famous Paris flea market: Les Puces de Saint - Ouen, near Porte de Clignanourt. This flea market is famous for it's antiques, furniture, jewelry, vintage clothes, and so much more. We were lucky because it's only open on the weekend, and it was a Saturday so we could go check it out. Here's the thing about the market though - Porte de Clignancourt in the North of Paris is not the safest neighborhood. Let's just say in order to get to the market, you have to walk through a pretty "rough" area to find it. Also, we weren't exactly sure where we were supposed to go. So, us four girls - us four blondes- wandered off the metro and took a walk through the neighborhood until we found the market. That was the fastest we walked all trip.

We got to the market and had a fun time. There are several vendors when you first reach the market, and they all had a great time trying to pawn their trinkets off on us. We made some friends here. But we knew to keep walking in order to get to the good part of the market, where all the "less-touristy" shops and stalls are.

Paige modeling a Parisian hat

It was a huge maze of the coolest, old antiques and vintage things. We found one shop that was full of old designer clothes, jewelry, and bags. We could have spent all day in this place! Paige took advantage of the opportunity to ask the owners about Fashion Week, because of course we needed to know where to go to see all the celebs.

 

Paige, Me and Kristen in the market

We found a great shop with the cutest old French woman selling vintage jewelry. Meredith found a pearl ring and ended up going back to buy it! 

Paige and Meredith at the shop where Meredith bought her ring

We were having the best time, except this morning was really cold and we were all starting to feel a little numb in our hands. We needed to find a cafe to stop for some coffee and warm up, so we went inside the first place we saw. The man at this cafe was typically French, meaning not all too welcoming. We were just happy to be inside, and after ordering some coffees and hot chocolates we were starting to warm up. Oh, did I mention there was a parrot in the cafe? Because there was. We all just laughed about it, and after we finished our coffees we left to head out to Montmartre for the afternoon. 

We took the metro to Montmarte and made our way up the streets to the Sacre-Coeur. It was a beautiful day and the sun was coming out, so the day was starting to warm up. 

Mere and I walking up to the Sacre-Coeur

When we got to the top of the hill, we went inside the Sacre-Coeur - it really is such an amazing church. We were getting hungry for lunch, so we found a bakery in Montmartre and picked up some baguette sandwiches. We found a bench in the park just below the church- I love this park because it's never very crowded because it's hard to find, and also you get a great view of the city here. It had turned into a beautiful day by now and was actually really warm. We finished our lunch and headed back to the main square, of course stopping for gelato along the way. 

Me and Kristen at the square in Montmartre

It wasn't very crowded, so we were able to walk around the square and watch the artists for a while. When we started heading down, we met a nice couple from the States who offered to take a picture for us. We also got a picture with them too, I love how friendly Americans are!   

Us heading down Montmartre

We decided to wander down the hill and ended up finding some really cool areas. I wasn't really sure where we were, but that made it even more fun. You never know what you'll find when you get lost in Paris. We eventually made our way to the Moulin Rouge, then got back on the metro to head home and get ready for dinner. 

We went to dinner at a restaurant near Notre-Dame called Au Bougnat, delicious! After dinner, we walked down the street to Notre-Dame, one of my favorite things to see in Paris at nighttime. 

Me and Kristen in front of Notre-Dame

And for dessert? Laduree on the Champs-Elysees. We were seated upstairs, even though normally for dessert you sit downstairs. We weren't complaining though! We had the most delicious desserts. It was a great way to end our night after a great second day in Paris. 

Downstairs at Laduree

 

Backtracking to Paris...

Ok, so even though I'm back in Dallas, I am going to re-trace my steps and start up my blog again. This is partly my way of re-living my time in Paris, but also because I promised my mom I would blog and I can't break my promise. Better late than never, right?

So here we go... I left off last in Prague, my trip with Miranda and Lindsey. Once I got back, my three roommates, Meredith, Paige, and Kristen (who also happen to be my three best friends) flew to Paris for their spring break vacation. Nothing I write can even come close to describing how much fun that week was, I don't know where to begin!

They rented a studio apartment for the week which happened to be just right down the street from where I lived. It couldn't have worked out better! I met them at the apartment, of course I was an hour early just to make sure I was there to welcome them when the taxi dropped them off. That was one, very long hour of waiting. I was so happy when I saw that taxi finally turn the corner and come down the street, they were in Paris at last! Bienvenue!

