June 1st-3rd
Friday 6/1
Today we woke up really early to go take the metro and the
train to the airport! Luckily some of the girls had left the previous night, so
they told us exactly what to do and where to go. Thank goodness because we
would have been so lost if not! We got to the airport with an hour or so to
chill before we had to board the place. Security here is a lot more relaxed
than in America, so it doesn’t take too long to get through when you are
traveling from one European country to another. The flight was pretty smooth,
but I think I was the only one of out 8 of us girls who stayed awake for most
of the 2-hour flight! I just don’t sleep on planes very well, because I don’t
typically like to fly. It freaks me out for my life to be in someone else’s
hands like that. And probably because it just seems crazy to me that you can
fly from one place to another in such a short period of time!
After we arrived in Paris we decided to get a cab to our
hostel and grab lunch in that area of the city until we could check in! When we
got over in that area we had about an hour before check in, so it was perfect
timing! We walked around until we found a place that looked appealing and when
we walked in we found another group of Americans immediately who were also
studying abroad in Spain! So that was a strange, but cool coincidence. Then we
all sat down and we had no idea what to get! None of us knew even the slightest
bit of French, but luckily the table next to us had something that looked
really good, so the majority of us just ordered that! It ended up being a
potato dish of these mashed potatoes, beef, cheese, and some type of green
sauce. It came with a salad as well! It was a great first meal in Paris.
Especially with all the random foods we have been eating in Spain.
Then we went back to the hostel to get settled in and
freshen up a little bit before we explored the city. The hostel we stayed in
was pretty nice! We had an eight bed all girls’ room with 4 of us and 4 other
random girls! We didn’t really talk to them much though. Three of them were
friends and we think they were French because that’s what it sounded like when
they spoke to each other. They said a few things to us, but not much, but they
spoke English to us, so it was awkward when they would speak French to each
other. But for the most part we weren’t in our rooms much anyways, so it wasn’t
too bad! The beds were bunk beds with a curtain over them so you could have
privacy, and there were storage lockers underneath the bed that you could lock
all of your things in as long as you had your own lock, so we used those! They
also provided you with a towel, a pillow, and a blanket. The hostel was also a
restaurant and bar downstairs, and there was always people coming and going, so
it was easy to meet people there from all over the world, which was pretty
neat. They had free breakfast in the mornings too, which we took total
advantage of. Plus drink specials at night in the bar and the club downstairs.
But enough about the hostel! After we were all ready we
decided to try to take the metro to the Eifel Tower, because that was the first
thing we really wanted to see in Paris! The metro in Paris was a lot more dirty
than the one in Barcelona, and we weren’t familiar with it, so we were a little
bit creeped out. Then we got off at the wrong stop and walked around for a
while, but didn’t see it anywhere. So we asked around, but barely anyone could
speak English or they just pretended that they couldn’t. So we just decided to
take a cab, because we were tired of wasting the little time we had in Paris on
trying to find our way around by the metro! Once we got there we took pictures
and were just amazed by actually seeing it in person. It’s a little bit on an
unreal feeling to actually be standing in front of one of the most famous
monuments in the entire world.
After we admired it for a bit we decided to walk around
nearby and check things out. We found a place across from the tower that sold
crepes, so we got some chocolate crepes and cappuccinos!
After this there was a
boat tour place in front of the crepe stand, so we decided to check that out!
It was only 12 Euros for an hour tour down the Seine River and to see the view
from the river of all the famous monuments and buildings in Paris. So of course
we decided to take advantage of that! Especially since we had time to kill
before our sunset tour of the Eifel tower we had booked at 8:15.
The river cruise was perfect and very beautiful! The river
was so nice and the views of the city were amazing. One really neat thing we
got to go underneath on the boat was the Love/locks Bridge! It’s a bridge in
Paris where people come and put locks on with their names on it. It’s mostly couple’s
names, which I thought was really cute!
After the cruise on the river 2 of the girls got in line for
the Eifel Tower, because they didn’t book their tickets in advance, and the
rest of us found a place that sold champagne and bought a bottle to drink on
the grass by the tower! It was really fun and just an unreal experience that
every girl dreams about honestly.
Our tour started at 8:15 and we met with our guide in front
of the south side of the tower. He was a quirky, skinny, and lanky Irish guy
with a red shirt and blue pants on! He was so awesome though and just so nice.
He was from Belfast, Ireland, but was in France going to school to learn
French! Giving tours of the Eifel Tower is his side job while he is in school
there. He started the tour off by giving a brief history about the tower and
explaining how the tour was going to work. After this we walked over to skip
the huge line of people to go to the elevator of the tower. Booking this in
advance was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made! Waiting in that long line
and wasting your time in Paris in line is not something anyone wants to do!
