I would put this post all in French, but then no one would read it. Also, I'm so tired that I'd probably use the wrong grammar structures. But I'm so tired because everyday was packed with the beauty and culture that Paris has to offer. Each day I crammed a lot in but still had leisure time. I may have had a herd of sheep following me that didn't know why I was excited about things, but I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the city of Paris once more.
To get to Paris the school bused us to the train station in town, then the train took us to London, we then went across the street to the international train station to head to Paris. The travel was fast and efficient, well as fast and efficient as 40 Americans can be in place that most of them have never been to before. We got to our hotel and headed out to get groceries so that we could have dinner and settled in so that we could wake up early and explore the city. In the morning I started off by teaching everyone a little French so that they could buy a carnet so that we could take the metro. We started off on the Champs Elysees and found out that a Chinese diplomat or important person of some kind was in Paris and was having a parade of sorts for them from L'Arc de Triomphe. Then we saw the Arc de Triopmhe, from there we walked through a cute neighborhood were I found EXKI, my favorite cafe place from Belgium, and we had to stop. Next stop was Trocadero and seeing the Eiffel Tower. It was magnificent, partially because it was gorgeous out, but also because I WAS IN PARIS. After taking a ton, I mean a ton of pictures, of le Tour Eiffel, we went on to the Hotel les Invalides, where Napoleon's tomb is. We didn't go in because we are broke college students and I'm pretty sure no one wanted to pay to see a dead man's tomb. After that we went to Place de la Concorde and Tuilieries, the gardens outside the Louvre, and saw a lot of the pretty spring that was happening around us. From there we walked through the gardens stopping to take breaks to sit in the iconic green chairs and look at the flowers, fountains, sculptures, and gorgeous city around us. We then took photos outside the Louvre and were able to play around a little. Then we walked along the Seine to the lock bridge and took more pictures. After seeing all the locks we went to Notre Dame. My favorite and I got to see the gorgeous cathedral in the spring time as the sunshine shined through the stained glass onto the walls. It was magnificent. From there we walked past Hotel de Ville, the Centre Pompidou area, and then window shopped on the way back to the hotel. For dinner it was another picnic of sorts to save money, and after having thoroughly exhausting the group I lead around it was bed time.
The next morning we had less to see because we had seen a lot already. So we started at Sacre Coeur. After climbing up the steps - because it is necessary to enjoy the view and delicious treats at the top - we went into the gorgeous basilica that has an amazing mural over the altar. After I saw all of the pretty church it was time to explore Montmartre, the artsy and lovely part of northern Paris. All the shops were adorable and had amazing souvenirs but the best place was the ice cream shop that had dairy free sorbet. I enjoyed it a lot. Then I wandered to Moulin Rouge to see the famous red windmill. After seeing the large windmill it was time to head to the Galeries Laffayette to see the massive shopping center. I may not have known exactly where this place was, but with all the directions in pieces from people who didn't tell us the whole story, eventually we got there. It was massive and gorgeous but also extremely expensive so window shopping it turned into. Then from there we went to Musee d'Orsay. Two of the people I was travelling with wanted to go in regardless of whether or not we had to pay. Being a student with a British ID got us in for free, thanks Harlaxton ID. After seeing most of my favorite paintings and sculptures we headed back to the hotel for dinner before we'd head out to the Louvre. We got into the Louvre for free as a student after 6:30pm on a Friday night. It was nice to see it for free, especially with way less people. Then after wandering around we found a place to sit right outside the Tuilieries gardens to watch the Eiffel Tower light up on the hour. It was perfect, as usual. Then bed time because we were once again exhausted and the next day would be Disneyland Paris.
The next morning was little chaotic when trying to figure out where we would get picked up at by the bus but it was amazing after we realized the bus didn't have stop it just kind of stopped along the road at a point that it said was its stop. A 45 minute bus ride and we were at Disneyland Paris. The little kid freak out never stopped, well it did on the massive scary ride, but for the most part I was so excited to see everything. They had flower sculptures of so many Disney character sets it was perfect. And the castle was pretty. The first thing on the agenda was Princess Pavilion. It was a 2 hour wait to see princess and we survived it. As we were waiting for our turn to take the photo, Cinderella switched to one of the Princesses we got to meet. You only got to meet one so luckily it was worth while. After n amazing day it was bed time so that we could survive the trouble of travel nextime.
The final morning was a quick photo session at the Eiffel tower so that we could saying goodbye.
A bientot Paris, I'll return soon hopefully, after A LOT of sleep.
Bise Bise
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Toora Loora Part 2
Because I loved Ireland so much I went back with a friend who hadn't been. It was just as magical. No matter what an Irishmen tells you about their singing habits, they sing: A LOT.
