up up and away...

Wednesday : We woke up early and headed over to the directors apartment where we got on a bus and headed out to the hometown of Van gogh. When we got there we walked around the town where they had posted signs depicting his painting at the spot where he would have painted it. We walked around an old Church which he has a famous depiction of and then we found a field of wheat to run through.

It was all so beautiful and picturesque. Then we walked to the cemetery where he and his Brother were buried (after committing suicide).

Next we walked past his house and down small homes and fenced gardens. We met up with the rest of the group at a château where they have a museum of impressionism. It was a super fun museum (its kind of like a Disneyland ride with a fake café and fun train ride !) After that we got back on the bus and rode to Giverney (the home of Monet). It was absolutely breathe taking ! The sight of oceans of flowers swaying in the slight breeze could not even compare with the fresh, sweet smell hanging in the air. We walked through his cheerfully painted home and I couldn’t help but wonder, « had Van gogh lived in such a happy place would he have still ended his own life ? » I am not sure how he could.

Side track- I love nature. Paris is wonderful and I love the beauty of people and their marvelous creations. However at the end of the day – God’s creations just can’t be topped. I find a peace and joy that is unexplainable whenever I wander through His creations. Whether it be through the woods of Virginia, over the peaks of Philmont, or among the fleurs de Giverney, I am filled with wonder at nature’s beauty and God’s love.

Anyway after wandering through the flowers and the lily ponds stopped by a small café for some food and then made our way back to the bus. We then drove back to Paris. Sadly, I was supposed to bring someone their towel from Nice (but I had forgotten that morning) so I had to run back to my apartment grab it and then I met a bunch of people at Notre Dame. I didn’t really want to use another métro ticket to get to Notre Dame (b/c our Navigo no longer worked) so I just walked from bastille. It was a lovely walk and I realized just how much I am going to miss Paris. After giving Maddi her towel I headed with Mckenna, and Rachel to Shakespeare and Company (an old book store that is so fun ! It is very reminiscent of something out of Harry Potter – with books just stacked precariously EVERYWHERE !) Then Mckenna, Paul and I tried to find a hot chocolate place that is supposed to be SUPER good (Angelina’s) but when we finally found it – it was closed – not to mention pricy) Well then Mckenna and I raced back to our apartment for our last dinner. I was kind of sad that our last dinner was with Claude and her daughter (because her daughter tends to dominate the conversation –and I really love taking with Claude.) But – it was still really fun – and of course delicious! Then after dinner we Claude our gift of an old (1925) how to learn English book. She LOVED it! I was so happy I almost cried. It is amazing how much you can grow to love someone – even despite language, age, and religious differences – MAN I LOVE HER!!

Thursday : I woke up and went for my final run in Paris (word about my runs- they are seriously one of my favorite things I did because you get a quick view of large parts of Paris – plus you are filled with all those endorphins and…. Basically I just feel SOOO HAPPY!) Well, on this run I went to basically all my favorite spots including (Notre Dame, Hotel de Ville, Pantheon, Louvre, Jardin de Luxembourg, Place de Voges, Latin quarter, along the Seine, and I saw the Eiffel Tower, Arch de Triumph, and all the marvelous bridges.) I stopped at a little café for an eclaire, and bought my favorite little butter knife thing at the market by my house. It was wonderful. Then I went home did last minute packing – exchanged bisous with Claude and left for the Gare. Then we took the train to Lyon – TGV baby! When we got there we had some crazy metro riding and bag lugging to get to the hotel but it just added to the amazing adventure. After that we walked around Lyon a bit – just to get a brief overview of the city. After walking around for a while we stopped for dinner at an AMAZING little restaurant in vieux Lyon. I had an amazing Lyonese salad, saussison, and crème fresh stuff for dessert. It was AMAZING! After dinner we hung around the river being super giggly on the bridge. Then we came home and watched Les Mis – well, really I just fell asleep on the floor.

