Paris!!!! And a Little Homesickness...

Well you got rewarded for your loyalty!! I did indeed give you a little hint as to what was to come this week: Homesickness. YAY!!!

However, before I get into that sticky subject, I NEED TO TELL YOU ABOUT PARIS!!!

So, over the weekend, I traveled to Paris with two great friends named Sam and Risa. This was one of the better trips I've taken since being here (I seem to be saying that a lot...).

If you have ever heard me talk about Paris before, you'd know that not only was I there for a few days in the summer of 2008, but that I also HATED the city. I thought the people were rude and that the city was just disgustingly dirty...and we didn't even ride the Metro.

Keep in mind that I was 15 years old...you know, the time of an adolescent's life when it was the cool thing to hate things that everyone else liked.

Well within roughly 15 minutes of arriving on Saturday, my opinion of Paris did a 180. I fell in love with the city almost as soon as I returned to it.

I guess you could say that is a reflection of how my life has been changed since coming abroad, but that's the really cliche and uninteresting stuff better reserved for a personal journal. So instead, I'll tell you all about how I fell in love with the city and what we did this weekend!

When we arrived, we decided to take our belongings to our hostel (which was located roughly 3 or 4 Metro stops from the Eiffel Tower) before going to grab some lunch on the Champs Elysees.

It was raining when we got there, but it stopped on our walk to the Champs Elysees, not that it mattered much because we were already soaked by that time.

As we walked, we passed by some pretty amazing historical landmarks. You know, stuff associated with the French Revolution...if your face is blank reading that, think Les Mis. Better? I thought so.

Anyway, we passed by some landmarks such as L'Hotel des Invalides, Pont Alexandre III (the famous bridge with the gold figurines atop the columns), Grand Palais, and Ecole Militaire. Oh and while we were at it, we really never lost sight of the Eiffel Tower.

When we arrived at the Champs Elysees, we were VERY hungry. None of us had eaten since breakfast thanks to an awkward arrival time in Paris and we decided to find a quick bite to eat before proceeding to L'Arc de Triomphe.

On our way to lunch...well OUR lunch at 4 PM...we passed by a movie theater and decided to see Thor 2 later on in the evening and that turned out to be an absolutely WONDERFUL idea. Yes, we saw it in English, though there were French subtitles. I must say that the movie was really good. I enjoyed every second of it. But you're not reading this to hear my critique of a superhero movie, so I shall move on.

After the movie, we went to Monoprix (a French version of Target) to get some food to cook for dinner at our hostel. We made pasta...for less than 3 euros...total. I'd say that was the "win" of the day. And it was delicious.

On Sunday, we woke up early, got breakfast at the hostel, and got an early start to the day by leaving for Versailles at around 9:30. When we got there we had to wait for roughly 20 minutes...in the pouring rain and cold...to get in. But it was all worth it when we found out that entry was free for students.

After spending a solid 4 or 5 hours touring the amazing architecture and the GIGANTIC gardens behind the castle, we left to head back to Paris.

When we got there, we headed straight for the Eiffel Tower. The last time I was there, I did get to see it, but I didn't go to the top because of how expensive it was. Though the price didn't change since last time, I felt that I had to see it.

We paid to take the stairs up to the second floor and from there we paid again to take the elevator to the top. It was very much worth the cost. The view from there was just amazing...especially because we were up there at sunset.

After that, we went to the store again to buy supplies for another pasta meal. It was a bit more expensive, but adding wine to the mix will do that. ;)

After dinner and friendly conversation with each other, we retired to our room for the night at around 11. Early, I know, but we were exhausted and were planning on waking up at 7:30 again the next day.

Monday morning, we did get up bright and early for breakfast and got another early start to the day. Our first stop: Notre Dame.

In 2008, we went to Notre Dame, but I didn't go inside (worst decision of the entire 2-week Europe trip for me). 5 years later, I finally got a chance to redeem myself for that mistake. And I must say, it was everything I had imagined it to be and more.

The second I set foot inside, I was overcome with awe at how gorgeous it was. Being a Catholic, it was somewhat a pilgrimage for me. I really wanted to stay for Mass, but I didn't want to impose on Risa and Sam.

