Las vacaciones en Paris! (Vacation in Paris!)

Not much time for updating, so a short-but-sweet and very timely entry is going to have to trump a longer entry that comes late. Better to keep up, I say. Plus I know I write better when things are current, not when they've already become past. (By writing this, I'm ignoring the 15 page paper I have yet to start. Right.)

A general mix of thoughts before picture time (I jotted these down on napkins and receipts during the trip so that I would remember to write them in the blog):

1) Lauren and Anne surprised me in the airport when I arrived. I was expecting to have to go meet them in the center of Paris (I was going over my French accent in my head so that I would know what to tell the cab), but then I walked out to the main area and I heard them call up "Emma... you're going the wrong way...!" It was an appropriate greeting, I think. "Emma, what the hell are you doing, we're here, you're off in your own little world!" It was so fantastic to see them there. Time has passed--I haven't seen Anne for almost 2 years--but in so many ways so much was exactly the same. It felt really good to have that and to have our time together.

2) I saw the Eiffel Tower lit up, dominating the sprawling, flat city of Paris as I flew in. It was absolutely breathtaking.

3) I consumed goat cheese at literally every meal, except for breakfasts. It was delicious (the French know how to do their cheese), but by the end I was pretty cheesed out. They even have cheeto-esque snacks, goat cheese flavored.

4) I found the French, generally speaking, quite nice and friendly. The stereotype was way off. I had one unfortunate encounter with a woman, but other than that people smiled and were very helpful. I was pleasantly surprised.

5) Apparently I said "thats what she said" all the time 2 years ago on our Germany road trip. Anne reminded me that I haven't matured much at all over the past 2 years, considering I still make my young, innappropriate comments with quite a bit of vigor. Great.

6) I missed the memo that, in Paris, you are only allowed to wear variations of black, white, and beige. Grey is sometimes acceptable and, if done properly, a dark purple can be added to the mix. I walked around in my bright red jacket. Yep. Hello, tourist Emma.

7) Paris has the best metro system I have ever encountered. We usually had to wait between 1 and 3 minutes for a metro. The longest we ever waited was 7 minutes, and that was only once -- the second longest time was 4 minutes. The network is huge and, because of the low amount of waiting, is very efficient. Trains normally run every 3-4 minutes. Another example of fantastic European transportation.

8) There is very cheap wine in Paris. Not in an "awesome, easy drinking" kind of way, but one night we cooked dinner, and getting wine was very cheap. Most wines were between $2 and $5, or you could splurge for a $14 bottle. We got a $3 bottle, I think, and it wasn't bad.

9) There is a Jewish neighborhood in Paris that was FANTASTIC. Falafel, Challah, Jewelry, kippahs... you name it, they had it. It made me irrationally happy. And I had falafel. I was quite content.

Other than these random points, we did a *lot* of stuff. All the major tourist things, and also some relaxation and bonding time. We went to the best hot chocolate place in Paris (incredible) and the best macaroons place (also incredible--French macaroons are not Jewish macaroons; they're different). Anne left on Saturday evening, which left just me and Lauren until Monday afternoon. Sunday we took a day trip to Reims to see the Cathedral (we studied a lot of it in high school) and toured a Champagne cellar/factory thing (Reims is right in the middle of the Champagne district of France). I won't bore you with more "then we did this and then we did that," but we did a lot, saw a lot, and, well, ate a lot.

My first view of Paris, getting off the metro. Not bad.

Lauren, doing her thing in her city.

Does this need a description? For the most part I didn't buy into Paris being a romantic city, but we were around all these couples and... yeah. This part passes as romantic, according to me.

Anne, Lauren, and me!

Yep. We took a lot of pictures.

Moulin Rouge. Kind of a disappointment, but a photo was necessary nonetheless.

WE ATE IN THE CAFE WHERE THEY FILMED AMELIE. I NEED SOMEONE ELSE TO FREAK OUT ABOUT IT BECAUSE LAUREN AND ANNE DIDN'T REMEMBER IT!!!

Montmartre.

Arc de Triomphe! Very near where Lauren lives... her homestay (where I stayed for the 2 nights after Anne left) is VERY posh.

One night we ate at the BEST crepe place ever... This is my goat cheese salad crepe. Desert crepes followed. I was in heaven (this picture is for my dear daddy)!

Little kids playing with the rented sailboats in the park outside of the louvre.

It was SO neat seeing this. To be honest, I was a little disappointed with the art in the louvre itself (massive amounts of people, just a tourist event and not really a museum), but Lauren led us through it like a pro. We saw what we needed to see and left. I'm really glad I went, but in terms of actual artistic content, I think I liked the Musee d'Orsay better.

The back of Notre Dame.

In the Luxemburg gardens, eating our INCREDIBLE sandwiches (mine was more goat cheese). Lauren was such an excellent hostess. I didn't really have to think about where we were going or what we were doing. She knew the places to eat, the places to see, and the most efficient order to do it all, and she didn't tire of trudging along with us. Thanks, Lo. :D

Saint Chapelle. We learned about this church in high school, too -- it's very small, but all the walls are stained glass. Completely wonderful.

Anne very excited outside of Notre Dame!

In Reims with Lauren. We studied this portal and both remembered that freaky figure's smile on the left-hand side.

Near the Reims Cathedral!

Lauren outside of the Champagne place we went to. There are tons of very deep, hand-dug cellars under this patio!

So, all in all, another fantastic trip. It was great seeing Anne and Lauren and I liked Paris *much* more than what I was expecting. Not to say I was expecting not to like it, but people talk up Paris a lot. It was a beautiful, majestic, balanced city, and unlike any other I've ever seen before. I didn't tire of being there, and could have easily spent more time exploring various neighborhoods.

And now I'm here, in Sevilla again, with work up to my neck. It's currently 91 degrees. I still have 2 comforters on my bed. Yes sir.

Here's the link to all the pictures I took in Paris, if you're interested:

France with Lauren and Anne Spring 2009

Sorry this entry is all over the place. If you have any questions about what we did or something I left out, feel free to shoot me an email!