I got to go on a PaddyWagon tour to the cliffs of Moher. I love, love, loved it. Seriously go on one. It's totally worth it. You see A TON of Ireland with the comfort of Wifi to upload pics to Instagram as you go. I took Megabus to Dublin and of course was exhausted from the late night connections and changes. But luckily the ferry had a really comfy leather bench for us to pass out on. When we got to Dublin, we had about an hour to kill until our pick up time. In case you were wondering not a lot of places are open before 6am. Luckily we found a Starbucks and got to get some caffeine and get freshened up. Then we loaded up on the big green bus with our bus driver John. It was peaceful to just relax and watch the millions of sheep graze as we drove across Ireland. We saw so many places, and my favorite was the baby cliffs. They're a smaller version of the iconic, massive cliffs of Moher. They're so much fun because you can go right up to the edge and feel the ocean spray. After plenty of pictures and grabbing a rock or two we set off for lunch. We ate in an adorable fishing village were they had a gluten, dairy free soup option. Luckily it was also meet free since Lent had started and it was a Friday.
After lunch it was off to the actual Cliffs of Moher. They're so much bigger than you think. And the climb up to them is breathtaking both literally if you try to go fast and visually. The ocean spray hits you, you hear the waves crashing, see the birds flying and the change of colors in the water, and you want to lay in the long grass forever. After seeing the main event we made our way back across Ireland and saw more beautiful villages and sights. When we got to out hostel we planned to shower, take a quick nap, then head out. It was 8pm. We just showered and passed out. Unfortunately we didn't bring towels or an extra hand to keep the water on while showering, but we survived.
The next morning we headed out under my guidance to O'Connell St to start off our adventures. We saw the castle, played in the gardens, took a gazillion pictures, got lunch, explored Trinity College, saw all the shopping and bought some stuff. After a while of wandering all over Dublin we found a place to treat ourselves to a nice and much deserved actual meal. We sat and talked and enjoyed not toting a massive backpack around. Then we walked along River Liffey (also known as River Sniffey at some points) to the bus stop. We got there early so we ran into the pub across the road and tried some Irish Whisky and then got on the bus. When we got on the ferry boat I supplied the supplies for a message in a bottle that my friend would throw into the ocean. This super creepy, extremely drunk guy started talking to us. After we ran away he chased after us and eventually we sought refuge in the women's restroom. Then we hurried onto the bus with the whole one other person that was on it besides the driver. We headed back to London with our adrenaline running. Eventually we got some sleep. Then we got to our train a few minutes before boarding, got to Grantham, caught the taxi, got back in time to shower before lunch, ate then crashed.
Overall although exhausted for most of the trip it was magical and magnificent. I cannot wait to go back at some point. I love the city and countryside. I especially love the traditional Irish folk songs that play as I dream of the sheep in the log green grass and the bustling people around the lively pub with live music. Until I return Ireland, I shall return lassie I shall.
Bise Bise
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
What I Saw in Scotland & Belgium
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| Parc de Cinquatenaire - Brussels, Belgium |
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| Grand Place - Brussels, Belgium |
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| Night View of Edinburgh |
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| Princes Gardens - Edinburgh |
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| Edinburgh Castle |
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| Field of Lights - Edinburgh |
Spontaneity at it's Finest: BELGIUM
I made a spur of the moment decision last Monday to do a solo trip to somewhere by bus. There's an awesome bus service called Megabus that will take you all over Europe at a really, really cheap price. So I decided to go to Brussels, Belgium.
Thursday night I left for London. I then stayed up all night in London - if you ever try this, rethink your life and don't do it. But if you do ask me for tips because I know where you can go that you can be safe and warm and have a free bathroom. Which is really important to wash up in. Also, when the police leave in a haste to go to a potential stabbing nearby, make the correct decision as I did to stay in the Starbucks and not leave until daylight.
It was a fantastic thing and I'm so glad I did it but as an extrovert in a country that's first language wasn't English I was struggling. I wanted to be able to freak out at people. I want to live in Brussels. It has everything - international politics, they speak French, it's a gorgeous city, and there's a ton of art. I loved it - except for my struggle to find Gluten free food. I didn't really think that part through, but I found this awesome cafe Exki. They had the best green tea and they also had gluten and dairy free food options. I just ate anything that was gluten and dairy free that I could find because it was so hard to come by.
The first day I was there I got extremely lost because again, I didn't have a map. Well I never got a map but I got a metro map and that's kind of the same thing right? I knew about where my hotel was and I knew about where I was based on the metro map so I just wandered. Seeing as I was soaked, exhausted, and starving; common traveling states in Europe for me apparently, I just stayed in my hotel to get dry and sleep. I found a grocery store that had Gluten and dairy free food so I was happy.
