Lyon Partying, Paris, and Winery Tour

I suppose I should start off with my somewhat crazy night Friday night. Those of the law students who weren't traveling this past weekend (Which were a lot.) decided to go to the Q Boat. One of my friends from law school, Carlos, has a girlfriend who is from France and she knew the place and thought it would be a great place to go. We got there a little early, and since we hadn't pre-partied (And you kinda need to around here because drinks at bars are usually more expensive), we went to the store and got bread and wine. We got the bread because Michelle and I hadn't eaten dinner. So we sat on the grass outside of the bar and got warmed up for the night!

Roomies!

After all the wine was gone, we made our way into the boat. It was a lot of fun. We were all just dressed up and having a great time. 

The next big event this past weekend was Paris.

This Sunday I did something my mom was worried about me doing from the start of this adventure: I went to Paris by myself. I had an amazing time, despite feeling badly about going against my word to my mom. Sorry, mom. :(

The problem was that there was still so much I wanted to see in Paris. However, I didn't want to spend a lot of money and I wanted to see what I wanted to see. I didn't want to have to wait for a group to decide what they wanted to do or have to go waste my time seeing thing either I had already seen or had no interest in seeing. So, I decided to go by myself. I told people what I was dong, trying to gauge their reactions. My roommates have gone to foreign cities by themselves a bunch and they seemed to see nothing wrong with it. Thus, I decided to go forth with my plan!

My train left around 6:30am. My roommates had stayed the night out because they wanted to go out the night before. I couldn't because I knew I had a long day ahead, so I stayed home and planned out my trip for the next day: figured out what exactly I wanted to do, figured out train stops, made sure I had everything read for my tour of Versailles, etc. Luckily, this also meant that I had the apartment to myself in the morning so I didn't have to worry about waking anyone up at 5:15am. After packing up my booksack, I headed out the door to the train station.

The train ride was easy. The people sitting next to me were nice. I was more anxious about finding my way around when I actually got to Paris. But I knew I had researched everything and would be fine.

Once I got off at the train station and made my way outside of the station, it was a bit overwhelming. I had no idea which direction to go. My first stop was a tiny grocery store I had researched the night before which was right next to the train station so I could pack a small lunch. After getting over my shock, I somehow found my bearings and made it to the grocery store. I bought a thing of Pringles and a sandwich. I had already packed some water. Then I made my way to Notre Dame.

I had already mapped out my route so though the subway was rather intimidating at first, I made my way around with no problem. The neat part was that as I was walking out of the subway station, the Notre Dame laid right before my eyes. It seriously rose in front of me as I mounted the stairs.

The picture doesn't give it justice. It really is impressive. There were SO many people around. Apparently there was this long line to get in. Though it was moving rather quickly, I snuck in at the front. I mean, I'm just one person. I'm sure no one noticed/cared. 

When I walked in and made my way to the front, I realized they were having Sunday mass!!! It was so cool! Though I was slightly saddened when I realized it was in French and not Latin. Oh well. 

It was pretty neat until after the mass they started playing the organ. That was the scariest thing I've ever heard! It's like they were trying to scare the people to get them out faster. I could have sworn that the Phantom had changed venues. It was truly gothic and very impressive, despite the scary factor.

I should also mention that in the picture above was the exact place where Napoleon crowned himself as Emperor Napoleon I and then crowned his wife, Josephine, as empress. Considering my love for the man, this was an impressive place for me.

My next stop was the Arc de Triomphe, so I hopped back on the subway. Again, as with Notre Dame, the monument rose before my eyes as I walked up the stairs from the subway. It was neat.

I then walked through this thing underneath the street and got to walk under the Arc de Triomphe. It really is a wonderful monument. 

Since I still had some time before my 2pm tour of Versailles, I decided I would walk down the Avenue des Champs Elysees, which is one of the most famous streets in the world. 

Of course I had to check out the Disney Store.

I also got to see the Place de la Concorde. It was originally named Place Louis XV to honor the king, but during the French Revolution it was renamed Place de la Revolution. This is the place where Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette had their heads chopped off. Now it's just a huge public square.

All the stuff around the obelisk is for Bastille Day, which is basically the 4th of July to the French.

