I cannot believe that I have been in Paris for a month now....how crazy is that?! It feels like I've been here forever so it's like time is going by slowly but at the same time so quickly!! Ahhh I want it to slow down! I don't want my time here to go by so fast! I'm really starting to like being here and I feel like 6 and a half months isn't enough!! If only I could extend my stay here...after all I have an 8 month visa muahaha. But I can't because I have to start school in August (if I decide to go back to texas) or September (if I decide to go back to Montreal), but its most likely that I'll start in August. How sad.
This month has been amazing, if you would have asked me five years ago or even a year ago where I saw myself in 2012, I would've never guessed Paris. It just shows you how crazy life is eh? It takes you to the least expected places and you do things that you've never imagined you would get to live. That is why you should always expect the unexpected.
I feel like I'm so high with life, if I'm allowed to say that hehe. I'm just so freaking happy at the moment and it feels great. I am so so so thankful that I'm here and everyday when I'm walking around I can't believe I'm actually here. Not just visiting, but living in this beautiful city. Oh I so want to stay here.
I think that I've done pretty good in the month that I've been here. I mean it started out a bit rough for me because I was dealing with some emotional stuff and I thought I would never see the end of it, but now I am finally getting used to being here and I'm just loving getting to discover this city everyday. I also think that I've done more than other au pairs in my first month...well at least from what they make it sound like.
I was talking to this au pair that has already been here for like 4 months and she told me that she felt that she hasn't done that much and that she hasn't taken that many pictures... Umm hello??!! Why aren't you taking pictures??! YOU'RE IN PARIS. I simply don't understand how you don't take pictures. I go picture obsessed when I'm walking. I want to remember everything about this trip and have something to look back in a few years. But I guess everyone is different....
What have I done in one month? Well here's a little list...
-I've already visited 3 museums (I went to my 3rd one yesterday with my french date hehe, and best part of it was that I got to go in for FREE because it is free for those who are between 18-25 years old. Technically it's only for those in the european union but they just asked me for my age and didn't really ask me where I was from... so I just stayed quiet hehe)
-I've been to the eiffel tower (not the very top, but I'll go once it's warmer) AND got to ice skate in the eiffel tower.
-Seen Notre-Dame (still need to go to the top though)
-Seen the Moulin Rouge (however I still have to go see a show)
-Sacre-Coeur/Place Tertre (again need to go inside the church)
-Somewhat know my way around the metro, for most parts at least
-Have friends (sometimes it can be hard to find people you really click with)
-Met a french boy
-Been to the Champs Elysees
-Seen the Arch du Triomphe
-Seen Jardin du Luxembourg
-Have gone shopping
-Seen the Pantheon
I can't really think of what else...well either way I have been writing most of the things I've done so I'm sure you guys don't need me telling you what I've seen again. Oh and I hope that this list doesn't come off as me "showing off" or snobby! I was just writing it out also to remind myself that so far I've had a good stay in Paris and I can't wait to see what the next few months have in store for me!
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Notre-Dame
First of all, I want to apologize for my last post. I feel like its just terrible writing and I don't understand why...perhaps its because I was just so freaking tired of writing. I had spent the whole weekend writing admission essays for University in the States. I still had my "essay mode" on, and I think I wasn't writing "freely". I hope this post is better hehe.
This past friday was a beautiful and perfect day for discovering Paris. I was supposed to go see the Musee d'Orsay with my british friend ( I think I need to come up with nicknames so I don't use their names (privacy reasons) and that way I'm not always writing "my british friend" my "american friend"). But once again, we didn't end up going to the museum. But this time it wasn't because we didn't have time, it was more because it was just so nice outside to be inside a museum.
So I met her at La Sorbonne, which is a very well known University here in Paris, because she was going to register for her french courses. I had heard about the french lessons they have at the Sorbonne, and thought that it would probably be better than taking random french lessons but once I saw the price.... yeah definitely cannot afford that. Well I could but I don't want to spend 1,400 euros in french lessons!! I might as well buy myself a Louis Vuitton bag.... haha no no, of course lessons are better than a LV bag but yeah you get the point, they're freaking expensive! Anyways, so after she registered we wondered around and headed towards the Seine. We ended up in Notre-Dame and let me tell you it's beautiful. The details that went into the outside decor are insane. I wonder how long it must've taken! Every time I see a church like this I am so thankful for religion being so big back then. Thanks to religion we get to see these beautiful works of art. Even though I had already seen the church from the inside I wanted to go back again because all I could remember from last time I visited was that I wasn't really impressed... that I thought that the Notre-Dame in Montreal was prettier. I thought to myself that is not possible! I must have been blind back then...after all I was 15.
Oh yes, I was blind back then. The inside was beautiful, of course Notre-Dame in Montreal is still gorgeous, but the one in Paris is beautiful in it's own way. It is much larger than the one in Montreal, with its very high ceilings and long arches. The windows were so mystical, and as the sun shined you could see all the different colors being reflected on the walls.
After going all around the inside of the church we sat in the little plaza that is in front of Notre-Dame and just stared at it. I like to once in a while just sit down and admire things, take a mental picture. I think its important to do this once in a while, stop whatever you're doing and smell the flowers. Life goes by so fast, and we need to remember to appreciate the small things. Appreciate beauty and capture it in our minds, after all memories are the only things we have in the end.
After having lunch in a resto near by, we continued to walk and passed by the City Hall. The City Hall made me feel like I was in Germany or Bruxelles. It had a very different design from what you usually find in Paris. Then we continued to walk and found ourselves in front of the Pompidou Museum. This is what I love about Paris, you can get anywhere you want by metro and walking. Even if you have to walk a little from the metro to your destination it doesn't feel like it's such a long walk because there's always something to see, something to discover. If you look in a map our whole walk, you would see we walked a lot, we went from one side of the Seine to the other side. But it was an enjoyable walk, we got to see so much and I saw for the first time a Mexican restaurant in Paris! I actually went back yesterday (I am writing this on a Sunday) and bought some beans because I'm making something for my host family. But OMG, the beans were so freaking expensive! 7.50 euros!! they better be worth it....
