Euro Trips Part II

Paris

Ah the city of love, Parigi. What could be more romantic than ice skating on top of the Eiffel Tower, eating at quaint bistros serving fresh baguettes drenched in butter, and wandering the halls of the Louvre the weekend before Valentine’s Day? Well sharing a double bed with someone with a deeper voice who can grow facial hair easier than Monica and Alissa, my two bedmates for the weekend is a good place to start. Not that I didn’t love being quarantined to the “sick room” with this pair, plus Olivia (who slept in the single bed alone since she was diagnosed as having the worst cough at the time), since I discovered on my night in the middle of the bed that Monica makes an excellent little spoon and gives into my snuggling demands as long as I pester and preserve throughout the night. Perhaps I should take a lesson from my male counterparts and appreciate spending the weekend in a tiny bed with two girls; after all, convincing Monica to spoon was probably easier than it would be to coax many men into the same position. Now that you have the mental image of the four of us lovely, coughing, nose-blowing ladies spread between one double and one single bed in the quarantine room, let me paint the picture of the one and only Eiffel Tower Hotel our room was located in. My darling roommate, Jenna, who was down the hall in another room with our friends, Jess and Despina, the non-sicklings of the crowd that particular weekend, found us this impressive accommodation for the weekend. Everyone was quite eager to sleep in an actual hotel after a long weekend of hostels in Amsterdam and Brussels behind us, so the bar was set high. “It’s a four-star, with a beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower, and may even have a pool!” chimed Jenna, proud of arranging such sweet digs for the weekend. Well, when we arrived Thursday night (this is after being rejected by several cab drivers who did not like the looks of our luggage or our American accents) an infinity pool was not there to greet us. In fact, we were greeted in a darkened lobby by a Middle Eastern-looking man sitting alone on a sofa, hidden in the shadows of the entrance. As he popped out to usher us in, a rather terrified scream popped out of me! The rest of the hotel turned out to be one of hundreds of “The Eiffel Tower” 3-star spots within a 10 mile radius around Paris’s most famous landmark. What happened between Jenna’s internet search and our arrival, nobody is certain, but the breakfast was delicious (it better be, considering we were charged extra after our shadow-lurking friend discovered there was one more of us in the quarantine room than he had bargained for) and the beds were free of bugs (we check religiously in any new spot we sleep in). Besides, the city of Paris earned 5-stars in my book, making up for any lack of stars in the lobby of our hotel.

The Italian Alps

Jetting back early from Paris late Saturday night, we made it on time for the shuttle bus full of our study abroad program comrades headed to the Italian Alps for a 3 day vacation from classes in the form of a program-sponsored ski trip. The term “program-sponsored” became synonymous with “ingenious capabilities of starting a rager in any location” during this trip and was truly a bonding experience for us all. Starting off a little rocky with a near death experience as our bus made the perilous journey up into the mountains, reversing almost off of a cliff, the trip improved greatly with the beautiful sites, namely the snow-covered peaks and delightful resort lodge. While I chose not to partake in the skiing exercises due to my high risk of injury or at least discomfort, I did play the role of ski bunny quite well, enjoying fine dining and a relaxing spa. My friends hit the slopes, and one sprained arm later (poor Olivia’s), we all were reunited in the hip spot on the mountain top. What took place in that bar can best be summarized by the below video. It is truly a glimpse into the characteristic ridiculousness of IES. Enjoy!