Paris Day Trips

Blogging on a frequent basis is harder than I thought. I know that my tens of readers have been eagerly awaiting the conclusion post of my Paris trip. So, without further adieu...

Day 3 Day Trip:

After Jamie and I were successfully oriented to the city, we decided to leave and go on some day trips. First, we went to the palace in Versailles. This fixture of Western history is a must see when traveling to Paris. Versailles is super easy to get to because it is in a Paris suburb. Jamie and I took the subway and train. Total travel time was a little over an hour and cost about $3. We arrived at lunch time, so we went to a tasty tapas bar near the train station. What happened next was serendipity. A lovely couple from San Diego could not find the train station and we could not find the palace. We ran into each other, and together we were able re-orient ourselves. The best thing about the encounter was that the couple gave us their all access passes to Versailles. I know that this story sounds lame, but for real it was so awesome. The line to get into Versailles was 2+ hours and the all access tickets cost about $30 each. Here are some Versailles pics:

Versailles, it is too big to get in one photo. 

Me rocking a cool walkman in the famous Hall of Mirrors. Jamie commented that self-guided audio tours are all the rage right now. I have to agree, they are everywhere. While I do like a live tour guide, the freedom of the audio guide is nice. I also think that the audio guides help manage the noisy crowds. 

Me in front of the palace gardens. I was surprised by the lack of flowers.

Day 4 Day Trip:

Our second Day Trip was a Champaign tour. I have done several wine tours, but a Champaign tour was new. We booked our trip through Gray Line. We were surprised to find out that the prices online were more expensive than booking in the actual Paris Gray Line office. The Champaign tour involved a tour of the Reims Cathedral and a tour and tasting at the G.H. Mumm and Moet & Chandon cellars. Here is what I learned from the day trip: 1) Reims is an ancient city that was once larger than Paris.  2) All of the kings in France used to be crowned in the Reims Cathedral. 3) The city and Cathedral were badly damaged during WWI. 4) Making Champaign is a lot like making wine, except that it has about 12 extra steps 5) The Moet & Chandon people have more money than god. Here are the pics from the day:

Good friends toasting to joie de vivre

This is kind of a silly picture, but you can see how cool the cellars are. 

Jamie inside a chalk cellar

Jamie enjoying a chocolate croissant. Doesn't she look great in this picture?

That evening Jamie and I went on a Fat Tire Night Bike Tour. Fat Tire Bikes is a top 5 Paris attraction according to Trip Advisor. The owner is an Aggie who knows that the recipe for success is hiring attractive co-eds to serve as tour guides. Our guide was a bubbly 23-year-old girl from Philly. Her style worked well for our group, but I believe that the lighthearted tour guides of Fat Tire might annoy some people. For example, our guide abused the phrase get excited and her historical narrative was lacking. However, her enthusiasm was genuine and some girls I know might say she has a heart of gold. The bike ride was overall very enjoyable. We went on a Sunday night, so there were few cars/buses/taxis/people to compete with. Granted, a mob of 18 bikes is a force to reckoned with. The city was beautiful at night. The coolest part of the tour was cycling through the courtyard of the Louvre. We took a break about half way through for ice cream. The tour ended with a river cruise and wine. Overall, I would recommend this activity. 

Day 5:

We spent the morning at the Louvre and the afternoon shopping in the Latin Quarter. The Latin Quarter is home to many old universities and it gets its name from the fact that the Latin language was once widely spoken in the area. The evening of Day 5 was spent at a show at the Moulin Rouge. We went to dinner before hand at Un Zebre a Montmart. This place is delicious! The prix fix is about 23 Euros, you can't beat that.

Famous Art at the Louvre

I love this windmill

Baked camembert with honey and pine nuts. Obviously, I am pleased.

