Leap Day makes me so happy. I don't know why. Nothing special happens on this day. There's just something about its rarity that I find charming. Maybe because when I think of things that only happen every four years I think of the Olympics. :) Maybe because it's an extra day. And this year, it's an extra day in Paris! One of my classmates emailed us the link to Wikipedia's Leap Day page and I enjoyed reading it (thanks again, Wikipedia!)
February 29, 2008
Leap Day
Leap Day makes me so happy. I don't know why. Nothing special happens on this day. There's just something about its rarity that I find charming. Maybe because when I think of things that only happen every four years I think of the Olympics. :) Maybe because it's an extra day. And this year, it's an extra day in Paris! One of my classmates emailed us the link to Wikipedia's Leap Day page and I enjoyed reading it (thanks again, Wikipedia!)
Père Lachaise again
We finally went back to the cemetery to finish the walk we halfway completed about a month ago, before being scared off by a creeper. ("Jeem Mor-ee-zun, Jeem Mor-ee-zun!") It's a cool place. This is very incomplete because we were all taking pictures with each other's cameras. I'll add more later. The highlights for me were Chopin, Molière, and Oscar Wilde.
A nearby café. Instead of Father Lachaise, Mother Lachaise. Clever.
I always stop to drool over pastry shop windows, but this was the most beautiful I've ever seen.
The Happy Family!
Enrico Cernuschi (1821-1896), a politican and banker who donated his collection of Far-Eastern art to found a museum named after him.
Earl?
Louis Visconti (1791-1853), architect for the expanded Louvre and Napoleon's tomb.
Rossini (1792-1868), the great opera composer. His body was given back to Italy in 1887.
Writer Alfred de Musset. His sister is just behind him.
Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann is responsible for the gentrification of Paris that took place under Napoleon III between 1853 and 1870--large boulevards, parks, and the architectural style that dominates the city today.
Jim Morrison. The walks book (Marc Olivier, for those who may know who he is) says "the scent of marijuana will almost lead to this site of rock pilgrimage. You will see what it's like to have groupies even in death."
Paying homage to our favorite French playwright, the great Molière. La Fontaine is next to him. Their remains may or may not actually be in the graves, which were transferred to the cemetery in 1817--basically a publicity stunt.
After this adventure, we had another...we killed some time before a movie we were planning to see, but got separated in the process. You really appreciate the convenience of cell phones when you don't have one. Fortunately, I was not separated by myself but with Sarah. We explored the Les Halles area (where I get off the train for school) and between the two of us were able to remember the metro stop where the movie theater was (Jacqueline had the information in her Pariscope). Then, geniuses that we are, we were able to remember the name of and locate the theater on the neighborhood map. Once we found it, there was no one there, but we nevertheless congratulated ourselves on leaving early enough that we made it by the appointed meeting time despite the long delays on metro line 4. We finally gave up and decided to do more exploring when we ran into the rest of the group, who had been delayed on said line 4. In trying to plan our next move, Sarah and I were distracted by a nearby shoe store (we had been looking at shoes all day). Took the metro to a place loaded with theaters, decided on a movie, found out student discounts don't apply to Friday nights, decided it was too expensive, and wandered for a while until we found a gelato shop. It was fun. And I bought shoes.
A nearby café. Instead of Father Lachaise, Mother Lachaise. Clever.
I always stop to drool over pastry shop windows, but this was the most beautiful I've ever seen.
The Happy Family!
Enrico Cernuschi (1821-1896), a politican and banker who donated his collection of Far-Eastern art to found a museum named after him.
Earl?
Louis Visconti (1791-1853), architect for the expanded Louvre and Napoleon's tomb.
Rossini (1792-1868), the great opera composer. His body was given back to Italy in 1887.
Writer Alfred de Musset. His sister is just behind him.
Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann is responsible for the gentrification of Paris that took place under Napoleon III between 1853 and 1870--large boulevards, parks, and the architectural style that dominates the city today.
Jim Morrison. The walks book (Marc Olivier, for those who may know who he is) says "the scent of marijuana will almost lead to this site of rock pilgrimage. You will see what it's like to have groupies even in death."