After my stroll down the Champs Elysees, I made my way to the Musee D'Orsay. I found tears in my eyes on several occasions. A good friend of mine, Keith Dixon, told me that I would like that Musee D'Orsay so much more than the Louvre, but I didn't believe him. Now I do. There was Degas, Monet, Manet, Van Gogh... **sigh**. I can't even put into words what a wonderful experience it was to be that close to the canvases that these artists once touched. Wonderful. Unfortunately, they wouldn't let us take pictures so I was able to sneak only one. It was for my mom because we have the copy of it in our house.

It's by Monet. It's "Woman With a Parasol" done in 1886.

After that, I walked across the lawn of the Louvre and to the agency that I was doing to tour of Versailles through. We took a bus to Versailles because it is in the city of Versailles, not Paris. 

I wish I could go into all the history of Versailles. I learned so much. It is such a breathtaking place.

This is the chapel of the palace where Louis XVI got married to Marie Antoinette. There is still a law in the city, dating back to the time of Louis XIV, that says that no building in the city can be built higher than the chapel. It's a short city. lol.

When we arrived, we began with the gardens. They were magnificent! Apparently the land surrounding Versailles was all swamp land. They had to bring dirt in to make the gardens. In the process, since there was so much still water, many of the gardeners died of malaria. At one point, they all went on strike because they were tired of dying. Understandable. So Louis XIV had to bring in Swiss gardeners to finish the job. That's why there is a pond called the Swiss Lake. It's right next to the Orangery, which is full of orange trees which were a favorite of Louis XIV. Today, many of the rich have meetings there, include Bill Gates.

The garden had just begun to bloom!

The Swiss Lake. In the back, that white dot, is an equestrian statue done by Bernini, who was a major artist of that time period. Louis XIV hated it so much that he originally wanted it destroyed but then later put it at the back of the Swiss Lake so very few people would ever see. 

The nice tour guide lady took a pic of me with the fountains. She was pretty groovy.

The Ballroom. The rocks that are in the fountain are from the Red Sea. This is where they were have some of the balls and the orchestra would sit around the top of the fountain and play.

The famous Apollo Fountain.

Versailles from the Apollo Fountain.

There were many other fountains I took pictures of, but that's another story. (Anyone get the Neverending Story reference?? ... I'm a nerd. But I really don't want to make this blog super long with all my pics.)

Then we took a 30 minute break I got some ice cream because it was miserably hot outside. I was practically bathing myself in some of the fountains. lol. Then we went inside.

The top floor of the chapel. This is where the king and the queen would attend service so that way they were above everyone else. Also, no one was allowed to have their back to the king, so everyone had to face him and not the alter during the service. Louis had those people on lockdown. He did this because he remembered when the elite rose against his mother when he was a child and so he kept them in check by making them all live in Versailles, making them learn etiquette which had to be practiced at all times, and silly stuff like this where they had to face him. That way they were so busy making sure they were doing everything right they had no time to rise against him.

The Hall of Mirrors!!

These are not the original chandeliers. Most were destroyed when the people came to arrest Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, though most of the furniture was left in tack. They were rather expensive chandeliers. To keep just one of them lit for 30 minutes, it cost one weeks salary of the average citizen at that time. Louis XIV would invite Moliere to perform his plays here. Each act was exactly 30 minutes, then they would take down all the chandeliers and relight them. Can you blame the people for being a bit ticked off when they approached Versailles to arrest Louis XVI and saw all this???

The very place where Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were standing when they got arrested.

The kings bed.

The table where the Treaty of Versailles was signed.

The Queen's bed. This is exactly how Marie Antoinette left it. Those sheets that are on the bed are the exact same sheets she slept in. Imagine, those sheets haven't been slept in since she was arrested... They are preserved by plastic cover.

Marie Antoinette's jewelry box... Again, I can't blame the people for being upset when they saw all this. No wonder they got their heads chopped off. The people were dying from poverty due to heavy taxation and the king and queen were living it up. There's a saying that goes, "Louis XIV built Versailles. Louis XV enjoyed Versailles. Louis XVI paid for Versailles." Boy did he! I should also mention that it took 49 years to build Versailles and Louis XIV only got to live in the completely finished palace (called chateau but it's really a palace) for 5 years. That's why they say he built it but Louis XV enjoyed it.

After this lovely day at Versailles, we headed back to Paris. There I went to the Paris Opera House to get some pictures for a friend and then headed back to the train station. I got to the train station about 2 hours before my train left so I decided to go in search for something I had been desiring to try since I first arrived in Franch: a Nutella Crepe. And I found one. 

