What can I even say? Paris was...indescribable! But for the sake of all my dedicated readers (Hi Casey!) I will try!
Day 1: There were five of us going to Paris together, but we left a different times. Two girls left early Monday morning, and the other three (including me) left Monday night. We took the four o'clock train to Munich, and caught our plane at around 8:55 p.m. Upon arrival, we bought five day train passes, and headed into the city. Our hotel was in the financial district of La Defence, and was really, really inexpensive, considering we were going to shove five girls into a four bed room. But it was cozy! We got to the hotel at midnight, and went straight to bed. Before retiring, Kelly and I decided to get up early to catch a bike tour of the city that we believed started at 7 am and went until 11:30 at night. We had to meet the tour at the Eiffel tower, so we needed to get up at five in order to be on time.
Day 2: So Kelly and I get up super early and head to the Eiffel tower. When we arrive, we see that the area is completely deserted, and cannot see anything even remotely resembling a bike tour. So we sent a message to the friend that told us about the tour, and he told us it began at 7 PM!! So we went to get breakfast and rest before meeting up with the other girls to take a free walking tour. On the way to meet them, we saw the Arc de Triomphe, a famous monument in Paris. It was really cool to see the monuments in person after seeing them so many times in movies and in pictures. We met up with the girls by the town hall, and discovered that our map had listed the incorrect meeting place for the tour. By the time we found the actual meeting point we had missed the tour, so we went to eat lunch and wait for the next tour to start, around 1pm. We had some amazing Chocolate Banana Crepes, and met up with the tour just in time. The tour covered quite a bit of the major sights in the city like the Louvre, Notre Dame, Champ E'Lysses, the Eiffel Tower, The Arc de Triomphe, and many more. It was a great tour, and it helped us decide what we wanted to do the next day. After the tour we went to the Eiffel tower as a group and took the elevator to the top. It was such an amazing experience! The city was all lit up, and we enjoyed seeing it together. After descending the tower, we ate another Crepe (I know, I know. But we were in Paris!) and headed back to the hotel.
Day 3: This day we split up for the morning. Kelly, Jade and I went to the Montmarte district to see the Sacre Couer, and amazing basilica right in the middle of the tourist area. Before seeing the church, we stopped and saw Moulin Rouge, a famous sight in the red light district. It was...interesting. The place itself was cool to se, but the area was a little sketch. But we quickly vacated the area for the basilica. It was a very beautiful sight, and we really enjoyed seeing it. After that, Jade left to do her own thing, and Kelley and I went to the Orangerie, a museum that houses several impressionist masterpieces, including work by Monet, Degas, Picasso, and others. It was amazing! Monet did some incredibly beautiful work, and I was reminded of how much I enjoy impressionist art. When we were done there, we headed to Champ E'Lysses, the most upscale shopping street in all of Paris. Kelly had her heart set on a Louis Vuitton bag, and she would not leave without getting it. It was one of those things that I thought was crazy, buying a handbag that cost upwards of $500, but the heart wants what it wants, I guess! After her purchase, we went to meet Jade at the catacombs. Unfortunately, they had closed, so we were unable to see them. At 5:30, we headed for the Louvre, and saw some of the most famous works of art of all time. We saw the Mona Lisa, Victory, Venus De Milo, several Michelangelo sculptures, and countless other masterpieces. It was breathtaking! When the museum closed at ten, we headed back to our hotel for the night.
Day 4: DISNEYLAND PARIS! That is what Kelly, Jade an I did on our last full day in Paris. I know, why would anyone want to go there? I don't know, we just did. And it was a blast going on rides and seeing characters from our childhood. We went on Space Moutain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Pirates of the Caribbean, It's a Small World, Phantom Manor, Indiana Jones, Star Tours, and Tower of Terror. We had a blast! Half-way through the day we got a message from Katie and Erin, who were supposed to catch their flight that afternoon saying that their flight had been canceled due to and erupting volcano in Iceland. In disbelief, we wrote it off until we got back to the hotel and talked to them about it. We found out that not only had their flight been canceled, but ours had as well. That is when we went to bed.