We also found this really cool shopping mall/plaza/hall... don't really know if it can be considered a mall since it's more of a hall. It was very nice and quiet, but the stores that where there were SO expensive! Most of them where jewelry stores and even the simplest things cost around 50 euros! I don't know the name of the place because we were walking and we just found it, and even though everything is expensive, it's still a nice place to go visit because of the glass ceiling, here's a picture...
We walked around the Pompidou museum looking for a store that my friend had seen last time but didn't remember exactly where it was. Instead of her buying what she wanted to buy, it was me who ended up buying this really small, simple, but cute, bracelet with a 4 leaf clover. I usually never wear bracelets because I have very small wrists and can never find a bracelet that is not too big, but this one caught my attention and it was a perfect fit. So I bought it! I bought it not only because I liked it and hoped it would bring me luck (yeah I'm kinda superstitious hehe) but also to remind myself how lucky I already am. Whenever I feel like complaining about life or whenever something bad happens, I'll just look down and remember that I'm lucky to be here in this amazing city.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Dali and the Legion d'Honneur
Last saturday my british friend and I had a museum day. At first I wanted to go visit a couple of cemeteries because apparently a lot of famous dead people are buried in Paris but unfortunately weather was not on our side, so we decided to do something indoors and that is how we ended up going to museums.
We first went to the Dali exposition which is located right next to Place du Tertre in Montmartre. To be honest, I've never heard of Dali before. You're probably right now thinking to yourself "Oh my God",but hey that's why I'm going to museums! To learn more about art and history hehe. When we got to the expo I right away recognized one of his famous art work which is the clock that is melting. I'm sure many of you know what I'm talking about, even I know about that art work... I didn't know who the artist was,but I knew about the work of art haha.
His art was quite interesting, very unique. What impressed me the most is that he used this technique were he drew everything with lines and if you look at it, it looks so simple but I'm sure if I were to try to draw with that technique, all you would see would be lines. After all, isn't that what artists do? They make something look so simple yet not everyone can do it. The expo wasn't very big, we took our time however and probably stayed for 1hr and a half.
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| The famous Mae West chair |
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| There was a lot of melting clocks |
We then went to the same restaurant I went last time I visited Montmartre (the place with the onion soup hehe) and I tried for the first time des escargots! (That is french for snails). Yes people, I tried snails! I never thought I would, but there I was savoring one of the most famous dishes of french cuisine.
Honestly, they weren't that great. They weren't slimy (thank God) and it felt like you were eating a mussel. The snail itself didn't taste like anything, all you could taste is the broth they cook them with which from what I could pick up had garlic and other herbs. I wasn't impressed but I wasn't grossed out either by the whole experience. I think that maybe it was the restaurant, perhaps if I go somewhere else they'll be better.
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| It was so hard to use that weird looking utensil. |
After eating lunch (late lunch actually, we ate around 3 and finished around 4) we decided to head to Musee d'Orsay. Unfortunately by the time we go there it was already 5 o'clock and they start kicking people out at 5:30. So we decided it would not be worth paying to just go for 30 min. Either way it didn't matter, we have 6 months to go visit! hahaha We were about to leave when I look at this building right in front of the museum and it looked like a quite fancy place so I decided to get closer to see what it was. Turns out it was the museum "Legion d'Honneur", which is a museum filled with medals from the military, different honor societies, different legions and from several parts of the world.
The museum was free and not very big, so even if they were closing in 40 min. we would probably get to see most of it. You might be thinking "What is so interesting about medals?" but trust me it really was interesting! A lot of them were beautiful, filled with diamonds, rubies, emeralds.... old school bling. I thought to myself how this must have been the "jewelry" for men back then.
Then they had this section where they had different medals from different countries which was really interesting because you got to see the difference from country to country. They had medals from China, Denmark, England, Ireland (most of Europe) and then they had medals from America (i.e: ALL of America, not just the States hehe).
I even found a medal from Canada and Quebec! It was so disappointing though. It was the simplest medal ever, and after seeing medals that were completely covered with diamonds....well lets just say it didn't impress. I wish I could post pictures but I didn't even take pictures! So sorry my followers, but here's a link to the museum website... they have a virtual tour if you really want to see what they were like.
I'm not sure if we got to see all of the museum. I thought we did but then as we were leaving I saw a staircase that lead to another floor, but they were closing so I didn't get to see if there was anything up there. I then went home to eat supper before I went on my first Parisian date. I was really nervous and kept thinking to myself "why am I even doing this?!" but I forced myself to go. If you are in Paris and are looking for a good place to go bar hoping go to St. Michel (close to St.Germain-des-Pres), because it an area that has a really fun "ambiance". But I do warn you, if you want to have a place to sit you have to go early, apparently people here go out early (before 9 because at nine all the bars are full), I thought it would be the opposite but I guess not. We went to this bar called " Les stages Germain" I think, and I would recommend it to anybody who wants to go have a drink with close friends and be able to talk.
Anyways, I have to go because I have my french class in an hour. I had an exam on tuesday and I think I failed! It's not because I didn't understand, I do, it's just I completely blanked out when I got the test (how typical of me). But hopefully I didn't fail! I'll let you know
Anyways, I have to go because I have my french class in an hour. I had an exam on tuesday and I think I failed! It's not because I didn't understand, I do, it's just I completely blanked out when I got the test (how typical of me). But hopefully I didn't fail! I'll let you know
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Pink Castles and Boom
Yesterday I went to go visit Versailles with my fellow American friend (okay yes I know I'm not "American" but I'm from Mexico AND Canada, so I just call myself american. Sometimes at least, since it's so much easier that way. I'm not implying I'm from the States, only that I am from North America).
Apparently entering the gardens is free, which is awesome because it's so nice to go for a walk. You get to see the castle, the fountains, the Trianon etc, all for free! Then if you feel like going inside any of these places then you just pay.
We started our walk from the back entrance of the garden, the closest one to the Petit Trianon. I don't know exactly the story behind the Trianon (I did not go on the tour, but I plan on going again during Spring time) but from the movie "Marie-Antoinette", starring Kristen Dunst, it was a gift from Louis to Marie. It was her escape and Louis could not visit her unless she invited him!
