old towns and ball gowns

Bonjour everybody!

It's crazy to believe that this is going to be my last post before I'm back on American soil. I will write at least one more after this one, but for my final post to wrap up this incredible year, I want to write it from home to really reflect on my time in France. I feel like being able to look at this past year from the point of view of my "normal life" will be interesting for me to do, and will probably show hints of how I have changed because of this experience. I may do one more post several months down the road to see if anything has stuck with me in the long term, but I won't know that until I am back in my normal routine.

A lot has happened since my post about Normandy. June has been a bit more gracious to the locals, though not nearly as much as we would like. Right now, I'm looking out at yet another relentlessly gray day, and while it is no longer cold enough to require a jacket, it's still chilly enough to wear a few layers of long sleeves. We've had a few sunny days, and some have felt very hot, but I assure you, it is not "summer" here, but feels more like how April would feel back home. Certainly not July 1st, which is the middle of summer and when people back home are flocking to lakes and beaches. I posted a few news articles about just how terrible the weather has been this spring. I know I complain about it a lot, but I promise you, it's justified. This spring has been a record wet and chilly one. The worst for 116 years. May was the wettest month of May Paris has seen in 146-ish years, which contributed to the Seine rising to flood level and causing damage, delays, and the closure of several metros. I even had one local neighbor I frequently walk with when taking G to school say to me that I picked a bad year to come. Great, thanks. So it's not just me. Even the locals, my French friend Isabelle can attest to this, have had it with this weather. When you think of Paris, there is an image that likely comes to mind of walking along the Seine, picnicking along the canals, or strolling through the beautiful gardens with a good book while the sun happily shines down. Or perhaps sitting outside at one of the hundreds of sidewalk cafés with un vin rouge or un café, chatting with friends and people watching. That's the image I had, and while I have done all of those things, I certainly haven't done them as frequently as I had envisioned. I guess it just makes those times I was able to do them that much sweeter. But for those who ask me why I am so ready to leave the City of Light, this is why. I want my summer, I miss my friends and family, and I am sick and tired of the rain and gloom. My soul can't take it anymore, even with the marginally improved temperatures. With the weather, union strikes, train delays and frequent maintenance, flooding, and unfortunate continual threat of terrorist attacks, I can't honestly be blamed for saying "check, please!" I can't tell you how excited I am, in particular, to get away from public transport haha.

But looking back on June, it is easily the best month I've had my entire year in France. From my trip to Normandy, to being able to shed my jacket, to visiting the small medieval town of Provins, and of course, the masquerade at Versailles, this is the month I will think back to when I'm in the States fondly reminiscing about my adventure overseas.

The weekend after my visit to Normandy, my host mom went out of town for a week. She went on her first international trip outside of Europe for a work trip to the USA. It was fun for me to see her go to my home country and hear about her experiences when she returned. She spent most of the week in DC, and one day in NYC. She loved DC and can't wait to bring the rest of the family next year when they hopefully come visit again, since the rest of them haven't been to America either. One thing she mentioned when she got back to Paris made me laugh, because it was something I noticed the French didn't do that Americans always do, and I have been meaning to talk about it all year. I didn't even ask her about this, she noticed it on her own. She noticed that everyone on their way to work was holding a travel mug of coffee. She then imitated a person standing, waiting for a metro or walking with a travel mug in hand. I laughed and told her I thought the same thing when I moved here, but with the opposite thought. In America, we love our coffee. Now, the French love coffee too, but when they drink theirs, they sit. In the U.S., we tend to grab our coffee and go, or for those who do sit and have a cup in the morning (or a cup while getting ready like me), you probably still take cup #2 on the road. During my first week or two in France, I found it so odd that no one, and I mean NO ONE, was holding a travel mug full of coffee on the train platform as they made their morning commute to work. "Do none of these people drink coffee? No one is holding coffee...." was my initial thought. Now that I've been here long enough, I know it's because they all get up early enough for breakfast and sit and enjoy their morning cup of joe. And their coffees are TINY. "What is this tiny cup? Get me a real mug!" I have found myself thinking on a number of occasions. I'm not really a fan of French coffee for that reason. Yeah, it's good once I add milk and sugar, but I've never been able to drink black coffee, and I miss coffee creamer (which apparently is only a thing in the USA). But I'm American, damnit. I need my coffee, and I need it in large quantities. So if there is any more question as to why I'm such a frequent visitor at Starbucks when I live in a city where coffee is sacred, now you know. Starbucks serves a normal size cup.

