Welcome back everyone! Today was our last day here on the Amalfi coast so we decided to do a beach day. We got up early and ate breakfast at the hotel per usual, then went back upstairs and put our bathing suits on. We walked down the steps and windy road to the beach. Our hotel didn’t have beach towels and we didn’t bring any, so we chose to go to the only beach that had towels available to use.

After paying for towels and tickets, we set up shop on the sunbeds on the little “pier” next to stair access to the ocean. There were also stairs that went down to the small sand area (what you would normally consider a beach), but the stairs nearest to us went straight into the water and you could swim out there if you wished. There were also little rafts attached by anchors to float on. I put on sunscreen and sunbathed for an hour while my dad swam around and my mom and brother waded by the sand. After my dad returned to our stuff, I finally got in the water. It was cold at first but I warmed up quickly and swam to the rafts to continue sunbathing. The water was a rich, deep green but would definitely be clearer if it weren’t for the sand being such a dark brown.

Once I swam back to the pier/lounge area, we decided we were hungry and ready for food. The beach club had a restaurant so we ate there- I had a margherita pizza and it was delicious as always. You can’t really go wrong with getting pizza or pasta at any of the restaurants in this town. After we finished up with lunch, my mom and I searched for sea glass on the sand. There was actually SO MUCH, which was surprising for us. We both had full handfuls by the time we came back. I kept sunbathing until I decided to go in the water again and lay out. The beach was stunning, I could’ve stayed there forever between the views, warm water, and food.

We went back to the hotel room and showered off because after a day in the sun and the sweaty walk back we all felt disgusting. My mom and I walked through the town and brought all of our clothes to a local self-service laundromat because we were running out of non-sweaty warm weather clothes. It took about an hour and a half to do laundry (30 min wash, 1 hour dry) and we stopped for gelato on our way back to the room. My dad’s friend’s family met us at our hotel a little while after we got back, and they brought us to a more “local” dinner place in a little square more frequented by actual town residents than tourists.

The food was AMAZING- I got a pepperoni pizza and it was light yet filling and the pepperoni was the best I’d ever had. It was also just so fun to see my dad’s friend and her family (they’re going to the US soon and hopefully we’ll get to see them!), and get a taste of actually living here in Italy by the coast. I was talking to their daughter who’s 7 years old and I was just fascinated because I can’t imagine being so young and just naturally bilingual, calling this beautiful town home. After we ate, we went next door to a gelato place that was WAY better than the touristy ones on the main side of town. I got an oreo flavor and even though my stomach hurt after (I’m sensitive to dairy, clearly the food here isn’t helping but I love it anyways), it was so worth it.

The little plaza we were in was so cute. All of the local kids were out and eating gelato, there was live music and a girl singing who was really good, and the town just came alive. Our friends walked us back to our hotel and we took a group picture for memories before saying goodbye. Afterwards, we had to repack all of our stuff and fold the clothes we washed earlier because tomorrow morning we leave for ROME! I’m really going to miss this adorable beach town but I’m excited to move forward with our trip. We’re touring Pompeii tomorrow on our way to the Naples train station and then taking a train to Rome. I’ll keep you updated!

-Brooke

A picture of the beach/boardwalk from the interesting angle of the women’s bathroom line.

The view of the ocean from my sunbed, facing the sand/shore.

A lovely picture of our laundry machine that took us 10 minutes to figure out how to start.

Hello everyone! Today was a much-needed day of decompressing for us, and luckily we still had some fun in this beautiful town. We woke up early and got ready for breakfast, which was AMAZING! There were so many options here with SO many pastries, eggs, fruit, yogurt, toast, pancakes, cereal, ham, cheese, and more.

After eating, we began to walk around the town. It’s a smallish area so there were mainly tourists out and the locals seemed to still be sleeping for the most part, but it was already so hot even at only 9am! My dad was curious about what some of the nicer hotels with coastal views looked like, so we wandered around the grounds of some of those and explored most of the main streets. We were all sweating so we stopped back at the hotel to go to the bathroom and then went out to meet a friend of my dad’s who happens to live in a nearby town. She moved here once she met her husband who is from the area, and she showed us around and explained how we could access the coast/beach areas. We went to a park area where we could see the beach down below and the water was stunning. We were considering doing a day trip to Capri but were unsure, and she talked us out of it (my brother and mom get seasick, plus she said it’s not too special).

