Mom's Visit & Giverny

Sorry I haven't posted in a while! The past few weeks have been very busy... My mom came to visit for a week (despite the efforts of the volcano in Iceland). That was a lot of fun. We ate well, shopped a lot, and walked everywhere! It was nice to finally be able to try many of the French restaurants that were too expensive for me to go by myself. It was Heide's last week then, so we spent some time with her before she drove down to the country.

Me & Mom @ Heide's

Classes ended almost two weeks ago, so I've had some free time to explore Paris which has been nice. I went to the top of Notre Dame, the Rodin Museum, and plan on going to the top of the Eiffel Tower soon. My friends and I went to the Tuillerie Gardens because the weather was SO nice- it was in the 80s for a while, and this week it is pouring rain.

Brianna, Me, and Lisa at Tuillerie Gardens

I also went to the Orangerie and Musee Marmottan to see Monet's water lilies. On Saturday, I went to Giverny (where Monet lived) for free with GW. It was beautiful- there were flowers and gardens everywhere. It was exciting to see the actual water lilies that he painted in person!

Monet's Gardens

Finals are approaching so I've been working a little to get it out of the way for this weekend. I am going to Normandy and Mont St. Michel. Then it is my last week in Paris, which I am very sad about. I am trying to enjoy every last minute! Then I am off to Venice and Greece for vacation!

Volcano & Kelsey's Visit

Things have been a bit hectic over here because of the volcano! Fortunately, I did not have travel plans this past weekend- but Kelsey and Claire were supposed to come. Claire's flight got canceled and Kelsey was stuck in Paris for an extra three days! My mom was supposed to be here today but her flight was postponed until Sunday. Everyone is in the metro with suitcases because they are trying to get out of Paris!

This past weekend with Kelsey was fun. We picnicked in Parc Buttes Chaumont, which is one of the few parks in Paris where you can actually sit on the grass. The park was beautiful and massive. There was, randomly, a temple and waterfall in the middle of the park. After the picnic, we went to Le Marais and St. Germain to do a little shopping. On Sunday, we went to a flea market and farmer's market at Rue Aligre. On Monday night, Kels and I went to this Basque restaurant- Chez Gladines- which was PACKED at 7:30 pm (very early for the Parisians) on a Monday night. The food was delicious and cheap, which explained the crowds. We had basque chicken, a huge salad with ham, egg, potatoes, and cheese, and of course a caraffe of Sangria. Yeseterday, Kels and I went to Trocadero, which is the area across the river from the Eiffel Tower. It has an awesome view of the tower. We were in the area to try "one of the best chocolate eclairs in Paris". It was delicious, but it cost a pretty penny...

Me, Kelsey, Katherine w/ Picture of Claire (because she couldn't come) @ Waterfall in Parc Buttes Chaumont

Tourist season has finally arrived. The metro and streets are packed with American and Asian tourists. I've been trying to stay off the beaten path because I can't stand crowds. The weather is beautiful in Paris. Cherry blossom trees are blooming and there are tulips and daffodils everywhere. It is practically skirt weather, so I am looking forward to putting away my tights and and boots for a few months.

Cherry Blossom Trees!
Pretty Tulips near Luxembourg

Brianna and I bought tickets for Spring Break! We are going to Venice for a few days, then Greece (Santorini and Mykonos) for the rest of the week. Then, sadly, I leave Paris on the 3rd of June. Fortunately, classes end soon so I can soak up the rest of my time here in France!

London!

This past weekend I went to visit Ruth in London. It was a lot of fun! I arrived on Friday morning via chunnel (which was not as cool as expected! I didn't even notice when we went through it, it is a tunnel and does not take that long to go through). I met up with Ruth and her two friends who were also visiting and we all went to a delicious Dim Sum restaurant. After that, we went to the tower of London (where people were beheaded, etc.) and the tower bridge. We walked over to Westminster Abbey, which was beautiful, Parliament, and Big Ben. That night we went out to a Jamaican jerk chicken place which was very tasty.

