Everyday Franglais

Cimetière du Père Lachaise  A huge cemetery where you can see the graves of notable figures including Jim Morrison. I spent a pleasant afternoon exploring with friends. The trees and foliage make parts of the cemetery feel like an escape from the city. 

Parc des Buttes Chaumont Nice park with good views and rock formations. Its a great place for a run, which is a blessing since it can be difficult to run on the small crowded sidewalks in Paris.  

The Seine is flooding!  Spent a day walking the flooded banks of the river. The high water is affecting the public transport and causing other issues, but it looks super interesting!

Musée Rodin Museum displaying the sculptures and painting of Auguste Rodin. The garden is very nice, definitely worth a visit. 

Notre-Dame de Paris The famed cathedral in the center of the city. I passed by it fairly often but never went inside until my parents came to visit. Even more beautiful from the inside!

Visited the south of France for New years!  I was lucky enough to have my favorite traveling companion with me for the holidays too. Spent New Years in Bandol visiting friends, and got to explore Marseilles for a few hours waiting for the train. A nice bit of sunshine after a few weeks of rain in Paris. Also saw the Mediterranean for the first time! Ate very well for new years eve dinner, including this whole fish cooked in a big pot. 

Provins This medieval town makes a great day trip from Paris. About an hour and a half by train, which works with your navigo pass as a bonus. There was so much to see here. Walking through the town seeing the historical buildings and climbing the Tour César is a great way to spend an afternoon. The part of the wall around the town by Porte Faneron dates back to the 13th century.  Great views and medieval vibes!

Galerie de Paléontologie et d'anatomie comparée A bit of a hidden gem on the edge of the Jardin des Plantes.  Lots of bones! A variety of interesting examples of dinosaur skeletons as well as various species of other animals.  

Basilique Cathédrale de Saint-Denis Located in the North of Paris. Its significant as the first gothic cathedral. I was drawn to the details from the facade, and also found the crypt interesting. You can find Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI buried in the crypt along with some other notable figures.  Pretty cool!

Brussels! Easy trip by train or bus from Paris. We spent two days in the city over the weekend checking out the sights. It was a little bit gritty, but in a way that I found really nice.  Here are some highlights: Cantillon museum:  Traditional lambic brewery still operating with equipment from early 1900s. The tour comes with a tasting of their amazing beers. Absolute must see if you're visiting. Moeder Lambic: Bar specializing in lambic brews from Belgium. Nice atmosphere and great beer selection Delirium: Famous brewery and pub from the city. The bar is huge and packed with people. A bit touristy but still worth grabbing a beer there. Mimi: Super cool contemporary art museum. One of my favorite parts of the visit. Horta Museum:  The architect's home and studio done in his art nouveau style. great collection of art nouveau objects and architecture. No photos allowed so it isn't pictured below.  ...

Some famous thing in Montmartre, so I took a photo with it. Here ya go.

Grande Halle De La Vilette  had a great installation by artist Ryoji Ikeda and William Forsythe. Ikeda's was an immersive installation of sound and light projected onto a platform. Watching people move through it was just as interesting as being in the middle of it. La Vilette in general is a nice park that holds a variety of events. A lot of good stuff to see here in general.

Cimetière de Montmartre One of my favorite spots for a walk.  Go to see famous graves like Degas or Dumas, stay for all the cats! I was surprised to see the cats had tattooed ears, which apparently comes from an effort to control the cat population by marking them as spayed or neutered. Either way they look tough.