After 2 more successful days at Embedded World, we took a short train ride to Munich to spend the weekend. Thankfully our hotel was right next to the Nuremberg train station, and there are high-speed trains from Nuremberg to Munich about ever half hour to hour, taking a little over an hour and costing 55€. You can just show up at the station and buy them from the ticket machine, and then find a spot on the train to sit. It was nice and easy.
One of my co-workers was also heading down to Munich to check it out so we ended up traveling together, though the train was a bit crowded so we had to sit separately.
Our hotel was awesome and definitely recommend it if you're in Munich. It's an easy train ride on any of the S-lines from the train station to Ostbahnhof, and then 3 stops back on the S-trains to get to the center of Munich at Marienplatz. The only tricky part was at the Ostbahnhof it of course lists just the terminal stations for the various trains, so it was a bit tricky to figure out which ones were heading towards the center, and which ones away. Eventually I found a map that showed all the trains from platforms 1-4 go towards the city. Then once in the city station, there are signs pointing you to a platform where all the trains are going in the direction of Ostbahnhof. So that made it really simple then.
I had dinner with my coworker at Zwickl which is actually where I had my first meal in Munich last time I was here in September. It's delicious! Then more beer at the famous Hofbräuhaus beer hall, where they only come in liter sizes (about 2 pints). We hung out with some people from Munich, as the tables are all shared, and they were really friendly. One was a doctor, and his sister was studying in Australia and it was a bit odd since she had a perfect Australian accent then. Good times were had by all!
Friday, February 28, 2014
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Meeting Anniversary in Europe
Today is the 6th anniversary of when Kara and I met in Rome. Since we're in Europe our original plan was to actually be in Rome for it, but then Embedded World came up. So after a long day of talking to people and a quick visit by Kara to see the expo floor, we made the most of it after the show ended for the day.
In a funny way it kind of mirrored our how we met story. We had some terrible Italian food, got some really good gelato, and wandered around a pretty European city at night. All in all not a bad way to spend it.
In a funny way it kind of mirrored our how we met story. We had some terrible Italian food, got some really good gelato, and wandered around a pretty European city at night. All in all not a bad way to spend it.
Monday, February 24, 2014
Embedded World
Matthew flew back to the States today, and we flew to Nuremberg (Nürnberg as the Germans write) for Embedded World. It's a giant embedded computer conference held every year. I'd never been before, but it far surpassed my expectations for how big it was.
Getting there was a bit interesting since the particular CDG terminal we flew out of had everyone stay in the same central area, and then posted the gate the flight would be departing from only 20 minutes before take-off. So it means everyone is cramped in the same space, and then you have a panic attack if your gate isn't called on time. I really dislike airports even more now after experiencing how awesome and stress-free train travel is.
We'll be in Nuremberg until Friday, but there doesn't seem to be much to do here. It's a cute German city, but the touristy part isn't that big or impressive so far.
Getting there was a bit interesting since the particular CDG terminal we flew out of had everyone stay in the same central area, and then posted the gate the flight would be departing from only 20 minutes before take-off. So it means everyone is cramped in the same space, and then you have a panic attack if your gate isn't called on time. I really dislike airports even more now after experiencing how awesome and stress-free train travel is.
We'll be in Nuremberg until Friday, but there doesn't seem to be much to do here. It's a cute German city, but the touristy part isn't that big or impressive so far.
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Roadtrip to Chambord and Chenonceau Chateaus
Today we did a day-trip from Paris to the famous Loire Valley of France, where castles are all over the place. Since we only had a day to do this, we focused on the best two: Chambord and Chenonceau.
As Chambord is closer to Paris, we drove there first. It's about a 2 hour drive from Paris, and basically looks like what you would imagine a real-life Cinderella castle to look like. It has a famous double spiral staircase in the center, where you can climb up and see each other, but yet never meet. The inside is pretty bare though, so there's not a lot to see beyond the architecture, but it was some incredibly impressive architecture. It's like visiting a real-life Disneyland castle.
Then it was a very scenic hour long drive to the second castle, Chenonceau. This one if famous because it stretches across a river and has the most gorgeous exterior of any castle I've seen yet. There are fresh flower bouquets all around the castle, and it lets you see some of the servant quarters like the kitchen which was cool. Its Kara's favorite castle yet, and if you have the time and a car, I would very highly recommend it. There's also a fun little maze for kids (as it's not that tall so hence not that challenging for adults) and has beautiful grounds surrounding it. It was really
impressive and well worth the 2.5 hour drive back to Paris.
So it is possible to hit Chambord and Chenonceau in the Loire Valley in a day from Paris, but it does make a very long day and definitely felt like we were rushed. As all the guidebooks and Internet says, it's best to do it as a night trip.