Friday : In the morning we walked around the city. Prof Hudson took us into the courtyards in the buildings and told us about the renaissance architecture. We also went to two museums one about the history of Lyon and one about printing. The printing museum was the COOLEST. We learned about the evolution of languages and how printing effects our modern language. Then that night we went to dinner at the French version of Denny’s it was actually pretty good for being pretty cheap. After dinner we went to the Basilica at night. It was absolutely beautiful. The lights of the city reflecting off the river was wonderful. I talked to Sarah about our favorite views in the world – it was so fun to think about all the incredible things I have seen. Next we went to the area in front of the church and played the animal noise game – it was so funny! For the rest of the night we were all laughing, goofing around and being silly.

It's so nice to be in NICE!

Friday night – Possibly the worst nights sleep of my life. We waited for a long time for the métro to the airport. Then we wandered around the airport looking for a place to spend the night. We couldn’t get through security because it was about midnight (so securtiy was closed but we found a nice bench just outside of Mcdonalds and declared « this is the place ». Half of the girls decided that they would try to sleep on the chairs (with arm rests) and the other half of us banked on the floor. I lay out my towel, plumped up my backpack (for a pillow) and used my scarf for a wonderful blanket. I looked at my masterpeice and said to myself – with all my practice at philmont and my creativity with my luggage, this night is going to be gréât ! And then I lay down.

Turns out concrete floors are not the same as beds of pineneedles. Surprise ! Also there was some machine which made a high pitched sound about every 30 seconds – so everytime I thought I was just about to drift off to dream land that blaring sound would remind me of my reality. I lay on my back. Turned to my side. Hmmm, maybe the otherside. Stomach ? Definately not. Curled legs, uncruled legs. That is about when the screaming started. Some poor child was being forced to the same fate as us (waiting in the airport all night) and he was not happy. Only when its 3 in the morning and you are trying despirately to sleep, it is hard to keep that perspective. I wanted to kill him ! About the time he stopped screaming a parade of clicking heels marched passed as flight attendents and security people reported to work. Around 4 :30 we just got up resigned ourselves to the fact that we were not going to sleep, bought an expensive but totally Worth it pain au pomme, and made our way to security. (turns out our night could have been worse – Sarah had the night by herself at orley airport where there are mice !!) After we made it through security we dicovered they have bed like benches and carpeted floors… yeah… we totally had hobo envy.

Saturday : The short flight to Nice was fairly uneventful. We got there and took the bus to the beach by our hôtel. It was beautiful. We went to the grociery store and then had a picnic on the beach. Following that we held up towels for eachother so that we could change into our suits in the public shower. Other women did not have any issues about modesty as we got our first taste of topless sun bathers (question : why is it that the topless women are always old, flabby and wrinkly ? – GROSS- cover that up ! Well, then Maddi, Kayla, and I swam out to the boowy which was a lot farther that it first looked – but the water was cool, clear, and beautiful ! We played at the beach the whole day. I built a rock castle (because the beach was rocks not sand), and we had some gréât conversations. It was a wonderful relaxing day which we followed up with some delicous food at a café (I got a gyro assiette…mmm). The only draw back to the day was the fact that I got FRIED !! Anyway – the other worry was the fact that we were staying in a Small hôtel with 8 girls (when there should have been 3). We were scared that they would kick us out – so we had to go back to the hôtel in shifts so that the management wouldn’t get suspicious. So after dinner some when home and some of us wandered around the beach front rue. It was so beautiful ! Then another shift went back and others of us went to the old quarter of Nice. The buildings were absoulutely wonderful. The Bright colored walls and shutters just made everything cheerful. Sadly I was not feeling too gréât…. I felt feverish because of the sun burn, but it was totally worth it. Well, we were just about to start walking back when it started pooring rain. The rain felt like electric shocks on my burn but at the same time it felt good. We danced around in the rain and then got a little cold and decided to wait for it to let up a bit. We stood undersome trees and talked while we waited for the rain to stop. Then we went home for the night (I claimed the floor again so that I wouldn’t have to touch anyone.

