Day 83

It snowed last night. It is cold and I had two finals today. That sums it up. I'm done.

Okay no but really, I cannot understand why they decided to have finals the week we are leaving. As if life is not scary and stressful enough with the idea that next week we will be thrust back into real life across the world, lets put in some big tests that will determine everything you have been doing over the last three months. Not happy about the timing.

I am sometimes very happy to be going home, but most the time I am not so thrilled. It is just a huge change and I feel like this is the last bit of freedom I will have for awhile (okay more like forever!). Life just gets serious from here on out and that scares me.

I feel like I did well on my art history final and my civilization final. I actually enjoyed taking my art final, because I felt so smart. If I had taken that test at the beginning of a semester I would not have got a single thing right, but bow I could actually write my essays with ease. That has definitely been my most rewarding class here.

For civilization we made a desert and had a little one on one exam with our teacher. It was pretty easy. Not really one that I prepared or worried that much for. Most of the evening was just hanging out and being with each other. Spence announced that he will be leaving early. He goes home on Wednesday morning now, because his brother gets home from his mission on Friday and he is going to be there. So the reality that our little group is splitting up has started to hit. 

I have another couple things to do before tomorrow and I am totally putting them off. I am blogging and chatting it up with everyone. People in my group here who are all over the place like me and people who I am excited to see back at home. So weird that his little chapter is coming to an end. It went too quickly, just like I knew it would. 

 The snow this morning

On our way home. This was actually a tender mercy on my way to school today. You may ask how an upside down toilet on the side of the road can be a tender mercy, well I will explain. One of my favorite movements in art that I studied this semester was the Dada movement. I don't like the art very much, just the ideas behind it, but one of the most famous pieces of the time is the Fountain by Duchamp. This lovely toilet put a smile as my face as I was reviewing different pieces of art in my head in prep for my final.

Day 82

Last Sunday in Paris and it was a good one. We went to church and can I just say that I understand a ton! It is so nice to be able to understand most of the things that are going on around me if I try hard enough. We went to church and it was nice. For the first and last week I sat next to Michael during sacrament meeting. It was so nice to sit by him and just be with him. 

After church my group stayed around the church and practiced some songs that were going to preform for each other at our last devotional. I think that is kind of weird, but it is fun to do and just being with each other and talking and singing is a fun little bonding experience. 

After that Ally and I went to the apartment of an American couple in the ward. They are so nice and they fed all of the missionaries a huge Thanksgiving dinner. They invited me and Ally when they found out I was Elder Helvey's sister. It was so fun to be able to spend more time with Michael and to celebrate Thanksgiving together! I am going to miss all of the missionaries. I am such good friends with most of them and it is so fun to know the people that are serving with Michael. 

 Michael and Elder Ellsworth

 Us at the table

 Mook

 Sister Pearce and Sister Thompson

 Elder Ellsworth and Elder Jaquair

Us

 The food

 Ward Mission leader-He is one of Michael's favorite guys.

 All the missionaries and us

 Sister Thompson, Clark, Pearce, Gifford

Us with the Shurtleffs

Day 81

Well it was my last full Saturday here. I don't have that much to say about it. I stayed in most of the day attempting to study for finals that are on Monday and Tuesday. I ended up napping more than studying. I went to Madame's for dinner and we watched a movie together as the group. It was fun to hang out with everyone and I can't believe I only have six days left. I think I am about to go into panic mood and it might not be a pretty thing. I guess I will keep you posted.

Day 80

Today was another awesome day! We did so much and the highlight of the day... It snowed!!!! It was so  the best!

We had a productive day. I should have been studying because I have three finals next week, but when I only have a week left in Paris how could I possible consider not going out. We met the group at the Catacombs in the early afternoon. It was our first time going down there and I have to say I am not a fan. It was cool at first. We took our time walking down into the caves and then the bone walls started. I saw those for a good minute and was very done being with them. It is just weird. So Emily and I hurried through the halls and halls of bones and made our way swiftly to an exit. By the end I was feeling slightly claustrophobic and I did not like it.

After that we decided we wanted to go to the Pantheon, but unfortunately I let some one else take the lead on directions and we did not end up there. We ended up at Tulleries Gardens and we made a quick stop at Angelina's. Best hot chocolate in Paris. Some girls wanted to go eat lunch in the Latin Quartier and Trish and I decided we wanted to go and see the Grand Palais and the Petit Palais instead. So we got on a bus and headed over there. It was so cold and I was thinking that we would go and see the Monet exibit. Jesica and Judithe were already and line and had been for an hour and they were only to the two hour wait point, so we decided to nix that idea. 

