The one with what I've been up to

The last few weeks I haven't done any traveling around Europe but that doesn't mean I haven't been active in Paris. I've been to the open air market a few times and did lots of walking around on separate weekends when first Rachel and her friends from Scotland visited, and then when Big Cat and Figs visited the next weekend. As always, we got Berthillon ice cream on l'ile St. Louis, visited Notre Dame and much more. I walked for over 5 hours with Big Cat and Figs and also went back to the Louvre. We had incredible weather all week and I've loved spending so much time outside.

This week I went out to Dinner with a group of French friends at the restaurant, 10. It was quite an experience. First we went to my friend Phillipine's apartment for appetizers and drinks. I tried fish eggs for the first time there. Then we went to the restaurant and met up with a few of Phillipine's French friends so that I could meet more of them. They were really nice and enjoyed practicing their English. I tried some of Greg's fo gras, or duck liver, for an appetizer at the restaurant and it was actually pretty tasty. Then for dinner, I had the fish of the day which was a white fish with scallops in a lobster sauce. It was actually a ton of food considering what French portions are usually like. Then we all got tiramisu for dessert! My favorite :) You can't go wrong with anything that's both coffee and chocolate! It was a really enjoyable dinner and I'm glad I went.

Tuesday I participated in another European experience; I went to a football game! (That's soccer to all Americans.) It was a little rainy but the stadium was huge and the top covered the stands but had a large hole in a middle so the players experienced the temperatures and weather outside. Tuesday's game was France v. Croatia. We sat on the upper deck surrounded by French and the small but full Croatian section was right below us. The entire game, I was amazed because the French would make these huge paper airplanes and throw them down into the Croatian fan section! Then the Croatians basically started a fire in their section of the stands by lighting tons of flares and even threw a few onto the field while the game was going on. It was rowdy and wild. Unfortunately though, the most exciting parts of the night had to do with the fans. The game ended 0-0 tie and I wish I could have really seen the fan's reactions had one of the teams scored. Overall though, we all had a great time and it was a really fun night.

But for now, I'm almost done with another week of classes and finals start next week. I figure I'll start studying for them next week them, because it's time to head off to Barcelona with Courtney for a fun 70 degree and sunny, long weekend!

The one with the English Speaking Mass

Today Hugh and I sought out an English speaking mass. It was on the opposite side of the city and takes about 35 minutes to get to but since we've been going to mass across the street and listening to the whole mass in French, we thought it might be a good time to try and find a mass where we could understand the sermon.

We got to St. Joseph's just as mass was starting. The church is nothing like the grand churches around Paris; it's partially underground and mostly hidden from the average passerby. It is small and rather plain on the inside but at tonight's mass, it was absolutely packed with people. What I wasn't expecting was that about 95% of those people were Asian! Not that there is anything wrong with that and it was great to see so many devoted Catholic Asians. I was simply expecting Americans or maybe some people from the UK and Ireland. The priests were from Ireland and Scotland but take the 2 priests, myself, and my friend Hugh and that's about all the non-Asians in the room. The other funny thing was, for a 5 foot 4 inches girl, I'm not used to feeling like a giant! I felt like the majority of the people in church maybe came up to my shoulder, helping us to stand out even more.

I was glad to have found an English speaking church but I'm not sure if I will go back. I can understand the readings the ordinary of the mass well enough in French so staying with St. Antoine's isn't out of the question.

After mass, I went to La du Falafel, met up with a few friends and enjoyed a yummy Jewish meal. I'd say that was a lot of different cultures for one day!

The one with the Run

I fell in love with Paris today. Now, you might be surprised that I am saying this halfway through my study abroad experience when I've been here for 2 months already. But today something was different.

On the days that I'm in Paris and not traveling or in class, I have a lot of time on my hands. I really want to spend time outside so over the past few weeks I've been running. Now for the past few weeks, I've been a spectator of Paris as I ran down the prairie path, but today I wasn't a spectator anymore; I was finally part of it. Everyday when I run, I admire the Paris rooftops peering over the many trees, bushes, and flowers finally in bloom along the path. Each day I venture farther and farther down the path, passing more and more people.