Sunday- Mckenna, Sarah and I got up and worked hard to find the bus that would take us to the street where the Church building was. It took a lot of prayer for everhthing to work out because I am not a gréât bus navagator. Anyway – Finally we got on the bus and were still a little worried that we wouldn’t find the Church – when I saw a man with a book rolled up in his hand. « I think that is a gospel docterine book ! » So we creepily followed him and Voilà – the Church. Unfortunatly the bus fiasco took us so long that we only got to go to sacrament meeting – but I saw it as a miracle that we actually did make it just in time for the sacrament. After Church – everyone was SOO cute. The guy that we followed actually came up and talked to us for a while about what we were doing there and other fun Small talk – he was super nice ! I LOVE OUR CHURCH !! then we talked to a girl who was actually from Lyon so she told us what we should do when we go there, and was again way friendly. And then we met the mom of an elder who is serving with the institute in our Ward back in paris (Elder Plaitain). She was super cute and told us to give her son a bizou and then she was like « well you can’t really do that but give him a nice big hand shake ! » Well then we had to leave and meet up with the other girl so that we could go to Monaco. Sadly the rain was COMING DOWN ! Some girls started to back out of going but they couldn’t think of anything else to do in the rain – and I just said « well, I am going to go. I figure that I am only in Nice once – if I get drenched – so be it. » Turns out everyone decided to come. We found the bus and took a beautiful wet ride along the coast to another country ! It reminded me a lot of greece except with brighter colored houses. When we got there, Sarah and I split up to find the bus stop going the other direction (so that we knew what time the last bus left – turned out it was a good thing we checked because we only had about an hour. So we walked around in the rain and saw lots of AMAZING cars, the beautiful beach, ornate casinos and the fun, different architecture. Then after a while of walking around we got back on the bus and rode back. Then we took our wet, soggy selves back to the hôtel room and tried to dry out. We made an early night of it – and this time I took a spot on the bed (which was a double and a twin pushed together with 5 girls on it.)

Monday – BEST DAY EVER ! So it turned out that the only ones who wanted to go on the bike ride were me, Sarah, and Paul. So Sarah and I walked to the bike rental place (after getting a little lost) and met Paul there. We stood in line for a while and then signed our souls away in return for our three new best friends (our bikes). Mine had a lovely basket which I was happy to shove my backpack in so that I didn’t have to carry it against my burnt back. Then we walked across the street to the train station. After a monetary fiasco because of the stupid train ticket machines which only take coins, we finally got our tickets and got onto the train. Then we rode out to Cannes. We got out in Cannes and biked around a bit trying to find the beach. Then we had a nice old lady take a picture for us – but I am pretty sure she had some sight problems so they were kinda crazy. (but I loved her cause she was so sweet and nice to us). Well, then we started out on our épic ride. At first, Sarah and I thought we might die becuase of all the trafic and cars nearly nicking us ! I was a little nervous, but then I would look out on the sailboat filled sea and my heart would soar ! At times like that I would shout « WOOOT WOOT ! » and that became my tag line. I am pretty sure I said it about a million times that day. I loved riding along the coast with the most beautiful italianate houses, Bright blue océan and lovely sandy or rocky beaches. It was seriously unreal ! We stopped and got some food at a super marché and then biked to an old fort. There we sat for about an hour just talking, eating and enjoying the beauty and amazing-ness of where we were. Then we kept biking and stopped every so often to take pictures. To be honest no words, no pictures can acurately capture what an amazing expérience it was ! Well, the ride took alot less time that we expected so we got back to Nice at about 3 :30 and didn’t have to return the bikes until 6 :30 so we went to another super marché and bought 2 liters of ice cream (chocolaté and coconut) and then rode over to a huge set of stairs in nice. Then we climbed up to the look out and downed that ice cream b/w the three of us. MMM….. so good. There was an awesome accordian player who just added to the unreal magic of the whole day. Then we biked back to the bike shop and gave back our wonderful little bikes and then walked to paul’s hostle so that we could go to the bathroom. We sat in there and talked for a while and then we went to go get dinner. After a long time searching we found an inexpencive persian place – SOOO GOOD and the man who ran it was super nice ! He helped show us how to eat it and joked around with us when we ordered things that he no longer made. It was a perfect little place and the food was delicous ! Well, after that we thought about doing a Sunset swim but Sarah and I were a little cold and way too full. So instead we just had an épic rock skipping contest which turned out to be just crazily throw rocks in the the beautiful océan. Then we just hung out on the beach for a while, talking, throwing rocks, and enjoying the remainder of our perfect day !