The day after my host mom returned from the US, my friend Isa and I headed about an hour east of Paris to the charming little medieval village of Provins. A few weeks before our visit were medieval festivals, which I would have loved to see. But they do have 2 permanent shows for those who visit during other times of the year. The first was a show with a number of trained birds. I couldn't understand what the show itself was about, and Isabelle tried to translate a lot of it for me, but for the most part it was a demonstration with all types of birds. Owls, vultures, eagles, just to name a few. I found this pretty cool until these trained birds started swooping over the heads of the audience. I'm not normally afraid of birds at all, but when I have to duck because vulture and vulture is flying about 6 inches above my head...yeah, I'm gonna freak out a bit. One bird actually brushed Isa's hair into her face. They were well trained, so I knew I wasn't in danger, but each type of bird that came out would just fly over us for a while. The vultures they let fly back and forth for about 10 minutes, one after another. Afterward, you could walk through the cages of the birds from the show. I saw a beautiful eagle up close and an owl that could have passed for Hedwig from Harry Potter. The vultures were so creepy looking, but there were some adorable baby birds fresh from the womb.

Hedwig?

From here, we made our way to a medieval show that was a play of sorts. There were jousting demonstrations and a storyline that was interesting even if it was hard for me to follow. But we had a great time enjoying the show and seeing the medieval structures and games. After the show, we walked through the town, and I couldn't help singing "Little Town" from Beauty and the Beast. We found a cute little crêperie on the town square and had some tea and crêpes, before continuing our walk near the church. We passed the Tour César, a watchtower and former prison, built somewhere around the 11th century. What I really loved was a little boutique we stopped in, which was full of rose products. Provins has a very well-known economy of producing products from roses. Rose petal jam, rose honey (which I deeply regret not purchasing), rose candy, rose jelly, rose tea, rose soap...it all smelled incredible. I opted for a rose lollipop, which was wonderful and I wish I had grabbed a handful, some rose tea, and a bar of rose artisan soap. I wish I could go back and buy all of it. After we left the boutique, we walked along the medieval ramparts that surrounded the city and snapped some pictures of the beautiful view of the French countryside. Overall, very excellent day trip and I'd highly recommend it.

The following weekend was the big event I have been anticipating for over 2 months, the masquerade ball at Château de Versailles. When my friend Amanda first pitched this idea to me, my heart started hammering because I HAD to do this. I have secretly always dreamed of going to a masquerade, but who would have ever thought I would actually get to go to one. And not only go to one, but go to one at Versailles in baroque period costumes! I told Amanda then that if she didn't go with me, I was still going on my own haha. But she and her hubs came, and we met up with her friends from college who originally told her about it since they were flying in from the States to attend. Seriously one of the most fun nights, and worth all the stress of finding a costume, figuring out our hair and makeup, and the rest of the planning, time, and money that went into making the night a reality. Worth. every. penny. Amanda's friends had opted for the highest level ticket, which included a parking pass right outside of the Orangerie, which is the part of the Palace where the event took place. They weren't using it, so they gave it to Amanda. So we pull up to the parking spot and couldn't have been closer to the event. We were still pretty early because we wanted to come and take photos when the light was best. There were about 5 other cars when we arrived and we parked about 50 feet from the entrance. That's VIP parking if I ever saw it. We walk in, and the event didn't start till 11:30, so we were directed to the gardens above for the fireworks show which took place around 11. It was about 8:30 or so at this point, but we were able to take our time walking around, taking amazing photos, and getting stared at by visitors having no idea what was going on and why there were so many people in costume. Some of the costumes we saw were absolutely incredible and elaborate. I know if I ever come to this event again (which I'd like to do), I will be in good company for going all out. We even saw some guy dressed as Louis XIV (I believe) and tourists were stopping him one after another for photos. We had a few come up to us and ask to take pictures with us or of us. It was fun. :)

Once the fireworks started, we all sat on the ground and just enjoyed the show. Amanda had her nice camera with her and got a spectacular photo of them. Versailles knows how to put on a show, I'll tell you that. After the show, we found Amanda's friends and made our way to the ball. In the Orangerie, there is a cavernous long hallway that has enormous windows that look out onto the Orangerie gardens. The hall was made of stone and lined with gorgeous chandeliers. When we walked in, the first thing we see is "beauty and the beast" which was the theme of the event this year. The beast was enclosed in a glass structure playing the piano, while Belle was standing on top of it dancing near a table with an rose enclosed in glass on top of it. Past beauty and the beast were about half a dozen women dancers standing near horses taken from a carousel, all wearing long flowing skirts with the sides exposed, and completely topless except for the silver pasties hiding their nips. Alrighty, then. lol In the center of the hall was a group of dancers, dancing a coordinated routine. These routines changed every 30 minutes or so throughout the entire night. Some were really cool, like the one I recorded with 1920s era music, and others were more burlesque type dancing. We walked to the end of the hall where the VIP section was located. Me, Amanda and her husband purchased the middle level VIP tickets (about half the price of the highest ticket), which gave us access to 2 glasses of champagne, a table with food and desserts, and two huge sofa beds full of pillows to lounge on when we needed a break. After we got some food, the dance party started so we wandered around and danced for hours. We went outside for a bit and walked around the Orangerie, but for June 25th, it was pretty chilly. They had a roaring fire going, but it was pretty crowded around it, so we went back inside to keep dancing. Amanda's husband had a flight to catch the next day, so he left around 3 AM. At dawn, there was going to be breakfast served, but around 5 AM or so, Amanda and I were ok with calling it a night. When we left the event, we had a pretty frustrating experience getting back to Amanda's apartment, but I'll leave the details of it out because I'm pretty sure she and I both want to forget about it and not let it taint our memories of a wonderful evening lol. All in all, I'd definitely attend this annual event again if ever I get the chance. You can tell that Versailles spares no expense when it comes to this masquerade. Definitely an experience I'll never forget, and a party I'm not sure any other will ever match. I can't believe after months of counting the days to this event, it's over and now nearly a week after.

