On to PARIS!!

So much has happened since my last post!! The most obvious thing is that I MOVED TO PARIS! Orientation in Tours was great, but I was really excited to get to Paris by the end of it! My second week in Tours was slightly less busy than the first week, as I had less excursions.  That left me with more free time to go explore Tours and the surrounding areas in the afternoons.  

Pont Wilson across the Loire River in Tours. 

On Monday afternoon, some friends and I visited the Cave des Producteurs de Vouvray, a wine cave that is only about a 20 minute bus ride outside of Tours.  We took a tour and got to taste a few at the end! 

Sarah, Natalia and I had to get a picture next to Fritz, an elephant who comes from the same circus as our beloved Jumbo.  

After another great week in Tours, we were off to Paris on Friday.  We left in busses from Tours and arrived about 4 hours later.  We were greeted by our host families and spent the weekend settling in to our new homes! I live in the 17th Arrondissement of Paris (Paris is split into 20 arrondissements), but I am across the street from 2 suburbs, Neuilly-sur-Seine, and Levallois-Perret.  I love being here and I am so excited to explore more and get to know the city! 

My new room in Paris! There is a little screened-in balcony off my room, too!

In addition to being able to see the lights of Paris and even the top of the Eiffel Tower from the balcony at night, I look over a track, which is literally right across the street! Perfect!

Saturday afternoon, Adrian, Yahaira, Sarah and I met at the Eiffel Tower to enjoy a picnic on an absolutely perfect day! 

We walked along the Seine River, which cuts through Paris, and had beautiful views the whole way! 

We continued along the river until we ended up at the Louvre, which used to be a palace, but is now an art museum.  

Then we turned and headed towards the Opéra Garnier, stopping in a café to get a refreshing drink before parting ways. 

The next day was September 11th.  It was rather odd to be an American abroad  on that day.  I was pleasantly surprised to find out that there were lots of commemorative ceremonies going on all over the city.  The biggest one was at Place du Trocadero.  The location was symbolic because this is where Paris has its' own "twin" buildings.  A foundation called The French Will Never Forget put on a great ceremony that included model towers with the names of the victims on them.  Between the towers, you could see the Eiffel Tower, which was meant to show solidarity.  Going into it, I was unsure what to expect, but it was a really touching ceremony, and it made me proud to be an American, even though I was not in the states.  

The model towers between Paris' Twin buildings, with the Eiffel Tower visible behind them. 

Tons of people came to the ceremony, even though it was pouring rain through part of it. It was touching to see, especially during moments of silence.  The ceremony started with a moment of silence at the exact moment the first plane hit, and then we had a moment of silence when the second tower was hit, when the Pentagon was hit, when the plane crashed in Pennsylvania, and when each of the towers came down.  The ceremony ended when the second tower fell.  It was all really well thought out and, like I said, very touching. 

So far, so good for my stay in Paris! I am loving it here, and my host mother is awesome.  I don't know the city well yet, obviously, but I know it a little better every day and I am loving the explorations! Such a wonderful experienced, and I think often of how blessed I am.  

And now for the fun fact! 

Fun Fact 2: The french really need to come up with more vocab words.  Turns out, they use Baguette not only to mean the kind of bread that we all love, but also to mean a wand, as in Harry Potter, and even just your average stick.  Somebody should really get on that.  

~SKS