Which is exactly what today has been. We climbed a monument, rode a bike, free time, shopping time, dinner time, play time, ice cream time and here we are at the end-of-the-day time :-)
The Arc de Triomphe, built by Napoleon to celebrate France's Victories in battles, was the only real monument on our agenda today. Climbing to the top (because the lift was out of order) didn't seem nearly as long as in years past. There is a great view from the top of the city of Paris. It's easy to trace the wide Champs Elysee all the way from the Arc to the Tuileries Gardens to the Louvre. The Eiffel Tower is right in front of us. The Sacre-Couer, the highest point in Paris is seen on a hill far far away. Interestingly Napoleon marched his troops through the Arc as he returned from victorious battles, Hitler marched his troops through it as Paris fell and the Allies marched through as they liberated Paris and the rest of Europe. It is QUITE a historical landmark.
Aren't they a handsome bunch??? The most difficult part of getting to the top of the Arc is not climbing the steps but actually FINDING the pedestrian tunnel under that huge traffic circle to the base of the Arch. It seems every year that it's never in the same place that we left it from the previous year ;-) So round and round we go...and round...and round...
Our next activity was probably one of the highlights of every Student Europe Trip which is a bike ride through the city of ? This year's chosen city was Paris, and Christian, our transplanted American Bike Tour Leader, took us safely through some of the most beautiful streets and alleys of Paris. A loo break, a bottle of cold water, pick a bike and we're OFF for the the next 4 hours touring around Paris. I don't think there could have been a more beautiful day for biking or a more pleasant group of students than we had this year. Mr. Margene even brought one of those head-mounted mini video cameras for Joseph to wear as we biked. Unfortunately it didn't last the ENTIRE way - but we still captured enough to make a VERY VERY fun CD Presentation to these students at the conclusion of this trip. What memories they will have!
Lunch in the Tuileries Garden:
Abbey Lee in front of Victor Hugo's residence:
One of the oldest cobble stone streets in Paris:
Ever seen the movie Ratatouille ??
Did you know it was based on a true historical event in Paris?? Yep, this picture is EXACTLY what you think it is ;-)
What an absolute fantastical A+++ day we've had, and it's ONLY half over at this point! Our next "sedjuled" event is, well, actually nothing! We're taking a break and heading back to our hotel for some free time, but FIRST:
it's an ICE CREAM break! Don't you think they deserve it??? Of course they do!
The greatest little ice cream in all of Paris is just around the corner from our hotel. After loading up on some very tasty flavors and intricate designs (as only the French can do) we head back to the hotel, freshen up, take a nap, do what you want for a while. Mr. Margene took some of the guys shopping on the Champs Elysee while Mrs. Mynatt took some of the ladies shopping on Blvd St. Michael. Mr. Mynatt and Miss Haley "volunteered" to stay at the hotel with the rest of the students ;-)
After shopping came the all important Dinner time at Pizza Roma...about a 15 minute easy walk from our hotel. We first visited Pizza Roma as a group in 2013 after Mr. and Mrs. Mynatt stuumbled upon the place on their own little getaway a few years back. Not much English is spoken here and absolutely ZERO French is spoken by the Mynatts (thank heavens for Google Translate and friends) but I do manage to use my "Charade" skills to communicate that we have a student group and would they allow us to visit? You know, it's not just any restaurant that wants a school group of 20+ to invade their dining room. These people welcomed us with open arms and we had Italian tonight! Tonight we had a pleasant surprise at dinner as Matt Wright's big sister Lauren dropped in to visit and see her little brother. She used to be in our Sunday School class when she was a wee tot. Now she's all grown up and living in Paris. What a great surprise!
It was a fine dinner for a very fine day. Yes, we even had several desserts and then as we walked back toward our hotel we made an impromptu decision that we wanted more ice cream from our favorite little ice cream shop which we had just left about 3 hour earlier. That's ok! We're here to learn and experience and, well, ice cream is definitely and EXPERIENCE that fits our agenda!
