Walking through the town on our climb to the top!

Mont Saint-Michel! 

Inside a chapel in the town

View of the surrounding sand and water; wishing we could have walked out there!

 Looking down from the highest point!

Joyeuses Pâques! Yesterday, I went to Mont Saint-Michel, one of the most iconic images of France. It was pretty cool because besides the Eiffel Tower, it was one of the first places in France that I learned about in middle school French class; it was hard to believe I was finally there! It was about a 4.5 hour bus trip out to Normandy, but it was definitely worth the drive (especially because we drove alongside snow-covered towns and through lots of countryside). When we arrived at Mont Saint-Michel we were super tired and everything was grey, (so the island looked a bit spooky) but by the late afternoon, the sun eventually came out! We had a few hours to walk around the town; it is medieval-like and very quaint with narrow cobblestone paths and stone buildings snuggly lining the streets. There are several restaurants with nice views overlooking the shores which extend for miles beyond your eyes. We walked through a small chapel and cemetery and through shops and small boutiques, all of which are for the millions of tourists who visit the island each year. While we saw several groups walking onto the sand surrounding the island, we were told not to venture out as there is quicksand. We ended our trip with a climb to the top of the abbey and had a guided tour of the chapel, gardens, west terrace, and tower. It was a full day excursion, and we had a lot of fun! 

Lund, Sweden to visit Alisha!

Hello! Sorry for the delay in posts...it's been a busy few days. Nothing too exciting happened last week. I had classes and a lot of tutoring sessions. However, on Friday, I finally reunited with one of my best friends from home, Alisha! She studies engineering at UConn and is abroad at Lund University in the south of Sweden. On Friday afternoon, I flew into Copenhagen and then took about an hour train ride to Lund. The train ride alone was beautiful! Seeing wide open fields covered with snow and the Baltic Sea was a perfect change from the city life. I got to Lund in the late afternoon, and Alisha was waiting for me at the train station! We rode bikes around the city for the afternoon...which was interesting because I'm pretty sure that was the first time I rode a bike in years; and while you never really forget how to ride a bike, your muscles don't exactly like the sudden change lol. Anyway, Lund is a great town! The majority of it is comprised of students, and it has pretty, quaint buildings and houses, and cobblestone streets. Even though it was much colder than Paris and started snowing, we had a great night with all of Alisha's friends. We had dinner together and then enjoyed a night on the town. Alisha has a huge friend group, and they are all lots of fun and insanely nice. A few of her friends came to Paris a few weeks ago, and I spent some time with them so it was really cool to already know some of her friends! I will also be traveling with them to Edinburgh in a few weeks, and Alisha will be staying with me in Paris in a few weeks! We honestly realized how amazing it is that we have the chance to travel together in Europe. Anyway, we were out pretty late on Friday, so we slept in on Saturday and spent most of the day with some of her very amusing and hilarious friends from Italy. They made us some delicious food! After spending the morning/afternoon with them, we ventured to the much-anticipated sauna near Lund. It was INCREDIBLE!! The sauna is located in the middle of the Baltic Sea and is absolutely beautiful. You have to walk on a long boardwalk to reach the modern, cabin-like building sitting peacefully in the middle of the deep blue water. It felt so great to breathe fresh air and be away from the city. The sauna itself is so wonderful because you sit inside and stare out at the ocean because the walls are all windows. And when you get too hot, you build up enough courage to jump into the unbelievably cold ocean water. The first time we went into the water was a shock, but the next few times weren't too bad. The first time Alisha went to the sauna she said she had to push away the ice in the water when she jumped in! We stayed in the sauna for a while and watched the sunset over the ocean; it was a perfect day! When it got dark, we went back to Lund to have dinner with Alisha's friends and enjoy another night all together. It was a lot of fun! She has a tone of friends who speak French, which was totally awesome. I think I spoke more French this weekend than I have since being in Paris! The next day I only had time to say goodbye to some of Alisha's friends and then had to head back to Paris, while Alisha headed off for her 17-day spring break (Poland is her first stop). Anyway, it was an amazing weekend; it was so great to see her! I am definitely considering going back in May if I can find cheap flights! As for Paris, the weather was a bit nicer today, and we are all hoping the warm spring sunshine is on its way (just in time for Auntie Connie and Lani)! I have several tests this week so I will be studying for those, but I am also looking forward to Mont St. Michel on Saturday! Stay tuned for pictures from Sweden...they are all on Alisha's camera, but she won't be back in Sweden for a bit. 

