My roommate and I were excited to start our weekend. We were exploring two different cities in France that hold a lot of history. Also this trip was/is pretty low key. (Still in Lyon as I write this). We were getting right on the train at our town and we didn't have to make any transfers etc. We left Thursday afternoon and arrived in Avignon, France three hours later. Avignon`has an interesting history. We were there to visit the Palais des Papes (Palace of the Popes) and the Pont d'Avignon. The Palais des Papes was inhabitated by two anti-popes starting in the 1300's (anti-popes were bishops who claimed to be the real pope while there continued to be a pope in Rome) and remained a property of the papacy and a separate country until the late 1700's. The palace still stands is an incredible perspective. There are many rooms that are still in immaculate condition, with paintings all over the walls and ceilings (no pictures allowed of those :o( so you won't find any in my albums) and huge cavernous chapels and burial rooms. It was amazing to compare to the actual Vatican in Rome. Just like St. Peters Square there are walls and a giant courtyard in which you can see the division from the rest of the town where it is its own entity. The Pont d'Avignon also was an amazing sight. The bridge was built in the 1100's after a sheperd boy received a divine calling to build it. He later was canonized and there are two chapels located in the bridge itself which hold his tomb. Half of the bridge fell and was reconstructed several times until finally only four of the twenty two arches remain. Both of these sights were amazing at night. But during the day we got to go in the Palais and on the bridge which was also really cool. However there was not much to see in the town besides these two sights so we only stayed for one night here and proceeded on to Lyon.
We arrived in Lyon on Friday by the TGV (highspeed train) and immediately were excited with the prospect of an amazing meal. Lyon is the third largest city in France and is almost Parisian in feel. However the most exciting part of Lyon is that it is the gastronomical capital of France. Which might make it the gastronimical capital of the world by reasonable deduction. Anyways after checking into our hotel we got the name of one of the best roads to eat on and found a delicious homey looking place. I ate foie gras, filet of duck and tarte tatin (a fancy apple pie) and Kacie had the French Onion soup , Black Pudding and Profiteroles (ice cream puff pastries covered in chocolate yummm). We rolled on out of the restaurant and crashed back at our hotel.
Day two we proceeded to Vieux Lyon (its in 1000 places to see before you die!) Very pittoresque with the Cathedral St. Jean and the traboules (covered walkways between buildings) and cobbeled walkways. Very France. Almost every town I've been to has an old town like this. After walking through old town and grabbing a pastry and an apple for me we started the hike up the hillside to the area of Fourviere. Fourviere is the section of Lyon where the Basilica and the Roman Ruins are located wayyyy high above the city. The stairs and walkways take at least a half hour to climb up but when you get to the top it is incredible. The Roman ruins at the top have an incredible view of the surrounding area. The Ruins themselves are incredible. They are open to the public and you can just climb around and explore in them at whim as you can see from the pictures. One of the coolest things I've seen since beeing abroad. After the ruins we walked towards the incredible Basilica Notre Dame de Fourviere. from the bottom of the hill it looks like a fairy tale castle. At night it is the only thing lit up on the hillside and you can see it from everywhere in the city, day or night. Inside it is beautiful. Gold and blue tile mosaics everywhere. After the basilica we made our way down to Old Lyon through the Chemin des Rosiers (the rose path). Lunch was another crazy affair. I ate french onion soup, Tripe sausage (interesting...) and apple pie again. Kacie tried frog legs! They were a cross between a white fish and chicken. Kind of bland besides the fried seasoning. We relaxed for awhile and then went back to the Cathedrale St. Jean to watch the giant angle clock chime and move around and such. Then went back to our hotel to rest for awhile (all this traveling makes us girls tired...) Dinner was a lowkey affair and now we are back in our hotel room for the night uploading photos and writing blogs because we have free internet! haha...anyways we leave tomorrow at 11. I really liked Lyon. Its a real city for the French. Nice's population fluctuates during the summer with all the tourists and Paris is very touristy too of course but Lyon is where the French come and go. The people visiting here are the French country people in the city for the day. I was able to actually speak French here without being interrupted by fluent English on behalf of the French individual. Yay!
