Eat this. Go here. Thank me later. : Oh the places we went... in France

We spent 8 days in France; 7 days in Paris and 1 day in Caen. The French culture is one I think all should experience. They love life, their heritage, relationships, food, and leisure time. There is even a different kind of respect for historical artifacts. I know many statues and monuments have had graffiti on them or been damaged in the past but we did not see that during our time there.

First I will just say that eating was an activity all on it's own. You sit for hours to have dinner, you sit and enjoy your breakfast, and you sit and relax in the park while having lunch. Maybe after you've finished lunch you continue chatting with a friend, take a nap, or read a book but whatever it is you enjoy it. Lunch time is a nice little break from work, from the demands of the world. Even dinner is a time that business and cell phones go away. You reconnect with your friends and family after a day of work and break bread.

Even though we only spent a day in Caen I will start there. Since we only spent a day and not even a whole day (major disappointment) we only went to the Memorial de Caen. However, the memorial was worth spending the day indoors for, worth the train ride, and even worth the taxi and later bus ride. We started our tour off chatting a bit between exhibits and plaques but quickly fell silent while trying to take it all in. We both have studied World War II in school and independently but seeing the information shared form a different country's and different culture's point of view is fascinating and overwhelming all at the same time. The memorial is organized chronologically and starts with a little bit of WWI information and continues with a little post WWI information before moving on to the events leading up to WWII. While I have read many books on the subject matter and a few even first hand accounts it was different to hear, read, and see first hand accounts of civilians and soldiers who were experiencing this war on their own soil.

A framed newspaper announcing Oahu being bombed.

The top of the US garden at the WW2 Memorial.

In Paris we did a lot of the typical touristy things. We went to the Louvre, sat on the steps in front of Sacre Coeur, saw the Eiffel Tower, walked along Champs Elysees, saw the Arc de Triomphe, walked along the River Seine, visited Versailles and the gardens, saw Notre Dame, walked through the Catacombs, saw Moulin Rouge light up at night, put a lock on the love bridge, and walked through many public gardens. The gardens were my absolute favorite, I completely forgot I was in a city once I walked through the gates.