Gay Paree

After our TEFL course in Sevilla, Michelle, Patrick and I headed off for Barcelona while Clare went back to England and Tom ended up in Paris. I assumed he would be there for a year and I would have plenty of time to visit, but when I found out that he was leaving at the end of his course in February, I booked a cheap flight and quickly planned a weekend trip to France. After a 4-hour delay at the airport, I was there!



First, Tom met me at the bus station, and we went to meet his lovely girlfriend, Rola, and their friend Miki.



































After having a drink, we walked by Notre Dame at night...



... and then went back again the following morning.




Man suiting up in a rabbit costume. Random.























Since my flight was delayed Friday and I left again Sunday afternoon, I only had one full day there. So, we went into full tourist mode and did as much as possible on Saturday. After Notre Dame, we went to the Arc de Triomphe and the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur. (thank god for the copy and paste function).

After a little stroll, we came to a plaza where artists had set up stands for selling their paintings.  

In the plaza, a few men were drawing portraits.  This stunning woman was sitting in a leopard print coat, sipping a glass of white wine while the artist drew her.  The scene was a lot more elegant than anything I've witnessed in America, and I had to (discreetly) take a picture:


This kid is going places in life. Well done.

This guy had live goldfish swimming around in the jar that he balanced on his head while he juggled.
We stopped for drinks at a cool little place.  All of the walls were covered with a thick layer of little papers - notes and drawings from customers who had come there over the years.  Here's Tom and his sister, Charlotte, who was also visiting that weekend with her boyfriend.

The piano player in the restaurant.  Here you can see all the messages and pictures people left.


For dinner, we went to a really nice place with a beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower.  I had the most delicious salmon I've ever had, and we all watched the tower's light show each hour on the hour during the meal.

Later, naturally, we walked by the tower and took an excessive number of pictures.


Tom needed toilet paper for the apartment, so he stole a "loo roll" from the fancy restaurant.

And then Sunday I left.  It was a short trip, but definitely worth it.  Now I can say I've been to Paris twice, and this time I had a different experience since I was with people who speak the language fluently and really know the city.  It was amazing to walk around the city both during the day and at night, and I'm glad I got to meet up with Tom before his program ended.  He left for Argentina soon after, and, after spending so much time with him, Charlotte, and her boyfriend Rich, I came back to Barcelona with a tendency to say "lovely" and some answers to questions my students have about British English.  For now, cheerio and au revoir!