Day 5: In the morning we headed straight to the airport to get the lowdown. We found out that our only option to fly out was the following Monday (This was on Friday). Obviously, we could not afford to stay in Paris for another three days or longer. So we tried to rent a car, but they were all rented out already. So then we headed to the main train station, only to find that all the trains were booked until Monday as well. In desperation, we went to the platform of the next train to Munich and asked the conductor if we could get on the train at all. He aid we could, but we wouldn't have seats. At this point, we didn't care. So for 6 1/2 hours, we sat on the floor of the bar on the train. And paid 150 euro each to sit there. It was interesting. But we made it back!
Don't forget to check our my post on Rome, right below this one! ;)
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Roma
Rome was an amazing trip! I had such a good time seeing one of the first great civilizations that once covered a huge portion of Europe and the Mediterranean. It was also my first solo adventure, and it turned out to be so relaxing to just do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted!
Day 1: I flew out of Munich and straight into Rome. The flight was only about an hour long, so I got to Rome with some daylight left, around 2 p.m. The first thing I did was locate my hostel (which took a while, as I got lost-no surprise there) and check into my room. The room was nice, and I was sharing with four other girls. I always pay a little extra to have a nicer room, and if I can find it, a girls only dorm. I dropped off my things and headed out toward the Spanish Steps to find my tour guide. I had booked three tours before I left, knowing that seeing the city by myself would not be as cool as knowing some of the history behind the places I was seeing. This tour covered most of the city's main sights and was very informative. We saw the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, Valentino's house, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, and Campo Di Fiori. Our guide was a very knowledgeable Brit who once came to Rome on vacation and never left. At the end of the tour I took a bus back to the main train station, which is a few blocks from the hostel, and went to bed, knowing I had to be up early for a tour in the morning.
Day 2: Woke up early and had breakfast in the hostel, which consisted of rolls and jam. I guess that's what you get for 15 euro a night ;) I got an early start, and made my way to Piazza Del Poppolo, the main square in Rome where three of the main streets converge, and the Vatican can be seen straight down the road. It took me a while to find it, because maps are confusing, but I made it there in a round-about manner. After seeing the famous piazza, I wandered toward the Vatican, where I would eventually meet up with my tour of the Vatican. I wandered around by the Vatican, buying postcards and other souvenirs, then found a Pizza shop (I found one every day) and took a break. After some delicious pizza and a Gelato chaser, I met up with my tour. We saw some incredible works of art in the Vatican Museum, learned about St. Peter's Basilica, saw Pieta by Michaelangelo, and learned about the Country of the Vatican. It was very informative, and such an interesting place to see. When the tour ended, I made my way back to the Hostel for dinner, and went to bed early.
Day 3: I had a nine a.m. tour of the Roman forum and Colosseum, so I got up early and headed out. I had met some people in the hostel the night before, and one of the girls decided to take the same tour I was on, so we went together. We met up with our tour and made our way past the Constantine arch and into the Roman Forum. The Roman forum was the seat of government for Rome back in the day, kind of like an ancient Washington D.C. We saw Mussolini's home, which he had built among the ruins, old temples to the pagan gods, homes, palaces, and so much more. In it's glory days, the Forum would have been incredibly magnificent to behold! After seeing the Forum, we went to the Colosseum and learned all about the epic battles between Gladiators, lions, and prisoners that provided entertainment for the Roman masses. It seemes very barbaric to me, but I suppose that humans have been doing horrible things to other humans for a very long time (Cain and Abel anyone?). That Colosseum was very cool, and the tour ended on a high note. After the tour, my new friend and I wandered the city, and I showed her the big sights like the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, and Piazza Del Poppolo. We walked quite a bit, and had a great time seeing more of the city. After we couldn't walk any more, we headed back to the hostel, where I met up with another girl from my room to go to dinner. I had wanted to have a nice Italian dinner, but didn't ant to go alone, so we decided to do it together, both of us being solo travelers. We took the bus back to the Trevi Fountain, and ate at a cute little cafe down one of the side streets surrounding the plaza. Our food was excellent, and we had a wonderful time. After dinner I headed to the airport, where I had to spend a horrible night trying to sleep on a bench before catching my plane at six in the morning. It was not the best night I have ever had, but all in all, I had such a fantastic time in Rome that it didn't matter!
