PHS Spring Break 2013 in France
MLH, Alexis, Kayla, Macauley, Abby, Mona, Sarah
Thursday, March 28, 2013: Overnight Flight
*
Day 1: Friday, March 29, 2013: PARIS
We landed at 7:30 am and dropped our luggage
off at the Hotel Montparnasse Alésia
We began our tour of Paris with a stroll on the Left Bank
Saint Sulpice Church featured in the Da Vinci Code
because the Rose Line runs through it.
We strolled through the Luxembourg Gardens
We had crêpes in the shadow of the Panthéon
We took a boat cruise on the Seine
The girls were troopers and managed to stay up
for 36 hours in order to adjust to the 7 hour time difference!
*
After a typical French breakfast,
we spent Saturday shopping on the Right Bank
Place de Saint Sulpice
because the Rose Line runs through it.
We strolled through the Luxembourg Gardens
for 36 hours in order to adjust to the 7 hour time difference!
*
Day 2: Saturday, March 30, 2013: PARIS
we spent Saturday shopping on the Right Bank
Day 3: Sunday, March 30, 2013: PARIS
We started our day with a tour of Paris
We went to Easter Mass at Notre Dame de Paris
The Cathedral is celebrating its 850th Anniversary
We spent the afternoon strolling through the Marais...
...& browsing through books at Shakespeare & Company
On Sunday evening, we returned to the Arc de Triomphe,
and climbed the 284 spiral steps to take in the view
Day 4: Monday, April 1, 2013: PARIS
Our last day in Paris began with a tour of Le Louvre
We walked across the Pont des Arts
and had lunch in Saint-Germain-des-Prés
It feels like such an honor to dine in the same cafés
as Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Picasso, Jean-Paul Sartre et al!
On Monday evening, we explored Montmartre
Les Deux Moulins - café d'Amélie
Day 5: Tuesday, April 2, 2013: PROVENCE
On Tuesday morning, we took the TGV to Avignon
The view of Le Pont d'Avignon
After lunch, we continued to Le Pont du Gard,
a Roman aquaduct dating from the first century B.C.
We spent Tuesday night in the Roman city of Nîmes
Day 6: Wednesday, April 3, 2013: PROVENCE
Wednesday morning, we continued to Aix-en-Provence
I had a lovely lunch with my dear friends,
Sandrine and her daughter Julia
François & Laetitia and their son, Alexandre
Wednesday evening, we arrived in Nice
on the Côte d'Azur, the French Riviera
Day 7: Thursday, April 4, 2013: COTE D'AZUR
Thursday morning, we visited the Russian Orthodox Cathedral
Russian Orthodox Cathedral
Later when it started to rain, we had a lesson
Friday afternoon, we traveled to Eze,
another perched village with an exotic garden
Thursday afternoon, we climbed up to
the perched village of Saint-Paul-de-Vence
and played a game of pétanque (French bocce ball)
We brought home a trophy :)
Day 8: Friday, April 5, 2013: COTE D'AZUR
Friday afternoon, we traveled to Eze,
another perched village with an exotic garden
We toured the Fragonard perfume factory
Our final destination was the tiny principality of Monaco
Day 9: Saturday, April 6, 2013: HOME
Saturday morning, we woke at 3 am
to begin our 22 hour trip home via Spain and Chicago
Quel bon voyage!