Disclaimer - this is a long post so just prepare yourselves Wow! We only had 40 hours in Paris but man did we do as much as we could. We arrived late on Tuesday night and went to a french restaurant near our apartment. It was delicious food. When we walked in the bar and restaurant were extremely crowded which we came to find out it was because the Paris soccer team or PSG was played Manchester United. The restaurant was projecting the live game in their bar. What a fun environment to experience. PSG scored twice and both times the bar/restaurant went crazy. Even the servers would stop to watch the game! We had a blast being a part of the this fun win for the Paris soccer team! What an exciting way to spend out first night. We were exhausted so decided to go straight to bed since we knew we would have a CRAZY day on Wednesday. Wednesday we woke up bright and early and hit the ground running. First we went and grabbed a quick coffee and croissant at a place on the way to the Metro. We hopped on the Metro and rode to Palais Royal and went and saw the striped columns to take some photos like every girl studying abroad (haha). Then we stopped and took some pictures outside of the main entrance of the Louvre, but we would come back to go in later. We walked through the Tuileries gardens down to Musee de l’Orangerie to see Monet’s Water Lilies. WOW! They were breathtaking. I could have sat and stared and those paintings for hours and would have if we did not have to head out to other places. I hope to one day return and just forget about time and the world around me and just sit and enjoy. Sadly we left the Musee de l’Orangerie and went to the Notre Dame. There was no line to go in so we quickly got in and enjoyed the amazing stained glass and architecture. I loved learning about the history that filled this cathedral. Our afternoon began with eating at a restaurant that Caroline found that is one of the oldest in the city of Paris: Au Vieux Paris d’Arcole. It was a fun, little place right across the street from the Notre Dame filled with no matching furniture and wonderful food. Then we headed across the Seine to the Shakespeare and Company Bookstore. This store and partner cafe are completely worth a visit in my opinion. It is a wonderful bookstore that many famous authors frequented over the years. The store not only has an amazing current selection, but also has many nooks and reading rooms for anyone to sit and use while they are open. It is a bookworms dream! Next Caroline and I hopped back on the Metro and went to the Eiffel Tower. We walked all around it and ate a crepe. What a sight! Now for my favorite part of our whole trip. We decided to get tickets to go up on the Arc de Triomphe for the sunset. First we climbed what felt like a million stairs, but it was completely worth it. Once on the roof we instantly saw a 360 degree view of Paris. The sun began to set not long after we reached the top and wow it was beautiful. The city was starting to light up. We could see all the cars driving and the Eiffel Tower in the distance. I think this must be the best view of the city. I do not know how anything could beat it. I recommend to anyone going to Paris to go to the top of the Arc de Triomphe, but especially go at sunset. It was only ten euros and wow was that view worth more. Next we headed to the Louvre because two nights a week the Louvre stays open until 9:45 pm! So we decided to go then because we heard it would be less crowded. Now we knew we did not have much time so we let ourselves pick the wings we wanted to walk in specifically. But it is easy to get lost in all of those hallways. I think that part of the magic of the Louvre is that it was built to be someone’s home (well a palace but still a home). To see the ceilings and how large it is just amazes me. I love that we get to enjoy this palace for all the beauty it already has and then fill it with art that just makes it even better. I would highly recommend going to the Louvre at night time. There were less people and seeing the museum in a different light was interesting. After the Louvre we wanted to see the Eiffel Tower twinkle on the hour so we rushed over so that we could see it. We enjoyed another crepe and watched the tower twinkle, which is truly magical and worth the wait. After a long day that included over 35,000 steps we rode the Metro home and slumped into bed. The next morning we woke up and went to Musee d’Orsay and loved every moment. Then it is was time to head to the airport to go to Prague. This trip was my second time in Paris and it was just as magical as the first if not more. This city is truly spectacular. The art, history, food, and beauty that fills it will never get old. Our time in Paris was too short, but perfect. I think it was some of the best 40 hours of my life. Thank you Paris for letting us come and see just a glimpse of what you have to offer. I promise that I will be back.
