une journée

Day One

After three layovers, two movies, a lot of French studying, we finally made it to our final destination! We arrived in Paris at the Charles de Gaulle airport this morning shortly after 6 am, midnight eastern time. We had our options of cabs and public transportation, however we figured with all our luggage and my friend's recently sprained ankle, it would be best to take a cab. I mean, how expensive could it be? Well, apparently Paris has rush hour traffic that compares to no city I've ever seen. Meaning, it took two hours and a hundred euros to reach our destination, which should have been forty-five minutes away.

Even after a sleepless, uncomfortable night, we were still full of young, positive energy. We of course assumed we would want to bolt out the door as soon as we reached our destination. Well, nature proved as wrong and as soon as we sat down in our apartment, we both took an unexpected five hour nap. The sleep, showers, and unpacking finally helped us pull it together to get out the door and hit the town.

I must say, our neighborhood is AMAZING! If anyone plans on traveling to Paris, you must check out the Latin Quarter, especially Rue Mouffetard. First, my dinner at Cave la Bourgogne was incredible, but it was only followed by amazing experiences. It's an uphill cobblestone road full of culture and friends waiting to meet you. Lindsay and I bumped into two young woman, an Australian and a Belgian. Out of our comfort zone, it felt natural to strike up conversation with the people around us, which may not have typically happened in our small hometowns. It turns out, these young ladies are our new French BFFs, in addition to our Texan friend we met on the plane. Morale of the story, leaving your comfort zone helps your self-esteem and confidence way beyond your expectations.

Because of that, my mere 20 hour experience in Paris has been enough to fulfill a lifetime. I cannot begin to imagine what the next 32 days bring!