A Knack for Nutrition: ..Et Le Deuxime Jour

Hello Lovely Friends!
I hope this Tuesday finds you all well. I want to finish my recap of the weekend in Paris so I can resume normal posting. My host mom created an interesting dinner tonight. Let's just say I had to poke around a bit to figure out what it was...

So we left off with me collapsing into bed around 2AM. I did not sleep well, as one of my dear roommates had a little snoring issue, so the morning called for an immediate caffeine fix. Oh...and petite croissants bien sûr :)

The group I traveled with decided to start out the day with a multi-course, bread laden breakfast. I opted out, and instead order the croissants pictured above and a beautiful vegetarian omelet.

(Egg omelet with tomatoes, green peppers, and green beans!)

With a full tummy, we headed all the way across town because one of the girls that I traveled with was dying to see the Moulin Rouge. Personally, I would have preferred the Panthéon, but I decided to just go with the flow.

The actual Moulin Rouge itself was quite underwhelming. It is very small and looks nothing like the movie. There was also no Ewan McGregor to serenade me, so obviously I was disappointed. Moreover, the streets surrounding the area are lined with sex shops. The whole scene made me kind of uncomfortable to be honest with you.

Apart from this guy outside of the Erotic Museum, I was not amused. Luckily, a short time later we fled the area and headed to something more appropriate and actually worthy of my time...Le Sacré Coeur!

The church is magnificent. They ask that you not take photos inside, but the architecture and painting styles are beautiful. I know a lot of people go there for religious reasons, but I was happy to just reflect on what an amazing church it is. But in order to get to the actual building, one must first climb A LOT of stairs.

I do not know how many their actually were, but I do know that I broke a sweat by the time I reached the top. I guess I am not the first person to do that because check out what was just waiting for me upon arrival!

Ice cold gelato! To make up for the obvious calorie-deficit I had created, hehe, I ordered myself a cone!

I combined two flavors: Nutella and Mint Chocolate Chip! It was not the best gelato I have ever had (the organic gelato shop by the Cathedral in Strasbourg is still #!), but it was refreshing!

From the Sacré Coeur, the group and I headed to the Notre Damé Cathedral.

I really wanted to scope out the gargoyles and hidden statues of Esmeralda and Quasimodo at the top of the towers, but the group was not having it. Side note: This trip made me realize how important a good travel companion is. They can make or break a trip. I wanted to go off by myself and explore some of the time because we all had different agendas, but because some people felt uncomfortable navigating the metro by themselves (i.e. wanted me and one other girl to do it for them) they insisted the group not split up.

I digress...I did not get to the top of the towers but instead walked around inside for a while, watched part of a baptism, and marveled at the stained-glass windows and high ceilings. Quite spectacular, no?

From there, I took control of the situation and broke with the group despite their wishes. I was only in Paris for 48 hours, so I was determined to see what I had come there to see. Turned out to be a good call, because L'hôtel de Ville is just as grand as I had anticipated.

The literal English translation of L'hôtel de Ville is "city hall," but these days it (or at least the part I saw) is used as an exhibition hall. I moseyed around a free Amnesty International exhibit showcasing human rights atrocities around the world. It was very poignant and fitting, as the course I take over the next 3 weeks is entitled "Human Rights in Europe."

After a long walk back to the hotel, a quick shower, and some deep breathes it was time for dinner.

(Une saladé de crevettes with avocado, tomato, and grapefruit.)
We actually met up with some of the graduate students in our program who also traveled to Paris for the weekend. It was refreshing to talk with people I actually have things in common with and the dinner ended up being an absolutely lovely time.

(Une tarté pomme)
We all had so much to talk about that myself and one other girl ended up sticking with the grad students the rest of the evening instead of going out to bars around Paris with our group. Can you say "good call?!" because the night turned out to be great!

We went back to the Eiffel Tower to see if we could catch the end of the World Cup game they were broadcasting on a large screen in the park. We missed it, but did manage to snag a great picture of the group!

We all walked around chatting for about an hour and then sat down for some water at a café. Um...my water order magically turned into this.

(Nutella Crêpe)
What can I say? Just that I don't even regret ordering my 3rd (!) dessert of the day for a moment. With great conversation and company all around, it was (literally) icing on the crêpe! :) A perfect way to end my weekend.

Before I knew it, it was Sunday morning and time to catch the train back to Strasbourg. I purchased a disgusting vegetarian quiche from a store in the train station before boarding.

Good thing there is a petite pain chocolate hiding out in the background or I may have gone hungry! The horror! The train ride went by in a blur as I was completely engrossed in my newest purchase.