I don't have class on Fridays so it's a great way to get a jump start on the weekend. After waking up late Bryn and I went for a nice run around the neighborhood. Again..we were the only people running and got stared at like we were crazy people but nothing will keep me from running by the eiffel tower on a beautiful day. We then headed over to the Marais area of Paris. This area is also home to the Jewish Quarter...and we had one mission for the day...get felafel! Walking through the quarter literally felt like i was walking through the streets of jerusalem. There were judaica shops on every corner, men in kipput dashing about, and felafel and shwarma as far as the eye could see! The only difference was that they still had patisseries, except at these patisseries they sold baklavah! We had a delicious felafel at one of the supposed "famous" felafel stands which is frequented by Lenny Kravitz (his photo is on the wall) and then bought some delicious honey sugar pastry (not sure what it really was but it was delicious) for the road. Once we got home we embarked on another cultural adventure: doing laundry. Our apartment is equipped with a small washer but no dryer. Upon reaching the laundromat I discovered that the only washer big enough to fit all of my stuff was 12 euros. Oy. I bit my tongue and paid..and thankfully the dryer was much cheaper. From now on i'll use my own washer and transport wet clothes only for drying purposes.
Friday night was another exciting adventure! After much debate we finally decided to go to a bar called batofar...which was supposedly a very cool bar located on a barge. After a loooong metro ride we made it to our stop. Unfortunately we had no idea where to go from there (a common problem after a metro ride) so we went to the French version of McDonalds and they drew us a a handy map to the barge. The barge itself was very cool with a bunch of different hang out/dance/drinking spots all over the ship. We were rocking out to fun american music for a while and ran into another group of american girls. I've become very good at spotting americans here but they were baffled as to how i knew their true identity. A few songs into it..the music stops..and in walks what i can only assume to be a high school band. Half the crowd of i believe were the bandmates friends headed to the stage and i was witness to my very first french high school rock concert. Unexpected, yes. Awesome, yes. The music itself wasn't the greatest and Bryn and I had both been hoping for some fun drinks and dancing but we made the best of it and to outsiders would have seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the lyrical sounds of a half english speaking french guy, his shy and nervous base player, and a rocker chick on the drums. Looking around it seemed as if the americans were the only ones who actually knew how to rock out at a rock concert but it was entertaining nonetheless.
I'll skip to saturday night as this is turning into far too long of a post. We did a walking tour of the 5th arrondissement, which is home to the Latin Quarter, during the day and decided to return there with a fellow MBAIer for dinner that evening. We ate in an adorable little square which was a people watchin meccas, of sorts. Because of the shape of the area it was possible to see and be seen by everyone else around the square! We enjoyed a meal that was 1 euro cheaper than Friday's laundry and still included appetizer, drink, main course, side dish, and dessert. Its tough to find a deal like that here and we were very happy with ourselves. I'm also just happy anytime I can eat meat so i practically ravaged my chicken dish. I've never before turned down gelato but i did on saturday..so it is imperative i return sometime soon and claim my favorite mango/chocolate gelato concoction that is currently making my mouth water.
Today (sunday) was very memorable. I am a huge fan of Monet and even saw his water lilly paintings at the high museum this summer. When I mentioned that I was going to Paris to an old babysitter of mine she insisted that I go and see Giverny, where Monet got the inspiration for his beautiful works. And that is just what I did! Bryn and I just made it to the train station on time and rode about 35 minutes out of town to Vernon, hopped on a bus, and arrived in Giverny around noon. We began walking through the town and discovered that Sunday was in fact flea market day in Giverny. There were lots and lots of tables lining the Rue de Monet filled with the widest assortment of junk I have ever laid eyes upon. We came across some tables and decided to dine in the midst of the flea market. I can only assume that my meal of veal in cream sauce, rice and salad was the freshest (probably just farmed) meat and cheese I will ever hope to eat. It was delicious and utterly delightful.
We then headed over to the most popular spot (for tourists at least..the rest of town was at the flea market!), monet's gardens! I am not a painter..but just the sight of his garden made me want to pull out a paintbrush and create a masterpiece! We visited Monet's house, his main garden, and his oh so famous japanese water garden. The water garden is gorgeous. His impressionistic paintings capture of the beauty of the garden so well. It was so strange yet exciting to see it in real life! After taking numerous photos atop his numerous bridges, it was time to depart. It was, however, extremely memorable to walk through a location of such beauty and inspiration.
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