Sunday, 6 December 2015

Beautiful Paris

Josh and I had the most amazing weekend trip to Paris last weekend.

We took an 8:00 flight out of Heathrow Friday night and arrived in Paris around 10:00. After our train and metro ride, we arrived at the stop by our hotel. They had a huge monument to remember the events of Friday the 13th. We were really tired from a staff night out the day before that once we found our adorable hotel we just went to sleep.

We woke up on Saturday morning ready to see Paris. Josh had never been to Paris before and was looking forward to seeing all the famous landmarks. We walked down the street by our hotel and stopped for cappuccinos and croissants at a cute cafe. We even sat outside!! We continued on our walk to Notre Dame. We did not go inside because it was a really long line. We took a few pictures and continued walking down the river. Our next stop was Saint Chappelle. This came by recommendation from my teaching parter. It was a Gothic Cathedral with amazing stained glass and a blue + star ceiling! It was one of the most beautiful buildings I have ever seen.
Saint Chappelle


On the train from the airport.

By our metro stop.
After we went into Saint Chappelle, we countinued walking, heading towards the Louvre. We didn't go inside, but we took some pictures. Then we walked through the Tuleries towards the Champs- Elysees. They had a Christmas market on half of the road and it was wonderful! We picked up some Christmas ornaments and ate some warm cheese-must be a French thing!



The Louvre

At the Tuleries







We made our way through the market and went to the Arc de Triomphe. We bought tickets and climbed to the top to see amazing views! Since there was the Climate Convention in Paris, Ikea has sponsored different exercise machines/ objects for people to generate power for Paris. They had swings, bikes and even a big hamster wheel! we tried all of them. Continuing on our walk, we made our way to the thing Josh was most excited for... the Eiffel Tower. We waited in the long line to go up the tour to the very top- it was so worth it!!! Even though it was quite chilly, the views were amazing. We even stopped for macaroons and a coffee on the second level!


Quick stop at Disney

At the top of the Arc




A Eiffel Tower of macaroons!!!




At the very top of the Eiffel Tower


Our Views



They had put up a Christmas Ornament!


After the Eiffel Tower, we walked our way back to the Christmas market for mussels and frites! They were flavoured really yummy. For our FIRST metro ride of the day, we went to Tour Montparnasse. The tall tower looking directly at the Eiffel Tower. There were no lines so we walked right in. I think it was 56 floors. We saw some gorgeous views of Paris.
Entrance to the market


View from the Tour Montparnasse




After a long day and our feet hurting, we took the metro back to Republique and stopped for some wine, cheese and creme brulee. Sunday morning and our feet still hurting, we started our morning with crepes and a cappuccino. There were hundreds of pairs of shoes and some angel people doing demonstrations for the climate conference. The public transportation was also free that day! We took the metro to Sacre Coeur. We didn't stay long but we climbed to the top! We stopped at lunch at a cute cafe near the Arc de Triomphe and I had a cheese plate! After a quick stop at Laduree, we tried to walk along the Seine to find a boat tour. We walked about 1 hour to try to find one- and ended up all the way back at the Eiffel Tower! We found a company to go on and saw the sights of Paris by boat for 1 hour. 
The world's smallest elevator at our hotel!!


Sacre Coeur 




On the boat







It was an amazing trip and we can't wait to go back!!!

School update: 2 weeks left of term and we are in full swing of performance rehearsals!!! Which means afternoons this week are spent in the hall rehearsing. My kids are excited for Christmas and have been telling me all about their Santa sightings! These 2 weeks will go by so quick I hope!

Sunday, 1 November 2015

Wonderful Copenhagen! And other half term adventures.

 I had an amazing half term break this October!

It all started with an amazing day in Windsor with Josh and my mom. We went to Windsor Castle, lunch at a restaurant on the water and followed by the most amazing afternoon tea at the Sir Christopher Wren Hotel. There was so much delicious food, which we had to take some of the top row home !

Sandwiches, scones and cakes!
Inside the castle!


