Bonjour Y'all!!!
Soo...I'm back in Paris...after 2 weeks of "vacation" and I'm not gonna lie, I really want to continue to travel and be on vacation! haha I have had a blast the last 2 weeks and I can't wait to have more times like that. Why did I have 2 weeks off you ask? Well, the kids in France get 2 weeks off of school every 6 weeks, don't go to school on Wednesdays, have 3 3-day weekends in May AND 2 months off during the summer. Not too shabby I have to say!
The first week, 5 girls(all au pairs) and I went to Amsterdam for 3 days and had an amazing time!! The city is very charming; there are canals and small little streets everywhere. The people in The Netherlands are very friendly...and most of them speak English which is wonderful!!! My friend Awna and I, in order to save money, took a bus to and from Amsterdam. We thought we might lose our minds after an 8 hour drive there and an 8 hour drive back but it really wasn't bad at all. And plus we saved about 60 euros by taking the bus and that is always a great thing!!! We explored the city the best we could in 3 days. We went for a bike ride early one morning and that was a lot of fun. We saw so much of the city that way, and got a good workout in the process!! Everyone, I mean EVERYONE in Amsterdam has a bike. There are special bike lanes, bike traffic signals, bike crossings. It was amazing!!! We also went to a few museums: The Van Gogh Museum, Anne Frank Museum, The Dutch Resistance Museum, and the Jewish Memorial. We also walked through the Red Light District...and it actually has red lights that show you were the district begins and ends. I honestly thought it was going to be a lot trashier and dirtier but it was more sad and disturbing than anything else. The women stand behind glass doors facing the street, not leaving much to the imagination, enticing men to pick them. Since prostitution is legal there, these women rent out these rooms, pay taxes, and the government protects them. You can't take pictures while you're in the Red Light District....they'll throw your camera into the canal, and they don't like you standing and staring....just keep on walking. But the city of Amsterdam, as a whole, is great. On Saturday we made our way to Keukenhof Garden, about an hour outside of the city. This garden used to be the royal herb garden. Now, it's only open 2 months out of the year, March to May, and it has over 7 million flowers...mostly tulips(my favorite!!!). It was absolutely gorgeous!! Definitely worth making the trip to see it. I should have pictures up very soon...if you have Facebook, I've already posted them there.
When I got back from Amsterdam I had one day in Paris, then I was off to the city of Auxerre, France, about 2 hours outside of Paris. Ahhh...it was so refreshing to be out of the big city and in the country. I LOVED it there. I was there to "work" but also explore another part of France. I stayed at one of the grandmother's houses and spent time with her and the girls, Capucine and Rose. We had a great time. We walked around the city centre(not very big at all) and also drove to an old church in a village called Vezelay that was part of the Crusades. The church is on a hill and the church, as well as the view from the hill is breathtaking. Unfortunately, when I got out of the car at the church, I dropped my camera and it broke:( I took some pictures with my phone so we'll see how they turn out. Let's pray I can get my camera fixed soon...and cheap!! The girls and I also took walks and rode bikes around our village and the weather couldn't have been better. I really had a nice time.
So...there you have it. My last 2 weeks all rolled into 1 nice blog!! I'm happy with my life right now. I'm definitely not a big city girl but I'm happy being where I am. I've been here for 4 months now and I'm hitting the point where I'm starting to find out, more and more, who I am and what I want. God has been so good to me and has blessed me more than I could ever imagine. I have found a peace and strength in that. I came to the realization about 2 weeks ago that there is no need for me to worry or stress about the future. Whatever God has for me is and will be so much better than anything I could every have thought of myself and I find hope and peace in that. No matter where I go, who I'm with or what I'm doing, I know that if it's from God, it WILL BE AMAZING!!!
Thanks for taking the time to read this!!! Have a AMAZING and BLESSED day!!!
A Bientot!!
Jessi
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
It's been a while!!
Bonjour Ya'll!!
I just noticed that I haven't written anything since February 22....I am sooo sorry about that! I really, really want to get better at this because I have so much to write about. Please pray that I become more productive with my time while I'm over here.
Well let's see.....since my last post, I officially have internet, phone and cable in my apartment! That has been great for me because now I don't have to go to McDonald's anymore!!! Wooohooo!!! The only downside that I see to having internet in my apartment is that I tend to stay up later than I need to talking to people. I LOVE talking to people and catching up but the whole time difference is a killer. This kind of goes with the whole being more productive with my time thing I wrote earlier. So, I'm trying to find a balance between keeping in contact and being productive and ACTUALLY going to sleep at a decent hour!! Please pray for me in that as well.
Some of you might have known that this past week was Paris Fashion Week. One of my friends took some really great pictures of the models and others coming out of a couple of shows. I went to the Louvre, where a few shows were being held; I didn't see anyone famous(that I knew anyway) but I did see some very tall, very thin, and very young models walking from one show to another. There was one lady that I saw who had a crazy looking hat on, kinda reminded me of a hat someone would wear down in Florida while fishing or vacationing or something! The photographers took pictures of her like she was important so I'm curious to see who she is.
****So the last 2 paragraphs were written March 14. I didn't have time to finish the blog so I saved it, thinking I would finish it later that day or the next day. It is NOW April 6th!! Gosh I'm doing a HORRIBLE job at this whole blog thing.****
Well I have officially been here for 3 months. I can't believe it's already April! Crazy!! I'm still having a great time, although I believe culture shock is setting in a little. The newness of Paris as worn off and now, I'm just trying to settle into my new life here as best as I can. I have good days and bad days, happy days and sad days. Contrary to what some people might think, it's not always glamorous here in Paris. This is not a vacation for me. I moved here...for a year...to work...so I have to deal with the ins and outs of everyday life just like I did in Nashville, except now I am in Paris.(**the following was written on April 9. haha just thought I'd share that :) ) Yes it's a great city; it's gorgeous here and there is a lot of history and a lot to see and do. But, this is a whole new adventure for me and I'm still trying to get used to it.