Paying homage to our favorite French playwright, the great Molière. La Fontaine is next to him. Their remains may or may not actually be in the graves, which were transferred to the cemetery in 1817--basically a publicity stunt. After this adventure, we had another...we killed some time before a movie we were planning to see, but got separated in the process. You really appreciate the convenience of cell phones when you don't have one. Fortunately, I was not separated by myself but with Sarah. We explored the Les Halles area (where I get off the train for school) and between the two of us were able to remember the metro stop where the movie theater was (Jacqueline had the information in her Pariscope). Then, geniuses that we are, we were able to remember the name of and locate the theater on the neighborhood map. Once we found it, there was no one there, but we nevertheless congratulated ourselves on leaving early enough that we made it by the appointed meeting time despite the long delays on metro line 4. We finally gave up and decided to do more exploring when we ran into the rest of the group, who had been delayed on said line 4. In trying to plan our next move, Sarah and I were distracted by a nearby shoe store (we had been looking at shoes all day). Took the metro to a place loaded with theaters, decided on a movie, found out student discounts don't apply to Friday nights, decided it was too expensive, and wandered for a while until we found a gelato shop. It was fun. And I bought shoes.
February 22, 2008
Special delivery
Matthew, look what was waiting for me at breakfast yesterday! Thank you! I love it! You wanted to see one picture, and you got four! Quadruple prizes! And thanks for the picture of Audrey, Andra.
Sorry for the long delay on all these posts...it took me that long to buy a new battery charger, so since then I've been very camera happy. I'm changing the post dates so that if someone looks at them a long time from now, they will hopefully forget my teenage blog deliquency. and not judge me. In my defense, a couple of them I started and never finished. I have a problem with that.
(I recently discovered that my window opens, which made me so happy! Don't ask me why it took me so long to realize that. I love sitting on the sill, as pictured.)
In other news:
-The highlight of the week was going to see L'École des Femmes, the play we just finished reading, with the Molière class and some of the 202 girls at the Odéon theater. It was AWESOME. The humor was a lot more apparent watching it than reading it. The main character was especially good. Can you imagine memorizing around 900 lines?
-Today marks one month in Europe. Feels like way longer. Not that is hasn't been a way cool month.
-I'm roommateless for the weekend as about half the group took off to Spain. But I'm spending the day at home getting over a wicked cold, so it's just as well. The first thing my host mom said to me this morning was not "bonjour," but "You have a cold?" I didn't look so good. The family is going on vacation next week so we'll have the house to ourselves.
Sorry for the long delay on all these posts...it took me that long to buy a new battery charger, so since then I've been very camera happy. I'm changing the post dates so that if someone looks at them a long time from now, they will hopefully forget my teenage blog deliquency. and not judge me. In my defense, a couple of them I started and never finished. I have a problem with that.
(I recently discovered that my window opens, which made me so happy! Don't ask me why it took me so long to realize that. I love sitting on the sill, as pictured.)
In other news:
-The highlight of the week was going to see L'École des Femmes, the play we just finished reading, with the Molière class and some of the 202 girls at the Odéon theater. It was AWESOME. The humor was a lot more apparent watching it than reading it. The main character was especially good. Can you imagine memorizing around 900 lines?
-Today marks one month in Europe. Feels like way longer. Not that is hasn't been a way cool month.
-I'm roommateless for the weekend as about half the group took off to Spain. But I'm spending the day at home getting over a wicked cold, so it's just as well. The first thing my host mom said to me this morning was not "bonjour," but "You have a cold?" I didn't look so good. The family is going on vacation next week so we'll have the house to ourselves.
February 17, 2008
Week 3 Summer-y
Foreword: I recently discovered that I forgot to bring my camera battery charger, so I didn't take any pictures this week. I could take some of my classmates' pictures from Facebook but they're not that great. That and I'm too lazy. And most of the recent stuff hasn't been posted yet. But I'm determined to post at least once a week, so if anyone wants a play-by-play of my life, read on. Also, I will hereafter refer to our school/institute building as "Saint-Merri," the name of the street it's on, because everyone calls it that and it's easier.
Sunday Went to our ward in Versailles for the first time. Although it's about 9 miles south of us, it takes an hour and a half to get there because we have to take a train east to to edge of Paris and then switch lines. Makes for a long Sunday, but I love church! Everyone was so sweet to us despite the fact that some of the girls make no effort to speak French...kinda bugs. It was nice to meet in a real chapel in a real ward with cute children and everything. (Is it bad that the talk I could understand easiest was the one given by an American?...I'll work on it.) Met Sis. Jones, an American who has lived with her family in Versailles for 18 years! The de Martenes' oldest son, who happens to be really good-looking, ate dinner with us. Since you all wanted to know. :)
Monday Pretty uneventful. Went to class, went home and fed ourselves dinner because Quentin was the only one home, then watched some TV with him.
