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Fourth of July vs Bastille Day

poweredbytofu — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:06:50 +0000

In 2006, I was in the south of France on 4th of July. Of course, in France the 4th doesn’t have any significance, so we spent the evening swimming in Cassis, near Marseilles. The 14th of July however, is Bastille Day – France’s national day of celebration, commemorating the storming of the Bastille in 1789.

Bastille Day in Paris:

By this time, we were in Paris and got to experience the madness that is Bastille day at the Eiffel Tower…

“We headed to the Eiffel Tower and it was much too late to stake out a great spot so we ended up waaaaay back, but I think any spot was still a good view! We used our street maps as seats and waited for the show. I must say that fireworks at the Eiffel Tower were better than any Independence Day celebration I have ever seen! They play classical music during the fireworks. It most certainly beat our cheesy rock montages for the 4th. After the fireworks we swam through the masses to the metro and headed “home.” *sigh* I love Paris.”
–my thoughts on Paris, circa 2006

What sacrilege! Oh well, you be the judge… here’s a video of the fireworks and music on Bastille Day at the Eiffel Tower:

Do the French really do it better? Happy 4th of July! I <3 America! :)

Paris to London – Museums & The London Eye | Day 25

poweredbytofu — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

So we left on the Eurostar to London at 8am. Ended up just buying breakfast on the train, and it was pretty good! It was really cool getting to London so early and thankfully we were able to check right in at our hotel, which was awesome so we got to unpack stuff and just chill for a ½ hour or so before we started being tourists again! :)

So our first stop of the day was the British Museum. I took way to many pictures and you could seriously spend days there. We ended up eating lunch there, which was actually a good choice (referencing the horrible lunch at the British Library on our first day in London last month!) Then we started looking around. We started with the Egyptian stuff – the Rosetta Stone was so amazing. I know, I know it’s just a rock, but it was like THE language link and since I was totally into hieroglyphics in the sixth grade… it was very cool. Another highlight was all the mummies, absolutely crazy! I also saw a bunch of the Greek and Assyrian stuff too, but I took pictures which are much more interesting…

So after the British Museum we took the Underground over to the Tate Modern on the Southbank of the Thames. We spent several hours there too. I think it was my favorite museum of the trip! The 3rd and 5th floors have all of the modern art and it’s just crazy because it’s all so different. You turn a corner and you’re in some stupid room that has bricks lined up on the floor and you’re like “What the crap, that’s not art” and that’s what I love about the Tate Modern, because art is different things to different people. So now that I’ve been to the Orsay in Paris and the Tate Modern in London, I’ve officially seen all the art I ever need to see. ;) I was especially excited to see the Lichtenstein, Warhol, Dali, Mondrian, and Pollock pieces. I find it very interesting how people “museum” so differently. I usually go through each room pretty quickly without reading about each piece unless it catches my attention. And the pieces I know or am really fascinated by I read about and space out staring at for ages.

So after the Tate Modern, we were all super hungry. So we walked around “The Cut” neighborhood and ended up eating at this really interesting restaurant and I don’t remember what kind of food it was. It was really similar to Lebanese food, but it wasn’t that country. :) I had baklava for dessert, perfect! After dinner we walked to the London Eye. Apparently it goes around for 45 minutes, but it didn’t seem that long at all! It was really fun though.

The Laundry List of Tourist Sights in Paris

poweredbytofu — Mon, 17 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

So today we went to the same bakery and the same McDonald’s, lol. Then we headed to the Arc de Triomphe and did the Champs-Elysees walk. We climbed to the top of the Arc de Triomphe, 284 steps (I didn’t count them, I read that in the Rick Steve’s book, when I was trying to spell Triomphe). It’s an awesome view of Paris because it’s where 12 streets meet – very symmetrical views. Then we walked down the Champs-Elysees, which is pretty much just a famous shopping street. We stopped at the Peugeot store and I bought this cool squished glass and I also took pictures of the cars. We also stopped at Sephora, the cosmetics place, but it was not too interesting. However, the McDonalds was rather entertaining. I don’t go to McDonald’s in the US, but I felt compelled to in France… well to use the bathroom anyway.

Then we went to the Orsay Museum which was so neat. I’m pretty sure that it’s the biggest Impressionist collection anywhere! I think I’ve now seen all the famous paintings I know of :) Van Gogh, Renoir, Monet, Manet, Cezanne… yay! :)

Then we walked past Napoleon’s Tomb and all the way back to the Rue Cler area before we found somewhere to eat that looked good and was open. :( Sundays are difficult! Then we walked back to Napoleon’s Tomb. It was interesting, but not amazing. We also checked out the Army museums since we were right there. Very cool! I took lots of pictures.