Onto other news...I am going to Amsterdam next week and I am really excited about it! This is the first of hopefully many trips that I will take while I'm here. There are 6 of us going...all au pairs...so money is pretty tight. One friend and I are taking a bus(because it was 60 euros cheaper than the train). It'll take us about 8 hours to get there, but we're traveling at night so we'll be able to sleep(please pray for my sanity! haha) I will definitely be taking lots of pictures and trying to avoid the legal drugs and the Red Light District as much as I can! I think..no, I know it'll make me sad to walk through there. I'll fill ya'll in about it when I get back. There are also a few museums we're going to check out, as well as the Keukenhof Gardens, which has 7 million flowers and is only open 2 months out of the year(and we just so happen to be going during that time!!) The Netherlands are known for their tulips and tulips are my FAVORITE flower!! Can you tell I'm excited?!! After I get back from Amsterdam, I have 1 day in Paris then I'm off to one of the grandmother's houses in the province of Burgundy. I will be there with the girls for 4 days. I'm excited to see another part of France...and I think she lives on a farm so that should be pretty interesting. Also, I asked the grandmother if she would teach me how to make Madeline's(cookies that are sooo good!) So, I will be in the country, cooking and baking..french style, attempting to learn more french, and speaking English to the girls...all at the same time. How's that for multitasking?!
Alright...it's late and I need to go to bed. I have class in the morning. Oh..AND....I am OFFICIALLY promising that I will write a new entry every week. If you know me at all, you know that when I promise something, I always follow through. So...be prepared to read about me and my adventures EVERY week!! Who knows, you might get sick of me in a month! haha
A Bientot!!
Au revoir!
Jessi
I just noticed that I haven't written anything since February 22....I am sooo sorry about that! I really, really want to get better at this because I have so much to write about. Please pray that I become more productive with my time while I'm over here.
Well let's see.....since my last post, I officially have internet, phone and cable in my apartment! That has been great for me because now I don't have to go to McDonald's anymore!!! Wooohooo!!! The only downside that I see to having internet in my apartment is that I tend to stay up later than I need to talking to people. I LOVE talking to people and catching up but the whole time difference is a killer. This kind of goes with the whole being more productive with my time thing I wrote earlier. So, I'm trying to find a balance between keeping in contact and being productive and ACTUALLY going to sleep at a decent hour!! Please pray for me in that as well.
Some of you might have known that this past week was Paris Fashion Week. One of my friends took some really great pictures of the models and others coming out of a couple of shows. I went to the Louvre, where a few shows were being held; I didn't see anyone famous(that I knew anyway) but I did see some very tall, very thin, and very young models walking from one show to another. There was one lady that I saw who had a crazy looking hat on, kinda reminded me of a hat someone would wear down in Florida while fishing or vacationing or something! The photographers took pictures of her like she was important so I'm curious to see who she is.
****So the last 2 paragraphs were written March 14. I didn't have time to finish the blog so I saved it, thinking I would finish it later that day or the next day. It is NOW April 6th!! Gosh I'm doing a HORRIBLE job at this whole blog thing.****
Well I have officially been here for 3 months. I can't believe it's already April! Crazy!! I'm still having a great time, although I believe culture shock is setting in a little. The newness of Paris as worn off and now, I'm just trying to settle into my new life here as best as I can. I have good days and bad days, happy days and sad days. Contrary to what some people might think, it's not always glamorous here in Paris. This is not a vacation for me. I moved here...for a year...to work...so I have to deal with the ins and outs of everyday life just like I did in Nashville, except now I am in Paris.(**the following was written on April 9. haha just thought I'd share that :) ) Yes it's a great city; it's gorgeous here and there is a lot of history and a lot to see and do. But, this is a whole new adventure for me and I'm still trying to get used to it.
Onto other news...I am going to Amsterdam next week and I am really excited about it! This is the first of hopefully many trips that I will take while I'm here. There are 6 of us going...all au pairs...so money is pretty tight. One friend and I are taking a bus(because it was 60 euros cheaper than the train). It'll take us about 8 hours to get there, but we're traveling at night so we'll be able to sleep(please pray for my sanity! haha) I will definitely be taking lots of pictures and trying to avoid the legal drugs and the Red Light District as much as I can! I think..no, I know it'll make me sad to walk through there. I'll fill ya'll in about it when I get back. There are also a few museums we're going to check out, as well as the Keukenhof Gardens, which has 7 million flowers and is only open 2 months out of the year(and we just so happen to be going during that time!!) The Netherlands are known for their tulips and tulips are my FAVORITE flower!! Can you tell I'm excited?!! After I get back from Amsterdam, I have 1 day in Paris then I'm off to one of the grandmother's houses in the province of Burgundy. I will be there with the girls for 4 days. I'm excited to see another part of France...and I think she lives on a farm so that should be pretty interesting. Also, I asked the grandmother if she would teach me how to make Madeline's(cookies that are sooo good!) So, I will be in the country, cooking and baking..french style, attempting to learn more french, and speaking English to the girls...all at the same time. How's that for multitasking?!
Alright...it's late and I need to go to bed. I have class in the morning. Oh..AND....I am OFFICIALLY promising that I will write a new entry every week. If you know me at all, you know that when I promise something, I always follow through. So...be prepared to read about me and my adventures EVERY week!! Who knows, you might get sick of me in a month! haha
A Bientot!!
Au revoir!
Jessi
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
