The End (for now)

As my final hours in France (for the time being; I will be back, there is not doubt in my mind about that. In fact, if all goes well, I'll know by December if I'll be back for my Master's) pass, I can't let my insides sit still long enough to process everything; to fully feel the emotions. I am happy to see my family and friends back home, but at the same time I am incredibly sad to be leaving this wonderful place. So everything is just being suppressed into a ball of electricity that's got me feeling wound up and ready to spark.

The places I have been, the people I have met, the things I have done; this semester has changed me. I have let myself free to live my life the way I want to. I don't hold back anymore; I go out there and grab my present and my future by the reins.

I will be back. I have to come back, or else I'd going on living my life with a piece of my heart missing. I have fallen in love with Europe, and especially with France. In France, people work to live, they don't live to work (which is the American philosophy). Yes, I won't make nearly as much money in France as I would in the U.S., but I'd be living in a country where free time is valued and not seen as a waste. I'd be living in a country where my children could go to one of the best universities for less than 3,000 Euros per year. Meanwhile I didn't even bother applying to the best schools in the U.S. because the last thing I wanted was to go into hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt. Hell, I would have never been able to afford coming to France if I did that.

If I never came to France...my life would be very different right now.

Coming here knocked me out of my old bubble of perspective, and helped me to make decisions I knew were right but couldn't bring myself to make.

These have been the most adventurous, fun, and crazy five months of my life. I would even go so far as to say the best thus far. The memorable moments are countless, but I'll try to cut it down to a top 5.

Not in any particular order:

• Riding a bicycle 30km through the French countryside from Bayeux to the American Cemetary at Omaha beach with Erin, Tim, Matt, and Joe because it was Easter Monday and no public transportation was running.
• Getting stuck in an elevator for 20 minutes between the 55th and 56th floors of Tour Montparnasse (the tallest sky-scraper in Paris).
• Watching the sunset from Piazzale Michelangelo in Florence with Erin, Morgan, Joe, Paige, Matt, and Tim (and the walk back to the hostel :P)
• The Colosseum Pub Crawl. Ask me about the details; this is a story that needs to be told in person.
• Hanging out with ENSEA folk. The parties, the bus rides to the parties, the BBQ/pool party at Adrien's, etc, etc.

In conclusion, France has given me the time of my life. I would not trade these last five months for anything. In the words of the Frenchman David Guetta, "those will be the best memories."

Au revoir, et a bientot. Bisous!

Krista in Paris

Krista arrived early Wednesday morning at CDG airport. I took a bus to pick her up then brought her to Cergy. We got cappuccino's and Parisien sandwhiches at Pomme de Pain for lunch then I had to run to class and she headed into Paris.

Yesterday Erin, Krista, Adrien and I went to the Pompidou Museum (modern art - Picasso, Matisse, Pollick, amongst others. I recognized a couple pieces done by artists that have been exhibited at the Albright Knox. Go Buffalo!) After the museum Adrien left and was replaced by Colin, Erin's friend from Suzuki back on Buffalo. He came to Paris 3 years ago to study cello and doesn't plan on ever leaving. We went up to the top of Notre Dame. The gargoyles were pretty fly. So many stairs...I wonder how many stairs I have climbed up and down in Europe...As well as how many miles I have walked.

From Notre Dame it was over to Ile Saint Louis where we sat down and split chocolate brownies and ice cream and whipped cream and chocolate sauce goodness, as well as a bottle of cider. Needless to say it was delicious. We peeked into some neat shops in the area - really really cute kitchen stuff and such. If I do end up living around here ever again, I know where to go.

The three of us parted ways with Colin and made our way over to the St. Michel area where we found a bunch of cheap restaurants in our search for a boulangerie. The boulangeries were closed, but we found a Monoprix (like a Super target) where we got baguettes, wine, cheese and chocolate for a picnic dinner. We tried to eat at the Luxemburg Gardens, but 5 minutes after we sat down the gaurds were blowing their whistles to signal it was time to leave. So we took the metro to le Tour Eiffel, which we were planning to go up but ran out of time for (I still haven't been up it yet. But don't worry, I will!). We ended up picnicing on the park in front of it (very similar to the National Mall and the Washington Monument sort of layout). By this time it was getting dark so it was lit up and beautiful. We were there for two instances of the light show - when it sparkles with strobe lights.