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Wow! What a city - Caroline and I got here on Saturday night and hit the ground running. We checked into our AirBnB and then went and met up with the TCU teach abroad girls that are in Barcelona! It was great to get to see them and catch up on our different stories from our time abroad. What a treat to see them! Then we headed out to a late dinner and then home to sleep! DAY 1 Sunday morning we let ourselves sleep in a little after a long week of teaching in a new school. Then we headed out to wonderful breakfast at Citizen Cafe (right down the street from us) and wow it was good! Next we went to the Picasso Museum filled with many of his early works and work done in Barcelona. I thought that it was interesting to see how he progressed as an artist and the various stages he went through. After the Museum we walked around the Gothic Quarter. We stopped at a small shop and had some tapas for lunch. Then we went to see one of Antoni Guadi's houses: Casa Batllo. We were awestruck by the beauty and details that were in this house. It was spectacular (especially the views from the roof). Then we went to another tapas restaurant, Sensi Mezzanine Tapas, for dinner. We split a few of their best dishes and then walked home after a long, but fun day. DAY 2 We woke up today (Monday) with a whole day planned. We went and grabbed a quick coffee and breakfast at a cafe by our house. First we walked to the Arc de Triomf and it was in a really cool location and looked amazing! We then walked on to the Sagrada Familia Cathedral. I do not even know if I have words to describe how gorgeous this church was. The outside takes your breath away. The details are amazing and never ending. I loved the contrast between the outside and inside of the church. Antoni Gaudi changed architecture with his work and this is a wonderful example. The church is still under construction even though they started building it in 1882, but it is projected to be finished in 2026. I would love to come back again when it is done to see the church how Gaudi imagined it. If anyone ever goes to Barcelona take the time to go into the church because I am still thinking about what I saw hours later. We headed to a quick lunch after spending a few hours in the church and went on to the next Gaudi location: Park Guell. Again he blew us away. This park was amazing. We walked around most of the free part of the park which included many trails and soaking in the sun and nature. We were able to see most of Barcelona and the ocean from the top of the park. Stunning view! Then we headed down to the momument part of the park which includes the famous tiled work and dragon. We embraced our inner Cheetah Girls and strutted through the park. Then we headed home from the park - which was an extremely long walk but Caroline and I have been soaking up all of the sunlight we can get here so we did the long walk! I have over 24,000 steps on my fitbit today (save to say our feet are tired). We then headed out to a wonderful dinner close to our house and now are back in our AirBnb working on blogs and looking at all our amazing photos from this weekend. Barcelona has been an amazing experience filled with sun, great weather, lots of Gaudi, and delicious food. I cannot wait to come back one day...until then chao barcelona y gracias. Tomorrow we are heading off to Paris! This coming week is a break for all schools in Sweden called sports break. Many of my students and staff at the school will be skiing this week. Catherine, Caroline, Madilyn, and I will he taking the opportunity to travel through out Europe! We all wanted to go so many places that we decided to split into two trips. Catherine and Madilyn headed our early this morning and Caroline and I are currently on the bus to the airport to fly to Barcelona. This week we will visit Barcelona, Paris, and Prague. We know that it is a lot of places to go in one week, but we decided that we didn’t know the next time we would be in Europe so why not see as much as we can! I will continue to post updates throughout the week of our adventures so keep checking back!
Today the whole school went on a field trip to a local ice skating rink. We got on the tram this morning with the whole class and a couple of parents and rode about 20 minutes to the rink. Many of my students had their own skates and were going about 10 times faster than I will ever be able to go! My teacher, some students, and I rented skates and were able to go out on the rink and try our best. Many schools in Sweden take one day to go out ice skating. Each grade left at a different time so that the times that classes were on the trams were staggered. It was an interesting experience taking public transit with all of the students. It was an easy way to travel because most of the students had been on the tram before and knew what to do, but involved lots of counting to make sure that we always had the whole class.
It was extremely fun and I loved getting out of the classroom for a bit. It was a fun day to get to know my students better and not just over academics. We were able to laugh about our falls and get back up again and try! I feel like it was a great opportunity to get to know the students and my teacher better. What a fun field trip idea and a way to get out and enjoy a winter sports activity that is so easily available in Gothenburg. The International School uses the IB program and it has been interesting to learn about it. Yesterday I was able to attend an all staff meeting about collaborative planning. Each grade levels next unit of inquiry central idea was presented. The staff then went around and wrote down ideas about how student could actively be apart of their own learning and teaching process during that inquiry unit. Then each grade level met within their team for 30 minutes to discuss ideas and plan their unit more fully. I was welcomed into my grade level and so were my ideas. I loved that each person had a voice and opinion that mattered. Everyone listened to each other and genuinely wanted to learn others ideas. I like that the entire staff knows what is being taught throughout the school and not just focused on their own curriculum. This allows teachers to know what other students are learning or what their students may learn in the future. I appreciated being a part of the meeting and learning more about the IB program from a teacher perspective. Tonight Caroline and I were able to try some authentic Swedish food for dinner tonight. We went to a local cafe and ordered a great chicken and potatoes dish for our main dish. We then ordered a traditional semlor for dessert to split. A semlor is only served in the winter months in Sweden, so we thought that we had to try it at least once. Our dinner was delicious and fun to try a new cuisine. |
AuthorHello! I am Virginia and here are some of my adventures during my month abroad. ArchivesCategories |