Hotel Lutetia Asnieres Asnieres-sur-Seine

... a grand palace in the middle of the countryside - an image that didn't include American chain restaurants.  After walking around the outside of Versailles, and waiting forever to get tickets, we ventured inside. The palace was incredible. Every room had its own color scheme, with the walls, carpet and furnishings matching perfectly. The artwork on the walls was beautiful, and many of the ceilings had been painted with amazing murals. The gardens were equally ...

... better sense of direction. The scale of the Louvre is mindblowing - in some respects it is sad that there is so much in one place especially the exhibits that are from other countries - Egypt and Italy in particular. But that's history. The highlight (probably because it was unexpected) was down in the bowels of the Louvre where the excavation showed the foundations of the original palace on the the site. The French ...

... and French. Both the Belgians and the Canadians were supporting the Australians, so naturally they were more than welcome. And the French.... well, we were in France after all, and they were being understanding hosts to the loud Aussies. The cyclists really move through the streets, and when they go right by you, it is almost just a blur. There was a French commentator calling the race over a loud speaker, and I ...

... our trip. Later in the train ride an announcement in French came over the loudspeaker and everyone on the car started to look at each other, so we decided we better ask what the announcement said. We found out that our train was being stopped for an unknown amount of time for a protest. Needless to say we were soon stopped and watching people with picket signs. The protesters came on the train and handed us information about ...

... many paintings that he recognized from his art history classes. We headed back to the hotel to get our bags and stopped at an authentic French restaurant to have dinner (a fast food restaurant called Chicken Points), hey we're on a budget and it was filling, don't judge... Then off to our next destination of Venice, Italy, via an overnight sleeper train!

... Rebecca took the Boy Scout's motto to heart and was stocked with a virtual pharmacy of wet wipes, tissues and antibacterial cleanser. As we set to work cleaning the mess, Rebecca told me that according to a wives tale, being pooped on by a pigeon brings good luck and if so, I should be set with good luck for the rest of my travels! We laughed over the incident with a cup of yummy hot coco at a sidewalk caf ...

... know it your hand is out and they are winding and braiding string. Then once they have finished they try to get you to pay for it. "I made it just for you" they say. Its all part of the elaborate game. I told the girls maybe that would be a good summer job in Woodstock. Then we grabbed a bite to eat at a small cafe, watched the local sketch artists wander around, one with his dog and then proceeded to wander ourselves. Down side roads ...

Yep. I got to include Paris in my trip. What did I see? The train station, a mediocre tuna sand which, and my own, furious face in one of the train windows. How did I get here? It turns out I passed out and slept through my stop in Lyon (*******ned sleep deprivation), and when I woke up I found myself in Paris. Every curse word I know, French, English, German, Romanian ,all came out at once. People looked at me, horrified and confused. **** them. Two FULL days of ...

... about internet bookings or travel agencies, or whether or not someone will understand you. Generally, it's just nice to be able to ask whatever questions we might have, to whoever we might run into. So there's a lot less to worry about on the language front. When Chris and I arrived in Shanghai for our layover, we both remarked on how generally useless the Japanese language is once one leaves Japan. After having spent a few days in Paris, though, we ...

Well, I am back in Paris. I had a nice warm and sunny Christmas break at home. And now, it's time to get back to work. I have exams next week which consists of being given a random topic, ok, maybe not completely random...narrowed down to the sometime in the XIX century, and have 2 hours to write as much as I can, in french, without a french-english dictionary. Worried? YES extremely worried. Just want ...