My first trip to the big city!

Well, I have had two sunny days to adventure into Paris so far. Today, it was a bit cloudy and I didn't venture too far - just spent a few hours walking through Neuilly-Plaisance and navigating Auchan (like a French Wal-Mart) to get a few toiletries that I didn't bring with me.

Since Aurelien is here for about two weeks, he was my travel companion into Paris on Monday afternoon. It was great to have him because he showed me where to get the bus and helped me to buy le passe Navigo (my metro/bus pass). With it, I can go anywhere in zones 1 - 4 as much as I'd like. I bought a weekly pass, and in February, I will get a monthly pass. It is expensive, but worth it because the bus is 1,90 Euro every time you take it and you need to take the bus to get practically everywhere.

So, on Monday we ventured into the city. We did a lot of walking, but it was beautiful. We started at Opera and then made our way to le jardin des Tuileries and the Louvre (didn't go in - I'll save that for another few days). We then walked over le pont des arts, wandered through le quartier latin, and then made our way back to le cathedral de Notre Dame, where we went inside and walked around. Mass was going on while we were there and it was absolutely beautiful. I think I'll try to make it back for a full service at some point. It got quite chilly, so we stopped to have a drink before heading back to Neuilly-Plaisance. All in all, a good day! Oh yes, and we also managed to find the tourist center where I picked up a map and a bunch of information about things to do in Paris so I can start planning my itinerary for the next few months.

One thing that isn't any different from home is that since they live here, most of the Nanquette family members have not spent much time in Paris doing touristy things. So, Aurelien actually took more pictures than I did because I knew I'd be back. But, here's a couple of Notre Dame area.

I wish I had also taken a picture on the Pont des Arts (now I'll just have to go back)... there are thousands of locks (cadenas) on it. Aurelien didn't know the story behind them, so I Googled it when we got home. Here's a blog that talks about the "love locks" tradition: http://www.knottinghillinteriors.com/blog/2011/02/love-locks-on-the-pont-des-arts-bridge-in-paris/

For those of you wondering how I got into the city it is about a 2 minute walk to the bus stop (once I manage to get the gate open and dash through without it slamming on me - all of the homes here have gates in front of them). Then, the bus ride is about 20 minutes to the RER A (local train, like the commuter rail for you Boston folks, but it runs much more frequently). From there, it is another 30 - 50 minutes into the city, depending on where in the city you want to go. 

Oh, and if you were wondering how the tutoring is going - it is great. I try to have conversations with Brice and Ophelie in English as much as possible (Ophelie was in Strasbourg for two days and just got back late last night, so we haven't done much yet) - and Brice seems to be getting more and more comfortable with me. Aurelien also pulled out his old English notes last night and we looked through them. All of their English is pretty darn good, they just aren't very confident yet, but we'll get there! I really lucked out with the Nanquette family and they have made me feel totally welcome in their home. They are warm and kind and talk with one another and actually remind me a lot of my family, which is fantastic!