After those logistics were taken care of, we headed up to Montmartre to walk around in the hills and see Sacre Coeur and the Moulin Rouge. The lines were massive, so we didn't go in (which stinks because I really wanted to!). The outside is super gorgeous though and since it's on a giant hill the view of Paris from up there is awesome. We just mozied around, bought some post cards and other trinkets and headed back to the room to drop off our tourist-y impulse buys (magnets for me, a mug for Tracy)
We took a little detour on our way out to the pub that night and went through Parc Monceau, which is a decent sized park where people go to hang out and go jogging. It is, in my opinion, one of the better parks in Paris because it's removed from the big tourist attractions and has really beautiful and interesting landscaping. Then it was off to the pub for more live music, beer, and conversation with random strangers.
Nice Arrival:
The next day we packed up our things, said goodbye the Persiaux and went off to our respective train stations. We decided to spend the money for a cab and it was *the best* ten euros I have ever spent. Not having to drag my crap through the metro alone (again) was my little "welcome to France" present to myself. I was meeting Sophie, my coordinating professor, at the train station in Nice. The train ride took six hours, and was uneventful. I didn't really sleep because I was so nervous about my stuff being in the little baggage storage area and having it stolen. Luckily nothing bad happened and me and my stuff all arrived in one piece.
Sophie and her fiance, Raphael, picked me up in their car and took me to their apartment which was actually a pretty big two-bedroom place. We talked for a while and they asked me questions about Minnesota and my time in Paris, etc. Let me tell you, trying to explain to French people what food on a stick is is hilarious and really hard! Over dinner, which was a delicious salmon filet and a side of extremely buttered noodles, they told me a little bit more about themselves. They have been together since they were in high school and he proposed in Barcelona this summer. Super duper cute. We stayed up too late chatting and finally went to sleep because Sophie wanted to bring me to school with her so I could see where it was and meet some of the other teachers. More to come on that tomorrow!
*a picture of Sophie and Raphael's cat "Grisboy" who was terrified of me the entire time I was there and would peer at me every night from behind the wall. Too bad because he's so damn cute!
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