As of Thursday, we arrived in Paris and began the last portion of our European family vacation. After arriving at the airport, we struggled with luggage through the metro to find our new apartment we were renting in the 2nd arrondissement. We settled in a bit, then walked down to the Seine to see the Sainte Chapelle and Notre Dame de Paris. Sadly, we were more or less shut down in regards to both. The Sainte Chapelle already had too many visitors and was about to close, so they didn't let us in. Notre Dame was open to visitors but was also in the middle of celebrating mass, so we walked around and looked at all of the windows except the famous rose window behind the organ. Feeling very tired and a little disappointed, we cheered ourselves up by watching French children playing in the sand in the park next to the cathedral. Then we headed back to the apartment for dinner before getting to bed early in preparation for our very full Friday.
Friday was a continuation of our castle tour (I think we were up to 10 or 11 by now?) - the Château de Versailles. We got a later start than I had hoped (it was really hard for some of us to get up and moving in the morning) but found our way there and arrived around 10. After our audio-guided tour through the castle, we picked up the backpack Dad was in charge of at the coat check and found a seat in the gardens to eat the sandwiches we had purchased that morning and brought with us. After lunch we spent some time exploring the gardens and just enjoying the beautiful sunshine and flowers. Eventually we made our way over to the Grand and Petit Trianon - smaller castle estates built near Versailles for people who wanted to "escape" from hectic life at the main castle. The Petit Trianon in particular was a haven for Marie Antoinette. Speaking of, our next stop was the hamlet/farming village created for her amusement. It was a self-contained, functioning little town complete with a farm where she could dress up and play peasant...I guess when you're queen you get what you want! We did enjoy the exploring, but by the time we finished and made our way back to the train station it was around 4:30 - a day of pretty much non-stop walking, but also very enjoyable. Then the trip back, dinner, and early to bed.
Saturday morning began by returning to the Sainte Chapelle (after a quick stop for pains au chocolat and coffee!) where we were finally able to make it in. We were also able to tag along with a French tour given by the staff, with Shannon listening and me trying to listen and translate discreetly to my parents. They didn't get quite the same experience, but I did my best. They were, however, just as impressed and impacted by the beauty of the stained glass windows as I was when I first went there. What an amazing place to worship! Next we met up with my friend Randa for lunch at an Italian restaurant close to her apartment. After a lot of good food and conversation, we got on the metro and headed to the Arc de Triomphe. They seemed to like it well enough, but weren't as impressed with it as I was the first time I saw it. After gawking and taking a few pictures, we crossed back under the street through the tunnel and walked the famous shopping street of the Champs-Élysées.
After the shopping portion comes the garden portion, and we walked that as well - or tried to! They had already started setting up for the 14th of July and the parade - so there were stands and blocked-off areas on both sides of the street. We eventually made it to Place de la Concorde with it's Egyptian obelisk, and then into the Jardin des Tuileries - the Tuileries gardens. After resting our feet in the shade of the garden for a bit, we continued on to the Louvre where, although we didn't go in, we stopped for some obligatory pictures with the pyramids. Finally, we walked back to the apartment - since we were practically there anyways! Next, we changed clothes and shoes and headed off to my old address where we met up with my host mom and her daughter Marjorie for a send-off/goodbye dinner. They were running a bit late, so we didn't leave for dinner together until 8:45, but we more than made up for it! After a lot of delicious food and great conversation, we started realizing there were fewer and fewer other patrons. Then, Dad looked at his watch, and we saw that it was almost midnight! Yikes! Since it had gotten rather cold and we still had to pick up a suitcase and bag of mine they were holding for me while we traveled, they offered to drop us and the stuff off in the car rather than us having to walk. So after a very full day, we finally made it back for good and fell exhausted into bed.
Sunday (today!) began with sleeping a little late, and then church at Hillsong. It was great for me to be able to bring my family with me again and share in the experience together, but a bit surreal to realize it was my last time to worship there - at least for quite a while. After church we went to a nearby crêperie for more delicious crêpes - since we can't really find them when we go back home tomorrow. Next we hurried back to the apartment to change into walking shoes and took the metro to the Château de Vincennes - our last castle of the trip. Unfortunately, we didn't have much time left there and the tours were only in French, so we zipped around reading the signs on everything and with me trying to recount what I remembered from the French tour I had taken there about a month ago. Even so, we had a good time - Dad especially enjoyed learning about the history and different building projects and additions. Then we took the metro back into the city, and then walked along the Seine enjoying the scenery for the last time. After dinner near the Pont d'Alma, we walked down to the Tour Eiffel and then underneath to the Champs de Mars field where we sat and talked and then watched the sparkly light show that comes on the first 10 minutes of every hour after dark. Finally, we took the metro back to the apartment where I'm now writing this as we struggle to organize and pack for our flight back to Chicago tomorrow.
All in all, it's been an amazing trip! We've had so much fun, so much food, and taken so many pictures. I feel so very blessed that I've been able to share with my family some of the experiences that I've had here in Paris and show them around what has become my city. Now I'm off to bed to get in a few hours of sleep before we need to get up, finish packing, grab some pastries for breakfast and take the train out to the airport. Since I'm not ready to say goodbye yet, I'll write one more post when we have safely arrived home in Downers Grove. Goodbye for now!
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