London Photo Album

Spring Break Part 1: Paris!

Life is a long, twisting road and you'll never know where you end up! Cliched, maybe, but true nonetheless. I never thought, even as I prepared for my venture to Ireland a mere two months ago, that I would soon find myself in Paris, and yet, here I am, recently returned from the most incredible spring break ever, and with pictures to prove it. I woke up on a sunny Wednesday morning, packed my bag, and caught a plane to Paris. Now to rely on another handy phrase, baptism by fire, which pretty much describes our first night. Despite carefully planning our every step from airport to hotel, we missed a few key points somewhere along the way (although I'm inclined to say that we were perfectly logical, it's the rest of the world that doesn't make sense), and what could go wrong did go wrong. Missed our stop, hopping on and off trains, running around in circles until completely disoriented, we finally arrived at the correct metro stop, only to find that our unbelievably simple waking directions were just that: too simple. The friendly Parisian only managed to send us in the wrong direction, the taxi drivers were no help, and all I can say is thank goodness for internet cafes! A quick trip in one, a glance at a Google map, and presto! One hotel, coming right up!

Fortunately, things could only go uphill from there, and they did! I had been prepared to be a little disappointed by Paris, after all, a city is just another city right? But day two proved all the gushy, romantic notions of Paris true. A gloriously sunny, warm day with spring blossoms everywhere, we did away with the rain jackets, put on some sun-soaking approved clothing, and wandered the street of Champs Elysees, a shopper's paradise. We wandered along, eventually making our way to the Eiffel tower, and its not long before we caught our first glimpse of the world's prettiest skyscraper. After that, we ventured on up to the Musee d'Orsay. But that night, while eating the most amazing chicken caesar salad and washing it down with a little creme brulee in the view of the Arc de Triomphe, it finally struck me: I am in Paris! In Paris and eating delicious food, seeing incredible sights, and enjoying the general splendor.

The next day's trip to Versailles didn't spoil the happy aura any. While the palace was every bit the dazzling, intimidating display of power and wealth it was designed to be (seriously, somebody must have decided no word existed to describe it and thus invented the word opulent), I absolutely fell in love with the gardens. Extensive, beautiful, an absolute maze of nature inside the city limits, I could get lost for days inside those gardens. But this didn't stop me from contemplating the justified reasons for which the Parisians stormed Versailles and rebelled as we lay sunbathing on the steps of the Temple of Love. 

Our final day in Paris, Kacie and I ventured to the Louvre, a must-see for Paris, or so they say. To be honest, the Louvre was my least favorite museum of the entire trip. Crowded, a blazing temperature, and a perfect echoing system for every little noise, we made the fastest dash through the Louvre on record, seeing a few highlights and out we went, in pursuit of lunch and fresh air. Next I wandered along the river, discovering the two "love lock" bridges (where couples had written names, love notes, etc on locks and then secured them to the bridge) and Notre Dame Cathedral. The highlight of the day, however, remains the nighttime river tour of the Seinne River, a perfect way to end a few short days in Paris.

And here we said a sad good-bye to Paris. Next stop, London!

Paris Photo Album

Sunflower Syndrome

As I adjust to a new climate, I've observed a few odds and ends. Firstly, the noon freeze: that strange phenomenon where the day actually reaches its coldest point at midday. I leave for class early in the morning and am pleasantly surprised by the rather warm temperature. I walk out of class shortly after noon and proceed home as quickly as possible, suddenly freezing my tail end off and fighting the blustery wind. There you have it: the noon freeze.

As time progresses, I've also noticed a few of my fellow Americans, myself included, develop certain behaviors which I here dub as the effects of Sunflower Syndrome. Like a sunflower, we've taken to turning towards the sun whenever, wherever it appears. But unlike a sunflower, we can hop from one spot to another, burst out of doors, throw open windows and curtains. In short, we do anything necessary to soak in as much of the cancer inducing, tan forming rays as possible. Fortunately, Ireland has been obliging. The weather improves all the time, and this week, in particular, resembles a warm and sunny paradise (well, for Ireland anyway). The sun makes a daily appearance, and the rain is off on holiday.

I have failed to capture any photographs that demonstrate Sunflower Syndrome. So sorry, no crazy Americans hopping to and fro. I have, however, captured the sun a few times, and conducive to my new found obsession with the sun (or my new syndrome, if you will), I'm posting them for everyone to enjoy.

An unusual photo of the sun: I guess everyone must dabble in abstract art at one point or another. Most of us are probably satisfied with our stick drawings and note doodles, calling it good. But not I!  

And while I've done my best to fool all of my readers thus far, talking about beautiful weather and sunshine, I must now confess. The pictures may be genuine, but its not all sunshine and daisies, adventures on the beach, or even pleasant strolls in the park. No, what what we really do on study abroad in Ireland resembles something more like this:

But now, it really is a beautiful day, so I'm off to soak in some Vitamin D.