Next to the Petit Trianon she has a small village that looks like what I imagine villages back then looked like. My friend told me that Marie-Antoinette paid actors to act as farmers and village people. Looks like she wanted to have a normal life without actually having it?
Then we walked towards the Trianon, which is this big palace that is PINK, yes you read right PINK. It is so amazing and crazy! It's made out of pink marble,imagine how expensive that marble must be?! I didn't even know it was possible to have pink marble. As I walked around this beautiful place with beautiful gardens, I tried to picture myself living in those days. What would it feel like? How cool would that be? Yes it was probably lonely and annoying because of the responsibility you had as royalty, but still I'm curious to know what it was like back then.
We then walked all the way up to Versailles, and no wonder people hated the King and Queen. That place is massive and the gardens just make it even bigger. To think that there was thousands of people without food and they were living in pretty much their own city. It's too bad that Louis actually didn't live there long enough to actually enjoy the finished product.
I decided not to go inside the castle and wait for spring or just right before summer vacations ( I don't want to go when there's a lot of tourists, you can never enjoy properly the sight because you feel so rushed) so I can see the gardens again because even though they're still beautiful now, the fountains aren't on and there's not leaves in the trees hehe.
Later that night my American friend and I decided to go meet our british friend at an english pub called "Le Bombardier". I took the RER (train) instead of the metro since my host parents said it would be so much closer to the pub if I took the RER, since the stop is closer and that it's right there. So I figured, since it's just "right there" I won't take my map (I always carry my map with me, it's indispensable!), which wasn't a good idea.
We didn't get lost, but we did go around in circles and definitely took longer than it was supposed to (on our way back we realized we turned one street before the one we actually had to turn to haha). So like women who don't have a problem with asking directions, unlike men, we stopped at a bistro and asked where the "Pantheon" was (the bar was right next to the Pantheon). This lady went outside with us and explained us which way to go, I was so surprised and grateful because I found that I don't find a lot go friendly people in Paris. Well at least people who work in the customer service department (If you don't get why, read my horrible shopping experience in my post "Shoes, shoes, shoes"). She told us "You walk up this street and then turn right on the 4th street. You can't miss it, it's like BOOM, there it is!"
Yeah, that was a big boom alright. I cannot describe how I felt so blown away by that view. I think I just found my third love (Tour eiffel being my first, then Versailles). I was walking and then I look to my left and there it is, this magnificent building full of history. I just wanted to stand there and look at it all night. It was so beautiful. I regretted that moment not bringing my camera, but I took a mental picture. I will never forget that feeling of being blown away by it. It definitely felt like boom.
We finally found the pub, and to my surprise there was a lot of french people. Yes I know I'm in Paris, obviously there was going to be french people, but I figured since it's an english pub all the british expats would be there. We got some drinks, and waited for our other friend to arrive. As we were talking out of nowhere this guy comes up to me and asks me if I speak english or french. I say english because I learned that if you don't want a guy talking to you just say "I don't speak french" and that'll solve the problem haha. But I said english because I wasn't sure what he wanted. He told me he would like to buy me a drink. Wow, was I hearing right? A french guy not only wanting to buy me a drink but also noticing me? I'm not sure if I've mentioned before, but french men don't look at you. It's as if you don't exist. I'm not kidding, every time I go out, I don't even get a glance from a guy and it's not only me who feels this way, all my friends have noticed too (and no we're not ugly girls).
I was hesitant at first, but then I decided to take a chance, why not? So we got some drinks and spent the rest of the night talking. I won't go into details about what we talked about etc, because that would just be weird. I'm writing a blog not a diary. However one thing I will write about is something he asked me which I found it so funny. He asked me if where I come from if guys do this (buying a girl a drink), I wanted to answer him "Of course they do, it's normal. I'm surprised you guys do this here" (because of the way it feels french men don't even glance at us).
I gave him my number and he asked me out to the movies this weekend. I'm a bit nervous because well dating someone from another culture can be quite different. What you think is normal could probably not be normal for them. For example, I read a blog about a girl who now lives in Paris and how she met her boyfriend at a party and at the end of the night she decided to kiss him. Turns out he thought they where official! The girl was obviously confused, she had just met the guy, but he explained to her that in France you don't kiss someone just for kissing them, you kiss them because you like them and want things to be serious.
This is why I'm scared, I better be careful with every move I take!
Apparently entering the gardens is free, which is awesome because it's so nice to go for a walk. You get to see the castle, the fountains, the Trianon etc, all for free! Then if you feel like going inside any of these places then you just pay.
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| This map shows only one part of Versailles |
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| Le petit Trianon, so much for little |
Next to the Petit Trianon she has a small village that looks like what I imagine villages back then looked like. My friend told me that Marie-Antoinette paid actors to act as farmers and village people. Looks like she wanted to have a normal life without actually having it?
Then we walked towards the Trianon, which is this big palace that is PINK, yes you read right PINK. It is so amazing and crazy! It's made out of pink marble,imagine how expensive that marble must be?! I didn't even know it was possible to have pink marble. As I walked around this beautiful place with beautiful gardens, I tried to picture myself living in those days. What would it feel like? How cool would that be? Yes it was probably lonely and annoying because of the responsibility you had as royalty, but still I'm curious to know what it was like back then.
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| Gotta love her, she gave us the gift of being able to see a pink castle |
We then walked all the way up to Versailles, and no wonder people hated the King and Queen. That place is massive and the gardens just make it even bigger. To think that there was thousands of people without food and they were living in pretty much their own city. It's too bad that Louis actually didn't live there long enough to actually enjoy the finished product.
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| Chateau de Versailles |
I decided not to go inside the castle and wait for spring or just right before summer vacations ( I don't want to go when there's a lot of tourists, you can never enjoy properly the sight because you feel so rushed) so I can see the gardens again because even though they're still beautiful now, the fountains aren't on and there's not leaves in the trees hehe.
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| I think this is what heaven's gates look like |
Later that night my American friend and I decided to go meet our british friend at an english pub called "Le Bombardier". I took the RER (train) instead of the metro since my host parents said it would be so much closer to the pub if I took the RER, since the stop is closer and that it's right there. So I figured, since it's just "right there" I won't take my map (I always carry my map with me, it's indispensable!), which wasn't a good idea.