Yum...

Then I hopped on the train and headed home. Such a long day but wonderful.

Now, jump to today, the law school went on a tour of the Guyot Winery and Vineyard!

The view from the vineyard. We were right by the Rhone valley. 

Our tour guide/the owner of the vineyard.

Some of the vats where they store the wine during fermentation. 

Where the bottling takes place.

Roomies!

Elliot and I with the owner.

Lunch

Sarah and I playing in the vineyard. We're LSU colors!

We added Jen and became Mardi Gras colors. lol.

So that was about it. I've had a wonderful past few days. Looking forward to skydiving, river rafting, and canyoning in Interlaken this weekend! Just gotta get through school tomorrow. Blah. 

Ta-ta!

Constantinople

First off, I'm super excited that I learned how to link websites to everything, so now if you want to learn more about the things I talk about, I have attached a link to their names!

It's been quite some time since I posted. This is partly because this past week was finals week so I was caught up in the craziness that finals demands. However, part of it was also because I needed time to digest everything.

This was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. The culture was so foreign from my own but also so close to my heart. I know this has to do with the city being a mix of the western and eastern worlds. You go there and you feel like you're in a different world. The eastern influence is felt immediately. However, once you get on the road, it's hard to miss the ruins of a fallen western world. The old walls that once surrounded Constantinople still stand around the city in most places. It's just incredible.

When we got off the plane in Istanbul, I remember being amazed at all the English. There is so much more English spoken there than in all of France. Perhaps this is because the French are just weird about speaking English, but it is definitely the second language of Istanbul. We had no problems communicating the entire trip. The hostel sent someone to pick us up form the airport (thank goodness), and it was neat driving in and seeing the ancient ruins I knew I would learn about in the days to come. As we approached our hostel, we first saw the Blue Mosque. It was beautiful and we were naturally in awe. But a discernible gasp escaped from my mouth when I saw the building that I have been dreaming about for years: the Hagia Sophia. The driver noticed my excitement and told me to close my eyes. I did and after a few moment of driving around, he told me to open them... before my eyes was an amazing view of the Hagia Sophia. It literally brought tears to my eyes.

The next day we went on a tour of the city. First stop was the Hippodrom of Constantinople. It was so cool. 

The Walled Obelisk or the Constantine Obelisk

The Serpent Column

Me with the Obelisk of Tutmoses III

Then we made our way to the Blue Mosque. It was interesting because it is still used as a mosque, so we had to be extra respectful by taking off our shoes and making sure our shoulders were covered and whatnot.

The entrance

Me, Val, and Michelle

Next we headed across the street to the most awe-inspiring sight in Constantinople (Yes, I now it's Istanbul, but I refuse to recognize the Ottomans taking over Constantinople due to my obnoxious love of the Romans.): Hagia Sophia.

Me with one of the great loves of my life.

The apse.

The Loge of the Empress. This is where she sat during church. There's a spot on the floor to mark where her throne when.

This is the "Sweating Column". It's made of porous marble which absorbed water from a cistern below. The damp absorbed by the column can be felt by placing the hand in a hole in the shaft. Even in Byzantine times this pillar was considered miraculous. Now, it is believed that if you put your thumb in and can turn your hand in a full circle, your wish will come true. I think I did it. Elliot says I didn't.

Next the tour guide took us to this rug shop. However, we didn't just go in the rug shop, we went beneath it. Beneath it was a Byzantine cistern. It was so hot outside, but it was nice and cool down there. It was really dark so the pictures are a bit fuzzy.

If you look to the left, there's a Corinthian column. It would make no sense to put something like than down here where no one would see it. However, this is simply an example of re-using columns from fallen temples.

After we were done down here he took us back up where the guy who owned the rug place told us about how Turkish rugs were special and showed us how they change colors and all kinds of neat stuff. They also served us Turkish Apple Tea. It was amazing!! Almost tasted just like cider.

Then we headed out to our first turkish meal, which was excellent. I loved the food in Turkey. Nothing that crazy. 

Then we went to Topkapi Palace. The complex is surrounded by high walls, some of which date back o the Byzantine acropolis. 