Instead of going back to our hotel we decide to finish out our evening on the town by visiting the Luxembourg Gardens which are just across the street from the ice cream shop...how convenient! So OFF we go to walk through some of the most beautifully manicured plots in Paris. Ever seen M. Night Shalaman's "The Happening"? Some of the scenes from that movie were filmed here which GREATLY excites Elise as she and Emme strike a movie scene pose for us:
While we're in the gardens Sarah Martin appears out of nowhere as she arrives on the scene running to Mrs. Mynatt and gives her a great big hug. What EXCITEMENT! Sarah graduated CAK in 2012 and was a junior chaperone on Mrs. Mynatt's 2010 Student Europe Trip. She just happens to be in Paris studying for a month via UT Knoxville's Study Abroad Program, and she just happens to have an itinerary of our trip with her. What great fun to see and visit with Sarah and to hear about her life as a college student. We just MUST have a group picture with Sarah at the grand fountain in the gardens.
Sarah walks with us as we continue our path through the gardens and find ourselves in the middle of the basketball court, the tennis courts and an impromptu soccer field...gee, wonder how that happened? There are a group of Parisian guys kicking around a soccer ball, and seeing how nobody from OUR group saw fit to bring a soccer ball in their checked luggage the OBVIOUS thing to do is stand at the edge of the court attempting to draw an invitation to join the game. After about 15 minutes of awkward longing and contempletive stares (going both ways) our students finally join in on the fun ;-) A few students play soccer, a few students play basketball with some other Parisian kids and a few kids spectate on a currently IN-PROGRESS tennis match.
I think CAK actually won the match...after Emily Patti finally joined in! The boys said Emily was their X-Factor - I think that's a good thing :-)
And there you have it. The ending to an absolutely A+++ day. Tomorrow is a travel day so please be praying for safety, smooth connections, and Car Services that show up in the morning to transport us to Gare de l'Est as we make our way to Munich. The 2013 students had a very rainy visit in Munich, and I hope this group can have some sunshine for their Munich experience.
We bid you a very fond farewell from Paris and tomorrow we hope to talk with you from Sunshiny Munich.
Au Revoir!
The Arc de Triomphe, built by Napoleon to celebrate France's Victories in battles, was the only real monument on our agenda today. Climbing to the top (because the lift was out of order) didn't seem nearly as long as in years past. There is a great view from the top of the city of Paris. It's easy to trace the wide Champs Elysee all the way from the Arc to the Tuileries Gardens to the Louvre. The Eiffel Tower is right in front of us. The Sacre-Couer, the highest point in Paris is seen on a hill far far away. Interestingly Napoleon marched his troops through the Arc as he returned from victorious battles, Hitler marched his troops through it as Paris fell and the Allies marched through as they liberated Paris and the rest of Europe. It is QUITE a historical landmark.
Aren't they a handsome bunch??? The most difficult part of getting to the top of the Arc is not climbing the steps but actually FINDING the pedestrian tunnel under that huge traffic circle to the base of the Arch. It seems every year that it's never in the same place that we left it from the previous year ;-) So round and round we go...and round...and round...
Our next activity was probably one of the highlights of every Student Europe Trip which is a bike ride through the city of ? This year's chosen city was Paris, and Christian, our transplanted American Bike Tour Leader, took us safely through some of the most beautiful streets and alleys of Paris. A loo break, a bottle of cold water, pick a bike and we're OFF for the the next 4 hours touring around Paris. I don't think there could have been a more beautiful day for biking or a more pleasant group of students than we had this year. Mr. Margene even brought one of those head-mounted mini video cameras for Joseph to wear as we biked. Unfortunately it didn't last the ENTIRE way - but we still captured enough to make a VERY VERY fun CD Presentation to these students at the conclusion of this trip. What memories they will have!
Lunch in the Tuileries Garden:
Abbey Lee in front of Victor Hugo's residence:
One of the oldest cobble stone streets in Paris:
Ever seen the movie Ratatouille ??