So if we hadn’t already done enough walking and stair climbing… we went to the Eiffel Tower. ;) The line was HUGE. So we decided to just walk the first 1/3 of the tower, which was only 3 euros. Then we bought a ticket for the elevator on the next level. I love not waiting in lines. So the view was super cool, but I don’t feel like I would really ever want to go back. To me the Eiffel Tower is just one of those things you go and see and yeah it’s cool, but it’s not super exciting. I just don’t get why everyone thinks Paris is so romantic, it’s just a regular big city, but with snobbier people. ;) I’m such a Debbie-Downer of a traveler, I should write a travel guide: “Well I can check the Eiffel Tower off my list and the Mona Lisa was a lot smaller than I thought.” So after the Eiffel Tower we walked around and then headed back to the hotel. I ended up getting pizza near the hotel. It was really good, but then again I was really, really hungry. Off to London…

Versailles Day Trip | Day 23

poweredbytofu — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

Started the day off with pastries and McDonald’s… what? Yes… McDonald’s coffee. We went to the bakery across the street and I got pan raisin and an apricot pastry and then to the McDonald’s next door for cheap coffee. Then we did the Historic Paris walk from the Notre Dame around the south bank of the Seine and back up to Sainte-Chapelle.

Then we caught a train to Versailles. It was such a fun afternoon! First we got to skip the 2 hour line and go straight in, thank you Paris Museum Pass. :) The Museum Pass is absolutely perfect for me since I’m extremely cheap and extremely impatient! So first we toured the whole palace and then walked out to the gardens. It was 6 euros to get in to the gardens, but so worth it because of the fountains and classical music that played for 2 ½ hours. We ate lunch on the grass and then walked around to all the fountains. Then I got ice cream which I managed to finish while waiting in line for the bathroom (it was a 30 min. wait!) At 5:00 the fountains and music stopped so we rented bikes for an hour and biked all the way around the lake and gardens! It was soooo much fun, and an awesome breeze on such a hot day. The bikes had these cool bells too, so you can ring as a passed people. After we took the bikes back we walked back to the train station and headed back to Paris.

We got off at the Montmartre stop and went to dinner at this little restaurant L’Ete en Pente Douce, below the Sacre-Coeur on the hill. One of my favorite meals of the trip! I had tofu lasagna and it was awesome. Then we finished walking up the hill and went in to the Sacre-Coeur. We made it in just before they closed the gates, so we got to walk around and then we watched street performers at outside before walking back down to the Metro.

Bastille Day in Paris!

poweredbytofu — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

So I woke up way to early, showered, added a few things from the fridge to the “give-away” pile and then headed to St. Charles station. My pack is mysteriously heavier than on the way over. I can’t figure it out. All I have extra is 1 bottle of wine and 2 tank tops AND I think I actually used a few things… oh well. :( So I napped and did Sudoku puzzles on the way to Paris.

We got a 10 trip metro pass and then headed to our hotel. It’s way out on the east side, but it’s really nice so I’m sure we’ll survive. So after that we headed to the Louvre. We bought the 4 day Paris Museum Pass on the way there for 45 euros. It lets you skip the ticket line at most museums. So we walked right in to the Louvre instead of standing in line! We ended up splitting up which was really good because I have more fun at museums just wandering instead of trying to keep track of where the group is. :) So I spent most of my time in the paintings section. And of course I saw the Mona Lisa, but didn’t wait in line because you could see it on either side of the line!

After the Louvre we headed to the Rue Cler area to eat before we met up with everyone at Chris’ hotel around 9. I stopped at a gelato stand after. :) Then we headed to the Eiffel Tower and it was much to late to stake out a great spot so we ended up waaaaay back, but I think any spot was still a good view. So we used our maps as seats and waited for the show. I must say that fireworks at the Eiffel Tower were better than any Independence Day celebration I have ever seen! They play classical songs during the fireworks. It most certainly beat our cheesy rock montage in the US. After the fireworks we swam through the masses to the metro and headed “home.”