Luckily the other girls we were with got through in about an hour though, so
they got pretty lucky. So if you do forget to book it, go at night!
Going up the elevator to the 2nd floor was pretty
awesome because the elevators are slanted up the side of the tower so you are
going up at a diagonal angle, almost like you are on a roller coaster. Once we
got to the 2nd floor we got to walk around and take in the view of
the entire city and all the famous monuments. We took lots of pictures and then
met back up with our tour group! From this point he led us to different points
on the 2nd floor and pointed out various monuments, what they are,
their history, and random stories about them. It was pretty neat learning about
all the history in Paris. After all of this our guide gave us the opportunity
to either go all the way up the Eifel tower or we could all just go back down
and that was the end of our tour. He also gave a us a sheet of paper with tons
of local great places to eat, which we were really excited about because we had
no idea about where to go!
Oh and I forgot to mention the lighting up of the Eifel tour
at 10pm! For 5 minutes the Eifel tour sparkles, and it does this every half
hour until midnight I believe! It was so pretty and something you should definitely
see in Paris!
Video of the Eiffel Tower sparkling! Most amazing thing!
After this we were all ready for dinner and the tour guide gave
us a list of restaurants to go to! We chose this fondue place called Le Refuge Des Fondues! It was so
awesome. We walked in and it was a
tiny little restaurant with 2 long tables in it with a very local feel! You sit
down next to everyone at the long tables even if you don’t know them and the
people next to us happened to be a couple from New York and there was also
another big group of study abroad students in there as well. The waiter
immediately brought us 6 small glasses of this wine and a small plate of
appetizers like small pepperonis, pickles, cheese, and olives. After that we
told him we wanted cheese fondue and he brought out these fondue pots full of
cheese and bread to dip it in! After that he asked if we wanted white or red
wine and brought them out in baby bottles. It was the most random setting but
had an awesome feel to it. There was also writing all over the walls from
people who have been there over the years.
We also got a plate of meat and you cooked it yourself in
the boiling oils and water. It was steak and we also got potatoes! We met some
French people who spoke English who we talked to for awhile! After this we all
went back to the hostel and had a drink and then went to bed!
Day 13, Saturday in
Paris 6/2
Today we woke up, got ready, and had our free breakfast at
the hostel! It was cereal, bread with jam or Nutella, and coffee or juice!
After this we took a cab to the place where you could buy hop on and hop off
bus tickets. We wanted to do this so we could see all the big monuments in
person and not have to pay for a cab everywhere or figure out the metro! The
first stop we got off at was the Louvre! We decided to go in and see the Mona
Lisa, because we just felt like it was something you had to see! We walked
around for a while just to see everything and all of the artwork was amazing!
After this we hopped back on the bus and wanted to go see
the Notre Dame, so we got off right next to it and we were hungry for lunch, so
we decided to go to a place nearby. We found a good place where we could sit
outside! I got a chicken sandwich with French fries and it was really good!
Although our water cost about 5 Euros for a bottle, which was ridiculous and
they don’t ever tell you how much it is going to cost because they know you are
a tourist and they can take advantage of you. But overall the food was good and
we enjoyed the atmosphere.
We walked over to the Notre Dame after this and took
pictures, and then hopped back on the bus to go to the Arc De Triumph. We got
here and took more pictures then decided to walk around and check out the
shopping! We went into the Louis Vutton, which was HUGE and had extremely high
security! I had never been in such a big Louis Vutton, but we were in
Paris…haha.
Then we shopped around a little more until we went to a
bakery that Audrey wanted to go to! It was super cute and they had tons of
desserts! The ladies that worked there were wearing the cutest little outfits
too. They wouldn’t let you take pictures inside though…I guess they don’t want
anyone to steal their creations or something.
By this time we were all pretty
tired of sight seeing and decided to go back to the hotel and get ready for
Moulin Rouge! It was fun getting all dressed up and we all went to dinner
before! The show was so interesting. There was a little nudity, but that was
expected. The outfits were so extravagant and the performances were so unique!
We also got bottles of champagne while watching the show as well. The whole
experience was pretty neat.
That about wraps up our experience in Paris! It was a great
trip and good to see everything but I think 2 days was just enough before we
were ready to go back to Barcelona!
Day 14, Sunday 6/3
Today we all woke up pretty early to head to the airport!
The flight went well and flew by pretty fast. When we finally got into
Barcelona it took awhile to get back to the apartment and we were all starving!
We stopped for food when we got into the city and then headed home and passed
out! We were exhausted from the trip.
I stayed in tonight because I was just way too tired to go
out but a lot of the girls and a few guys went out! But I had some much-needed
sleep! :)
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