21 in Paris!!

Ciao! So it's official...I'm 21 in Europe and I am alive to tell the tale (jk haha). On Tuesday night, to start the birthday celebration we went out to dinner with the four of us, and our friends Carleen and Madison at this place across the river called Osteria Santo Spirito. It was so delicious! Mikey and I split mussels and this amazing pasta with cherry tomatoes, garlic, and basil. After dinner we went to this bar that we've been wanting to go to for awhile called Art Bar where the drinks are really pretty and fruity. So I rang in my 21st birthday with a raspberry mojito! It was fabulous:)

Chitarra Spaghetti with
Cherry Tomatoes and Basil

Mussels in Tomato Sauce

Chocolate Dessert!

My Mojito!

Daiquiri at Art Bar 

Me drinking my first LEGAL drink!

 Then, on my real birthday I had class at 9am but when I got back from class my roommates had decorated my room with balloons and streamers. Then I laid out and tanned with Colleen and Carleen in our courtyard for a bit. And then at night we all got ready and walked over to the Westin Hotel which has an amazing rooftop bar where you can get drinks and do aperitivo. I had the most delicious apple crisp martini, and we felt so classy and had the best views of Florence!

Apple Crisp Martini

My Room!

Me with my drink!

Me and Dana

Just enjoying some free birthday champagne!

Colleen and I on the rooftop

Dana, Mikey, Me, Carleen, Colleen

So needless to say, I had a great 21st! And although no bartender asked for my Id, I made sure everyone knew I was turning 21! I even may have had a few drinks bought for me;)

And as if my birthday could have gotten any better, Thursday night we left for Paris! We arrived late around 11pm and went straight to our apartment to go to bed. Our apartment was in this cute little quaint area called Montmarte. The next morning our first stop was Louvre. But not before we stopped and had a cafe au lait with a pain au chocolat! The Louvre actually had been closed only like a week ago because pickpocketing had gotten out of control, but it was open again thankfully. And with my purse with zippers that lock, I was feeling more than prepared! The nice thing about museums and most tourist attractions in Paris is that they are free for students as long as you show your passport! So we got right into the Louvre and made all the necessary stops. Hammurabi's Code, Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, Venus di Milo, and the painting of Napoleon's Cornonation, just to name a few. After the Louvre, we went outside and took the classic pics and then met up with one of Dana's friends Sammie who studies there so she could take us to get the best crepe for lunch. We got crepes with ham, egg, and cheese...so good! And they were made on the street at this little stand where we got to watch him make them. After our crepe indulgence we made our way to the Notre Dame where we climbed to the top and had some amazing views of Paris!

Mona Lisa

Winged Victory

Napoleon's Coronation

Venus di Milo

Michelangelo's Slaves

View from outside

Classic Louvre Pic!

Notre Dame

Bridge of Locks on the way
to Notre Dame

Inside the Notre Dame

French Choir that was
singing during mass!

Gargoyle at the top of Notre Dame

 Then after the Notre Dame we were exhausted so we went back to our apartment to freshen up before we met up with our Cornell friends for dinner. We met up with my friend Liza who is in Theta with me at Cornell and then 2 of Mikey and Dana's friends who are in their sorority at Cornell. We went to this restaurant called Le Relais de l'Entrecote. It is famous for its steak. First they serve you amazing baguettes, then they bring out a salad with this tangy spicy mustard vinigarette, and then they bring out the steak with like a green peppercorn sauce on it and they serve it with french fries. Then, when they can tell you're finishing your first portion of steak and frites, they refill your plate with more steak and frites! What could be better right? After dinner, we went to a really cool bar with Liza and Sammie and had really good sangria. Our first day in Paris was a success! But we still had so many things on our list for Saturday....

Day 2, Saturday. We woke up early and left our apartment at 9. The one thing in Montmarte that is a tourist attraction is this church called Sacre Coeur. So that was our first stop. It's up on a hill and was so beautiful. Here are some pictures:

Sacre Coeur

 Then after Sacre Coeur we headed over to the Musee d'Orsay where they are famous for the impressionist art. We saw Monet's Water Lillies, Degas' Dancer paintings and Van Goghs as well! The art was so amazing.

Inside the d'Orsay

Water Lillies

Degas

Degas

 So after the d'Orsay we met up with Liza who then took us to the Jewish Quarter called the Marais to get lunch. This time I got a crepe with chicken, cheese, peppers, and onions. It was amazing. Then we walked over to this public park called Place du Vosges where we just sat and enjoyed the nice weather for awhile. I was also determined and on a mission to make a visit to Fragonard Perfumerie while I was here because they have my favorite scented perfume in balm form that you can't find anywhere else. It's a scent called Juste un basier which means just a kiss and it is my absolute favorite. I was so happy when Liza found a Fragonard for me and I bought 6 of them!  After I was in my perfume heaven, we needed macaroons of course so we first went to one place called Pierre-Hermes where I got a giftbox of macaroons to take home with me. They had the most unique flavors: rose, olive oil vanilla, rose, creme brulee, cherry and lemon, red currant, passionfruit and chocolate, and so many more. Then after Pierre-Hermes, we went to Laduree which is a sit-down place where you can also get macaroons. So of course we had to do the whole sit-down experience. I ordered a chocolate-coconut macaroon and a Marie Antoinette Tea flavored one which tasted sort of like earl-grey tea. It was amazing!!

In Macaroon Heaven!

 

Pierre-Hermes

 After we were stuffed with our macaroons, we walked down the Champs-Elysees which is the street that leads up to the arc de Triomphe. We were going to climb the arc but then realized it cost money and when things had been free all day we didn't really feel like we needed to do it. What we really wanted to see was the Eiffel Tower! So that was our next stop. The tower was so breathtaking and beautiful in person. No picture can do it justice.

Arc de Triomphe

Macaroons

Marie Antoinette
Tea Macaroon

Eiffel Tower

Selfies at the Tower!

Liza and me

Another Eiffel Tower Pic

 So, finally our busy day was over and we did everything that was on our list! We headed over to Rue Clair which is near the Eiffel Tower to eat dinner at a cute little bistrot. Mikey and I split some vegetable quiche and salmon. And of course after dinner we had to have banana nutella crepes!

So overall, I'd say I had a pretty amazing week. Paris was my favorite place we have visited so far. It was the first place where I could have pictured myself studying there. The food, the people, the architecture, everything was just so amazing! We never wanted to leave...:( But we had to be up at 5:30am this morning to be on time for our flight to Bologna where we then had to take a bus from Bologna to Florence so it was a long day of travel. We are always happy to be back in Florence:) I cannot believe I only have 3 weeks left of this amazing journey! One more trip is coming up this weekend: Munich for Springfest! And thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday!! I can't wait to celebrate again when I get back home.

xoxo,
Alli