The walls surrounding the palace. Inside was the common courtyard where everyone was allowed to walk around in. There were four courtyards, the fourth being the sultan's private courtyard where very few people were allowed to go. 

This entrance lead to the courtyard that only turkish nobles could enter. 

This is the building that the grand vizier (Think Jafar from Aladdin. lol) and others made important decisions about the empire before bringing their decisions to the sultan.

This was the window that the sultan could us to spy on the meetings. They could never tell whether he was there or not, so they always had to make sure they were saying anything that would upset the sultan.

This is in the sultan's private courtyard. Here he would sit on this throne and have extremely private meetings. They had faucets for water surrounding the building and inside. This was to create noise so that no one could hear what they were discussing.

The palace had a great view! But I guess that's to be suspected.

This is where the sultan usually had breakfast. It looked out to the Golden Horn.

The library. I loved all the tile in this palace. Beautiful.

After the palace, we went to the Spice Bazaar. 

Turkish Delight! It was so good. And there were other yummies.

Then we headed on over to the famous Grand Bazaar.

This was in the antique section of the bazaar. These are old coffee mugs that you drink Turkish Coffee out of!

This was the last stop on the tour, so we headed home to our hostel. We grabbed some dinner down the street and then got dressed up to go see the "Bourbon Street" of Istanbul. It was across the Bosphorus on the Asia continent. I can now say I've been on 3 different continents! 

It was a neat street. Then we went down one of the side streets and it was packed!! Like Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras. There were live bands everywhere and people dancing. There were little tables everywhere with little chairs that everyone sat on. We sat down, grabbed a drink, and soaked up some culture.

The next day we went on a boat tour down the Bosphorus. One of the first places we stopped at was Beylerbeyi Palace.

Next we visited the Remeli Fortress.

The theater. It is still used some times. 

We got back on the boat and they grilled some fish (They left the head on... I stuck to the bread.) and stuff for lunch. Then we got to a beach in the Black Sea and went swimming. It was absolutely frigid!!!!! But I had to jump in.

You can tell you're a dancer when you jump into the water with your feet in first position. ... And I look like a penguin.

That was the last stop on the tour. We walked around the city that night and when we got back, we decided to go up on the rooftop place they had at our hostel. The view was stunning. We also decided to get a hookah. It was my first time smoking anything in my life! But I decided I should do it so I could fully immerse myself in the culture. I mean, the sultans did it... I think I needed to. It was ok. I don't see what all the fuss is about, but I'm glad I tried it.

Istanbul from our rooftop.

Me trying the hookah. It kinda looks like I'm playing a musical instrument.

For our last day in Istanbul we decided to go to a Turkish Bath. What an experience!!! First we went and changed into a towel. 

The turkish dude wasn't the best photographer.

Then we were escorted to the back area which was kind of like a sauna. Well, I was the first one into the room, with my roommates trailing behind me and Elliot being escorted into the men's room. As soon as I got in there, the lady took off my towel, sat me down, and started splashing me with water from one of the three basins. I was sitting there in my birthday suit getting splashed by some random turkish lady! It was crazy. Then my roommates came in and got the same treatment. It was hilarious and so awkward. The lady splashed all of us and then told us to bath ourselves. The water and the room was hot so it was kind of relaxing, though I must admit it was a bit odd sitting there naked with my roommates for a good 30 minutes. 

The lady came back in and then escorted me to the message room. I laid down on the marble table of sorts. She had this exfoliating mitt on and exfoliated my skin... all of my skin. She wasn't shy, I'll say that. Then she soaped me up which was nice and relaxing. A message followed but that wasn't so relaxing because she was rather aggressive. Afterwards she rinsed me off, flipped me over, repeated the process, then washed my hair. I literally got a bath. lol. Afterwards, we were toweled off and lead to the sitting area and they gave us some lovely apple tea. Yum! All in all, it was definitely a crazy experience. lol

We then just walked around and bought souvenirs. I got a bracelet with the evil eye on it, which is supposed to ward off the curse of the evil eye. 

This was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I loved everything: the food, the history, the culture. I feel like the blog can never truly express my feelings about this trip. Perhaps that's another reason why I took so long to write it. I felt somewhat intimidated by it. How can I possibly give due credit to such an amazing city? But I need to go get some rest. I'm making a day trip to Paris early in the morning to see the things I missed last time. Allahaismarladik! (That's turkish for "goodbye.) :)