dans lequel je mors et je vais au ciel || in which i die and go to heaven

today might have been one of the most perfect days of my life. i had 202, which was a bit of a doozy, i'll admit. we had 2 1/2 straight hours of french verb conjugation. phew. but it was actually really interesting and i'm glad we did it. i feel like after mapping it all out, i have a better handle on it.

now on to the really good stuff.

for our francophone culture class, we are doing a series of walking tours from a compilation of tours put together by byu professors. i did my first one today and i was so excited.

we started out our tour at hôtel de ville, which is the mayor's office. being the mayor of paris is a huuuuge deal. the building was originally built in the 16th century but was reconstructed in the 1800s in the same renaissance style. it's a really great building with a large square in front of it where there are all kinds of activities depending on the weather and season.

then we walked to a little park that i thought was going to be the mémorial de la déportation, which is a modern crypt that is dedicated in memory of the jews and other groups who were deported from france to concentration camps in wwii. but it wasn't. we played there for a few minutes and then went to the mémorial. i didn't take any photos here. it didn't feel right. it was such a dramatic place. the whole thing is right next to the seine and it is below ground level. we had to descend down a very narrow staircase into a central courtyard area. we were enclosed in high white walls with one little grate where we could see the river. inside the crypte there were little pearls (that's what they looked like) lining one passageway that stood for each person who lost their life. there were other passages that had cells we could look at. in the center of the crypt was the eternal flame - the light that will always burn in their memory.

after that we went to the notre dame. we didn't look around too much because dr h is going to take us on his own tour of it soon. i'm excited for that. it's such an amazing cathedral. no wonder it's such a popular tourist destination. i loved watching the people around me, seeing their jaws drop. paris really is a different place. i did not love watching the gypsies try and get money from the tourists. but that's life, right?

then we went to the crypte du parivs. this was an underground museum that showed some of the existing structures from the ancient city. the buildings there date back to the romans. crazy.

we also walked past a flower market that we went into and then past the palais de justice. this building is huge with this really ornate and gilded gateway. very impressive.

from there we went into the most amazing place. i have been waiting for years to see these cathedral in real life. sainte-chappelle. i heard of this cathedral a long time ago, and i had seen photos, but it was in my first semester of freshman year that i really learned about it in my art history class. i was so excited about it, i went so far as to spend an hour taking virtual tours of it after class. and sometimes i still do it. yep. i was obsessed. so when i tell you that walking into this cathedral brought tears to my eyes, i'm not even kidding one little bit. everything is painted. the entire chapel is filled with stained glass windows that soar above your head, easily 20 to 30 feet tall. cori and i were having the same problems. we could not even believe that we had actually made it to the cathedral that really made us interested in art history in the first place. it was kind of unreal and completely magical. it was the best date i have ever been on in my life :)

this walk really made me reflect on the value and importance of architecture here in paris. it is something that is cherished. it's a part of life, something that the people take care and effort to preserve. despite all the work it takes to maintain these buildings - all of them! - they do it because it's what makes it paris. i love that about the french culture - the importance of preservation of history. i think it's also a source of national pride for the french. it's that deep rooted pride i was talking about in my previous post. i love that difference between french and american culture and architecture. i've noticed it in my host mom's apartment, as well. everything has is so neat and tidy and well maintained because it is vintage. she works so hard to keep it all in working order, even though she could definitely modernize the entire place if she wanted to. it's the pride and the love of history and architecture that keep her doing what she does.

and sorry i'm not sorry about all the pictures.

hôtel de ville

fun graffiti

there is a lot of this around notre dame

on the roof of a building near the notre dame

sainte-chappelle

the altar at sainte-chappelle. i can't even.

dream come true.

examples of the painting.

angels holding christ's crown of thorns

the floor was even decorated. so fancy. they thought of everything.

so pretty.

me and cori. best date ever.

from inside the palais de justice.

liberté, égalité, fraternité || liberty, equality, brotherhood

now i'd like to move on a share a funny story. because it is funny and makes me laugh. ready? here it goes.

today at dinner, we had tuna with our rice. (i know, i'm eating way more fish than i bargained for.) anyway, olivia said something to madame about how her cat loves tuna. madame was so bewildered by the fact that cats in the eeuu (états unis || united states) eat tuna that she gave some to "petit chat." s/he ate all of it. i say "s/he" because no one knows. i don't even know if madame knows. anyway. moving on. about 10 minutes later, we were sitting at the table finishing our salads when the cat starts to throw up. s/he threw up all over the kitchen. and i had the hardest time controlling my laughter. how awkward and unfortunate. i almost peed my pants. the end! good story, right? maybe you had to be there, but i was (and still am) dying.