Two friends after a show

Paris Part Deux

Day 2: Jamie and I had grand plans of waking-up at 8:00, eating a quick breakfast, visiting the Eiffel Tower, and catching the 11:00 a.m. Fat Tire Bike tour. Ha! We didn't roll out of bed until 10:20. That was fine because all schedules are flexible when you are on vaca. Since I don't miss meals, first on my list for Day 2 was breakfast. For the entire trip, Jamie and I stuck with the delicious pastry shops that are all over the city. You can eat like a king for only 3 euros. 

Next, we consulted the metro map to plan the best route to the Eiffel Tower. I must say that Jamie and I were great at navigating the Paris metro. In my opinion, it puts the New York Subway, Washington D.C. Metro, and San Francisco BART to shame. Look at it! It is clean, efficient, and has signs that let you know how many minutes until the next train. Warning, the Paris metro stops running between 12:30 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. This fact causes many young Parisians to stay out all night. 

Now, I have to be honest, I was a little nervous about seeing the Eiffel Tower in person. I sometimes find that big landmarks can be underwhelming. However, the Eiffel Tower did not disappoint. I loved it.   

At the Eiffel Tower we were faced with two choices. Wait in the 1+ line for the elevator or wait in the 20 min line for the stairs. For Jamie, this was easy. In 1998, this girl wanted to climb the stairs to the top of one of the World Trade Towers, but the tour guide would not allow it. I, on the other hand, have no desire to ever walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. However, after a little arm twisting, I agreed to climb the stairs. It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. I was fine. There are two platforms that you can go to. I stayed on the first platform, walked around the permitter, and read about the different landmarks you can see. Jamie sprinted to the second platform. Why? Because it was there. Here are some pics from the Eiffel Tower.

View from Platform 1

Me inside the Eiffel Tower

Jamie posing for a future Facebook profile pic

Next, we made a futile effort to catch the 3:00 p.m. Fat Tire tour. According to their website, the tour meets at the South Pillar of the Eiffel Tower. From 2:25 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. Jamie and I searched high and low for the tour. Alas, we never found them. Two days later, we returned to the Eiffel Tower and found the Fat Tire tour guide immediately. I have no idea what happened on Friday. 

We were beat down after our failure, so we went in search of food. Look at what we found. This picture does not do the meal justice. It was delicious. I ate the dessert first :) You can also see from the picture that I ordered a Minute Maid orange drink. On this trip I was all about the orange sodas. There were Orangina Citrus Drink ads everywhere. My mind is so weak. 

Lunch at a bistro near the Eiffel Tower

Next, we went to the Pantheon. All of the really important people in France are buried there. I saw the graves of Victor Hugo and Marie Currie.  On our way back to the hotel we stopped by Notre-Dame. I was amazed at the work that went into building the cathedral. We arrived just before 6:00 p.m. A Mass was being held while we walked around. That was interesting. Jamie and I went out to dinner in the Marais district, in particular Rue Vielle Du Temple. Here are a few more pics from Day 2:

Inside the Pantheon

French Philosopher Voltaire's statue and tomb in the crypt of the Pantheon

Notre-Dame Cathedral

The cool copper metro stop on the way to the Marais District

Pack your bags....

and go to Paris! This past week I was lucky enough to go on a European holiday with my bff Jamie. I have said it before and I will say it again, travel is totally affordable right now. I am in heaven. If only I had unlimited leave and a trust fund. Jamie and I travelled during the off season and it worked out great. The summer hoards hadn't yet invaded, the weather was nice (high 60s and mostly sunny), and things were just a tad cheaper.  

I am going to spread this post out over a few days because of pre-existing time constraints. I mean with The Office, 30 Rock, and Grey's - I am booked. By the by, is anyone watching Parks and Recreation? I love Amy Poehler and Rashida Jones, but I am on the fence. It seems too similar to The Office and not very original. Any thoughts? 

