We are on our way! Waking up at 4:30AM to get packed and loaded onto our bus. I have to admit that seeing our last night in our London hotel was a welcome sight...it was sufficient but gross at the same time...my tolerance can all be blamed on my mother though...
Growing up roughing it in Canadian winters in a tent, camping...who camps in the winter? As my brother and I got older, we moved into cabins to holiday...mom had had enough of the yucky cold and wet camping days. Any hotel pillow we might rest our heads on now are at least 5 star pillows...yes I am spoilt now...but I honestly don't mind!
For the purposes of 40 students and ten adults travelling Europe on a budget however, this might bring us some more interesting hotel locations for sure. I am prepared for more of the same.
We are a group of 50, so going to the Eurostar station and getting all of us through the security check, which is just like the airports, is a little on the time consuming side of things :) Our scheduled train wasn't until 9:17AM but I am glad that we got going early so that we could grab a coffee and relax while waiting for our train to board...my kind of travelling.
The train ride from London to Paris is approx. 2.5 hrs...half an hour of that is under water! It was a little challenging to fit our giant bags into the spaces on the train...a lesson learned for travelling in Europe...SMALLER BAGS!!!
We arrive, load our Paris bus and get to wander around a little bit and enjoy an hour and a half for lunch and shopping!
Street entertainment was great during our long lunch...it was so nice to be able to sit down and enjoy a meal...simple pleasures of a leisurely lunch have been missed these past several days...
I have to say I wasn't expecting all the graffiti in Paris...it is strange to see it everywhere, yet it's very artsy and sort of beautiful at the same time.
Notre Dame! Unbelievable is all I've got for you...
First on the list is Notre Dame Cathedral...stunning piece of architecture...something I can't even describe to anyone that hasn't seen it up close and in person. When you stop to realize the history and age of all these wonderful places we are seeing here in Europe, it is really something.
To finally see so many things that you've only heard of in books or movies...and to see how well preserved so many buildings are just amazes me. The amount of time and money required to maintain them must be immense.
Marissa lite a candle for Avu and said a prayer for him here.
After dinner, we headed to Montmartre HiIl, the bus could only bring us to the lower area where we needed to climb over 220 steps up to the church and Montmartre village. It was worth the climb to see the view of the city at night and it was nice to have a walk through the quaint village. Too bad we couldn't sit for a couple hours and have a caffe and soak in the sights, but this would have to do for this trip...I can definitely see myself returning and doing just that on another trip here.
This area is a hot spot for vendors to sell their stuff and for the local young people to socialize and share some beverages while sitting infront of the church. It seems strange to me to be consuming large quantities of alchohol infront of the church, but I think this is the way the youth rebel. It is totally legal to sit in public and drink alchohol there as the police are standing right there watching it all...it is great to see all the military and police around as a tourist. It gives you a sense of security.
For myself, being born and raised in Canada, it has me in complete awe of the sights in Europe...I can see why people love to visit and live here. I wonder how many European people truly appreciate the history of everything around them? The purpose of these school trips are to give the kids a snapshot of the world outside of their four corners and to hopefully encourage them to work hard and aspire to be able to travel more.
The reason we have sent our kids on these types of trips is for that reason exactly. I want my kids to 'want' to work hard so that travelling can become part of their lives always. If they have a desire to see other parts of the world then they will have a desire to work hard to get there!
No comments:
Post a Comment