Paris, and a lesson in reality.

Paris was a lot better than I thought it was going to be honestly. I was mostly cynical about Paris because it is big and has lots of hype around it. I thought it would be underwhelming. But no! Paris is actually very very amazing, and a lot to take in. W dove right into the city by bus and saw a lot of different places at once. It was breath-taking and pretty darn cool.

That night I also went with a group of people to see the Eiffel Tower, which is lit up at night and literally sparkles at intervals. The next day we went to sing at Notre Dame, toured the Musėe D'orsay, and visited L'arc de Triumphe. After that was a fantastic dinner with the Kretchmanns. The next day we saw Mont Martre and the Louvre.

I could go on about all the great food I had and the great things I saw but I really don't want to. I'll just say that Paris is worth the hype. It was a great city. I'm sure you will or can see pictures of what I saw. :-) 

So I think the most of what I've learned is quite general. I learned that the world is in fact a large place. There's lots of things going on, lots of different experiences being had and stories being told. In the same way, though, the world is very small. It is full of humans, all who have a story and who are living and need food and love and all that. France is just like the USA in that way, and so is the rest of the world.

What's my conclusion? I don't really know. I guess this trip has given me more of an idea, perspective of the world. I was out of my country, far from home but experiencing events and stories. Which is not unlike what I experience in the US. I'm also very thankful that I could have this wonderful tour/vacation. That's the nice thing about vacation, that you get to experience something amazing and come back to reality.

The world is a beautiful place. Thank you God!

Of course thanks to anybody that was on the trip for an awesome experience. Getting to know all of my concert choir friends was a great joy and I am so thankful to have gotten to know you. Thanks to all those graduating for your hard work, and I can't wait for next year!!!

And so now I'm trying to stay awake on the bus. Jet lag is a rancor, and I'm currently running on more coffee than I'd like to admit. Here's to (hopefully) 2 more hours until bedtime! ...heh.

Merci!

~Sam