A Weekend in Paris

Bonjour!

I am back at my flat in London after our group's weekend trip to Paris, beginning Saturday, May 22, through today,Tuesday the 25th.

This past weekend was one of the best experiences of my life - being able to witness another culture through food, history and conversation with citizens is amazing exposure to the world.

Our first day in Paris consisted of departing London around 6 a.m. to be at our hotel, Hotel des Arenes, around 8:30 a.m. A group of us ate our first meal in Paris, croque monseuir sandwiches, at a cafe down the road. After, we got gelato and went shopping at some cute boutiques nearby.

We began exploring Paris with a cruise on the Seinne River. We saw all of the main sights in Paris - a great introduction to the layout of the city.

On that day, we saw Notre Dame. Understanding the historical background of the cathedral and its architectural importance, it was even more breath-taking. The church is so immense and beautiful and was one of my favorite sights.

That night, we went to the Eiffel Tower. We went to the top of the tower, where you can see the entire city. After looking out on the city for a while, we went to the nearby garden to watch the light show at night. The grandeur of the night and altogether experience of the day was inexplainable.

On our second day, we toured the Louvre and Musee d'Orssay. I helped navigate our group around the majority of the first and second floors of the Louvre in two hours, seeing the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Winged Victory and more.

The Musee d'Orssay was my favorite part of the entire trip to Europe so far - never have I seen so many paintings by Monet, Degas, Sisly, Pissaro, Renoir, Van Gogh and more. That was a euphoric experience because I was able to see so many paintings that I have read about and seen since I was a child. This made me very appreciative that my mom taught me art history, particularly impressionism and postimpressionism, because I could truly enjoy and recognize the art.

Finally, I was part of a group that really encouraged everyone to go to Versailles, which we were able to do. It was enormous and full of history - in the queen's chamber, over 19 royal family members were born. The gardens outside were supplementary to its extravagance and beauty.

On day three, we had a free day in Paris. Our group of girls traveled to Arc d'Triumphe, Sainte Chapelle, Pantheon and Luxembourg gardens. In the midst of the sight-seeing, we managed to fit in shopping trips to Louis Vuitton Paris, Lacoste, Swatch and some other popular stores.

Sainte Chappelle was another one of my most favorite sights. The church was built in the 1200s and at one point housed 22 relics, including the Crown of Thornes. The stained glass encloses the church from top to bottom, displaying scenes from various books in the Bible.

The Pantheon was also mind blowing, thinking about how many influential people are buried in one central location. The paintings, pendelum and architecture add to the awe of the landmark.

The Luxembourg gardens is where I could have spent my time all day every day - we watched little boys play with toy sailboats in a pond and admired all of the beautiful landscaping.

Our last day in Paris was spent doing site visits - Ogilvy public relations and advertising office in Paris, as well as the CNN bureau in Paris.

What I enjoyed most about Paris is the overall beauty and quality of life, spectacular food and vast amounts of history. (I guess you could say that is just about everything!)

I am currently back at my flat in London and plan to update the blog as I find time. Au revoir!