France helps fund its freeways via tolls, so there were about In all there was about 34€ worth of tolls in all during the day. I paid via my Carte Bleu, so I have no idea if they take American credit cards since I'd read they can be finicky. They do take cash though, so just make sure you have plenty if you're a tourist.
I also had to fill up my tires a bit since I had my brother bring my tire gauage. Filling up tires is a bit different in France than what I've seen in the US. You attach the hose to the tire, holding down a clip on the end to let it attach itself to the tire (and shoving it in far enough to make good contact so the air doesn't leak out). Then once it's clipped on, you go to the pump to hold down a button to fill up the tire, and it has a pressure gauge built in. And it's free!
As Chambord is closer to Paris, we drove there first. It's about a 2 hour drive from Paris, and basically looks like what you would imagine a real-life Cinderella castle to look like. It has a famous double spiral staircase in the center, where you can climb up and see each other, but yet never meet. The inside is pretty bare though, so there's not a lot to see beyond the architecture, but it was some incredibly impressive architecture. It's like visiting a real-life Disneyland castle.
Then it was a very scenic hour long drive to the second castle, Chenonceau. This one if famous because it stretches across a river and has the most gorgeous exterior of any castle I've seen yet. There are fresh flower bouquets all around the castle, and it lets you see some of the servant quarters like the kitchen which was cool. Its Kara's favorite castle yet, and if you have the time and a car, I would very highly recommend it. There's also a fun little maze for kids (as it's not that tall so hence not that challenging for adults) and has beautiful grounds surrounding it. It was really
impressive and well worth the 2.5 hour drive back to Paris.
So it is possible to hit Chambord and Chenonceau in the Loire Valley in a day from Paris, but it does make a very long day and definitely felt like we were rushed. As all the guidebooks and Internet says, it's best to do it as a night trip.
France helps fund its freeways via tolls, so there were about In all there was about 34€ worth of tolls in all during the day. I paid via my Carte Bleu, so I have no idea if they take American credit cards since I'd read they can be finicky. They do take cash though, so just make sure you have plenty if you're a tourist.
I also had to fill up my tires a bit since I had my brother bring my tire gauage. Filling up tires is a bit different in France than what I've seen in the US. You attach the hose to the tire, holding down a clip on the end to let it attach itself to the tire (and shoving it in far enough to make good contact so the air doesn't leak out). Then once it's clipped on, you go to the pump to hold down a button to fill up the tire, and it has a pressure gauge built in. And it's free!
Saturday, February 22, 2014
Fontainebleau
In an effort to knock things off the "todo" list, today we went to Fontainebleau which is southeast of Paris.
Tickets
You buy tickets at Gare de Lyon from the blue or green "Ile-de-France" machines (Ile-de-France in French meaning the Paris metro area, though literally means "Island of France". That's how important Paris is to France). The Yellow machines won't sell tickets for the train there. Surprisingly it was actually covered by my normal 5 zone Navigo card, and made me wish I had paid for a 1-5 zone tariff for my brother instead of the normal 1-2 zone one since with the trips to here and Versailles, it actually would have saved money. For those who don't have a Navigo card, the Paris Mobilis 5 zone pass is the one to buy for 16.10€. It gives you unlimited travel for a day to the 5 zones of Paris (including Fontainebleau) and covers the bus from the Fontainebleau train station to the castle as well (otherwise 2€ each way). The one slight catch is that the Mobilis pass doesn't include the airport (even though it is in zone 5) but you're going to a castle, not the airport, so it shouldn't be a big deal. If you decide to buy individual tickets, just go through the screens and select the "Fontainebleau-Avon" station and will be around 10€.
The train to Fontainebleau leaves from Gare de Lyon about every 30 minutes. The Paris By Train website helped explain the whole process pretty well. The key part was that "Fontainebleau" will never be listed on the departures board to figure out which track the train will be leaving from, instead you have to look for one of the following (the terminus stations):
The Fontainebleau castle itself is amazing! It has the best interior I've seen yet (including the Vienna and other French castles) and has a lot of history starting with its construction in the 1500's. The exterior is a bit more of a hodge-podge of different styles than most castles which is its only drawback, but it's still very very impressive. There's also a Napoleon museum inside which is really neat. We all loved it.
So the question becomes, if you can do only one, do you see Versailles or Fontainebleau? Versailles is more famous and historically important, and the exterior is better, but since the interior was stripped during the revolution, Fontainebleau is much better inside. In the end, I'd actually tip my hand towards Fontainebleau. It's easy to get to from Paris, incredibly pretty inside, and still quite beautiful outside with a very large garden area. It's also located in a cute French village and is WAAAY less crowded than Versailles. You can't go wrong with either though, and both are definitely worth doing if you have the time.
