Le premier dimanche

I have only been in Paris for about forty-eight hours, but I am completely in love! I can’t even count how many times I have said “It’s amazing!” or “I love…” over the past two days! Yesterday was pretty laid-back since we were all pretty worn out from traveling. We just had a few meetings and orientation procedures to go through, and then most of us crashed fairly early. I can’t remember the last time I went to bed at 9:15! It was nice though, because I woke up early feeling fully charged for my first full day in this beautiful city! I started out my day by attending mass at L’Eglise Saint Dominique. The church was exquisite! The architecture and stained glass windows were stunning! Then I did a little bit of wandering around the neighborhood just to acquaint myself with the area before we all met up for our first full-group outing. We hopped on the metro and made our way down to the Champs Elysees. We walked around as a group for a while and then we had some time to venture out on our own. Gianna and I picked up a lovely cup of tea from a small café and then enjoyed a leisurely stroll down the street. There were so many fantastic shops and it took a lot of will-power for both of us not to empty our wallets! We did some browsing though and we’re already planning another trip back! We also played the part of the “tacky American tourists” and took a picture in front of L’Arc de Triomph from the middle of the crosswalk! Don’t worry though…we waited for the walk sign! J Afterwards, we made our way back to the FIAP where we all indulged in a small reception, complete with wine, cheese, and mini pastries. Then it was time to relax for a bit! After dinner, a small group of us decided to go for an evening walk down to Paris’ Chinatown. It’s amazing…we didn’t get back to the FIAP until 9:30 and it still wasn’t completely dark! Overall, it’s been a fantastic day, but I think it’s finally time for me to start settling in for the evening so I can rest up for our first day of classes tomorrow! As much as my body has enjoyed this two week break, I’m definitely ready to start dancing again! We’ll start off with a conditioning class and a contemporary class tomorrow morning at the Academie Americaine de Danse de Paris. I’m really looking forward to it! Well, that’s all for now! Bonne nuit!