A Little Less City in the Heart of Paris

Today we decided to take advantage of our official first day of vacation. We started with  the movie theatre to see The Iron Lady (really good!). We then went on a big walk to the Buttes Chaumont park. It was a beautiful day, 13 degrees Celsius/55 degrees Fahrenheit. Jordan has been wanting to see this park for a long time now, so it was great to finally do it! We wandered around, ate cotton candy and crepes, took lots of pictures, and then headed back to the apartment to enjoy a glass of white wine for Happy Hour (the French call it "Happy Hours", usually because it involves more than one drink during more than one hour!). We made a good dinner, and packed to leave for Brussels!

A perfect day in Paris.



Many kids followed Claire with longing eyes!

It's Official, and It Rocks!



Our Fun Summer Plan!

We booked our plane tickets!! After Lois and Jack visit us in Paris, all four of us will fly back on June 19th (taking the same flight; making the trip even more fun!) We will be in Boise from June 19th until July 2nd (...or so, to be confirmed). Then we will be in Seattle from July 2nd until the 7th and we will fly back to Paris from Seattle. Mark it down on your schedule! We are SO excited to see everyone!

Chateau de Vincennes

On a brisk and sunny day, we decided to visit the Chateau de Vincennes. Its construction originally started during the XII Century but its size and architecture developed over time as different kings took power (like the majority of French castles). It was mainly built to be the fortress we still see today by King Charles V (XIII Century). It is the oldest castle in France and its dungeon is the highest in Europe.

Chateau de Vincennes

The Castle's Sainte Chapelle

The Rose Window

Sainte Chapelle

Us in Front of the Castle - Cold, But Beautiful Day!

The King's Window!



So Much To See!

View Through One of the Clocks of Musee D'Orsay

Notre-Dame, a Must!

One of The Main Doors of Notre-Dame

Sainte Chapelle - XIII Century

Sainte Chapelle (It is Breath Taking, Really.)

Going Back In Time

We're so behind on sharing what happened during our first few months spent in Paris. Here is a little bit of our Christmas break! We had a month-long holiday and it was absolutely amazing. We had the time to visit lots of places around Paris (Museums, Churches, etc. ...Which by the way are all free because we are students under age 25! GREAT!). We also had the chance to have our friends Larry and Bobby for a week! We ate lots, walked everywhere, saw beautiful things - what else does one need?




Staircase Going Up the Arc de Triomphe

 
 



Eiffel Tower from the Top of The Arc de Triomphe




Jordan, Claire, Larry & Bobby On Top!

 





Sacré Coeur – We live right by this Church!







  





 

News of The Week

WE PASSED ALL OF OUR EXAMS AND OFFICIALLY VALIDATED OUR FIRST SEMESTER! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!

We got the news on February 14th, which made our Valentine's Day dinner even better!

We are now 4 weeks into the second semester and all seems well. Our next week of vacation is coming up at the end of February, and we are going to Brussels. We're happy.

The Aristocat

 

 Zoe has had no trouble getting used to the Parisian lifestyle and loves French food as much as we do. Call it sophisticated taste if you like, but this kitty prefers her French "pâté" to what she was fed in Seattle - by far. 

I toldz you, dis is MY spot.

Gossiping about Jordan

 It took Mademoiselle a little time to get used to using the steep stairs, but now she races up and down them with ease (seriously, we didn't know she could move so quickly). She seems to enjoy her lookout spot at the very top.

It's not easy being cute.

 P.S. She now meows in French.

Walking the Streets of Paris

The spire of Ste-Chappelle, Notre Dame, and the Institut de France

 December was particularly rainy this year, but the weather didn't stop us from enjoying another great walk along the Seine. Walking along the river allows for great vantage points of many of the best monuments of Paris, as you can see in the picture above! Within the city there are over thirty bridges that cross the Seine, some of which are only pedestrian - such as the bridge we were on while taking these photos.

Locked in for life!

 All of these padlocks are the symbols of couples' life-long love: you write your names on the padlock (or the real crazies pay to get it engraved), lock it up, and then throw the key into the Seine below. How romantic....



To answer your next question, no we do not have a padlock with our names on it.

Of course there are those who always wish to be single!

 The water level was extremely high this particular week. There is a walkway where these trees are that is usually several feet above the river, but now several inches under thanks to our overly wet December. For the river to actually do damage to the city the water level needs to be higher than the wall on the left. This was about the highest the water reached before receding to its normal levels again.

A Snap Shot of Our First Semester

Dinner with Tanguy and Eugénie in our apartment

Shortly after we arrived in Paris, Claire's long-time friend, Eugénie, and her boyfriend, Tanguy, from Brussels came to visit.

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Rachelle and us at the Fontainebleau Castle

Rachelle visited at the end of September into early October. We discovered new sights of the city together, made delicious meals, and ventured to the outskirts of the region to find a gem of a monument, le Château de Fontainebleau.

Nothing but warm weather and sunshine for her entire stay, aside from the day of her departure when the city said farewell with lots of rain!

Château de Fontainebleau

 Le Château de Fontainebleau saw the reigns of several kings of France, from Francois I to Napoléon (who gave his pre-exile speech on the grand staircase).

We think Fontainebleau has more charm than Versailles: less people, beautiful gardens, smaller sight, etc.

P.S. The Pissing-Dog fountain, commemorating the Kings' many hunts, was by far Rachelle's favorite! ;)

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Naptime for the Boys

Being in France has allowed us to spend lots of time with Claire's family. We had her nephews over for sleepovers (which can be tiring as you can see :) ). We also went to Brussels for Thanksgiving,...

Celebrating the New Year with (lots of) Champagne

...spent New Years with Claire's family and long-time family friends who live right outside Paris. Dinner started at 11:30pm and lasted well into the early morning!...

Jordan and Georgette

...and went to Grenoble (where Jordan studied abroad in 2008) to visit Claire's cousins who also live there.

ps: Georgette was crowned the queen during our Epiphany celebration in early January. She chose Jordan as her king.

Claire with Georges & Georgette

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Home-made salad and  goat cheese pastries

We love our home-made dinners. Here's one of many that we have made since landing in the country of delicious cuisine!

Bonjour!

Hello to all!
After a six month delay we finally got our asses in gear and created the long-promised blog of our adventures in Paris! Considering our first semester passed in the blink of an eye, we decided our 2012 resolution would be to actually start sharing all the wonderful things we experience on a daily basis in the City of Light.

Enjoy the pictures and feel free to add us into your favorites - that way our beautiful and smiling faces are no more than a click away!