Leaving Paris

So these past couple of days have been pretty busy as well.
Yesterday we went to Giverny, and road bikes to Monet's home and garden.  Monet was an artist who died many years ago, but it's said that his garden inspired some of his paintings.  I could see that, because I thought the garden there was a work of art all and in of itself.  It was so pretty there, and had it not been so crowded it would've been the most peaceful place ever.
Afterwards we went to Sacré Cœuron top of a hill called Montmartre.  It was neat, but not too much to report on.
Today we had a free day to do whatever.  I really didn't have anything more that I wanted to see than what I've already seen, so I just tagged along with some of my classmates.
We went to a place called The Catacombs.  Basically the Catacombs are tunnels that used to be part of a mine.  However when French cemeteries started to get overflown, especially during the time of the Black Plague, they took the bones from the graveyards and put them in these tunnels.  I think to be respectful, they made designs and symbols with the bones.
It was really quite the sight to see because it's estimated that the bones of 7 million people are down there!  They just lined the walls.  It was kind of a creepy, humbling, and interesting experience all at once.
After that we went to a fancy bookstore and had lunch.  Now I'm back at the hotel.  I'll probably go out again sometime tonight, but I still need to pack and get everything ready for tomorrow.  I leave tomorrow morning.  I'm really excited to get home to America, but I am very grateful for the opportunity I've had to come here.  There will be things that I miss, but there are also things back home that I miss.  Other students are going back to Nice for three more weeks, but I'm glad I'm doing things this way.  I feel like I've been here the perfect amount of time.

Busy

Well I don't even know where to start.  It has been a really busy three days.  I've been getting in after mid-night and leaving first time in the morning.  This is the first chance I've have to post an update.  It's been a lot of fun though, I think I'm enjoying Paris more than Nice, probably because there's more to do, and I don't have to go to a boring class everyday.
So on Tuesday we went to Versailles where the most recent French Palace is.  From what I've heard this fancy palace, with a solid gold fence, was built during a time of economic crisis in France.  The only reason I could really see for it being built was so the King could show how great he thought he was, and the Palace reflected that.  There were pictures after pictures of kings and other royalty.  There were so many fancy things and architecture that really seemed to reflect the Kings haughtiness.  It didn't seem to have any other value whatsoever.
The gardens around it were also amazing, and it just went on forever.  We only go to explore a fraction of them.
We actually started the day off in the gardens, and we ate lunch there.  Then the group split up to do whatever they wanted.  My teacher took me and two others over to see the LDS temple that's being built not far from the palace.  There was only a cement outline of the first floor, but it was neat to see.
After we got back to the palace, our teacher left us, and we went to go to the palace.  One of the girls I was with decided she was too tired to go through though, so she just went back to Paris.  It turns out that most of my classmates went back to Paris without even seeing the inside of the palace.  My friend Klarissa and I weren't sticks in the mud though and went through.
One interesting fact about the Versailles Palace is that the Treaty of Versailles, which ended World War I, was signed there.  I walked through the hall it was signed in.
After we went back to Paris.  Upon getting back we text everyone to see what they were doing, and they were all at the hotel and didn't want to leave until later.  Klarissa and I were astonished that they were in Paris and just wanted to stay in the hotel.
We decided we were going to make the most of the day, and went over to the Eiffel Tower.  We wanted to go to the top, but a worker told us they weren't letting anyone go to the very top that day.  We didn't want to pay to not be able to go all the way up, so we decided to try to find something else to do.
We looked up some of the museums and found one that was open that late.  We tried to get there using the Metro, which was difficult.  Most of the time here, we just follow our teacher around, so it took us a little while to figure it out.  Eventually we got it and got to where we wanted to go.
We got back above ground and asked an old man how to get to the museum.  He told us and as we started to go he told us that it was closed that day because it was Tuesday.  Looking back at our museum paper I realized it said that, but I didn't read that far down.
