Paris & the 4th of July

This weekend one of my life goals was accomplished: I got to go to PARIS! It was amazing! Since this weekend was the 4^th of July everyone on base had Monday off of work, including us! We all thought this meant a 3-day weekend so we planned on going to Paris. Unfortunately, we were wrong. It turns out that on Saturday there was a 4^th of July celebration on base that we were volunteered to work at…

Saturday: After getting a chance to sleep in (which is heavenly after a week of working with 1 year olds) it was time to work at the celebration on base! It reminded me of a typical celebration you would find back in the states with lots of fried food, carnival games, and live entertainment.  At the celebration I was signed up to work at the face-painting tent, which was HUGE! We worked from 5:30-10:30 and there was a never-ending line of children wanting to get their faces painted. Most were easy things to draw- butterflies or 4^th of July colored stars, or the flag- but a few things were not. One child asked me if I would draw a Chinese lake & sword…. I wasn’t sure what it was, but I gave it my best... I don’t know if he was impressed, but that’s what you get for having a difficult request!

Once we were done with face painting it was time for FIREWORKS! I was really looking forward to them because I didn’t get to see them last summer and man, these fireworks did not disappoint! I can say hands down that this was the best fireworks display I’ve ever seen! The entire show was like a normal show’s finale with non-stop fireworks! After watching the beautiful fireworks, we headed back to the place where we thought we were all getting picked up… Unfortunately we missed the memo that if you stayed for fireworks, you were responsible for your own transportation home. Oops! After waiting in line for the free shuttle for about an hour- we decided to call a director from one of the centers. Her and her friend were so sweet- they drove out to get us and take us home even though it was midnight! To make it up to her we decided to buy her some brownies and make her a card. Seems like an even trade, right?

Sunday: After a VERY short night of sleep, we woke up Sunday morning ready to hop on the train and head to Paris! Apparently we weren’t the only Camp A counselors were heading to Paris- there ended up being about 15 of us on the same train! The train left at 6:05 and after a long ride, we finally got to Paris at 1:45! The reason our ride was so long is because by the time we went to make a reservation for the non-stop train, it was completely full. I guess we learned our lesson for next time!

By the time we made it to Paris we were all ready to go out and explore! As soon as we left the train station we were greeted by beautiful old buildings and a gorgeous sunny day- what a way to start the weekend! After wandering around the streets of Paris for a while decided to call it quits and get a cab to our hotel. By the way, I learned in Paris that hotel is French for “large house”- you learn something new everyday! Our hotel was a ways out of the city, but later that weekend we found out that a metro would take us right there!

Our “home” for the weekend would be Hotel Cheap Beds. Leave it to me to book this place… It actually ended up being a pleasant experience! When we booked a 3-person room we expected 3 beds (as I assume anyone else would as well), when in reality that is not what we got. Our room ended up being a queen bed on the bottom, with a lofted single bed over it. Not your typical room, but it worked!

After getting settled into our new “home” we ventured into the city! Our first stop was McDonalds for some coffee and pop. I ordered a medium drink and to my surprise, a medium drink there is a child-size in the U.S. No wonder we struggle with obesity problems! After a long walk trying to find the train station (and someone who spoke English) we found our way to the Metro! It was only about a 5-minute train ride so definitely worth staying out of the city and saving a little money.

Our sweet ride

Just enjoying the audio tour

After a venture into the city we decided to look for maps & tours that we could take around the city. Well, we must’ve looked like total tourists or like people who really needed help because a lady stopped and offered us tour tickets. They were for the local “hop on, hop off” tours that take you all around the city on a double-decker bus. Her tickets were good for all day Sunday and Monday for the bus tours and the boat tours! She had originally paid 44 euro for each ticket, but gave them to us for 10! How lucky were we?! She was even kind enough to walk us to where the bus picks you up and to explain the whole system to us. It turns out you could stand at any of their signs around the city, and they would stop to pick you up! It was a GREAT way to see the city and I would highly suggest it to anyone traveling to Paris, as there is so much to see! The bus even had a little place for you to plug in earphones and they would explain the history of the buildings as you drove by! It was awesome!

