Family Visit

Apparently, starting midway through April, classes start to fizzle out in France beginning with a two-week spring break. So for the first week, my mom, sister and our good family friend Jean all decided to make a trip to France to visit Nice (again) and travel to Paris (even though my mom and Jean have been to Paris like a billion times).

So on Saturday the 13 of April, they all arrived in Nice! Thank goodness too because I was starting to get really, really homesick. We had all been in Nice together in 2010 when my family and Jean and her daughter and my best friend Angie took a Mediterranean cruise. Even though we were missing my dad and Ang this trip and they had been here before, I still couldn’t wait to show them around Nice as my town, not just a touristy city.

We went to their hotel to drop off their things which was located in the most beautiful part of Nice. Its right on the water near the port and over looks the entire city. Its perfect.

I took them to my very fancy apartment and then got to give Leslie all her birthday gifts that I had collected from around the world so far! Afterwards, we hiked up to the waterfall for a great view of Nice and then got lost on our way down. We ended up behind the older part of Nice and saw some things that I had never even see before.

We got a great French dinner at my favorite little restaurant on a little alley way. Melted camembert over pear, duck, risotto, profiteroles… YUM.

The next day, I took them to Cannes. We had taken this trip as a program together a few months ago (a few months ago? Where has the time gone?) and I really wanted to show my family. So we saw where the films will be premiering in just a few weeks, took them to my favorite restaurant and then to Ile St. Honorat to see the ancient monastery and another great view. The weather was gorgeous (finally, we’ve been anxiously waiting for the sun in Nice) and ended the day with some French onion soup.

 

Oh, we also found a homeless man sleeping in my apartment building that day, which was a blast since the police said they had “better things to take care of.” Shout out to the nice German man who helped get him out for us when we found him there again 12 hours later!

Monday was our last day in Nice before we went to Paris on Tuesday. We decided to take it easy and just stroll around. My favorite part about Nice are the food and flower markets on Cours Saleya in Vieux Nice, and on Mondays it is a flea market! This was right up Jean’s alley so the rest of us grabbed cappuccinos and crepes while Jean wandered the markets. Afterwards, we went shopping on Jean Medecin and got Brittany crepes then watched the sunset from our balcony.

Tuesday we were finally off to Paris! Its crazy to me that I have been to France twice and lived here for over three months and had never been to Paris. I couldn’t wait to go with my mom and Jean because they’re experts and Leslie and I could experience it all for the first time.

We got to our hotel which was the absolute cutest thing I have ever seen in my entire life. It was old and apartment style and so charming. We went straight towards Notre Dame and got to see the beautiful church, and then grabbed street crepes right next to it. We then walked to the Louvre but most museums in France are closed on Tuesdays so we just walked the grounds.

We walked all the way from the Louvre to the Arc de Triomphe which was the longest walk ever, but we got to see the beautiful gardens around the Louvre and the famous Champs Elysees. The Arc de Triomphe was phenomenal and we got to see the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier right before we went to Laduree to get famous macaroons and champagne.

 

 

 

By the way, how cool is it that basically everywhere you go in Paris you can see the Eiffel Tower. We could see it the whole walk up from the Louvre! Amazing.

Afterwards we got dinner at a bistro next to the Notre Dame and I finally got escargots! I’ve been waiting to get them until I went to Paris and I loved them. But what’s not to love about oil, pesto and garlic?

The next day was our Eiffel Tower day (and last day in Paris…). We woke up early to get a tour that helped up skip the line to the top and our tour guide told us all about every single thing you could see from the Eiffel Tower, which was basically the entire city. Did you know that the Eiffel Tower was originally just built for the World Fair and was going to be taken down immediately after? Until Gustave Eiffel decided to keep it up for 20 years to make back how much he spent building it (which he got back in 6 months) and they ended up keeping it up forever, even though people originally thought it was an eyesore.

Sorry for the history lesson, but seriously, how cool?!

We ate lunch on top of the Eiffel Tower, which was obviously stunning, then walked through the gardens towards the Military School then went back to the Louvre. This time, we got to go inside and see the Mona Lisa, Aphrodite, and other amazing works of art.

That night, we had reservations at a restaurant overlooking the Eiffel Tower. We had a beautiful, fancy and delicious dinner watching the sunset over Paris. And when the clock struck nine, we got to see it sparkle! (and we saw a couple get engaged! Too cute.)

I completely fell in love with Paris. It had to have been the best few days, especially since I got to share it with my family. It was so cool to be in a different part of France other than just the French Riviera. i actually found that the people in Paris were so much friendlier than in Nice. I think it might be because they are more used to tourists up there than they are here, but it was nice to speak to someone in French and not make it difficult for me.

I obviously cried when we had to go our separate ways at the airport, but as I’m blogging, I get to see them in less than a month!!!!

Thanks Mom, Jean and Les for making the trip out here and making my trip to Paris truly amazing. I don't know how I would have gotten through these 4.5 months without you here! 

Love and miss you!!

A

(J'ai parlé trop de français  ce voyage, j'ai presque oublié comment parler anglais. J'ai traduit et nous a aidés à travers la ville. Quand je suis parti pour Chypre, j'étais prêt à ne pas parler français plus! Ma mère semblait impressionné par mon français. C'était incroyable de les voir et de partager cette expérience.)