A another good day :)

What "luxury" can not describe

Saturday was a day for Versailles. Erin, Matt and I made the trek, and were delighted when we found out we could not only skip the waiting line but also get in for free with our student Visas proving that we're E.U. residents (after we waited in line. And we didn't know about the Visa letting us in for free to most Parisian sights until we already spent a good chunk of change on them, but thank you Stephen Stauffer (my friend from UB that we stayed with in Rome) for letting us know at all!).

The chateau...there may not be much furniture left, but the ceilings alone are incredible. Many pictures are in que to be uploaded, as soon as my internet is good enough to handle them....And by many I mean over 100, of Versailles alone.

The gardens are immense, I hardly saw any of them. You would a full day just for them, and even them I'm not sure you could see every corner.

By the time I left the Chateau, I had already lost Erin and Matt. I waited for a while, ate my packed peanut butter and blueberry confiture (jam, I love saying it in French though) sandwhich, and then head off for the rest of the tour on my own. I took a quick peek at the orangery before strolling down the central garden path, listening to the classical/baroque music piped throughout, to the Apollo Fountain, Louis XIV rising out of the water in his horse-drawn chariot. Then it was a right down a tree-lined parkway to le Grand Triannon, the royalties' escape from Versailles, which was their escape from Paris. The colors of this smaller chateau were more in line with a summer-in-the-country feel, and it felt much more homey.

From le Grand Triannon I missed a turn and got lost in some more gardens for a little bit before making my way to the summer Pavilion (one could only peek in through the windows of the "cozy" four-roomed building Marie Antoinette spent intimate summer evenings in with close friends and family), Marie Antoinette's theater (she was an aspiring actress), and le Petite Triannon, another "small" chateau a scale down from le Grand Triannon.

Then it was off through gardens again, saw a "gazebo" whose name I can't remember, situated on a picturesque pond, went through Marie's grotto, and finally made it to Marie's Hamlett, a small "peasant" town Marie had built to give her the simple peasant-life fantasy. Needless to say, it was beautiful: thatched roofs, a pond, wisteria draping over the wooden railings. Presently, the head gardener actually gets to live there. I am so jealous!

From the Hamlet it was back towards the Petite Triannon for a closer look at another marble Gazebo, then a fast walk back tot he gardens of the main chateau to catch the fountain finale at the Neptune Fountain.

From Versailles we had to pass through Paris anyway, so why not walk around for a bit!

Took a stroll down Rue Cler, which was closing up for the most part but Matt and Erin got themselves bottles of wine and I got myself a chocolate Eclair, something that had to be done in France.

We walked to Invalides, the military museum, but it was crowded for a horse show, tickets costing 50 Euro +

No matter, we strolled down to le Port Alexandre (the most beautiful bridge I have seen to date) for some photos. Then down Champs-Elysees to le Arc du Triomphe, which Erin and I got to go up FOR FREE. From the top it was a night view of Paris. Beautiful.

The rain started to pick up then so we called it a day and headed back to Cergy.

Yesterday Erin and I headed out to Paris again. First stop: le Marche Puces, a small flea market in south-western Paris. From there we went to Invalides and saw Napoleans tomb (again, FOR FREE :D) and stopped in the Army Museum to check out suits of armor. Then we stopped in the Marais neighborhood (Jewish quarter), walked around a bit, saw the Revolution of 1830 monument where the Bastille once stood, then hopped on the metro again to go see Chateau Vincennes, which still had a medieval castle (!!!). The castle was later converted into a prison and functioned as such through WWII, paintings on the walls of some of the rooms done by it's famous in-mates (authors, philosophers, political dissenters in general). Also on the Chateau grounds was a beautiful church currently housing an Angels and Music exhibit. I was pleased that I could actually understand most of what the information placards written in French were saying.

After seeing the chateau, I picked up a Chicken Chika kebab and took it to le Parc Floral de Paris, which was free that date despite normally costing money. Erin and I sat down next to some flowers and enjoyed the kebab and frites (french fries) while watching toddlers leading their parents around, completely captivated by the colors, and even several falling as they couldn't quite navigate themselves down the slight hill. After the park, we headed home from another wonderful day well spent.

Today I need to study for a Circuits midterm tomorrow (my two week vacation all but obliterated any knowledge I had acquired). After my exam, Paige (cali girl we met in Venice and travelled Florence and Rome with) will be in Cergy!!! And it is now official, Krista is coming to visit from May 19th-25th!!!! I'm so excited!!!!

For Rome Pics: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2060428&id=1379340032&l=aba566d8b6

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2060844&id=1379340032&l=20f0f85350

For Southern France (Toulon, Marseilles, Nice, Monte Carlo): http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2061814&id=1379340032&l=65ef27ad75

For Barcelona: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2061876&id=1379340032&l=1594465883

When in Rome...