We grabbed lunch at one of the restaurants, and I got spaghetti. It was delicious and it tasted so fresh. As a side note, the bread that all the restaurants put out is heavenly and I really appreciate more opportunities to eat bread. Anyways, it was fascinating to hear about my dad’s friend’s experience living here in Italy. She brought her two-year-old son here to meet with us and I kept thinking how insane it would be to live in a small town like this but in such a beautiful country, living your daily life here. After we finished lunch, she escorted us to the nearest supermarket so we could stock up on water bottles and then we said goodbye.

We came back to the hotel again, as most things close in this town after lunch for the afternoon siesta/nap. My brother and I just watched some YouTube and caught up with social media while my parents slept. It was so hot outside (especially compared to Paris) that we were all drained. After a couple hours we were ready to head out again, but we still weren’t prepared for how hot it had gotten at that point in the afternoon. We got some gelato first to prepare ourselves- I got chocolate chip and I enjoyed it, but it didn’t taste too different from ice cream. We wandered through the streets again and decided to walk down to the water. It seemed daunting at first because of how high up we seemed to be and how many stairs there were, but it actually was a very quick walk once we got started. The stairs only took about two minutes and then we were walking down the main road to get to the pier area.

We walked through the area (there were lots of boats and travel agencies for excursions, etc.) and made our way down the boardwalks that led to the “beaches” and the sand. It was super crowded but it didn’t matter because we just wanted to see it, not go in at this point. It was gorgeous and the water looked very refreshing. It was about 85 degrees and the humidity was pretty strong by our standards (meaning it felt even hotter), so we decided to buy some cold waters by a nearby stand and sit on some benches in the shade for a little while. When we were done, we began the short journey back. We walked around a bit more and found another little viewing area where you could see the ocean as well, but after that we were all tired and sweaty and ready for another break.

My dad and brother went back to the hotel room while my mom and I decided to try and go shopping to find her a dress. We had no luck, but it was still eventful because we got to explore more streets and spend more time outside getting to know the town (even if we were basically melting). We then met back at the hotel room and relaxed, getting ready for dinner. Clearly it was a lazier day, but it was quite nice.

We went to the restaurant right next to our hotel because they have a window where you can see them making pizza fresh for take-away, and it smelled delicious. I had already had so many carbs today that I decided to get roast chicken instead, but it was also very good and juicy. My dad got a pizza and I had a bite- it put all other pizzas to shame. After dinner, we walked around the town and went back to the ocean viewing area we found previously to try and watch the sunset. It was kind of cloudy so there wasn’t a real sunset, but it was still a pretty view and we stayed for a little bit.

I wanted to walk all the way down the main street in town (the street we kept walking on) so we did, and we made it all the way out to a completely different section of ocean view hotels. There was a nice spot where we could see the ocean from a different angle so we took some pictures there, and headed back. It was finally dark, so we stopped at a bar/restaurant to get drinks and a snack before finally returning to our hotel at around 9:30pm. It was funny though at the bar because they were playing European MTV on the TV, but it was still all American music videos. We’ve been in the hotel room just getting ready for bed since, and making rough plans for tomorrow.

Traveling is fascinating to me because whenever I visit a new place it is evident of its own lifestyle and culture, even if only a short distance away from home. My suburban environment in Southern California just seems so standard/normal/typical, but this trip is opening my eyes to the completely different lives that people lead all over the world. Seeing my dad’s friend and hearing about her family is just an example of that; we also saw very young kids dancing in the town square at night after dark, and people drive CRAZY here. It’s just so different, and I know that may seem obvious, but it’s just interesting to put yourself in these local people’s shoes and observe the uniqueness of each place. Tomorrow is our last full day here on the Amalfi coast and we’re planning on heading to the beach, so I should have fun things to write about!

-Brooke

The entry to one of the stunning hotels on the edge of the cliff/coast we saw.

Dozens of scooters parked in lines on the street- everyone drives these here!

A strange angle from above, but these are the “beaches” here- the water is beautiful, but there’s not much sand at least in this town.