Ok, back to Paris. We stayed at The New Orient. It is located in the 8th district on the Right Bank. To quote Jamie, "It is just darling." The rooms are about 100 euros a night and recently renovated. A big bonus is that the hotel is right next to 3 metro stops. Now, our room was small with an awkward layout, but all is forgiven because of free wifi and a super comfy bed. Sadly, getting to the hotel was a total beating. Roissy-CDG airport is about 40 minutes outside of Paris, so taxis are crazy expensive. Also, I come from the po' side. I can't justify spending $75 when public transportation is only $10. Go here to learn about the different ways to get to Paris from the airport. To get around Paris, Jamie and I exclusively used the metro. For about 28 euros I bought a five day Visite Pass that allowed for unlimited travel in Zones 1-3.  

Luxembourg Gardens 

Day 1: After dropping off our bags at the hotel, we were ready to go exploring. We took the metro to the Palais Royal Musee Du Louvre stop and started walking. We wandered around the grounds of the Louvre for a bit. I couldn't stop thinking about the Da Vinci Code. Next, we crossed over the Seine River and checked out the Left Bank. We ate a late lunch at a tasty spot. Granted, my previously meal was airplane food, so my palate was eager. I wish I could remember the name of the restaurant. It is very French and it's patrons are a tad pretentious. We then stumbled upon Luxembourg Gardens. It is so pretty! The tulips were in bloom and color was everywhere. It also has the world's coolest playground. The above picture shows a zip line - how cool is that? We then hopped on the metro and went to check out the Montmarte area (home of the Moulin Rouge). We were in need of a snack, so we bought crepes. In honor of my sister, I went with butter and sugar. Jamie had a Nutella crepe.  On our way back to the hotel we passed by the cemetery where Jim Morrison is buried. (Am I the only one who didn't know who Jim Morrison was without the help of Wiki?) We cleaned-up and went out for dinner near the hotel. We wandered around for a bit and then settled on a Chinese place. It was more Vietnamese, which works for me since I love vermicelli noodles. After that, we went to our room and crashed. Here are a few more pics from Day 1:

Our room at the New Orient

The Louvre - watch out for albino monks

Lux Gardens 

 A fountain at Lux Gardens

The Sacre Coeur Church in Montmarte

Check out these articles on traveling to Europe:

Recalculating the Grand Tour

Practical Traveler: Airfare Debate: Buy Now or Wait?

*ETA: Ok, I realize that all of these pics look ominous and not sunny. I promise there was there was lots of sun on my trip. It did try to rain a few days, but only 1 day was rainy. Even then, it wasn't too bad.  

Nick and Norah's Infinite Play List

Well, Jen has been requesting a post that delves into something political and heavy. I am not there yet. However, I can write a review of the teen flick that I saw last night. I heard good things about Nick and Norah's Infinite Play List, so I ordered it up via On Demand. I am big fan of feel good, teen movies. I count Ferris Buller's Day Off as one of my favorite movies of all time. I have seen The Breakfast Club, Empire Records, Pretty in Pink, Dirty Dancing, and Dazed and Confused countless times. I am programed to like Nick and Norah, and I did.

Thanks to the Fashion & Style section of the New York Times, I knew ahead of time that Nick and Norah's screenwriter Lorene Scafaria is bff's with Juno writer Diablo Cody. I consider this a good thing because I feel like these writers help me keep in touch with kids today. Or at least a highly romanticized version of the American teenager. I learned from imdb that the movie is adapted from a popular book of the same name. I am adding this novel to my long list of "books I should read soon." In my opinion, some of the characters in the movie were underdeveloped. I hope that the book will shed some light on the back story. For example, why is Jewish Norah attending a private, all girls Catholic school? The movie is a love story with bridge and tunnel teens running amuck in NYC's Lower East Side. Nick was recently dumped by his whore of an ex-girlfriend, Tris, and he can't get over her. Tris goes to school with Norah. They are frenemies. Norah has never met Nick, but she knows he has great taste in music because of the mix CD's he makes for Tris titled "Road to Closure." One special night, Tris, Norah, and their partying friend Caroline wind up at a Manhattan club where Nick's band is playing. Calamity ensues, and Nick's band-mates decide to act as match maker for Nick and Norah. After Norah gets some much needed fashion advice from the gays, the love story begins. The plot moves forward because of the teens quest to find a secret performance of their favorite indie band, Where's Fluffy.

