Bonjour... the extent of my French

This weekend I traveled to Paris with a few friends. Let me first say how glad I was I finally went. For a while, for some reason, I had it in my mind that Paris was not a city I needed to see. It was spectacular. Such a European melting pot of fabulous art, beautiful architecture, rich history and posh people. I met my friends there on Friday afternoon and we walked around the Luxembourg Gardens for a bit before hitting up a little French market for some wine. We walked around the city a bit more before enjoying a fabulous French dinner right near our hostel in the Latin Quarter. The next day (something I am so proud of) we woke up early to walk to Notre Dame Cathedral. Wow. Of course after a while all of these cathedrals and palaces kind of seem to run together in my head, but this one was incredible. Being in there somehow took me back to a time where everyone went in just felt cold and hunger, where their only comforts might be their own prayers and thoughts. Probably the recording of a Gregorian chant echoing throughout the vaults contributed to this feeling. It was stark and plain inside, save for its extravagant stain glassed windows. 

From there we walked to the Louvres. We walked around the entire museum for several hours, seeing all of the famous pieces like the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and Hammurabi's Code. My favorite part were the French paintings, where I discovered an affinity of mine for the combination of pastels and gold. Those paintings were all just pretty, which is basically all I care about when looking at art, sorry if I sound ignorant. It was all beautiful, but admittedly, naturally, I got museumed-out after about three hours. We walked across town a bit to the Hôtel des Invalides, the place where the wounded soldiers from war went back in the day (don't know when.) Here also is the tomb of Napoleon and his brother Joseph, which was pretty cool to see. The building also houses a museum of World War I and II. It was interesting to see the history of the two from a non-American point of view. 

From there we strolled down this little street, I think called Rue Cler, to buy some wine and cheese for a picnic dinner on Champs de Mars, the field that extends under the Eiffel Tower. It was a beautiful night and tons of people were on the field— playing frisbee, strolling, chatting, singing and playing guitar. We lingered on the lawn until the sun went down and saw the tower lit up. My favorite part was how, every hour on the hour, it sparkles. I know up close it's an awkward rusty metal giant of a structure, but it is really pretty with the lights. We got lazy and took the elevator up to the top, where it was freezing but we got some good pictures. 

That night I bought a bottled cider for 7 euro. I gracious changed my mind but the bartender replied with "What do you want me to do with this one, shove it up my ass?" in broken English. hmm. I would not have minded. I think it is true that the French are not particularly fond of Americans as a whole, but most of the people I encountered this weekend were very gracious. It is their country and they have the prerogative to treat us however they want. The language barrier, however, did make me miss Spain, and as always I was glad to get home Sunday night. 

My eyes have been so dry all weekend. I could not even keep my eyes open last night to do homework because they were so watery. So I took my host mom's advice and bought some lágrimas artificiales, or fake tears. Feeling a little better but I look like a freak. Also I am pretty sure we walked many many miles this weekend. I am feeling it, which is a good thing because I never exercise on the weekends anyways. Also, I go home next month?