Travel Diaries No. 2
Today was definitely a peaceful day. I woke up a couple of hours before noon to my grandparents’ offering of a caramel cappuccino from Starbucks. Their Starbucks coffee here is a lot better than the normal coffee they have in the cafes on the street. But that is probably just because we are used to it. Starbucks coffee here is more expensive than in the United States but is just as delicious! For breakfast, we had croissant amandes which are just almond crescents. They were absolutely delicious. It was very sweet and normally I’m not a big almond fan but this was amazing.
After breakfast, I started to get ready for the day ahead of me. I curled my hair and put on a nice salmon-colored outfit with my beige pointed shoes and of course a necklace for style! We headed out for the market they had up just down the street. Earlier that morning, my grandparents went down there and bought a huge assortment of fruit, bread, cheese, milk, eggs, and well… some more fruit. Their fruit here is so juicy and flavorful! Every bite is a sweet treat! While we were down at the market there was this rack of women’s clothing that really caught my eye. The outfits there were so stylish and adorable. There were two workers there: a mom and her older teenage daughter. Their English was very good and the daughter really helped me find an outfit I loved. Also, she said she loved my shoes which was a HUGE compliment to me because my math teacher told me that Europeans can tell who the Americans are based on their shoes since a lot of tourists wear tennis shoes. I felt very pleased with myself to get complimented by an owner of a women’s clothing stand in Paris. My grandparents ended up buying me a pair of navy striped, belted pants and a mustard leotard shirt. I absolutely love it! We went back to our apartment to put away the clothes and then we were off on our next adventure.
The next thing we did was go on a huge boat tour. It stopped at so many destinations along the river. The eight stations were: Tour Eiffel, Musèe D’Orsay, Saint-Germain-Des-Prés, Notre Dame, Jardin des Plantes/ Cité de la Mode, Hôtel de Ville, Louvre, and Champes- Elysées. The ride was so relaxing because we were just standing at the back of the boat on the edge and we got to see a lot of the city life along the river. There was music, people sunbathing, people picnicking by the river, people just walking or biking, people writing and reading; it was peaceful. The architecture of the places along the river was also so gorgeous. Everything I saw felt worthy of being a palace or castle, especially Notre Dame. That was such a brilliant piece of gothic-styled architecture.
After the boat ride, we decided to head back to our apartment and prepare for an early dinner. We were all very exhausted and still aren’t exactly used to the time change in Europe. On the walk back to the hotel, we passed through what kind of felt like a park. People were laying in the grass, some even sleeping. There was a group of guys playing hockey in roller blades on the cement ground. People were everywhere. One thing that I was really shocked about was the number of kids who just casually play soccer in the streets or on the sidewalks. Kids are always out and about in Paris and every morning I can hear the shouting and laughing of kids from my apartment window.
For dinner, we had our leftovers, some bread and butter (their butter here is so perfectly salted. I love it so much more than the butter in the U.S.), fruit, sparkling water, a type of alcoholic apple cider, and some more of the almond croissant for dessert. It is honestly so nice to just open up the window to let in the fresh air of Paris as you enjoy your dinner. Dinner here also just seems so classy. One of my favorite things about Europe so far, compared to the United States, is the level of class. Everything is just so fancy and is thought through as far as meals and outfits. Even the men dress up daily in very nice clothing and shoes. No one really just wears gym clothes or sweat pants or simple T-shirts. I really admire that and have a sort of love for it.
Tomorrow we plan on having a very busy day. We are going up in the Eiffel Tower, going back on the tour boat, and making a stop to go in and see the church of Notre Dame. I can’t even believe that my time in Paris is almost coming to an end. It is so wonderful here and I love the feeling of coming back to the apartment to type and to hear the sounds of bells and people and cars on the streets. Hopefully, tomorrow we don’t feel as tired as we did today. Even though it was very relaxing, I would love to get over the jet-lag to just be my energetic self again. I don’t want to miss any opportunities because of being a little sleepy. It’s only 8:30 pm here and I’m already ready for bed. Goodnight, Paris. Until tomorrow.
Laurel ❤
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