Kristen and me in front of the apartment, right after they arrived!

The apartment was perfect, super cute and super "French". After settling in, we set out to find lunch. I took them to a cafe near the Beaubourg that I'd been to several times before, and we enjoyed our first French meal together! They were doing a good job fighting through their jet lag, but after our big lunch it was hard to stay awake. But I was too excited to finally have them in Paris, so I made sure that we didn't waste any time. We walked down rue Beaubourg to Hotel de Ville, then crossed the Seine to Notre-Dame. 

Meredith, Kristen and me in front of Hotel de Ville

We went inside Notre-Dame and around the back to the garden, then crossed over the river to go to Shakespeare & Co. After Shakespeare and Co., our energy was running low so we all decided a good crepe would be the best idea. So, we headed to the Latin Quarter to visit my favorite Creperie. Sadly, my friend Jimmy wasn't there (he only works at nighttime), but we still had some pretty delicious crepes. We stopped to eat them on the bridge. 

Paige and me with our crepes!

Next, we headed to the Marais. It was time for some shopping. The Marais is one of my favorite places because of the narrow, cobblestone streets and of course all the great little boutiques and trendy cafes. We had a fun time here wandering through the area and stopping in different little shops. It was late afternoon, and since we had been walking almost all day, my three friends were about to collapse. But I had to take them to one more place, the Place des Vosges. I told them this would be a great place to stop and rest, and it was- it ended up being a great place to stop and fall asleep!

Meredith, Paige and me sitting in the Place des Vosges

We started to make our way back to the apartment, and stopped at a market and bakery to pick up dinner. We had a very full first day - I was very impressed with how much we walked on their first day off the plane! We needed a night to sit and relax, and that's exactly what we did. A good dinner with lots of laughs, then we were off to bed (not quite as early as we had planned). Of course I packed my things to stay with them in their apartment, so two of us slept upstairs in the loft and two were on the pullout downstairs- quite "cozy" as Paige would say. It was the beginning of a great week in Paris!  

Prague

Lindsey, Miranda and I left for Prague Sunday afternoon. Once we landed at the Prague airport, we bought tickets for the bus that took us to the metro, where we were supposed to catch a tram to our hostel. We made it almost all the way until we missed our tram. We decided to go up to the street and just walk. Once we got out of the metro, we were standing in the middle of a huge square. We couldn't find any street signs and had no idea where we were, so we stopped to ask for directions. We were pointed in a direction, walked a ways, stopped and asked for directions again, and again we were pointed in another direction. After walking with almost no idea of where we were, we somehow actually found our hostel. We checked in and then went to explore Wenceslas Square. It was really fun to see the city at night and especially this square. From Wenceslas Square we headed in the direction of Old Town. We stopped at a restaurant on the way and it turned out to be one the best meals we have had since being in Europe, and we could actually afford it! Such a change from Paris. After dinner we went to see the Astronomical clock and Tyn Church, then walked across Chalres Bridge. By this time it was getting late, so we went back to our hostel and called it a day. On Monday, we got up early to go see the Castle. We walked through Old Town again and got some great pictures. We were so thankful to have great weather, it was beautiful both days we were there.

Astronomical Clock

We walked through the Old Town area and made our way across Charles Bridge. The bridge itself was so cool and also we had a great view of the castle and the city as we walked across. 

The three of us on Charles Bridge

Once we crossed the bridge, we caught the tram that took us to the bottom of the castle. Well, that's what we were supposed to do at least. We missed our stop, and once we realized we missed our stop we jumped off the tram and decided to take the metro back to where we needed to be. It was getting close to noon, and we really wanted to be at the castle by noon for the changing of the guard. We took the metro one stop back and got off thinking we were at the right place. We ran up the biggest escalator I have ever seen, then realized we got off at the wrong stop, ran back down the escalator and took the metro one more stop, and then ran all the way up the hill to to castle. Once we got to the castle, we ran to the very back courtyard to catch the changing of the guard. We made it just in time and were so happy we did because it was really cool. After we watched the ceremony, we bought tickets to tour the Old Royal Palace, the St. Vitus's Cathedral, St. George Basilica and one other place I can't remember the name of. The St. Vitus Cathedral was incredible, the inside had the biggest stain glass windows that filled the cathedral with colored lighting because it was such a sunny day. 

