Welcome to Bayeux!

Paris was so amazing that I thought that this trip couldn’t get any better.
Welcome to Bayeux!

Our second day in Paris we went to the Shoah memorial, which was interesting and sad. After that, we went to the Pompidou Center, which is the modern art museum that looks crazy cool. The plaza in front of the centre is full of street performers and probably drug addicts, and we watched a guy play a didgeridoo while other be-dredlocked scavengers looked on.
The museum itself was pretty cool, although modern art past 1960 or so stops making any sense at all. However, once you went up the escalators to the very top you had an absolutely amazing view of all of Paris, including the Eiffel Tower. It was lovely, all though we couldn’t get outside because by this time it had started to pour.
Top: Didgeridoo player. Bottom: View of Paris from the top of Pompidou
That night I met some friendly guys on my floor… I say ‘friendly’ because they followed me to my room and one asked me to marry him… more on this later.
The next day we went to another memorial at the base of Notre Dame, for the victims of the deportation. This one was older and made during the Gaullist period so it wasn’t so keen on blaming Vichy government for what happened. Our guide wouldn’t stop talking and I had to go to the bathroom so badly… of course we were locked in so I couldn’t get out until he had finished his tirades in French to professor Cauvin. Memorial to the Victims of the Deportation
All the Jewish centers, embassies and memorials in Paris have very tight security because of all the anti-Semitic demonstrations that have occurred in the past few years. It is very enlightening and sad to see that this still exists… you’d think Europeans would have learned their lesson.
Anyway, I finally got free and went to the ‘free’ public toilets at Notre Dame… too bad there was an attendant in there whom I had to tip. I did this fairly willingly, however, since anyone who has the job of cleaning public toilets after each person uses them is deserving of a Euro or two.

The Reclusive Hunchback of Notre Dame

After that we had a couple of hours of free time, so of course Sana and I decided to shop for presents for people back home (i.e. ourselves). We walked to the Rue de Rivoli, which is where most of the clothing stores are, and went to H&M where we were in heaven. After buying two gifts for my mom and sister and three things for myself (the money situation is daunting by this point, but I don’t let that faze me), we started to make our way back to the hostel to meet Francoise, who would take us to the Musee des Invalides, where Napoleon’s tomb is.

Somehow, between getting Hagen Daas and being stopped to ask directions from a stranger, we ourselves got lost. Strangely enough, because I am fairly good with directions, we were on the Rue des Ecoles, which is a small street right by our hostel, and we still spent thirty minutes finding it. Of course, by that time, the group had left and we were left with the decision to either battle the Paris subway system to meet them there, or take a nap and meet them at the next location, the Musee Rodin. Naturally we opted for the latter, and although I did really want to see the tomb, I still think we made the right choice.

Through having conversations in French about directions and getting on the wrong train, we finally arrived at the Rodin Museum, where we waited for the rest of the group. Although we got yelled at each time we tried to sit down (!?), we had a nice conversation in French and broken English with the guards there while we waited.

The Rodin Museum was beautiful; an open-air garden with all of Rodin’s sculptures. Sadly I did not realize until I got there that he is a sculptor and the entire place was dedicated to him. He created The Thinker, and we all took appropriate pensive poses with it. Above: The Thinker. Below: View of the Musee des Invalides from the Rodin Museum


For our last night in Paris, we first ate at a wonderful Italian restaurant close to our hostel, called Il Pescatore. Jacob and I had eaten there on our first night and it was romantic and fabulous. The first time we had sat overlooking the avenue, at a cosy table with a glass of red wine. This time, we had about 10 people, and the food and service were just as good. Then, of course, Lauren and I made the right decision to have glace for dessert (ice cream), and I’m sure everyone was super jealous.

Note about Paris: it is surprising how far a little French can take you. My French was conversational at best and it has gotten exponentially better since I’ve been here. In the more touristy areas, they will speak English to you no matter how you address them, since it is obvious that you are not a native speaker. However, in the Latin Quarter, where we stayed, and at little restaurants and creperies where not everyone speaks English, knowing French is very handy. It is very nice to be able to ask for things and order food and translate for everyone else; I felt very capable in Paris.

We continued our night at a bar that we arrived at just as Happy Hour ended. Naturally this would not do so we headed to another bar closer to our hostel, called the Long Hop. Some people had gone there the night before and loved it, so we went back… and Francoise and Wynn joined us! Spectacular. There was a DJ playing some great music, and much revelry was had… this is what I was told the next morning, anyway, as I went to bed fairly early. Being here and doing so much I am tired all the time, and the red wine I had had at dinner didn’t help the situation.

Last night in Paris

Around 2:30 in the morning Sana knocked on the door to be let in, and I heard a bunch of voices out in the hall. Supposedly the guys I had met before tried to come in and see me and she had to tell them that my ‘copain,’ Jacob, was ‘very very big.’ Andrew made sure we locked our door and then got offered pot multiple times by my newly made friends from Marseilles. Interesting, to say the least. Although I wouldn’t say that Jacob had any competition.

This morning we woke up early to go to the Musee d’Orsay, an art museum. Although we didn’t get to go to the Louvre at all while we were in Paris, we saw a ton of beautiful art. (I said this before, but we walked to the Louvre and it was HUGE. One side takes up a city block at least, and imagine my surprise when I came to realize that there were three more sides to the museum. This means that I will have to come back to Paris; it is an obligation I am begrudgingly willing to make, I guess.) The Orsay was wonderful and we saw tons of work from van Gogh and Monet, including some of his water garden. Whistler’s Mother was also there, along with Renoirs, Pissaros, and others.

The Rouen Cathedral at Orsay

After the museum it was a quick lunch (bread, cheese and grapes) and then off to NORMANDY! Our bus was the nicest I have ever been on; it had a sort of bachelor pad in the back with couches and a table, which I promptly took over.

Halfway to Bayeux we stopped in Giverny to visit the gardens we had just seen at the Orsay in Monet’s paintings. It was incredibly beautiful, but there were a ton of people there which sort of dimmed the effect. However, I got to go into his house and take pictures before I got yelled at, and went outside and petted a dog before I tried to use the toilet and got yelled at.

Monet's house at Giverny

Side note: what is the deal with French people? I have never had a harder time using the restroom than I have here. It is like their personal responsibility to deny me the chance to pee.

We got to Bayeux and moved into our hotel, which is AMAZING. It is the nicest by far of our accommodations, and is surrounded by a creek that runs with a babbling noise, and BABY DUCKLINGS! Our host is a wonderful (British?) woman named Pauline, and after a dinner of chicken (which I didn’t eat… I have kept up my vegetarianism- hooray!) and salad and AMAZING strawberry tarte and wine and cheese and bread, I am tired and ready to go to bed. The Internet isn’t working right now, so I’m typing this on Word (word.) and hopefully I will be able to post it tomorrow!

Girl's house at Moulin Morin

Bonne nuit!