They're my favorite part, the people. When I first arrived in Paris, we were told that the people were very family oriented and that is why no one works on Sundays because they want to spend time with their families. Anyone who knows anything about me knows that I'm obsessed with my family and the idea of family in general. So the people have become my favorite part of my runs each day. The paths are full of families jogging together, walking the family dog together, or simply out for an afternoon stroll together. These are families and people of every age and size: the elderly couple moving along like turtles but holding hands and smiling none the less, the newlyweds pushing a stroller with their newborn, young couples sitting on benches and sharing a sandwich or leisurely strolling, groups of serious runners, groups of overweight runners trying to get in shape; these are real people. I also pass by many playgrounds on my runs filled with children accompanied by both parents, not just the mothers. Paris isn't "the city" to these people. The residential parts of Paris are mixed in with everything else so to these people, Paris is truly "home."

So on my run today, while admiring the budding trees, blooming flowers, and romantic rooftops like I always do, I finally felt a part of the overall community that passes everyday on that prairie path. I'm not sure what it was exactly. It might have been the smiles and laughs on the kids faces, or the slight waves and nods from passing joggers, or even the fact that I simply knew exactly where I was and where I was going. Whatever the reason, Paris felt like home today. I wish I could show others how I see Paris but I don't think you can get this feeling from visiting, but only from living here.

The one celebrating Unofficial in Ireland

Monday through Thursday passed in a blink of an eye. It felt like I had just gotten home from our epic winter break and before I knew it, I was preparing to leave for Ireland. During the week we finalized our details for our last trip of the semester to Greece and it took up a lot of time. Then Thursday rolled around and what should have been a full day of preparation turned into a scramble. Our flight home from Greece had been cancelled and it changed all our plans. Before we knew it, we completely changed all our plans and booked an entire week in Nice, France instead. I've always wanted to lie on a beach on the French Riviera so I'm not complaining. But all that planning takes time and by dinner, I hadn't packed, blogged, or even figured out the next morning's transportation to the airport.

To expand the time crunch, we had tickets to a dance show that night on the other side of Paris. We left for the show at 8:15, made it there by 9, enjoyed some intriguing modern/contemporary dance portraying human interaction (and anyone who has taken Dance 100 with Philip Johnston knows exactly what that's like), and then finally made it home by 11:15. We quickly packed, figured out the travel details for the next day and managed to get a solid 3 hours of sleep before getting up to catch our flight out.

It was Friday, it was unofficial, and it was 5:30 AM. Time to live it up! We made the trek to Beauvais Airport and finally to Dublin, Ireland by 9:30 AM. Clothed in last year's unofficial v-neck, a green scarf, and my newly purchased green flower clip for my hair, we left the airport for our hostel ready to celebrate the joyous occasion of Unofficial St. Patrick's day. We stopped at a grocery store, grabbed some sandwich and pregame materials and then made it the rest of the few blocks to our hostel. Barnacles was great. Not because it was the best hostel, but because it was full of 30 other U of I study abroad students anxious to celebrate with us. So we spent the day in Dublin just as we would have spent it in Champaign. I loved every minute of spending time with my best friends from home coming together in Dublin, Ireland. We laughed, we played games, and we ate fish and chips. Later that night, we went to a pub to have a pint of real Irish Guinness. Afterwards, we went and met up with Cass and her family at a different pub that was playing live music. It was an incredible Unofficial, and even more incredibly, an Unofficial without any naps! So we ended up calling it an early night around midnight since it had been such a busy day.

The next morning some of the girls got up early and headed to their Cliffs of Moher tour. Courtney and I weren't going until Sunday so we slept in till about 9:30, got ready quickly and made it to the Dublin free walking tour by 10:30 along with our friend Barry. The tour was incredibly informative and gave you a really good feel of the city. Our tour guide was only 19 but seemed to know everything about the city and it's people. He made us laugh, tear up, and even made us hopeful for a better future with his stories. The tour lasted about 3 hours and then Courtney, Barry and I grabbed some lunch and headed to the Guinness brewery for our second tour of the day.