We didn't get lost, but we did go around in circles and definitely took longer than it was supposed to (on our way back we realized we turned one street before the one we actually had to turn to haha). So like women who don't have a problem with asking directions, unlike men, we stopped at a bistro and asked where the "Pantheon" was (the bar was right next to the Pantheon). This lady went outside with us and explained us which way to go, I was so surprised and grateful because I found that I don't find a lot go friendly people in Paris. Well at least people who work in the customer service department (If you don't get why, read my horrible shopping experience in my post "Shoes, shoes, shoes"). She told us "You walk up this street and then turn right on the 4th street. You can't miss it, it's like BOOM, there it is!"
Yeah, that was a big boom alright. I cannot describe how I felt so blown away by that view. I think I just found my third love (Tour eiffel being my first, then Versailles). I was walking and then I look to my left and there it is, this magnificent building full of history. I just wanted to stand there and look at it all night. It was so beautiful. I regretted that moment not bringing my camera, but I took a mental picture. I will never forget that feeling of being blown away by it. It definitely felt like boom.
We finally found the pub, and to my surprise there was a lot of french people. Yes I know I'm in Paris, obviously there was going to be french people, but I figured since it's an english pub all the british expats would be there. We got some drinks, and waited for our other friend to arrive. As we were talking out of nowhere this guy comes up to me and asks me if I speak english or french. I say english because I learned that if you don't want a guy talking to you just say "I don't speak french" and that'll solve the problem haha. But I said english because I wasn't sure what he wanted. He told me he would like to buy me a drink. Wow, was I hearing right? A french guy not only wanting to buy me a drink but also noticing me? I'm not sure if I've mentioned before, but french men don't look at you. It's as if you don't exist. I'm not kidding, every time I go out, I don't even get a glance from a guy and it's not only me who feels this way, all my friends have noticed too (and no we're not ugly girls).
I was hesitant at first, but then I decided to take a chance, why not? So we got some drinks and spent the rest of the night talking. I won't go into details about what we talked about etc, because that would just be weird. I'm writing a blog not a diary. However one thing I will write about is something he asked me which I found it so funny. He asked me if where I come from if guys do this (buying a girl a drink), I wanted to answer him "Of course they do, it's normal. I'm surprised you guys do this here" (because of the way it feels french men don't even glance at us).
I gave him my number and he asked me out to the movies this weekend. I'm a bit nervous because well dating someone from another culture can be quite different. What you think is normal could probably not be normal for them. For example, I read a blog about a girl who now lives in Paris and how she met her boyfriend at a party and at the end of the night she decided to kiss him. Turns out he thought they where official! The girl was obviously confused, she had just met the guy, but he explained to her that in France you don't kiss someone just for kissing them, you kiss them because you like them and want things to be serious.
This is why I'm scared, I better be careful with every move I take!
Saturday, January 14, 2012
My affair with Eiffel
I am in love...in love with the Eiffel tower. It's got to be my favorite thing about Paris, it's just so amazing. Every time I see it and specially when I past by it I can't help myself but stare at it and say "wow". It looks so glorious, so magical, so elegant.
Yesterday, my day was all about eiffel. Some au pairs where going to go ice skating at the Eiffel Tower and the friend I made last saturday invited me to come. After dropping off the youngest kid at daycare I decided to head to the tower even if we were only supposed to meet at 11:45 (I dropped off the kid at 9:30). I bought a lunch in a boulangerie (I've come to love boulangeries because they have the best pastries at a very affordable price and they have cheap sandwiches/food) and walked to the eiffel tower. I sat in a bench in the Champ de Mars and ate my sandwich. Lunch in front of the eiffel tower, check.
I then walked around the Champs, just to kill time. It was so nice and peaceful, it felt like I was in a different city. I've come to like parks like this, Paris can be such a hectic city and people always seem to be rushing, so being in a park it calms me down. It's like a small get away from all the craziness of the city.
I then met up with my friend and we walked to the carrousel in front of the tower to meet the other girls. We decided to take the stairs to go up the tower instead of the elevator because of two things:
1-There was a huge line for the elevator
2-It's so much cheaper
I think I should clear something, you guys are probably thinking "Wow, she's being so cheap for everything!' but trust me, everything here is so expensive, and well I live out of my au pair stipend, so I try to cut down cost in as much as I can so the money can last me longer and I can save it for when I want to take weekend trips.
Okay, so going back to the stairs... Omg, that was such a work out, I am so out of shape!! To think that in 1905 there was a record of someone RUNNING up the stairs to the 1st floor (I think 2nd, or 1st not sure) in 3 min and 10 seconds (or something like that)!!!! It took us like 10 minutes to WALK up the stairs (minus us taking pictures midway up) and those 10 minutes felt like 20 haha. I clearly need to start working out again.
We then finally made it to the 1st floor (we had only paid to get to the 2nd floor, I think to get to the third you actually need to take the elevator ) and we ice skated for a while. It was a small ice rink and very bumpy but it was free and it wasn't so bad. It was nice, and the view was amazing, which also made it so dangerous because you're skating and then you look on the other side and bam! there's the Champ de Mars, Paris...it was hard to not get distracted haha.
After that we went up to the 2nd floor and took some pictures. We then went down the stairs and went to Trocadero to take more pictures.
We got together last night and went to club 67 (pronounced six seven and not sixty seven haha). After me taking us to the wrong metro and in the wrong direction (that was not the time to have bad orientation, we were all wearing high heels!) we finally made it to the club. When we got in, we saw that nobody was dancing, even if there was a lot of people. We then realized that there was something going on in the dance floor, and you will never guess what it was.... STRIP TEASE SHOW!
It was SO random, and confusing...had I brought us to a strip club? It was so funny though, because it was a strip tease show for girls ( I guess it was their birthday) and well one of the dancers was dressed as a Marine, and another guy covered himself with the american flag haha. Oh and then there was some girl on girl action, yes boys, girl on girl. They brought this girl to the stage and then this female dancer, stripper whatever she was, told her to lie down on the floor and well... she did her routine to say the least. I didn't see much, because by that time it was more crowded and more people around the circle (and of course, now there was more men in the circle haha, it must've made their night).
