Paris, je t'aime

After a full day of working the Christmas Fair on Thursday (I can now work a till!), I excitedly made my way to St. Pancras Station to catch my train for Paris!  I spent the two and a half hour journey scouring the travel book I had bought this past week, and before I knew it we had arrived at Gare du Nord.  A ten minute taxi ride brought me to the Hotel Duc de St Simon.  Pam and her mom had recommended this spot to us, and I can now see why; it is a quintessentially charming boutique hotel with cozy rooms and friendly people.  Upon my arrival, I lugged my bags (a certain sister of mine insisted I bring my laptop so she could do homework, which of course didn't happen) upstairs to be greeted by my mom and Courtney!  It was so wonderful to see them; even though my mom was only here in London six weeks ago, it still seemed like way too long since I had seen her.  After chatting for a bit, we all collapsed into bed, excited for the weekend ahead.
Friday morning my alarm rang at 8 am, the time we had all decided we would get up and get ready.  Well of course that didn't happen, so I spent the morning reading while my roommates continued snoozing.  Luckily, I didn't have to sit around for too long; at 10 am, Brittany arrived from Florence!  After a round of hello hugs and a bit of waiting for the two CT slugs to get ready, we ventured out to get some breakfast.  We stopped at a café near the hotel, enjoying an authentic French breakfast of baguettes, croissants, and chocolat chaud.  After successfully filling up on carbs, we made our way to the metro and boarded a train for Rueil Malmaison.  This is a small suburb right on the outskirts of Paris, and happens to be where my mom lived for four years as a little girl!  We walked around the whole of the town, passing sites such as City Hall and the church where Josephine Bonaparte is buried.  We stopped for lunch at the small seafood restaurant, and all had the saltiest French onion soup we had ever tasted; a little too much, but with the waiter's degrading stares constantly upon us, we decided we would take what we got.  After lunch, we made our way to Malmaison, Josephine's summer château.  We toured the whole of the manor, including her ornate bedroom and the grand dining room, which has been in the same spot since the 18th century.  Courtney was not really a fan of the whole audio guide thing...I told her to get used to it if she wants to study abroad!

Malmaison!

My mom's old house is only a short walk from the château, so we got to see her neighborhood as she pointed out all of her friend's houses and finally her own.  The house is gorgeous and we could definitely see why she had so much fun there as a child!  After the necessary round of pictures, we made our way back to the station, where we enjoyed tea and pastries at a pâtisserie before hopping back on the train to Paris.  We got off (by mistake) at La Défense, the city's business district.  Although our desired destination was the Champs Élysées, it was actually really cool to see the area; it is a gigantic park filled with high rises and interesting architecture.  We got to see where my grandpa worked, and even took in some interesting art!  After walking around for a bit, we popped in a cab and made our way to the Arc de Triomphe.  We thought it would be a good thing to do at night, so we made our way up some 200 stairs to the top - it was touch and go with my mom at some points (just kidding! but not really).  The views at night were spectacular, as you could see everything in the city from Notre Dame to Le Tour Eiffel.  Despite Courtney and I being a bit nervous of the creaky barricade, we managed to take some really great pictures!  Our climb had worked up all of our appetites, so we all enjoyed croque monsieurs (ham & cheese sandwiches - a French classic) in a small restaurant on the Champs before popping into Ladurée for some of their famous macaroons.  We decided to head back to the hotel for the night, but it wasn't long until I heard a knock at my bedroom door, only to open it and see Molly standing in front of me!!  It was so great to see her;  we spent the rest of the night chatting before drifting off to sleep.
Saturday morning my mom wasn't feeling well, so she and Courtney relaxed while Britt, Molly and I enjoyed breakfast downstairs in the hotel's cafe.  It was not long after we sat down that we were joined by a special guest; our friend Ellen from Wake, who is studying in Dijon, had taken an early morning train to spend the day with us!  We were so happy to see her, and were so excited to hear about all her French adventures!  After some catching up and a delicious breakfast, we hit the Musée d'Orsay, which houses an impressive collection of Impressionist pieces, and then walked over the Seine to the Louvre.  Luckily we got to cut the enormously long line as we had bought a Museum Pass, bringing us right to the heart of the building.  We saw all of the major attractions, including the Mona Lisa, The Wedding Feast and Venus de Milo.  Britt and I were especially excited to see the Code of Hammurabi, since we vividly remember studying it for what seemed like weeks in Western Civ during our freshman year of high school.  When we had finished seeing all we wanted to see, we navigated our way out (the Louvre is the world's largest museum, and it certainly lives up to its title when you're trying to find an exit!) and began our walk along the Rue de Rivoli, our final destination being the Longchamp store!  This was, of course, a necessary stop, and Britt and I even picked up a few little somethings for Christmas!  Bags in hand, we stopped at a small cafe near the Madeleine for (yet another) croque monsieur.  We then walked by the Opera House and over to Galeries Lafayette, Paris' big department store.  The place was a madhouse; if you weren't in Europe, you would have thought it was the day after Thanksgiving.  Despite the crowds, we were able to admire their Christmas decorations before heading out.  We continued our stroll to L'Armée, the grand building that serves as Napoleon Bonaparte's tomb.  Unfortunately it was closed, we so crossed the Pont de Alexandre III and admired the Seine by night.  By the time we made our way across, it was time to say goodbye to Ellen, as she had a train to catch.  We all exchanged big hugs before she headed towards the nearest metro, while Britt, Molly and I hopped in a cab back to the Concorde for dinner.

