France did it. It surpassed any presumptions I had about traveling and hospitality and genuinely sincere people. I'm going to cut right to the chase with this entry's featured soul:
You (and your family), single-handedly made our trip to France spectacular. From the second you picked us up at the train station to the moment we headed in our separate directions, Jen and I had an absolutely brilliant time. Even when Jen struggled to stay awake as we drove all over France that Friday afternoon, I'm sure she loved every second of her dreams as well.
(Thursday Night): Jen and I had quite a bit of difficulty going to bed early. We had to wake up by 4:30am Friday morning in order to make it to the Tube station and catch the first train to central London. Things went very well considering how early it was. We were out the door by 5:30am, and arrived at the platform roughly 30 seconds before the train got there. When we got to our stop, we walked across the station to the Eurostar/chunnel platforms. (The "chunnel" is a train that runs under water, taking us straight from London to Paris). We arrived around 10:30am in Paris on Friday morning. Nico, a saint stuck in traffic, arrived just 5 minutes later and was standing under terminal sign #8 waiting for us.
We walked to the car, and immediately started the 2.5 hour drive to Montrichard to catch Le Tour de France. Thanks to Nico, we made it with time to spare and managed to see the entire tour pass.
Even before making it to Paris, we were fortunate enough to see the beautiful French countryside and everything that it entails. The area we stopped at in Montrichard was right near a river that wrapped around the French countryside.
After catching The Tour, we was pretty fulfilled already and our weekend wasn't even close to being over. Nico drove us to Le château de Chenonceau: an old castle that I'm going to eventually move into. It was equipped with a hedge maze, multiple outdoor paths, and just all the beauty of the château on its very own.
After we had our share of Chenonceau, we were Paris bound. Jen fell asleep, again, but I won't add a picture in hopes she still considers me a friend . When we arrived in Paris, we headed to Nico's house to drop off our bags and settle in a bit. Nico: You have the most charming house I've ever been in. If only I knew more French and felt comfortable enough speaking it to tell your parents!
We stayed for only 10 minutes before we realized how hungry we were. We headed out to meet up with Florian, Ben, and some other friends of Nico's that I had not yet met. Where did we go for our first taste of French cuisine? Why, none other than KFC.
See, KFC in France is more than just Kentucky Fried Chicken. It's more like Kentucky-Derby Fried Chicken. You actually sit down and eat it there. And talk to people. And enjoy it (without having a heart attack afterward).
... and they had a ball pit.
They should really specify on those signs what "children" are. What do you mean by "children", exactly? Young at heart? Under the age of 50? Please be more detailed with your descriptions next time.
After KFC and a change of clothes, we headed out into a dark Paris. Unfortunately, the Eiffel Tower wasn't lit for the night, but I did get to see Notre Dame at night as my very first "must-see". I'm actually thankful my attention was set only there as I took it all in.
To follow, we found a cozy, pitch-black, hot as hades pub. Reading menus by cell phone light: Check.
The next morning (early-afternoon?), we headed out around 11:30 because Nico was, once again, a saint that let us sleep in until 11:00-ish. Disclaimer: I'm generally an early-riser, but all the traveling and constant stimuli can really take it out of a person.
Dressed and armed with chocolate croissants, we got back in the red Peugeot and headed into the city. First things first: We headed to the Eiffel Tower. Jen fell asleep in the car on the way there. It was enormous in comparison to how I imagined it would be. Honestly, though. The one in Vegas doesn't even come close. That structure is popular across cultures for a very good reason.
After The Eiffel Tower, we headed to a little French Cafe for lunch. Nico helped me order, as my French is honestly pretty atrocious. It didn't help that the waiter instinctively knew that French was not our primary language, and hardly gave us any time to even try to construct a cohesive sentence.
My first *real* French cuisine:
After lunch, we headed to the greatest gallery in all of France: The Louvre. We saw the Mona Lisa, and many, many other portraits and sculptures and paintings. To be completely honest, Mademoiselle Lisa was a total letdown. Like anticipating the release of your favorite novel in film form, and wanting to throw skittles at the projector. But, I did find other things of total and complete interest.
After The Louvre, it was a quick stop to see the Arch de Triumph, as well as the Moulin Rouge. Both worth seeing.
After all of the above, we headed to what proved to be my favorite part of a Saturday in Paris: *Montmartre Hill* to see THE Sacre Coeur. This is an old Cathedral on the highest hill of Paris, overlooking the entire city. After being heckled by various vendors all the way to the top, we literally found sanctuary inside the sanctuary. We were "shushed" immediately upon entering, but for great reasons. After wandering through the cathedral in complete silence, we headed back outside to the front steps of Sacre Coeur.
We stepped onto the platform, and just looked. Not at each other, not at the plethora of tourists surrounding us, but just out. In front of us. Out into the city. Nobody said a word. I didn't look to my right and left to make sure Nico and Jen were doing the same. We stood there, completely unaware of our surroundings, and just stopped everything but our eyes for awhile. No pictures, no commentary, just the very site.
(This photo was taken prior to entering the cathedral.)
Mind? Satisfied.
Body? Time to eat.
What's for dinner? CREPES. Savory for the meal, sweet for the desert.
A day of transportation.
Our Sunday consisted of moving by foot, motorcycle, car, airplane, subway, and train. All in one day.
We landed (successfully), drove back to the city center, and scouted for some carbs. After eating in front of Notre Dame, it was time to head back to the train station. Nico not only walked us to the car to get our bags, but he also walked us back upstairs to our platform. After a surprisingly somewhat tearful goodbye, Jen and I hurried up to wait some more before boarding the train. I don't know if I was sad from saying goodbye to a great friend or the weekend of bliss in general, but I was bumming. Hard.
That just about tells it all. Today (Wednesday) was my last day of interning, and this weekend it's off to Ireland.
Nico: I'll see you and Florian and Benjamin in 3 short weeks when you arrive in Wisconsin. Bisous, and 1 million thank-yous. Merci Beaucoup Nicolas.
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