Tonight is my last night in Rome. It's been a nice time, despite the rain and a disastrous pub crawl (Matt got beaten up by a bunch of bouncers at the last club because he tried to shove his way past them after they wouldn't let him back in).

But besides that, Rome was pretty wonderful. The ruins are so cool!!! And to think this was almost my major. In the first day alone I took over 90 pictures.

I saw the Pantheon and Donatello's tomb, the Colosseum, the Forum, where Julius Caesar's body was cremated, the cat sanctuary, this other big building I can't remember the name of..., Plaza Nuovo, the Trevi Fountain, St. Peter's Cathedral (breathtaking) and the Pieta (!!!), and Hadrian's mausoleum. Sadly, the Sistine Chapel was closed by the time we got there, so I'll just have to come back to Rome :)

I ate pizza and gelato and tiramisu and a chocolate chip Italian pastry thing.

The sights to see here are just incredible. The amount of history, and it's there in front of you and you can touch it...there is no place like Rome.

Florence was beautiful, and Rome has the history. I don't know if I can choose between the two...but here it goes.

So my top five cities post-Italy:

1. Paris

2. Rome

3. Toronto

4. Florence

5. Prague

I love Italy. The food, the sights, the natural beauty. Everything is just so warm and inviting.

Normandy

5 April, 2010

I’ve spent the weekend in Normandy. Saturday in La Havre, Thibault’s home town. His family (parents, one younger brother my age, and a 17-yr-old sister) had us to their country home for lunch. I like French dining – began with Muscat for an aperitif alongside mini-sausages and baguette and cheeto type snacks. This was followed by a carrot, cucumber, tomato, and olive salad. Then the main course was duck with green beans, accompanied by a glass of Bordeaux (currently my favorite red wine). After that was baguette et fromage and then a delicious apple tart for dessert with café (French coffee >> American coffee). It was so good, and I was so full. Oh, and they also had us try Calvados (a very strong apple-based liquor that Normandy is famous for). Never again. Never again. I just had a sugar cube soaked in it (sugar cubes in France are made with real unprocessed, brown sugar, by the way). It tastes so bad -_- Thibault’s mother joked that once when Thibault and his friends were getting too loud having a bon fire party, she brought them out some calvados so they’d just pass out, and thus quiet down. Oh, Europe.

Then Thibault and his dad took us to Etretat, a famous beach on the Atlantic. Here we finally (and inevitably) met fellow Buffalonians! Two high school students, one from West Seneca and one from the West Side, were on a 3-week exchange program to France. The beach was very beautiful, check Facebook for pics. That night we got some Chinese for dinner and hung at a pub, drank some cidre (which was surprisingly hard to find to buy in stores, which made me sad because I love it) and played billiards.

On Sunday we took the train to Caen, then a train+bus to Mont Saint Michel. Unfortunately, we just missed being able to tour the abbey, but we got to walk around the picturesque medieval village. It was like Disney World – but real! :P And of course, there was ice cream in a waffle cone to be had (vanille being the equivalent of French Vanilla dans les Etas-Unis).

Then today we (Tim, Erin, Joe, Matt, and me, Taylor went back to Cergy last night cause he’d already been to the D-Day area) wanted to go see a D-Day beach. We found a train to get us as close as we could, but it was still 17km to Omaha and the American Cemetery, AND the bus wasn’t running because it’s a national school holiday. Our first reaction was “MERDE!” but then we found a bike rental shop, rented the bikes, 15 Euro for the day, and made our great trek. I’m really glad we did this. Now I can tell my kids that I rode a bike through the French countryside to go see the American Cemetery on Omaha beach. It took about 1.5 hrs to get there, we were there for probably as long, and then made it back with slightly better time. The visitor center at the cemetery was very well done – a miniature museum. They even highlighted a soldier from Buffalo (Buffalo pride!) After seeing the cemetery we walked down onto the beach itself. It was so serene that it’s hard to imagine that 2,000+ people died there in a day. After walking the beach we climbed the hill back to our bikes, stopping in some old German bunkers on the way. Once back to town it was time for a jambon et beurre baguette avec Orangina (like orange juice, but in pop form – it even has a little bit of pulp) avec un boule de glaces Nutella pour dessert (nutella ice cream – c’est bon!!, and it was in a waffle cone for no extra charge, God I love this country) In the end, it was definitely a day I will never forget.

