PARIS

Last week I went to Paris. It was the first time I had been to paris, and it was magical! I went with my parents as well as my mom's co-worker and her husband. We spent our days walking around and going to museums and by night we would sit down for dinner and enjoy some amazing food! We usually ended our days with another walk around Paris. It is definitely a different experience walking around Paris at night. It is beautiful and I definitely recommend it. 

The second day we were there my friend Jada joined us. She is studying abroad in Bordeaux, France. She speaks fluent french, which came in handy more than a few times. So Jada, thank you! We owe you. 

We spent our afternoons sitting outside cafes eating croque madames and drinking Sancerre. My meals (besides breakfast) always ended with a cappuccino and dessert. I must say that the french lifestyle is one that I would love to adapt into the American Culture. They are required to work a maximum of 35 hours a week, and it is practically a rule to do nothing on the weekend. We continuously saw people lounging in the parks taking a nap or reading book. On the weekends every patch of grass was occupies by a family relaxing.

Part of the reason why we went to Paris was because a friend (my moms co-worker) was running in the Paris marathon. It was an impressive 26 miles long. I applaud everyone who participated because the thought of running even 5 miles makes me hurt just thinking about it. 

A moment I will never forget is when we were walking back to our hotel from dinner and a door opens and out comes none other than Karl Lagerfeld. He casually walked out the door (apparently it was the side door to his studio) and gets into his car and drove off. I lost my shit! I was freaking out so hard, you would not believe. I tried as best I could to keep my cool until I got to our hotel. I was the only one who was effected by this experience as no one else was freaking out. I was shocked, how could you not freak out at the sight of the legendary Chanel designer. I mean, no one ever sees him unless he is sitting front row at a fashion show or at some sort of a fancy gala. I realized in that moment how special this experience was and that I needed to remember and cherish it forever. Some of you may be like "Katie, calm the fuck down!" Nope I will not calm down. This is big!!!

Anyway, besides seeing Mr. Lagerfeld we saw some pretty amazing things like The Louvre, the Tuileries, and Versailles. Versailles is one of the most beautiful piece of architecture I have ever seen. It is breathe taking. The property was once 19,000 acres, the same size of the city of Paris. I'm pretty sure you could wander the grounds for 3 days straight and not see the entire thing. I never wanted to leave.  I must say as soon as I returned home (to London) I bought the Marie Antoinette movie. It is now one of my favorites. I have watched it before but since seeing the actual palace, it makings the entire story much more "real". 

A picnic in the Jardin des Tuileries was a perfect way to end the trip. With a bottle of wine, a loaf of bread, way to much ham (inside joke), and an assortment of cheeses we had the perfect lunch. We set up shop in a patch of shade with three chairs (for me, mom and dad) and enjoyed a delicious lunch on a perfect day in one of the most beautiful places on earth. 

Unfortunately like the dumb dumb I am I forget to charge the two camera batteries I brought with me, so the only pictures I was able to take were at Versailles. Not a bad places to take pictures though. Here's what I got...