Afterwards we barely made it to catch a Bateaux-Mouches (Flying Boat) boat tour on the Siene. It was pretty neat, but I wouldn't put it on the "must-do" list since you'd end up seeing most of the sights anyways on foot which is more impressive. Some of the views from the boat were neat though, and if you hate walking it's not a bad way to see a lot of stuff. Hopefully it's warmer than when we went though, we nearly froze to death. The interior of the boat is heated, but who wants to sit inside when there's Paris to see!
Tickets
You buy tickets at Gare de Lyon from the blue or green "Ile-de-France" machines (Ile-de-France in French meaning the Paris metro area, though literally means "Island of France". That's how important Paris is to France). The Yellow machines won't sell tickets for the train there. Surprisingly it was actually covered by my normal 5 zone Navigo card, and made me wish I had paid for a 1-5 zone tariff for my brother instead of the normal 1-2 zone one since with the trips to here and Versailles, it actually would have saved money. For those who don't have a Navigo card, the Paris Mobilis 5 zone pass is the one to buy for 16.10€. It gives you unlimited travel for a day to the 5 zones of Paris (including Fontainebleau) and covers the bus from the Fontainebleau train station to the castle as well (otherwise 2€ each way). The one slight catch is that the Mobilis pass doesn't include the airport (even though it is in zone 5) but you're going to a castle, not the airport, so it shouldn't be a big deal. If you decide to buy individual tickets, just go through the screens and select the "Fontainebleau-Avon" station and will be around 10€.
The train to Fontainebleau leaves from Gare de Lyon about every 30 minutes. The Paris By Train website helped explain the whole process pretty well. The key part was that "Fontainebleau" will never be listed on the departures board to figure out which track the train will be leaving from, instead you have to look for one of the following (the terminus stations):
- Laroche-Migennes
- Montargis
- Montereau
- Sens
The Fontainebleau castle itself is amazing! It has the best interior I've seen yet (including the Vienna and other French castles) and has a lot of history starting with its construction in the 1500's. The exterior is a bit more of a hodge-podge of different styles than most castles which is its only drawback, but it's still very very impressive. There's also a Napoleon museum inside which is really neat. We all loved it.
So the question becomes, if you can do only one, do you see Versailles or Fontainebleau? Versailles is more famous and historically important, and the exterior is better, but since the interior was stripped during the revolution, Fontainebleau is much better inside. In the end, I'd actually tip my hand towards Fontainebleau. It's easy to get to from Paris, incredibly pretty inside, and still quite beautiful outside with a very large garden area. It's also located in a cute French village and is WAAAY less crowded than Versailles. You can't go wrong with either though, and both are definitely worth doing if you have the time.
Afterwards we barely made it to catch a Bateaux-Mouches (Flying Boat) boat tour on the Siene. It was pretty neat, but I wouldn't put it on the "must-do" list since you'd end up seeing most of the sights anyways on foot which is more impressive. Some of the views from the boat were neat though, and if you hate walking it's not a bad way to see a lot of stuff. Hopefully it's warmer than when we went though, we nearly froze to death. The interior of the boat is heated, but who wants to sit inside when there's Paris to see!
Friday, February 21, 2014
Versailles
We finally made it to Versailles today. I know, after living in Paris almost 5 months you'd think I would have seen it earlier, but alas it was not the case.
In the process, I learned never to take the RER C the "short" way to Versailles from Gare de Massy-Palaiseau. It involves a lot of crazy transfers and long waits for trains. But eventually I did finally make it.
I will say that the outside of Versailles is quite spectacular. However the inside doesn't quite compare to some of the other castles we've been to in Europe, like the Schoenbrunn in Vienna or Fontainebleau which we end up going to the next day. The grounds though were really pretty, and considering it was the middle of winter, I can't even imagine what it would look like in full bloom during the summer and spring.
On that note as well, it was actually quite crowded for being the middle of February, so I can't image the madhouse it would be in the summer. The famous Hall of Mirrors really was very impressive.
On the way back we dropped off Matthew to climb up the Eiffel Tower since we were both too tired to climb up with him, which he really enjoyed. We finished the night with a feast of crepes, because that's what you eat for cheap in Paris!
In the process, I learned never to take the RER C the "short" way to Versailles from Gare de Massy-Palaiseau. It involves a lot of crazy transfers and long waits for trains. But eventually I did finally make it.
I will say that the outside of Versailles is quite spectacular. However the inside doesn't quite compare to some of the other castles we've been to in Europe, like the Schoenbrunn in Vienna or Fontainebleau which we end up going to the next day. The grounds though were really pretty, and considering it was the middle of winter, I can't even imagine what it would look like in full bloom during the summer and spring.
On that note as well, it was actually quite crowded for being the middle of February, so I can't image the madhouse it would be in the summer. The famous Hall of Mirrors really was very impressive.
