J'ADORE LA FRANCE

For as long as I can remember it has been my DREAM to come to France. And all I gotta say is, France, you dreamy thing you...you lived up to the expectation.

The first stop in France was Avignon where we just briefly stayed the night, went on a beautiful Sunday walk, went to a quick sacrament service and were back on the bus. We stopped at a beautiful chateau called the Chateau Amboise. The gardens were beautiful! This is also the burial site of Leonardo Da Vinci, which was super cool to see!

After Amboise, we hopped back on the bus (the bus was becoming somewhat of a second home at this point) and headed to le Chateau de Chanenceau aka Fairytale Castle of my Dreams. That place was b-e-a-utiful. I was already mentally packing my bags and moving in, the place was that good. The castle itself was gorgeous but it was the grounds that took my breath away. The walkway to the castle was encased by trees and it felt like I was walking into a fairy land. The entire castle was then surrounded by water and set in a river. Cue the swooning. 

The kitchens were beautiful, full of copper pots which made up my mind on the fact that this is basically what my future kitchen is going to look like. 

The place is basically a dream. That's the only way to put it. I was a melted puddle of love by the end of the visit, I just couldn't take it. I could've frolicked through those trees forever.

Now that we'd all died and gone to heaven, we jumped back on the bus and drove to Paris! Now, I should just apologize now because I didn't take very many pictures in Paris... seriously things were so hectic and constantly moving that there wasn't even time to stop and take many pictures. The first day we got there we settled in and then headed out to the Sainte-Chapelle which had the most beautiful stain glass you'll ever see. Then we walked to the Notre Dame and had a quick history lesson about it. The weather was freezing that day and so our group broke and we were given free time to explore the city. A group of us went for lunch and I had French Onion Soup. And it was delicious! Check 'eat authentic French onion soup in France' off the bucket list! That night we did a bus tour with our group and went to the Eiffel Tower! We hopped off the bus just in time to see it sparkle. And, just in time for all my dreams to come true. I nearly started crying I was so excited. A girl in our group even got her first kiss! A group of boys were there at the same time as we were and one thing lead to another, and believe it or not, they kissed. I'm pretty sure there aren't many who can say their first kiss was as amazing as that. 

Sorry for the poor quality, this is a phone picture. My camera was left at home by accident. Lets have a moment of silence for the sadness of the situation.

The next day was spent at Versailles! And my, oh my, that place is unreal. I LOVED Marie Antoinette when I was younger. I had a fascination with her so it was cool to see where she lived. The gardens were so amazing and went on for miles. You really could spend DAYS in there. We of course took a break in the cafe for some of their famous hot chocolate and a macaron. Both: to die for.

That night was spent at the Louvre. Amazing, of course. Saw the Mona Lisa, saw all the other famous works, yada yada. It's the Louvre, there's not much you can say besides it was awesome.  Finally, by Thursday, we were given a free day and most of us shopped, as most girls do that come to Pairs. We went all down the Champs-Elysées and tortured ourselves in the Galeries Lafayette. I probably saw 20 things that I was dying over but cost a million and one euros (give or take). Yeah, we were all a puddle of tears at the end. Word to the wise: don't go in that place unless you're filthy stinkin' rich or else it will be torture to the fullest extent. But of course, we did stop at Laduree to sooth our poor, fashion deprived souls, and splurged on macarons. Then, things were all better. And, let me tell you, never have I ever had a better macaron in my life. Death my macarons is the way I'm planning to go, fyi.

Now! In case this post isn't long enough, let's talk about Monet's Gardens! Which is where we travelled to next as I'm sure you've gathered. Well, you know, those gardens, they are beautiful. Nuff said. I'll let the pictures do the talking. 

That day we also saw Van Gogh's burial site in the lovely little town of Auvers. I loved that quaint little town.

Our final stops were in to the D-Day beaches in Normandy and the town of Bayoux to see a tapestry famous there. The D-Day memorial was beautiful and it was cool to have a small piece of the US so far from home. It's amazing to see where that famous day all took place and to see all the graves of those who bravely fought for our country. It was a very humbling experience. Bayoux was just as beauiful of an experience. It was quaint and charming and the tapestry we saw there was very cool. We were only there for a day before we were on our way to London. By the end we were all about ready to get settled down there. That traveling was very fun but a bit tiresome all the same; it was time for a bit of normalcy (and also the rest of my luggage). Well now, we are all up to date! Currently I'm in London and starting school so stay tuned to hear about my adventures over the next semester here! Let's pray that I don't fail my classes...