The beach once we walked down.

A different part of the beach from the viewing area.

Our sunset view from that same area.

The view at the end of Sorrento’s main street, a bunch of hotels that have coastal views up on the hillside.

Good morning from Italy everyone! I am writing this a day late (the next morning) from our beautiful hotel room in Sorrento, on the Amalfi coast. Yesterday was more of a travel day, with our flight to Italy taking up the whole morning and mid-afternoon because of transportation to the airport and it running late. We ate breakfast in our Paris hotel one last time and packed up all our belongings, and a driver came to pick us up and take us to Orly Airport. We arrived there around 10am.

We went through security pretty quickly since Orly is the smaller airport in Paris, and then ate lunch at one of the cafés that was near our gate. Another side note- we ended up checking all of our bags instead of just my dad’s, because apparently what works as a carry-on in the US is too big for a carry-on on most European flights. We still had about an hour and a half to wait, so my mom and I sat by our gate while my dad and brother played video games in the free Playstation game lounge. It turned out we needed a bus transfer to our actual gate, so we got shuttled there and waited a longer time than anticipated to board. We finally got on the plane at 1:10pm, the time we were supposed to depart; we ended up departing 30 minutes later.

Our flight was on Transavia, and we were on a very small, old-fashioned plane. I don’t usually get sick on planes, but the air pressure was really bothering me for some reason. My brother gets very airsick, and he ended up throwing up three times during the flight, and once in the airport afterwards. Other than that the flight was fine, but definitely not the smoothest or best. It was only about 2 hours so I just watched a few episodes of Riverdale I had downloaded on Netflix.

We landed in Naples airport and waited for our driver to pick us up. We had an hour drive from Naples to our hotel in Sorrento, and I just took a nap the whole time. Once we arrived and I woke up, I instantly fell in love with this place. Our hotel, Hotel Villa di Sorrento, is adorable and the workers are so friendly; our room is much nicer than the one in Paris and it has a blue and white beachy theme. We also have two windows with views of some other pretty buildings. It’s right in the heart of the town, near Piazza Tasso. Once we got in and put our stuff down (and rested for a bit since my brother was still sick), we walked to find a place for dinner- which was easy, because everything was Italian food and sounded so good! We walked up and down a couple streets just to sightsee, but ended up eating across the street from our hotel. I got a margherita pizza and it was delicious- it was really big too, I didn’t finish!

After eating, we walked down the main street nearby (which our hotel is adjacent to) and just looked at all the cute little shops, restaurants, and cafés/gelato places. This town is adorable and there’s lemon themed things everywhere. We stopped at a pharmacy to get more cold medicine, and just kept exploring until it got dark. The temperature was great too, warm even when it was dark but not too hot. We missed the sunset but it was still a beautiful night, and everything was so centrally located near our hotel! My brother was tired so we went back to our room around 9pm and got ready for bed. We just relaxed and went to bed around 10, but I had trouble falling asleep again. I love this town, and I’m looking forward to the rest of the time here!

-Brooke

The stairs of our hotel- it looks like we’re in Inception to me.

The flags hung in the Piazza Tasso.

The view from a street nearby.

A cute little shop in a narrow street- all the streets are very narrow here.

The view from our hotel room of some nearby buildings.

Hello everyone! Today was my last day in Paris and even though I’m very sad to leave, I’m looking forward to being in Italy for the next week and a half. We had already seen most of the sights on our agenda, but we still were busy sightseeing for the first half of the day. My parents did laundry right when we woke up so we had clean pants (we all only brought two pairs of pants and it’s been cold everyday here) and then ate breakfast in the hotel as usual. We headed out for the day with three main points of interest: the Museum d’Orsay, the Pantheon, and Sorbonne University.

We arrived at d’Orsay about 20 minutes after it opened so there was barely any line. I was interested in going there to see the works of Monet, Manet, Renoir, and Van Gogh. It did not disappoint; there was so much to look at and all of the paintings were so beautiful. There was also a lot of different sculptures that my dad enjoyed looking at, but I stuck to viewing the paintings for the most part. My favorite painting was the famous Water Lily Pond, Green Harmony by Monet. After seeing his gardens in person, it was surreal to compare them to one of his actual paintings in person as well.