Tuesday:

Four of us got up early so that we could get to the airport. We made it there in plenty of time, and then our flight was delayed so I just sat on the floor and tried to sleep. Then we finally got on the plane and rode back to Paris. When we got back to the train station, we bought métro tickets but they didn’t work from that station apparently – but we didn’t have enough stupid coins to buy the right ticket – so I am sorry to admit we piggy packed onto the train. Well, then we got back to our appartement started to pack, and then I really wanted to see the inside of the Pantheon –but Mckenna had already seen it. So I went for a walk by myself just wandering the Streets of Paris in the perfect paris weather (misty and drizzly). I walked around and realized just how much I am going to miss this city. Then I went to the Patheon where I met up with Paul who said that we could climb up it – so we did – it was super cool. I loved seeing the graves of Voltaire, Hugo, etc but also seeing all the main sights of Paris from the top of the Pantheon. Then I walked home and had dinner with Claude which was delicious and fun ! I love her so bad !

Amazing Adventures

Wednesday- We checked out the medieval museum which was super cool and in a really fun building. Then I had to race to class. After class we went on a walk/bus ride to where famous poets used to hang out, and then got the worlds BEST religeuse (pastry) - sooo good! After that Me, Sarah P, Kara, and Paul went to Invalide and saw the army museum and Napoleons tomb. While we were there there was a funny incident with the wind - b/c I was wearing a skirt and there was a group of old guys- well a gust of wind came and picked up my skirt. My hands flew down- and then one of the old men said "watch out for that wind" (in french). My face turned red and then I started cracking up! It was so awkward but so hilarious. That was super fun, and then after Kara, me, and Paul went to Croissy and Kara and I went to a café for dinner and then went back to play games with Paul and Caleb. Super fun good day.

Thursday- What a wonderful - full day. We met the whole group at Gard du nord and took a train to the Renaissance museum (which is in a wonderful chateau). It was fun to walk around and see all the tapestries, and Renaissance aspects of architecture. Then we had a picnic, and rode the train back. Following which I pulled some teeth and convinced some of the group to do a photo scavenger hunt with me all around paris. IT WAS SO FUN! We raced around on the metros and reminded ourselves how well we know Paris, and how much we love it! After that Mckenna and I went home to make Claude dinner - we made Taco salad (which we had to make the taco seasoning (which was an adventure b/c we didn't have all the stuff) - but it was still super good! Anyway, I also made some fresh salsa - that was soooo good (there is only one jar of "mexican sauce" in the store and it tasted WEIRD!) It was so fun to watch Claude's face and how excited she was to try American food. Gloria was over as well, and so Claude would ask how to eat it and then she would try and convince Gloria to try it. It was also super funny to see their reaction to the "spicy" flavor - (which we actually had tried to tone down) - they added ALOT of creme fresh! Well, Claude basically LOVED the experience which made it all so fun for us. Then after dinner we brought in homemade chocolate chip cookies and milk in big cups. Then we showed them how to dunk their cookies and wait till it soaked in a bit - and then eat. They loved it! Gloria was convinced that Mckenna's mom was a Patisserie chef b/c it was her recipe, and Gloria also said -"I love American cookies!"

Claude loved them so much she asked us to save some for her daughter to try. The whole thing was just what I had hoped it would be. It gave us a chance to share some of our culture with claude and we got to watch how much she wanted to learn about us! I really do love her. Then after dinner (yes we did the dishes for her) we met up some friends by the eiffel tower and watched the lights go off. It was so fun to just talk and laugh and watch the beauty of france sparkle! Paris is magnificent!

Friday- Got up today and went to put money on our phone. Then we headed over to the Louvre where a BYU art history teacher was teaching her students and said we could tag along. Low and behold Courtney from freshman year was in that group - it was super fun to catch up with her. It was also really neat to have someone tell us the significance of the artwork - it makes museums so much more enjoyable! After that we went and found an old "how to learn english" book from the early 1900's which we are going to give Claude as a going away gift (b/c she collects old books. Then I came home, packed, took a take home exam, and ate dinner. Tonight me and 7 other girls from our group are going to sleep at the airport so that we can make our early flight to Nice. It is going to be GREAT! (we didn't originally plan to sleep at the airport - but there are no metros to get us to the airport early enough - so - hobo style here we come. Well, I probs won't post anything until after nice so- there will be a lot of catching up to do I am sure!