Avignon and Lyon Pictures
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Thursday, November 12, 2009
PARISPARISPARIS
Of course I could not spend a semester in France without visiting one of the most amazing cities in the world. Having been there once when I was 16 I couldn't wait to go back and see if it was any different for me. We arrived by plane and were in the heart of Paris by noon. My friend Lawren and I were meeting another friend from AU who is currently studying in Copenhagen (Corey). We arrived at our "hostel" which was really just an inexpensive hotel and then proceded to Montmartre and the Sacre Coeur (one of my favorite places in Paris!) for a yummy lunch. Our hostel was no more than a five minute walk from the gorgeous cathedral and hillside. For lunch we at a cozy little place in the heart of montmartre and had some delicious french onion soup that warmed us up on that cold day. After lunch we started walking...and walking...all the way down to the gardens of the Louvre, the Tuileries. On the way there of course we saw some amazing things, the Opera house being one. After walking through the gardens of the Louvre we made our way to the Place des Vosges, the Notre Dame, and place de la Bastille. I hadn't seen any of those things (besides the Notre Dame) in my last trip so it was neat to discover this new things. The Notre Dame was still gorgeous but when I went last time it seemed bigger than life. Now after seeing so many gorgeous cathedrals in Milan, Florence, Venice and Rome and even the National Cathedral in DC the ND was still gorgeous but it did not seem as big to me anymore. As it turned dark we decided to head towards the Eiffel tower. We took the elevator up and got some incredible shots of the city at nighttime. As we walked away towards something to eat the tower started to sparkle as it does every hour on the hour and I got some more great pictures of the tower. Dinner was at a little cafe (steak-frites and escargot!) and then we headed back to the hotel to crash after a very tiring day.
Day two started out early. Corey decided to head to Versailles and me and Lawren stayed in the city to see more of what it had to offer. We took the metro towards the Hotel des Invalides (something I had not seen before). The Invalides is a combination church, courtyard, tomb and military museum. This is where you can find the tomb of Napoleon. Let me tell you he must of had a really big complex about being a little man because his coffin alone is the size of a small cape house. The tomb and the cathedral were all very gorgeous (I have pictures that will be uploaded to the Paris album soon...they weren't on the same memory card) and the military museum was incredible. It had coats and swords and shields ranging back from the middle ages with a big focus on the Napoleonic era. There were even outfits of his including that famous black triangle hat he was so famous for. After the Hotel des Invalides we started walking towards the Place de la Concorde, which is the giant Egyptian obilisque and surrounding square. From the square there is a long road that stretches to the Madeleine a few blocks away. On this road there are shops like Chanel, Gucci, Dior etc so that was really interesting to walk down there and people watch as we made our way to the Madeleine (a really cool Greek temple inspired Cathedral). Still really amazing because I haven't seen any of these things on my last visit. For lunch we hit up this adorable crepe place on a little side road. Most of the people there were locals so we knew it was good. The inside was beach themed with white walls with wide wooden floor boards and light blue everywhere. The crepes were delicious. I had a smoked salmon and creme fraiche one for lunch and a homemade caramal, toasted almond and vanilla ice cream one for dessert. Out of this world how good that last one was. After lunch we started the long walk up the Champs Elysees (which starts right next to the place de la Concorde) and followed it up to the Arc de Triomphe. The Champs Elysees is the busiest street in Paris with a ton of stores. We met up with Corey at the Arc de Triomphe and then headed to the metro towards the Musee Picasso (something I was dying to see) and the Musee de Cluny (another must see in Paris). It was a long metro ride and a confusing walk to the Picasso museum only to find that it was closed until August 2012! Major disappointment but something that couldn't be helped. We continued on to the Musee de Cluny which is a museum dedicated to the Medieval Ages and there were artifacts there from centuries in the single digits. It was incredible to see especially the artifacts such as the crosses and religious items as many of them were from the very beginning of the religion as a mass movement. After the Cluny we hit up a STARBUCKSSS across the street and headed home for a little evening rest. Dinner was a local kebab place as we were on a budget and that is just fine. It was still delicious.