Ruth and I at the Tower of London

In Front of Big Ben!

The next morning we woke up and went to Camden Market, a big market area where a lot of vendors sell different lunch items. I had one of the best burgers of my life- it was an Argentinian steak burger with garlic mayo, chipotle ketchup, arugula, red peppers, on homemade ciabatta. Then I had a strawberry, banana, and pineapple skewer covered in white/milk/dark chocolate and nuts. Delicious! We wandered over to Cyber Dog- the most peculiar robot store I have ever seen, complete with dancers and all. After that, Ruth took a nap while I went to Borough Market- a really cool big market with all different types of stands. I had a lemon curd and raspberry pie (yum!). Then I went shopping on Oxford & Regent Street where they had the only Anthropologie store in all of Europe! Needless to say, I bought something... Just earrings though!

That night we met up with our high school friends Matt and Mike at an Indian restaurant. It was nice to have actually spicy and quality Indian food. Then we went to McDonalds for Cadbury Cream Egg Mcflurries (best thing ever!). The next morning, Ruth, her friend, and I went to The Table for brunch. It was one of the best brunches I have ever eaten- I ordered pancakes with carmelized bananas and bacon. It was a really cute restaurant. It made me miss good old American brunches in the states. Surprisingly- Paris does not have a ton of brunch places.

After brunch, we went to Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, Harrods (which was closed :/ ), St. James Park, and Trafalgar Square. The parks were beautiful- particularly St. James Park. A bunch of daffodils and tulips had just been planted in London, so it was really stunning. Ruth and I walked around for a while longer, then headed to Nando's Peri Peri- a chicken chain- for dinner.

Matt and Ruth at St. James Park

The next morning we went to The Breakfast Club for brunch, then to Bea's for tea! Tea was awesome- for 10 pounds they give you a platter of treats in addition to unlimited tea. It was delicious and a really cute place. After Bea's, we headed over to Notting Hill. It was a cute area of town. We just walked around and poked our heads into a few shops. Then we headed home and had dinner at a Lebanese restaurant called Hiba.

Tea @ Bea's

Overall, London was awesome! It was definitely a food-filled weekend and it was really nice seeing Ruth. The weather was not too bad- of course, there was rain, but there was also a lot of sun! I would love to go back sometime in the future.

Tyler's Visit

Tyler came to visit me in Paris this past week. It was nice seeing him and having an excuse to do all of the touristy things in Paris! The first day he was here we took it easy because he was jet lagged and I was exhausted from spring break. We ate at my favorite bakery, Kayser, and we went to my local farmers market at Place Monge. We bought fruit, bread, and salami to have a little picnic back at the apartment. On Monday, we woke up and went to Pere Lachaise (a famous cemetery in Paris). It was a beautiful and HUGE cemetery. We saw Jim Morrison's grave (still a little unsure about why he is buried in Paris) and Oscar Wilde's grave. We both walked around Le Marais and ate falafel (the first place I bring every visitor) and walked over to Place Vosges to eat it. That night, we went to the 11th to eat crepes. I went to a creperie on my Eurotrip two years ago, but I could not remember the name or the location. I had been wanting to find it again so Tyler and I wandered around the area that it was in until we found it. I was so excited that I actually found it, and the food was just as good as I remembered! I had a goat cheese, ham, and egg crepe. Tyler had a potato and cheese crepe.

Oscar Wilde's grave, covered in kisses!

delicious ham, egg, and goat cheese crepe @ Chez Imogene

The next day we went to the Parisian Catacombs, which is an underground tomb in Paris. It was actually really cool- there are tunnels underneath this one area of Paris. All of the skulls and bones were stacked in an artistic manner which was cool, but a little creepy. After the catacombs, I took Tyler to Ile de la Cité to eat Berthillon ice cream. Sadly, I mixed up the islands so we wandered around Cité which isn't particularly cute. Fortunately, we found a cafe that served Berthillon ice cream (the best ice cream in the world!) and we bumped into Notre Dame.