The next morning I started out by exploring Parc de Cinquantenaire. It is my favorite place so far. I loved it. I would have gone in but I wanted to see more of the city. The next stop was the Royal Palaces and their gardens. Which were gorgeous. Then I went to the Grand Place area and the Grass Market areas as well. Eventually I had seen everything I wanted to so I went into a museum. It was only 2 euro to get in and I got to see a lot of art. I would have to stay up until 12:30 to catch my bus so it was a long day. I found a place that was open 24 hours and was able to sneak in and just hang out. It was the bar of a hotel and I just sat there and let the time pass by reading a book and using their Wifi. I was able to then go meet my bus.
The bus was not as restful as I thought it would be. We left late and at about 3am were woken up to go through border control. We weren't even back in the UK we were still in France. I DON'T UNDERSTAND. My passport only got stamped for France. It was so weird. Then we got on a ferry. I HATE FERRIES. It was the closest I had ever been to motion sickness. I hated it. I could feel the water rocking the boat - it was torture. Then I slept for about another hour on the bus. So in total only like an hour and a half. Then when I arrived in London I ventured towards the train station. I got breakfast and waited for my train. I should have booked an earlier train. I hopped onto an earlier train and got back in time for lunch. Then I showered and put off sleep until that night. I slept like a log and am still exhausted.
Time to go work on a group project after a field trip today. Sometimes I forget that homework is part of this semester.
Bise Bise
Thursday night I left for London. I then stayed up all night in London - if you ever try this, rethink your life and don't do it. But if you do ask me for tips because I know where you can go that you can be safe and warm and have a free bathroom. Which is really important to wash up in. Also, when the police leave in a haste to go to a potential stabbing nearby, make the correct decision as I did to stay in the Starbucks and not leave until daylight.
It was a fantastic thing and I'm so glad I did it but as an extrovert in a country that's first language wasn't English I was struggling. I wanted to be able to freak out at people. I want to live in Brussels. It has everything - international politics, they speak French, it's a gorgeous city, and there's a ton of art. I loved it - except for my struggle to find Gluten free food. I didn't really think that part through, but I found this awesome cafe Exki. They had the best green tea and they also had gluten and dairy free food options. I just ate anything that was gluten and dairy free that I could find because it was so hard to come by.
The first day I was there I got extremely lost because again, I didn't have a map. Well I never got a map but I got a metro map and that's kind of the same thing right? I knew about where my hotel was and I knew about where I was based on the metro map so I just wandered. Seeing as I was soaked, exhausted, and starving; common traveling states in Europe for me apparently, I just stayed in my hotel to get dry and sleep. I found a grocery store that had Gluten and dairy free food so I was happy.
The next morning I started out by exploring Parc de Cinquantenaire. It is my favorite place so far. I loved it. I would have gone in but I wanted to see more of the city. The next stop was the Royal Palaces and their gardens. Which were gorgeous. Then I went to the Grand Place area and the Grass Market areas as well. Eventually I had seen everything I wanted to so I went into a museum. It was only 2 euro to get in and I got to see a lot of art. I would have to stay up until 12:30 to catch my bus so it was a long day. I found a place that was open 24 hours and was able to sneak in and just hang out. It was the bar of a hotel and I just sat there and let the time pass by reading a book and using their Wifi. I was able to then go meet my bus.
The bus was not as restful as I thought it would be. We left late and at about 3am were woken up to go through border control. We weren't even back in the UK we were still in France. I DON'T UNDERSTAND. My passport only got stamped for France. It was so weird. Then we got on a ferry. I HATE FERRIES. It was the closest I had ever been to motion sickness. I hated it. I could feel the water rocking the boat - it was torture. Then I slept for about another hour on the bus. So in total only like an hour and a half. Then when I arrived in London I ventured towards the train station. I got breakfast and waited for my train. I should have booked an earlier train. I hopped onto an earlier train and got back in time for lunch. Then I showered and put off sleep until that night. I slept like a log and am still exhausted.
Time to go work on a group project after a field trip today. Sometimes I forget that homework is part of this semester.
Bise Bise
A Wee Trip to Scotland.. A Wee Late of a Post
So I went to Scotland the weekend of February 21st through the 23rd, so I may be a bit behind on this whole blogging as I go. However, to be fair, this semester is starting to fly by. Every time I wake up I feel like a week has flown by and really it has. It's crazy. We travel, get back into the school week, then we travel again, and then we get back to school, then we travel. It's a crazy whirlwind. I can't believe it.