L'Entrecȏte is a small chain of restaurants that is world renowned for their steak frites - it also happens to be one of our family's favorite places in Europe!  When we arrived, there was already a long line waiting to get in.  Although we ended up waiting for nearly an hour, it turned out to be a good thing since it was difficult for my mom and Courtney to get there from their shopping afternoon at Printemps, another department store.  By the time they arrived, they were ready to seat us.  We all enjoyed an amazing dinner of salade verte, steak frites, and profiteroles (ice cream filled puff pastry with chocolate sauce...heavenly).  We all talked about our day and school and just about everything else, it was the perfect meal.  Finishing up, we decided to continue the night and headed to the Eiffel Tower.  In my handy dandy guidebook, it said that if you wanted to avoid the long lines to climb it you should come later at night.  They were certainly right, as when we arrived around 10:15, the line was nonexistent - we actually got the last tickets to go up to the summit!  Now, you already know about my intense fear of heights, but I am proud to say that I successfully made my way to the top!  The misty night air obstructed a bit of the gorgeous view, but in the end I think it helped me freak out less.  By the time we had descended back down to the second level (which is still pretty darn high) I was being quite adventurous and casually looking over the edge.  So proud....if only Lauren could have been there to see so she knows I'm not a complete chicken :)  After a wonderful climb, we returned to the hotel wet and tired.  Sleepy time!

Sunday morning, Britt, Molly and I headed to the last major sight we wanted to catch before leaving, Notre Dame.  The cathedral was so beautiful both inside and out, and we got to walk around while mass was going on, which was a wonderful experience - all the singing made us excited for our Christmas Eve church services!  With pictures snapped, we walked down the Seine to the Orangerie, the museum that houses Monet's famous "Water Lillies."  The pieces are quite spectacular, as they are giant canvases that take an entire wall of the room.  By the time we exited the building, it was monsooning outside, so we popped in a cab back to the hotel, from which we walked to the café we had eaten breakfast at the other day for our third and final croque monsieurs.  We had a wonderful lunch, but when we returned to St Simon it was time for Brittany to leave :(  We all exchanged hugs before she caught a cab back to CDG; I am so glad I have been able to see her so much in the past few weeks, it is so much fun traveling with her!  After we said our goodbyes, Molly, my mom, Courtney and I stayed in the lobby to chat for a while before heading back out.  Since they hadn't eaten lunch yet, we stopped at a café across the Seine so they could enjoy croques while Molly and I opted for Nutella crêpes!  Satisfied, we made our way to the Champs Élysées where we strolled the streets and may or may not have gone back to Ladurée (you can guess).  When the rain yet again became harder, though, we returned to the hotel where we enjoyed a cozy tea downstairs and talked for a few hours.  When 5:30 rolled around, it was time for Molly to take her cab to the airport.  We had a teary goodbye, but luckily we will get to see each other very soon when she and her mom come to London for Thanksgiving; cannot wait!  With only a little bit before I myself had to head back to Gare du Nord, Courtney, my mom and I hung out in their room, relaxed and discussed all things Wilton. I absolutely love London and don't want my time here to end, but I know that I will be so ready and excited to come home when the time comes.  You forget how much you miss everyone until you see them!  Unfortunately when 6:45 came I had to say goodbye, but luckily it is only for five weeks!  I made my way to Eurostar, where I took another relaxing ride back to St. Pancras.  A quick cab ride later and I was back home at Courtfield, ready for bed!
I had an amazing time this weekend.  I forgot how much I loved the city of Paris - the atmosphere is so charming and historical, and there is so much to see.  But of course, the highlight was getting to share it with those I love the most.  There is nothing like having an amazing experience with family and friends! Bisoux!
     xo Carolyn