On a train... again.

I totally wasn't able to post yesterday evening... sorry. No WI-FI on an overnight train to Paris! Yes, that's right, I'm in Paris, France now and boy do I love it here! So to start...
Two days ago we went to the Uffizi (or something) art gallery in Florence (the first or second largest art gallery in the world)... and what did I learn? That I am not interested in art. Created art is pleasurable and serene, however, art analysis and observation is not my cup of tea. Like Mr. Maben said as we walked through the long and tedious museum, "This is just one more thing I can check off my list of THINGS I'VE SEEN". :) Cool beans.
So, so... after the museum a group of us followed Maben (oh, by the way, he was my senior project adviser) to lunch where he kindly attempted to buy me lunch since I didn't order anything (apparently he didn't understand that the reason I only ordered a Sprite and no dish was because at that point I was sick of Italian food), but because I am Curt and Lori's daughter, I was able to sneak my payment for the dish I didn't order into the bill. Success is sweet!
I have three sidenotes I would like to share before I continue:
#1--I have never been a big soda drinker, but here in Europe I find myself ordering soda most often; I think it tastes different here. I like it. Oh and your only choices are CocaCola, Coke light, or Sprite... and sometimes Fanta, so Pepsi drinkers are pretty uncomfortable and out of place... :)
#2--I am SO sick of Italian food... just the thought makes me nauseated. Why is this not a good thing? It was formerly my FAVORITE type of food... might take a while to be #1 once more.
#3--I like to notice and compare the cars driven between the three different cities we've been so far. Rome: Hatchbacks, Smart Cars, Vespas, taxi's, and Tour buses only. Florence: like Rome with some vans and SUVs, less tour buses. Paris: Every kind of car, but trucks. Interesting, huh?
Okay, so to continue on... after lunch with Maben the group split and half went to see David (which I saw the day before) and the others went to "The Dead People's Museum"... that's not the formal name, just what we've referred it as. I chose not to waste 5 Euros to see tombs, and apparently I made a good choice because the others who went were not impressed/entertained so it wasn't worth it. One point for Lynda! Instead I took a stroll alone through the markets and streets and back to the hostel for a few hours (Mom, don't freak. I just needed some alone time and Florence was a much safer place than Rome or Paris or even Sacramento... more family-oriented). It was lovely. I later bought some stamps from a Tabacco store (Tabacci)... that's where they sell stamps in Europe... Post offices are hard to locate--I also payed a visit to the grocery store where I purchase Nutella (YUM!), apricot jam, and sliced bread to make myself sandwiches... others were impressed by my idea (I actually was inspired by Heidi when I read her blog last month she had said she made PB & J for lunch sometimes to save money... Good plan!) We waited at the Hostel for an hour and then headed to the train station 3 hours earlier than our departure time. We just chilled as a group right in the middle of the station. It was less boring with good company. :) I have loved hanging out with the girls and also with Luci and Koester (teachers have always been fun to me, though...)
We boarded the train and got situated in our "rooms" set up with two three-bed bunks (very little room for breathing :P). We had fun, though. We invited a few of the boys (Nick & KJ) into our little space where we played cards on Brittney's tummy (she made a hammock out of the seat straps in the middle of the room), played Assassin, and solved Emily's complicated riddles. Fun times. A good night sleep on the train I had even though I was in the smallest bottom bunk. I seriously slept like a clam. There was probably even a pearl in my belly button when I woke up this morning.
We brushed our teeth and changed clothes this morning on the train... bathrooms equivalent to porta-potties. :S Straight from the trainstation we went from metro to Bike tour of Paris... HIGHLIGHT OF THE TRIP, so far. I loved riding a bike around Paris... Our tour guide was from Boulder, Colorado... super chill dude. Hadn't shaved in like a week, scruffy surfer (well, probably snow boarder) type. Seth. :) His historical knowledge was quite impressive. Metting him on the streets, you wouldn't ever guess "History buff". I learned a lot about Louis V and Napoleon. There were both quite the egotists.
I'm looking forward to going back to all the museums and landmarks we were able to quickly navigate to this morning. Seth also took us to a Cafe' for lunch... my biggest worry for Paris was the waitstaff (heard that the French are impatient with Anglo-Saxons), but it turns out they mostly speak English and are very understanding if you are polite. I got crepes... they were "eh". Probably enjoy better ones tomorrow.
After the bike tour we headed to our new Hostels by metro then foot (hauling our luggage the whole way). Firstly, today was the England vs. Algeria day for World Cup, and apparently the French are BIG Algerian fans. All day since we arrived, there has been cheering and chanting and horns for the game... even now that it's over (0-0) there are still horns and chanting... it's 1 O'clock in the morning! They LOVE World Cup in Europe!
So our group is split between to Hostels this time. The first Hostel took us 1 hour to find... the second took another 45 minutes. SO lame! But when we got here we were SO glad to shower. Took the metro to meet the whole group at Notre Dame (but most everyone was 20+ minutes late). It was so fun seeing the Notre Dame because all I could relate it to was The Hunchback of Notre Dame; the movie was totally playing in my head as a gazed at the gargoyles and statues. :))) I LOVE that movie. :) I picked the restaurant for the Koester-Luci group for dinner. I enjoyed some delectable French Onion soup... in France... and French bread... in France... and French Fries... in France. How cool is that? WAY cool. And yes, I'm aware that French Fries did not originate in France, but it's still neat. :)
Eiffel Tower after dinner, but since we were a little late, we just got to take pics and buy tickets to go up to the tops for tomorrow. Did I mention that it doesn't get dark here until 10:30/11 pm? Crazy, huh? The sun is so funny with it's astronomical positioning. :P
Well, people are lining up to use my laptop... free WI-FI, you know... :)
Having a blast, but really am starting to miss home. Paris actually feels a LOT like California... pretty neat. I keep forgetting to speak French for this reason.
Lots of love!