So, I went to Paris....
I've only waited like my entire life! Haha. Anyway, it went something like this:
On Sunday, I started my journey at 8 am from Prien, as usual. I had to say goodbye to Lena and all of her family (except for Oma) because they were leaving for Greece on their holiday. Don't worry! They are going to the East of Greece and the fires are on the West hand side. They are there and hopefully having a good time. (Lena was dreading the entire trip.....sad) Anyway, I arrived in Stuttgart right on time and I had an hour to wait for my train to Paris. No problem, right? Well....when I went to the Netherlands my train said please reserve and I asked at the station and they said "Nah, it's okay. You don't have to." My train to Paris said that too. So I had an hour before my train and I thought I would go and make sure to reserve it. I asked the very nice man at the ticket desk (suprisingly nice for being a Die Bahn employee...) for my reservation and he says that the train is full and that I can't get on. And, not only was my train full.....all the trains to Paris were full.
Oh course, I was about in tears. I was about ready to cry and call the airport and give up and come home actually. (If you really want to know how I felt, that is) Then, the very nice man, who I think could tell that I was scared, said he would find a way for me to get there. And he did! The only catch was that I had to catch a train from Stuttgart to Mannheim and Mannheim to Cologne and then Cologne to Paris. (If you know anything about German geography, you'll know that adds about 6 hours to my trip.....sad) But I got there! That's what matters. I had my parents call and change the time on my reservation for my hostel and everything was okay. I was a little frazzled and worn out and stressed by the time I got to Paris although. I took the Paris metro going in the wrong direction at first, got lost in the streets of Paris at night, and ended up not arriving till 10pm. But I was there at the hostel and safe, eventually.
The hostel.....it is called Aloha hostel and it is within walking distance of pretty much everything. It was a mere 24 Euros a night (about $36) and included breakfast and free WiFi for my laptop. It almost smelled like feet, but that's another story. The atmosphere was most amazing. Everyone was relaxed and hanging out in the lobby and the downstairs. The downstairs had a kitchen and a little cave like eating area. It was sooo neat. Breakfast was served there in the morning and the rest of the time you could store your own food and cook for yourself for lunch and dinner. That meant that people from all over the world were cooking dinner and sharing wine with each other. How cool is that? I ended up meeting several people from the United States and others from several other countries including Scotland, Liverpool UK, Austrailia, West Africa, Japan, Italy, and probably many more.
On my first full day on Monday, I woke up, enjoyed my breakfast downstairs, and headed out for my first mission.....conquering the Eiffel Tower, of course! Fortunately, I was there when it opened so I didn't have to wait in line really. I climbed all the steps up to the second floor/layer and then I took the lift up to the very top. It was such a beautiful day to be able to see the Paris from the top. And, I will have you all know, I bought and ate a croissant at the top of the Eiffel Tower. I just couldn't pass it up. I had to!
Then I walked down the river and enjoyed the scenery on my way to the Louvre. I had a crepe in the park for lunch (which was actually terrible, but oh well...I don't think that was the best place to have one). I bought some drawings from an artist in the park before the Louvre. I am pretty sure that I got hosed in the deal but I know that I hosed him as well, so it's okay. They were pretty drawings that I am pretty sure he didn't really do but just signed that he was offering for $20 a piece or 2 for $35. Then the more I hmmd and hahhd the lower it got. It went to $15 or 2 for $35....then $12 each....then finally 2 for $20 and that's where I bit. (Sorry, that should have all been in Euros, but you get the idea!) Little did he know, I wanted them and was going to buy one anyway. ( : I feel like it's okay that I got hosed since at least I knew how to play the game! Then this other guy, before I knew it, had some string on my finger and braided a bracelet around my wrist. Then of course wanted me to pay for it. Ridiculous! It all happens before you know it and then it's too late to stop them from scamming you. Of course, he wanted 5 Euros and I told him that I only had 2 because I had just purchased the pictures.....which, of course, was a lie, but I was sure as heck not going to get screwed out of 5 Euros. I conned the cons! Ha! Take that!
Anyway, then the Louvre! It was amazing! I was a little annoyed that I had been conned out of that 2 Euros and it was also hot and I was in pain from walking too much, so it could have been better. I just wasn't in a very good mood, but the place was still amazing. I didn't know that the building itself was so gorgeous. Inside there is a lot of trim on the walls and beautiful staircases and such. Very nice. I went around and got lost in one of the wings and ended up seeing Napoleon's apartments. They were gogeous. Very ornamented. Very luxurious. Although, I am beginning to think that all the kings, in all the time periods, in all the countries.....all had the same interior designer! Just kidding! Then of course Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory, and all the other most famous works of arts.Then I just wandered around the paintings and such for I don't know how many hours. Then it was back to the hostel for dinner I went!
Day two comes later....
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