They had these bubble machines going all over the place

So there you have it folks. A wonderful month, overall, but still overshadowed by my anticipation to be home and to see my friends and family. I'm trying not to wish my time away, but seriously, I haven't seen my family since Christmas, and none of my Lynchburg friends since September. I miss my people. On the day I return, it'll be nearly 7 months since I was in the States, and nearly 10 since driving out of Lynchburg. I'm excited to start my life in the Triangle, and would still appreciate prayers for a job. I hope you all enjoyed this post, especially since it'll be the last one I write on this side of the pond. See you in 15 days America! And happy early birthday! Wish I could be there on the 4th, one of my favorite holidays. Someone eat a hotdog and have a slice of apple pie in my honor.

À bientôt! Bisous!

Normandy and Omaha Beach

Today is the 72^nd anniversary of D’Day, when the Allied Forces landed on the beaches of Normandy. So many lost their lives that day, but their sacrifice ensured our freedom, and that’s a debt we can never repay. I feel so honored to have been able to visit the beaches this weekend.

I have been looking forward to visiting Normandy since my first day in France. It has been at the top of my must-do list before returning to the States, and for a while I wasn’t sure how I would be able to get there and if I’d have to go alone. I am so so thankful for my friend Isabelle who not only offered to drive, but invited a couple other friends who were just as excited to go as I was, made sure we had packed lunches and booked our Airbnb (an adorable house about 12 minutes from Omaha Beach). She drove the entire time and made sure we were all having a good time. So to Isa, thank you for not only making this weekend possible, but for making it a weekend I will never forget.

I don’t even know where to start. I took over 750 photos and saw and participated in so much, that it’s hard to pinpoint where to begin. I suppose the first thing that stuck out to me was on the drive to Omaha Beach. Once we reached a certain point, nearly every house that we passed displayed the American flag. There is so much gratitude toward Americans in this part of France, and it was humbling to see my own country’s flag everywhere I looked.

We pulled into the parking lot, and the sky was still pretty gray and cast a chill in the air. We walked over to the memorial on the beach, appropriately named “The Brave,” and that was the first look at Omaha Beach. I couldn’t believe I was finally standing there after wanting to come for so long. And here I was. Facing the water, I couldn’t help but imagine how different the same spot must have looked 72 years before. Not the tranquil, quiet beach we were looking at, but somewhere dangerous and war-torn. When I looked behind me, I could see these lovely green hills overlooking the ocean, but all I could picture were guns pointed toward the incoming American soldiers. It was a somber moment for me, standing there realizing that this same beautiful beach I was looking at was once covered in bodies and blood, and the sky was filled with gun fire and smoke. These soldiers were so young and their lives were cut so short. How did they mentally prepare themselves for that day? Knowing that as soon as those boats made it close enough to shore, that it could very well be their last moments, which was the truth for so many. How do you dig deep enough within yourself to find the strength and bravery to do what they did, despite the fear they must have felt? I have no idea. But I’m so thankful for what they did that day.

I brought home some sand from in front of the monument as gifts for some very special solider family and friends of mine. After taking some photos around the main area, we walked along the beach, then came back toward the monument to eat the picnic we packed. By this point, the sky was finally starting to clear and the sun was beginning to feel warm. This is the first blue sky and sunshine I’d see in a week and a half, and we were so happy. After we finished eating, we decided to shed our jackets and walk along the beach to the American Cemetery. It was quite a hike, but by now the sky was clear and the sun was getting hot, so we were just so happy to be outside. We had a great time walking and talking and taking photos along the way. About an hour or so later, we make it to the bottom of the hill in front of the cemetery. We walked along the path, and saw that the gate was closed (none of us seemed to notice that there was a temporary sign that said this was closed for security reasons, but I noticed it when going through my photos). So we got creative, and hiked to the top of the hill, and trekked through a beautiful field that was beside the cemetery. Seriously, it was gorgeous up there.