We stayed there until 2:30 (the strip tease didn't go all night thankfully because I really wanted to dance and blow off some steam) because I didn't know how I was going to get home (there was no more metro). I knew there was a night bus that went to my house but I had to take it at Chatelet..problem is I didn't know how to get to Chatelet from the Champs Elysees!!
Thankfully right next to the club, there was a bus stop that went to Chatelet (thank you God!) and I had my first bus ride in Paris. Let me tell you taking the bus is so complicated! Thankfully they mention the stops in the bus because if not, I would have never known when to get off. But even when you get off the bus its so complicated to try to find your next bus. I definitely cannot be drunk and take the bus, too risky. I think I would get lost.
I got off at chatelet and turns out there are different "bus stops" with the name chatelet. So you pretty much have to find the right bus house thingy (totally blanket out on the word for what those bus house thingy's are called). Thankfully I am not afraid of asking for directions haha, and I found my way!
Yesterday, my day was all about eiffel. Some au pairs where going to go ice skating at the Eiffel Tower and the friend I made last saturday invited me to come. After dropping off the youngest kid at daycare I decided to head to the tower even if we were only supposed to meet at 11:45 (I dropped off the kid at 9:30). I bought a lunch in a boulangerie (I've come to love boulangeries because they have the best pastries at a very affordable price and they have cheap sandwiches/food) and walked to the eiffel tower. I sat in a bench in the Champ de Mars and ate my sandwich. Lunch in front of the eiffel tower, check.
I then walked around the Champs, just to kill time. It was so nice and peaceful, it felt like I was in a different city. I've come to like parks like this, Paris can be such a hectic city and people always seem to be rushing, so being in a park it calms me down. It's like a small get away from all the craziness of the city.
I then met up with my friend and we walked to the carrousel in front of the tower to meet the other girls. We decided to take the stairs to go up the tower instead of the elevator because of two things:
1-There was a huge line for the elevator
2-It's so much cheaper
I think I should clear something, you guys are probably thinking "Wow, she's being so cheap for everything!' but trust me, everything here is so expensive, and well I live out of my au pair stipend, so I try to cut down cost in as much as I can so the money can last me longer and I can save it for when I want to take weekend trips.
Okay, so going back to the stairs... Omg, that was such a work out, I am so out of shape!! To think that in 1905 there was a record of someone RUNNING up the stairs to the 1st floor (I think 2nd, or 1st not sure) in 3 min and 10 seconds (or something like that)!!!! It took us like 10 minutes to WALK up the stairs (minus us taking pictures midway up) and those 10 minutes felt like 20 haha. I clearly need to start working out again.
We then finally made it to the 1st floor (we had only paid to get to the 2nd floor, I think to get to the third you actually need to take the elevator ) and we ice skated for a while. It was a small ice rink and very bumpy but it was free and it wasn't so bad. It was nice, and the view was amazing, which also made it so dangerous because you're skating and then you look on the other side and bam! there's the Champ de Mars, Paris...it was hard to not get distracted haha.
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| Going up the stairs |
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| The view from the ice skating rink |
After that we went up to the 2nd floor and took some pictures. We then went down the stairs and went to Trocadero to take more pictures.
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| View of the Eiffel Tower from Trocadero |
We got together last night and went to club 67 (pronounced six seven and not sixty seven haha). After me taking us to the wrong metro and in the wrong direction (that was not the time to have bad orientation, we were all wearing high heels!) we finally made it to the club. When we got in, we saw that nobody was dancing, even if there was a lot of people. We then realized that there was something going on in the dance floor, and you will never guess what it was.... STRIP TEASE SHOW!
It was SO random, and confusing...had I brought us to a strip club? It was so funny though, because it was a strip tease show for girls ( I guess it was their birthday) and well one of the dancers was dressed as a Marine, and another guy covered himself with the american flag haha. Oh and then there was some girl on girl action, yes boys, girl on girl. They brought this girl to the stage and then this female dancer, stripper whatever she was, told her to lie down on the floor and well... she did her routine to say the least. I didn't see much, because by that time it was more crowded and more people around the circle (and of course, now there was more men in the circle haha, it must've made their night).
We stayed there until 2:30 (the strip tease didn't go all night thankfully because I really wanted to dance and blow off some steam) because I didn't know how I was going to get home (there was no more metro). I knew there was a night bus that went to my house but I had to take it at Chatelet..problem is I didn't know how to get to Chatelet from the Champs Elysees!!
Thankfully right next to the club, there was a bus stop that went to Chatelet (thank you God!) and I had my first bus ride in Paris. Let me tell you taking the bus is so complicated! Thankfully they mention the stops in the bus because if not, I would have never known when to get off. But even when you get off the bus its so complicated to try to find your next bus. I definitely cannot be drunk and take the bus, too risky. I think I would get lost.
I got off at chatelet and turns out there are different "bus stops" with the name chatelet. So you pretty much have to find the right bus house thingy (totally blanket out on the word for what those bus house thingy's are called). Thankfully I am not afraid of asking for directions haha, and I found my way!
2nd weekend in Paris
Okay, so I can't really remember what I did last week... and no it's not because I was so drunk I can't remember, it's simply because it wasn't so memorable.
I guess I had high expectations when I was going out last week because of how much fun I had in New Years. I thought that maybe partying every weekend in Paris would be like that...but I guess not haha. Oh wait, I remember now...
Okay so on Friday a British friend invited me and another friend to come to this British expat outing thing, they where going to go bar hopping. I know I am not British but I love the British accent so I figured I would go, maybe I would find some cute British guy so I could listen to his accent all night (I have a thing for accents shh). My other fellow American friend (I should clear that when I say "American" I'm using the word broadly, as in North American. But okay yes she's from the U.S) decided to go together later on because we would only be able to get there around 10 and the event started quite early. When we finally find the street after what I think was 30min. of walking around, we go inside the bar and it just gets awkward. Turns out everybody was so old! and by old I mean in their 30's and up! But thankfully our two British friends where there. We then went to the next bar, and three of us bought the most delicious wine ever.