The Guinness tour was awesome. It was similar to the Heineken brewery but emphasized different traits in their beer. Has anyone ever noticed that Guinness kind of tastes like and smells like coffee? It was very apparent when we smelled the cooked barley. After the tour, they taught us the proper way to taste a Guinness using each of the 5 senses. At the very end, we made it to the top of the building which has 360 degrees of glass windows and displays an incredible panoramic view of the entire city. It wasn't the most beautiful day out but the sun was trying its hardest to peak out of the clouds and still created a subtle glow over Dublin. We each enjoyed a full pint of Guinness on the top floor and relaxed while gazing out the windows.

After the tour, we headed back to the hostel to freshen up for our second night. We ended up spending most of the night in the hostel kitchen in our massive group of 35 again. We did eventually make it out but Courtney and I didn't stay out long because we had to be up at 6:20 the next morning for our Cliffs of Moher tour.

The next morning came and I was ecstatic. I'm not sure if I've ever been so excited for a day trip. We went to a few scenic places before actually making it to the cliffs. It was nice to see some of the Country of Ireland before making it to the west coast. When we finally made it to the cliffs though, I couldn't believe my eyes. People say a picture is worth a thousands words but no picture or thousand words of mine could ever do that magnificent sight justice. It was absolutely incredible. The sun came out a little after we arrived and beamed down on us from the south west and we ventured along the grassy edges. Of course, we were walking on dangerous paths but that was half the fun. I took numerous pictures from different angles along the cliffs but as they stretch over 5 miles, I barely captured any of them. Mixed among all these pictures of beautiful landscapes, I managed to take a few solo pictures too. It was a day of model posing for everyone! When it was time to leave an hour and a half later, I was sad to leave the cliffs after barely venturing a mile or so along the edge. I finished the rest of the tour in a sleepy daze looking out the window at the Irish countryside. I'm going to make it back there one day and take the time to fully venture across Ireland.

We made it back to Dublin around 7, grabbed more fish and chips for dinner, and then Courtney and I sat in the kitchen of Barnacles for an hour chatting about the weekend, Ireland, life, love, friends, and many other things before meeting up with Barry and his friends from Milan. For Sunday night, we planned to find the pubs Danny recommended as the best in Dublin. We started with O'Donoghue's for some live music and a pint of Guinness. We listened to the music for about a half hour but unfortunately, they stopped playing soon after that. So we finished our beers and Court, Barry and I headed to the next bar on the agenda: Flannery's. Flannery's by far the best bar I went into in Dublin. It was lively, exciting and filled with a young and energetic crowd when we got there around midnight. It turned into a great night simply hanging out in Flannery's in Dublin. There was no need to venture to another bar; the 3 of us found a table, enjoyed a few more Guinness's together, laughed, talked of past and future times in Champaign and stayed until closing time forced us back to our hostels.

The next morning was the start of a wonderful carefree day. Courtney and I woke up, packed up all our stuff and had it stored in the hostel after we checked out. Then we went to shop on Grafton street. We went into a bunch of adorable stores and perused lots of clothing and accessory lines. After a while, we decided to get lunch and go enjoy it back in St. Stephen's Green. We found a sunny spot on one of the huge fountains, sat down and people watched. The sky was perfectly blue, the sun was out and warm, and the pond opposite us was full of seagulls, birds, and swans. The park had perfectly manicured gardens split up by sidewalks, fountains and patches with trees. It was incredibly peaceful but lively at the same time. The entire park was filled with people going for walks, enjoying lunch, or sitting with friends and family.

After we finished our lunch, we moved to an open bench on the other side of the pond and simply sat and enjoyed the scene around us; we watched the birds fly, the ducks swim, the people pass, the trees blow in the light breeze and all the other wonderful things that pass us by on most days but we are too busy to notice. It was incredible.