We walked around to the main entrance and into the visitor’s center. We took our time walking up and down the rows of displays and films being played, then made our way outside toward the monument. As I reached the top, I was just in time to see a Scottish band begin playing for about 10 minutes. I love bagpipes, so this was a pleasant surprise, and we enjoyed sitting there listening to them play. At this point, we all dispersed and began wandering around on our own and taking photos. I just couldn’t believe I was actually standing there after wanting to come for so long. After a half hour or so, I hear planes in the distance. Thankfully, I had my camera in hand, because all of the sudden, planes started flying low over the cemetery. Like…REALLY low. I think there were 5 planes that passed over us, then did a few more passes while we were there. It was so awesome.

As you leave the American Cemetery, you can find this inscription on a wall of the visitor's center, which I loved:

"You can manufacture weapons and you can purchase ammunition, but you can't buy valor and you can't pull heroes off an assembly line."

Sergeant John B. Ellery

U.S. 1st Infantry Division

After we left the cemetery, we made our way back down to the beach and walked back toward the monument where we were parked. We drove to our Airbnb for the night to drop our stuff and chill for a while. There were so many events happening that weekend, and we had a guide that told us what festivities were happening and where. We found a festival in Sainte-Mère-Église. This little village played a significant part during the Normandy landings, particularly with the paratroopers, many of which lost their lives while descending over this town. When we got to the square near the church, there were people and soldiers from the US, France, and Germany everywhere. There was music from the 1940s playing, and the smell and smoke of sausages on the grill hung in the air. We walked around for a bit, and ended up standing in line for sausages and fries…which was the only thing any of the tents sold. Not sure why haha. But as we were standing there, a US soldier got in line behind us. Isabelle could hear the French guy behind him trying to talk to him, and she intervened to translate. We all got to chatting, and we ended up following him over to his friends, who we spent the rest of the night chatting with. We all had so much fun, and the entire night ended with an amazing fireworks show over the square. It was a perfect day.

The next day, we went back to Sainte-Mère-Église for the paratrooping event. The soldiers we met were selected to participate in this event among others, which is why they were there. The day started off chilly and cloudy again, but ended up really hot at one point (my poor face is currently sunburned). We enjoyed another round of sausage dogs and fries and watched the paratroopers jump from their planes and sail to the ground. After this event, there was a ceremony commemorating the occasion, and we ended up running into the same group from the night before. One of them gave us some of his patches and pins as we left, which was something we noticed the night before. A lot of the locals would come up to the soldiers and ask for patches, or the soldiers from one country would trade with those from another. Although wearing a service member’s uniform in the States would be considered disrespectful, I asked one of the guys we were talking to if it was different here, because so many of the locals were dressed up in military gear. He said that here it wasn’t since they were basically honoring the soldiers at this event. There was a store open right next to us that sold military gear and uniforms, so we finally figured out where the locals were finding the stuff they were wearing. But it was really endearing to see them approach the servicemembers from each country to shake their hands and ask for photos. We stayed in Sainte-Mère-Église until about 5 PM on Sunday. A parade was about to start, but we had to skip it so we could get on the road and go home. It was such a bummer to leave because the energy and camaraderie among both soldiers and civilians at these events was something I was so grateful to be a part of. I’ll never forget it.

We weren't able to visit any museums or some other important sights, but it just makes me that much more excited to return one day. Normandy is beautiful. The entire region is just so quaint and lovely. If ever you have the opportunity to visit, do it. You won’t be disappointed. And I highly recommend planning a trip around this time of year when these same events are going on.

But back to Paris we went. Back to the oppressively cloudy skies and rainy days. Not sure if everyone has heard, but Paris has flooded. The Seine rose to 20 feet above it’s normal level and washed out the embankments, some roads and metros, and some museums and other sites had to close. But apparently the water level is lowering now, but I think we are still supposed to have rain for the next few days. My rain-soaked soul is ready for consistent warmth and sunshine. It’s June, I shouldn’t be outside in a coat.

I feel like May was a blur. After returning from Barcelona, we had a few beautiful and very warm days where I could walk around in a dress and enjoy some afternoons picnicking with friends along the canals. Me and a couple friends were finally able to visit Giverny, which was just as beautiful as I had hoped it would be, although it was packed. It’s not the tranquil, uncrowded scene that the movie Midnight in Paris displays. Nope. Lots of school groups and tourists hanging about. But it was a gorgeous place, and totally worth the trip. The actual town of Giverny was so small and picturesque. It was the perfect charming little French provincial town. 