Tuesday Same, except we ate with M. de Martene and Quentin. More entertaining conversation. Quentin likes to make fun of us and I think most of the time we don't catch it because he mumbles. Sometimes we just smile and nod.
Wednesday Had our second fine arts class, this time in the Louvre. We'll be meeting there for the next few weeks. Lesson 1 was Mesopotamian, Greek & Roman art. Took a lunch break and then Dr. Welch's class met back at the Code of Hammurabi (how often can you say you met at the Code of Hammurabi?) and had a fascinating discussion of some of the artifacts we hadn't already looked at. That stuff is right up his alley. Jacqueline & I have to go back tomorrow to pick an artifact on which to write a paper relating to the BoM...should be interesting. I love the Louvre! Can't wait to go back and see more every week. (Plus I can get in free whenever I want with my student pass...without waiting in line!) Spent the rest of the afternoon reading and people-watching in a huge park, the Jardin de Luxembourg, then went to the Welches' to call home and share the very fresh, very yummy bread they had just gotten. :) Hurried home for dinner, where there was another missionary letter waiting for me. Yay! Thanks, Kristin!
Thursday Another long but fun day. Finished our discussion of L'Ecole des Femmes, our first play, in the Molière class. In Dr. Welch's class, discussed parallelism in the BoM and he told us the story of how he discovered chiasmus on his mission in Germany, complete with a slideshow of pictures. Then J & I and our friends Diane and Sarah bought pastries and ate them under the Eiffel Tower. And moaned with happiness at how good they were. And took pictures. No wonder we looked so obviously American that a guy walked by and said, "Good lunch!" I think he was just jealous. Then J & I did the Place de la Concorde "walk," which included the French White House (the Elysée Palace), the American, British, and Colombian embassies, pricey boutiques like Chanel, Cartier, and Hermes lining the Rue Faubourg St Honoré (2000-euro vest, anyone?), and Place de la Concorde and the famous 3000-year-old Luxor Obelisk in the center. It was getting dark and we were just in time to see the obelisk light up from where we finished with a stroll through the Jardin des Tuileries. Went back to Saint-Merri for Institute and stayed for choir practice afterward with the adorable Hawaiian senior sister missionary who's in charge of the Easter program.
Friday Slept in...went to Saint-Merri for another choir practice with just the BYU girls, then spent the afternoon doing a walk in a neighborhood called the Marais, which the school borders on. Saw some cool hôtels with cute gardens, a beautiful church called St. Paul's, remnants of the old city wall from the 12th century, the Jewish neighborhood, scratched the surface of the Musée Carnavalet, and visited Victor Hugo's old place in the Place des Vosges, Paris' oldest square. Whew! Then we headed to Versailles for the ward Valentine's Day shindig. It was way fun, and guess what the dinner was? Mexican!
Saturday Spent all day at home chilling and doing homework, then went to Saint-Merri for the YSA Valentine's dance. Two dances in a row was kind of weird after not going to dances for so long. It was a painful reminder that I can't dance. And they really like techno music. But we also heard "La Bamba" and "Cotton Eye Joe" both nights, which made me feel more at home. I decided we'll have to teach them the real dance sometime, the spoke-line version.
Today Church was good. My goal was to only speak French and meet at least one new person. So I sat down next to a unfamilar girl in Sunday School only to find that she's German and doesn't speak any French. But we had a good conversation anyway. :) I did get to meet a few people and bond with the adorable little girl of the American lady who spoke last week, Margie. Met the de Martenes' other son at dinner. His mother seemed very happy to point out that he's a few days older than me. And that wasn't the first time she told me. Interesting. Had the best dessert ever...it was similar to ice cream cake. The homemade crème brûlée a couple weeks ago wasn't bad, either. :) I was reminded how funny Quentin is. I missed that kid over the weekend when we weren't here much.
Here's a map I threw together if you want to see where everything is.
That's it for now. Hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day with their sweetie! Tommy, hope you had a good birthday and I'm glad you and Doris got to go to Oregon! Matthew, I can't wait to get your letter!
Sunday Went to our ward in Versailles for the first time. Although it's about 9 miles south of us, it takes an hour and a half to get there because we have to take a train east to to edge of Paris and then switch lines. Makes for a long Sunday, but I love church! Everyone was so sweet to us despite the fact that some of the girls make no effort to speak French...kinda bugs. It was nice to meet in a real chapel in a real ward with cute children and everything. (Is it bad that the talk I could understand easiest was the one given by an American?...I'll work on it.) Met Sis. Jones, an American who has lived with her family in Versailles for 18 years! The de Martenes' oldest son, who happens to be really good-looking, ate dinner with us. Since you all wanted to know. :)
Monday Pretty uneventful. Went to class, went home and fed ourselves dinner because Quentin was the only one home, then watched some TV with him.
