Brussels

 Last week went by crazy fast; we had two and a half snow days (Caen does not get much snow so when it does, the city can't cope). It felt like I had just gotten back from Paris when I left for Brussels, Belgium Friday night. We stayed at he Youth Hostel Van Gogh; apparently Van Gogh used to work there so you know, I guess thats cool :)

Brussels was a pretty calm trip. The majority of the time we were eating or just wandering around. The waffles are as good as they say. My favorite were the ones that had pearl sugar cooked in them. And they were only one euro! We also tried the famed fries, and ate seafood at Noordzee. We could not leave Belgium without trying the chocolate (Godiva is Belgian if that gives you any idea of its amazingness). The Chocolate Museum demonstrated how to make pralines. I definitely prefer eating the chocolates to making them. There is a lot of waiting involved in the making.

Above: Liege Belgian Waffle

Below: Fish soup and fried fish from Noordzee

We also visited the famous Grand Place; I wish we had been there in Spring when it is filled with a carpet of flowers, but it is still really pretty without them.  Manneken Pis is just around the corner, and way smaller than I thought he would be. There are huge remakes of him everywhere, but he is tiny. There is a woman whose job it is to make little costumes for him. They keep the costumes in the National Museum. He is a national hero. Legend says that he peed out some fire and saved the city. Belgium is a weird but wonderful place....

 We also stopped by the Atomium. Which was way bigger than I thought it would be, but also very strange looking. It is a giant cube made of metal balls and sticks.

Atomium

Getting back to France was a little crazy. We got to the train station early and saw our train had THA next to it, which the information worker informed us meant our train was canceled. Then the train office told us we were being transferred to a train that was leaving in five minutes. We sprinted to the train, but when we got on there were no more seats left, because there had been another canceled train. So my friend Skylar and I sat on the floor of the barroom car for the duration of the 90 minute train. Needless to say, I am happy to be back in Caen!

Oh hello Paris. Did you miss me?

It is snowing hard in Caen today. Normally, I am a big fan of snow. However, it made my walk home from class treacherous and, at times, almost impossible. By the time I got back to the apartment not only was my coat and scarf covered in snow, but my hair was literally frozen. Now that I am cozy and typing in bed, the snow seems much prettier and pleasant.

It's crazy to think just Saturday I was walking around Paris holding my winter coat because it was so warm. Even when I leave Louisville, I can't escape the weird weather changes.

Anyways... Paris was even better the second time around. We could navigate the city much easier since we recognized some of the streets, and we conquered the Metro system (after a few errors and the help of many Parisians.) We got to see a lot of sights, but we also took our time to just enjoy being in Paris.

We climbed the many stairs to Sacre Coeur, and after we went inside, we climbed even more stairs to go into the dome of the church. My ankles were shaking by the time we stopped at a café after. But the views of Paris from Sacre Coeur were amazing.

We also visited the Arc de Triomphe, and enjoyed more of the sunny day there. It was relaxing to sit on the Arc and watch all the cars zoom pass, and tourists take pictures while doing the peace sign.

I have discovered that I love a good statue.
We have got to get some of these in Louisville
and Bowling Green. I also think gold is a must.

Next we walked to the Musée D'Orsay, which personally I would rank above the Louvre. First, because we got in free with our student IDs, but also it is so much more manageable than the Louvre. You also aren't allowed to take pictures, which at first bummed me out, but I think it changes the dynamic of the museum. People looked at the art, and moved on. We didn't have to fight crowds to get around. Plus I recognized a lot more of the artwork. Next we had drinks at the museum restaurant. It was so nice to just sit and relax in such a beautiful room, and I mean beautiful. It had chandeliers, paintings on the ceiling and gold-leaf everywhere. All I could think of was how JD used to crawl on the floor at Kroger by the self-checkouts looking for change, and now I was sitting in a restaurant that looked like Marie Antoinette had designed it. By the time we finished gabbing the museum was closing.

I think my favorite thing to do in Paris is walk by the Seine River. The water is relaxing, with boats always going up and down it.  You pass all sorts of important places and can people-watch. Shakespeare and Company is close to the river, right by Notre Dame. I bought a couple of books and post cards there that they even stamped for me. I also feel the need to comment that it smelt really good in there, like books (no surprise). If intelligence had a smell, I am pretty sure that would be it. We hung out for a little while outside it too. There was a guy playing music and singing, and you could see Notre Dame all lit up.

I bought the third Lord of the Rings in English
and Le Petit Prince in French. I don't have time to tell
you all about this store, but you should definitely
google it, because it it pretty-darn-cool.

The next day we took the Metro to the Catacombs, and let me just say, I did not fully understand what a catacomb was until we were about halfway through them. If you don't know, it was basically an underground grave, with bones stacked everywhere. I am not normally one that enjoys going where exits are not readily available, but that catacombs were crazy-cool. I'm not sure who got stuck stacking all the bones, but they did a killer job (pun a little bit intended.) In some places the skulls where in the shape of a heart or cross. It's creepy to think that they are under your feet when you walk around above ground.

