Oh Pa-ree

Ten days traveling is a lot to capture in a blog, but I’ll do my best. Claire, Rachel, Anna and I flew from Malaga to Paris on Thursday afternoon, and checked into a small apartment that we were renting for 5 nights. It was a great location right near the Bastille, and also it was nice to have our own little living space instead of sharing a hostel for so many nights.

On Friday morning we met up with my high school friend Isabel. It was so great to see her! We got lunch and then she walked around with us throughout the city. We saw the Louvre (only the outside), had warm drinks at a famous restaurant called Angelina’s, walked through a huge Christmas market, strolled along Champs-Elysee, and saw the Arc de Triomphe. It was so fun to catch up with Isabel and hear all about her life in Paris. We then walked all the way back to our apartment, so in total that day we walked about seven miles! (Even more impressive when you say it in kilometers.) Although we were exhausted we still managed to go out that night. We went to a “stockmarket” bar, where the price of the drink depends on how popular it is that night. It was fun although I will say the bar scene didn’t quite compare to Spain’s level of fiesta, which is probably a good thing since we were exhausted travelers.

Isabel and me at the Christmas market

On Saturday we spent a depressing amount of time in search of Chipotle, since it is a mission of every trip outside of Spain to get a burrito, but it turns out Mexican food is slow to come to France as well, and Chipotle wasn’t built yet. At the address that Google Maps gave us was a pile of rubble. So we ate some sandwiches and then Anna and I walked up to Sacre Coure, which is a huge church that overlooks the entire city. It was stunning, as was the view, and the area of Montmarte was very cute and festive for Christmas. We drank hot cocoa and ate macaroons and were merry. This man and his stall exemplify the atmosphere very well:

I randomly ran into another high school friend, Nick, three times in Paris. He is studying in Prague but was visiting friends, so we hang out that night. It was great catching up with him too!

On Sunday we went to a huge outdoor market which was fun to see, and I salivated at rows and rows of fresh cheese, fruits, and crepes (although not so much at the stalls of gooey octopi and bloody meat tissue). Then we went to the old Jewish quarters, called Le Marais, where I had the most delicious falafel of my life (apparently the falafel is famous in this area). Since it was Sunday and all the museums were free we then decided to visit Musee d’Orsay, which has impressionist paintings. My mom and dad will be proud to hear me say that for the first time in my life I fully enjoyed a museum. It had so many works of some of my favorite artists, including George Seurat and Monet. I loved seeing all the art, and the best part was the museum was small so we were in and out in an hour and a half. (I didn’t enter the Louvre, however, because it would take about 24 hours to see all the art in there.)

All of us on by the Seine River

Then Claire and Rachel went shopping on Champs-Elysee so Anna and I went to explore another district of the city, Mount Parnasse. We had a very leisurely time walking through the neighborhoods, and then we ordered a delicious crepe. Ok, two.

On Monday I met up with Isabel again. I still had yet to try a plain Parisian baguette, so I got some artisan cheese and some bread for breakfast. I do have to say that the bread in France didn’t quite live up to its hype (although Isabel and Anna might kill me for saying this), but it was good nonetheless. We then walked to Luxembourg gardens and Notre Dame, which was very impressive. After that we saw the Eiffel Tower during the day, although it was way too cold so none of us were too thrilled to be there. It was Rachel’s birthday the next day so we went out to a nice French restaurant to celebrate, and the food was delicious. Then we saw the Eiffel Tower one more time at night, and it was so beautifully lit up and sparkly.

Anna and me at the delicious French dinner

Hey Mom and Dad, want to buy me a camera for Christmas that can take pictures at night??

As a quick sidenote, it’s hitting me that I’m talking about all these landmarks very casually—then we went to Notre Dame, and it was awesome, and then it was on to see the Eiffel Tower. Oh and then a Louis Vuitton representative gave me a personal tour through the famous department store and at the end of the trip I shook Nicolas Sarkozy’s hand. I hope I’m not getting too blasé about all my traveling. I barely thought about this trip until the day I was packing, whereas if I had booked my tickets in California I would have been shaking with anticipation for weeks. Damn Ryanair, it’s as if traveling has become too simple!! But seriously, I’m loving every minute of it even if I can’t convey enormous excitement in my blog. Paris was a beautiful city and hopefully someday I’ll be back, although preferably on my parents’ or rich future husband’s dime. 

A great last night in Paris!