Taking a one night trip to France from London was a very daunting task, but the exhaustion was well worth it.
Paris
,I LOVED Paris. My favorite moment pictured me and my mom sitting on the bridge overlooking the Seine, with the Eiffel Tower in front of us and accordion music playing in the background. It was the perfect Parisian picture. Of course the food was to die for and we ate as many crepes and baguettes as possible during our short stay. We made it to many, but definitely not all, tourist attractions. The Moulin Rouge was a must-see since I am an avid fan of the musical. We sat on the steps of Basilique du Sacré-Coeur and drank Heineken’s while listening to live music and looking out over the city. I smoked my first (and only) cigarette in front of the Notre Dame Cathedral and visited the Puma store on the Champs-elysees. It was a quick trip and we definitely could have enjoyed more time, but we made the most of being there.
Giverny
As if our short time in Paris wasn’t packed enough, we snuck in a half-day trip to Giverny, France to see Monet’s garden. The hour long train ride dropped us off in a quaint town where a bus awaited to take us to the garden, however, being the adventurers we are, we decided to bike instead. Insert my other favorite part of the trip. Biking through the French countryside, listening to the Beauty and the Beast soundtrack, made all my fairytale dreams come true. The town of Giverny was beautiful with cottages and farmland lining the cobblestone streets, and flowers hanging from every window frame. Monet’s garden was huge, and held seemingly every kind of flower imaginable, all color coded, and of course, we had to see the famous lily pads that he featured in many of his paintings. The journey back to the train station was a bit less magical considering Mom’s bike chain fell off twice and we had to become mechanics. We were also so tired that by the end we just walked. This excursion was one I never would have come up with on my own, but I’m so glad my mom was with me so that we could explore more of France together.
Overall
I am a big fan of France. From what little I experienced, I could pick out the distinct culture of the people, food, and architecture. Most people we met were very friendly and accommodating to foreigners. I am very bad at French, and often caught myself trying to speak in Portuguese instead, which as you can imagine, caused some confusion, so I stuck to English. I definitely try to learn some of the language wherever I am, but French has been the hardest so far. I hope I can go back to France one day and see some of the sights I missed in Paris as well as visit other cities around the country, but for now, au revisor, France.