Day 3 and our last day we started towards the Louvre and the Musee D'Orsay which are right near each other. We went to the Musee D'Orsay first (I've already been but its my favorite museum ever) and saw all the incredible impressionist art like Degas and Renoir not to mention Van Gogh, Gaugin, Pissat among others. Then Corey had to leave to catch his train and me and Lawren went to the Louvre. I walked her inside and she bought a ticket to go in and I sat in the Starbucks in the Louvre writing post cards and waiting for her to come back. I had already seen the Louvre back in the day and it did not impress me very much besides the actual building so I decided to skip the entrance fee and relax for a bit. After Lawren finished we headed back the Champs Elysees for a little window shopping and then to the airport to fly back home. After some technical difficulties with our flight we made it home five or six hours late. A rough end to our trip but overall Paris is still worth all the hype that it gets.
My Paris Pictures
Day two started out early. Corey decided to head to Versailles and me and Lawren stayed in the city to see more of what it had to offer. We took the metro towards the Hotel des Invalides (something I had not seen before). The Invalides is a combination church, courtyard, tomb and military museum. This is where you can find the tomb of Napoleon. Let me tell you he must of had a really big complex about being a little man because his coffin alone is the size of a small cape house. The tomb and the cathedral were all very gorgeous (I have pictures that will be uploaded to the Paris album soon...they weren't on the same memory card) and the military museum was incredible. It had coats and swords and shields ranging back from the middle ages with a big focus on the Napoleonic era. There were even outfits of his including that famous black triangle hat he was so famous for. After the Hotel des Invalides we started walking towards the Place de la Concorde, which is the giant Egyptian obilisque and surrounding square. From the square there is a long road that stretches to the Madeleine a few blocks away. On this road there are shops like Chanel, Gucci, Dior etc so that was really interesting to walk down there and people watch as we made our way to the Madeleine (a really cool Greek temple inspired Cathedral). Still really amazing because I haven't seen any of these things on my last visit. For lunch we hit up this adorable crepe place on a little side road. Most of the people there were locals so we knew it was good. The inside was beach themed with white walls with wide wooden floor boards and light blue everywhere. The crepes were delicious. I had a smoked salmon and creme fraiche one for lunch and a homemade caramal, toasted almond and vanilla ice cream one for dessert. Out of this world how good that last one was. After lunch we started the long walk up the Champs Elysees (which starts right next to the place de la Concorde) and followed it up to the Arc de Triomphe. The Champs Elysees is the busiest street in Paris with a ton of stores. We met up with Corey at the Arc de Triomphe and then headed to the metro towards the Musee Picasso (something I was dying to see) and the Musee de Cluny (another must see in Paris). It was a long metro ride and a confusing walk to the Picasso museum only to find that it was closed until August 2012! Major disappointment but something that couldn't be helped. We continued on to the Musee de Cluny which is a museum dedicated to the Medieval Ages and there were artifacts there from centuries in the single digits. It was incredible to see especially the artifacts such as the crosses and religious items as many of them were from the very beginning of the religion as a mass movement. After the Cluny we hit up a STARBUCKSSS across the street and headed home for a little evening rest. Dinner was a local kebab place as we were on a budget and that is just fine. It was still delicious.
Day 3 and our last day we started towards the Louvre and the Musee D'Orsay which are right near each other. We went to the Musee D'Orsay first (I've already been but its my favorite museum ever) and saw all the incredible impressionist art like Degas and Renoir not to mention Van Gogh, Gaugin, Pissat among others. Then Corey had to leave to catch his train and me and Lawren went to the Louvre. I walked her inside and she bought a ticket to go in and I sat in the Starbucks in the Louvre writing post cards and waiting for her to come back. I had already seen the Louvre back in the day and it did not impress me very much besides the actual building so I decided to skip the entrance fee and relax for a bit. After Lawren finished we headed back the Champs Elysees for a little window shopping and then to the airport to fly back home. After some technical difficulties with our flight we made it home five or six hours late. A rough end to our trip but overall Paris is still worth all the hype that it gets.
My Paris Pictures
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Florence, Milan and Venice...the last of my Italian adventures
The last two weekends me and my friend Uuljan made trips to Italy. The first weekend we went to Florence and this past weekend we went to Venice with a quick stop over in Milan.
