my stay so far.

My trip to France, even though it has not really started, has been amazing so far. I have seen all the monuments I feel like one wants to see when coming here. However I would like to give a visual explanation of my stay. So here I will try to blog about my experiences and adventures.

La Sainte-Chapple, (Sainte-Chapelle Chapel) is a beautiful and large church. Build in the 13th century, this great work of architecture was the first site that we saw.

The line to get in was amazing, But it was well worth it.

This Church is very important because it is the home to many relics that deal with the death of Christ. The lower level, used to be just for the commoners.

Above: the ceiling of the lower floor. notice the colors

above: a statue. notice the stain glass windows

above: une photo de moi

the palatine chapel

this second level of the church was used for the personal use of the king. several if not all of the original work however has been destroyed. because it was built in a time when many people could not read, the use of stain glass windows as used. you read them left to right in an S shape. the ones taht we saw went from the beginning to the end of the bible through pictures. one cannot help but notice the beautiful artwork as well.

above: the second part of the church. notice the construction and restoration going on

above: the winding stairway. we had to use this to go up and go down. these were used in the past for servants to serve the king

above: some floor work.

once we left the building we saw this door, beautiful decoration:

after leaving the church, we went to the former. this place used to be connected to the upper part of the church so that the king would not have to leave to walk outside, and thus keeping his privicy. I will show you the other part, however this in another blog my fellow readers! any questions pls feel free to ask! i still have to show you:

-Notre-Dame

-Madeline Church

-the Opera

-the trenite church

-the vendome square

-the tuileries gardens

-the concorde square

-les Champs-Elyses,

-L'arch de Triumph

Paris

My long awaited trip from France is finally here. Upon my short stay, and trip from the United states, I learned a few things quickly: they are as follows:

1. The Humphrey terminal is very small and does not have enough things for me to choose from to eat.

2. I like the icelander stewardess. I like how they dress, look and smile. They have good costumer service.

3. I should be sure of myself next time I want to do anything, I should have had my headphones with me so I could avoid the crying baby.

4. The Iceland airport is sleek and clean. It is quiet, and reminded me of a movie. I loved the open doors, and I could tell that I wasn't in the States because alcohol by the bottles were being sold everywhere.

5. I've learned that the stereotype about Minnesota nice is not a stereotype, but a fact. Going into the French airport, and even the Iceland one, people were less likely to help and assist others. simple things such as excuse me, or being cut off when walking is the norm.

6. CDG airport is all that you heard. it looks very high-scale and fancy. It was beautiful ( as all of France is).

6. I learned that the French are bad drivers for real. I heard a lot about this, but actually seeing it first hand makes me nervous. There are no rules, that are followed. So be CAREFUL when crossing the street.

7. I can have a French conversation with a native French person who does not know me, or speak english in France! I did this a few times today, and I feel happy. (Well it was only once, when asking for the internet code, but I felt proud of myself. )

8. There are A LOT OF Mercedes Benz in France! That should not be surprising because they are from a European country, but in the States, these cars are seen as a luxury, where as here, the postal delivery truck is one. with my love for these cars, I found myself loving this city even more

9. There is a lot of diversity in the place that I am living. Around us are many different nationalities, including my AFRICANS! Seeing the first lappa and headtie made me feel like home.

10. I learned that me and my family are actually closer than I thought. I was the only one to have my whole family there to see me off, and to me that seamed like the natural thing to do. I also called my whole family the whole time. I thought that this part was interesting.

tomorrow:

la sainte-chapelle, la conciergerie et notre dame

goals:

talk more french

speak to the locals

dress like a French person

that is all for now, I have major jet lag. pictures to come!