On the way back we dropped off Matthew to climb up the Eiffel Tower since we were both too tired to climb up with him, which he really enjoyed. We finished the night with a feast of crepes, because that's what you eat for cheap in Paris!
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Random Paris Bits
Today after work my brother and I wandered by the French president's house and the American embassy located close by. I'm pretty sure the American embassy had more security.
When Matthew went to Musée de l'Orangerie, there was actually no line at all today to get in. First time I'd ever seen that happen. Usually there's a massive line, and where having the Paris Museum Pass really comes in handy.
He also got to see some of the Army museum today, which we have yet to do. And not much time left to do it!
When Matthew went to Musée de l'Orangerie, there was actually no line at all today to get in. First time I'd ever seen that happen. Usually there's a massive line, and where having the Paris Museum Pass really comes in handy.
He also got to see some of the Army museum today, which we have yet to do. And not much time left to do it!
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Whirlwind Paris
It actually is possible to see Notre Dame, Saint Chappelle, the Orsay, and the Louvre in a day. My brother did it, though it does involve a lot of walking and not a lot of studying art for ever and ever. It also helped that Wednesday's the Louvre is opened late.
So could you see all of the (major) sites in Paris in 2 days? Yeah, but I still wouldn't recommend it.
So could you see all of the (major) sites in Paris in 2 days? Yeah, but I still wouldn't recommend it.
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Star Wars Paris!
Today I left early from work to go to two really amazing exhibits going on in Paris.
The first one was an exhibit dedicated to Pixar. It had a bunch of early character sketches, models, and color studies. It also had several early Pixar short films and an amazing Toy Story zoetrope. Kara LOVED it! I thought it was really cool and definitely a must for any Pixar fan. It's in Paris until March 2nd, and while we had planned on seeing it ever since it opened back in November, we finally only made it today.
It was also neat because I finally got to go to the "Les Docks en Seine" which I'd always seen on cab rides to our flat in Paris, but never visited. It's the big green interesting looking building near Gare d'Austerlitz.
The second exhibit was even more amazing. It's a new Star Wars exhibit in Paris called Star Wars Identities
. It has the original costumes, original models, original C3P0 and R2D2, original character sketches, and much much more. As a huge Star Wars fan, it was absolutely amazing and I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone visiting Paris through July. If you're a Star Wars fan at all, I'd consider it a don't miss exhibit if you're visiting Paris. The "identities" part was a really slick way of adding some interactive content with a wristband where you can select different attributes for a Star Wars character you create. It was really really neat, and while a bit pricy (19€) was well worth it. The signs and audioguide are both in French and English. Make sure to get tickets ahead of time, as they have specific time slots and considering how crowded it was on a random February, I can't imagine it during the summer. Also don't take the RER D to get there, use line 13 to Carrefour Pleye stop, which is covered in the normal metro ticket.
In the middle of those two exhibits we also walked along the Promenade plantée which is located in the 12th. It's one of those little treasures that most tourists don't get to do since I wouldn't consider it a "don't miss" but does make Paris that much more interesting to those who live here. It's a 3 mile linear park with elevated view, much like the new New York Highline walk (though I haven't been to NYC since it opened, so I can't make a direct comparison). If you're in the 12th though, I'd recommend checking it out for a nice interesting little walk.
The first one was an exhibit dedicated to Pixar. It had a bunch of early character sketches, models, and color studies. It also had several early Pixar short films and an amazing Toy Story zoetrope. Kara LOVED it! I thought it was really cool and definitely a must for any Pixar fan. It's in Paris until March 2nd, and while we had planned on seeing it ever since it opened back in November, we finally only made it today.
It was also neat because I finally got to go to the "Les Docks en Seine" which I'd always seen on cab rides to our flat in Paris, but never visited. It's the big green interesting looking building near Gare d'Austerlitz.
The second exhibit was even more amazing. It's a new Star Wars exhibit in Paris called Star Wars Identities
. It has the original costumes, original models, original C3P0 and R2D2, original character sketches, and much much more. As a huge Star Wars fan, it was absolutely amazing and I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone visiting Paris through July. If you're a Star Wars fan at all, I'd consider it a don't miss exhibit if you're visiting Paris. The "identities" part was a really slick way of adding some interactive content with a wristband where you can select different attributes for a Star Wars character you create. It was really really neat, and while a bit pricy (19€) was well worth it. The signs and audioguide are both in French and English. Make sure to get tickets ahead of time, as they have specific time slots and considering how crowded it was on a random February, I can't imagine it during the summer. Also don't take the RER D to get there, use line 13 to Carrefour Pleye stop, which is covered in the normal metro ticket.
