Nothing better than Spring in Paris... except when you have seasonal allergies.

One of the greatest parts of my program is that we get to spend a week in Paris. We stay at a group hostel called FIAP that is in the 14th arrondisement. Although it may not be the most central location, we had a metro nearby and were not a far walk from the Quartier Latin or Boulevard Saint Germain.
The weather during that week was absolutely beautiful. It was 60 degrees almost every day without any clouds. The flowers were blooming and the trees budding which was just lovely. However with the flowers also comes Hay fever and the necessity to carry around toilet paper rolls in one's Frada (fake prada). This just generally meant that I was not enjoying the museums as much as I normally would. I would just look for rooms with benches and camp out there for about ten minutes before moving onto the next. Despite my allergies, our "Paris week" was great.
Our schedule had a lot of wiggle room for exploring. In the morning we frequented museums but in the afternoons, we were set free into Paris to do what we wanted. We needed to complete at least 3 "promenades" that my director, Roy Caldwell, had designated. There were the traditional walks like the Champs Elysees with the Arc de Triomphe or the Boulevard Saint Michel with the Luxembourg gardens or other less traditional like the Canal Saint Martin. I took a couple different promenades because the weather was beautiful and I didn't like being cooped up in museums when the sun was shining.
One of my favorite nights was when the group went to Montmartre for dinner and music. We went to a restaurant about two minutes from Sacre Coeur. I had escargot, which it turns out is totally worth the hype, and a fun dinner with our group. From our dinner we went to Le Lapin Agile which was a famous hangout for artists in the twenties like Picasso. It was a great atmosphere because the performers sang songs that everyone knew (except us obviously) so the audience sang along and interacted. It was a fun night.
It is after nights like the one I had in Montmartre that I have to take a step back and think about how lucky I am. I have gotten to do so many amazing things in the last couple months. This has been a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am just very thankful that I was able to do it. Going home and back to school in Canton is going to be quite a difference.