And we're off!
We flew out of O'Hare at 6:30 pm EST, but by the time we landed in Paris, it was 8:35 am local time!!! Talk about jet lag! I am exhausted even typing this journal entry!
To fight against the jet lag, we took a walking tour of Paris, starting at the Notre Dame Cathedral (which is near our youth hostel), and ending up at the Arc de Triomph, which was by far the highlight of the day. I was simply astounded at how well structured the entire city of Paris is. Feeding from the Arc de Triomph there are 10 wide, straight boulevards extending out. Almost every building is the exact same height, so the entire city looks beautiful and very well organized. The pictures we got from the top of the Arc de Triomph are great!
In between the Cathedral and Arc de Triomph, we also go to see the outside of the Palace of Justice, the beautiful Seine river, the outside of the Musee de Louvre, the famous Hotel de Meurice (German headquarters in WWII), the plaza where the guillotine was used to behead criminals, and we saw the Eiffel Tower from a distance. Walking up the Champs-Elysees towards the Arc de Triomph was outstanding. So much culture and business!
Tomorrow we are in Paris again and I will focus on more specific endeavors. I plan on making it to the French War Museum, where Napoleon is buried. I plan on visiting the Musee D'orsay, where I will see great art on display. I also want to see the inside of Notre Dame, the inside of the Louvre, and the Basilique du Socre-Couer. We'll see how it works out! If I have time I'll go see the opera house.The group I'm with is awesome. We are having a lot of fun together and the rest of this trip seems very promising with such a great group.
I was glad to hear that the Millers and the Boilermakers took care of their first games of the weekend while I was out of town. Hopefully by tomorrow they will have completed their second victories of the season.
Let me know if you all have any questions or suggestions for my trip!
Jet lag is tough, Zach. Drink a lot of water, it helps. The same goes for the plane ride back, drink water. Alcohol dehydrates you so don't drink on the plane. Have you found any people who were not nice to you? The French are notorious for disliking Americans, I was wondering if you felt that yet. Any language problems? I will look forward to reading your blogs!
ReplyDeleteHi Zach, it looks like you are having a great time! We are enjoying your pictures! I was wondering what types of restaurants you've eaten at so far and if it was difficult to order from menus in French. Have fun!!
ReplyDeleteGreg says -- Thanks for the first of many history lessons. Continue to take lots of pictures. The French have a reputation for not showering on a regular basis, so does your hostel have a shower? Wine is the coke of France -- so is wine cheaper to buy than soft drinks? Try to take in a real futbol match while you are over there -- it will be worth it! Look forward to your next update -- Thanks!
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