In the middle of those two exhibits we also walked along the Promenade plantée which is located in the 12th. It's one of those little treasures that most tourists don't get to do since I wouldn't consider it a "don't miss" but does make Paris that much more interesting to those who live here. It's a 3 mile linear park with elevated view, much like the new New York Highline walk (though I haven't been to NYC since it opened, so I can't make a direct comparison). If you're in the 12th though, I'd recommend checking it out for a nice interesting little walk.
Monday, February 17, 2014
Midnight in Paris
My brother had never seen Midnight in Paris, so we rented it on Amazon tonight (thanks UnoTelly!). It starts with a montage of various locations in Paris, and one the things I enjoy about visiting places is recognizing them in movies and TV shows, and there were many places we'd been already.
Though it did also highlight all the places we have yet to visit in Paris and France. We're quickly running out of weekends (particularly since we'll be in Germany and the UK during two of them) and there's still a lot of castles, museums, and historical sights to visit, much less re-visit our favorites. It's a bit frustrating that the first 2-3 months of our ex-pat experience was just getting moved in and non-exhausted on the weekends, when there is so much to see! We'll obviously be back to Europe in the future (and hopefully one day actually live here semi-permanently) but we're trying to make the most of it while we can.
I do find it interesting when we tell people here that we would like to live in Europe, since they find it shocking we would ever want to leave the US. But alas it's always a "grass is greener on the other side" kind of thing.
Speaking of which, my friend sent me this really fascinating article on French cancer treatments and how vastly it differs from how we treat cancer in the US.
Though it did also highlight all the places we have yet to visit in Paris and France. We're quickly running out of weekends (particularly since we'll be in Germany and the UK during two of them) and there's still a lot of castles, museums, and historical sights to visit, much less re-visit our favorites. It's a bit frustrating that the first 2-3 months of our ex-pat experience was just getting moved in and non-exhausted on the weekends, when there is so much to see! We'll obviously be back to Europe in the future (and hopefully one day actually live here semi-permanently) but we're trying to make the most of it while we can.
I do find it interesting when we tell people here that we would like to live in Europe, since they find it shocking we would ever want to leave the US. But alas it's always a "grass is greener on the other side" kind of thing.
Speaking of which, my friend sent me this really fascinating article on French cancer treatments and how vastly it differs from how we treat cancer in the US.
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Chartres
As we are quickly running out of weekends in France (we only have 6 weeks left!!!) we've been more keen on trying to squeeze in more day and weekend trips. Because Matthew flew in yesterday and it does take a while to get from the airport to Paris and settled in, we decided to try to do a day trip today.
Our original plan was to go to Château de Fontainebleau and Vaux-le-Vicomte which are two amazing castles very close to each other and would be a great day trip from Paris. Unfortunately Vaux-le-Vicomte is closed for the winter, and won't open up until March 9th. As it's considered one of the best castles in Europe, we didn't want to miss it, and decided to put it off until then.
Instead we took a train to Chartres to check out a quaint French village, and what is widely considered to be the most well preserved medieval cathedral in Europe: Notre-Dame de Chartres. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site that was built in the 1200's.
The train took about an hour and 15 minutes to make the journey from Gare Montparnasse. The cathedral is then about a 5 minute walk from the train station. The outside is fairly impressive, mostly because of the ornate sculptures on it's 3 façades. Most churches only have 1 façade. But the inside is the most spectacular because of the stained glass. It's one of the most well preserved churches in Europe, and so some 80% of the glass is original. During WWII the villagers actually removed the glass and buried it with sand bags to preserve it. It's not quite the overwhelming spectacle of Saint Chapelle in Paris, but it's very impressive in its own right.
We did an audioguide tour, and then walked up the bell tower (7.50 euro a piece though!) for some great views of the countryside, and even a rainbow that formed over the town which was really pretty. The town itself is really cute, and there's a little stream that winds through the city making it even cuter. Dinner near the cathedral was nice (roasted turkey in gravy and mashed potatoes, it was like the Thanksgiving meal I wish I'd actually had on Thanksgiving!). Keep track of the time though, as I wrote down before hand the train times leaving Chartres for Paris as they don't come that often on Sunday, so it's only about one an hour.
Our original plan was to go to Château de Fontainebleau and Vaux-le-Vicomte which are two amazing castles very close to each other and would be a great day trip from Paris. Unfortunately Vaux-le-Vicomte is closed for the winter, and won't open up until March 9th. As it's considered one of the best castles in Europe, we didn't want to miss it, and decided to put it off until then.
Instead we took a train to Chartres to check out a quaint French village, and what is widely considered to be the most well preserved medieval cathedral in Europe: Notre-Dame de Chartres. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site that was built in the 1200's.
