Bienvenue a Paris!

       This morning (very early) we woke up in Oxford, said goodbye to Sally and William, choked down a muffin and a banana, and boarded the bus for London! Before we knew it we were aboard the Eurostar coasting at high speeds towards the City of Lights!

It took about two hours but was very smooth and easy travel. When we arrived in Paris (ahh!) we got on yet another bus and drove towards the center of town. Our hotel, called the Hotel Milhieu is in the Marais district, and everything around it looks just the way you want Paris to look--beautiful, wide avenues, little cafes and shops, and all different kinds of people!
      Always in art history classes I have been told that the light is different in France, and I was like yeah, yeah, whatever.... Well...

      The light is different in France. It is warmer, slanted, and more golden. It makes everything magical! Stevens says this becomes even more noticeable in the south of France. We were lucky to get such a beautiful day when we arrived.
       After moving into our adorable, quiet, blue room (with a huge bathtub) we headed out into the city and got falafel that came highly recommended by Stevens. It was delicious and A LOT of food!

        We then walked around and explored the city a little bit more. I timidly tried out some of my french (not very well) on a man in the pharamacie and he was so friendly! Unfortunately when I tried in my hotel the man at the desk knew I was with the american group and just switched right over into English with a "What?" honestly I think I said what I was trying to say correctly and he just didn't want to bother.
         At 7:15 everyone congregated in the lobby to walk to dinner in an absolutely charming French cafe. The food was DELICIOUS and the red wine bottles kept arriving... I had ravioli, then mussels, and finally a huge slab of cheesecake. The atmosphere was perfect!