Ellen's adventures in London, England :)

So, my program ended at the beginning of August and I decided to travel :) Claire and I took off for France and Scotland for the next ten days to relax, explore, eat good food, and enjoy the city and country. First stop was Paris. We stayed in Paris for four days and pretty much ran nonstop. We were up and out the door by 8 am everyday and didn't usually get back to our little apartment until 11 at night. But, we had the best time in the world and got everything done on our bucket list! Here are some of the highlights.

Sunday: We went to the Conciergerie, which is a prison where Marie-Antoinette was imprisoned. We went to the Sacre-coer Basillica which is beautiful and overlooks the whole city of Paris. Then we visited the Pompidou, the Modern Art Museum and saw some very interesting pieces.

Monday: We went to the Louvre and saw the world famous Mona Lisa, Wings of Victory, Lady Liberty leading her people, and an original Picasso. Then, we went to Saint-chapelle which is a church full of stained glass. Finally, we went to Notre Dame, yes THE Notre Dame with the gargoyles. We walked through Luxembourg Gardens, stumbled upon a photograph exhibition of Iraq, ate cheese fondue with potatoes, ham, and bread for dinner, and then went up on the Eiffel Tower. Gelatto then happened!

Tuesday: We went on top of Notre Dame and saw the bells and gargoyles up close :) We then went to the D'orsey, the impressionist Museum which was my favorite! I got to see my favorite paintings by Cezanne, Monet, Renoir, Pissaro, and Degas. Next stop was the Rodin Sculpture Garden which was amazing because I saw the Thinker and the Kiss. We ate dinner in a little cafe and went to the top of the Arc de Triomphe for sunset, also very beautiful. More gelatto of course!

Wednesday: We spent most of the day at Versailles and saw the Hall of Mirrors. We walked all through the gardens and then visited the Paris, France Temple which will soon be dedicated! We ended the evening by visiting the Orangerie, the Monet museum dedicated to Monet's waterlilies. We ate dinner with some friends from our program.

All in all it was an amazing four days.

My last two weeks in London were phenomenal! I got to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child which was amazing! I also did the Harry Potter Studio Tour, so I saw all the props, stages, and costumes used in the movies. This was a dream come true :) I also went to the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace, the skyview gardens, and I saw some cool old ships. I then spent a few days in Portsmouth and on the Isle of Wight last week. The Isle of Wight is probably my new favorite place. It's by the ocean, it's green, and perfect. Stay tuned for pictures from Paris and Scotland this next week!