If you know me you know that I don't really like wine, as my cousin would say "It's an acquired taste", and well since I am in France I know I would eventually end up drinking wine. Not only do I not really like wine, but it also gets me drunk so fast! I could have less than a glass and I'm already feeling tipsy, I kno its hard to believe but its true! One time a friend invited me to dinner and we ordered a bottle of wine and let me tell you that I didn't even finish the glass and I was so tipsy!
Anyways going back to my story...we picked a white wine, a "sauvignon" and it was the cheapest one haha (I paid 7 euros!), but it was so good! This is what I like about France, you can get good cheap wine. It was so good, and I was so happy I was able to drink it! And of course I got tipsy off 2 glasses.
We then went to another bar but it wasn't so much fun so we ended up catching the last metro (1:15 am) and got home by 1:40 ish. I know, kinda sad huh?
Saturday was even sadder. There was a group of au pair girls who where going to meet up at a bar called "L'international" which had 3 bands playing that night. Again my friend and I went together because the girls were going quite early and we would only be able to get there by 10pm.
The bar was so crowded, it took us like 15 min. just to get across and down the stairs to the basement. I thought I was going to die, I got so claustrophobic. It didn't help that I had a coat and a scarf on...oh how I hate going out during winter. When we finally got to the stage we couldn't find the other girls, so we called them and they told us that they where outside. We went outside and they said that they where going to go to "Nouveau Casino" (a club) which was right around the corner. When we got the the club, turns out it was closed! Can you believe they only opened the club at 12? No wonder it's free entry between 12-1am.
So we were the first ones to go in after waiting in line. A bunch of girls had left by then, since they all wanted to catch the last metro to go home.
When we finally got inside the club we sat down in the lounge area to wait for more people to get in, because it was weird if we were the only ones dancing in the empty club. But the other girls we met up with where so quiet and shy, they just sat there doing nothing... so they ended up leaving and my American friend and I stayed with another girl for a little while more, but decided to leave also.
So as you can see, it wasn't a great weekend, but L'international was definitely the place we should have stayed (except for way too many people) and hopefully my friend and I will go tonight. I'll let you know how it was!
I guess I had high expectations when I was going out last week because of how much fun I had in New Years. I thought that maybe partying every weekend in Paris would be like that...but I guess not haha. Oh wait, I remember now...
Okay so on Friday a British friend invited me and another friend to come to this British expat outing thing, they where going to go bar hopping. I know I am not British but I love the British accent so I figured I would go, maybe I would find some cute British guy so I could listen to his accent all night (I have a thing for accents shh). My other fellow American friend (I should clear that when I say "American" I'm using the word broadly, as in North American. But okay yes she's from the U.S) decided to go together later on because we would only be able to get there around 10 and the event started quite early. When we finally find the street after what I think was 30min. of walking around, we go inside the bar and it just gets awkward. Turns out everybody was so old! and by old I mean in their 30's and up! But thankfully our two British friends where there. We then went to the next bar, and three of us bought the most delicious wine ever.
If you know me you know that I don't really like wine, as my cousin would say "It's an acquired taste", and well since I am in France I know I would eventually end up drinking wine. Not only do I not really like wine, but it also gets me drunk so fast! I could have less than a glass and I'm already feeling tipsy, I kno its hard to believe but its true! One time a friend invited me to dinner and we ordered a bottle of wine and let me tell you that I didn't even finish the glass and I was so tipsy!
Anyways going back to my story...we picked a white wine, a "sauvignon" and it was the cheapest one haha (I paid 7 euros!), but it was so good! This is what I like about France, you can get good cheap wine. It was so good, and I was so happy I was able to drink it! And of course I got tipsy off 2 glasses.
We then went to another bar but it wasn't so much fun so we ended up catching the last metro (1:15 am) and got home by 1:40 ish. I know, kinda sad huh?
Saturday was even sadder. There was a group of au pair girls who where going to meet up at a bar called "L'international" which had 3 bands playing that night. Again my friend and I went together because the girls were going quite early and we would only be able to get there by 10pm.
The bar was so crowded, it took us like 15 min. just to get across and down the stairs to the basement. I thought I was going to die, I got so claustrophobic. It didn't help that I had a coat and a scarf on...oh how I hate going out during winter. When we finally got to the stage we couldn't find the other girls, so we called them and they told us that they where outside. We went outside and they said that they where going to go to "Nouveau Casino" (a club) which was right around the corner. When we got the the club, turns out it was closed! Can you believe they only opened the club at 12? No wonder it's free entry between 12-1am.
So we were the first ones to go in after waiting in line. A bunch of girls had left by then, since they all wanted to catch the last metro to go home.
When we finally got inside the club we sat down in the lounge area to wait for more people to get in, because it was weird if we were the only ones dancing in the empty club. But the other girls we met up with where so quiet and shy, they just sat there doing nothing... so they ended up leaving and my American friend and I stayed with another girl for a little while more, but decided to leave also.
So as you can see, it wasn't a great weekend, but L'international was definitely the place we should have stayed (except for way too many people) and hopefully my friend and I will go tonight. I'll let you know how it was!
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Shoes, shoes, shoes!
First of all, I want to say that today makes 2 weeks that I've been here! I can't believe I've been here for 2 weeks already! It really feels like I've been here for a month or two. In these 2 weeks that I've been here I've learned a lot about the Parisian way of life and noticed a lot of things people do. I will actually write a post about all the things I've noticed because I find it quite funny and interesting. I guess it's part of discovering a new culture.
Last week was all about shoes, yes shoes. I have recently become obsessed with looking at people's shoes and their coats. I've noticed that everybody has amazing shoes and fashionable coats. It looks like its all they invest in, nice shoes and nice coats. After all, during winter time that's pretty much all you see of a person's outfit when you're walking in the street.
Since my gray boots that I brought from home kept getting wet, I set out to find the perfect pair of boots that wouldn't be too expensive, wouldn't get soaked if it rained and of course cute. As it turned out, it was hard to find good shoes with my budget. There were thousands of shoes that I saw that I really liked, but everything was so expensive! The cheapest boots I found were like 69 euros (good quality shoes) and the rest where like 100 euros.
Let me tell you that shopping in Paris isn't as easy or amazing as you think it is, sorry to burst your bubble, but I think it's better that I burst it than some rude sales person. Not only are things expensive, but customer service sucks. Maybe it's different if you have thousands of dollars to spend and go to the champs elysees, but if you're like me, looking for the cheapest things possible, then you might not be so lucky. Also stores here open so late!
