Paris When It Sizzles

This past weekend I had the opportunity to visit the ever-so-romantic Paris, France.
I honestly hate to report that I had mixed feelings about this particular excursion.  While I absolutely loved the sights and enjoyed spending the time doing the things I did, I had my fair share of sketchy moments.  It didn't help that our map was really poor in its accuracy of street listings and if I never take the Metro again, it will be fine by me.
Trying to steer past the negatives, here is a list of the positives . . .

Here are the top things we spent doing between Friday evening and Saturday . . .
The Louvre (which was awesome because it was free for students on Friday nights):

 The other statues and paintings are obviously famous as well, but I would hope that everyone would recognize the Venus de Milo:

 And let's not even discuss how happy I am about how well this picture turned out...So cool! (this is without any edits whatsoever)

It was after this overwhelming experience that we were grateful to make it back to our hotel in one piece.  We then awoke early the next morning and were able to execute a rather fabulous plan of sights and wonders throughout the city.
The beautiful Notre Dame (which incidentally sent me into a craving overload to watch the Disney movie- we also ate at a restaurant next door called Le Quasimodo):

We also visited the three most famous romantic bridges in Paris.  The first was where Woody Allen shot the ending scene to Midnight in Paris as the couple walk off into the rainy mist, realizing their destined love:

The other one was The Lock Bridge which is famous due to its romantic tradition.  Anyone can buy a lock and inscribe some message of love on it and padlock it to the bridge.  They then throw the keys into the river as a symbol of their fidelity to keep their promise to whatever or whomever:

This was such an awesome experience because there were absolutely no restrictions on why you put a lock on the bridge.  It just meant you were expressing your love, whatever that meant.  Maybe it sounds a bit cheesy but it was one of the coolest things we did all day (which is also something I said a lot).

Of course we went to the Eiffel Tower (created by architect, Eiffel who also did the construction of the steel work for the Statue of Liberty).  We stood in line only for about an hour in the morning to go up (which it pays to go early, evidently) and then we returned at night to watch it sparkle and dance in the wind along with our cares:

And of course we also briefly visited the Arc de Triomphe (which apparently you can go to the top of, as well, but we were way too exhausted at that point):

And lastly, but most certainly not least, we went to Shakespeare and Co. which is an absolutely blissful bookshop that is famous for being the house of several inspirational writers, including my fave Ernest Hemingway.  This place has been around for a long time, although obviously restored over the years.  I also HAD to buy certain books to mark the significance of my coming there.  I therefore bought a copy of A Moveable Feast (which is about Hemingway and his first wife during their trips to Paris), a special copy of Macbeth (since it is my favorite Shakespeare play), and a book of photos of life in Paris during the 1950's.  We won't discuss what this all cost me, so here are some pictures instead, haha:

Pretty cool, right?  This has been one of the most anticipated points of the trip for me.  I have been wanting to see this place for a long time now and I was literally jumping with excitement when I found it.  The English major was doing alright, indeed.  By Sunday, we had an entirely different experience and I will be sure to share it soon.  I know that I am woefully behind but I am in need of dire sleep.  So au revoir, mes amis!