My first day in Heaven...

This weekend was our "free travel weekend" and so I chose to go to Paris with a great group of girls (Janie, Kim, Jordan, and Kaitlyn). We thought it would be a brilliant idea if we woke up on Thursday at 3 am so we could catch our Chunnel ride at 5. Of course when you wake up in the middle of the night, the Tube doesn't run! So we had to chart out a bus ride to make it to Kings Cross Station. It was only a couple pounds cheaper, and yet we were so determined to save money we sacrificed our much needed sleep to get there on a budget. Even though there were times that I thought I would pass out because I was so tired, I wouldn't trade it for the world. It just became comical at a certain point! Plus I suppose I got a couple hours of sleep in the Chunnel ride... unfortunately on my neighbor... but still! I was quite comfortable!

We arrived and purchased our metro passes and headed to the first place we saw on the map! Arc du Triomphe! Right as we walked out of the station it hit us! Our very first view of Paris, and such a beautiful arch! It looked straight out of a postcard!

Simply perfect.

We realized that we were starving, so headed to a little cafe near by and had our very first "french meal".... that's where the addiction started. Their ingredients are so simple. But soooo good! It was some of the best food I've ever had!!!

I was the hungriest of people. So this meal was amazing!

We headed over to Notre Dame (which became one of our favorite places) hung around there for awhile. And started talking to this woman that we met; she told us about this place called Saint Chapelle just a few blocks away. Saint Chapelle was voted as having the most beautiful stained glass in all of Europe. I can attest to that. It truly was magnificent. Now that I've seen this ARTWORK, nothing will compare. I'm now a "stain glass snob" as my parents would put it! It was breathtaking. I didn't want to leave, I was basically ready to set up camp there! But alas, we still had our backpacks with us, and they were really starting to get heavy. So we thought it was about time to head over to our hotel.

Can you find the hunchback?? It's me, that backpack was quite heavy!

Pictures can't even do this stained glass justice!

Hotel Kyriad. Picture this: 10 minute metro ride out of the center of Paris. And yet we of course we get a hotel in the industrial part of town. This huge power plant behind, with a smoke stack, overpowering our small, rusty hotel. I mean... I wasn't expecting the Four Seasons by any means... but definitely looking for something I wouldn't get killed in!!! So we dropped out stuff off and booked it out of there as fast as we could!

Nutella crepes.

We then spent some time getting eating panini's and crepes, and stumbling upon the "Lover's Lock Bridge". Which was so cute. Background story: you put a lock on the bridge, put you and your....lovers.... name on it and throw the key in the river. It's super cute! Then your love will be locked forever! And you'll be together. Did that explanation make any sense? Well I though it was cute. We really wanted to go on a boat tour down the Seine river but we couldn't find where they started! We seriously walked all around trying to hunt it down! And we wandered for awhile. But I'm so glad we did because we ran into some really famous landmarks... like... the....

Eiffel Tower!!! It was unreal. I felt like I was looking up at a really big, awesome, postcard!

SO ROMANTIC!

Absolutely divine. Too perfect for words.

We went on our boat tour, enjoyed our evening, and CRASHED into bed. (After a super sketchy walk back to our hotel.)