We'll that was my first impression. For a city and country that prides themselves on culture and international influence I was surprised at h
ow dirty the city was. From the train station, to the 30 minute metro ride and the areas near my hostel it was pretty dirty and not very chic as I expected. But once you finally get into the heart of the city, the beauty truly comes out. The city is designed around rivers and many centuries, wars, and revolutions have transformed the city into something special.
The first day we walked around the area of our hostel to explore because we couldn't check into our hostel until 2 PM and we had about 2 hours to kill. The picture sums it up best.
Douches are actually showers... or something like that. It says that in our bathroom so I'll go with that. PS- No Bidets! Not that I was excited about using one, but when in Paris....
On our first day we went to Notre Dame, which I thought was in India but apparently not... It is such a large church with some of the most amazing stained glass I have ever seen.
Inside and outside of Notre Dame.
We tracked down Brenna's favorite resturaunt in Paris which was right near Notre Dame. Just across the river. On our walk back to the metro after our delicious French dinner we stopped and watched a street performer, who pulled Katie and Brenna out of the crowd to assist.
We were wiped our and the next day and went to the Eiffel Tower early. All the guys happened to match one of the girls outfits so we all took 'prom' photos in front of the Eiffel Tower.
There are three levels to the Eiffel Tower. I took a picture at each level as we ascended. It costed us 9 Euro (about $12) to climb the stairs to the first two levels, and then take an elevator to the top. The city is so flat and you can see so far in every direction. The wind is pretty brutal at the top, even on a 75 degree day, but we all thought it was worth the hike up the stairs and the 45 minute wait.
We went to the Louvre on our last full day. The museum is enourmous and cannot even be explored in a day. You have to choose what you want to see. I chose to look at ancient history of the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans because I knew the most about those exhibits. But there was mesopatomian and modern history. Millions of paintings that I wouldn't understand the history or symbolism behind. But it was blown back by the sheer size of the museum.
The hostel we stayed in was St. Christopher's Inn. I would say it was an average hostel. Compared to the other hostels we stayed in it is the worst but that is not saying it is bad. The hostel is pretty big and very nice. The room we stayed in was definitely the nicest and best furnished room we have stayed in yet. The negatives were that it was pretty far away from the main part of Paris (about 20 to 30 minute metro ride) and the bar/cafe that was attached to the hostel was EX-PEN-SIVE. The other hostels had beers on sale for 1 Euro in Portugal, 2.50 Euro and Happy Hour in Barcelona, and 4 Euros here in Paris. Lame.
We're off to Amsterdam now! So excited! The next three destinations Amsterdam, Berlin, and Prague are the destinations I have been most excited about and now the first one is coming. Paris was my least favorite out of the destinations I have been to so far but with that being said, I really didn't experience Paris like I did with Lisbon and Barcelona. We are far removed from the actual city and I had very little French cuisine. What I did experience makes me really want to come back and fully enjoy the city. One day when I have millions to blow in a city I will come back and live it up. Very cool city, next time will be even better.
8:30 AM train to Amsterdam! Next post coming soon! Legggooo
Monsieur Schmidt
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