We walk around that part of town a bit, looking for a snack or something so that our trip wasn't a waste.  We found a cool monument called Le Tour de Saint -Jacques.  At least it wasn't a waste.
After that we made our way back to the Eiffel Tower because we wanted to see it light up.  We were going to met some of our classmates there too, but they didn't make it in time.  It was neat seeing the tower light up, and and 10 it started to sparkle.  It only sparkled for about 5 minutes though.
While we were waiting we had 10 different street vendors come up to us with wine, which was really annoying.  However we asked one of them if the tower would sparkle again.  He said it would at 11.  We text our classmates that they could still see it at 11 then tried to make our way home.  We didn't make it home though because we ran into our classmates, and they really wanted us to go with them to watch the tower sparkle, so we did.
In the end we didn't get back until after midnight, and I was exhausted.
The next day we went to l'Arc de Triomphe.  It was neat to see.  It commemorated the people lost in the wars France participated in, and had a tomb for the Unknown Soldier.
Afterwards we went to the Louvre, and let me tell you, you could spend days in that museum and still have things to see.  That's were the original Mona Lisa is, and yes I got see it.  It was neat to see it, but it looks just like it does in pictures.
Afterwards, the group splintered off because they all wanted to see different things.  I went with two other classmates. Each of us didn't really have an idea of what was there so we just wandered to what seemed interesting.  After a little while one of them ditched us, and my friend McKenzie and I wandered through the archaeological part of the museum.  We saw things from ancient Greece, Egypt and Iran.  I thought the stuff from ancient Iran was the most interesting, because it was the one I knew the least amount.  It's kind of funny that the middle east had so many great, ancient civilizations, but we never learn about them in school.  I figure it's because they didn't have much influence on our culture.
We also went down to the basement were the still had parts of the original foundation of the building, which was build in the 12th century.  It was really neat to see.
McKenzie also wanted to see a sculpture called Venus de Milo, but we had no idea where it was.  We ended up asking several workers, who told us where it was, be we had to travel clear across the museum to find it.  It's funny because the French really do treat you much nicer if you speak French.  They'll fall all over themselves to help you.  One worker I asked answered in English though, and her coworker got after her.  He said if I was speaking French, she should speak French to me; I appreciated it.
I liked these last two days just wondering around with Klarissa and McKenzie because I got a lot of opportunities to speak French as we tried to find our way around.
Our classmates told us that they wanted to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower that night, and that we should all meet up there.  We could've very easily spent all day at the Louvre, but McKenzie wanted to change out of shorts before we went to the Eiffel tower, so we went back to the hotel.
We ate dinner at the hotel, then McKenzie decided that she didn't want to go that night to the Eiffel Tower, so I starting making my way there by myself (it's a good thing I figured out the metro the day before).  I wasn't sure which stop the Eiffel Tower was though, but I just started heading in that general direction.  While I was on the train I was standing next to an English Family, who had the most stereotypical English accents.  It felt like I was watch Harry Potter.  Listening to them I realized that they were going to the Eiffel Tower, so I asked them which stop it was.  They were very friendly and not only told me the stop, but took me to the Tower.  While walking, the dad asked me where I was from, and I told him the United States, Utah.  He told me that he had just gone to Utah a little while before to write something about the races on the Salt-Flats.  Small world right.
In the end only me and three other classmates actually went to the Eiffel Tower (sticks in the mud).  It was really neat.  I'm glad we did it at night because we got to see all of the city lights.  I'm very glad I got to do it, but if I had to choose, I think watching the tower sparkle was more cool.
We also got back after mid-night that night, and I was again exhausted.
Today we went to Napoleon's Tomb (which also had a World War I&II museum), Le Musée Rodin and Le Musée d’Orsay.  Le Musée Rodin was closed, but we still got to walk around the garden and see some of the sculptures out there.  He did the Thinker Sculpture.  I also saw some of his stuff in a museum by Nice.