Tuesday Same, except we ate with M. de Martene and Quentin. More entertaining conversation. Quentin likes to make fun of us and I think most of the time we don't catch it because he mumbles. Sometimes we just smile and nod.
Wednesday Had our second fine arts class, this time in the Louvre. We'll be meeting there for the next few weeks. Lesson 1 was Mesopotamian, Greek & Roman art. Took a lunch break and then Dr. Welch's class met back at the Code of Hammurabi (how often can you say you met at the Code of Hammurabi?) and had a fascinating discussion of some of the artifacts we hadn't already looked at. That stuff is right up his alley. Jacqueline & I have to go back tomorrow to pick an artifact on which to write a paper relating to the BoM...should be interesting. I love the Louvre! Can't wait to go back and see more every week. (Plus I can get in free whenever I want with my student pass...without waiting in line!) Spent the rest of the afternoon reading and people-watching in a huge park, the Jardin de Luxembourg, then went to the Welches' to call home and share the very fresh, very yummy bread they had just gotten. :) Hurried home for dinner, where there was another missionary letter waiting for me. Yay! Thanks, Kristin!
Thursday Another long but fun day. Finished our discussion of L'Ecole des Femmes, our first play, in the Molière class. In Dr. Welch's class, discussed parallelism in the BoM and he told us the story of how he discovered chiasmus on his mission in Germany, complete with a slideshow of pictures. Then J & I and our friends Diane and Sarah bought pastries and ate them under the Eiffel Tower. And moaned with happiness at how good they were. And took pictures. No wonder we looked so obviously American that a guy walked by and said, "Good lunch!" I think he was just jealous. Then J & I did the Place de la Concorde "walk," which included the French White House (the Elysée Palace), the American, British, and Colombian embassies, pricey boutiques like Chanel, Cartier, and Hermes lining the Rue Faubourg St Honoré (2000-euro vest, anyone?), and Place de la Concorde and the famous 3000-year-old Luxor Obelisk in the center. It was getting dark and we were just in time to see the obelisk light up from where we finished with a stroll through the Jardin des Tuileries. Went back to Saint-Merri for Institute and stayed for choir practice afterward with the adorable Hawaiian senior sister missionary who's in charge of the Easter program.
Friday Slept in...went to Saint-Merri for another choir practice with just the BYU girls, then spent the afternoon doing a walk in a neighborhood called the Marais, which the school borders on. Saw some cool hôtels with cute gardens, a beautiful church called St. Paul's, remnants of the old city wall from the 12th century, the Jewish neighborhood, scratched the surface of the Musée Carnavalet, and visited Victor Hugo's old place in the Place des Vosges, Paris' oldest square. Whew! Then we headed to Versailles for the ward Valentine's Day shindig. It was way fun, and guess what the dinner was? Mexican!
Saturday Spent all day at home chilling and doing homework, then went to Saint-Merri for the YSA Valentine's dance. Two dances in a row was kind of weird after not going to dances for so long. It was a painful reminder that I can't dance. And they really like techno music. But we also heard "La Bamba" and "Cotton Eye Joe" both nights, which made me feel more at home. I decided we'll have to teach them the real dance sometime, the spoke-line version.
Today Church was good. My goal was to only speak French and meet at least one new person. So I sat down next to a unfamilar girl in Sunday School only to find that she's German and doesn't speak any French. But we had a good conversation anyway. :) I did get to meet a few people and bond with the adorable little girl of the American lady who spoke last week, Margie. Met the de Martenes' other son at dinner. His mother seemed very happy to point out that he's a few days older than me. And that wasn't the first time she told me. Interesting. Had the best dessert ever...it was similar to ice cream cake. The homemade crème brûlée a couple weeks ago wasn't bad, either. :) I was reminded how funny Quentin is. I missed that kid over the weekend when we weren't here much.
Here's a map I threw together if you want to see where everything is.
That's it for now. Hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day with their sweetie! Tommy, hope you had a good birthday and I'm glad you and Doris got to go to Oregon! Matthew, I can't wait to get your letter!
February 11, 2008
Tagged
Here are 7 random things about me for you to read if you feel so inclined...
1. I don't like being scared. I don't like rollercoasters or scary movies. I couldn't even handle "The Others," so watching "When a Stranger Calls" last year in the David John basement with some girlfriends was a big mistake, especially after all my babysitting experience. Never again. I just had a nightmare the other night after briefly talking about Edgar Allan Poe with my roommate.