After finishing up at the museum, we ate lunch at a local restaurant. I don’t remember the name because we just wandered in, but I got thin crust pizza and it was very tasty. We walked around the Latin quarter of Paris since that’s where both the Pantheon and Sorbonne were located. We saw the Pantheon first and decided not to go inside, but we admired the outside and took pictures. The architecture was beautiful and there were many other large and impressive buildings on the same street/right across from it too.

The Sorbonne was very close by and we were not able to enter it because it was heavily guarded with security and there didn’t appear to be a public entrance. However, we were able to admire the numerous buildings from the outside and we went to the store selling apparel with its logo and I got a sweatshirt (which I had been hoping to do, especially because I was unprepared for the cold!). The store didn’t open until 2:00pm and we got there at 1:00, so beforehand to pass the time we went to another nearby café and got dessert. I got chocolate ice cream (glace in French) and it was good; I mean it was just chocolate ice cream. I’ll be able to give much more input on food (and probably actual pictures of it) in Italy.

Honestly, after visiting the Sorbonne the day went south. We were planning on trying to go see the Sacre-Coeur church so we went to take the Metro there as we did to get to the Eiffel Tower on Monday. We got on and two men came on right after us and one purposely bumped into my mom with his bag, proceeding to yell at her and cause what we later realized was a diversion so the other guy could steal my dad’s wallet. At the next stop, the guy who stole the wallet got off the Metro just as my dad realized he had been pickpocketed, and my dad yelled out what happened and rushed out the train to follow him. My mom, my brother and I got out at the next stop (in an area we were unfamiliar with) and so did the other man, so we were startled and lost and quickly exited the metro station. Luckily the other man didn’t follow us, but we got outside to find it was pouring rain and we needed to walk back to the hotel because we clearly didn’t feel safe on the metro.

I used Maps on my phone to guide us back to the hotel safely, where we met back with my dad. My dad caught up with the guy who took his wallet and questioned him but he didn’t have anything on him, so he must have passed it off to someone else. It was a very scary experience and he lost his driver’s license, 100 euros, and all of his credit cards which he had to cancel. It was only about 20 minutes later that he began canceling all the cards and there were already thousands of fraudulent charges being rung up.

We spent an hour and a half in the hotel recovering from the incident and figuring things out for our flight to Italy tomorrow, and then went to a restaurant down the block for burgers. It was good and I was glad we could go out one last time, but we didn’t feel like going out and seeing anything else after the incident so we came straight back to the hotel afterwards. Even though our time in Paris didn’t come to the best end, I’m glad we still saw everything we wanted to for the most part and that we made some good memories here. It’s still an amazing city but clearly we learned even when you feel safe, you still have to be careful. I’m kind of scared for Italy now since the pickpocketing is supposed to be so rampant there and we already had this experience, but I’m still very excited! I’ll keep you updated as always.

-Brooke

A picture of a post I took on the way to d’Orsay.

My favorite Monet painting I saw.

The huge clock face of d’Orsay from the inside- one of my favorite shots.

The Pantheon from the outside- the columns remind me of Greek architecture, it seems very Greek in general.

The cathedral across from the Pantheon, it was gorgeous inside.

The Sorbonne from the outside, such a beautiful building in a great location.

Happy Tuesday everyone! I have to admit this was not the best day for us, but I’m here to tell you about it anyway. My family set an alarm for 6:30am so we could get ready and eat breakfast in the hotel before our day tour that left at 8:15. Our morning didn’t start off the best because I got a bad sleep last night and the breakfast buffet was more limited today, there wasn’t any fruit or eggs. I actually have caught a cold while traveling and sadly it really hit me today, especially with the cold weather and rain we got.

Originally we thought the tour was just going to Versailles and back, but it actually stopped in Giverny at Monet’s house and gardens first. It took almost an hour to get there, so I just relaxed and dozed off. There were lots of vibrant flowers and photo opportunities, but I didn’t find the actual house very interesting. It was very colorful and there were lots of paintings inside (recreations of Monets), but there wasn’t too much to see; the gardens were definitely the best part. The day started going further south here because we were supposed to meet back at the tour bus at a certain time but lots of people came back late, getting us off schedule for lunch and eventually the drive to Versailles.