Le Musée d'Orsay was also another big museum of art, and I'm not sure we got through it all before we were all to tired to keep going.  So I went back to the hotel to rest a little.  I don't feel like a stick in the mud though, because of how much I did the other days.  Also I needed to do things like laundry and write this.  It's kind of like I'm taking a P-day, which is an inspired thing.

I don't have many pictures because I didn't have batteries in my camera for much of these last few days.  Some of my classmates have sent me pictures, and some of them still need to send me some, but this is what I have right now.  

 Napoleon's Tomb

 A bomb in the World War II museum

 Le Penseur (The thinker).  The following are sculptures by Rodin

 The following are painting from Le Musée d’Orsay

 Me on top of l'Arc de Triomphe

 At a fancy restaurant that my teacher said has the best hot chocolate.  I thought it was too rich.

 At another museum

 Some of the pictures McKenzie took of me by the ocean that one day the waves were crashing.

Paris

Today was quite the day.  We did so many things, and I am tired.
We started today by going to the Eiffel Tower.  It turns out that it's really real.  I was surprised at how cool if was.  I think it probably is worth all the hype people give it.  We didn't go up it because the teacher said it would take too long, but that we could come back later in the week if we wanted to.
After we went on a short boat tour of Paris on the Seine.  It was cool, and it was nice getting introduced to everything before we actually visited them.  I'm pretty sure I saw the bridge Phineas and Ferb went under when they were in France too.
After we visited the Sainte-Chapelle, which is a really pretty chapel with a lot of stain glass windows. They have bible stories in art form all over: the stain glass windows, engraven in the wall, everywhere.
The Sainte-Chapelle was built to house the Crown of Thorns that was on Jesus' head, that one of the French Kings bought.  I don't know if it was still there though (or if it was ever there), because it wasn't on display.
After that we went to Notre Dame.  We had to wait in line a long time, but we finally got to go in.  First we went up on the roof.  The view was neat and we also got to see some of the bells.  Then we went inside.  It pretty much looked like any other Cathedral, but a lot bigger, and a lot more fancy.  The architecture and the art work were beautiful.  I also liked Notre Dame because it provided a peaceful place to sit after a lot of standing and walking.
After we went to dinner to a traditional French food restaurant.  I think most of us Americans were a little nervous about the lamb, duck and escargot because most of us played it safe and got pasta.  I decided to branch out a little though, and I got lamb.
Dinner didn't start out very well because I had a fly in my appetizer, but other than that everything was pretty good.  I think most of my classmates who ordered pasta were jealous of my dinner when it came out.  They told me that their pasta was bland, but I had super delicious potatoes and green beans with my lamb. The Lamb wasn't bad either, but it wasn't my favorite; it tasted kind of like brunt beef.
For dessert I had crème brûlée.  I've heard a lot about it, but I think this was the first time I've actually had it.  It wasn't bad.  It was pretty much milk and sugar pudding with a caramelized top.
Now I know you're all wondering, so I'll let you know: I did try Escargot!  My teacher ordered a plate and asked if anyone wanted to try it.  Truthfully it wasn't that bad.  It tasted like the butter and garlic it was in.  The thing that surprised me the most about it though was the texture.  I was thinking it would be this slimy mass in my mouth that I couldn't chew, but it was actually quite meaty.  It was kind of like chicken, just less strings.  I kind of liked it, but I couldn't bring myself to have another one.  It was more the idea that the eyes, mouth and all the organs were still on it.
Well now I'm in my hotel room completely exhausted, and I know I have another busy day tomorrow.  Unfortunately the batteries in my camera died half way through the day, so I only have a few pictures.  I'm planning on getting some from other students, but right now this is all I have.

Les Châteaux Chambord et Cheverny

Today we went and saw two more Castles.  First we went to Le Château Chambord and after to Le Château Cheverny.  They we both neat Castles, but after so many, castles loose their magic.
Le Château Chambord was originally designed for a get-away for Francois I to go hunting.  There was a lot of land surrounding it that were his hunting grounds.
Le Château Chambord also had a lot of land around it.  I assume whoever lived there was also really into hunting because the had a big kennel filled with dozens of hound dogs.  The cool thing about that castle is that there are still people living in part of it.  It was owned by the same family for hundreds of years, and they still own it.
There were a lot of other things to see at Le Château Chambord as well.  We went for a guided boat ride they had there, which was a lot of fun.
After all of that, we took a series of bus and train rides to Paris. It's funny because as we pulled into Paris I saw a tall structure, and to tease everyone I told them it was the Eiffel tower; then the buildings cleared away and it turned out it really was the Eiffel Tower.
We just got in a little while ago, so we haven't had time to look around.  I'm sure I'll have more to say about Paris tomorrow though.

 Le Château Chambord

 A double helix staircase in the Château Chambord

 A single helix staircase in the Château Chambord

 Le Château Chambord

 Le Château Chambord

 Le Château Cheverny

 Some of the grounds around le Château Cheverny

Beautiful French Countryside

Today was a full day, and it was so much fun.
We started out early and went to a neighboring town called Amboise.  There we rented bikes and went for a 14km bike ride through the most beautiful countryside I have ever seen.  There were farmlands and forests that we rode through.  The forests reminded me of enchanted forests in fairy-tales.  I didn't know there were really forests that looked like that.  I have some pictures, but I don't feel the pictures capture the enchantment of the forest.
We rode our bikes to a castle just out of a really small town called Chenonceau. The Castle was the most beautiful that I've seen, mostly because of the huge garden around it.  The garden just went on and on; it was full of trees and flowers, there was a labyrinth and fountains and everything.  The Castle was built on a river, which made it look like it had a moat.  We had two and a half hours to spend there, but I really wish we had more.
After we road back to Amboise and looked at the Castle there (every town has a castle).  The Castle in Amboise wasn't nearly as impressive as the one at Chenonceau, but it was still nicer than any around Nice, and a lot bigger.
Later we're going to go to a SON & LUMIÈRE (sound & light) show at the Castle here in Blois.  It's been quite the day, but I very much enjoyed it.  It was fun riding bikes, and do something other than walk around.

 Fields

 Forest

 At the Chenonceau Castle Gardens

The Chenonceau Castle

 Forest by the Chenonceau Castle

 Inside the Chenonceau Castle

 A tomb outside of the Chenonceau Castle

 The outer wall of the Chenonceau Castle

 A neat garden at the Chenonceau Castle

 The Labyrinth at the Chenonceau Castle

 I think more forest by the Chenonceau Castle

 View of Amboise

 The Amboise Castle

 Amboise Castle Garden

A suit of armor in the Amboise Castle