Paris!

The journey to Paris was a wonderful and memorable experience. Stepping off the train and hearing and seeing advertisements and announcements in French was a culture shock initially. I have never traveled to a country where English is not the primary language and I found that there was a barrier to ordering at restaurants and reading billboards in a language that was foreign to my understanding. Even though I was not able to understand everything that was being spoken, it was wonderful to hear the local people speak in French. Walking through the Louvre was an enchanting experience. My favorite piece to view was the sculpture titled Venus de Milo. I thought it was interesting to see how the artist and people of the past viewed "the perfect" woman. Today many women who appear on the cover of magazines or billboards appear contrastingly different from the sculpture. Yet, it is interesting to see how people travel and wait to see the masterpiece despite the sculpture may not reflect current beauty trends. This made me appreciate the timelessness and beauty of art that has the ability to transcend the times. Another one of my favorite memories of Paris was the Eiffel Tower sparkling at night. I always have dreamed of visiting the Eiffel Tower and to see it at night was a magnificent experience.