Back at Ambialet

Our first trip to Paris has come to an end and we are now back in Ambialet. I wasn't really ready to leave Paris because the time went so fast, but I was ready to come back and relax!! The trip to Paris consisted of never-ending days. We were constantly doing something. If I caught myself sitting down to relax I thought to myself, "what am I doing sitting inside?! I'm in Paris!!" Needless to say, it was nice to know that I would come back to Ambialet and have a nice relaxing weekend ahead of me. And that's exactly what this weekend has been!! I had actually gotten sick the last few days of Paris. This was probably due to lack of sleep and just being outside a lot. These past two days were good for me to recouperate and rest up!

So, I haven't written here a lot in the past week and I feel like there is still SO much to say about Paris. I'll do my best and fill you in on the rest of my Paris trip.

Monday morning was quite interesting. Owen had this brilliant idea of going to a flea market. Well, this was an experience! haha Owen, Eric, Matt, Ian, Leah and I got up early Monday morning and ventured to this open market. It was the last stop on the metro and wasn't a very nice part of Paris. We got to the market and we were impressed with what they had. There were tons of clothes, shoes, jewlery, etc. We were expecting antiques and what not. Leah and I got scarves for 5euro a piece and I got a pair of sunglasses. Owen, however, found himself bartering with the shady salesmen; haha. He got what he wanted though -- his fake Rolex! haha. The people there were very shady and Leah and I were a little scared. We left as soon as we were done with the open market. However, the metro station wasn't much better. There were more beggers and crazies in that metro stop that I had seen my whole Paris trip. We tried to get through there as soon as we could and came to the conclusion that we probably wouldn't return there, haha. Monday afternoon we traveled with the group to Montmarte. Here there is a beautiful church up a huge flight of stairs. The story is that a saint was matryed at the bottom of this hill and carried his head to the top. From this spot, we got a GORGEOUS view of Paris!! Around this area, there were tons of painters and little shops. It was really neat. Here is where I had my first real gelato! It was sooooooo good!!!

After the excursion part of the day, we were able to explore a bit. We walked around and came across the Red Light district in Paris. I never ever imagined that there was such a place like this. First off, Moulin Rouge was on this street and it was soo cool to see it. We went into the gift store and saw some of the costumes that the dancers wore; it was really neat. However, there were many provactive and dirty stores, clubs, buildings, etc. that lined tihs street. It was quite distrubing, but I guess it was better that we saw it during the day! haha

Tuesday was the day we traveled to Versailles. This place was AMAZING!! It was the place that King Louis XIV built because he didn't like the rustle and the bustle of the city of Paris. This place is SOO big. We were able to walk through the palace and see all of the different rooms including the king's chamber, the queen's chamber, the hall of mirrors, and many more. We also got a private tour that allowed us to go into the chapel and the king's apartment. It was so neat to see these old rooms and furniture. Most of the furniture, rugs, etc. were the originals that the king used. The gardens were probably the most amazing part. There are SO many! It would really take a few days to walk through them all. The day we visited was pretty cold and windy and nothing was in bloom yet. So, we made a decision to take a day on our next trip to Paris to visit the gardens; I'm pretty excited for that!

On Wednesday, we had the opportunity to visit the Rodin Museum. This museum consisted of many different types of sculptures. One of the famous works we focused on was The Thinker. We all had our chance to pose like the Thinker and get our picture taken. Also, the Gates of Hell was at this museum. This was interesting because it was full of such intricate detail and design. I think it's so crazy to see how one person can create this with the work of his hands.
From the Rodin Museum, we went to the workshop/home of Schlomo Salinger. He is a famous sculptor that has had a pretty interesting life. He is now in his 80's and is a Holocaust survivor. He ultimately survived five deaths during his life and now creates many works to reflect on his past. His works were amazing. He had many at his workshop that we visited and many had been named such names as "The Holocaust" and "The Survivor." He has been commissioned to do many works and many of his works are showcased at some museums. It was so touching to see how someone with such a difficult past was able to overcome the struggles and succeed in life. When we left, his wishes to us were to live a good life and to make the best of it. I realized that he is truly someone who appreciates life and all that goes with it.

Thursday was a free day for us!! We first woke up and headed to the Catacombs. This was actually about a 10 minute walk from where we stayed. However, the Catacombs consists of over 6 million bodies that were thrown undergrown when the cemetries were thought to be unsanitary and over-crowded. We walked down a long flight of stairs and walked a good bit underground through halls and halls of millions of skulls and bones. It was quite disturbing to say the least.

We also decided that we wanted to visit the Science Center in Paris. Well, we reached this building that we thought was the Science Center and we were pretty certain it was correct because of it's design. We later found out that it was the first building to be created from the outside-in I guess? It showed the tunnels and pipes on the outside and it was so interesting. ( I have pictures!) However ,when we got inside we realized that we went to a museum! Needless to say, we were all museumed out. But we stayed for about an hour or so to just check it out. We were pretty upset that we missed out on the science center. After that, Owen and I went off on our own and explored Paris. We walked for about 3 or so hours and it felt like we covered every corner of Paris. We re-visited many of the landmarks we had seen throughout the week. It was a very nice day out and it made the walk even that much better. We also ventured into many name brand stores like Gucci, Channel, and Ralph Lauren. I was so tempted to buy something, haha! We had a really good day just exploring the city and seeing everything at our own pace.

One night we decided to go to the Eiffel Tower to see if sparkle; every hour on the hour, the tower sparkles for ten minutes. This was gorgeous!!!!!! We were there for over an hour just admiring it and taking pictures. We had a lot of fun taking the jumping pictures in front of the tower. Owen almost lost his camera though! haha Apparently people will volunteer to take your picture and then just run off with your camera. This group of kids were begging to take our group picture and said it was their speciality. But, we weren't stupid and Owen practically hugged his camera and we kept telling them no until they left us alone. It was kinda humerous.

We met a good bit of Americans in Paris. Many people recognized we were from America because of Owen's Phillie's hat. It was nice to talk to them and see their outlook on Paris.

It was also really simple to get around in Paris. SO many people knew English making it easy for us. However, the last night we were there we were headed to the metro and this group of kids yelled stuff at us. One started following us then and we were pretty scared so we went into the closest restaurant. The waiter kept asking if we wanted seated and I tried explaining that we were being followed and we wanted to get away. Well, the waiter kept saying, "Ohhh, take your food away?" haha We eventually gave up, sat down for 10 minutes, and then just walked out without ordering.

We didn't really encounter too many scary situations in Paris. That story was pretty much the extent of it. To me, it seemed like there are so many more people walking around and being crazy in NYC. However, there are a lot more beggers in Paris. I noticed if you don't bother them, they won't bother you!

I really enjoyed my time in Paris and I can't wait to get back! I get to go up the Eiffel Tower when I return and I can't wait!!! We have about 2.5 weeks until spring break, so we will be travelling a lot this coming month.

This week we have a lot planned and it's my birthday soon! So, it should be a good week! I'm going to try and get the picture website up and I'll put the link up as soon as I do! I'll update later this week:)

Overall, the Paris trip was a blast!! I'm pretty glad we aren't there the whole semester because I would be broke!! haha.