St. Vitus Cathedral

I was so surprised how by how much was up on the hill around the castle. There were several palaces on the top of the hill which made the castle feel so big. There were four different courtyards and they were all surrounded by big, colorful buildings. All of the buildings in Prague were bright and colorful, which made it so different from any city I have seen, especially Paris.

Courtyard outside the Castle

There was a great view from the top of the hill. We stopped for lunch at a little cafe inside one of the big palace buildings, the walked back down the hill (we figured walking might be a safer bet than trying to catch the right tram). 

View from the top of the Castle

On Tuesday, we walked down the river and crossed a bride further down. We had a great view back of the Charles Bridge and Castle. When we crossed to the other side of the river, we wandered down a street and found a path climbing up a hill. We decided to see what was at the top, so we made our way up the path. After a while of walking, we realized we were almost to the top of the hill that we had seen the day before from the Charles Bridge. It was a really nice walk with great views of the city. We found a garden at the top of the hill, and also a big tower that was designed after the Eiffel Tower (not nearly as cool though). We explored the top of the hill then made our way back down and crossed back over the Charles Bridge. After so much walking, of course Miranda and I found some pastries. We couldn't pronounce the names of any of them, but that didn't stop us!

View of the Castle and Charles Bridge

After seeing as much as we could, we headed to the airport to catch our 8:40 flight. We were so glad to be back home in Paris after a very long day. I didn't quite know what to expect from Prague, but it was by far so much more than I had imagined. One of the coolest cities I have ever visited, definitely go if you ever have the chance!

The day I ran into Baylor friends in Paris!

Last week I found out that a group from Baylor was coming to visit Paris for the weekend. I had been emailing my friend Kristen so we could make plans to meet up once she got here. But Kristen's phone wasn't working and she didn't have an internet connection, so once she got to Paris on Thursday night I wasn't able to get in touch with her. I was disappointed not to be able to see her on Friday, but it was a beautiful day so I set out for a walk. I was enjoying the sunny, 55 degree weather when I reached the Champs-Elysees, and as I was walking along I all of a sudden saw Kristen, Hannah, Marley and a few other of the girls from Baylor! In the middle of Paris, we just happened to be in the same place at the same time, it was the best surprise! We spent the rest of the day seeing as much as we could. We stopped at a cafe first for crepes and coffees and had the best time chatting about our experiences so far. They are studying through a Baylor program in Maastricht and told me all about their time in Europe so far.  After we finished at the cafe, we walked across the Seine to the Notre-Dame and then to Place St Michel.

Hannah and I outside the cafe 

Kristen and I crossing the Seine

We met up with the rest of the group from Maastricht for dinner. After dinner, a few of us walked to the Louvre to see the lights at nighttime. It was such a pretty night so we sat and enjoyed our time talking and of course taking a few pictures. From there, we walked down the side of the Tuileries Garden to Place de la Concorde, where we had a great view of the Eiffel Tower. 

Kristen, Michael and I at the Louvre

On Saturday, the group went out to Versailles so I met up with Marley, Kristen, Rebecca, Hannah and Carissa later that night for dinner. I had read about a little restaurant near the Eiffel Tower that was supposed to be a fun and authentic Parisian restaurant. We had about an hour wait before we could be seated, so we walked to the Parc de Champs-Mars just down the street and enjoyed the view of the Eiffel Tower from a park bench. We were back at the restaurant an hour later, and were taken up a small spiral staircase to the little dining room upstairs filled with Paris locals. It was a a true French restaurant with so much personality and delicious food! It was the perfect place for us to enjoy a wonderful dinner together after a long day. 

Marley, Kristen and I outside the restaurant after dinner

We went back to the Eiffel tower after dinner, and three of the girls went to the top while the other three of us walked around to enjoy the view from the ground. We ran into three other Baylor students again! They had come to see the Eiffel Tower and almost walked right past us. 

Marley and I under the Eiffel Tower

Rebecca, my new friend!

