committed.

my traveling book: Committed - elizabeth gilbert.

last summer i read Eat, Pray, Love & elizabeth has forever marked on my view of life. Eat, Pray, Love was one of the most influential books i have ever read. she was so careless, uninhibited, and wrote the details of her life that every person could connect to. her adventures with love, food, and meditation made me think of my own life, especially now that i am abroad i can connect to her feelings and stories in other countries. (plus, since i have been to bali, i really could visualize the details of the beautiful city, and how it was easy for her to be influenced by its beauty). she was also so liberated. leaving all inhibitions and problems at home, and just traveling to learn. "a traveler without observation is a bird without wings" (Moslih Eddin Saadi)

committed is pretty much an update on her life, and her views on love, which are pretty skeptical, like many women in the world. i guess i'm pretty skeptical about love too. don't actually know what it really is yet, think i do, but i'm still young, and still have a lot of heart to be broken, and a lot of hearts to break. i am only half way through this but so far her knowledge and observations of the marriage and union of relationships in other countries are truly influential, and i would recommend this book for anyone, those married, young, old, single, cynicals, hopeless romantics, pretty much any woman or man who has ever had one moment in life when they look into how they see their future, and if they see a marriage or if they don't. its a great way to learn about yourself, and what values you want in a relationship with another person, if any. read both books, especially before the movie comes out!!

TRAILER- Julia Roberts looks amazing.

mixed feelings.

last week.

it is the last week in paris. confused on how i feel.

lots of stuff to look forward to in america but a lot to miss from paris.

things i will miss:

drinking in public.

the eiffel tower.

the louvre & tuilleries gardens.

every famous monument, actually.

speaking french & being understood.

the clubs.

french food.

seeing the adorable fashion that americans don't have.

looking out my window :).

the champs-elysées.

champagneeee.

having a french mom.

things i won't miss:

no free refills.

the service at restaurants.

being american & hated.

speaking french & not being understood.

creepy french men.

the expensive euro!

the metro with sweaty people.

some french food (i'm all ham-ed out).

having to walk miles to every museum.

the french assholes (*gypsies)

bahh.. one week. weird weird weird, but what an experience. being a completely different person in a completely different country and culture. every person should experience another country as a citizen there. maybe not paris, but somewhere in this world, everyone should have experienced a double culture, and the shocks, fun, and troubles that come with it.

i would do this experience again in an instant. (maybe without the gypsies, and creepy french men). next country: africa or australia. one day.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

“What you’ve done becomes the judge of what you’re going to do – especially in other people’s minds. When you’re traveling, you are what you are right there and then. People don’t have your past to hold against you. No yesterdays on the road.” – William Least Heat Moon

“Adventure is a path. Real adventure – self-determined, self-motivated, often risky – forces you to have firsthand encounters with the world. The world the way it is, not the way you imagine it. Your body will collide with the earth and you will bear witness. In this way you will be compelled to grapple with the limitless kindness and bottomless cruelty of humankind – and perhaps realize that you yourself are capable of both. This will change you. Nothing will ever again be black-and-white.” – Mark Jenkins

merci paris, pour j'ai appris beaucoup. au revoir dans une semaine. ou, au bientôt.

ps- bonne jour d'independence aux etats-unis!

trips, trips, trips!

over the last 3 weeks we have taken many day trips through the RER & the TGV to places close to paris that are monumental to the culture of this country. mostly art museums, and royal palaces, but seeing the different little places outside of paris is really interesting in comparison to this huge city.

Versaille

this is where Marie Antoinette's palace was, consisting of many mansions where her and the royal family stayed, as well as the beautiful gardens that surround the acres. its only about 45 minutes away, and so worth it.

Ecrouen

this was a day trip to le chateau de la Renaissance d'Ecouen, which was a museum of old paintings and sculptures, pretty much (we have seen many of these so it's hard to decipher between them)

Giverny

this is where we visited Claude Monet's house, and his beautiful garden & lily pond. this was about 45 minutes away also, but you can see the paintings inside the house, and with a view like he had, you would've been inspired to paint also.

Reims

another day trip, about an hour away, where the other Notre Dame is. a much smaller city, but a lot of gorgeous scenery and land, and boutiques, churches & restaurants, as well as the Palais du Tau musée.

Champagne Country

we went here on the same day as Reims, its about 15 minutes away on the train. we got to get a tour of Taittinger Champagne factory where they let the champagne age, and it was the most delicious wine i've ever tasted. if only my i could have stuffed 3 or 4 in my bag :)

well, three weeks in.

three weeks. half way through. and now i start a blog. great timing, i know. it took really having a night like last night for me to realize that i will not remember half of the things we do here if i don't write it somewhere, & since i spend most of my time on the computer anyways, why not make one of these. so, here it goes.

paris always seemed like this fantasy place that is perfect in every way, many parts of this are true, but there are some that are completely different than the image in my head.

the fashion; always better than what we have in the united states, this is definitely true.

the scenery; absolutely breathtaking and i still get chills when i see the eiffel tower light up at night.

the music; so much more fun, and cool here, with such different genres and so many things going on in bars, or in the streets with music.

the nightlife; clubs, bars, pubs & people drinking everywhere from the louvre, to inside the metro.

the history; didn't think that a city could hold this much history, and museums filled with artwork, and statues that are hard to believe you are actually seeing with your eyes, in person.

its hard to say my stories of every point and every aspect that has happened with each "part" of paris, but i guess pictures will do enough.

fashion

scenery

music

*wait for fête de la musique pictures*

nightlife

history

the only thing that kills this beautiful, historical, & crazy city, is the people that live in it. not all of the people come off as hating americans, but the general population of "parisians" have given me a hard time. aside from getting pick-pocketed by a group of 13 year old romanian girls, even the police were not as helpful, which i am thinking was because i am american. its very different from america where everyone sends a smile to a stranger on the street, says excuse me if bumped into, and is generally a more welcoming country (despite what i thought previous to this trip). i know in the states it is smart to be cautious about your surroundings and your possessions, but here it is a completely different story. you have to hold onto your purse or backpack at all times. the one second you don't zip your bag up for the first 20 seconds you are on a train, you wallet will be stolen. they are quick here, and take advantage of the many tourists, majority american, and get away without even a slap on the wrist.

la langue française. a language i loved enough to dedicate 4 years of college studying, and hoped to have a future in some field of work involving it, is now a language i am terrified to speak in because of the awful looks they give when you speak, or in their annoyed response that they purposefully put into english. but i have gained some confidence and hope within the next 3 weeks i grow the same amount, or more, as i have in these first 3 weeks.

mais, c'est paris.

a favorite song to make fun of while here.