Tyler in the CatacombsSkulls and Bones lined up in CatacombsTyler @ Notre Dame

On Wednesday, we went to the Palace of Versailles. It was beautiful, and extremely decadent to say the least. Everything was either dipped in gold or covered in diamonds. Tyler and I tried to estimate how much the palace is worth- our guesses were in the billions. There are hundreds of famous paintings in the building (many of which I had studied in art history, which was exciting!). We also wandered around the gardens, which were stunning. The only bad part was the masses of 10 year olds who were wandering around the building with their schools. I kept on running into little kids because they are so short! That night, we met up with my friend from high school, Maddie, and her boyfriend Branden. They were both in town on vacation so we all met up at a restaurant in the 11th!

Palace of Versailles

Gardens at VersaillesOut to dinner w/ Maddie

On Thursday, Tyler met me after my classes and we wandered around the 7th arrondissement. We went to the Eiffel Tower and the Champ du Mars. We came home and a few of my friends came over to cook dinner. We made barbeque chicken (Bri's mom sent her bbq sauce, which was delicious...), couscous with raisins and nuts, and an avocado/cucumber/tomato salad. Of course, there was also lots and lots of wine, bread, and cheese. It was a lot of fun!

Everyone at dinner in our apartment

On Friday, we went to the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs Elysees, the Tuillerie Gardens, and the Louvre. At the Tuilleries, we had hot chocolate at Angelina and then we went to eat macaroons at Pierre Herme (of course, we decided to get macaroons the day before FREE macaroon day in Paris- unfortunately, I did not know about this day until after it happened.) At the Louvre, we saw Napolean's apartment. His apartment was even more insane and lavish that Versailles. There were huge vaulted ceilings covered in beautiful paintings. There were dozens of large chandeliers hanging from the ceilings, and luxurious chairs and bedding. After his apartment, we went to see the most famous pieces including the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo, and the coronation crown of Louis XV. We also saw a number of other Italian paintings. After that, we walked around the pyramid outside the Louvre and ate Udon at a Japanese restaurant near there.

At the Arc de Triomphe!

Napolean's Apartment, in the LouvreDrinking hot chocolate at Angelina!

The next day, we went to Montmartre and le Sacre Couer. Montmartre is very touristy, but once you go to the residential area it is adorable. We walked around there for a long while, and then we went to the 6th arrondissement for dinner. Before dinner, we went to Saint Sulpice which is a famous church in Paris. We walked around before meeting everyone at dinner. GW hosts free dinners, so Tyler was lucky and got to come along for free. We went to Creperie des Cannettes, which was delicious! I had a goat cheese, honey, and walnut crepe for my main course. Tyler had a raclette crepe.

At Montmartre, beautiful view of Paris!

On Sunday, we went to the Pantheon and the crypt that is there. I had no idea that so many famous people were buried there. We saw the tombs of Rousseau, Voltaire, Pierre and Marie Curie, Alexandre Dumas, the man who invented Braille, and dozens of others. After this, Pere Lachaise, and the Catacombs, I had seen enough dead people for a while... Afterwards, we went to the Luxembourg gardens. It was a beautiful evening in Paris. The sun was out and everyone was lounging in the park. There were hundreds of kids running around with their parents. We found a few chairs and people-watched for an hour. We picked up a pizza and salad on the way home for dinner.

Luxembourg Gardens

Tyler was supposed to leave on Monday morning, but because of the British Airways strike his flight was moved to Tuesday. This was nice because we had a little extra time to do more things! On Monday, we went to Ile St. Louis (which is the island I originally wanted to take him to, but messed up and went to Cité). We ate at a little cafe and afterwards, of course, had Berthillon ice cream. That night, we went to a french bistro for dinner and after had dessert crepes on Rue Mouffetard.

Dinner at the French Bistro Victoires

Overall, it was a really fun week! I would not have done as many of the tourist stops if he had not been there- so it was a good excuse.