2. I really enjoy the satisfaction of a job well done.
3. I love looking nice, but sometimes it's not worth the effort.
4. I think TV in general is a waste of time unless it's Monk. :) Or you're multitasking (see #7).
5. I'm obsessive about saving everything, thinking that I'll want or need it later, no matter what it is. I've gotten better over the years, but I used to be a total pack rat.
6. I love getting mail! Even if it's not important, if it has my name on it, it's exciting!
7. I love multitasking. I feel like I can justify a little fun TV-watching if I'm keeping my hands busy with knitting or something else. (I miss my knitting!)
Since this is a special Europe edition, I'll give you 2 bonus top 7 lists!
Things I miss most about home (besides family and friends, of course):
1. rill Mexican mills
2. Blue Bell ice cream
3. Monk
4. my books
5. my clothes (I brought hardly any)
6. my iPod (can't complain though, I have iTunes)
7. White family lingo
Things I like most about being here:
1. Rocky isn't
2. my host family
3. Dr. Welch's Book of Mormon class...amazing!
4. the history!
5. the free time (I only have 7 scheduled class meetings per week)
6. no testing center!
7. the food...mmmm
On an unrelated note, I haven't been doing a good job taking pictures since our trip last week...sorry. It was a good weekend, though. Our host mom gave us a tour of the town, including a national archaeology museum and a cool market. We did one of the "walks" for class--went to Notre Dame, climbed to the top, visited the crypt underneath the square, and the famous Conciergerie prison...and got in all those places for free! Also discovered a beautiful park yesterday where we watched swans and did homework. Happy one month, Olivia!
1. I don't like being scared. I don't like rollercoasters or scary movies. I couldn't even handle "The Others," so watching "When a Stranger Calls" last year in the David John basement with some girlfriends was a big mistake, especially after all my babysitting experience. Never again. I just had a nightmare the other night after briefly talking about Edgar Allan Poe with my roommate.
2. I really enjoy the satisfaction of a job well done.
3. I love looking nice, but sometimes it's not worth the effort.
4. I think TV in general is a waste of time unless it's Monk. :) Or you're multitasking (see #7).
5. I'm obsessive about saving everything, thinking that I'll want or need it later, no matter what it is. I've gotten better over the years, but I used to be a total pack rat.
6. I love getting mail! Even if it's not important, if it has my name on it, it's exciting!
7. I love multitasking. I feel like I can justify a little fun TV-watching if I'm keeping my hands busy with knitting or something else. (I miss my knitting!)
Since this is a special Europe edition, I'll give you 2 bonus top 7 lists!
Things I miss most about home (besides family and friends, of course):
1. rill Mexican mills
2. Blue Bell ice cream
3. Monk
4. my books
5. my clothes (I brought hardly any)
6. my iPod (can't complain though, I have iTunes)
7. White family lingo
Things I like most about being here:
1. Rocky isn't
2. my host family
3. Dr. Welch's Book of Mormon class...amazing!
4. the history!
5. the free time (I only have 7 scheduled class meetings per week)
6. no testing center!
7. the food...mmmm
On an unrelated note, I haven't been doing a good job taking pictures since our trip last week...sorry. It was a good weekend, though. Our host mom gave us a tour of the town, including a national archaeology museum and a cool market. We did one of the "walks" for class--went to Notre Dame, climbed to the top, visited the crypt underneath the square, and the famous Conciergerie prison...and got in all those places for free! Also discovered a beautiful park yesterday where we watched swans and did homework. Happy one month, Olivia!
February 9, 2008
Day 3: Chantilly
After another yummy Hotel Ibis breakfast, on Wednesday we headed home. Our only stop was the Château de Chantilly in Chantilly, France. It's comprised of two adjacent buildings. The Grand Château was destroyed in the Revolution and rebuilt in the 1870s, and the Petit Château was built around 1560. It was very charming--we liked it even more than Versailles because it wasn't nearly as touristy. There was hardly anyone there that day besides our group.
Despite the looming clouds, it was actually a beautiful day.
The separate stables, home to hundreds of horses and even a horse museum!
This is a mosaic from Pompeii, 1st century AD. It's very rare because most of them aren't in color. Cool, huh? Some of this stuff they lend out to museums, but the Duke that lived here brought all kinds of stuff here and requested that none of it leave after he died.
The chandeliers were gorgeous.