Did you know it was based on a true historical event in Paris?? Yep, this picture is EXACTLY what you think it is ;-)
What an absolute fantastical A+++ day we've had, and it's ONLY half over at this point! Our next "sedjuled" event is, well, actually nothing! We're taking a break and heading back to our hotel for some free time, but FIRST:
The greatest little ice cream in all of Paris is just around the corner from our hotel. After loading up on some very tasty flavors and intricate designs (as only the French can do) we head back to the hotel, freshen up, take a nap, do what you want for a while. Mr. Margene took some of the guys shopping on the Champs Elysee while Mrs. Mynatt took some of the ladies shopping on Blvd St. Michael. Mr. Mynatt and Miss Haley "volunteered" to stay at the hotel with the rest of the students ;-)
After shopping came the all important Dinner time at Pizza Roma...about a 15 minute easy walk from our hotel. We first visited Pizza Roma as a group in 2013 after Mr. and Mrs. Mynatt stuumbled upon the place on their own little getaway a few years back. Not much English is spoken here and absolutely ZERO French is spoken by the Mynatts (thank heavens for Google Translate and friends) but I do manage to use my "Charade" skills to communicate that we have a student group and would they allow us to visit? You know, it's not just any restaurant that wants a school group of 20+ to invade their dining room. These people welcomed us with open arms and we had Italian tonight! Tonight we had a pleasant surprise at dinner as Matt Wright's big sister Lauren dropped in to visit and see her little brother. She used to be in our Sunday School class when she was a wee tot. Now she's all grown up and living in Paris. What a great surprise!
It was a fine dinner for a very fine day. Yes, we even had several desserts and then as we walked back toward our hotel we made an impromptu decision that we wanted more ice cream from our favorite little ice cream shop which we had just left about 3 hour earlier. That's ok! We're here to learn and experience and, well, ice cream is definitely and EXPERIENCE that fits our agenda!
Instead of going back to our hotel we decide to finish out our evening on the town by visiting the Luxembourg Gardens which are just across the street from the ice cream shop...how convenient! So OFF we go to walk through some of the most beautifully manicured plots in Paris. Ever seen M. Night Shalaman's "The Happening"? Some of the scenes from that movie were filmed here which GREATLY excites Elise as she and Emme strike a movie scene pose for us:
While we're in the gardens Sarah Martin appears out of nowhere as she arrives on the scene running to Mrs. Mynatt and gives her a great big hug. What EXCITEMENT! Sarah graduated CAK in 2012 and was a junior chaperone on Mrs. Mynatt's 2010 Student Europe Trip. She just happens to be in Paris studying for a month via UT Knoxville's Study Abroad Program, and she just happens to have an itinerary of our trip with her. What great fun to see and visit with Sarah and to hear about her life as a college student. We just MUST have a group picture with Sarah at the grand fountain in the gardens.
Sarah walks with us as we continue our path through the gardens and find ourselves in the middle of the basketball court, the tennis courts and an impromptu soccer field...gee, wonder how that happened? There are a group of Parisian guys kicking around a soccer ball, and seeing how nobody from OUR group saw fit to bring a soccer ball in their checked luggage the OBVIOUS thing to do is stand at the edge of the court attempting to draw an invitation to join the game. After about 15 minutes of awkward longing and contempletive stares (going both ways) our students finally join in on the fun ;-) A few students play soccer, a few students play basketball with some other Parisian kids and a few kids spectate on a currently IN-PROGRESS tennis match.
I think CAK actually won the match...after Emily Patti finally joined in! The boys said Emily was their X-Factor - I think that's a good thing :-)
And there you have it. The ending to an absolutely A+++ day. Tomorrow is a travel day so please be praying for safety, smooth connections, and Car Services that show up in the morning to transport us to Gare de l'Est as we make our way to Munich. The 2013 students had a very rainy visit in Munich, and I hope this group can have some sunshine for their Munich experience.
We bid you a very fond farewell from Paris and tomorrow we hope to talk with you from Sunshiny Munich.
Au Revoir!
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