However, I did take the opportunity to sit down (no pews, surprisingly) and pray. I sat there for a good 10 to 15 minutes in silence appreciating where I was and saying a few prayers for people in my life.

As I was sitting there, I realized who I had been meaning to say a prayer for: my sophomore year AP European History teacher, Ms. Howard, who died just a little over a week ago.

I said a prayer for her and as I did, I shed a few tears remembering the great times I had in her class. She was one of my favorite teachers in high school and being able to say a prayer for her in Notre Dame gave me a little bit of closure to it.

After Notre Dame, we decided to head to the Louvre...you know, the museum with Mona Lisa in it. And again, we were shocked to find out that it was free entry for students, but we weren't complaining one bit. We spent a solid two and a half hours there looking at the Egyptian and Grecian exhibits and then finding Mona Lisa. Risa and I had already seen it, so we stayed back while Sam got a little bit closer to it to take a picture of the disappointingly small painting.

After the Louvre, we went to grab lunch and head to Montmartre and Sacre Coeur where there was another awe-inspiring view of Paris. By this time, we were pretty worn-out, so we didn't stay long before heading back to our hostel to take a nap.

Prior to heading back to the hostel, we were planning on splurging a little bit for dinner Monday night and then seeing the night life, but when we woke up, we decided to nix that plan and order pizza and ice cream and have dinner at the hostel. It was a wonderful idea because we had to wake up even earlier to catch our train back to Aix.

That is a run-down of my trip to Paris. I must say that Paris is an amazing city that is actually quite easy to get around as long as you know where you're going. And there is no reason to dislike it. I can't imagine why I ever disliked it. There was nothing about the city that could make me hate it.

Anyway, onto homesickness...yes, I have a case of it. I wouldn't say that it is a bad case, but it's definitely there.

And it's not really about America as a whole, because honestly, the way of life here is way more appealing than that of the USA. Please don't take that to mean I don't love the USA with all of my heart or that I'm no longer a true American. I do love my country. But there are things that I have realized since being here that I don't really appreciate about the States.

However, I miss home a lot. What do I miss? Well, for starters, my family. More than anything, I miss them and the joy they bring to my life. Since moving to Europe, I've realized how much my family really means to me. I wouldn't be here without them and their support has been absolutely amazing throughout my life.

Basically, I'm getting REALLY excited for them to get here on December 19th.

But what else do I miss? MOUNTAINS. I miss my Rocky Mountains so much. Mostly because ski season is starting and I won't be able to ski until 2014 (don't worry Kenchels and Hendersons, I'm not missing Vail this year!!), but also I just miss the views Colorado has to offer. The mountains are home for me and they always will be. I can't wait to see them again.

I miss DU too. I knew I needed a break from it at the end of sophomore year, but I really can't wait to get back to campus and watch some DU hockey and lacrosse again.

But I also miss my friends. A lot. Coming abroad has really made me think about who I truly value as good friends in my life and who I've made an effort to keep in contact with on a regular basis (if you're reading this, obviously you're important enough to me to keep in touch with through this blog!).

More than any of my friends, though, I miss one of my best friends in the whole world: Lexi Smith. I don't think there has been more than a day or two that has gone by without us talking. We have bounced ideas and advice off of each other for the past few months and I really can't wait to get back to Denver and eat at Tocabe and go to DU hockey games with her again.

In essence, I miss Colorado. Regardless of where I am in the world, I will always be a Coloradan and the Rocky Mountains will always be home.

They always say that home is where your heart is, and while I'm loving my time here immensely and I can't wait to see what the next month or so has to offer, my heart is in Colorado and always will be.

I'll be home soon.

Here you go, Mom!! Heading into Notre Dame!

Casual windy picture atop the Eiffel Tower at sunset.

The three of us atop the Eiffel Tower.

Self-explanatory, I would hope.

Sunset from the Eiffel Tower.

View of the park at the bottom of the Eiffel Tower.

For those of you who are friends with me on Facebook, in the coming days (maybe weeks), I will be posting more pictures from this trip there. If you're on Facebook and wish to see these pictures, don't be shy and add me as a friend!! Only if you don't mind seeing somewhat frequent posts about sports and other abroad musings.