Spring Break

Sorry I have not written in a while! The past few weeks have been very very busy . But to update on my spring break---

Morocco:
Casablanca was a lot of fun! Not much to do there, so it was good that we only stayed one day. It was so exciting to be in Africa for the first time. Our hotel was nice- there was unlimited free mint tea was the best part (it is my new addiction!). We visited the main attraction, the Mosque Hassan 2, which was really cool. It was so nice to be in warm weather. Casablanca is on the coast of Africa. Unfortunately, we could not go in the water- but it was still nice to see the ocean.

Mosque Hassan 2
Lisa, Mair, Jimmy, and Brianna in Casablanca

Marrakesh was a lot of fun as well, but much more touristy. We fell into a ton of tourist traps- food and shopping wise. Surprisingly- we ate a lot of bland food! In the land of spices, I was shocked! It was because we ate near the main square- Jemaa El'Fna. We wandered outside the main part for a few meals, and that is when we had the best food. I ate a ton of tagine (meat dish cooked in a pot with veggies), Morrocan pastries, and pastilla (not with pigeon- with chicken). I bought a lot of things in Morocco- including spices, knock-off bags, and other random things. We stayed in a Riad which was fun because it is comprised of 7 rooms around a main square that is outside. We were served a free breakfast outside on the patio every day! We stayed near the Souks, which is a big market area where people sell a variety of things. Everything was so cheap which was exciting! 1 Dirham is around 10 cents, so it was nice to actually have an exchange rate in our favor. I also had a chance to ride camels, which was a lot of fun! Although a bit frightening... We also got henna tattoos. We also visited Majorelle Gardens, which are these huge famous gardens in Marrakesh. I liked Marrakesh, but it was a little stressful because you get harassed every five seconds for money. I was ready to leave after 5 days there! It was a tease going to Morocco first though because it was so warm!

Beef Tagine!
I'm at Majorelle Gardens!
Riding Camels
Getting Henna Done

I flew to Madrid from Marrakesh to meet up with Ruth and her friend. We visited two friends from high school- Loretta and Royi. It was a ton of fun! I actually loved Madrid, which I didn't really expect. We ate every day at Mercado de San Miguel, which is a building of every different type of food in tapas form so you can get all different kinds of food on little plates. Essentially, it was my heaven... I ate chocolate and churros there and a ton of tapas. We also ate at an amazing Galecian (Northern Spanish) place named Maceira, where I ate octopus, mussels, chorizo sausage, and lots of sangria.. The night life in Madrid was a lot of fun as well. In all, Madrid was one of my favorite places of the entire trip!

Ruth and I in a plaza in Madrid!

After Madrid, I went to Barcelona to visit my old roommate Kelsey. Barcelona was fun- but unfortunately I caught a stomach virus somewhere so I spent half of the time in bed at my hostel because I felt so sick. Fortunately, I had been to Barcelona before so I already did all of the tourist stops so I didn't feel too bad about missing out on everything. I tried absinthe in Barcelona which was awful and we went to a themed shot bar where you drink shots lit on fire or toast marsh mellows and take a shot (the list goes on, there are over 100 different types).

Brianna, Kelsey, and I at an Absinthe bar in Barcelona

Next on the list was Copenhagen, which wasn't exactly what I was expecting. It was so small! It was very quaint and charming, but there was not much to do. Also, it was freezing. I met up with Hadley and I stayed with Claire when I was there, so it was nice catching up with them. We went to cute cafes and Claire and I had one really nice brunch.

Claire and I near the Queen's palace in Copenhagen!

Brunch in Copenhagen!

I flew to Amsterdam a few days later to meet back up with Brianna and Jimmy. Tyler also met up with us there. I stayed in a 20-person dorm which was interesting to say the least. It was a little hard to sleep there but besides that it was fine. Amsterdam was a lot of fun- but we didn't go out or anything because we were pretty wiped out because traveling is exhausting. We visited the Anne Frank house, red light district, and walked around the residential area of Amsterdam which was actually really cute! We ate dutch pancakes and American food (which I have been craving)- so it was nice to actually eat a bagel for the first time in months because they don't have bagels in Paris! We left Amsterdam that Saturday to go back to Paris.