Michael Cera is cast as the sad, witty, and adorable male lead Nick. Cera may be getting type cast (see Juno and Superbad, and Arrested Development), but it is understandable since he plays hipster/geek so well.  Kat Dennings is the privileged, sharp tongued Norah who doesn't know when she has made her point. If you are thinking who is Kat? She is the teen from 40-year-old Virgin. I found her very likable and I plan to watch some of her other movies. Warning, Ari Graynor's Caroline does things with gum that I will not soon forget. 

The dialogue is clever, but a little choppy. I had to rewind a couple of times to catch Nick and Norah's one liners. Luckily, the movie hits the mark at all the right moments. I also really enjoyed seeing NYC through the eyes of these kids. It was fun and dirty. At times, it felt like Woody Allen's 70s New York. Particularly, the scene where Norah wildly drives Nick's yellow Yugo (think Annie Hall).  The length of the movie is an 1 hr 30 min, perfect. Overall, I give this movie an A-. 

The Chocolate Bar

Today, I went to a new dessert spot in Rice Village called The Chocolate Bar. Here is a quick review:

First, I should be open and honest and let everyone know that I am not the biggest chocolate fan. Now, my company at The Chocolate Bar was great. I was with three friends, Melina, Jill, and Emma. We all ordered something different to get a good idea of what Chocolate Bar has to offer. I made a poor choice and did not order chocolate. I chose lemon velvet ice cream with chucks of white chocolate. It was very bitter and I only ate a little before throwing it out. Melina went with chocolate fruit that was visually appealing. Emma selected mudpie and cleaned her plate.  Jill had some kind of chocolate cake that she enjoyed. The store is cute with lots of seating. The service was a tad slow and seemed overwhelmed with the Saturday afternoon crowd. The prices were about right and there was a large selection of chocolate treats. If you are chocolate person, then I would recommend this place.  Here a few pics from the outing: 

Emma just cracks me up! I wish that I had photographed all of her accessories - a sequence purse, multiple necklaces, high heels, lip gloss galore, etc. Here she is showing off a piece of raspberry chocolate. 

Jill, Me, and Melina. 

I love Emma's face in this pic. 

A clean plate = two thumbs up from Emma

Finally, evidence of the sillies after too much chocolate:

 

Taxes

Go figure that when I finally sit down to do my taxes, my work's website is down and I am unable to access my W-2. I hope that this is remedied soon! 

Settling In

Europe

Good news, I am officially out of my old place. The move went pretty smoothly thanks to help from Dad and a moving company. There was a little bit of a drizzle, but nothing too bad. Also, I am pretty sure that one of the movers was doing blow the entire time. Who takes 8 bathroom breaks in 2 hrs? 

One of the first things I do when I move to a new place is find a spot for Europe. I made the above monstrosity right before my junior year of college. Martha Stewart magazine did a piece on interesting headboards, and one of them was made using an old schoolroom map. I thought this was such a clever idea that I decided to get crafty. I searched ebay, found a 1940's schoolroom map of Europe, made a bid, and won the auction. My friend Lindsay was kind enough to lend a hand with the arts and crafts stuff. Honestly, I do not think that I could have done this without her. Silly me thought that a huge cut of plywood would fit in my teeny, tiny Mitsubishi Mirage. After Lindsay's brother rescued us from Lowe's, we broke out the scissors and wood glue and made my headboard. Katie and I shared a room for 2 years and she was convinced that Europe would come crashing off the wall and kill me. Luckily, I survived. I have since upgraded from a twin bed, and Europe now acts a statement piece. This is one of my favorite things because I love maps and traveling. Sometimes I think about updating Europe by painting the border, but I kind of like it the way it is. Right now, Europe dominates one of the walls in my living room. It is what you look at when sitting on the sofa. It is also the only art that I have hung in my new apartment. Once I have everything put together, I will post a few pics. My goal is to be all settled in before Paris. Ok, I am off to tackle a few boxes before Lost!