We just came back from Paris yesterdy - I never knew one city could be both so pretty and stink so much!! Paris was absolutely gorgeous - a city of love, culture, and inspiration. Also, as I have recently learned, a city of crazy people, lots of bums, and dirty streets! I found this forgivable though, just because it is Paris... :) So, a little summary of what i did in beautiful Paree...
- Visited a lot of museums: the Louvre (and yes, I saw the Mona Lisa, and Liberty Leading the People, and many other really cool paintings...) the Musee d'Orsay (had a lot of Impressionist artists and i realized how much I really liked them...I think you get a much different appreciation of their talent when you see the works up close and realize that you can't really make out much unless you stand far away, which speaks for the brilliance of the painter who was obviously up close to the canvas when he painted).
- I also visited Versailles, which was beautiful (I feel like I use that word to describe everything) and completely overwhelming when you think about really how much money went into its construction and decoration...incredible gardens that you could spend a lifetime exploring...
- One of my favorite days was my last day - I went to the Sacre Coeur (Im not sure how this is spelled)...It was probably one of the most beautiful churches I've visited - inside and out. The steps in front of the church overlooked all of Paris and I had a yummy baguette in the sun out on the steps, listening to some of the local street performers. Then I walked around the artist district and there were honestly some amazing artists..I wish I had the money to buy some of the paintings and then of course my own house to put them in. It was a beautifully relaxing day, spent walking around leisurely and visiting the Notre Dame and other pretty Parisian sites...
- The Eiffel Tower is absolutely magical - it is not really a pretty structure, but lit up and from far away it is really magical...we went up the tower at night and had a magnificent view of the city at night. Of course, what would a night by the Eiffel Tower be without a Nutella and banana crepe? I didn't let the Eiffel Tower be my only excuse for one of these delicacies - I munched on these with liberty my figure did not allow me, allow my taste buds did not protest.
- We also visited Normandy and spent a whole day touring around some of the beaches that the Allied forces landed on on D-Day. The sites were truly hair-raising and to this day the towns still express their thanks to England, Canada and America for the liberation. We didn't get to actually go onto the beaches, but visited many of them from a bit of a distance. I heard some amazing stories of heroism and besides the nostalgic, and possibly romanticized accounts that gave me a new appreciation for our armed forces, I also gained a better understanding of what D-Day was supposed to be and how it actually turned out.
- Normandy was gorgeous - the French countryside will definitely make it onto my list of places to return to after I leave Europe...We stayed at a monastery and for those of you who get a chance to look at my photo album on Normandy (will prolly make it up later tonight or tomorrow), I have to warn you, there are only about 2 pictures of people! The rest was the aspiring photographer in me having a bit of a field day :)
Also, just a shout-out to all my friends whose birthdays I've missed: Happy birthday Matt and Jared! Hope you guys have a great day Monday! and to Andrea - hope your birthday was great! I'm sorry I missed it...I was in Normandy without internet but I thought about you and got your letter in Bruges yesterday :) Thanks sooo much! Love and miss you all!
