Paris
We arrived in the City of Love on Tuesday evening. Our tour
guide for the rest of the week, Julien, met us and he walked us around parts of
Paris. That night we had dinner at a crêperie, and the food was délicieuse. Exhausted from the long days of travelling, I made my way
back to the hotel fairly early after exploring/getting lost in a little bit
more of Paris.
The following day, we started off with a bike tour of the
city. I had been to Paris twice before this excursion, but I had never seen
Paris the way I did on bike. This was probably one of my favorite parts of the trip.
We got to see so much more of the city than if we were walking. The weather was
fantastic; we were active. Just an all-around perfect start to the day.
We later continued our adventures with a tour of the Pasteur
Institute. The museum included a tour of Pasteur’s living apartments, his
laboratory, and even his crypt. It was amazing to see where he lived and worked
and consider how positively he affected medicine.
After this, we had some free time, which some friends and I
used to walk along the Champs Elysees. We stopped in a café and drank some
coffee. By this time, it was close to dinner, and we were meeting the rest of
our program at the Eiffel tower later that night. We stopped for a quick bite
to eat at a street crêperie (they were just too good the night before to not
get again). Before meeting up with everyone, I had another crêpe…when in Paris,
am I right? This one was a sweet one though with Nutella and strawberries…best
combination. After indulging in this crêpe, I was ready to go. We went all the
way to the top of the Eiffel tower. The view from the top was incredible. You
could see the whole city all in bright lights.
Thursday was spent primarily at the Palace and Gardens of
Versailles. The palace is so ornate and grandiose. It’s hard to imagine that
people actually lived there at one time. My favorite room is the Hall of
Mirrors; I think the combination of the chandeliers and mirrors is striking.
However, I would have to say that I preferred the gardens above any of the
rooms in the château. The gardens are never-ending! With some help, Julien had
prepared a classic French picnic for us, complete with baguettes, a variety of
cheeses, and of course all the wine imaginable. After the picnic, Julien took
us to a smaller château deep within the gardens. It’s not something most
tourists see because it’s pretty far from the palace, but we were close to it
because of the location of our picnic. After Versailles, Julien took some of us
to Montmartre, one of my favorite parts of Paris. We saw Sacré-Coeur, Moulin
Rouge, and lots of street artists. That evening, a few of us enjoyed a sit-down
meal in a nice French restaurant in Montmartre.
Friday was our last day, and it was spent at the Louvre. I
had never been to this museum before, but I think I can say it is now one of my
favorite museums. It houses so many famous masterpieces, including the Mona
Lisa, the Winged Goddess Nike, and Venus de Milo. We had a great tour guide who
explained a lot of the history behind many of the pieces. After visiting the museum,
I had to register for classes, which was a little stressful. I couldn’t get
service in the museum, so I set up my laptop outside a café near the Louvre. After
having to make some last minute adjustments, I got all my classes figured out
for next semester. This concluded the Paris adventures. After this, I went back
to the hotel to work on some homework and wait until it was time to leave for
my next adventure…Dublin!
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