The "singerie," or monkey room, one of only five such rooms left in the world. Apparently they were all the rage back in the day when people loved anything exotic. Like the Lady and the Unicorn tapestry that we saw at the Cluny Museum, it portrays the five senses. Our tour guide was super nice...he pretty much risked his job by letting us chill in this room. They usually don't let people stop here. And he didn't speak English, so I felt important translating for people who couldn't understand.
More of the monkey room.
A beautiful bedroom with beautiful chairs.
This harp is "very precious," our tour guide told us. You can say that again! Not only is it b's old, it's covered in real gold leaf!
A big hall with paintings of military victories, similar to the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, but with paintings instead of mirrors...and smaller.
We spent quite a while walking around the gardens and grounds. They're beautiful, and huge!
The Island of Love...there was also a cute gazebo with a statue in the middle but it was covered.
With Sarah and Rochelle, Emma's roommate. I felt very tall in this picture. :)
Looking out over the gardens.
Yay for horse statues!
Yay for dog statues! There were lots of those, and paintings of hunting dogs attacking, too. And of guys with their dogs. I thought of you, Dad. But it is a hunting lodge, after all. There's a room called the stag room that puts Gaston to shame. They use antlers in all of their decorating!
I know this is like the 50th picture of the outside, but I saw this one that someone else took on Facebook and had to include it. I also distinctly remember taking pictures of the library but they disappeared. It was really cool...two levels with chairs up top, coats of arms all around the ceiling...more Beauty and the Beast flashbacks. :) I spent a while in there drooling over the 13,000 books and 700 manuscripts, including a copy of the Duke of Berry's Book of Hours, and listening to Dr. Welch expound on the teachings of St. Augustine and Thomas Aquinas, whose works were featured prominently. Very cool castle! It was my favorite stop on our trip.
I added some pictures to the last two posts if you're interested. Also happy birthday to Robby and welcome home, Doris!
Despite the looming clouds, it was actually a beautiful day.
The separate stables, home to hundreds of horses and even a horse museum!
This is a mosaic from Pompeii, 1st century AD. It's very rare because most of them aren't in color. Cool, huh? Some of this stuff they lend out to museums, but the Duke that lived here brought all kinds of stuff here and requested that none of it leave after he died.
The chandeliers were gorgeous.
The "singerie," or monkey room, one of only five such rooms left in the world. Apparently they were all the rage back in the day when people loved anything exotic. Like the Lady and the Unicorn tapestry that we saw at the Cluny Museum, it portrays the five senses. Our tour guide was super nice...he pretty much risked his job by letting us chill in this room. They usually don't let people stop here. And he didn't speak English, so I felt important translating for people who couldn't understand.
More of the monkey room.
A beautiful bedroom with beautiful chairs.
This harp is "very precious," our tour guide told us. You can say that again! Not only is it b's old, it's covered in real gold leaf!
A big hall with paintings of military victories, similar to the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, but with paintings instead of mirrors...and smaller.
We spent quite a while walking around the gardens and grounds. They're beautiful, and huge!
The Island of Love...there was also a cute gazebo with a statue in the middle but it was covered.
With Sarah and Rochelle, Emma's roommate. I felt very tall in this picture. :)
Looking out over the gardens.
Yay for horse statues!
Yay for dog statues! There were lots of those, and paintings of hunting dogs attacking, too. And of guys with their dogs. I thought of you, Dad. But it is a hunting lodge, after all. There's a room called the stag room that puts Gaston to shame. They use antlers in all of their decorating!
I know this is like the 50th picture of the outside, but I saw this one that someone else took on Facebook and had to include it. I also distinctly remember taking pictures of the library but they disappeared. It was really cool...two levels with chairs up top, coats of arms all around the ceiling...more Beauty and the Beast flashbacks. :) I spent a while in there drooling over the 13,000 books and 700 manuscripts, including a copy of the Duke of Berry's Book of Hours, and listening to Dr. Welch expound on the teachings of St. Augustine and Thomas Aquinas, whose works were featured prominently. Very cool castle! It was my favorite stop on our trip.I added some pictures to the last two posts if you're interested. Also happy birthday to Robby and welcome home, Doris!
