I was really excited to go to Disneyland PARIS! We planned to head to the park early and get there before they open the doors. It was one train ride from Paris and the last stop was Disneyland. When we arrived I noticed it was definitely not as crowded as the California Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland, or Florida Disney world I have been to which I was grateful for however, it was really really really cold. We bought the day pass for both the Disney park and Walt Disney studios for around 80 USD each. The day we spent at Disneyland felt like a dream and was a perfect escape from reality. We did not have to wait long in the lines or purchase fast passes either which was nice. Additionally, since it was close to Christmas time, everything was Christmas themed and there were LOTs of decorations everywhere, including a huge Christmas tree that was in the middle of the courtyard by the entrance.
We were able to experience the Disney parade front row which was amazing since I have never been able to get lucky with the front spots. We also rode many rides such as the original tower of terror (which is my favorite Disneyland ride), the Toy Story video game, Pirates of the Caribbean, thunder mountain, and this Toy Story car ride that is similar to the Pharaoh boat ride at the county fair. We also were able to go inside of the castle and there were stained glass windows that told stories about the princesses. One unique thing this Paris Disneyland had compared to other locations is their Ratatouille virtual ride and Remy's restaurant. The restaurant served set meals with an appetizer and main dish. I ordered the steak and fries with ratatouille on the side and I was grateful to have experienced this once in a lifetime experience with Kaycee. Now I get to say I have been to the Disneyland in Paris!!
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A few other landmarks we visited was the Eiffel Tower (of course), the Arc de Triomphe, and the Palais Garnier (a.k.a the opera house in Paris). At the time we went to see the Arc de Triomphe, there was a HUGE crowd of people exiting the subway the same time as us. Kaycee and I were so confused as people were running with a red and green flag, singing, and chanting very loudly. Later on we learned that Morocco had just won their match in the World Cup series so everyone was celebrating. Many Moroccans emigrated to France due to their good economic conditions in the 60's so that is why so many people were out celebrating. As soon as Kaycee and I reached the exit of the subway, the crowd pushed us through until we finally found an opening to escape. It was scary getting pushed because I am smaller and felt that I was going to get trampled. From a distance, we watched the crowd sing and cheer and a few people were holding fireworks/sparklers while standing on a super tall platform above the crowd. It was a really cool experience (apart from almost getting trampled) and many of the cars driving by were blaring their horns while holding the Moroccan flag out of their windows. After that fiasco, we went to the Eiffel Tower to take pictures and headed back to our airbnb.
Although I visited Paris with my family before the semester started, I wanted to go back again to do a few more things I was not able to do and appreciate this city a little more. Our first day exploring we stopped at the Louvre and while Kaycee explored the museum, I went to a different museum called Musee d'Orsay. I mainly wanted to see Claude Monet's exhibition and artwork. After exploring the museum for an hour or so, Kaycee and I met back up to have lunch together. Sadly the line to famous Angelina's hot chocolate was super long, so we settled for hot chocolate and lunch at a nearby cafe. We also discovered that nearby was a Paris Christmas market. It was so cute and we tried their hot wine which was very popular and delicious. Afterwards we walked around near the Notre-Dame Cathedral and Galeries Lafayette mall which is a huge five story in door mall full of high end stores. For Christmas, they hung a huge lit up Christmas tree in the center which was so cool.
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