Plaza de Espana

The Real Alcazar

Plaza de Espana

Sangria...yummm

The Sevilla Cathedral 

The Real Alcazar Gardens

Plaza de Espana

Triana Markets 

View of Sevilla from the top of the cathedral

Pottery in Triana 

Final Day in Sevilla!

Our last day in Sevilla was fun-filled and energetic. We woke up to another gorgeous sunny day and walked to a market in Triana for breakfast. We had bread with olive oil and coffee and tea. The market was also really cool. There were so many fresh fruit, veggie, meat, and fish stands! We got some delicious oranges and strawberries and then bought pottery outside the market. We headed back toward our hotel and visited another beautiful cathedral. Karen and I then met her friend currently studying in Sevilla for lunch while Mom and Dad went off on their own for a bit. We went back to the hotel and crashed for a while, then went out for our final dinner in Sevilla. Karen and I ended the night by going out with one of her friends she met while abroad. We had a great time! 

Day 3 in Sevilla!

Today was another beautiful day in Sevilla. We had coffee and pastries for breakfast then visited a museum. It was a bit boring because it was all in Spanish, but it had something to do with Spain's independence. Afterwards, we went to the Sevilla Cathedral and spent several hours exploring it. It is absolutely gigantic and beautiful and holds the tombs of Napoleon and his son. We climbed to the top of the tower and had a great view of all of Sevilla! We had some tapas and sangria for lunch then met Karen's host family. They were so nice, and Karen was so happy to be reunited with them. It was pretty cool that she was back in Spain after 2 years! We spent the remainder of the day having dinner and shopping. 

First Full Day in Sevilla!

Our first full day in Sevilla was sunny and beautiful; not a cloud in sight. We had Spanish pastries and coffee for breakfast and then explored the Real Alcazar. It was gigantic and beautiful. Each room had walls and floors made of mosaics of different colors and patterns. Even grander than the rooms were the  gardens, which extended for what seemed like miles. We spent several hours exploring this magnificent palace. Afterwards, we had lunch (with sangria of course!) After lunch, we walked back to Plaza de Espana to see it in the daylight and then walked back to our hotel along the river. We stopped for some coffee and churros, which we dipped in hot melted chocolate! We walked around for a bit then chilled at the hotel before getting more food and sangria for dinner. We spent the rest of the night shopping and getting gelato. I'm sure it's already clear that the majority of our trip was spent eating and drinking sangria...but I'm not complaining! 

Monday was our last full day in Paris. After classes, I met Mom, Dad, and Karen in the Marais for some shopping, and then we went to Les Invalides. Today was much colder than the past few days, so Dad resorted to wearing Karen's frilly, purple gloves; it was quite a site! Afterwards, Karen and I went ice skating at Hôtel de Ville and then met Mom and Dad for a delicious final dinner in Paris by the Eiffel Tower!!

On Tuesday morning we woke up to lots of snow! Not only was the RER barely running (which made me late meeting them at their hotel), but we ended up sitting on the runway for a solid three hours...fun. We finally reached Sevilla and settled in! It was a bit cloudy, but anything was better than the snow in Paris. We had a delicious meal of tapas and sangria. Mom and Dad quickly discovered their love for the ham, sausage, and cheese tapas. I'm pretty sure they had it at every meal! We ended the night with some delicious gelato and a trip to Plaza de Espana! 

The Lainas Family has Arrived!

On Friday, the Lainas family (part of it) arrived in Paris. After a 2-hour flight delay and a bit of a stressful morning getting from the airport to the hotel via the RER, I met them at the Louvre! We saw Mona Lisa, of course, and explored other exhibits. Because it was pouring, we didn't get any pictures in front of the entrance to the Louvre, but we will be heading back before they leave. After the Louvre, they checked into their hotel and had their first sandwiches on some very fresh baguette! I also took Mom and Dad to a pâtisserie...they were speechless! It must have taken them a solid 20 minutes to decide what they were going to order. Dad also tried joking around with the owner...nice try, Greg, but the French don't understand your humor. Anyway, after resting in the hotel for a bit, we saw the Eiffel Tower at night and then climbed to the top of the Arc de Triomphe. The rain has finally stopped and the sky had cleared for a beautiful night. Afterward, we had some delicious hot wine and desserts on the Champs-Élysées, and Karen and I had drinks at a bar in Place St. Michel. 

Saturday was a perfect day! It was the most beautiful day Paris has had since I've been here. We went to the top of the Eiffel Tower and then headed to Notre Dame. Mom, Dad, and Karen climbed to the top of Sainte-Chapelle while I booked their trip to Normandy. I met back up with them at Notre Dame, and then we walked around Place St. Michel, and I took them to a café that sells the biggest, most delicious meringues in Paris! From here were did some shopping in the Latin Quarter and had delicious crêpes at a restaurant with a beautiful view of the Panthéon. We visited the Luxembourg Gardens, and then I headed back to the Cité to relax. Mom and Dad went out for a bit at night, but Karen was out cold! Today (Sunday), Dad and Karen are in Normandy, and Mom is exploring Paris on her own time. I'm inside studying... 