February 8, 2008
Day 2: Mardi Gras, Belgium-style
On Monday night we enjoyed a hotel room with real beds, a real bathroom and a blow dryer, unlike our first hotel in Paris. We also enjoyed a fabulous all-you-can-eat breakfast, complete with pain au chocolat (bread with chocolate chunks in it--I'd like to shake the hand of the fellow who came up with that novelty), croissants, fruit, cocoa, cereal...thank you, Ibis Hotel! Oh, how I took advantage of that. Then we drove to Ghent to pay a visit to Saint Bavo Cathedral. (Anyone ever heard of Saint Bavo? I sure hadn't.) The church was based on an old wooden chapel dating back to the 10th century and finally completed in 1569. But what we really went to see is the famous Ghent altarpiece kept there. It's a polyptych painting (like a triptych but with more panels) by Jan van Eyck and his brother Hubert. I learned all about van Eyck last semester in Music Civ 201 (and about Gothic cathedrals, of course) so it was very cool seeing this work with my prior knowledge. The colors are beautiful and the detail absolutely amazing. The original work is in its own room behind glass, but there's also a reproduction that you can get closer to.
Then it was off to a town called Binche for the Mardi Gras parade because apparently it's a big deal there. These guys called gilles dress up in these elaborate costumes that take months to make just for today's parade.
Unfortunately, it was cold and off-and-on raining. Not the most flattering picture of me, but you get the idea. We were huddled under the umbrellas for quite a while because we got there 4 hours before the parade started. (I would've liked to have spent more time at breakfast...) So needless to say (as Dr. Brookmole would say), we had plenty of time to walk up and down the main street--several times--and observe the pre-parade festivities...basically, drinking.
This little girl was unfazed by the weather. She happily threw confetti on the ground for hours.
The parade is finally underway! There are separate groups of gilles who each have their own drummer, without whom they can't go anywhere, and little bands who compete during the parade to see who can be the loudest and most obnoxious. (There was a guy playing an E-flat clarinet...shudder shudder.) The gilles also carry little baskets of oranges, which the little ones hand out and the teenagers chuck as hard as they can. We had several casualties in our group, including a busted lip! Oh, and those huge feathered hats they wear? Sis. Welch told us they cost 500 euros to rent. $750. To rent. For one day. These people are crazy.
Different costumes...I don't really know the story there. Looked like a drum major gone wrong.
And finally, the little kids dressed up in "harlequin" costumes. There also seemed to be a general Halloween mentality...many of the spectator children were wearing costumes. There were also lots of temporary party-supplyish stores and of course, food stands selling everything from bratwurst to pizza and hamburgers to crepes and waffles. It was fun (except for the cold and wet part) but I was a little underwhelmed. There were lots more ordinary people in the parade than costumed people, and they just kept going around and around the block! And we were all barricaded in. When we decided we couldn't stand it anymore, we hopped over the barricade during a lull and ran for it. The police standing guard didn't seem to mind. So really, the only thing I learned is that the Belgians don't understand the concept of a parade. And I think I smoked the equivalent of ten cigarettes. Prepare for my premature departure by lung cancer. On a happier note, I was quoted in the Daily Universe. My roommates were thrilled. :)
Then it was off to a town called Binche for the Mardi Gras parade because apparently it's a big deal there. These guys called gilles dress up in these elaborate costumes that take months to make just for today's parade.
Unfortunately, it was cold and off-and-on raining. Not the most flattering picture of me, but you get the idea. We were huddled under the umbrellas for quite a while because we got there 4 hours before the parade started. (I would've liked to have spent more time at breakfast...) So needless to say (as Dr. Brookmole would say), we had plenty of time to walk up and down the main street--several times--and observe the pre-parade festivities...basically, drinking.
This little girl was unfazed by the weather. She happily threw confetti on the ground for hours.
The parade is finally underway! There are separate groups of gilles who each have their own drummer, without whom they can't go anywhere, and little bands who compete during the parade to see who can be the loudest and most obnoxious. (There was a guy playing an E-flat clarinet...shudder shudder.) The gilles also carry little baskets of oranges, which the little ones hand out and the teenagers chuck as hard as they can. We had several casualties in our group, including a busted lip! Oh, and those huge feathered hats they wear? Sis. Welch told us they cost 500 euros to rent. $750. To rent. For one day. These people are crazy.
Different costumes...I don't really know the story there. Looked like a drum major gone wrong.
And finally, the little kids dressed up in "harlequin" costumes. There also seemed to be a general Halloween mentality...many of the spectator children were wearing costumes. There were also lots of temporary party-supplyish stores and of course, food stands selling everything from bratwurst to pizza and hamburgers to crepes and waffles. It was fun (except for the cold and wet part) but I was a little underwhelmed. There were lots more ordinary people in the parade than costumed people, and they just kept going around and around the block! And we were all barricaded in. When we decided we couldn't stand it anymore, we hopped over the barricade during a lull and ran for it. The police standing guard didn't seem to mind. So really, the only thing I learned is that the Belgians don't understand the concept of a parade. And I think I smoked the equivalent of ten cigarettes. Prepare for my premature departure by lung cancer. On a happier note, I was quoted in the Daily Universe. My roommates were thrilled. :)
February 7, 2008
Day 1: More cathedral, more chocolate
This week we took a 3-day trip to Belgium! First stop, Amiens (France), to visit the incredible Notre Dame d'Amiens cathedral, home of the head of John the Baptist, complete with silver platter.
