Ma dernière semaine à Paris

With a few days left in Paris, I made one last attempt to do the things I love that Paris has to offer while also trying to fit in the things I had yet to see and do. Although I couldn't fit it all in, this past week was amazing.

On Wednesday nights the Louvre stays open until 10pm so after work I met Danielle and her sister for a night at the Museum. We went to see the Mona Lisa, some of the Greek Statues and ended our night in the Egyptian section. The Louvre is so big that it is basically impossible to see it all and see it well. Having been there before we just wandered the halls taking in some of the works.

Over the week I spent a lot of time at Jardin Luxembourg, my favorite park. Tuesday morning I met Danielle and we picked up the most amazing pain au raisin from "Bread and Roses" near the park. I would highly recommend these pastries and I've gone back for another since. We took them to the park and spent a good part of our morning there.

Wednesday I met Danielle and her sister at the Catacombs. The wait was around 2.5 hours since they can't allow more than 200 people inside at a time. The catacombs are quite extensive and hold the remains of over 6 million people but only a small area is open to the public. The remains are separated by bone type and stacked high. As you walk through, each section represents a cemetery that the remains were taken from.

My Aunt Kathy and three cousins were visiting Paris as part of their European tour. I  was able to meet them for dinner on Wednesday and took them to my favorite crepe place, Galette Café. On Thursday I was able to see them again and we headed back to Jardin Luxembourg for an afternoon in the park.

July 4th I headed up to Montmarte and Sacre Coeur with Danielle and her sister. We stopped in the Marais for falafel and to pick up eclairs from L'Éclair de Génie. We enjoyed the eclairs in a small garden off of the Sacre Coeur.

On Tuesday I visited Musee Rodin, dedicated to the French sculptor Auguste Rodin. The Museum holds most of his major works and is small and manageable. Many of his statues can be found throughout the gardens that surround the museum.

On my last day in Paris Danielle and I spent the day wandering around, as the rainy Paris weather put a little damper on our original plans. After dinner (planches of cheese and charcuterie) we headed to the "How to Become Parisian in One Hour" show, which was the perfect ending of my stay in Paris.

14 years ago I told my parents that I would one day live in Paris and my 10 year old self definitely had the right idea. These past 9 months were absolutely amazing and it would not have been the same without the friends I have made. Living here has taught me so much about myself and what I am capable of achieving. I came to Paris not knowing how to count to four and I'm leaving with an understanding of the French language, culture and way of life. Paris will always hold a very special place in my heart and I cannot wait to come back and visit!

Á plus tard Paris! 

Visiting friends in the South of France

July 4th weekend I headed to the South of France to visit family friends. I jumped on a train Saturday morning and headed straight south to outside of Perpignan. The 5 hour train ride was really pretty and I got to see the different geography of France as I traveled South.

When I was younger Sally and her family lived next door and Sally was my babysitter. Through the years our families have stayed in touch and have seen each other over the years. We met Sally in 2000 in London and Sally and her mom, Sheila, have been back to New York. The other week I reached out to Sally to see if I could come down and as Sheila spends her summers in the South of France and Sally was just arriving, the timing worked perfectly!

London with Mom and Sally circa 2000

I was picked up at the train station and when I arrived at their home I was greeted by Sheila. We spent the afternoon at her house enjoying the hot weather and sitting by the pool. Sheila took me up to the mill to get bread for dinner and it was the cutest little bakery I have been to! Sally arrived later that night and we enjoyed one of the many delicious home cooked meals of the trip!

Sunday morning we headed to Peyrepertuse (Pierced Rock), a fortress and Cathar Castle located in the French Pyrénées. The fortress was built during the Middle Ages and dates back to the 11th century. The fortress is known as one of the Five Sons of Carcassone (which includes the five fortresses: Peyrepeturtuse, Queribus, Termes, Puilaurens and Aguilar) which were built to protect the French Border from Spanish invasion. These fortresses are built on the mountain ridges (Peyrepertuse is 800 meters above sea level) and were designed to blend into the rock making them difficult to see. From each fortress you can see two others in the distance allowing them to signal to each other in times of attack.

Peyrepertuse

While at the top, there was a bird spectacle where we got to see vultures, falcons, owls and a bald eagle (my little piece of the USA this July 4th weekend!). They allowed the birds to get quite close to the spectators, so as the vulture wandered around us I got a nice wing to the face!

We spent the rest of the day back at the house relaxing and catching up. Monday morning I had to catch my train back to Paris. The trip was short but it was so good to see Sally and Sheila! I had a wonderful time with them and hopefully I will see them both again soon, most likely on the other side of the Atlantic!

Weekend in the Loire Valley

The last weekend in June I went a little outside of Paris to the Loire Valley, known for it's many Châteaux. I jumped on a morning train on Saturday morning to meet my friend Danielle, her fiancé and his family. Danielle and I spent a good part if the day at Château Chenonceau, one of the most well known Châteaux, famous for its arched bridge.

The château was seized by the King from the Bohier family in 1535 for unpaid debts. King Henry then gave it to his favorite mistress Diane. Diane loved the castle and in 1555 had the arched bridge built across the River Cher and began the extensive flower and vegetable gardens.  After the death of the King, his wife, Catherine de Medici, had Diane expelled and moved into the château. In 1577 she had the Grand Gallery added, which extends over the bridge Diane previously built. Chenonceau became known as the Queen's Castle and each Queen added to the castle.

Today, the Château is very well kept. I loved the fresh flowers from the surrounding gardens and decorations found throughout, it gave it a very homey and liveable feel! It had started to rain during our visit inside so we couldn't tour all of the gardens but we went to the ones near the Château, which were (as usual) beautifully laid out.

We then headed back to the house and met up with Julien and his family for lunch. Later in the afternoon we headed to the Beauval Zoo, one of the top 15 Zoos in the world. The zoo was large and very open. Many of the animals had ample room to wander and I was surprised at the low fences separating us. At dusk, they brought the animals into their cages which are located in the open with large glass windows, allowing you to see the animals enjoying their dinner.

After, we headed back to the house (which was built in the 1850s and such a cool house to visit) for dinner and some down time. the next morning, after breakfast, we went to the nearby town to pick up food for a delicious BBQ lunch. I headed back to Paris around 5 after a wonderful weekend in the Loire Valley!