The train took about an hour and 15 minutes to make the journey from Gare Montparnasse. The cathedral is then about a 5 minute walk from the train station. The outside is fairly impressive, mostly because of the ornate sculptures on it's 3 façades. Most churches only have 1 façade. But the inside is the most spectacular because of the stained glass. It's one of the most well preserved churches in Europe, and so some 80% of the glass is original. During WWII the villagers actually removed the glass and buried it with sand bags to preserve it. It's not quite the overwhelming spectacle of Saint Chapelle in Paris, but it's very impressive in its own right.
We did an audioguide tour, and then walked up the bell tower (7.50 euro a piece though!) for some great views of the countryside, and even a rainbow that formed over the town which was really pretty. The town itself is really cute, and there's a little stream that winds through the city making it even cuter. Dinner near the cathedral was nice (roasted turkey in gravy and mashed potatoes, it was like the Thanksgiving meal I wish I'd actually had on Thanksgiving!). Keep track of the time though, as I wrote down before hand the train times leaving Chartres for Paris as they don't come that often on Sunday, so it's only about one an hour.
Saturday, February 15, 2014
Matthew Visit
My little brother arrived today! It's his very first time overseas, so I'm really excited to get to show him around.
We actually started with a trip to Monoprix, so he got to see the gigantic yogurt and cheese sections that we get here. The purpose though was to get some trash bags and some tape, as our bedroom door has somehow broken and now won't stay closed.
We then went to Père Lachaise which is the most impressive cemetery in Paris. I had already been, but Kara hadn't, and knowing where all the famous people are buried isn't easy the first time through, even with a guidebook.
Then we went to Montmartre and because Matthew's a big fan of Amelie too, we kind of re-did the Amelie day Kara and I did back in October. This time we ate lunch at Cafe des 2 Moulins (2 Windmill Cafe) and got some banana-nutella crepes to eat in front of the Sacré Cœur. After a quick nap back at home, we went to see How To Become Parisian in One Hour which we'd also seen back in November, but thought Matthew would enjoy it and he did.
We finished the night getting cupcakes at a delicious mini cupcake store that is the smallest bakery ever (literally cannot fit more than 3 people inside) near us. Strawberry, Lemon, Nutella, and Chocolate were ours!
We actually started with a trip to Monoprix, so he got to see the gigantic yogurt and cheese sections that we get here. The purpose though was to get some trash bags and some tape, as our bedroom door has somehow broken and now won't stay closed.
We then went to Père Lachaise which is the most impressive cemetery in Paris. I had already been, but Kara hadn't, and knowing where all the famous people are buried isn't easy the first time through, even with a guidebook.
Then we went to Montmartre and because Matthew's a big fan of Amelie too, we kind of re-did the Amelie day Kara and I did back in October. This time we ate lunch at Cafe des 2 Moulins (2 Windmill Cafe) and got some banana-nutella crepes to eat in front of the Sacré Cœur. After a quick nap back at home, we went to see How To Become Parisian in One Hour which we'd also seen back in November, but thought Matthew would enjoy it and he did.
We finished the night getting cupcakes at a delicious mini cupcake store that is the smallest bakery ever (literally cannot fit more than 3 people inside) near us. Strawberry, Lemon, Nutella, and Chocolate were ours!
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Van Gogh
Today we finally made it to the Van Gogh museum, which was really cool. He's one of my favorite artists, and while a lot of his major works are out on loan through-out the world (which is how I already have seen quite a number of them) there were still a lot of really amazing painting to see. Unfortunately no photos allowed :(
One of the coolest parts of the museum was on the top floor where it goes into the science of art restoration and the ability to see what Van Gogh paintings look like under a microscope with all the thick layers of paint. It also covered Van Gogh's perspective frame and how Van Gogh used it for several of his paintings. They also had a mockup of what it would be like to feel one of his paintings, which is what I remember the most about the first time I saw one of his paintings in real life (before it'd always been posters and photos). It's almost like a 3D effect.
We had dinner at a fun Greek restaurant and wandered around the rest of the city to finish out the evening before our train ride early Tuesday morning.
One of the coolest parts of the museum was on the top floor where it goes into the science of art restoration and the ability to see what Van Gogh paintings look like under a microscope with all the thick layers of paint. It also covered Van Gogh's perspective frame and how Van Gogh used it for several of his paintings. They also had a mockup of what it would be like to feel one of his paintings, which is what I remember the most about the first time I saw one of his paintings in real life (before it'd always been posters and photos). It's almost like a 3D effect.
We had dinner at a fun Greek restaurant and wandered around the rest of the city to finish out the evening before our train ride early Tuesday morning.
Amsterdam Wind and Rain
Today was a really terrible day weather-wise, so we didn't get to do much at all. There were apparently power outages in other parts of the city due to the winds knocking over stuff, but we were OK thankfully. The houseboat was a rockin quite a bit though, so Kara was feeling a little bit seasick, but not too horribly bad. It settled down a bit later in the day, but we were too late to see the Van Gogh museum, so decided to go for the Anne Frank house since it's open later.