Lunch was at a very small restaurant in a scenic location nearby Monet’s house, located alongside some sort of small stream or river. There were other tour groups there and it was very understaffed so this furthered the issue of being late, but at least it was a pleasant setting. It was a three-course meal included with the tour of fish, chicken, and then apple cake for dessert. I didn’t eat the fish but the chicken was pretty good and the cake was excellent, a perfect combination of sweet and crumbly. We left at about 2:00pm for Versailles, another hour long ride in which I took a nap.

The Palace of Versailles was very impressive, but it was still somewhat disappointing because on our tour we were not allowed to physically go into the gardens. Every room displayed opulent wealth, and there were carvings and pictures and molding filling almost every square inch. We stayed for about 2 hours walking through the rooms and admiring the gardens from afar. Upon departure we had to wait for people that were late coming back to the bus again, and it ended up being two hours back to Paris because of rush hour traffic.

After getting back, we immediately found a place to eat dinner. It was raining so we rushed into a small burger place and it was actually really good- the bun was fresh and the meat was juicy. Between the rain and cold weather coupled with my cold, I wasn’t feeling too well so we stopped at a pharmacy to get tissues and medicine and went straight back to the hotel. I felt bad for holding my family back from doing other things, but we were all tired and museums and such were closed by this point anyways even if they had wanted to go. The rain also put a damper on things as it was hard to walk around outside and it was much more crowded. We got back at 8pm and my parents were going to try and do our laundry at a laundromat, but it was closed as well.

It wasn’t the most successful day which was disappointing given tomorrow is our last day in Paris, but such is life (c’est la vie!). There were still some good food and good moments, and it’s for the best that we’ll get better rest tonight. We’re going to try and do laundry tomorrow morning and see the last few places we’ve been wanting to, hopefully ending up with some extra time to just walk around and enjoy the city before we leave. I’ll check back in with what we end up doing!

-Brooke

The pond and lilypads in Monet’s gardens.

Monet’s house with some lovely roses outside.

A view of the gardens from upstairs in the house.

The Palace of Versailles as seen from the entrance.

A particularly detailed room in the palace.

A view of the gardens from far away.

Hi everyone! Today has been a full and exciting day of exploring Paris. I didn’t get the best sleep last night (I woke up at 3am and it took a while to fall asleep), but it surprisingly didn’t affect me throughout the day. My family and I ate breakfast in our hotel buffet, which surprisingly had a lot of options. They had multiple types of pastries, fruit cups, cereals, breads and juices, plus a waffle maker and a fancy coffee/espresso machine. I’m not sure if this is similar at other hotels, but I was impressed considering how small ours is.

We set off walking to the Louvre museum, our first destination for the day. We all bought “The Paris Pass” before our trip so we didn’t need to buy tickets which made the process of waiting in lines a little faster, but it was still a fairly long wait. My personal favorite pieces were the chandeliers and fancy furniture of former royalty. I enjoyed seeing the Mona Lisa as well (the room it was in was HOT and packed of course though), but it wasn’t particularly fascinating to me. My family only made it through 3 out of the 4 floors of artwork because we had seen everything we wanted to and were hungry for lunch, but some other highlights were the Egyptian hieroglyphics and artifacts, and the many sculptures/statues.

We walked through the park, garden-like area across from the Louvre and ate at a cafe that had a view of the whole area. I got a chicken sandwich so it wasn’t anything special (I’m a very picky eater, from my food descriptions so far you can tell I’m not a foodie) but the bread was excellent. After that, we walked to the nearest bus station to get on a hop-on, hop-off bus tour (another perk of The Paris Pass). It took us past many buildings and museums which we didn’t stop at, but we got off at the Arc de Triomphe. I took some pictures and we went through the underground passageway to get closer up and see the eternal flame burning, but we didn’t spend too much time there.

My parents didn’t want to spend too much time walking down Champs-Élyssées since it was mainly high-end shops and American stores, but we still wanted to have the experience. We made our way down until we stopped at the Ladurée store, where we waited in line for a ridiculous amount of time to buy some of their famous macarons. I only tried plain chocolate, but it was AMAZING- I highly recommend it if you like macarons and have some free time to spare, and they have stores in some US cities.

