Studying in Sweden: The Land of Crepes

Where to begin?! Well for starters, lets just say my three day get away (does that still count if your entire semester has been a wonderful escape from reality??) to Paris was hands down one of the best weekends spent in Europe. Huge shout out to my good friend, and fellow Bruin Belle Jillian for putting off studying to show me around her stunning city. I can’t even begin to think of the amount of time her Parisian navigational skills saved me; not to mention accommodating me in her oh “so Paris” apartment. Let me take you through the weekend!

So, my dad and I have this little inside joke about how when I grow up, I want to be an “international business woman”. It’s a joke because, well, I don’t actually know what that means but I’d like to think it means I get to travel a lot! Dad doesn’t like airports too much since he’s often flying for work but me? Well, I’ve always loved them…until now. I don’t hate them and I don’t have a traumatic flight experience to back me up but lets just say I’m so tired of the Copenhagen airport. Or well, really all public transportation. My car. I miss you. SO. MUCH. Anyway, my Paris adventures started off with 7 ½ hours at the Copenhagen airport as EasyJet delayed my flight a lovely 5 hours. Getting too friendly with over priced food, stale air, and uncomfy seats (why must there be arm rests? I’d rather rest my head on the seat next to me but noooo) has got me thinking…perhaps I should reconsider my future job.

When I finally arrived in Paris it was close to midnight. I hopped on the metro and got off at Saint Michele, where Jillian planned to meet me. I looked up her address on the map, but clearly I didn’t do all that great of a job because I walked out of the metro shocked to see the Notre Dame practically hit me in the face. After an entire day of traveling for just a 2 hour flight I finally made it to the heart of Paris. Living in Lund, such a small town where the nights are pretty quiet, I forgot how it is to live in a city (not that UCLA is really in the city but you catch my drift ha). The streets were so alive! And Jillian lives right in the middle of all the action in a tiny homey apartment flat with two other students. We spent that night catching up, talking about Paris and Sweden, Bruin Belles, the up coming football game against $C and planning for the next two days. We even took a midnight stroll around the Notre Dame and neighborhood.

Waiting in the airport I got so bored I took a selfie...HAH I hope this is making your day Alyssa.

I also took alot of pictures of the christmas decorations

I mean what else one do for five hours...

Had no idea where I was and then BAM

Saturday started off with coffee (duh, as everyday should). Then, it was off to the Sacre Coeur and Montmartre, the artist community near the church. Since I’m lucky enough to have visited Paris with my family before, there were only a few things on my to-do list; the rest I left up to Jillian since she’s been living in the city for four months now I knew she’d have some favorite sights to show me and places I would never have known about as a weekend tourist. Anyway, I hadn’t gotten the chance to see the Sacre Coeur in the past, so we fixed that the first second we got! The Sacre Coeur itself is beautiful; set on top of a hill, it gives visitors quite the ariel view of Paris. The surrounding area, known as Montmartre is infamous for its artist culture. There were street performers and painters both selling and creating their works. I got my hands on my first (of many) banana and nutella crepe. I really think all creperies would benefit from adding peanut butter to the menu. A peanut butter and nutella crepe. C’mon that would so sell…at least to me.

We spent a lot of time walking the streets of Paris. I cannot get over the architecture of even the most ordinary buildings! How did I not notice this on previous trips here? Obviously, I was too caught up in the touristy destinations. Jillian and I actually found ourselves at one point this weekend just looking up at the Eiffel Tower and coming to the consensus that it was actually kind of ugly haha like it’s the Eiffel Tower so its beautiful, but the structure of it all metal-ly and just uh it pales in comparison to the everyday buildings everyone over looks.

Jillian showed me some other neighborhoods and a wall behind a church where “I love you” was painted in a ton of languages. Took a while but we found it in English, French, and of course Swedish!! We stopped for a coffee break (fika!!), walked to the Bastille and then along an abandoned metro rail now converted to the Promenade Plantee. The sun came out and the leaves were still fall colored and on the trees. The railway is raised well above ground so it was almost like we were spying on the city. So beautiful and perfect. We made our way back to Jillian’s place taking a walk through Place Vosges a small square where Victor Hugo once lived. On the way home we stopped for the world’s smallest macaroons and saw the City Hall in daylight. We spent some time looking at old books and artwork along the Seine. You know, just being so Parisian. In the evening I saw a protest in the streets, met some other American students, and cheered on the Bruins in our game against USC.

I mean, just re-reading that paragraph makes me wish I was back in Paris! Our second day was packed with just as much walking and adventure. But first, we awoke to only the best news EVER!! Another Bruin victory over the Trojans! Keeping the victory bell safe on our side of town.

First stop of the day was the old Shakespeare and Company bookstore. It’s the smallest cramped yet homey-est little bookshop. With a perfect mixture of new and antique work and photos it was hard to leave. We made our way to a French farmers market. Jillian speaks fluently so it was so awesome to watch this very non-touristy exchange going down haha. We bought cheese, ham, and eventually some baguettes to make our own lunch. It was honestly the best afternoon ever!! We sat in the Jardin de Luxembourg where we could see the Eiffel Tower and chatted about everything from home, traveling, and school to pets and family.

We spent the rest of the afternoon walking around. We passed Jillian’s school (Sciences Po) on the way to the Louvre. And I mean, who passes up an opportunity to stop in the Louvre?! We saw a few famous pieces before our feet gave out and we were forcedddd to stop at Angelina’s tearoom ;) I had the richest hot coco which was so worth the 45 minute wait to be sat.

No trip to Paris is complete without visiting the Eiffel Tower glimmering at night! That sight never gets old; nothing says Paris like this beauty lit up. Its moments like this where I just have to stop. Stop talking, thinking, walking, planning and just realize where I am and how blessed I am to be here. Is this real life? Like, someone pinch me now!

We ended the night on the Champs Elysees, eating crepes and enjoying all the lights that came along with the Christmas Market (well more like a carnival haha) It was quite the way to end the weekend. Actually, looking back and after writing this, I can’t believe we did so much! We seriously hit every site I wanted to visit plus more. I walked so much I finally wore small holes in the soles of my trusty boots (which I never want to wear again, I’m so tired of putting these on everyday. I’ve never been a huge shoe girl, but uh its never to late to start, right? Can’t wait to come home to my closet!! Also, my UCLA sweatshirts, all SEVEN of you, I miss you very much!!)

The next morning Jillian walked me to the airport train (honestly, I didn’t have to think once about directions, it was amazing). But the adventure doesn’t stop here! Midway to the airport, my train stopped and we were all directed to get off. I’ll never be sure exactly what happened since every announcement was in French, but next thing I knew I found myself, along with hundreds of others travelers flooding the streets of a Paris suburb. Supposedly, there were to be busses (which I did not see) to take us the rest of the way. But I, along with pretty much everyone else, didn’t want to chance missing my flight; so we hitched rides with taxis and non-taxis alike! I ended up in a car with a random Irish family and a French dude on his way to Thailand. The other French guy driving us was literally just driving down the street when we knocked on his window asking for a ride HAHA Oh Paris. Anyway, I made it safely to the airport and back to Lund.

So happy that I came home to all of this: