My whole day evolved around:
1- A tour of the American University of Paris and
2- Getting a world-famous fallafel in the Jewish District of Paris.
Do you see my priorities in life? *Not in that order ;)
I flippin' love Paris. There is so much to discover and explore. Aghgghgghghh. Every time I turn a corner, I am suddenly overwhelmed again with awe.
Let me start with the tour of my potential future University (probs won't be, but I am deffered).
Since it is in the heart of Paris, there is no real campus, rather different buildings that house different parts of the school. Like classrooms, financial offices, meeting rooms, etc... The tour was given to me and two Iranian girls around my age by a third-year AUP student. She was very nice and informative. Basically my one question for her was : "So, are you in a lot of debt with student loans?"
Answer: She said she is looking at quite a pretty penny and yet she has had some opportunities that simply cannot come from anywhere else. It's a toss up of what you should really be looking at!
She took us to the main administrative office and through the Student Life center a couple blocks over. So cool! The school is so chill, newly renovated, and it just feels awesome. Ahhh a great start to the day for sure.
Then I went on my man-hunt for this fallafel joint that I read about. While searching for the Mediterranean heaven, I discovered the Saint-Germain-des-Pres Quartier of Paris. It is a district just south of Notre Dame. I loved it! Bustling with tourists, fun shops, tons and tons and tons of food windows like creperies, gyro stands, ice cream, pizza...every foodie's dream! And it smelt soooo good. After passing up all the delicious looking food (I was starving at this point), I discovered the street I was looking for was North of Notre Dame, not south. So I took a gander across the bridge, ooohed and awwwed at Notre Dame, laughed at all the tourists taking selfies, and happened upon Ile Saint-Louis, an adorable island in Paris. Bustling my way through the filled bistro sidewalks, I landed in the Jewish district! Alas, I had found it. I was so excited to explore this area of town. It is referred to as Le Marais district. To me, it was like shopping central! But it was smaller shops as opposed to Champs Elysses where the shops are the size of a palace. Karl Lagerfeld was there, so you know this district was fancy.
Then, at the end of some street called ..Shoah, I found L'As du Fallafel. Long line but fast service and even better food! I just got their special: a fallafel sandwich. Oh my word. Yum! Veggies and eggplant fritters thrown into a homemade pita pocket and drizzled with tza-tziki sauce; if I wasn't broke, I'd have bought another one. Check that one off my list of foods to eat! Then as I looked for a place to sit and eat, I found the cutest little garden that was, not surprisingly, PERFECTLY manicured and symmetrical. Blooming with flowers and an array of benches, I quickly found a spot in this little square of secluded relaxation and ate my gold-mine of a sandwich. I discovered that I was just a street down from the Picasso Gallery so I peeked around there (too cheap to pay the 11 euros to actually get in) but I did see gift-shop versions of his work!
Once again, my day consisted of walking, eating, and discovering. The best combination in life.
But, since my other au pair friends were busy today, I was just out venturing on my own. I surprised myself when I found that I wished I had a friend with me. Normally, I love being independent and flying solo, but I decided that when you are so spoiled as to live in a city like Paris, experiencing everything by yourself kinda sucks. I want to share my experiences with everyone in real life! Not just a blog...
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