The next day, my mom and I took off for Copenhagen! We spend 4 nights at a wonderful hotel with view of Tivoli and many other famous buildings!! On the first day, we explored the area a bit and came across the Royal stables, with the actual horses they use for celebrations and the royals! We also spent the night at Tivoli, where I rode the Star Flyer. It was a really tall swing ride with amazing (but a bit scary) view of all of Copenhagen! Tivoli is the second oldest amusement park in the world! We were lucky because it was open for Halloween. It is usually closed throughout the year. It was decorated with over 20.000 pumpkins and other spooky stuff! It had rides, restaurants, food stands, and shows! We ate at a restaurant in Tivoli this night, having traditional Danish food!
Entrance to Tivoli
On our first full day, we walked almost the whole city!! We started the morning with a canal tour of Copenhagen. It was a lovely day outside and a great way to see the sights. The bridges were very low, so all of the boats were really short and wide. The guide had to tell everybody to watch their heads before we went under them! After our tour, we walked to the painted houses of Copenhagen called Nyhavn. We stopped for lunch at a cafe to have a traditional smorrebrod lunch (open faced sandwiches). We then continued our walk to the Royal Palaces called Amalienborg Slot. This is where the Princess and Prince actually live! As we continued our walk, we came across Kastellet. This was a 17th century turtle shaped fortress surrounded by a moat. The moat was so steep! It would be extremely hard to climb to attack!!! Then, we finally reached our destination! The sculpture of the Little Mermaid, surrounded by tourists!
On the boat!

The Painted Houses
Amalienborg Slot- The Princess and Prince's house!
Kastellet- with the steep slopes!

Me and a mermaid!


On Tuesday, we went to Malmo, Sweden! My mom was excited because she loves a show called The Bridge. It is a mystery show where a crime takes place on the bridge that connects Copenhagen and Malmo. We took a bus on the way there (which took you right over the bridge and had amazing views) and a train on the way back. In Malmo, we walked along some shopping streets, through a gorgeous park and to a building called Malmohus. It used to be a fortress and a castle, but is now used as a museum. We spent some time wandering through the exhibits. It was really interesting because a lot of the Holocaust survivors were taken to Malmohus by a white bus who rescued them. We had lunch outdoors in one of their squares and then headed to the train station. A great day in a new country! For dinner back in Copenhagen, we stumbled upon a restaurant that had a salsa club/lessons in the background! We had no idea until we went to the washroom and saw 30 people salsa dancing!!
Having some soup!

The main shopping street in Malmo
Malmohus
Our last full day in Copenhagen was another busy one! We started the day by visiting the Hans Christian Andersen Museum. I loved it! The displays were interactive and told many of his fairy tales! It was a short museum but really great. We then walked down a shopping street and found some Danish porcelain to buy, I bought a jewelry box! We then walked over to Christiansborg Slot (another royal castle) and I went up the tower! I had great views of the whole city- you could even see all the way to Sweden! We then walked over to The Latin Quarter (everything is so close there!) After walking around some pretty little streets, we grabbed some lunch before spending the afternoon at Tivoli again! It was neat to see in the day time and we went on the Ferris Wheel and a ride about Hans Christian Andersen. We finished the day by having drinks and playing quiddler in the lobby and then went out for dinner!
At the museum! 

View from The Tower

A building called Nimb, inside Tivoli.

Hanging pumpkins


In front of Christiansborg Slot, I went up that tower!

Inside Tivoli
On our last day, we decided to go for a walk before heading to the airport. I was watching a show called Ladies of London, who took a trip to Copenhagen! We walked up to check out the hotel they stayed at and an expensive fur shop they went into! Off we went to the airport to end an amazing trip!!!
When we got back to London, Josh picked us up and we had fish and chips from the famous fish and chips shop in my area!! We then spent Friday in Guildford (obviously!) and then on Saturday my mom and I went into London. My mom treated Jess and I to a theatre performance. We chose Matilda! We also went for Dinner at one of my fave restaurants- Bills! We all enjoyed our meals.
Lunch in Leister Square