Paris in the Sun

Paris,Paris, Paris. I thought I wasn’t going to be one of the basic girls who loves and is obsessed with Paris but boy was I wrong. That city was absolutely amazing and I’m heartbroken that I only got to see it for one day. The four hour drive from Antwerp was well worth it. We started the day walking up a hill to a church with the best view of the city. Let me tell ya, you could see everything. From there we walked through little alley ways and side streets to see adorable houses and flower boxes with painters and locals sitting outside. Baguettes and crepes galore. Once we left that little area it was off to see all the main sights. First, we headed to the arch de triomphe. While we are there I realized how big the city actually is. The roads are huge and are basically just giant road-abouts with no lanes. Picture the Lizzie McGuire movie when she is riding on the moped with Paulo. Then we headed down champs elysees. Beautiful, huge, french buildings with 4 story shops like Gucci, Louis Vitton, Addias (quick plug), and a ton of restaurants. Next stop, The Louvre. The gardens here were unbelievably big just like the actually building. It was crazy to think that one family use to live in that whole building; talk about having huge ragers. Next, Notre Dame. Again, huge and beautiful. The flowers outside where goergous and the perfect place for a photo op. 10/10, highly recommend it. Then we traveled by subway to the main event: the Eiffel Tower. I know I keep saying everything here is huge but geez the Eiffel Tower is bigger than I could have ever imagined. It was honestly a surreal moment seeing it and it was then that it finally hit me that I was in Paris (only took all day). Of course we had to go up the tower. There was such a long line and it probably ended up being a 2 hour wait but hey, why travel all the way to Paris and not go up. The culmination of the day came at the end. To me, it was the perfect ending to Paris: listening to Paris in the Rain while having dinner in the grass by the Eiffel Tower (shoutout to Lauv). I had been waiting to play that song in Paris since December when I put it on my 6 month goals list. It was a great moment to finally do it and I think it wrapped up this amazing day trip perfectly. For now, Paris has been by favorite day so far and I can’t wait until the day I get to go back. Merci beaucoup  

Antwerpen

Well the time is finally here. Trying to be an artsy Europe traveler has officially begun. I definitely did not know what to except coming onto this trip and i honestly am super happy about it. Whenever I have high expectations I am always let down so coming into the trip with a blank slate is the best thing I could have asked for. Walking around Antwerp the first night stole my heart. I think the best thing I can do on this trip is take it all in; appreciate the little things. There is soooo much to see in this city but if you don’t take the time to appreciate the small details or take the time to look around you will miss the best parts. I’ve learned you have to be willing to take the unbeaten path and thats where you will find the true treasures. There are so many alleyways and small cafes that are hidden from the main roads. I would much rather eat and spend time in these places then in an American style restaurant on the main drag of town. I am still torn between taking as many pictures as I can or leaving my phone and camera behind and just taking in everything as it happens. I think this is going to be my biggest struggle the whole trip. It is overwhelming though, how much there is to do and see. I don’t want to miss out on anything or anyone. The anticipation for the upcoming trips is unreal though. Ghent, Brugge, Amsterdam, Paris, Barcelona, Manchester save a cute spot at a cafe for me.