Photos!


This post is dedicated entirely to pictures. Some are from friends' cameras, so they are never-before-seen!!

Last weeks in France


Although I have already returned home (wooo USA!), I realize that I am very behind in my blogging! So here's a recap of what kept me so busy during the last few weeks of my semester abroad:

Cannes Film Festival

I was very fortunate that our Resident Director of the Maryland-in-Nice program had some connections and was able to get all of us "cineophile" press badges so we could have access to see some movies at the festival. Cannes is about a 2 hour bus or 30 minute train ride from Nice, so my friends and I were able to go a few times over the week-long festival.  I saw 3 movies and a set of short films -- all were very interesting! And of course, veryyy artsy.

I'm sure you all are wondering... I did manage to see 2 stars in person: Sean Penn and Ryan Gosling. Ryan and I actually got to talking after the premiere and he may come visit Westminster sometime! We really hit it off. Alright... some of that may be a lie. Could have happened?

My red carpet debut ~*~*

 

Daytrip to Provence


For our last excursion, we all boarded a charter bus that drove us to 2 beautiful places in Provence: Le Pont du Gard and Les Baux du Provence. It was our hottest day yet, but all the sights were beautiful!

Le Pont du Gard is an Ancient Roman aqueduct that is still standing. There are hiking trails, places to swim, and a really cool museum. Wish we could have had more time here!

Les Baux du Provence consisted of the remnants of an ancient medieval castle with a great view of the surrounding countryside. Sadly, I didn't get to prance through any lavender fields as I had hoped; the lavender plants do not bloom until late summer. 

Boatday!!

What better way to say goodbye to the beautiful Cote d'Azur than an all-day boat ride!? This was probably one of my favorite days out of the whole semester. We sailed out of Antibes, stopped near an island to swim and kayak, and ate a wonderful dinner on board in Villefranche. The evening ended with a pretty crazy dance party and lots of "ugggg, why do we have to leaveeee?"

our vessel

:)

Au Revoir, Nice! Tu me manque! 

PAIR EEEE (Paris) 


So I'm a little bit late here blogging about my trip to Paris last weekend, but it'll have to do.

Even though we only spent 2 mostly-full days and one night in Paris, it quickly became my favorite European city that I have visited this semester.

We arrived in Paris by plane on Saturday at about 9am (yes, a very early morning for me) and didn't waste any time after getting settled in our hotel to start our grande journée of sight-seeing and eating. Eating comes first, naturally. We had lunch at a cute cafe near our hotel and it was a very pleasant introduction to Parisian cooking! See below:

After our lovely meal, we set out to see the Notre Dame, the famous Shakespeare & Company bookstore, some of the Latin Quarter, and of course, the Eiffel Tower. A lot of time was spent waiting in lines, but it was a beautiful day and Paris is great for people watching.  Going to the top of the Eiffel Tower was definitely worth the wait; the view of the city on a clear day was unbelievable. Taking the elevator to the veryvery top was slightly nerve-racking -- it just kept going!

Now my favorite part of the trip!! In the evening, we took a boat tour along the Seine. It lasted about an hour and a half and it was so wonderful to see everything lit up. Most people were sitting inside the boat where there was a little restaurant and bar, but we decided to sit on the roof of the boat and sip on wine there! (a much better choice). The Seine was boppin'; there were parties all along the riverbank and so many other boats filled with tours and parties. 

Day 2 in Paris was also pretty action-packed.  After a short Starbucks run (I've gone 3 months without a Starbucks iced chai, Mon Dieu!) we set off to the Louvre, the Centre Pompidou, the Champs Elysees, and the Arc de Triomphe. Lots of walking! Once again, it was a beautiful day with only some clouds, so walking around a lot was not a problem at all.

More pictures!:

So I forget what this bridge is called, but people put locks on it to represent their love. My favorite was a couple who used a steering wheel lock. They obviously have the strongest bond. 

Crepes for lunch! And apparently it is necessary to have hard cider with savory crepes. Who knew?

Street band (Billy Healy's future)

To return home to Nice, we took a train that cut through the countryside. It was only light for about half of the trip, but what I saw was very pretty. I'd love to return to Paris sometime soon! It was great for a weekend, but I feel like you really need to spend a few weeks there to see most of the important things. Hopefully I'll find a way to get back!

Leaving for home in one month. It's going to be pretty hard to say goodbye to the Mediterranean...

Les Vacances du Printemps (Spring Break!)
During one of my two weeks off from classes, I traveled with my good friends Allie, Paymon, and Kendall to three great cities (Berlin, Prague and Vienna). The weather was perfect, hostels were fun, and the sights were beautiful. C'etait parfait!

First stop: Berlin

Our walking tour tour guide (Sam) was so great! He knew all of Berlin's interesting history. Also didn't hurt that he was hilarious and had an adorable British accent. We missed him for the rest of the trip. 

Mes amis and travel companions

Second stop: Prague

hostel!

Absinthe! Totally legal and they lit it on FIRE!

Evan and Allie

Kendall, Allie and me

Lennon Wall

Can't really see much in this picture, but one of my favorite bands, Belle & Sebastian, was playing in Prague while we were there. So lucky we got tickets! 

Third (and last) Stop: Vienna

Habsburg Palace

Vienna has the prettiest gardens

Allie jamming out with our host

Cute cafe with great coffee and desserts and a piano player (mom, you would love this place)

Home sweet home!