France Trip 2011

My last day in France was good. It wasn't filled with events nor was it rushed. We ate breakfast and stayed around the house, which allowed me to pack a little bit before heading to Fabienne's brothers home for lunch. His neighborhood was nice and I found cute markets with all kind of stuff. I bought a couple of things before heading to Andre's flat.
We had a nice meal of some kind of fish and then he surprised me with macaroons for dessert! LOVE. We walked around his part of town, seeing many art galleries and gorgeous hotels. We ended up walking pretty far, so I experienced my first train ride. They were apologizing for the "smell"... Just wait until Cecile takes the "L"
When we got home I packed the last of my things. I heard the girls whispering in the other room and realized Mathilde was crying. She is having a hard time saying goodbye because she wants to come to Chicago with her sister very bad too. It would be fun for all of us if she did. I tried to brighten the mood and offer to play Rummy, but dinner was ready.
Our last dinner together was toasted with a glass of champaign. Mathilde usually doesn't drink any, but tonight she said, " I need to be happier. I'll take some." haha champaign will do that for you! They gave me a gift from the glass blowing store in St. Malo, which is a thing to hold jewelry and such.
Bruno tried to avoid talking about me leaving, seeing how Mathilde was sad, by asking me to name the Presidents in order. Uh oh. It was a major fail. Dinner was reheats from the past couple nights, but the bread was fresh so it was okay.
Instead of doing the dishes, us girls showered and got ready for bed. I asked the girls to stay awake until after I got out. We talked for a while and I told them how good of a time I had with them. I could tell Mathilde was sad. I made them give me hugs before I left the room. I almost fell over!
During this trip I not only got to see France, but I gained a French family, including the little siblings I always wished for. This is an experience I will never forget and that I will continue learning from. I hope next year when Cecile comes to Chicago and her family travels to the U.S. that we can see each other again and they can meet my family. Tomorrow is going to be a long and sad day, but I will get to see Mel when it's over! I'm glad there's a family wedding next weekend to keep my mind off of missing France! Can't wait to come home! And the first thing I want to do is buy some Lucky Charms. I've been dying for it since I arrived in France!

I woke up at 8:15 am to shower and get ready for the day. Having only 7 hours of sleep was not fun, especially when learning at breakfast that we were staying at the house until 3pm... I would have easily slept longer! oh w
All morning Fabienne and Bruno were asking me what I was going to get my parents. They probably think my dad is the pickiest man alive. They mentioned Lacoste shirts and I told them he doesn't do logos. They mentioned wallets with a change holder and I told them he keeps his change loose in his pocket. It was so funny when they thought they had the BEST IDEA. A blue and white striped polo for the boat. Haha um we don't wear fashionable clothing on the boat. Especially my dad. I mentioned getting a wallet for my mom, so we drove to a mall with Gucci and Channel wallets. I looked for a wine book in English too, but was unsuccessful.
We went to the Notre Dame Cathedral later in the day. It was beautiful inside and big! I respected the no flash sign, which many people did not, and in return my pictures were not too good.
We made a night trip to the Palace of Versailles after an Italian dinner with Fabienne's brother. It has been the best thing I've seen since arriving in France. We bought tickets for the spectacle, which took place in the garden. You walked through tall trees as if you were in a maze and were let out at different points revealing beautiful fountains. There was music playing and the fountains changed color accordingly.
I tried taking as many pictures as I could without getting lost. Fabienne speed walks, but luckily I had Mathilde to wait for me. One day Fabienne wanted to go to a shoe store in which she ran to, passed, and then had us all run back. People say us city people walk fast!
At 11pm there was a firework show above the farthest fountain and it lit up the sky. Next time I'd love to see the inside of the palace because from what I could see through the windows, it is gorgeous!

Waking up today wasn't too easy. I was so tired. We shopped in the beginning of the day until lunch. No joke there was a huge line to get into Abercrombie with two preppy looking boys opening and closing the golden gate. It was ridiculous.
We met Fabienne's friend at the Virgin store for lunch. The food was alright... we had the special of the day, which was trout and vegetables.
After lunch we went to the Louvre to take some pictures of the outside. Then we kept walking and ended up in a garden where we rested for a while.
At about 6pm we went back to the Louvre (the line was a lot shorter). I didn't expect the inside to be like it was. I thought it was a museum of the history of the building. I probably should have read up on it a bit more. We spent three hours walking around, but left to eat dinner.
The restaurant we ate at was very good and super cute. We skipped on dessert though and were promised by Bruno to get ice cream at the Eiffel Tower. We stopped on a bridge and watched the lights sparkle at 11pm on the Eiffel Tower. It was unreal. So pretty! My camera didn't capture it at all though We started walking and ended up at the car. I almost had my midnight in Paris. Only a half hour off I probably would have passed out on the bridge if we had stayed out though!

I woke up early, which also meant the girls woke up. It was actually a good thing. We got to Paris around 11am and started our day of walking. We saw the Sacre Coeur, which is a very pretty church overlooking Paris. We didn't go in because the line was a bit long, but on the outside it was gorgeous, so I can only imagine what the inside looks like.
We walked around little neighborhoods of Paris where I bought a Paris tank top and post cards. After lunch we rushed back to the car after Bruno realized that you had still to pay to park in August... We got a ticket. He dropped us off by the main shopping street where I bought a charm for my charm bracelet and a Longchamp bag for myself. We then headed to see the art museum, which had some really good photo spots. Exhausted, we walked back to the car and headed home around 7:30 pm.
I'm hoping for a night in Paris, so maybe tomorrow we will stay out late. Oh and thanks to mom, I got my battery problem figured out on my camera. Thank god!

I showered yesterday knowing we would be going to Paris today, thinking it would be early in the morning that we'd leave... We didn't get to Paris until 4pm.. But before leaving, Bruno took us for a ride in his (i think it was a 65') mustang! What a beauty! Of course I had to take pictures of it and with it!
Today's workout was climbing the stairs to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower. I earned the view I had when we arrived at the top it was beautiful! To appreciate the towers beauty even more, we walked across the street and took pictures there.
Cecile wasn't in such a good mood. She was super quiet and avoided everyone. Her mom told me she was jealous of her sister because we are always joking around and laughing. I have to admit, I always click with the little sisters. I understand Mathilde's craziness and Cecile just gets tired of it I think. Sounds like Bre and I when we were younger. Hopefully Cecile can just relax and have fun the rest of the time!
For dinner we made pasta at the house. It isn't actually in Paris like I had thought, rather about a half hour away in a suburb of Paris. Their way of thinking is that you don't hear all the cars outside. Get ready Cecile!
The house is one of their friends who have four kids, so we all have our own bedroom. It's kind of funny because Fabienne doesn't want us to dirty the sheets, so we are sleeping in sleeping bags on top of the bed. Hopefully I don't roll off because the bed is super high and the sleeping bag is quiet slippery on the outside. It's a really nice house though and they have a normal shower, which is a plus for me!
Tomorrow I'm waking up early to try to get them to get on out to Paris to roam the streets all day. I can't wait! Hopefully my camera doesn't die again. I've gone through over 20 batteries. I guess going the battery route on the camera wasn't such a good idea...