Quick update + Fun Friends

Quite a bit has happened since my last blog, so here's my shot at another quick update:

Two weeks ago, a group of us decided to go to EuroDisneyland in the outskirts of Paris. The day was quite interesting and its highlights included watching a gaggle of "characters" dance in the skimpiest outifits that would not fly in Anaheim (oh, Europe!) during "Stitch's Magical Party Time", gross "Mexican" food (I think at this point my line between amusement and annoyance is nonexistent), and the lack of lines. That night, a few of us then headed over to Fleche d'or--a music club in the 19th, which was well-worth the trek thanks to its cool ambiance. Definitely a place I will be going back to.

The following week-end, a few of my dearest friends since Freshmen year at Berkeley, Ani and Marianna came to Paris. I'd been really really looking forward to their visit, and they definitely didn't disappoint. Friday night, I was going to meet them at their hostel, but instead ran around the nineteenth arrondisement for nearly an hour until finally meeting them back at the Metro stop (which I later found out was about 3 blocks away from their hostel). We headed off to one of my favorite Lebanese restaurants (thanks, Raf) in the fifth and ended up at Matt and Neema's apartment with Tami, followed by a visit to our favorite bar, Piano Vache. Sensing that my girls were tired from their travels, we decided to head back to their hostel and check out what was happening there and I'm glad that we did because the bar underneath their hostel was having a free reggae show.... just another Paris surprise!

The next day, Ani, Mar, Tami, Neema and I met near Monmartre and had a picnic at the base of the Sacre Coeur (cathedral overlooking the city), complete with chocolate, truffle-filled cheese, fresh baguettes, and raspberries. We reminisced a bit about Berkeley and now I'm truly stoked for senior year!!! We then did a little shopping in a touristy area and I bought a wonderful little lilac beret (so necessary to complete my Parisian lifestyle). We then headed down to Paris's redlight district, where we took advantage of the photo opp in front of the Moulin Rouge. Forgetting that not everyone likes to just roam around for hours on end until they find their way, I then got everyone lost on an adventure roaming through the 17th and 18th arrondissements. It was worth it for me though, as a I found a lovely little park near my house. Ani and Mari are such great friends and having a little taste of home was EXACTLY what I needed as school is getting hard. Their visit was especially nice because they are two of the most easy-going, flexible, gracious girls ever.

Nothing else too eventful happened the rest of the week, except for that this past Wednesday, I grabbed some gelato with a few of my friends to say a quick goodbye before leaving for break on Thursday, and found myself weirdly sentimental about leaving these people for a week. Consdering that I at one point saw them nearly every day, and now see them around three or four times a week, I guess my sentiments weren't that weird. They just make me a little nervous for when my program ACTUALLY ends, but I find no use in thinking about that now.