Another friend from high school who was in my graduating class visited Paris a couple weeks ago. Adam has been traveling solo and stayed in Paris for a few days. We had one good weather day, but unfortunately the torrential downpours that caused the flooding started during his trip. He says he still had fun though. I’d probably have cried if that was my first trip to Paris, but he was a good sport. It was fun playing the tour guide though, even though we walked a ton and it wore me out lol.

I can’t believe my time in Paris is nearly over. I literally can’t believe it is June and that I’ll be home soon. 40 days from today, 5 weeks and 5 days from now, I’ll be on US soil for the first time in what will then be 7 months. I can’t wait to see my friends and family, and get back to normalcy. But hopefully I’ll be able to jam as much as I can into the coming weeks (including the masquerade at Versailles!), and enjoy probably the last time I will ever have this much freedom and time to travel and do what I want without having a career or other responsibilities. 

Not too many blog posts left! Hard to believe. I hope you all enjoyed this post, though I feel like it was pretty short and didn’t really do justice to my trip this past weekend. I literally can't put Normandy into words that truly capture the experience. Put it on your list of must visit places for sure. 

Until next time!

April in Paris and a Week in Barcelona

Was it really March 21st that I last posted a new update? Good grief. Sorry ya'll. It was definitely a busy month, and although the temperature has still been on the cooler side (still haven't left the house without a jacket) the clouds have finally disbursed and the skies have been consistently more blue. We still have gray and rainy days, it's true, but it's no longer a relentless and unyielding cover of clouds, rain, wind, and bitter cold. It's about freaking time, Paris. Me and my fellow expat friends have come to notice that Paris has about 7 months of cold weather and 5 months of nice weather. If you are ever planning a trip over here, I'd highly recommend only coming from May to September. Just a suggestion. But spring has finally sprung. The trees are green, the flowers have bloomed, and I couldn't be happier that this city is no longer brown and dead looking.

I have just over 2 months left of my overseas adventure, and I'm starting to get excited about setting foot on American soil again. I feel like some people may think I'm absolutely crazy to want to leave Paris. It's a wonderful city and I have made wonderful friends that will stick with me for the rest of my life, I'm sure. But there are a lot, and I mean A LOT of things I desperately miss. Living over here is not the same as visiting for a couple weeks. Coming for a couple weeks is going to be jam-packed with fun things to do. Living over here is a rewarding experience because I am truly getting a feel for a foreign city and it's an experience I wouldn't trade for anything. But this isn't my normal life, and after more than 7 months now abroad, I'm ready to feel like I'm back where I belong. Being 6 hours ahead of everyone I love at home is HARD. Not having a normal cell phone plan where I can easily text or pick up the phone to call someone whenever I want is hard. Having to coordinate times to try to Skype proved to be way more difficult than I anticipated, and there are friends of mine I have literally only communicated with through Facebook Messenger since I left in September, and despite our best efforts, we have just never been able to have a real conversation (I'm looking at you Lori). 

I miss normal American things. I miss living alone. I miss not paying 4 euro for a tiny jar of peanut butter. Having access to real coffee creamer. Being able to drive and not being a slave to public transportation, which in Paris is constantly delayed due to strikes or train traffic or maintenance. I generally have to leave an hour early for whatever I'm doing, and I miss being able to jump in my car and get to where I want to be in 15 minutes. Walking has been good exercise, but I'm so over having to walk EVERYWHERE. I miss having a real job and making a salary. I miss being able to walk into a store and not struggle to communicate. I miss the amount of space stores, restaurants, parking lots, and buildings have in America. Living the city life has been fun for a while, but I'm tired of having to squeeze into a seat when I go out to eat because the restaurant has wasted not an inch of space when it comes to setting up tables. I kid you not, I have been to several places where the waiter has pulled the table away from the wall for me so I could get in because you are literally that close to the people to your right and left. Don't even bother trying to use the bathroom during your meal when this happens. I can't wait to have a giant southern sweet tea and Cheerwine. But mostly, I literally daydream about seeing my friends and family and how wonderful it will feel to hug them once again. My friends here are wonderful, but my history with them is 7 months or less. The people that connect me to my world are thousands of miles away, and although this experience will be a part of me forever, I can't wait to immerse myself in my own country once again. I have been to 9 countries now. I have seen 9 different cultures, languages, people groups, and ways of living and it has opened my eyes to so much in this world. But I can honestly say that I love my own land more now than ever before. I'm so proud to call myself an American. 

