Things I Learned In France

1.  Bread, wine, and cheese all taste better in France.

2.  If you attempt to speak French, even poorly, most people will be nice and help you.

3.  Everything is much further than you think it is, especially if you are walking.

4.  Every old building in Paris has at least a couple hundred stairs to the most interesting part.

5.  The public transportation is better and easier to use than any other major city I have ever been to.

6.  Some French people do smell bad, but so do some Americans.

7.  Rock concerts are better in Europe.


We had a fantastic time in Paris.  For starters, any time I can have a few days off is a good time as far as I'm concerned.  After the lengthy flight overseas, we were able to take the train directly from the airport to our hotel.  We spent most of the first afternoon just wandering the streets around the Champs Elysees.  We climbed to the top of the Arc de Triomphe.  We also walked along the river by the Eiffel Tower and basically just enjoyed being in the city.  The weather was wonderful the entire time we were there.  We had a little rain, but it was hardly cold at all.  I didn't wear a jacket for one second of this trip.

Friday, we took the train out to Versailles.  We spent the better part of the day out there.  We took a tour of the main Chateau, which included access to several rooms not open to the public.  It was totally worth taking the tour as opposed to just wandering around aimlessly trying to figure out what stuff is.  We did plenty of aimless wandering when we were temporarily lost in the gardens.  We saw the private quarters of Louis XV, as well as Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.  We spent nearly the entire day there, and although we were tired from all of the walking, it was probably my favorite thing we did the entire trip.  We spent the evening at the Louvre, mostly hitting the highlights.  I would love to go back and spend some more time there when I have more time and am less exhausted.  The place was crazy packed, especially in rooms with famous pieces.  There was a bigger mosh pit around the Mona Lisa than at any rock concert I have ever been to.

Saturday included a trip to L'Hôtel national des Invalides which houses a military museum.  The highlight here is the tomb of Napoleon.  I have never in my life seen anything quite so elaborate.  His remains are in a giant six layer casket that fills an entire room under a giant dome.  It is quite impressive, if not a little bit strange.  After that, we spent some time at the Paris Opera House before heading up to the Stade de France for the Metallica show.  I will cover that somewhere else to spare those of you who don't care, but it was awesome.

Our last day was spent mostly around Montmartre.  We climbed up the hill to the Sacré-Cœur.  It's a beautiful church, and it was only 300 more steps to the top of the dome, which seemed like a good idea at the time.  There was a nice view of the city from there, but I realized on this trip that I am completely out of shape.  We ate lunch and drank wine outside at a little cafe, which made the trip worth it.  Afterwards, we stopped at every tourist trap along the way so that Tiffany could get her fill of Paris souvenirs.  By the way, souvenir is a French word.

After the long flight home on Monday, I have spent the last two days doing as little as possible.  I have gotten some reading done, and I have caught up on Jimmy Fallon.  Tomorrow I have to go back to work.  I'm not super excited about it, but I guess you have to work occasionally if you want to continue to make trips to Europe.  Maybe this will be my year to win the lottery.