As we were walking away from the Grand Palais it started snowing. At first I didn't believe it. I thought it had to be blossoms or something from a nearby tree, but it kept coming, and coming from everywhere. It was so exciting! Trish and I started jumping up and down and catching snowflakes and all of that stuff that silly girls would do if it started snowing on you in Paris, France. WE walked over to the Petit Palais and we went in. As soon as we did it started snowing super hard. It was so crazy, but it didn't last long and we went over to the Champs Elysees to look at stuff until we were meeting the other girls at the Eiffel tower. 

trisha found a super cute hat that I made her buy and I got some cute decorative stuff that I have been wanting. When I come home my apartment is going to be decked out in Paris stuff. I can't imagine not having a ton of this stuff all over! Anyways so I bought some stuff and I am really happy about it.

We headed over to the Effiel Tower and met up with Lexi and Rachelle(Trish's friend). Almost as soon as we got there, it started snowing again. It was so joyous!!! We took pictures and all that good stuff. We split up after that and Lex and I headed home, but on the way we ended up taking a detour. We went to the 'Inception' bridge and we saw the mini Statue of Liberty. It was fun to just be out and with her. I am rarely alone with any one but Ally and sometimes Trish, so to spend one on one time with someone else is so fun! When Lexi and I are together we have so much fun. We are both so loud and completely nuts that we have a good time. I'm sure others get annoyed quickly lol but we have a blast!

I went home and on the way I stopped at the grocery store. I bought some random stuff to get us through the next week and I just thought about how much I have loved living here. I don't love it enough to say that I would want to do it again later in life, but in this setting it has been so wonderful! What an adventure I have had in Paris France!

 Us at the Catacombs

 You can tell I was really enjoying my time down here with the dead people.

Grand Palais

  Petit Palais

 SNOW!!!!

 My favorite tower in the world!

 Do you see the snow?!?!?!

 Trisha and Me

 Inception Bridge

 Lex and Me

Paree I love you!

Day 79

Today was awesome!!! It was Thanksgiving!!! And I am so thankful!

Okay we will just start with the day. I go to sleep in enough and then I got ready for the day. I kind of laughed at myself as I finished getting dressed because my outfit was absolutely terrible today. I put on my knee high blue argyle socks before I even decided what I was going to wear. I decided that I wanted both of my pairs of jeans washed today so I couldn't wear either of them so I went with the black dress pants. The only shows I can wear with those are my black flats, and taking to socks off was not an option. I put on a big tan ktop and a gray long self shirt that was boring. Then as we left I put on my black scarf, black gloves and black coat. I think that I looked rather silly, but at least I was warm!

Ally and I went out and saw a few things before we were going to Madame's for our feast. We first went over to Musee Rodin which is the museum that my Mom has been trying to get me to go to since I got here. It was really pretty and the gardens were beautiful. I wish we had gone earlier, because it was so cold. The museum itself was small and in an old house. It was not overwhelming like most museums and  so it was enjoyable.

We went over to Invalides and went into a few of the parts of the museum that we hadn't seen before. Not my favorite museum, but I bet for little boys it is the best museum in Paris. It is just full with war stuff from centuries and centuries. It goes from armor to the end of World War II. 

After that we stopped by Ecole Militaire to actually see it, even though we are by it all the time. We walked over to Madame's and started our Thanksgiving festivities! Madame made pumpkin pies from scartch and she made a huge Thanksgiving Feast with everything we have in America. (I don't know if I mentioned this, but they do not celebrate Thanksgiving here. It is just a normal Thursday. It was weird.)

It was so fun to be with all of us! It was like being with family, even though it wasn't. I think this was the first Thanksgiving I haven't been with my family, so that was a little strange. However being here with all these new friends made me feel like I was with my family. I don't think there is anything like a study abroad group. There is no way on earth that the 18 of us would have ever chosen to be with each other for this long in any other circumstances, but somehow we made it and I think we mostly enjoy.

After dinner we went to the Champs-Elysees! We walked around and did ridiculous things and just enjoyed being together. It was so cold!!! I can't believe how cold it is getting! I am not really a fan, but it smells like Christmas! It was a really good day!

 Invalides from Musee Rodin

 Gardens

 Musee Rodin

 Invalides

 Ecole Militaire 

 Our feast

Me and Lex on the Champs-Elysees!