There was barely a line (yet another reason I love off-season touring, as the walk-up lines are infamous) and the house was fascinating. It walks through the whole series of events, and you see the annex she lived in. It was really powerful and well worth seeing.
The neighborhood the house is in is also incredibly pretty, and it's a bit surreal knowing that but a scant 70 years ago it was all under Nazi occupation.
There was barely a line (yet another reason I love off-season touring, as the walk-up lines are infamous) and the house was fascinating. It walks through the whole series of events, and you see the annex she lived in. It was really powerful and well worth seeing.
The neighborhood the house is in is also incredibly pretty, and it's a bit surreal knowing that but a scant 70 years ago it was all under Nazi occupation.
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Amsterdam
To celebrate being new EU citizens (and being able to leave France) we took a weekend train trip to Amsterdam. This was obviously booked well ahead of time (as soon as we got the reservation date for our cards) so we had our fingers crossed the whole visit on Friday would work out, which thankfully it did. It was kind of neat that we left on the same train from Gare du Nord that we took the first time we visited Paris together over 5 years ago.
Amsterdam is a really neat city that has far more canals than I ever realized. It's like a cross between Venice and Vienna with all the canals and architecture. We stayed on a houseboat a little bit west of the train station, in a picturesque area of the city. There were even ducks we could feed out the window!!
Our first adventure out was to a really awesome market not far from where we were staying, which not only sold all kinds of fruits, vegetables, and meats, but also clothes and toys. I picked up a super cheap belt (as mine had started falling apart) and some delicious baked goods. We then wandered around the city checking out some of the churches and various districts.
Amsterdam is a really neat city that has far more canals than I ever realized. It's like a cross between Venice and Vienna with all the canals and architecture. We stayed on a houseboat a little bit west of the train station, in a picturesque area of the city. There were even ducks we could feed out the window!!
Our first adventure out was to a really awesome market not far from where we were staying, which not only sold all kinds of fruits, vegetables, and meats, but also clothes and toys. I picked up a super cheap belt (as mine had started falling apart) and some delicious baked goods. We then wandered around the city checking out some of the churches and various districts.
Friday, February 7, 2014
French Residency Card
As part of working in France for longer than 3 months, you're required to get a temporary residency permit called a Titre de Séjour. This is supposed to happen with-in the 3 months after you enter France, as once the 3 months visa in the passport expires, you're not supposed to leave France until you get your Titre de Séjour. Unfortunately it took 3.5 months to get the appointment, and then a total of about 4.5 months to actually get it. So that was quite disappointing.
But regardless, we finally got our appointment for this morning. The immigration lawyers had everything setup for the most part, so it was just a matter of printing out the appointment letters, and showing up with our passports and 260€ of stamps for the processing fees.
Then you have a basic medical exam where you have your height, weight, and eye sight tested, then a chest x-ray to look for tuberculosis. Then some more waiting, then a brief interview about your health history, and then you get a medical approval form. All the doctors spoke English, but the receptionists did not, so having Kara was handy, but not required. Generally you just follow and do what everyone else is doing.
At that point, you take the form, take it down the hall to another office where they take your stamps and give you the official card. And voila, we are now temporary EU (and French) residents!
But regardless, we finally got our appointment for this morning. The immigration lawyers had everything setup for the most part, so it was just a matter of printing out the appointment letters, and showing up with our passports and 260€ of stamps for the processing fees.
Then you have a basic medical exam where you have your height, weight, and eye sight tested, then a chest x-ray to look for tuberculosis. Then some more waiting, then a brief interview about your health history, and then you get a medical approval form. All the doctors spoke English, but the receptionists did not, so having Kara was handy, but not required. Generally you just follow and do what everyone else is doing.
At that point, you take the form, take it down the hall to another office where they take your stamps and give you the official card. And voila, we are now temporary EU (and French) residents!
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Super Bowl and Other Things
We caught a little bit of the Super Bowl very early Monday morning (it starts at 12:30am here). Surprisingly Unotelly actually failed at letting us watch it, but it was on French TV! It then meant of course there were French announcers doing the play calling, and we missed all the commercials (that's what Youtube is for anyways), but it was still a neat experience. I only caught the first quarter before heading to bed, it is a work night after all!
We also had some of Kara's language school friends over today for some cheese and hanging out. Other than that the week isn't too exciting until Friday when we are scheduled to get our French residency cards and then this weekend we head off to Amsterdam for a few days!
We also had some of Kara's language school friends over today for some cheese and hanging out. Other than that the week isn't too exciting until Friday when we are scheduled to get our French residency cards and then this weekend we head off to Amsterdam for a few days!