When I went to Scotland, I traveled by train by myself from Grantham to Edinburgh. Then because I like going to cities without a map, I got extremely lost and turned around. I was on the complete opposite side of town from my hostel. Eventually I found my hostel and had to wait about an hour for the school trip to get to check-in. I was going to switch rooms with someone traveling in the school group. It all worked out so that I only had to pay for one night in the hostel and got to stay there two nights. As a bonus it was in a room with people from Harlaxton that I didn't know so that I got meet people but not stay with weird men in wrestling singlets.... (There were like 60 of them in pink singlets in the hostel WEIRD) Eventually I went off to get dinner at Pizza Express because I knew I could eat there. Then I was able to get Wifi and find friends to travel around with. We then started exploring a little bit to find places and see Edinburgh. The next morning we woke up, ate breakfast and then went to explore for a while. We attempted to find a place I could eat after going to the National Gallery. That didn't go so well. For some unknown reason the only places that served Gluten Free food were Italian restaurants. I am starting to like Italian food more and more because they tell you what you can eat. It's AWESOME. So after we went shopping on Princes St and the surrounding areas, we headed back to the hostel to get Wifi, recharge, and find a place for dinner. We found a pub near this light installation piece I wanted to see that had Gluten Free food. After dinner we went to the square where the light installation was. It was so amazing. The most peaceful serene spot I have ever been at around 9 o'clock at night on a Saturday. It was gorgeous. I loved the simplicity of it, yet the huge impact it made on the city.
The next day I got to explore Edinburgh all by myself. Since I had already seen the Royal Mile, the Castle, the museums, gone shopping, walked around A BUNCH, I had to pick between climbing a mountain and just enjoying the warmth of local cafes as it rained. So I chose to enjoy the cafes. I sketched, drank tea, people watched, and when I got bored, I relocated to a different area of town. It was fun. Then I caught my train at 7pm. I was tired and hungry when I go to Grantham around 11pm and was ready to just get to the manor. Well lucky me there were no cabs and I had no spare pence. Luckily I scrounged some money to call a taxi - it would be a 40 minute wait. I decided to give it a few more minutes then I would walk the hour and half back to the manor. Thankfully, a cab pulled up as I made up my mind. I hopped in and was ready to just fall into bed. I then passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow and woke up to face the week.
This whole weekend to see a country or area is really hard and exhausting, but it's totally worth it. Now to post about this past weekend....
Bise Bise
When I went to Scotland, I traveled by train by myself from Grantham to Edinburgh. Then because I like going to cities without a map, I got extremely lost and turned around. I was on the complete opposite side of town from my hostel. Eventually I found my hostel and had to wait about an hour for the school trip to get to check-in. I was going to switch rooms with someone traveling in the school group. It all worked out so that I only had to pay for one night in the hostel and got to stay there two nights. As a bonus it was in a room with people from Harlaxton that I didn't know so that I got meet people but not stay with weird men in wrestling singlets.... (There were like 60 of them in pink singlets in the hostel WEIRD) Eventually I went off to get dinner at Pizza Express because I knew I could eat there. Then I was able to get Wifi and find friends to travel around with. We then started exploring a little bit to find places and see Edinburgh. The next morning we woke up, ate breakfast and then went to explore for a while. We attempted to find a place I could eat after going to the National Gallery. That didn't go so well. For some unknown reason the only places that served Gluten Free food were Italian restaurants. I am starting to like Italian food more and more because they tell you what you can eat. It's AWESOME. So after we went shopping on Princes St and the surrounding areas, we headed back to the hostel to get Wifi, recharge, and find a place for dinner. We found a pub near this light installation piece I wanted to see that had Gluten Free food. After dinner we went to the square where the light installation was. It was so amazing. The most peaceful serene spot I have ever been at around 9 o'clock at night on a Saturday. It was gorgeous. I loved the simplicity of it, yet the huge impact it made on the city.
The next day I got to explore Edinburgh all by myself. Since I had already seen the Royal Mile, the Castle, the museums, gone shopping, walked around A BUNCH, I had to pick between climbing a mountain and just enjoying the warmth of local cafes as it rained. So I chose to enjoy the cafes. I sketched, drank tea, people watched, and when I got bored, I relocated to a different area of town. It was fun. Then I caught my train at 7pm. I was tired and hungry when I go to Grantham around 11pm and was ready to just get to the manor. Well lucky me there were no cabs and I had no spare pence. Luckily I scrounged some money to call a taxi - it would be a 40 minute wait. I decided to give it a few more minutes then I would walk the hour and half back to the manor. Thankfully, a cab pulled up as I made up my mind. I hopped in and was ready to just fall into bed. I then passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow and woke up to face the week.
This whole weekend to see a country or area is really hard and exhausting, but it's totally worth it. Now to post about this past weekend....
Bise Bise
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