By this Author: genstarz33

Oh hey everyone!
After a long hiatus Genevieve is back to tell you about Prague! Basically, it's beautiful and completely picturesque. We decided to explore a little bit and then eventually head over to St. Vitus Cathedral and the Prague Castle. So, we found our way to the Old Town Square (definitely window shopping along the way). When we first saw Old Town Square it's like you have stepped back in time. All the buildings are from 18th or 19th century (or older) which means that they are beautiful and have awesome architecture. It looks like you have stepped into a story book. It's also really quiet because there aren't as many cars driving around in the Old Town part of the city. It's really nice.

Anyway, the main attraction in the Square is the Astronomical Clock which dates back to the early 1400s. It's way old. Not only does it tell time it also tells astrological time which is totally sweet. We weren't exactly sure how to read it exactly and we think it might even tell you what day it is...but we're not sure. We arrived in the Square just in time to see it strike the hour. At the hour there's a procession of the Apostles. It was quite awesome because you could kind of tell which Apostle was which because they were holding something that was significant to them. Also, there was a skeleton that was ringing the bells. I guess it's just one of those subtle reminders that death is always coming. It really was beautiful.

Then we headed down to the Charles Bridge because we needed to cross the huge Vltava River in order to get to the castle. Sidenote: I have been dying to see this bridge because there is this historical fiction book series that I read like Freshman year in high school and to make a long story short Charles Bridge is slightly significant and was definitely mentioned in these books. So I was totally psyched to see it. Anyway, it's huge. It's really impressive when you first walk up to it. What's almost more impressive is the fact that this bridge took 50 years to build which is no small wonder considering the fact that it was finished in 1402. Yeah, it's still standing. It's probably because they used eggs in the mortar to make it stronger (no joke). So, we walked across the bridge which has about 30 statues of Saints or other figures lining either side of the bridge. It has some fantastic views of Prague. Really beautiful.

After we crossed the bridge we started heading for the hill to get to the castle. As we were walking across one of the squares it started snowing? hailing? we weren't really sure. All we knew was that we were cold and wet.

Well, it eventually let up and we eventually made it to the top of the hill. When we got to the castle there were fence barricades and tons of people. And there were extra military personnel and the military band. We all just looked at each other and were like what's going on. Well, as it turns out, the President of the Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko, was coming to meet and chat with the President of the Czech Republic, Václav Klaus. So we waited around to see if maybe we could see one of them. Well, these two cars and then two huge buses and two more cars pull up and we're like is it him? Nope. Total fake out. But these guys get out of the car and we're like secret service guys. So, we wait around a little more and then these two other cars, tinted windows of course, and like 10 hcore guys on motorcycles, and some other intense looking vehicles pull up. And we're like, he's totally in the car with the Ukrainian flag. Yep, this time we were right. So, we saw the President of the Ukraine and the President of the Czech Republic, and we have the pictures and videos to prove it.

So, the Presidents shake hands and give the wives flowers and then the band plays and there's some sweet military marching stuff and that was that. It was really cool. Not everyone sees the President of a country, and we saw two. Legit.
Well, we're freezing but we decide to go see the Cathedral. Well, there was a line and we were waiting in a wind tunnel. We were frozen. And of course because the church is so ginormous it was cold in there too. But the church is beautiful, and very large. The stained glass windows were breathtaking. It really was awesome. But we were frozen.

So after seeing the church we decided to sit somewhere warm. Then we were hungry.
We walked around for a bit looking for a place to eat. We finally decided on The Three Violins and we sat there for hours, in the warmth. It was wonderful. After lunch we did some souvenir shopping. We even were in a music store that Anna Netrebko was in - sorry, music geek coming out. Then we walked across the bridge again and looked for the club that our friends had recommended. We found it and then it started pouring? hcore snowing? slushing? again we weren't sure. We just knew, again, that we were cold and wet. We did a little bit more souvenir shopping and then headed to the grocery store. That was definitely an interesting experience. But, as Alyssa said, they have macaroni! I see something orange - it's cheddar! Well, that ended our debate, macaroni and cheese it was. We also picked up some of the Czech beer, Kozel. The macaroni and cheese was an experiment in food. But it tasted good and we're all still alive so I don't think we did too badly. We then took naps because we were slightly exhausted. But we wanted to go out and we needed our energy.
So, at about 1130 and one beer later we head to Karlovy Lazne, a four story club right on the Vltava River right by the Charles Bridge. It was pretty good, even for a Tuesday night. We just wanted to be able to say that we had our clubbing experience in Prague.
We came back and went to bed and that was our first day in Prague! It was pretty legit. The city is beautiful! I love just seeing all the pretty buildings and feeling like I belong in a fairy tale. Everyone is really nice. It would have been way better if the weather weren't so awful (it was 60 in Rome, why did we go north for spring break?) I could definitely see myself living here. Definitely want to come back. It's just gorgeous.