Florence was gorgeous. I loved how small yet busy it was. We spent all day friday on the train and arrived Friday night and walked around for a bit before hitting the hay. We saw the Duomo and the Medici chapels all lit up at night and walked around the San Lorenzo Market. Went to a yummy dinner (fresh pasta with mushrooms! and bruschetta which is a florence favor) finished it up with a pistachio gelato and went back to our hostel.
Our hostel was incredible. It was really more like a guest house. Me and Uuljan had our own room with a closet, sink, computer and flatscreen TV. We shared a bathroom with a few other rooms but not that many people. It was a great experience and the people were very helpful and it was a great place to stay.
The next day me and Uuljan hit up all the rest of the major sites.We started at the Galleria dell'Academia where the statue of David is held. I had no idea that the statue was that big! The museum was packed with tour groups, mostly Americans. I think I ended up hearing more English in my stay in Italy than Italian. We then took our map and explored all the major sites. My favorites included the Pitti gardens and the Piazza Michelangelo where you got an incredible view of the entire city. Actually, on our way there we ran into a friend from Marshfield (she is studying south of Florence) with her parents. Very small world. Of course, Florence is also known for its shopping, and me and Uuljan hit up several of the outdoor markets and bought many souvenirs for our friends and family. We ate lunch at a little cafe right at the Piazza and enjoyed the view some more. We saw many beautiful churches in the afternoon and then headed back to our hostel for a little rest before dinner. We went to a little local place for dinner that was recommended by our guest house and then crashed back at our hostel.
The next morning we went and got a little breakfast and went back to explore the Duomo (fantastic cathedral built with white and green marble) Unfortnatley the cathedral was closed both Saturday and Sunday so we weren't able to go inside. However there was some crazy parade going on around the chapel with Italian politicians and costumed military etc. We went back to catch our train at noon and spent the rest of the day on the train. Long day on the train but I had a cannoli and a panini to keep me company.
This past weekend we went to Venice. We caught our connecting train in Milan and instead of going right away we took a few hours to go see the Duomo (cathedral). It was probably the most incredible church I've ever seen. We took a cable car/tram twenty minutes and arrived. On the way I made a little friend in a three year old Italian boy. He was adorable. Anyways, while the Duomo was gorgeous, Milan was a very modern city. If you are looking for Italian/European charm it is not to be found in Milan. Tons of shopping however. We stopped for a quick dinner in what looked like a very cozy and adorable cafe but actually just reheated the food. Kind of a let down but thats okay. We went back and caught our train and arrived in Venice around 9 and went straight to our hostel.
Our hostel was right near the Jewish Ghetto and was run by a Jewish family. It was a very clean place and we shared our room with two students from William and Mary. We had our own bathroom which was great and our roommates were very nice (they were study abroad students living in Lyon).
The next day we explored the city. I took my Grandpa's advice and we did not pay attention to the map and just allowed ourselves to get lost in the city. We saw the beautiful San Marco's square and Basilica, went to the Galleria dell'Academia where Leonardo DaVinci's Homo drawing is held and all in all just tried to see every inch of the city. What I loved most about Venice was the lack of cars, and how the city was not modern in the least. Florence and Rome both stradled the line between old and new but Venice was all about embracing the old with the hundreds of canals and pittoresque bridges and piazzas. We ate a deliciouss lunch on the canal (fresh pasta with wild boar and mushrooms) and continued to wander. We got so lost trying to get home but again per my grandfather's advice we just found our way to the nearest vaporetti (water bus) stop and made our way home. Dropped off our stuff at the hostel and went out to a little place and got some wine, bread, cheese and tomatos and ate a little late night snack (no dinner...we were still too full from our late lunch!). We then went back to the hostel and talked with our roommates for awhile and fell asleep.
The next morning we had a couple of hours until our noon train. We got a quick breakfast and proceded to explore the Jewish ghetto. It was the oldest ghetto in Europe and today is a center for Jewish culture in Venice. I was upset because we were there too early for any place to be open for me to find matzah ball soup. Oh well. We picked up some sandwiches and pastries to hold us over on our train back and headed back to Nice. I was sad to leave Italy for the last time, some of the most gorgeous and exciting places I've ever been.
