Last couple weeks in Paris

The last couple weeks in Paris really felt like a blur. I had a couple finals and projects to turn in but mostly I just enjoyed my time hanging out with friends and exploring Paris. I haven’t been keeping up with my blog too much so I don’t know specific days but I can remember a lot of the stuff that I did!

One night (Tuesday I think) I went to the famous bar La Perle where the famous designer got in a huge fight and ended up getting kicked out. It is probably the nicest/classiest bar I have been to in Paris and I went with my friends Valentina, David, Olivier and some of their French friends. It was a good night getting to mingle and hang out with some Parisians, many of which are abroad for the semester in America.  Wednesday I had to turn in my international relations logs which was not fun at all…. 10 articles about different topics along with some of the topics we studied this semester. After I turned in the logs I went to eat at a Chinese restaurant with my friend Brittany near school which was delicious.

Mosque near Jardin des Plantes

 Thursday I had a cookout at my friend Jean-Noel’s place and I arrived to find that I was not only the only girl, but the only American. It was entertaining to hear them go off in French about different things and me trying to focus on what they were saying and how to respond. We ate grilled vegetables, steak and fries which were delicious. After much peer pressure I talked to them in French which of course they said I was “really good at speaking…” I’m sure they were joking. After the cookout I attempted to go to the Jardin des Plantes again but somehow got lost and ended up in front of a mosque which is the first I had seen in Paris. After walking around a little more I somehow ended up on movie set in the Latin Quarter which were filming in one of the neighborhoods. Oops! 

Friday I didn’t have class so I was able to take a nap and then I went to the Eiffel Tower to eat and drink on Champ de Mars. It is pretty amazing some of the people that you end up meeting especially mingling with some wine. We had a pretty fun group going, including some ABS students as well as non-students. That night we wanted to do something but were pretty tired after hanging out in the sun all day so we just decided to go to one of my friends house to drink some wine and beer, and then follow it up with a delicious ham and cheese crepe. I am definitely going to miss the 24 hour crepe stands when I come home to the states. 

Dali Museum

Saturday I went to the Dali Museum in Montmarte. It was only a couple paintings from the king of surrealism but there was amazing drawings, photographs, and sculptures that explained many of his philosophies and works. Some of the stuff was very bizarre, but really made you think. I spent about an hour walking around the exhibit including some very famous works. I did some exploring and eating a delicious lunch in a cafe near the artist's circle,which is always entertaining as there is always street dancers, singers, artists and everything in between. There was this really cute woman who sand Edith Piaf songs so of course I was a fan. After lunch, I went back to my apartment to study for my finals the next week. I went to Jardin des Plantes and walked around, just looking at the rose gardens, botanical gardens and some cool fountains. Later that evening I hung out with some of my friends and we were going to go to a club. However we got really tired so we just decided to go to the Seine near Notre Dame and just relax with a couple bottles of wine by the riverside. It was really fun as we just talked and hung out for a couple hours. It was pretty crowded since it is a pretty popular French hangout.
Sunday night my friend Jean-Noel took myself and Valentina to "his favorite fondue spot. and I believed him since he lives in Paris. It was this small place of off Rue Moufftard with about 10 tables, but I can genuinely say it was the best fondue I had ever had.

Sainte Chappell

We split 2 4 cheese fondues and a meat fondue. I have never had the 4 cheese but it was awesome! It was a fun night of drinking wine, playing games when we we dropped some bread, and enjoying a good night. I can't remember all the 4 cheeses, but one was goat, emmental (Swiss), camembert, and I think brebis (goat cheese) but I'm not sure. Some of my favorite restaurants in Paris have been some that you need to search for, that is one of my recommendations for anyone who is traveling!