I went to a street called "Rue de commerce" (its a small street full of shoe and clothing stores) early in the morning in search of new boots, my host mom had said that there was a lot of shoe stores and that they weren't too expensive. I learned that "expensive" is a very vague word and varies from culture to culture. In America you would probably consider a pair of shoes of around $60 and up to be expensive (at least to me). Of course sometimes $60 dollars is reasonable price for the shoe and well boots its another story, because good boots are usually $100. But here in Paris, I guess "not expensive" means 100 euros.
When I arrived to the street to my surprise most stores were closed or were just opening their doors. I was so confused it was already 10 am! Turns out in Paris stores open around 10-10:30 am!! Really Paris?? The shopping capital of the world opening its stores at 10? I couldn't believe it.
I pretty much went to every single shoe store (the ones that were open that is) and of course it was raining and I was wearing the gray boots, so by the time I went to the end of the street I had no choice but to BUY shoes. I couldn't wait and look around at more shops to compare prices because my boots were soaked, my socks too, I had class at 1pm and wouldn't be able to go back home to change.
So finally, as I was heading back down the street, a store that used to be closed was finally open and I went in and found shoes at a more affordable price. I finally settled for some camel colored leather boots, that somewhat make me think of cowboys lol. They cost me 69 euros, but that was a good price compared to the rest of the stores (trust me when I say this). I also fell in love with these wedges that were suede and caramel colored with laces, kinda like a fancy "hiking boot" type of thing. Everybody's wearing them in Paris and at this store they were at 39 euros. I was so tempted but decided to hold off the buy. Good thing I did because yesterday the "soldes" (sales) started!!
Apparently every store in Paris has sales between Jan. 11 to Feb. 4th (not sure about the dates though), and it was like Black Friday/Boxing day madness at the shops. It was torture for me, I wanted to buy so much because everything was so much cheaper but I don't have a lot of money left and whatever I have left I need to spend it wisely. But when I get paid again, I will probably go crazy! But no, I told myself that I will only buy what is necessary! I already made a list of things that I can buy and that is all! (We'll see if I can actually stick to the list haha).
Anyways let me continue on because this post is becoming really long. I think I will talk about my sightseeing and so on in another post and in this one all I'll talk about is my shopping experience.
So let me tell you why I think customer service here is terrible, let me tell you a little story that happened tuesday.... I decided to go see the "Jardin du Luxembourg" before my class on tuesday and as I was walking down the street "rue Vavin" I found a store that had posters everywhere saying that everything was 10 euros... 10 euros??! I of course turned myself around and crossed the street to see what there was. I found this super cute sweater that is supposed to be a dress type of thing (you wear leggings underneath). But the size said "TU" which means "Taille unique" (one size only) and I wasn't sure if that was going to fit me or not. I then found the same sweater in another color but it looked much bigger than the one I had, since there was no dressing room I couldn't see which one would actually fit me better. So I turned to the sales clerk (a woman) to ask her which one she would think would fit me better (I needed a second opinion) and she told me that they where the same size. I told her that one looked bigger than the other one, and she was like no they're the same size, it says TU=one size only, it's the color that makes it look bigger.
If you would have seen the sweaters you could CLEARLY see that one was longer than the other one, I am not stupid lady, I know what one size only means but it doesn't mean that it couldn't have been stretched out or something.
So I turned around and looked in the mirror deciding which one would be better, I then turned around and asked her for her opinion and she pretty much screamed at me in a very annoyed tone "It's the same size, I already told you!" I couldn't believe that she was screaming at me! I would've left but I really wanted that sweater. Man I was so upset at her for screaming!!Who does that? I then paid and she told me "There's no returns you know that right?" I answered yeah (I just wanted to get out of there) and left. Talk about mood swings.
I also went to the postal office that day and the lady seemed so impatient with me! Every time I would ask her something she would answer in a tone and with a face that pretty much said "okay, yeah whatever, hurry up". That day made me miss shopping back home, of course everything here is very fashionable and all, but it seems so complicated to go shopping. Oh how I miss Wal-Mart, Target etc... never thought I would say that.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Monmartre
So on Monday, my last day before I officially started work as an au pair, I decided to do some sightseeing and it was the perfect day for it because it was finally sunny! I met up with a girl I met in NYE who's from California and we went to Montmartre.
As we exited the metro we started looking for the "Place St. Michel" because apparently it's really nice to go see; it's filled with fabrics, buttons and all kinds of things for sewing. I knew I wasn't going to buy anything for sewing but hey, I'm in Paris might as well see everything it has to offer! But unfortunately we couldn't find it, even though it was supposed to be super close to Sacre-Coeur. Just as we were arriving to Sacre-Coeur (it's a huge white Basilica on top of a quite big cliff) it started pouring rain! Oh no, I couldn't believe it! Just when we get there it starts to rain, and my boots got soaked again! (Damn, I really need new ones). We waited a little until it calmed down, since of course none of us had an umbrella. It finally stopped and we went all the way up.
The stairs were a good work out, but the view was so worth it. It was amazing! You could see all of Paris, it was incredible. As I stood there looking at Paris, I couldn't believe I was actually here! So many people dream of just visiting Paris and I get to live here! The basilica was also beautiful, definitely worth seeing if you're ever in Paris. We didn't go inside because we wanted to go to the top of the church to see the view (oh no more stairs! haha) and since it was still cloudy it would be better if we went another day that was more clear. Besides we have 7 months to get to visit the basilica!
We then walked to "Place Tertre" which is a small plaza filled with portrait artist and cafes. Back in 2007 I got my portrait done here, it brought back some memories. It such a cute little plaza.
We then walked down some more stairs, and found a little cafe were we thought we saw a special of 1 appetizer, 1 main dish and 1 dessert all for 13.50 euros. So we went in but we realized it was either 1 appetizer&1 main dish or 1 main dish and 1 dessert, but still 13.50 euros for that was good. We looked around other places and one dish was like 10 euros. We ordered french onion soup for appetizer, which was delicious! I love soup and this one was so good! Here's a picture...