Frankfurt, Germany

The Old Square in Frankfurt

Heidelberg

Germany: Day 2

During our second day in Germany we went to Heidelberg. We took a guided tour that brought us to the beautiful town and took us through the castle ruins. Heidelberg was occupied by Americans during WWII so it was one not destroyed, and, thus, looks like traditional Germany. We had a great tour of the castle ruins and saw the world's largest wine barrel. We also got hot wine and walked through the quaint town. It is so cute with it's cobblestone streets and small shops and restaurants. We were are also lucky to have another beautiful day! When we got back to Frankfurt, we were super tired so we decided to lay low and explore some of the museums. We chose to visit the Film Museum which ended up being really great! There was an exhibit on the Oscars; it included costumes, screenplays, and other artifacts from famous actors and actresses. Afterwards, we ate dinner (I had a huge waffle with strawberries, ice cream, and whipped cream) and then we caught our bus back to Paris. Overall, we had a great trip to Germany, but I was happy to be back home! 

Germany: Day 1

This weekend two of my friends and I headed off to Germany for our first trip outside of France. Overall, we had an amazing weekend! Friday night, we left Paris at about 10:30 pm on a bus. This was an hour later than the actual scheduled time, but we didn't mind, because we were having so much fun just being excited for our trip. We got settled on the bus and stayed up for a while talking to our new French friend from Brittany; eventually, though, we all fell asleep and woke up in Germany a few hours later! We arrived in Frankfurt at about 7:00 am and headed to the train station. Earlier in the week, we made plans to couch surf at a guy's house right outside of Frankfurt. However, our phones didn't work when we got to Germany so we couldn't get in touch with him...after slightly freaking out for a few seconds, we went to the nearest McDonald's to attempt to get wifi. When this plan failed, we asked a guy for help with our phones, and he informed us that we actually have to dial the plus sign before the number...oh, of course! Anyway, long story short, we got in contact with our couch surfer, and in no time we were on our way to his apartment in the suburbs of Frankfurt, specifically Darmstadt. The train (metro) system in Frankfurt is actually really clean and smooth. We had no problems using it, and easily found our way around. When we got to Darmstadt, our couch surfer was waiting for us! Turns out we weren't going to get a true German experience because he was actually Portuguese, and didn't speak any German...ohhhhhhh. It was a serious MDR (LOL) moment!! Anyway, he ended up being super nice and took us to the grocery store to get us food, because we hadn't eaten yet. The grocery store was like a smaller version of Stop and Shop. From there, we headed to his apartment, which was in a small, quiet neighborhood. There was ivy growing all along the walls of the apartments, and the cars were parked on elevators so they could be stacked on top of one another; it was very amusing. After we settled in, we explored the town. It was a perfect, sunny day, and the town was great. We found a huge area of markets and lots of shopping! We tried finding a lake that was supposedly pretty nice, but we never actually found it...this infamous lake quickly became an inside joke throughout the remainder of the trip. Anyway, we spent a few hours exploring the town, and then headed back to the apartment. Our host and his friend drove us into Frankfurt, but we went via the autobahn. It was probably the scariest moment of my life. I'm pretty sure he was driving well over 100 mph, but looking back, I can say it was pretty cool, because I'm still alive, and we didn't crash. When we got to Frankfurt, we spent the afternoon sightseeing. The city was crowded, but not annoyingly so. It was super clean, and was one of the wealthiest places I've ever been with streets full of brand name stores. The city had a vibrant, young, energetic atmosphere, and the skyscrapers were so futuristic looking! We went to the top of one to look out over the entire city and went to the old square that looks like traditional Germany. We had a beautiful view of the sunset on a famous bridge in the area, and had a delicious dinner on the roof of a skyscraper overlooking the city. We had our pretzels and apfelweine (basically apple-flavored wine), delicacies of the area. It was a wonderful day. We were exhausted when we got back to the apartment, but our host insisted that we experience the nightlife of the area. So we followed him to a bar in his town and met up with some of his friends. We didn't stay for very long because we were extremely tired, but we enjoyed some German beer and great conversations with his friends, who were very interested about life in the states. After a long day, we passed out back at his apartment. 

P.S. Dad, check out my facebook via mom's to look at the pictures! There are too many to post on the blog. See you Friday!!