Monday I had a final in the morning and then had to take a really long nap because I was exhausted from the weekend. I had a long list of stuff that I still wanted to see in Paris so I decided to go to Il-de-la-Cite and see Sainte Chappell. It’s one of the most beautiful chapels in the world known for the stained glass. I had just kept pushing it off because whenever I tried to go the line was really long as between Notre Dame and Sainte Chappell

Tuesday night I spent a couple hours after class on the canal after having not one by 2 finals 2 hours apart. My finals weren’t very hard luckily because I didn’t focus too much on school haha. Drinking wine and hanging out in cafes, parks and by the Seine/Canal is one of the greatest things about Paris, just enjoying your free time and life! After some wine drinking I took a short nap and then met my friend Evi for dinner at Chez Paul, one of the best French restaurants I have been to in Paris in the Bastille. That night there was a huge music festival in the area around the Bastille so dinner was a strategic move J I had the steak au poivre aka the best pepper steak I have ever had and we split a bottle of wine. After we had an amazing dinner we walked to our friend Teresa’s apartment to get ready for the festival.

the bastille

We drank some more wine and champagne and were joined by a couple other people before we walked to the Bastille. It was packed and the gendarmerie (police) was in full riot gear preparing for the worst. It was a little intimidating but at least they were there for the safety of everyone. The Bastille was shut down, and the normal busiest round-about other than the Champs Elysee was closed to cars. We brought a couple bottles of wine and met up with some other students from ABS. I didn’t know any of the bands that were playing, but one was playing Michael Jackson remixes so we were pretty pumped. It was a really fun time just hanging out with thousands of people drinking wine and hanging out. I unfortunately had 2 finals the next day but I had to enjoy my last couple days in Paris.

drinking wine out of baby bottles!

After my finals I was exhausted, but after taking a nap we had a fun night ahead of us. We wanted to go to Queen so we went out to a delicious dinner at les Refuges de Fondue which has turned out to be one of my favorite restaurants in Paris because of the food, atmosphere and of course the baby bottles. We were there for about 2 ½ hours drinking baby bottles full of wine, delicious fondue and meeting some really cool people that were from all over the world. We went back to her place to hang out and pregame for a bit before we finally got to Queen. It was fun since it is a gay club but it was full of ladies for their ladies night and included some lifeguard strippers…. To each their own I guess.The club life in Paris is unlike anything I have ever experienced any where else. It was really fun to hang out and dance and there were lots of people from ABS there as well that we saw.

the pantheon

Thursday was my last full day in Paris so I wanted to make sure to do lots of exploring/hanging out with friends. I woke up relatively early with my guide and I decided to go to the Latin Quarter. I walked around the Sorbonne and the area around it. It is one of the oldest universities in Europe and there are some really pretty parks and cute restaurants around there. After exploring the Sorbonne I went to the Pantheon because I had never been there before and it was right down the block. It was originally built as church to honor Saint Genieve, the Patron saint of France. However it was changed to a place that honors distinguished French citizens. It was very beautiful on the inside, with murals and statues honoring some of the major events in French civilization. The best part was underground in the crypt, where the remains of some of the most famous French were buried, including Voltaire, Émile Zola, Marie Curie,  and Louis Braille. There was a lot of information about all the people and I learned a lot about French civilization and some of the most important people in it.

After the visit I went back to my apartment to eat some dinner, and then I was off to enjoy my last night in Paris. I met some friends at the Trocadero gardens for a while, and then the  Eiffel Tower and we were there until early in the morning drinking wine, dancing, and just reflecting on some of the great times that I have had this semester. It was sad having to say my goodbyes to people knowing that I may not ever see them again..There as about 8 of us so it was a good group, and I had a great night (maybe a little too much fun :) ) I finally got back to my apartment very late, slept for a couple hours, and then I started packed.... shouldn't have procrastinated so much! Luckily my friend Khaloud stopped by to help me with some of the packing, and then helped me catch a taxi to the airport to catch my flight to Vienna.
I just wanted to thank everyone that I have met this semester... I have met some incredible people, had some lifechanging experiences (both good and bad) and learned a lot about myself and other cultures as well. It really has been a great semester :)