We got back on the bus and stayed on it to just get a new view of the city and see some other historical buildings, and we were planning on getting off at the Museum d’Orsay. However, we didn’t realize it was closed today so we are hoping to go back tomorrow night or Thursday. Instead, we got off the bus at the Eiffel Tower area and took some pictures. There was a snack cart nearby so we got some yummy Belgian waffles. We were on the side of the Eiffel Tower away from the park/green area so we knew we would come back later (we did!) when it was lit up at night, but from there we took the bus back to a stop closer to our hotel and went to find a place to eat dinner.

We ate at a little Italian place we stumbled upon while walking back in the direction of our hotel. I got pasta (rigatoni with their house sauce) and luckily they also had some great bread. There have been copious amounts of bread at every restaurant and place we’ve been in Paris, and I love it! After dinner, we walked back to our hotel and rested for a bit while we figured out what we were going to do for the rest of the night. My dad suggested we use our Paris passes to do a river cruise on the Seine, and we could take the Metro to get there using our passes as well. Taking the Metro was super fast and efficient since there is a station right down the street from our hotel, and the cruise dock was actually right near the Eiffel Tower so we just ended up back there again. It was only about 8:45 so it was still light, but we got better pictures from that angle/side since it was the opposite side of where we were previously, and we could walk through a green area.

The cruise was very fun and there was a beautiful sunset to accompany it. We passed all the main buildings and highlights of the city again, and the views of the Eiffel Tower were unmatched. We started out at the top of the boat but it got very chilly halfway through the ride as it was actually getting dark, so we went down to the lower indoor deck. I stepped out onto the railing to get a picture of the Eiffel Tower lit up right as we were docking and the cruise was ending and it was absolutely perfect. Everyone was exhausted and ready to go back to the hotel, but we wanted to take pictures in front of the Eiffel Tower during nighttime/while lit up so we had to stick it out a bit longer.

We didn’t realize the light show was about to start so we were confused and frustrated when a bunch of tour buses showed up and parked, obstructing our view from the main place to take pictures. When the tower started sparkling it was a pleasant surprise and we moved our way back up just to watch and attempt getting pictures. I still can’t get over how beautiful the twinkly lights were, and it was even more special as a surprise. After that the buses pulled away, so we took our pictures with the “normal” lit up tower and headed back to the Metro station and our hotel.

I am absolutely in love with Paris and I wish we had more time here- there is so much to explore and an interesting place on every street corner, not to mention dozens of museums! I don’t want to leave, but I must say I am looking forward to Italy’s food as I love Italian food but am too picky for most French foods besides desserts. Tomorrow we are headed on a day trip tour of the gardens of Versailles and hopefully will have time for other excursions back in Paris after. I’ll keep you updated as always!

-Brooke

The famous glass pyramid at the Louvre.

An ornate chandelier and ceiling in the Louvre.

The Arc de Triomphe and eternal flame memorial.

My delicious macarons and the Ladurée store!

Our beautiful view from the Seine River cruise.

The Eiffel Tower lit up at night- the first picture is from the special sparkly light show.

Good morning/afternoon/night everyone! Today was the second (technically first) day of my trip, when we actually landed in Paris!! I am currently writing this at the end of the day in my hotel room, exhausted since I barely slept on the flight overnight. It’s still light outside in the city even though it is past 10:00, which is crazy to me!!

Even though I couldn’t fall asleep, the flight wasn’t horrible. I watched a lot of Netflix and snacks were provided free of charge so I kept myself occupied. We landed around 3:00 and then went through security again. Side note- we used the bathroom and it was so interesting to see how different they are here! Every bathroom I’ve used today has been somewhat unique compared to what I consider a “normal” bathroom back home; they’re much smaller and high-tech here.

My mom had previously arranged for a driver to take us from the airport to the hotel, so it was easy to find our way into the city. My dad met us there with Belgian chocolates in tow from his past week of travels. We are staying at Hotel d’Espagne, a cute little hotel in the middle of Paris. Our room is quaint but nice overall, and very clean. There’s also a fresh, free breakfast buffet (looking forward to that for tomorrow) and complimentary wifi that works great, so those are huge pluses!  

