we took the train into paris and a cab to the hotel ... we were all surprised at how nice the hotel was! it was so modern and different from our hotel in london, which had been more traditional.
after settling in and taking a quick nap, we left the hotel and maneuvered our way through the streets of paris for the first time. and as we crossed the seine and turned the corner and caught our first glimpse of the eiffel tower, i was awestruck. i mean, i knew it was there, the symbol of france - we have all seen the postcards and the keychains and the romantic scenes in the movies, so i was surprised to find myself speechless. it was just a tourist site, right? the cliche thing to do when visiting paris? well yes, it is that. and maybe that is why i wasn't expecting it to affect me so much. but standing 300 meters high, lit up and beautiful in the twilight, it really is incredible. so i recommend it to all those who travel to paris: be the tourist, take the pictures, head straight to the eiffel tower and let it consume you.
afterwards we went to Diet and had a delicious vietnamese dinner (or so i hear.... the vegetarian pickins were slim)
the next day we went to the louvre. the building really is magnificant, and a bit overwhelming. buttt we made the mistake of taking a tour... and while i didn't hate it, i did not louvre it either (sorry, i can't stop myself). no, but seriously, it was pretty painful. personally, i'm not a big fan of guided tours, and this one was pretty bad. by the end, we had taken off our headphones and begun wandering around on our own.
then we headed to the metro station to get to sucre-coeur. at the station we had our first experience of that French rudeness you hear so much about. the guy working in the information office (yes, it said information in english right above the window) refused to deal with us at all when we asked to buy tickets. no french? no help! he refused to even look at us, and waved us away from the window. yeah, he was a jerk. but we eventually figured it out on our own.
when we got to sucre-coeur, we did the hike up the hill to montmartre, a little neighborhood with markets and cafes and local art. it was a beautiful day and we took our time exploring before stopping for wine and dinner. sucre-coeur may have been my favorite area of paris that we visited. it was quaint - a great spot to walk around and just observe...
the next day we took the train to EuroDisney. and although this trip was mostly for kelly, i think we all enjoy Disney (at least in small doses). that night, back in paris, keelin and kyle and i went out to a few bars, rode an abandoned bicycle with flat tires, missed the last train, and cought a cab back to the hotel.
so overall, we had a good time in paris. the city really is amazing: beautiful buildings, beautiful people, beautiful streets, cafes and art - and fine wine, of course. the downside: the people were generally not the most welcoming. yes, that is a generalization. and not every parisian was a jerk, but we encountered quite a few people who did not have the best attitude, especially toward us american tourists.
i would really like to visit other parts of france and see if the vibe is different outside of paris. hopefully i will get the opportunity! perhaps a trip to nice after barcelona? ha, we'll see....
au revoir!
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