Winery Tour & the Calanques

poweredbytofu — Fri, 14 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

Best day ever! So after taking a short tour of CMA/CGM (the shipping company) we headed to the winery. First we took a tour of the olive oil process part, then the wine process and then went in for some wine tasting. The white wine was my favorite, red was not so great… Then we went in for lunch. It was really good. Jean-Marc, the winery guy, did a how-to thing which was really funny. Apparently you’re supposed to breathe out of your nose to get the full effect; yeah I’m pretty sure that was Step 3. Anyway, we had a great time! I think my favorite part was when Jean-Marc stood up and said “And now it’s time for the cheeeeeeeese!” lol

When we got back to Marseille, we left for the Calanques. Yeah, I know hiking doesn’t usually follow a winery tour, but it was super fun! We took the #21 back up to school and it only took about 45 min to get down the trail, and it wasn’t super hot since it was around 5-6pm. What an amazing view! Geeeeez… I’m so glad I got to go. So we went swimming and then sat on the rocks watching some boats and these guys diving off the rocks.

Bull Games in Arles | Day 20

poweredbytofu — Thu, 13 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

Yay, every day should be a ½ day of class! We get so much more accomplished! After we went on the bus tour to the port we had lunch and then went back to the Citadines before heading to the train station around 3. We got to Arles about 30 min. early. The bull fight or “games” was soooo cool. I loved it! Nicole and I each picked “our guy” and mine didn’t get hurt, so HAAA! lol. Hers kind of got trampled. Anyway, it was tons of fun to watch.

We went to this little restaurant after and it was my favorite meal so far. I got the vegetarian menu which is a 3 course thing, so I got this goat cheese/zucchini/sun-dried tomato thing which I ate with bread and then they eggplant, cheese, tomato dish came and it was just ok, but then the dessert was also awesome! So I had tons of fun today! The ride home was another story. Everybody got earlier trains and we were on the last one, which happened to be 35 min. late, argh! So we ended up walking back from the St. Charles station, through the ghetto part of Marseille, but it was totally fine. And then we get back and Chris told us that he got mugged by the Vieux Port, some kids surrounded him and stole his camera out of the backpack. I guess they took a taxi after that, yikes.

Thai Food & Carousels in Marseilles | Day 19

poweredbytofu — Wed, 12 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

So this evening we went to this Thai place near the port. The food was good, but the company was a little off. ;) Someone invited like 5 of the North Carolina guys to go and so it was kind of awkward, they made us all feel really old. It’s strange what a huge gap 20 – 25 can be. The food was really great though, it was nice to have something different. The frat boys left right after, so thankfully we didn’t have to hang out with them. ;)

On the way home we stopped at the carousel and Chris made everyone ride, except for Troy who was a big baby and sat on the bench and watched us in our grand maturity. Jennette and I rode on the tea cup one that spins and you can also turn the wheel and make it go faster… we were a little out of control… wow… yeah, I had a hard time sleeping because of that.

The Odd Park in Marseilles | Day 18

poweredbytofu — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

We had to be at class 30 min. early this am, but thankfully we got a 2 hour lunch. I could really get used to that! We walked down to the restaurant by the pool (on-campus) and I had an awesome salad. It was huge! So we found this GIGANTIC park just down the Prado this evening! I had a healthy dinner of cheese sticks and Coca-Cola and then we wandered around and sat and watched this poor pigeon who only had 1 leg… he had to navigate by making circles, and then we saw these weird ducks and a peacock and roosters and this one crazed rooster was in the tree… very Monty Python-ish, and I even saw a turtle! Craziness! So there’s also a golf course (Par 3 course), and I want to go, but I don’t think there will be time before we leave.

A Day in Nice & Back to Marseilles for the World Cup Final

poweredbytofu — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 06:59:00 +0000

So we went to this little café for breakfast in one of the [many] little squares in Nice. I got a crepe and coffee. Then we walked through the huge market area that we pretty much missed yesterday, and then did a tiny bit of shopping. I finally found some sunglasses and also bought a beach mat for 2.50. Then we headed to the beach. The beach was really rocky, but smooth rocks so it was just fine with a beach mat. I only got in the water once, and just laid out the rest of the time doing my sudoku puzzle, lol. So Hannah, Jennette and I were all laying around doing puzzles, and now we’re all sunburned. ;) So after several hours at the beach we grabbed some lunch (yay panini) and walked to the train station.

By the time we got back to Marseille everyone had already left to watch the game at the port. So we were a little late. The game was rather sad. Of course we wanted France to win! After the game it didn’t get crazy like last time, but the police were out in full force just in case.