After spending a while enjoying the Eiffel Tower, we went to check out the Latin Quartier. Definitely a busy spot on a Saturday night! We walked down a few streets and took in as much as we could. It was a fun place to see and a good way to end the night. We walked back to the metro just in time so they could catch the last line back home. It was such a fun weekend for me to see friends from back home!

My New Favorite Church

On Sunday I set off to the St- Germain area. I first went to Eglise St-Germain-des-Pres, the oldest church in Paris. It was said to have been built to keep a piece of wood that was supposedly a relic from Jesus's cross brought back from Spain in 542 AD. It was clearly a very old church, right in the middle of a very upscale neighborhood. The church sits in a square surrounded by designer boutiques and trendy cafes on all sides. I was thankful for a sunny day, which made it easy for me to wander down almost every street and not care to get lost.

St-Germain church from the side

I next went to find the Eglise St-Suplice, which is now my new favorite church in Paris. It is an enormous 17th century Baroque church with a big fountain in the square out front. 

The fountain in front of the St-Sulpice

St-Sulpice towers

There are two Delacroix frescoes in a chapel to the right of the entrance inside the church. I loved the inside of this church.

Inside the St-Sulpice

I finally left the church and headed back towards the Seine, I decided not to take the metro and walk instead. Once I reached Place St-Michel, I took a short detour through the Latin Quarter. I went down a small, cobblestone street full of creperies, cafes, and little Greek restaurants. This was a very lively place on a late Sunday afternoon. I finally crossed back over the Seine, passing the Notre-Dame and heading back to Hotel de Ville. Just a little ways down from Hotel de Ville is a tall monument in a little park that helps me find my way back home. I can't remember the name of the park or exactly what the monument is though...

Not sure what this is... but it helps me get home!

Hotel de Ville

I walked back from Hotel de Ville to the Pompidou. On one side of the Pompidou is Place Igor-Stravinsky with the Stravinsky fountain and the Eglise St-merry right behind. 

Stravinsky Fountain

I stopped by my favorite patisserie and sat in the square in front of the Pompidou for some great people-watching. This is a popular spot, especially on the weekends. A few musicians were out playing so I had a bit of a free concert. My apartment is on a side street right down from the Pompidou, so this has become a very familiar area to me.

Centre Pompidou

 

A Very Cold Day in Paris

On Saturday I went for another walk through the city with some friends. We met up in the Bastille area then headed over to Hotel de Ville. This is close to my apartment and is where I catch the metro every day. The Hotel de Ville is a great building overlooking the Seine that houses City Hall and also temporary photography exhibits. In the winter, there is an ice skating rink out front and the building lights up at night.

Kirsty and me in front of the ice rink at Hotel de Ville

We started to see a few snowflakes, so we crossed the river to go warm up inside Notre Dame. I don't think we were the only ones who had this idea! It has become one of my favorite places to visit regularly, especially to stop inside and warm up. 

Miranda and Me inside Notre-Dame

Once we walked around and warmed up for a bit, we crossed to the other side of the Seine to go to the famous English bookstore, Shakespeare & Company. This is a place I have always wanted to visit, so I was real excited to find out it's close enough for me to walk to. I have a feeling I will be going back soon... Founded by George Whitman, the small store is crowded with new and used books to both buy and rent. There are several little couches and chairs hidden throughout the place for people to stay and read all day. I can't imagine coming here in search of a certain book though, it could take days to sort through the maze of books here! 

Small staircase in Shakespeare & Co.

All of us in front of Shakespeare & Co. 

Exploring the Fifth...

On Wednesday, I met up with three new friends to go explore the fifth arrondissement. We started along the Seine and walked through a garden filled with modern art sculptures. 

Lindsay, Lindsey, and Miranda in the modern art garden along the Seine

We made our way to the Jardin des Plantes, which is a big botanical garden with several greenhouses from the 1930s. Also here are three natural-history museums and the Menagerie, one of the world's oldest zoos. 

Jardin des Plantes

a pink greenhouse!

We next headed to see La Grande Mosquee de Paris, built in the 1920s. Just around the corner was the Arenes de Lutece, an old roman amphitheater were a group of old men were playing a game of boules. Of course after all this walking, we had to stop for pastries.

French men playing boules in the Roman amphitheater