Florence was gorgeous. I loved how small yet busy it was. We spent all day friday on the train and arrived Friday night and walked around for a bit before hitting the hay. We saw the Duomo and the Medici chapels all lit up at night and walked around the San Lorenzo Market. Went to a yummy dinner (fresh pasta with mushrooms! and bruschetta which is a florence favor) finished it up with a pistachio gelato and went back to our hostel.
Our hostel was incredible. It was really more like a guest house. Me and Uuljan had our own room with a closet, sink, computer and flatscreen TV. We shared a bathroom with a few other rooms but not that many people. It was a great experience and the people were very helpful and it was a great place to stay.
The next day me and Uuljan hit up all the rest of the major sites.We started at the Galleria dell'Academia where the statue of David is held. I had no idea that the statue was that big! The museum was packed with tour groups, mostly Americans. I think I ended up hearing more English in my stay in Italy than Italian. We then took our map and explored all the major sites. My favorites included the Pitti gardens and the Piazza Michelangelo where you got an incredible view of the entire city. Actually, on our way there we ran into a friend from Marshfield (she is studying south of Florence) with her parents. Very small world. Of course, Florence is also known for its shopping, and me and Uuljan hit up several of the outdoor markets and bought many souvenirs for our friends and family. We ate lunch at a little cafe right at the Piazza and enjoyed the view some more. We saw many beautiful churches in the afternoon and then headed back to our hostel for a little rest before dinner. We went to a little local place for dinner that was recommended by our guest house and then crashed back at our hostel.
The next morning we went and got a little breakfast and went back to explore the Duomo (fantastic cathedral built with white and green marble) Unfortnatley the cathedral was closed both Saturday and Sunday so we weren't able to go inside. However there was some crazy parade going on around the chapel with Italian politicians and costumed military etc. We went back to catch our train at noon and spent the rest of the day on the train. Long day on the train but I had a cannoli and a panini to keep me company.
This past weekend we went to Venice. We caught our connecting train in Milan and instead of going right away we took a few hours to go see the Duomo (cathedral). It was probably the most incredible church I've ever seen. We took a cable car/tram twenty minutes and arrived. On the way I made a little friend in a three year old Italian boy. He was adorable. Anyways, while the Duomo was gorgeous, Milan was a very modern city. If you are looking for Italian/European charm it is not to be found in Milan. Tons of shopping however. We stopped for a quick dinner in what looked like a very cozy and adorable cafe but actually just reheated the food. Kind of a let down but thats okay. We went back and caught our train and arrived in Venice around 9 and went straight to our hostel.
Our hostel was right near the Jewish Ghetto and was run by a Jewish family. It was a very clean place and we shared our room with two students from William and Mary. We had our own bathroom which was great and our roommates were very nice (they were study abroad students living in Lyon).
The next day we explored the city. I took my Grandpa's advice and we did not pay attention to the map and just allowed ourselves to get lost in the city. We saw the beautiful San Marco's square and Basilica, went to the Galleria dell'Academia where Leonardo DaVinci's Homo drawing is held and all in all just tried to see every inch of the city. What I loved most about Venice was the lack of cars, and how the city was not modern in the least. Florence and Rome both stradled the line between old and new but Venice was all about embracing the old with the hundreds of canals and pittoresque bridges and piazzas. We ate a deliciouss lunch on the canal (fresh pasta with wild boar and mushrooms) and continued to wander. We got so lost trying to get home but again per my grandfather's advice we just found our way to the nearest vaporetti (water bus) stop and made our way home. Dropped off our stuff at the hostel and went out to a little place and got some wine, bread, cheese and tomatos and ate a little late night snack (no dinner...we were still too full from our late lunch!). We then went back to the hostel and talked with our roommates for awhile and fell asleep.
The next morning we had a couple of hours until our noon train. We got a quick breakfast and proceded to explore the Jewish ghetto. It was the oldest ghetto in Europe and today is a center for Jewish culture in Venice. I was upset because we were there too early for any place to be open for me to find matzah ball soup. Oh well. We picked up some sandwiches and pastries to hold us over on our train back and headed back to Nice. I was sad to leave Italy for the last time, some of the most gorgeous and exciting places I've ever been.
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