My mom, my brother and I were all exhausted but we were also hungry, so my dad guided us through the streets as we searched for a place to eat. Ironically, we stopped at an American style place for burgers called The Frog and Underground. I enjoyed it; the burgers were flavorful but not too greasy.

After eating, we continued to walk through the city. Our hotel is in such a great location- there’s endless amounts of beautiful streets to walk down, and it’s only about a 20 minute walk from the Seine River and Notre Dame cathedral. We stopped to admire many of the buildings, but I was absolutely in awe of the Notre Dame. There was stunning architecture on every street we saw, and I can’t wait to see more.

Something about Paris just feels so open, more so than any other city I’ve ever visited. I have to admit, when we were first driving into the city I was a little disappointed as the areas we were driving through were dirty and I was worried it wouldn’t hold up to what I had imagined it was like. After settling in, getting some rest and food, and walking through the city I can confidently say it is even better than I imagined, just in different ways. The style and attitude of Paris is just so unique, just as I had always assumed. I feel like I’ve been transported to another world, and I can just see the history dripping from its every nook and cranny. Tomorrow I think we’re doing a more in-depth tour of the city so I’ll check in!

Brooke

My view from the window before we landed- everything seemed so green and spread out before we got closer to the actual city!

A shot of the Notre Dame- both ginormous and stunning.

A shot of the street I liked mainly because of the red neon sign.

A view of the Seine River.

A low quality picture of the view from my bed in the hotel- it was 10:55pm when I took this!

A picture I took of some locks on a railing surrounding the spectator area of the Seine River.

Hello everyone! Today has been an uneventful yet eventful day, as it marks the beginning of my family vacation to Europe! The first half of the day included me frantically packing and cleaning my room, as no one wants to return home from vacation to a dirty space. I’m never this last-minute with packing (ask anyone that knows me, it’s quite the opposite), but yesterday was my last day of school and this past week was finals week so I pushed packing aside as long as possible.

My family really wanted to pack light, and we all are using carry-on suitcases for the two and a half week trip (which was very difficult for me). My dad was the only one who brought a checked bag because has already been in Europe for the past week for a Rotary club convention, and he’s visited Germany, Amsterdam, and Belgium while my brother and I were finishing up school. I might share some of his experiences and pictures from his solo travels in a post later on because he has been gushing about them and they are all amazing places to visit. I will also make a post about what I packed and how I fit everything for my trip in a carry-on bag and a personal bag/backpack, but it will most likely be at the end of the trip so I can gauge the effectiveness of my packing and what I would’ve done differently.

My mom, my brother, and I left our house in the late afternoon today (Saturday, June 8- our first day of summer!) to catch our 8:00pm flight. We actually arrived quite early, as this is our first international trip and we wanted to make sure everything went smoothly. After checking in and going through security, we ate dinner at a sandwich place. It was actually really good; I got a turkey sandwich and an Oreo chocolate chip cookie which was delicious! I’ll add the place’s name if I can remember it. We got snacks and water, relaxed at the gate, and boarded around 7:00.

We’re flying Norwegian Air and even though we are currently only a couple hours into the flight, so far I would definitely recommend it! The service and workers have been very attentive, and nothing has gone wrong or been out of the ordinary. (Side note: the tickets were also a very good deal!!) We took off at 8:00 right as the sun was setting, and it was a beautiful view. The sun finally went down as we just began flying over the water, and then we could see the lit-up LA skyline. I personally love flying and I haven’t been on a plane in almost a year, so it was wonderful to feel the sensation of takeoff accompanied with a sunset view.

The flight is 10 hours so I’ve just been typing away so far, but I’m going to try and get some sleep since we will land at 2:30pm local time; from there, we’ll immediately meet up with my dad, check into our hotel, and start sightseeing. It is now completely dark outside, and the nearest lights I can see from my window seat are still extremely far away. We’re flying over Utah right now according to the flight map. It’s pretty late and I downloaded the season of Riverdale that just got added to Netflix and a documentary to watch, so that’s the plan for the rest of the night other than trying to sleep on the plane! I will check in tomorrow once I am in Paris and the trip has actually begun. Happy travels!

                                                                                    Brooke