DON'T MAKE ME LEAVE

This is me scheming up more ways to stay.

DeliEffiel

My favorite thing in Paris is the Eiffel Tower (And the cafes, and wine and cheese and Seine and the Latin Quarter, but I’m narrowing down here.)

Many people all over the world are probably uttering that same sentence, but we all have different reasons for liking it. For me it is because of the constant reminder.

I could be deeply lost in tiny roads filled with 500 years of footsteps and conversation, far within the Latin Quarter across the city, when all of a sudden with the slightest bend of the road and the parting of a building, the tip top of the tower comes into view.

Or I could be at the top of Montmartre on the highest point of the glimmering city in crowds clinging to the rough iron fence every couple of feet to see the tower from in between stubborn tree branches. From this angle at the top of the hill, the tower sticks up dramatically from the low city, puncturing the sky. The onlookers gather and wait with bated breath for the top of the hour when the tower starts glittering against the sky. When it starts, a collective gasp and hush fall over the crowd, and the entire city for the five minutes.

Or I could be down in the Champs de Mars with the giant metal structure looming over me. I can sit at the concrete foot, the bottom of the legend, and while avoiding the dozens of street peddlers selling miniature versions of the tower I can look up behind me at the giant tower that I’m leaning against, physically touching it, yet it still looks like a painting.

No matter where I am in the city, the tower seems to show up at the perfect time almost to say, “Hey! You’re in Paris!”

Water Lilies

Yesterday morning, I went to The Musée de l'Orangerie, which is home to some of Monet's famous Water lilies.

It is hidden in a corner of the The Tuileries Garden right along the bank of the Seine. It was a very interesting musuem, somewhat spaceship-like.

It was a wonderful place, however, they were out of english maps and english audio guides so I didn't know where I was or what I was looking at.

After I managed to find my way out of the museum, I wandered up the Champs-Elysses (but not too far up) then back down along the river, stopping to watch painters creating scenes of the Seine.

Day of the Dead

It was a beautiful, sunny summer day in the city of love. As I awoke that morning with the happy sun streaming through my windows, I thought to myself, what can I do that would capture the loveliness of this Parisian day? A walk down the Seine? A stroll through the Luxembourg Gardens? A bistro meal at an outdoor cafe?

...A trip to the Cemetery?

While the French are known for their "Joie de vivre," they certianly take good care of their dead.

I went to the Père-Lachaise cemetary to find the graves of famous icons buiried in the best city to live (and die in).

I had a map, but was able to find the graves easily by looking for the hordes of people, except at lonley Gertruide Stiens grave.

It was interesting to see the graves of famous icons, but it was even more interesting to see how previous passers-by had payed their respects.

Oscar Wilde's grave was covered in red lips and thank-yous, amists and ignored sign to respect the grave and not deface it.

Jim Morrison's grave, behind a barracade and surrounded by tattered tee wearing teens making their pilgramage, was filled with empty beer cans.

In contrast, Gertruide Steins grave was immaculate and plain, and although her partener, Alice Toklas is buired beside her, her name is carved on the back like a hidden afterthought.

The cemetary was also home to many heartbreaking Holocaust memorials, graphically depicting the pain that the Jewish had felt durning the occupation and the war.

Edith Piaf is laid in a nondescript black family grave, surrounded by a bunch of frenchies singing "La Vie en rose"

Finally I visited the famous composer, Fredrick Chopin's grave and thanked him for the soundtrack to my childhood.

It was the most famous people I'd ever seen in a single day...does that count?

Paris Bikes

Easiest bike rental program on the planet. Also heaviest bikes on the planet.

Either the Wallpaper Goes or I Do.

Pilgrimage

Paris: Part Deux

And Coke in a glass bottle!

The City of Bikes

Everywhere you look in Amsterdam, you'll see bikes upon bikes. Infront of every business and train station there is no expansive parking garage, no cab stand, no drop off lanes just a giant metal structure to lock up their bikes.

The bike lanes are bigger and better kept than the streets and the bikers have the right of way, no matter what. And they know it.