It's even taller than Notre Dame de Paris.
Six of the apostles. I can now tell most of them apart in paintings, sculpture, stained glass, etc.
Not a very good picture, but this was my favorite stained glass. Most of the glass actually wasn't colored.
Looking down the nave.
A much better picture of the stained glass, taken by someone else. Thank you!
When the sun came out of the clouds, we saw this reflection on the pillars behind the windows.
Us inside the church...
No, I didn't take these either. Cool, huh?
Diane under another amazingly high organ.
The whole group.
Next stop, Bruges, aka Disneyland Belgium. It's so cute! This is the town hall (so I hear) in the main square. Could double as Cinderella's castle, right?
A big tower in the marketplace.
I thought it was funny that this (in Dutch)
and this (in French) were right next to each other. I didn't know until I looked at Wikipedia that Bruges is the capital of West Flanders. There you go.
We went to a chocolate museum that was not nearly as cool as the Lindt place in Cologne, but still fun (not to mention the people working there didn't seem too thrilled about 25 people coming in an hour before closing time). Reason #1 right here. Is that a gross visual or what?
Reason #2: we were too late to see a demo from this guy, and there was no mini-factory a la Willy Wonka.
But speaking of Johnny Depp, there were lots of amazing chocolate sculptures and figures, including Jack Sparrow and Davey Jones...
And several of these ladies.
And this huge egg made of...you guessed it, solid chocolate...with a picture of their "chocolate fairy." Forget a fairy godmother, I could use a chocolate fairy.
Apparently this was the Spaniards' secret recipe back in the day. Secret's out.
We finished the day with real Belgian waffles and fries (yes, they were created in Belgium). Mmm! Actually, I have to say I prefer American waffles, although it was delicious. (Shout-out to Doris!) We felt guilty speaking English all the time, but surprisingly, we saw almost no French and heard none at all. Also saw lots of adorable shops while trying to find our way to the hotel...chocolate and lace seemed to dominate. Unfortunately, they were closed, but the lace and the chocolate were both beautiful!
It's even taller than Notre Dame de Paris.
Six of the apostles. I can now tell most of them apart in paintings, sculpture, stained glass, etc.
Not a very good picture, but this was my favorite stained glass. Most of the glass actually wasn't colored.
Looking down the nave.
A much better picture of the stained glass, taken by someone else. Thank you!
When the sun came out of the clouds, we saw this reflection on the pillars behind the windows.
Us inside the church...
No, I didn't take these either. Cool, huh?
Diane under another amazingly high organ.
The whole group.
Next stop, Bruges, aka Disneyland Belgium. It's so cute! This is the town hall (so I hear) in the main square. Could double as Cinderella's castle, right?
A big tower in the marketplace.
I thought it was funny that this (in Dutch)
and this (in French) were right next to each other. I didn't know until I looked at Wikipedia that Bruges is the capital of West Flanders. There you go.
We went to a chocolate museum that was not nearly as cool as the Lindt place in Cologne, but still fun (not to mention the people working there didn't seem too thrilled about 25 people coming in an hour before closing time). Reason #1 right here. Is that a gross visual or what?
Reason #2: we were too late to see a demo from this guy, and there was no mini-factory a la Willy Wonka.
But speaking of Johnny Depp, there were lots of amazing chocolate sculptures and figures, including Jack Sparrow and Davey Jones...
And several of these ladies.
And this huge egg made of...you guessed it, solid chocolate...with a picture of their "chocolate fairy." Forget a fairy godmother, I could use a chocolate fairy.
Apparently this was the Spaniards' secret recipe back in the day. Secret's out.We finished the day with real Belgian waffles and fries (yes, they were created in Belgium). Mmm! Actually, I have to say I prefer American waffles, although it was delicious. (Shout-out to Doris!) We felt guilty speaking English all the time, but surprisingly, we saw almost no French and heard none at all. Also saw lots of adorable shops while trying to find our way to the hotel...chocolate and lace seemed to dominate. Unfortunately, they were closed, but the lace and the chocolate were both beautiful!
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