Paris

there it is- I hope! I don´t currently have the photos since I am on the library computer at school, but Paris was beautiful, like most places in Europe. Although I must say, Paris is SUPER beautiful.

note: there will probably be some weird looking punctuation and accent marks due to this hard core keyboard.
note also: this is the first post that has not been written between 2-5 AM, I believe. It feels quite nice.

Anyway, so yeah, Paris is beautiful. Everything is insanely ornate and large, and there is SO MUCH to see. Paris is, however, quite spread out. I couldn´t study abroad there. If you had a car, I suppose it would be easier, but it is very spread out, and the metro is older and, thus, less comfortable than in Madrid.

Javi and I took the night train to Paris. It left at 6 on Thursday and arrived at 9 AM Friday. We slept hard since we went out to Gabana the night before. The typical Wednesday is this: intercambio, 100 Montaditos (euro montaditos and jarras of beer on Wednesdays) then Gabana, which is a club sponsored by Belvedere, and on Wednesdays, it has free drinks from 12-1:30 AM. Say you know Omar (the club owner), and you get in free.

Anyway, so the train was so nice- especially the return trip because Javi and I had our own luxurious room, and the train has a cafeteria and a nice restaurant, so it´s very nice and fun!

Back to Paris:
We stayed in Hotel Queen´s, which is super nice and cute, and it´s located in a VERY non-touristy area. It was recommended by Nancy´s brother, Mike, who has an apartment in Paris. OH YEAH! My mom and her close friend, Nancy, arrived last week on Tuesday! Forgot to mention that; it´s one of the reasons I haven´t posted in a LONG time besides the fact that you never have time for sleep here.

Back to Paris Back to Paris: Javi and I ate delicious food upon arrival: Croque Madame with a side salad and mushroom omelette. In France, you eat EVERYTHING or it´s considered a waste. I learned that the hard way, and I wished I had been hungrier before sitting down to eat. Also, at many places, you have to pay to use the restroom, so keep that in mind when you travel to France.

Javi and I wondered around, and we ended up taking a train to Versailles, which is kind of on the edge of town (the metro doesn´t go there). It was so amazing. We walked around the gardens and passed out on the lake´s edge until the madres arrived around 3. We all met up and ate dinner at this delicious Italian restaurant that Mike took us to with his wife and son.

That night, we walked under the Eiffle Tower and bought tickets for a cruise on the river for the next night. Mike showed us around Paris and took us down the streets with bars and lots of people. I can´t remember many names, especially since I´m not even half-decent with French. Paris at night is so awesome, but it´s very difficult to do things alone when you don´t speak ANY French.

The next day, we took a bus tour, which takes you to all the major spots in Paris, and you can get off and on whenever. We went through the Louvre Museum, and everywhere else you can imagine. We ate crepes and such for lunch, and we had dinner on the river cruise, which is a MUST DO in Paris.

The soccer game against Spain was that night. It was crazy! Spain won, and the people were, rightfully, not happy, but many were very destructive about it. Riot squads were standing aside ready for anything, and people were getting rowdy and aggressive. A wine bottle barely missed Javi´s head. We bolted and chilled at a bar until the people had dispersed and left the large area where they watch the game (like Madrid´s Bernabeu Stadium)

There´s so much to say about Paris and our experience, but nonetheless, I was very relieved to return to Madrid and to a place where I could communicate with the people. Unfortunately a heat wave hit this week, and it has been sooooooooo hot!!!!!!

This weekend we go to VALENCIA!! I actually go tonight, and I´m so excited!
MORE TO COME! EEEK!