People fly by in their Dutch best, the old, the young and everything in between. No one wears helmets because it's safer to bike than to walk. If a bike gets into an accident, weather it be hitting a pedestrian or car, the other person has to prove that it wasn't their fault.

It is nice to see that somewhere on this giant planet, people are embracing a much better mode of transportation and have broken their reliance on cars. Hopefully one day cities in America will be a lot more like Amsterdam.

Amsterdamsel

Oh, Amsterdam the city of Hedonism. People go there to indulge on there every whim and the city caters to you.

The people are friendly, the vibe is calm and everything is covered in whipped cream.

I had pancakes for dinner. Twice.

It is an unbelievable city situated around a maze of canals and cobble stone roads and the most difficult about the city is walking.

Huge bike lanes criss-cross with roads filled with scooters and a few cars and tram tracks and at any given moment any of these vehichles will vear onto the sidewalks. The amount of bikes in the city is unreal, there is an average of 3 bikes per people in the city, and they always have the right of way.

Amsterdam is an amazing city, it is small enough to easily get around and navigate and it is filled with interesting arcitecture and beautiful bridges. Everything about the city is backwards in the best possible way. It's a little mecca of delight in the center of the Nothinglands.

The first night, we got to our beautiful hostel, dropped off our things and set out to explore the city by moonlight. The next day, we went across the street to the Van Gogh Museum and wandered around there for while before grabbing lunch and heading the world famous red light district that we explored and went to a museum.

The next day, we went to the Anne Frank House which was terribly sad, but a very interesting place.

That afternoon we took a tour of the Heineken Brewery.

On our final day, we just wandered the city street like a bunch of beaten down vagabounds trying to soak up every last minute of the purely unique Amsterdam experience.

It was one of my favorite cities I've visited and I can't wait to go back.

Coldest July 30 I've ever experienced

I dont hate it

Amsterdam

Le Agenda

Tomorrow I will be boarding a train to Amsterdam!

Thursday is the program's going away party :(

Friday I will be heading to Paris!

I will (maybe) be back in the states on August 19.

Au Revior

St. Emilion

During my stay in Bordeaux, we took a trip to St. Emillion, on the right bank of Bordeaux. The ride from Bordeaux to St. Emillion is beautiful, on each side of the winding roads is a sea of wine vineyards stretching as far as the eye can see.

Bordeaux is a realitivley flat area, but St. Emillion is pearched on a hill high above the vineyards.

It is a small town consiting of 300 inhabitants and too many tourists. Our trip to St. Emillion included a trip to the catacombs underneath the city center, and an underground church carved out of one giant limestone rock.

After a morning wine tasting, we headed to a wine lunch which included a lot of free wine and a lot of authentic delicious southern french dishes.

After the wine lunch we headed to another vineyard, for another tour and tasting.

After that I'm not quite sure what we did, I think it involved sleeping. I've found that visiting Bordeaaux is best done with 30 twenty year olds, a bus to chauferre you around and someone else planning it.

Pit Stop in Sauternes

Before hitting the main area of Bordeaux on my weekend wine adventure, we took a stop in Sauternes, a wine region in South Bordeaux known for its sweet wine that is made by waiting for the grapes to be attacked by Bostrytis, a type of mold (Known to the Frenchies as "Nobel Rot"). It is a white wine that is usually made from two common grapes to that area, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillion. The grapes are attacked by the Nobel Rot in this area because of the climate, which is foggy and damp in the morning then turns very warm.

I was excited to visit this area because my GM made a big to do about this wine when we added it to the wine list at the restaurant and I quite enjoyed it when we had a tasting at pre-meal one day. And its sweet and very expensive so it's right up my alley.

We took a tour of the sprawling Chateau Guiraud, a beautiful vineyard in the heart of the Sauternes region.

After the tour of the bottling room,

and the barrel room

and vineyards,

we finished by sampling two different Sauternes wine, which were both delicious.

(Best Giftshop Ever)

More Adventures in Wine Country coming soon