But off this rabbit trail and back to what I've been up to. The first 3 weeks of April were pretty chill and I didn't really do a whole lot that is worth noting. After Easter, I basically had a few weeks where I was trying to save a bit of money for my trip to Barcelona. Me and my friend Amanda went to a costume shop to rent our Marie-Antoinette-era dresses for a masquerade ball that we are going to in June at the Palace of Versailles. I don't think it's possible for me to be more giddy or excited about this event. Seriously, my heart is doing cartwheels. I can't wait! That same week, I ended up having coffee with a new friend from my church here in Paris, who also happens to be a Liberty University alumni like me. That was really cool to run into someone from a place that has been such a significant part of my personal and professional life. Talking about the campus and the school was like a breath of fresh air. Not one other person over here has set foot in Lynchburg, so of course this was very exciting to me. She's also a flight attendant, and just came back from the States. She asked if there was anything she'd like me to bring back and I asked for powdered coffee creamer. I literally can't wait to get it from her this week. MmmmMMMM. 

The end of that week was The Color Run, which was so. much. fun. For those who don't know, this is a 5K race where throughout the course and at the dance party at the end, there are bottles and packets of colored powder thrown at you. Best to keep your eyes and mouth closed when this happens, but looking down and seeing yourself covered in color was so fun. Seriously, it blew all my expectations out of the water and although it started as a very cold day and I had a bit of a mishap in the metro where I tripped up an escalator and ended up with about 6 bruises and a scraped ankle, it turned out to be some of the most fun I've had in a long time. I'm so happy my friend Isabelle was able to do it with me. I'm not a runner, but people were walking, taking pictures, stopping for a beer along the way (really), and then the entire race ended with a massive dance party on the bridge in front of the Eiffel Tower. There were about 30,000 racers who attended. It only rained during the last 10 minutes we were there, and by this point, we were covered from head to toe in pinks, greens, blues, and yellows, and happy as can be. We were quite a site on the metro ride home. 

The week following The Color Run was my last full week with Gaspard while he was on school holidays. I mentioned in a previous post that the kids here have 6 weeks of school and 2 weeks of vacation throughout the year. This was the last school holiday before the end of the year for them during the first week of July. This means the rest of my time here will be pretty open during most days. The Saturday before I left for Barcelona, my friend Isabelle had a few of her friends go to Disneyland Paris. We were really excited about this, except when we get there it was SO COLD and gray that day. Seriously, it was such a bummer since we had been having pretty consistently nice weather. Oh well, we still had fun. Once again, we ended up not staying for the fireworks. I had to be up super early to catch my Megabus to Spain and she had something to do the next day too. 

Barcelona was a blur and so much happened that I'm not sure I have the patience to really recount every single thing, so I'll give the highlights then post a few pictures from the week. I got up early last Sunday and made my way to the south east corner of Paris to the Bercy area. This is where the Megabus would be waiting. These buses are cheap ways to travel around Europe. One direction was around 40 euro and the way back was 28 euro. The downside was that on this particular route, the Megabus company had rolled out their new fleet of buses, which for some reason were having a problem with their WiFi and couldn't figure out why. So for about 14 hours there and back, the WiFi worked for maybe a total of 2 hours. That sucked pretty bad. On the way down, the toilet was also broken, so thank goodness I hadn't had much to drink the night before, so the few stops we made were sufficient. So overall, my bus experience wasn't the greatest; however, I was surprised how quick the trips seemed to feel for me. I slept a lot (not comfortably), and the seats felt pretty tight during the points where I had someone next to me, but overall, I'd probably travel that way again for a shorter trip. Although, I did find it a bit disconcerting that our passports weren't checked at the border. That was a bit strange to me given everything that's been going on. The landscape on the way to Spain was beautiful. I literally gasped when we passed through the Pyrenees Mountains, though it was getting dark at this point so I wish I had seen them more clearly. But I haven't seen mountains that tall since I was in Peru in 2009. Beautiful. 

Things went a bit downhill the minute I crossed into Spain. My French cell service immediately cut off, and without WiFi my phone was pretty much useless. Luckily, I had downloaded an offline map of Barcelona through Google Maps, and before I came, I carefully chose my Airbnb location and made sure I did "street view" from the bus station to my Airbnb so I knew exactly where I was going as soon as we arrived. It was a 5 minute walk straight out of the station. I'm glad I chose this and didn't have to call a cab at 5:30 AM for my return bus to Paris. My Airbnb host knew what time I was arriving since I had communicated with him on WhatsApp the day before. I was renting a room in this guy's apartment (I know, I know...I specifically didn't tell people I was doing this before I went because I didn't want to get the 3rd degree). But he had good reviews, and although the room was VERY tiny, it was about 20 euro a night to stay there and I had my own bathroom. The proximity to the bus station was the deciding factor. Anyway, I show up literally at the exact time I estimated I'd be there, and I buzz his name at the door. Nothing. Long story short, after 25 minutes of me buzzing, borderline panicking, tearing up, and staring at my useless phone, he finally shows up. Someone had let me in the lobby about 5 minutes after I got there, so at least I wasn't standing on the street. But I was not happy. He was super apologetic and asked if I had been waiting a while. He had been out to dinner and lost track of time or something. He kept apologizing for the next 20 minutes as he showed me around his place and got me settled in. By this point, I had started to question my decision to come. I was feeling a little uneasy, because this was literally the first time I have ever traveled to a foreign country completely solo. I'm thankful for the person from home I was texting with at the time (after I got connected to the WiFi at the apartment) because I felt a bit more at ease and not completely isolated, as weird as that sounds. By this point, it was about midnight and all I wanted to do was sleep. The accommodations were nothing special, but they were at least clean and my host was hospitable, so I made the best of it. 

