Walk 1 yay

23:36 27/4/16

17,824 steps later and I'm back at home in bed. according to the built in iPhone app that means 7.59 miles and 36 floors, so that should hopefully help me fall asleep pretty quick tonight since it's like 4,000 more than usual haha. I guess that's sign #1 we started completing our walks for french 345 today. more on that later doe.
This morning we had some yummy cereal for breakfast accompanied by a really nice conversation with our host mom who has lived in so many different places (like the Caribbean, the Middle East, etc etc etc) so she is very wise and has a really interesting point of view of most subjects. the conversation was totally worth being a couple minutes late to class which was A-OK because we were still some of the first people there lol thankfully we weren't the only ones that had a little trouble getting there. but hey, it was the first day so cut us all some slack. after class we grabbed déjeuner (lunch) and then started our walk! we did walk #1 which is entitled "Paris in Layers: Notre Dame, Sainte Chapelle, Conciergerie". There were so many moments that just completely took my breath away because we are talking about the jaw-dropping-pinch-yourself kind of places. Because I'm a dork and I think it'd be cool of you could do the walk with me (virtually of course) I'm gonna have pictures and then do my best to explain what exactly you're looking at with all the wisdom of my 18-year-old self.
First Stop: Mémorial de la Déportion - a modern crypt dedicated to the memory of Jews and other groups who were deported to Nazi camps during world war 2

Sign at the beginning of the memorial

That black shadowy hole is the door you use to enter the memorial

200,000 illuminated crystals; each one represents a deportee who died in a concentration camp

many other engravings of the same genre covered the walls with other things like quotes, the names of concentration camps etc. 

 I left this memorial with a very heavy heart and a new perspective. In a hallway they had lots of pictures and captions up that explained a lot of the aspects of everyday life and the processes prisoners went through. I know that in school we learn a lot about the Holocaust and Nazis under the control of Hitler but there was something about the stories told in the captions and this memorial in general that really touched me and I would highly recommend this memorial to everyone. It is not something I would have normally gone to and I am so grateful that it was included in our walk so that I could experience it.
Second Stop: Notre Dame (climbing to the top and going inside the church itself)

back of Notre Dame when ITS NOT RAINING AND YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE THE SKY

some of my friends. they rock. #punz

if you look closely you can see 3 brides in their wedding dresses taking their pictures #goalz

had to get that tumblr basic picture. but hey I deserve it after walking up 387 stairs for this view.

more blue skies! 

inside of Notre Dame. I thought I was pretty artsy.

Even though we thought the stairs would never end, Notre Dame was an incredible experience! Everything is absolutely breathtaking (even the stairs. literally. lol) and at the top you get an incredible panoramic view of the city and its a special way to experience Paris from above.

Third Stop: Crypte du Paris

I am going to take this opportunity to talk about the most incredible thing: Beaux Arts Cards. Literally flash them at the people and you pretty much get in everywhere for free! and I am choosing to share this now because it saved me about 35 euros today and I would not have been super thrilled to pay 7.50 Euros for this

if you're into rocks on older rocks on older rocks this is the place for you! but actually it was cool to see the old architecture down below the streets of Paris.

Fourth Stop: This lil flower market

the face of the guy about to tell me you can't actually take pictures here, I just was not able to see the sign yet. lol.

Fifth Stop: La Conciergerie 

there is currently a photography exhibit in the main room of la conciergerie

entryway to the "cour des femmes"

that sign says this little area was Marie Antoinette's holding cell before her execution

we're still not sure what exactly this place was used for besides holding prisoners and weapons, but nonetheless it was a cool experience. It was a little creepy to see a recreation of a room that was used at Marie Antoinette's prison chamber complete with a replica of her and a guard, but still cool.

Sixth Stop: Palais de Justice (well actually just Sainte Chapelle which is inside the Palais de Justice)

front gates at Palais de Justice

inside the top of Sainte-Chapelle

inside the gates of Palais de Justice (notice camera crews bc I guess an important court case was about over)

One of the coolest moments of the walk was climbing up the stairs to the top of Sainte-Chapelle because we were so done with stairs and then all of the sudden the stairs stopped and we walked into one of the most beautiful rooms I have ever seen. It was absolutely without a doubt worth the extra stairs to get to the top and it was awe-inspiring to think about how much effort people put into building places like this. I took a glass cutting class with my mom once and I remember how hard it was for me to make a single PLATE let alone a whole room filled with beautifully crafted floor-to-ceiling windows. And I was using modern technology to do it. It is really cool to see how important peoples' faith was to them by the amount of work they put into honoring and remembering God and Jesus Christ in their buildings and artwork.

Alrighty that ends the walk! Afterwards we split into our groups of roommates and my roommates and I wandered around that area some more looking for a mini backpack purse for school and we also stopped by Shakespeare and Co. which was cool! Afterwards we came home for dinner with our host mom and one of the girls staying here. It was quiche, with rice and salad and some strawberries for dessert. Miam miam! Then we got our hw done and somehow I got distracted while writing this and its a little past 1:00 so i'm going to finish here and head to bed. Enjoy!