Thanks for reading through. I promise to have something more to say soon!

Oh hey, by the way, I'm Genevieve. Alyssa's buddy and translator while in France.

So, the last day in Paris.

We, of course, had to attend mass at Notre Dame and so we awoke early, packed everything up. Merryn and her mum joined us for mass as well. It was such an awesome experience. Just walking into the church evokes the knowledge that the space is holy. That it was made for the veneration of something greater. The ceiling seems to reach to the heavens. There are so many unique and exquisitely beuatiful chapels off to the sides. Everything seems to lead to the altar - the focal point of the church. It's gorgeous. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Before mass began the organ played a prelude. It was breathtaking. And maybe I am able to get more out of music because I'm a music major, but I'm pretty sure you could not have been unmoved by the awesomeness of this sound permeating this cathedral. Looking at the organ is quite breathtaking as well. Basically, they do not make churches like they used to. Mass began and it was an interesting experience. First, because I don't really remember my French so I really didn't understand everything that was being said. But I knew what was going on. Second, the mass was Gregorian Chant. So even the music, while completely beautiful, was foreign. Neither of these facts necessarily detracted from the experience though. It was just great to be able to enjoy mass in such an awesome space.

Afterward, we walked around the church, took pictures and marveled at the beauty of such a building. When we left the church we did some souvenir shopping on the rue outside of Notre Dame. I purchased a scarf, as did Alyssa. Then it was off to Versailles!

The metro ride to Versailles was uneventful. We walk a bit to actually reach Versailles. And when you first see it you're kind of taken aback by it's, well, hugeness. You walk up to it and are immediately aware that this palace is slightly decadent. I mean, who needs gold gates? Apparently Louis did. I loved how, according to the building, it was built 'a toutes les gloires de la france', for all the glories of France. I think it's quite appropriate. We just kept walking and walking through and the hallways never seemed to end. At the beginning of the tour we saw the chapel which was just as beautiful in its own right. It was much brighter than Notre Dame. Then we walked through some of the private rooms. It seems that they had a different one for each day of the week or something. And that was just in one wing on one floor for one person. No joke. Then we get to the hall of mirrors.

The Hall of Mirrors was beautiful. But I'm not gonna lie, I think I expected more. I mean, everyone is always like Versailles, Versailles, Versailles. Ever since it was built everyone has been trying to build something to equal it. Well, frankly, maybe it's not my style or whatever, but I think he could have done better. And I understand that I am looking at it from the 21st century and things were built differently and the style was definitely different back in the day. Don't get me wrong, the frescoes are beautiful and each one is different and I truly appreciated them. I wish someone would paint a couple in my house. But every room looked kind of the same and it was like just one room after another. And some of the rooms aren't even the original rooms. It looked, at some points, that they could have done better to upkeep the history. But I digress, back to the Hall of Mirrors. It was beautiful. And the view out of the windows on to the grounds was fantastic. And it was cool how you could get to the rooms behind the Hall of Mirrors through the mirrors themselves. And it also gives you an idea about how expansive Versailles truly is.

After the Hall of Mirrors we walked into more rooms. We saw the bedrooms of the king and queen. And then we made our way downstairs and saw the apartments of the dauphin and then another queen, unfortunately I forget her name. But she had great taste because she had this organ thing (yay music! the dauphin also had a piano!) and a library (nothing like the Beast's in Beauty and the Beast however, they need to step it up a notch). After we saw those rooms we went outside to the grounds.

The grounds are impressive, even in January when practically everything is dead. They are very expansive and you can just imagine what it would be like to have a huge party there. They must be beautiful in the summer. I guess we'll have to go back. Then when you turn around and see Versailles from the back, that's when I was taken away. I guess it's just more aligned with my style of architecture, but it was beautiful. It was simple, graceful, and magnificent. Yes, the back of Versailles was the most impressive part of Versailles.

While we were marveling at Versailles we lost our friends. Thankfully, after lunch, Alyssa and I found them again and we headed back to Paris. We then discovered that we really had nothing to do because like everything closes. So Alyssa called her friend Brittany and we went to have dinner with her. She lives outside of Paris so we decided to say goodbye to Paris because we knew that we would see it again, unless you count the metro. So, we took the metro outside the city to meet her for dinner. Sidenote: we dominated the metro. Team Paris - 1, Metropolitan - 0. Anyway, we saw her cute little house where she was staying and then we walked around a bit and found a little cafe. The food was great and the wine was DELICIOUS! I was so excited to be eating in a French cafe drinking fantastic French wine with friends! It was perfect!

We then headed back to our hostel for a quick sleep and then up way early to catch our flight. Needless to say it was an adventure. I LOVED every minute of it. And if anyone would like to pay for my plane ticket to Paris, I'll go with them. Legit. But life here in Rome continues and it's wonderful. But I do believe that I left part of my heart in Paris. Vous me manquez! Hopefully I will go back. But for now, au revoir Paris!