After passing out, I woke up around 9:30 AM and honestly didn't have a plan for exactly what I wanted to do. I mean I knew places I wanted to check out, and I had a few tickets I had bought in advance for a few major sites to see, but in the meantime...being in a new city is really intimidating. I'm actually very good with directions, and having my offline maps made me feel comfortable that I wouldn't get lost, but still having to figure out what to see and try to make the most of a week in a new city can be a bit scary. Still laying in bed, I looked up free walking tours in Barcelona and decided that I'd get ready quick and do the tour of the Gothic Quarter that started at 11 AM. I hoped I would at least learn something and prayed I'd meet some cool people to maybe pal around with the rest of the day. I left the apartment and made my way toward Plaça de Catalunya, a large central square that was bustling with tourists (and hundreds of pigeons). It was an easy walk to get here from my place and took about 20-25 min to get there. Once I arrived, I was a little early, so I was sitting around and realized Barcelona offered free city-wide WiFi. It doesn't work that well and usually only picks up in the bigger, more popular areas, but it was handy when it did work. Most places in the city offered free WiFi though, so whether I was eating dinner or getting a cup of coffee, I was able to connect pretty easily unless I was out walking.

Finally, I see the group I was meeting, literally called Free Walking Tours Barcelona. After checking in, they split us up depending on which tour we wanted. Our guide was really great, and took us down the famous street La Rambla. It was packed with tourists, and we were told not to buy anything on this street because the markup was so high for being such a popular tourist attraction. However, it was nice having someone show us around parts of the city and explain a lot about the history of Catalonia. I had no idea that there was such tension between Catalonia, which is a large region of the country, and the rest of Spain. After a civil war and a lot of back and forth over the years, it's very clear that the people of this region want their independence from Spain. Catalan is a language that is widely spoken in this area, even though Spanish is also an official language. There is even a flag of Catalonia which is an unofficial flag that many private citizens will fly from their homes to show their desire for independence. This flag isn't allowed on any official buildings. Being a lover of history, it was really interesting to learn about, and to be honest, I didn't know much about Spanish history before I arrived. 

The best part of the tour though was meeting two guys I ended up hanging out with for the next 3 days. Both were solo travelers, one from Italy (Davide) the other from Germany (Stefan), but they met because they were staying at the same Airbnb. Such nice guys and I had a blast with them both. After the tour, a big group of us went to lunch, then about 7 of us went down to La Barceloneta, which is the beach and harbor area. We spent a few hours walking around, then Davide had a dinner with friends, so Stefan and I wandered around the Gothic Quarter looking for a place to have dinner. We ended up at this cool little place called Colom (think Christopher Columbus) which looked like an old ship on the inside. We decided to try some authentic Spanish food and opted for some tapas and seafood paella. Stefan wasn't a fan of the paella, but I actually really enjoyed it. It's basically a rice dish seasoned with curry and with seafood added to it. I wish I had taken a picture. I meant to, but got distracted when the paella came out with it's 4 whole giant shrimp staring up at us. It was a fun experience, and Davide ended up meeting us for drinks later that night. 

The next day, I had tickets to see La Sagrada Familia, which is a church (still under construction and will be for about 20 more years they said) which was designed by the famous architect Antoni Gaudi. Gaudi was responsible for a lot of the famous architecture in Barcelona. I meant to take another free walking tour that discussed his work, but I missed it. Next time. The church was amazing. I'll let the pictures do the talking, but seriously, it was incredible. My ticket included a trip up the towers, which had fantastic views of the city.