This Thursday will be my first night a Paris night club. A club at Monteparnasse is free for foreigners every Thursday night, which is awesome because Paris night clubs usually cost 20+ Euro – trop cher! I have class in the morning, but I’d like to go to Paris for the afternoon-evening before the dancing begins.

Last Thursday I went to a night club near Cergy for a party hosted by ENSEA, EISTI (the computer science school that Sylvain and Lala and Antoine go to), and then the Bio Engineering school. It was a really big club. And unlike what I would ever see in America, there were times when the heightened dancing podiums were occupied only by boys. In the US they’re usually only filled with the slutiest girls in the club. It was a really fun night. There’s supposed to be an even bigger party there in two weeks, when they’ll open up the second floor (it was closed for this last party). Seriously, French student parties >> American student parties.

And then this weekend, I don’t think we have plans for it yet. But we bought tix for a UK trip in June. We have a 5 day weekend for Scottland and England. I’m hoping for a weekend trip to Dublin, and definitely to Bordeaux and Lyon or Toulouse.

Ahhh, all of our butts hurt from the biking L There was a full chorus of ow’s when we remounted the bikes at the cemetery for the ride back home. At least the train’s seats are soft this time.

And with that, I bid you adieu.

Just a pleasant evening

Things I miss about Buffalo:

• UB's internet
• The Hub
• Wegman's
• Chicken Wings
• Tim Horton's
• Mighty Taco
• Ovens

Things I love about Europe:

• Walking
• The weather
• The food
• The friendly people
• The buildings
• The sights
• The reduced drinking - I'm actually an equal adult here!

In other news: I got the REU (National Science Foundation-Sponsored Research Experience for Undergraduates) I wanted at UCLA!!! I'm gonna be in Cali this summer, woot!

Vienna and Budapest

The last portion of my vacation was in Vienna for 2 days, Budapest for 3, and then Vienna again for the last.

In Vienna, my favorite site was the State Library - it was like the library out of Beauty and the Beast. I want one one day. We also saw the royal burial vault. It was really cool to see the coffins holding people I learned about in AP Euro. Also in Vienna, saw Schoneberg Palace - the Hapsburgs summer home. It was beautiful of course, accompanied by gardens that led to a beautiful view atop a hill. And on our first night in Vienna, we took the train to a village named Modling for dinner. It was picturesque and we could actually see stars outside of an old church lit up against the night.

In Budapest, our hotel was on the Danube and our room had a river view - we could see the palace, several bridges, and several monuments atop a hill from our window (amazing!) Budapest is beautiful at night. In fact, I like Budapest at night more than I do during the day. Our first night there was one of my favorites of the whole trip. We walked to the other side of the river to go exploring and ended up climbing the winding paths leading to the monuments on the big hill that we saw. Despite being in a city, the air felt fresh and calm. As an added bonus, we saw several cats chilling out along the path on our ascent. There were also a bunch of perfect look-outs on the way up. It was so beautiful, the city lights, the air, I could have stayed there all night.

The next day we toured the Hungarian Parliament building and then went to a really cool bar in the evening. The following day we walked around some more, exploring the palace area, and went to a night club called Alcatraz (it was in fact decorated like a prison). All in all, Budapest was fun. There food was too deep-fried (worse than American food!), but it was the cheapest so far.

So from Budapest we returned to Vienna. We toured the largest underground lake in Europe, which used to be a mine and then was used by the Nazis to build jet planes in 1944. We spent the night in a village staying with Taylor's "Aunt" (who was an exchange student living with his mother when they were in high school) and her twenty-something son and daughter. They cooked us a traditional Austrian dinner (red cabbage, dumplings, yumminess in general) finished off with ice cream covered in freshly whipped cream and raspberries. And they had a cat and a wood-burning stove (a god-send after standing in freezing cold snow waiting for a bus) - it was one of the best night's sleep I had in two weeks. They also gave us the traditional Austrian breakfast - breads, toast, rolls, ham, and cheese. It was WONDERFUL.

Then it was onto the train for what became a 16 hour trip home. We had a layover in Frankfurt because the earlier train had sold out. Frankfurt didn't seem to have very much and only had free wifi if you had a T-mobil phone, even at Starbucks! And then we started freaking out a little because the sign said that our train was cancelled. Turns out they just had to put us on a different train and then transfer at a station along the way. So we made it back to Paris and then back to Cergy around 12:30. Safe and Sound. And Tired.

I'm really glad I went on the trip - I will remember it for the rest of my life.