On Saturday night I went out to dinner with my flat-mates to celebrate one of their birthdays. We went to an Indonesian restaurant in Chelsea up the road from my flat. I was leaving for Copenhagen the next morning. I had to get up the next morning at 3:30 to make my flight. I found a really cheap flight but it left really early. But the tube does not run that early, I had to take a cab to a train station to take the train to the airport. My flight was fine and I got into Copenhagen safely. I took the metro down town and meet Jen and Allen down town. They were at a fashion designer showcase where you can get designer for pretty cheap. It was raining so hard and really cold, so they took me to a museum that the best in the city. The museum was really cool and had an amazing court yard inside the museum. When they were done they came and picked me up and we went back to their apartment. We hung out at their apartment and just watched T.V. they have a ton of American sitcoms but with Danish sub titles. The next day it was nice out and Je and I walked around their neighbor hood and went to a cemetery where hans Christian Anderson is buried. It was a really beautiful day the leaves had all changed it was amazing. The cemetery was really neat because it was a so old. There were so many old stones and family plots. There were also red squirrels in the cemetery which was very strange because I have only ever seen gray ones. After we left the cemetery we headed back to their apartment. We ended up running back to the apartment because it started to rain so much. They are having their kitchen redone and had to wait for the countertop to be delivered. So Jen walked be to the bus stop and told me where to get off to see the little mermaid statue. I was able to find it and walked around for a while. There was a fortress by the statue that was just amazing. The weather was much better, it was cold but it was not raining. I found the statue and really liked it but at the same time was expecting something larger. I liked Copenhagen a lot, although there was a language barrier the people were so nice and helpful. Everyone spoke english and when I would ask them if they did they would all just say yes of course we all do. I got a few questions about the election which is just as big over here as it is at home, but here they do not have control of the outcome.
I made my way from the statue to the palace and to the cannel in downtown. I ended up in a major shopping center area and ended up sitting at a cafe and people watching. Jen came and meet me and then we just walked around and went into the shops. We went back to the apartment and hung out. I planned the rest of my trip and found my hostels.
The next morning I took the bus to the airport and flew to Brussels. I took the a train and a metro from the airport to my hotel. The hotel was a little hard to fine because I cam out of the wrong exit from the metro. I was able to recall enough french to be able to ask if they speak english. I found my hotel and checked in, it was a very tiny room but was nicer then a hostel. I walked around for a bit and looked in shops and saw the grand plaza. It was strange because it felt like most other large city's. It was very multicultural and I heard tons of different languages being spoken. I had a really good dinner, I could not read the menu but just asked the waiter what he would recommend and it was beef with onion sauce. It was really good. After dinner I had dinner I went back to the grand plaza which gets all lit up at night. I left Brussels the next morning and wen to Paris by train.
When I got to Paris I did not have directions to my hostel and did not want to try and figure out the metro with all of my things. I took a cab to my hostel. I left and went to lunch, I was a little nervous about it but the waitress was really nice and found someone who could speak english with me so that I could ask about the menu. I decided to go and walk by the river, it was a really nice day but freaking cold. I walked a while and found Notre Dame, found I mean I got to it. I was not expecting the walk to take so long. I decided to take a river boat thing. It is a hop-on-hop-off boat and goes to all the major sites. It was a really pretty way to see some of the city and was also just very relaxing. I took the boat for the whole loop and got off at the Eiffel Tour. I have never been one of those girls who has wanted nothing more then to see the Eiffel tour, but sitting there and looking at it I was in Aww. I got a crape and just sat and watched all the people, and the guys selling you little Eiffel tour figurines. I did however realize that my dislike for pigeons is only greater for the kids who kick at the pigeons and cause them to fly, normally at me. It ended up getting incredibly cold and starting to rain so I took the boat ride back close to my hostel and then walked to my hostel. I grabbed dinner at a cafe and the waiter was supper nice to me. He was helpful and was able to provide me with a menu in english. I tried to go back to the Eiffel tour because I wanted to see it all lit up and sparkly. I got lost in the metro thought and decided to just get a coffee. I was sitting outside just enjoying being in Paris when I had my only real rude experience. I had a coffee and he wanted be to pay right away but I asked but what if I want something else? He responded with I do nut understand your English, I am French, I speak French. With that I paid and walked away. He was the only rude person that I encountered. I decided to go back to my hostel and hang out and plan kind of what I was going to do the next day.
On Thursday I got up early and took the metro to the Eiffel tour. I wanted to go to the top but did not wait in the long line that gathers during the day. I got in line at about 8:30 and it opened at 9. I went all the way to the top. I had never felt like that was something that was important to me but it was amazing up there. It was so windy and you could see how huge Paris is. Because I was there so early there were not a ton of people. From there I just walked around and took my time enjoying the city. I ended up at the Champs Elise and took some time there. I went into the Louis Vuitton store, it was like 4 stories tall and there were so many people in there. I grabbed a quick lunch at McDonalds it took me 10 minutes to order becuase of how busy they were. I walked a bit and when in and out of shops. I sat in Starbucks for a while and rested in the warmth and dryness. I walked back down to the river and took the boat back to Notre Dome. I took a tour inside and sat for a while. It is so strange to me that these huge massive kind of dark places were created to reflect God, when they seem so depressing. I did appreciate the history of it and the massive scale of which it was built. I grabbed dinner at a cafe nearby and had onion soup, which makes it French onion soup. It was really good! I also had tiramisu that was incredible. I then caught the boat and went to the Eiffel tour. I saw it sparkle from the boat and then it stays lit up. After that I went back to my hostel and rested.
On Friday I wanted to go to the Louvre. I knew it was massive but did not understand how massive. I got lost so many times and I had a map. I saw the Mona Lisa which was cool, but at the same time makes you wonder why is it so famous. It just did not seem like anything that remarkable its just famous. I walked around for about 4 hours until I felt overloaded. I grabbed lunch at their cafe and then discovered there are shops in the Louvre. There was a Starbucks and other cloths shops that was strange. I sat for a bit and talked with an American couple. When I left the Louvre I went to the train station to buy my ticket back to London so I would not have to worry about it today. I then went back to the area around the Eiffel tour and grabbed dinner and just sat for a while writing in my journal and watch people go by. I then went and sat by the Eiffel tour for a while and took it all in. I grabbed a crape and waited for it to light up.
All the guys selling their little figurines ran past because the cops where coming, that was funny because they just grab their blanket with crap and run. I was able to see it sparkle and it was amazing. At one point it got a little to much but was really cool. I then went back to the Champs Eilese because I wanted to see that all lit up also. From there I took the metro back to my hostel and packed up my things. I chatted for a while with a girl in my room, she has been traveling by herself for a month and has the rail pass that I want to get so it was great to ask her questions and get honest answers.
This morning I took the train from Paris to London and got back to my flat about 12:30. It is nice to be back because I was not here very long before I left, so it is nice to have my own space. I had a really great time and cant wait to go back to Paris. I really liked Copenhagen and would like to go back but maybe in the summer next time. I would not go back to Brussles thought, all though the country side looked amazing from the train. I hope everyone is doing well keep me posted!
Lots of Love
Ang
The Photo is of my flatmates and one of their Friends. From Right to left, is Rory and Kate teh couple from Austraila, me, Marsala from Prauge in the Chech Republic, and her friend.
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