We noticed that many people passed by eating ice cream. Courtney and I had a new mission. We had our hearts set on some sort of ice cream and ended up wondering the city center till we found a johnny rockets. 1 chocolate malt for me and Courtney got a chocolate shake, please! We brought them back to the park, found a new spot and sat to enjoy the scenery yet again. After I finished mine, I left Courtney to read her book, and I took off for a long walk though the many different areas of the park. When I got back, it was finally time to head to the airport, ending our incredible day of peaceful relaxation.

We picked up our luggage, took a bus to the airport, grabbed a quick bite to eat and finally boarded the plane. It was midnight by the time we made it home. I quickly unpacked, did some homework, and went to sleep after an amazing long weekend in Ireland. Like I said, I will definitely go back one day, but for now I am grateful to be spending the rest of March in Paris.

The one in Vienna

The last leg of the trip: Vienna!!! We hopped on the train at 8:30 in the morning, just like all the other mornings and headed to Vienna. The train ride wasn't nearly as scenic as the ride from Berlin to Prague but that simply meant that I would sleep more instead of looking out the window. We got to the train station and went to the street level to find Kelsey who was going to meet us there. We saw her coming from afar and had one of those epic movie-esque run and hugs that often occur when two best friends reunite. It was basically like that except that Courtney and I attached Kelsey with hugs and then proceeded to jump up and down for a solid 30 seconds.

After our big reunion, Kelsey brought all of us back to her dorm to put our stuff down and then it was time for the big reunion: Christine, Courtney, Jamie, Monica, Jamie, and Jen, were reunited with Big Cat, Figs, Danny, Max, Robbie, Victor, Ben, Laura, and Jill. It was a very big crew and we were all really excited to spend the next 2 days together. Lucky for all of us, Figs had prepared a walking tour of Vienna that we could all go on together! At the first few buildings, we all listened to Figs read a few key facts out of his Europe book but then the rest of the day turned into walking around the main center of Vienna and the crew showing us some of their favorite places and structures. We went to the top of the Cathedral (unfortunately, I don't know the name of it) but it was incredibly high and gave us a great view of the city. Unfortunately, it seemed like a lot of Vienna was under construction because our grand view of the city was obstructed by many cranes sticking out from between the buildings. Besides the cranes though, the city reminded me of Paris a little because most of the buildings were the same height and had similar structures.

After our walking tour where we saw many of Vienna's finest monuments, including the Parliament, town hall, and the statue to fight away the plague, we headed back to the dorm to make dinner. We made an amazing dinner of chicken parmesan over noodles and sauteed vegetables. It tasted wonderful but I wasn't feeling very well so I had to lie down for a half hour and take a quick nap. After dinner and my nap, we all got ready for our first night out in Vienna. We hung out in the dorms for a little while before heading to a boat party that the Vienna school had arranged. We weren't sure if it was going to be fun or not, but it turned out to be an absolute blast. The party was on the lower level of the boat and was filled with people. We danced the night away with our huge group of friends and the DJ loved us so he played whatever we requested all night. Dancing with that many of my closest friends made me almost feel like I was back in Champaign. Overall, it was a great party. After awhile though, the fog machines became too powerful and it was hard to breath down there so around 2:30 or so, we left the boat to head back to the dorms.

We took a bus home and made it back in no time. It took awhile to figure out sleeping arrangements but by 4:00, we decided on Courtney and Torey in Big Cat's bed while he slept on the floor, Jamie and Monica in other Jamie's bed, Jen on Jill's floor, and I slept with Kelsey in her bed. We were both so tired, I fell asleep right away and didn't wake up until 11:30 the next morning. It was the best 7 and 1/2 hours of sleep I think I've ever had.

When I finally got out of bed, I showered and got ready for the day. We all left the dorms together for the second day in a row. We stopped at the donner kebab stand for lunch and munched on our kebabs on the metro all the way to the Vienna Palace which was our site seeing destination for the day. Naturally, I didn't finish the last bite so I handed it over to Big Cat who happily accepted it.