Day 1: I flew out of Munich and straight into Rome. The flight was only about an hour long, so I got to Rome with some daylight left, around 2 p.m. The first thing I did was locate my hostel (which took a while, as I got lost-no surprise there) and check into my room. The room was nice, and I was sharing with four other girls. I always pay a little extra to have a nicer room, and if I can find it, a girls only dorm. I dropped off my things and headed out toward the Spanish Steps to find my tour guide. I had booked three tours before I left, knowing that seeing the city by myself would not be as cool as knowing some of the history behind the places I was seeing. This tour covered most of the city's main sights and was very informative. We saw the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, Valentino's house, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, and Campo Di Fiori. Our guide was a very knowledgeable Brit who once came to Rome on vacation and never left. At the end of the tour I took a bus back to the main train station, which is a few blocks from the hostel, and went to bed, knowing I had to be up early for a tour in the morning.
Day 2: Woke up early and had breakfast in the hostel, which consisted of rolls and jam. I guess that's what you get for 15 euro a night ;) I got an early start, and made my way to Piazza Del Poppolo, the main square in Rome where three of the main streets converge, and the Vatican can be seen straight down the road. It took me a while to find it, because maps are confusing, but I made it there in a round-about manner. After seeing the famous piazza, I wandered toward the Vatican, where I would eventually meet up with my tour of the Vatican. I wandered around by the Vatican, buying postcards and other souvenirs, then found a Pizza shop (I found one every day) and took a break. After some delicious pizza and a Gelato chaser, I met up with my tour. We saw some incredible works of art in the Vatican Museum, learned about St. Peter's Basilica, saw Pieta by Michaelangelo, and learned about the Country of the Vatican. It was very informative, and such an interesting place to see. When the tour ended, I made my way back to the Hostel for dinner, and went to bed early.
Day 3: I had a nine a.m. tour of the Roman forum and Colosseum, so I got up early and headed out. I had met some people in the hostel the night before, and one of the girls decided to take the same tour I was on, so we went together. We met up with our tour and made our way past the Constantine arch and into the Roman Forum. The Roman forum was the seat of government for Rome back in the day, kind of like an ancient Washington D.C. We saw Mussolini's home, which he had built among the ruins, old temples to the pagan gods, homes, palaces, and so much more. In it's glory days, the Forum would have been incredibly magnificent to behold! After seeing the Forum, we went to the Colosseum and learned all about the epic battles between Gladiators, lions, and prisoners that provided entertainment for the Roman masses. It seemes very barbaric to me, but I suppose that humans have been doing horrible things to other humans for a very long time (Cain and Abel anyone?). That Colosseum was very cool, and the tour ended on a high note. After the tour, my new friend and I wandered the city, and I showed her the big sights like the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, and Piazza Del Poppolo. We walked quite a bit, and had a great time seeing more of the city. After we couldn't walk any more, we headed back to the hostel, where I met up with another girl from my room to go to dinner. I had wanted to have a nice Italian dinner, but didn't ant to go alone, so we decided to do it together, both of us being solo travelers. We took the bus back to the Trevi Fountain, and ate at a cute little cafe down one of the side streets surrounding the plaza. Our food was excellent, and we had a wonderful time. After dinner I headed to the airport, where I had to spend a horrible night trying to sleep on a bench before catching my plane at six in the morning. It was not the best night I have ever had, but all in all, I had such a fantastic time in Rome that it didn't matter!
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