Sunday, February 2, 2014
Centre Pompidou
Today we went to visit the Centre Pompidou, as it was the first Sunday of the month and thus it was free! The Pompidou is the Paris Modern Art museum. The exterior is really interesting because it's built so that all the functional pieces (like air ducts, electricity, and escalators) are on the outside instead of the inside.
The inside was pretty interesting too. There are two floors, and the 4th one is the most recent modern art (1970's onward) and the 5th floor covers the rest of the 1900's. I really like modern art and how much is frustrates everyone else, so the fact that a whole room was dedicated to three blank canvases (which I myself had in my apartment before Kara moved in) being the pinnacle of that.
So while I was happy to finally see the museum, I wouldn't consider it a "must-see" attraction. But if you have the time, we both did enjoy it overall.
The inside was pretty interesting too. There are two floors, and the 4th one is the most recent modern art (1970's onward) and the 5th floor covers the rest of the 1900's. I really like modern art and how much is frustrates everyone else, so the fact that a whole room was dedicated to three blank canvases (which I myself had in my apartment before Kara moved in) being the pinnacle of that.
So while I was happy to finally see the museum, I wouldn't consider it a "must-see" attraction. But if you have the time, we both did enjoy it overall.
Saturday, February 1, 2014
Paris in a Wheelchair
Today we got to experience Paris via a wheelchair! The Paris metro system was then of course out of the question because most of the stations require stairs. Luckily the bus system is quite wheelchair friendly and goes all over Paris, so that would become our main mode of transportation today. And with some Googling and some useful websites for touring Paris while in a wheelchair we were able to figure it out.
Buses were really easy to use. Typically the bus driver would see that you have a person in a wheelchair, and extend the ramp in the middle of the bus. There is also a button to press in case they don't. A ramp extends to the curb, and you just roll right on up. The bus driver will ask where you want to get off at (so he knows where to extend the wheelchair ramp), so it's helpful to already know the route.
There's a space specifically for wheelchairs to stay in, though the only bad part of the experience is there isn't a seatbelt, and Paris bus drivers drive like crazy people, plus the brakes on the wheelchair were kind of messed up, so it was a struggle to keep my Mom from rolling away. But it worked out. Once you reach the bus stop, the ramp extends out again, and voila, you've made it!
The only tricky part is that some bus stops are not wheelchair accessible according to the route maps (marked with a yellow triangle) which I assume is because they're on a traffic island or something with no way off.
Thank goodness we live in a flat with an elevator (due to Kara's leg issues, which are WAY better now) and so we could get my Mom up and down. Unfortunately like most Parisian elevators, it's incredibly small, so it doesn't actually fit her in a wheel chair. She had to get out of it and use some crutches to get up to our floor.
The wheelchair was also fairly easy to get. There is an online option, we found by Googling, but we just visited a few of our local pharmacies to ask about a "fauteuil roulant". One of them said they could get us one, which was 22 euro for a week, plus a 200 euro cash deposit. We did this on Friday, so it took a day for it to arrive at 4pm today (Saturday) then.
We ended the day with a French sampler feast! I got 3 different kinds of cheeses (soft, hard, and moldy (Roquefort)), some really good wine from Bordeaux, and French bread from our neighborhood boulangerie.
Buses were really easy to use. Typically the bus driver would see that you have a person in a wheelchair, and extend the ramp in the middle of the bus. There is also a button to press in case they don't. A ramp extends to the curb, and you just roll right on up. The bus driver will ask where you want to get off at (so he knows where to extend the wheelchair ramp), so it's helpful to already know the route.
There's a space specifically for wheelchairs to stay in, though the only bad part of the experience is there isn't a seatbelt, and Paris bus drivers drive like crazy people, plus the brakes on the wheelchair were kind of messed up, so it was a struggle to keep my Mom from rolling away. But it worked out. Once you reach the bus stop, the ramp extends out again, and voila, you've made it!
The only tricky part is that some bus stops are not wheelchair accessible according to the route maps (marked with a yellow triangle) which I assume is because they're on a traffic island or something with no way off.
Thank goodness we live in a flat with an elevator (due to Kara's leg issues, which are WAY better now) and so we could get my Mom up and down. Unfortunately like most Parisian elevators, it's incredibly small, so it doesn't actually fit her in a wheel chair. She had to get out of it and use some crutches to get up to our floor.
The wheelchair was also fairly easy to get. There is an online option, we found by Googling, but we just visited a few of our local pharmacies to ask about a "fauteuil roulant". One of them said they could get us one, which was 22 euro for a week, plus a 200 euro cash deposit. We did this on Friday, so it took a day for it to arrive at 4pm today (Saturday) then.
We ended the day with a French sampler feast! I got 3 different kinds of cheeses (soft, hard, and moldy (Roquefort)), some really good wine from Bordeaux, and French bread from our neighborhood boulangerie.
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