We got to the palace and walked around the gardens outside for a little bit. Even from the outside, it was very grand and the surrounding gardens were exquisite, even in the winter. It was only bushes and patches of grass but it was obvious where the flowers will bloom in the Spring and I can imagine it will be an incredible sight. It was still a bit chilly in Vienna so we decided to tour the inside of the palace. We paid a small fee to do the imperial tour of the palace while listening to audio guides which explained each room as you walked through it and gave you a good amount of history as well. It was interesting to walk through such an ornate building; I couldn't possibly imagine living there because it simply isn't practical. It's over-extravagant and though it was beautiful, I can see why people resented the nobility. It was also strange to walk around the former home of Maria-Theresa of Austria and Marie-Antoinette before she married the king of France in an arranged marriage. It's no wonder that after living in her Vienna palace Marie-Antoinette would enjoy the luxury of Versailles in Paris.

After touring the palace, we climbed the steep hill through the gardens to the fountain and the other grand building that is now a cafe. There were great views of the city from the top of the hill and we all stood around outside for awhile taking pictures before entering the cafe. Now, we had all been told that Vienna was famous for their apple-strudel so we decided to warm up in the cafe and have a quick snack. Big Cat and I split a strudel and I had a cup of tea to go with it. It really was fantastic. There is this vanilla sauce that has more vanilla flavor than ice cream but is thinner than ice cream yet thicker than milk. The strudel was smothered in this sauce and it was the perfect touch to make it better than an apple pie a-la-mode. It was wonderful.

We headed back to the dorms because the crew had a dinner to go to at their professor's house. So the 6 of us were on our own for dinner. So, the 6 of us did what the 6 of us do best: eat. What do you eat for authentic Austrian food? Schnitzel. The crew pointed us in the direction of the best Schnitzel in town and we waited just under an hour to be seated in this little, family owned and famous restaurant. After perusing their menu, I decided on potato soup (I haven't had soup in ages and I was thrilled it was on the menu), and then a small dinner salad. For the main dish, I split a Schnitzel with Courtney and it turned out to be the perfect amount of food. After dinner we headed back to the dorms and got ready to go out for our second and last night in Vienna. The crew got back soon after and joined us.

After hanging out in the dorms for a little bit, we headed to the bar that the crew has made "theirs." I honestly believe it because they were all on first name bases' with the bartenders. We ended up staying there for the remainder of the night. It was a great time, spending times with friends from home, telling stories, and laughing the night away. Before we knew it, 3:15 had rolled around and we needed to head home. The 6 of us Paris girls had a cab waiting for us to take us to the airport. We had a flight home at 6AM. So we quickly grabbed our stuff (which we had smartly packed long before going out) and said our goodbyes. It was an epic night to say the least.

I was exhausted. We made it through security and somehow made it onto the plane without falling asleep. But the second I buckled my seat belt, I was out cold. I don't remember taking off or landing because I was fast asleep. I woke up when everyone around me was leaving the plane. Approximately 2 and 1/2 hours after landing in Paris, I was back in my apartment and quickly dove into my bed for a good 4 hour nap.

Traveling to 4 countries in 7 days takes a lot out of you. I'm glad we had a chance to pack it all in but I'm really looking forward to Dublin this weekend when the only travel I have to accomplish is there and back. Oh, and side note, my goal is to collect a scarf from every country that I visit. Because this trip was so jam packed, there was absolutely no time for souvenir shopping and I came back 1 for 4. Not a good record. I plan on stepping up my game in the future.

One last piece about the weekend we got back, my friends who are studying in Rome were in Paris for the weekend. We met up and spent all of Sunday with them. We went to mass at Notre Dame, ate the real Berthillion ice cream, took pictures and climbed to the very top of the Eiffel Tower. Then we got crepes, spent a little time in my apartment and then went out for a lovely French dinner in a small bistro. It was great seeing Maggie and Gwen; Maggie was even so impressed by Paris that she might plan another trip to come visit me! It was a wonderful weekend after a crazy week. It's already Wednesday and I seriously need some sleep before Dublin. So that's what I'm going to do right now. Goodnight!