Monday, April 26, 2010

Fifth Day in Paris






Our last day. I never wanted to leave even though I was so exhausted from the constant craziness. I have no doubt that I'll be going back many, many times. We went by the Opera House on our way out, which is another building that I know entirely too much about. We walked by the Notre Dame to get there. J'adore Paris. My love affair is far from over.

Fourth Day in Paris










Versailles. No one does opulence like Louis XIV did. Lots of gold and waterworks and fancy clipped hedges. So many gardens and paths that its easy to get lost. Unbelievable. Oh, and that pretty Lamborghini, there was a line of those and other cars just as expensive lined up outside the palace. Homage to old Louis' love for the not so little things in life? Perhaps.

Third Day in Paris - Part Two








The Pantheon. Obviously I did not go to Greece for a day, so it's not the Pantheon your likely thinking of. This building used to be a church called the St. Genevieve back in the 1800's but was converted to be a shrine of sorts to all the greats of France. I know entirely too much about this building and the library across the street from it (which I will not bore you with - your welcome) due to a class I took last Fall, so it was neat actually seeing them.

Third Day in Paris - Part One



















This day was a big day. I went to the Louvre and then the Pantheon, so this will be split up accordingly. The Louvre is so huge, with so much art that it is physically impossible to see all in one day. Essentially, it is three big museums in one. It's bordering on the ridiculous, but I love it anyway. Notice what's behind the mob in one picture. Like a freaking rock star, I swear.

Second day in Paris






Day two started at the Catacombs. They were extremely eerie, and there were many times when it was hard to believe that I was surrounded by actual bones. After that I walked to the Galerie Lafayette, which for a shopping girl like me, was absolutely magical. I mean, there was a whole enormous floor devoted to shoes alone. I may or may not have spent six hours there... totally worth it. I've got a shot of the Place de Concord with the obelisk and the Eiffel Tower, which is where Marie Antoinette was beheaded via guillotine. There's also a shot down the street of our hotel from my balcony.

First Day in Paris







Alright, I will try and get all five days of our Paris excursion up today, so promises though. I didn't end up taking my laptop with me, so I had to wait to upload until I got back, which was about 11 p.m last night. The day we left, we went on the TGV which is the high speed rail in France, which was very fast. The first and second picture from the bottom are of the train station, with a professor in there and of a view of the mountains we passed on the way. First place we went to that you see here is the Cimitere de Pere Lachaise. This was absolutely massive, had the graves of many famous writers and painters and even Jim Morrison. I actually wasn't there for very long, as food was weighing heavily on the brain. After eating we went to the Eiffel Tower, which we ended up staying at until night, which is when we went up. Amazing view, needless to say.

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Le Val






We didn't stay long in the actual city of Le Val, because we were supposed to meet a professor from the University of Nice. He took us on a hike up a mountain. No joke. I was pitiful. The view from up there was beautiful though, and he showed us some Rock Art from the Neolithic Period (from 4,000 years ago). That was neat, but slightly disappointing after our trek up there. It was raining too. I thought the best thing about that field trip was hearing the thunder. I was sooooo loud and it echoed off the mountains. It was amazing to listen to.

Random






Here are some random images that didn't make it up the first go-round.

Monday, April 12, 2010






On Saturday, I was lucky enough to catch a ride over to Bonnieux, which is a town across the valley from Lacoste. It's beautiful from here, and beautiful up-close as well. Like Lacoste, it's a very steep town. It's quite a bit larger.