To my surprise it was actually filling, I couldn't finish my main course because I was already a bit full and the main dish was a good portion. I guess I was expecting the typical american portion for lunch specials, where everything is smaller (but if you go to some restaurants like The cheesecake factory, even the lunch specials are big!).
We then took the metro to Pigalle , which if some you don't know what it is, it's the area where you can find the well known Moulin Rouge. We could've walked there from Sacre-Coeur, since everything is at walking distance, but my boots were soaked and it was getting cold outside and I my feet where frozen.
We took some pictures and walked around the street which was filled with sex shops and some strip clubs. To be honest, I was expecting a bit more. I think I've seen more strip clubs in St. Catherine in Montreal. (Tip for all the girls who want to go visit, use the buddy system!! There was this creepy dude who followed us to the metro. It was really scary, because he kept looking at us and waiting for us to see what metro we were taking.Thankfully we were able to get rid of him)
The girl who I was with she said that this street reminded her of NYC, and I could see that a little bit. It was weird seeing all those bright neon lights all over the street, you don't really see that kind of lighting in Paris.
We then decided to go to the Champs Elysees to see the light decorations before they take them down. I think the best part of that walk was that as we where coming out of the metro, we looked up and bam! there's Arc du Triomphe! It was such a beautiful sight, just seeing it so up close. I got so excited, it felt like I was slapped (in a good way) and getting told "Bam, you're in Paris!".
We walked around and I was glad it wasn't as busy as it was when I had gone the 30th. We wanted to visit the Louis Vuitton store just to look around because it was so big! But there was a huge line, so we'll go another time. We went inside H&M to warm up and of course it was also pretty big, maybe not as much as Louis V. but still. Also everything was black and white (I've notice Parisians wear very dark colors). Oh and we went to Mcdonald's to use the bathroom and it has 3 floors AND computers where you can put your order!! It was insane, I didn't take any pictures because I didn't want to look like an idiot taking a picture of a computer haha. I loved the smell of Mcdonald, not only because I like to have Mcdo once in a while, but also because it made me feel like I was back home. I know that's weird, but it's the same smell as the ones in the U.S & Canada, so I dunno I guess it made me feel like even though I was somewhere else in the world, there was still a small part of America in Paris.
As we exited the metro we started looking for the "Place St. Michel" because apparently it's really nice to go see; it's filled with fabrics, buttons and all kinds of things for sewing. I knew I wasn't going to buy anything for sewing but hey, I'm in Paris might as well see everything it has to offer! But unfortunately we couldn't find it, even though it was supposed to be super close to Sacre-Coeur. Just as we were arriving to Sacre-Coeur (it's a huge white Basilica on top of a quite big cliff) it started pouring rain! Oh no, I couldn't believe it! Just when we get there it starts to rain, and my boots got soaked again! (Damn, I really need new ones). We waited a little until it calmed down, since of course none of us had an umbrella. It finally stopped and we went all the way up.
The stairs were a good work out, but the view was so worth it. It was amazing! You could see all of Paris, it was incredible. As I stood there looking at Paris, I couldn't believe I was actually here! So many people dream of just visiting Paris and I get to live here! The basilica was also beautiful, definitely worth seeing if you're ever in Paris. We didn't go inside because we wanted to go to the top of the church to see the view (oh no more stairs! haha) and since it was still cloudy it would be better if we went another day that was more clear. Besides we have 7 months to get to visit the basilica!
We then walked to "Place Tertre" which is a small plaza filled with portrait artist and cafes. Back in 2007 I got my portrait done here, it brought back some memories. It such a cute little plaza.
We then walked down some more stairs, and found a little cafe were we thought we saw a special of 1 appetizer, 1 main dish and 1 dessert all for 13.50 euros. So we went in but we realized it was either 1 appetizer&1 main dish or 1 main dish and 1 dessert, but still 13.50 euros for that was good. We looked around other places and one dish was like 10 euros. We ordered french onion soup for appetizer, which was delicious! I love soup and this one was so good! Here's a picture...
To my surprise it was actually filling, I couldn't finish my main course because I was already a bit full and the main dish was a good portion. I guess I was expecting the typical american portion for lunch specials, where everything is smaller (but if you go to some restaurants like The cheesecake factory, even the lunch specials are big!).
We then took the metro to Pigalle , which if some you don't know what it is, it's the area where you can find the well known Moulin Rouge. We could've walked there from Sacre-Coeur, since everything is at walking distance, but my boots were soaked and it was getting cold outside and I my feet where frozen.
We took some pictures and walked around the street which was filled with sex shops and some strip clubs. To be honest, I was expecting a bit more. I think I've seen more strip clubs in St. Catherine in Montreal. (Tip for all the girls who want to go visit, use the buddy system!! There was this creepy dude who followed us to the metro. It was really scary, because he kept looking at us and waiting for us to see what metro we were taking.Thankfully we were able to get rid of him)
The girl who I was with she said that this street reminded her of NYC, and I could see that a little bit. It was weird seeing all those bright neon lights all over the street, you don't really see that kind of lighting in Paris.
We then decided to go to the Champs Elysees to see the light decorations before they take them down. I think the best part of that walk was that as we where coming out of the metro, we looked up and bam! there's Arc du Triomphe! It was such a beautiful sight, just seeing it so up close. I got so excited, it felt like I was slapped (in a good way) and getting told "Bam, you're in Paris!".
We walked around and I was glad it wasn't as busy as it was when I had gone the 30th. We wanted to visit the Louis Vuitton store just to look around because it was so big! But there was a huge line, so we'll go another time. We went inside H&M to warm up and of course it was also pretty big, maybe not as much as Louis V. but still. Also everything was black and white (I've notice Parisians wear very dark colors). Oh and we went to Mcdonald's to use the bathroom and it has 3 floors AND computers where you can put your order!! It was insane, I didn't take any pictures because I didn't want to look like an idiot taking a picture of a computer haha. I loved the smell of Mcdonald, not only because I like to have Mcdo once in a while, but also because it made me feel like I was back home. I know that's weird, but it's the same smell as the ones in the U.S & Canada, so I dunno I guess it made me feel like even though I was somewhere else in the world, there was still a small part of America in Paris.
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