Just a little peak at the catacombs. Another google-worthy search.

Later we went back to see the rest of the Musée D'Orsay, and finally, made our way back to the train station to go home. I think this second trip to Paris was better, because we weren't so worried about seeing important sites, and just enjoyed being there. The city was less overwhelming, and seemed much smaller than the first time we went. I really hope I have a chance to go back one last time before the semester is over so that I can enjoy it even more!

This week it's back to trying to pronounce Rs, and talking about the French Revolution (apparently Marie Antoinette was beheaded at Place de la Concorde which we walked through several times on our trips to Paris. You can't sneeze here with out bumping into something historical!) And then this weekend I am off to Bruxelles!

An Adventuresome Weekend

 This weekend was packed with activities. Friday, we had Thanksgiving dinner for our Australian friend, Grace. It turned out surprisingly well. I expected us to fail a little, but I think we did America proud. We had turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, and rolls. There was also an amazing pumpkin cheesecake for dessert.

Saturday morning I got up early to meet my friends at the train station to leave for Mont Saint Michel. It was a convenient trip, considering I just gave a report on the Mont— today.

Fun Fact: I had first heard about Mont Saint Michel on Pinterest; I saw a pretty picture of a far away place, and pinned it so I could look at it later. Who knew that I would actually get to go see something I casually glanced over online!

Legend says that the Archangel, Saint Michel, appeared to Bishop Aubert in 708 telling him to build a church on what was then called, Mont Tombe. After Aubert ignored him two times, Saint Michel burned a hole in Aubert's skull on his third visit. After that, Aubert was ready to go and did as Saint Michel instructed. Since Aubert turned Mont Tombe to Mont St. Michel, it has undergone several additions to the abbey, fortified its walls during the 100 years war, and served as a prison during the French Revolution. Now it serves mainly as a tourist attraction. Although, several Benedictine brothers still inhabit the abbey.

After walking along the picturesque road and climbing lots and lots of stairs, we made it to the Abbey—which we got in for free thanks to our visas. It is still amazing to walk around in such historical places. I cannot imagine how they built such a wonder without all the technology we have today. Once we finished gawking at the abbey, we had a long lunch at a restaurant overlooking the water. It was a pretty spectacular Saturday. Point Normandy.

The weekend's adventures were not over yet. Sunday I had to get up early and meet at the University for a group trip to Bayeux and the D-Day Beaches. We went to Bayeux first, where we visited the Bayeux Tapestry that depicts William the Conquerer's journey to the throne of England. The tapestry is insanely long and detailed. We also had time to see the cathedral Notre Dame de Bayeux. It seems like every town here has ridiculously pretty churches. I am also pretty sure that if your European town does not hold host to an awesome historical event, then you must have been a field of sheep about ten years ago.

After lunch we left to head out to the Beaches of Normandy. We saw a lot of destinations I would never have thought to visit. We went to the point where you can see all of the beaches that the British, Canadian, and American troops landed. Then we went to a site that had German bunkers that you can actually crawl into. We then made our way to the American D-Day Memorial, which is technically on American soil (the French government gave the land to the US). It felt good to be home again in a way.

Everyone kept asking, from an American perspective, what it was like to visit the beaches. I think the best way to describe it is: bizarre. It was weird hearing the videos speaking English, after a month of always expecting to hear French. There was a group of young British students visiting and of course French speakers, but my heart always jumped when I heard someone with an American accent. One of the Americans I heard pretty much summed up my feelings. He said:

"You always hear about these sorts of things, but to actually see it is something else."

We (Americans) learn about all the wars that the US fought in, but they all seem distant, on a map and in time. Although I know WW2 was recent historically, I tend to categorize it along with all the other wars I have had to study. It is another page in my history book I have to memorize. The American Memorial is simple. There is a small museum, and then the cemetery. I think the cemetery is where the reality set in. Seeing all those white crosses and Stars of David, made me think that the people smiling in the pictures I had just seen in the museum, were here, in the ground.

It is, of course, unreal the amount of fatalities, and it  is definitely sad to think about. However,  I was overwhelmingly in awe. I was in awe of the sacrifice that was made, and the gravity of its importance. I felt a somber pride to be from a country that played such a major role in history. At the risk of sounding cliché, I felt very patriotic. America kicked some serious ass—along with its Allied forces. Looking down at Omaha Beach, I wondered if they ever thought that people would come and visit this place, probably not. I guess my American perspective on it all is through the rose colored glasses of a blessed individual, but as I looked toward the direction of the States (the direction that all the crosses face) I felt a sense of solidarity with my fellow citizens present and past.

After the memorial we went to Pointe Hoc, where you can still see the craters left by the  bombs. Besides being crazy-beautiful, it was haunting to think about the chaos that had rained on a place that I was taking pictures of with my friends.

I was exhausted by the time I made it home. I think I am still sore from all my adventures this weekend, but they were well worth it. The rest of the week will be much lighter in spirit. I plan on going to class, watching Modern Family, and preparing to return to Paris this weekend.

Whose life am I living?