Joan, Kayla & I outside of the Louvre

After riding the bus for a while we decided to get off at the Louvre where we heard admission was free for the day! Unfortunately we missed the memo that the museum was closed, but it was still fun to walk around and see such a famous sight! I was amazed at how big the museum was, it’s no surprise that people said you could go into the museum and spend a whole weekend there! After looking like total tourists (snapping picture after picture) we decided to mosey on our way! By this time the open-air bus tours had stopped for the night so we decided to “try out our sea legs”. By this, I mean we decided to do a boat tour as the Seine river is right behind the Louvre. Before boarding the boat we stopped at a local café for a bottle of French wine! The three of us split a Chardonnay and it was amazing! You can definitely taste the difference between real French wine and the stuff I (slash my parents- thanks mom & dad!) get at home from Trader Joe’s! haha

After experiencing our first of French wine, we boarded the boat to the Eiffel Tower. The ride along the river was so beautiful as we went as the sun was setting—how romantic! Speaking of romance, as we passed under one of the bridges we noticed it had locks on it. It turns out couples come to this bridge, put a lock on it & throw the key into the river signifying that they’ll be together forever. As luck would have it, right when we drove by we looked up and saw a couple getting engaged! Needless to say, us three girls let out an immediate "awww"

With our luck we got to the Eiffel tower at the perfect time, as we were able to see if while it was light out, and also at night when it is lit up. The Eiffel Tower is truly breathtaking and definitely a sight to see! It’s also definitely a tourist trap as there are venders walking around trying to sell miniature statues of the Eiffel Tower & also key chains. Truth be told, I was one of the sucker tourists and bought a few. Hey- you’re only in Paris once!

After getting roped into buying unnecessary souvenirs, we decided to venture to the Arc De Triomphe and Moulin Rouge. Both being excellent sights to see, especially at night! The Arc de Triomphe is surrounded by a giant roundabout so in order to get to it you have to go through an underground tunnel that was filled with history about the structure. Once under the Arc de Triomphe we saw the tomb of an unknown soldier honoring all that died during World War I. At the top of the tomb they have an eternal flame that is lit each night by a different veterans group. It was very moving and cool to see.
By the time we had done all of this it was time for us to venture back to the lovely Hotel Cheap Beds to prepare for another day!

Notre Dame

 Monday: As you probably know, Monday was the 4^th of July. But in Paris, that means nothing so it was off to another day of sight seeing! After getting lost for over an hour we met up with Brittany at the train station. We decided to jump back on the bus and head on our way to see more of the city!

Our first stop on the tour was STARBUCKS! Not exactly a cool Paris monument but was our first Starbucks since back in the states so it was much needed! After getting our caffeine fix we hopped back on the bus and continued our tour. When we drove by the Notre Dame, Brittany and I decided to get off and head to the top for the view! We only had to wait for about an hour for the tour and had some entertainment in line as this guy walked around in a mask scaring people. After waiting for only about an hour it was time to climb up to the top! Earlier in the day we found out that the lockers at the train station were broken so we had to climb up all of the steps with our bags. The walk up was quite the workout, but the view from the top was totally worth it. 

Crazy Notre Dame stairs

Trying to navigate the
small areas of Notre Dame
with my GIANT Vera 

Once at the top they let you climb inside the bell tower where Quasi Modo once lived! (haha) We kept joking that no wonder he was a hunchback because all of the doorways are tiny and we kept having to duck into them with our bags on our backs. By the time we were done with the view it was time to head back down and get back on the bus! Our plan was to take the bus back to the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe, but unfortunately we ran out of time and had to head to back to the train station. Luckily we got to the train station just in time to shop a little before we left! Brittany and I bought matching rings to forever remember our weekend in Paris! Overall it was a GREAT weekend and definitely one I will always remember! J 

The rings Brittany & I bought!

 Brittany & I in the bell tower