Parisian Paradise {and other misadventures}

This weekend started like any other excited weekend usually starts: lack of sleep, too much coffee, and chaos. With my little sister visiting I was super excited to show her how much of a know-it-all her sister really is. Unfortunately, the plan  for stunning her with my know-how quickly crumbled. While on our way to a much-anticipated weekend in London with our pre-bought Interrail tickets (thanks mom and dad for the birthday present!) we were stopped in Brussels, Belgium for what we thought would be a quick turnover on our way to London.

When we asked for our tickets under the Channel the ticket officer gave us a look. Let me tell you, looks are never good. Especially when they come from ticket officers.

“Not only is the train full today, but it’s going to cost you an additional three hundred euros for that," He announced. He wiggled his eye brows too, as if wondering just what type of young people we really were.

I’m sure my sister watched my naturally awesome/cool and calm façade fall away with at least a little bit of amusement.

After a small panic attack my sister and I bought ourselves some strong coffee, got wifi, and pulled out a map. Scratch that pre-booked hostel, tours of the museum and London Eye tickets. Let’s be adventurers.

“Well, I’ve always wanted to go to Paris. . .” My sister suggested quietly, after more time than I’d like to admit spent in a panic-induced frenzy (by me).

“Oh.”

1.5 hours later and my sister and I were in Paris trying to navigate the Metro to a random hostel (booked, of course, only an hour before) and then on to finding the Eiffel Tower.

Going to the Eiffel Tower at night means two things: 1. 15-minute lines to the top.

Success.

2. The city (and the tower) are lit up. AWESOME.

I really couldn’t have asked for anything better out of a weekend.  On Friday we walked all the way from Notre Dame to De Louvre to the Arch of Triumph and finished the day at the top of the Eiffel Tower, taking pictures of Paris lit up by night.

Walking tours are awesome!

On Saturday we booked a free walking tour and spent four hours learning about the history, culture, and geography of Paris (did you know it was mostly women who started the French Revolution?). We also managed to stop by Notre Dame, and decided to navigate the lines to go inside- absolutely worth it.

We enjoyed our tour so much we booked an evening tour on Montmarte.

Yes, this man laughed at me taking his picture- but it was too perfect to pass up!

When you think of Montmart, think in terms of the famous artsy (and a little sketchy) side of town. we got to see where Pablo Picasso started his first artist community in a former piano factory, which he and his friends took to calling Bateau-Lavior (washing boat) because it looked like a boat down by the river with all the artist's clothes hung out to dry. 

This was Van Gogh's hang out when we lived in Paris with his brother, Theo

 Also, think Moulin Rouge:

When you come from Amsterdam you have to do some comparison red light districts, right?

And we ended the day with new friends (walking tours are a great way to meet them!), wine, and the satisfaction of having covered all of Paris on foot.

Basilica Sacre-Coeur with new friends for sunset

1. 
   

Sunday we treated as a lazy day, sleeping in (as much as you can in a hostel) and planning out day around museums. The weather had been great the last two days, but Sunday presented us with a lovely spring rain in Paris. Based on the suggestion from Stephanie’s guide book, we decided that instead of waiting in line at De Louvre, we’d go to the tiny Museum Rodin and see “The Thinker.”

We also met a fellow American traveler, who helped us think about this statue

Finding we still had time before our evening train (pre-booked and all!), I insisted that we make our way to De Louvre and see if we couldn’t take a peek in the world’s largest art museum. 

**Special tip learned at the Hostel from fellow travelers: De Louvre tickets are good all day. If you can catch a fellow tourist leaving de Louvre with tickets, ask them for it and it's free, fast entrance!*

 After leaving de Louvre we caught a train like pros and were in Amsterdam the next day for the Netherland's biggest national holiday- King's Day!

One big, orange party. It's awesome.

Overall, I think I can confidently say that our weekend in Paris was a fabulous success. Even though I'm still learning the whole "plan ahead," "be responsible" and "grow up" thing, I think we've managed surprisingly well. 

Oh! I'm also an au pair. This week, the children have spring vacation, so I've been working and playing hard.

The Efteling is one of the oldest amusement parks in Europe and also a yearly excursion for these two with their au pairs.

With my little sister here I've been doing my best to show her the Netherland's finest with a canal tour through Amsterdam:

The Rijksmuseum!

Keukenhof:

Keukenhof are the famous tulip fields of Holland. And rightly so!

And, most importantly, the wonders of Dutch cuisine:

As the weather has gotten warmer and sunnier (of course, I'm writing this as it starts to rain) this place has gotten so beautiful. Holland has exploded with flowers, and the trees and forrest seem to glow with their florescent green mosses. I've been running, still aiming for the Athens Marathon in November. I've also been attending art classes, which is always a fun evening event- I even painted my first Picasso replica! 

I am constantly thinking about how amazing it is to be in the position I am in: as an au pair, in the Netherlands, for an entire year. Especially as I've gotten to show my little sister all the things I've learned to love about Holland, I am discovering a deeper love for it myself. My wish for you would be that you could come and see this beautiful place in the same beautiful ways I have gotten the privilege to.

Lastly, I apologize for the briefness of this post. And the time between posts! With my sister here and spring holiday in full swing, I have very little time to sit and write anything worth reading. I hope you'll all continue to tolerate my misadventures. Especially in the coming weeks as my sister and I head to Germany, the Czech Republic, and Poland for my own spring vacations.  Be thinking of us as we learn to haphazardly navigate foreign trains and lands in the coming weeks.

Until next time!

Au revior,

Jessica J. Wolfe