After I left, I decided to give the metro a try. There is a T10 ticket for the metro that was about 10 euro for 10 trips. This was perfect for my week and I ended up using it all without needing to buy another ticket. From La Sagrada Familia, I decided on a whim to visit Plaza de España, which was a famous plaza I had seen a lot of pictures of during my research for my trip. I saw this beautiful building up on the hill, so I made my way toward it. Turns out, it was the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, and it had beautiful views of the city. I went up there and hung around for a bit and used their WiFi. But I didn't feel like being in a museum on a beautiful day, so I made my way back toward Plaça de Catalunya to meet up with Davide for another free walking tour. This particular tour went through the El Raval, which is a neighborhood previously known for being shady, but over recent years has developed into a pretty diverse and quaint area. During this tour, our guide told us all about the street art in this part of town. It was something I didn't think I would enjoy as much as I did, but our guide went even deeper into the political strains between Spain and Catalonia, and the street art was really cool.

After the tour, Davide and I wandered back down and explored more of the harbor area, which was really beautiful. We finally found some WiFi and had Stefan come meet us, who had been off on a hop on, hop off bus tour all day. That night we found a cute and very delicious little tapas place called Sensi Tapas in the Gothic Quarter. After waiting a while for our table, the waitress came and gave us some free tapas because the people at the table she was planning to give us were taking their sweet time leaving. Hey...free food? No complaints here. Finally we get a seat, and we ate our way through about 6 different tapas dishes. I was so full, that I only had room to sample most of it, but it was soooo good. And seriously couldn't have asked for better company.

Wednesday was Davide's last day, so I had the guys meet me at Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria, or more commonly called La Boqueria market, which I had visited on Tuesday. The food was fresh and authentic and a really inexpensive way to fill up on a variety of foods. After the market, Stefan and I said goodbye to Davide and then wondered around the Gothic Quarter back down to Barceloneta. Stefan was leaving Thursday, so he was determined to go to the beach for a bit, even though this particular day was gray and chilly. We ended up going back to our places for a while to change and shower, then ended up meeting later for dinner. We found a really cool place in El Raval called Bar Lobo. Great food and we had a lot of fun. By this time, it had begun to rain a bit, and the metros in Barcleona generally stop running around midnight and it was getting close. Stefan walked me to the station, but due to an organized strike (of course), the metro was taking forever and I ended up giving up and just walking back to my place. Walking 25 min or so in the rain at midnight in a strange city wasn't exactly something I was thrilled about. But luckily, the main street to my place is a really wide popular street, and it was a pretty peaceful night, so I made it back no problem.

Thursday, I had to get a bit creative since my Barcelona buds were now gone (sad). I'll admit, I was kind of boring and ended up not going out to any restaurants alone on my last two nights because I didn't want to walk back in the dark by myself, not to mention I was really lacking a few good nights' sleep. So Thursday, I mostly just meandered through the streets I had grown comfortable with, and bought some authentic handmade espadrilles from a famous shop I read about before I came. Friday, I ventured out to Montjuïc Castle, which is set up high on a hill right next to the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The views up here were gorgeous and it was a sunny day so I got some amazing pictures. I couldn't stop staring at the view. I took the cable car up, which also offered some great views of the city. Once I got back from the castle, it was still pretty early, but I grabbed some dinner and took it home to start packing since my Megabus back to Paris left at 6:30 AM. But after such a fun-filled week full of walking everywhere, I was pretty tired, I have to admit.

All in all, Barcelona is a beautiful and interesting city everyone should visit. I just uploaded about 200 pictures of my trip to FB, so be sure to check it out! I wish it had been hot enough to hang out on the beach, but alas it was not. But I did learn a lot about the city and it's history and met some awesome people, so my first trip traveling completely solo was a big success. Seriously, I encourage everyone to take at least one solo trip. To be able to meet random people from all over the world, and just do what you want when you want is such a liberating experience, and it once again has built my confidence and changed me in ways I'm sure I don't even see yet. Free walking tours are the best thing ever when traveling to a new city alone. In fact, I looked up some free tours in Paris that I plan to do this month so I can learn more about areas I haven't yet ventured to in the city. It's been a great month, and so far May has seen mostly sunny days, so I think there are some great Parisian times ahead for me.

(Supposedly, if you drink from this fountain, you are destined to fall in love with Barcelona and return one day.)

I will admit though, my heart is already ahead of me in North Carolina and I am so excited to get back and start my new life there. Missing my family and friends, and being a bit tight on money, actually caused me to cancel my overnight trip to Iceland. The logistics were just becoming too much trouble. I'll still be flying back via Icelandair because of their inexpensive flights and 2 free checked bags, but I want to come back as soon as I can. So no, I won't get to see the Blue Lagoon in Iceland just yet, but I guess I'll just have to plan some trips as soon as I get a job and can start saving some money again. I have just over 2 months left. That's crazy. This year has flown by, even though parts of it felt so slow. I'm excited for what's ahead, and I'm really anxious to see how this experience will impact my life in the long run. I'll make sure it's not another month and a half before I post another update. Thanks for reading!