Day 1: ...that dude from Spongebob..."11 hours later"

Left LAX at 2:55pm on June 7th and arrived in Paris-CDG at 10:40am on June 8th. I would estimate maybe an hour was slept on that 11-hour plane ride. I mean, come on, it was only 1:40am for my brain. Am I a college student or what? You expecting me to go to bed at a reasonable hour is like me being as a cool as Emma Watson, an utter impossibility.

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One taxi ride later, I arrived in the 7ème arrondissement with my host family to welcome me with broken English and a quick and efficient take over by only French.

Little side note here, my taxi driver asked if I was Swiss or Belgian...my french fooled HIM. To add, he was quite surprised when I announced what the blue color of my passport meant, American.

After settling into my little room and unpacking the belongings I deemed worthy to come with me on this trip, I took a quick perusal of the immediate neighborhood with my adorable hosts. This towering basilica stands stark against the surrounding Haussmannian architecture. The name is Sainte-Clotilde with this peaceful little park out front, a contrast from the gothic design and darkened stones from age.

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Anna, my friend from school and my partner in crime for this experience arrived a little after me and received the shortened tour/lay of the land.

She and I took a quick walk around Les Invalides and let the fact that we are in Paris sink in, like a fantasy I have been dreaming of since the world of France was introduced to me at age 5.

After a beautiful dinner of rotisserie chicken, green beans, and couscous made by the hosts, we went out one more time for the evening, letting the time escape us as it did not start getting dark until 10pm (i.e. one more aspect to play with jet lag). Also, it still does not make sense to me that the sun does not set equally late in California; they need to step up their game...

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The promenade consisted of a lovely walk towards La Seine, down by the bank, observing the classy boat dinners in comparison with tourists yelling from their overly packed river tours. In case the boat ride was not a big red flashing light, the yelling would solidify the assumption. Cannot say that people watching is not an enjoyable pass-time though; thank you, to whoever you are.

Making a small circle, and by small I mean 6 miles, after passing through Les Champs Elysées, Le Place de la Concorde, Les Jardins des Tuileries, Le Louvre, and back towards Les Invalides, we finally made it back to the apartment in the evening, or should I say the night, and I fell asleep as fast as humanly possible.