Bri and I at a Chinese restaurant in Amsterdam!
Bri and I on a canal in Amsterdam

Overall, minus my stomach virus, it was a nice spring break. It was a little long as I was very ready to go home after Amsterdam, but I got to see so many different places!

Food, food, and more food!

This past week was fun. I went to the Musee D'Orsay last Wednesday and a nice farmers market on Saturday- Boulevard des Batignolles in the 9th. That night I had the worst experience ever at a French hospital (a false alarm, so no big deal) BUT I had to wait in the waiting room for FOUR hours. Then once I was called I got looked at- but the hospital was dirty, the doctors were skeezy, and then after all my tests were taken I had to wait another three hours. By that point I was in tears and starving (a hospital that makes you wait 8 hours should at the very least have a vending machine- but no! Of course not!). Let's just say I am 100% for the American health care system now. It was miserable..

Musee D'Orsay

On Monday I met up with my old roommate and a few friends. We got a deal through this website- LaFourchette.com- where if you book the restaurant through the site you get 50% off your meal! So we all got a delicious three course meal for 12 E each! I had a salad with blue cheese, arugula, and pear, then polenta with a beef stew, then we split four desserts--- tiramisu, tarte tatin, panna cotta, and chocolate mousse. Everything was superb! The restaurant was named Les Belles Miettes. I will definitely be going back.

Brianna, our old roommate Erin who visited for a weekend, and meBeef Stew w/ Polenta

Tiramisu & other desserts- all served in cups!

Katherine and I went to a delicious Chinese restaurant last week. I don't know what it is about Paris that makes me constantly crave Chinese food. It's actually kind of absurd how much I want to eat it. Anyway... this place had legitimate Chinese and it was spicy (the French usually can't handle the kick)!

Tonight, we went out for a friend's birthday at the famous Le Refuge des Fondues. I read reviews that this restaurant was fun and amazing- but I was extremely let down. It cost us over 20 Euros each (about 30 dollars) for cheese fondue with stale bread and a few appetizers. Then- they served us CANNED fruit! I was actually shocked that I was paying so much for canned fruit! And for a French restaurant? The best part was drinking wine from baby bottles. Anyway, I will not be going back there again!


This week was the beginning of midterms so I had a bit of work to do this week to finish before my spring break- which starts tomorrow! I am very excited. I'm going to Africa for the first time! I probably won't post anything for a while until after spring break (when Tyler and Maddie come!), but then I'm sure I will have lots of stories to share.

Valentine's Day!

Yesterday was Valentine's Day, so Bri and I took it as an excuse to buy really nice chocolate for ourselves. Paris does have some of the best chocolate places in the world, so we went to Á la Mere de la Famille. I bought a ganache caramel and a praline chocolate ball. Both were delicious! We were very cliché yesterday as we made chocolate covered strawberries, drank wine, and ate pizza with our friends. It was actually a lot of fun!

Last week, GW hosted a free dinner for GW students at AUP. It's nice that they do offer free events. We had a nice 3 course meal with wine. GW also sponsors a lot of trips in France. I am going to Giverny, Normandy, and Mont Saint Michel with GW. They pay for hotel, food, and admission prices.

It snowed a few days last week! The snow was beautiful. Unfortunately it doesn't stick on the ground for too long- but I was able to snap some pictures before it melted away. Also, I went to a Christian Boltanski exhibit at the Grand Palais about death and life. It was strange to say the least, but the Grand Palais was pretty.

The snow! It was pouring.

Boltanksi Exhibit @ Grand Palais

Spring break is two weeks away. I am so excited- particularly for Morocco because I have never been to Africa before. I am a little annoyed because midterms week is the week after we get back from Spring Break. Does AUP not expect students to travel during this time? At least my grades don't count this semester!

Not too much to update. I want to go to Musée D'Orsay on Wednesday (I get in for free!) so hopefully that will be fun.