So I am finally back home after what is probably the most insane trip so far!
Last Wednesday, I headed out to Paris with my dear friend Erin to go meet up with some of the Red Bull crew and friends. For this trip, I've decided to tell you about it day by day as it was a crazy trip with a lot of adventures and action!
Day 1:
As Erin and I finally make it to the Valencia airport, we realize that all flights to Charles de Gaulle and Orly are either cancelled or delayed due to the snowstorm that has hit Paris earlier that day. Luckily, we are flying to Beauvais! As we walk out of the airport, we walk in what is clearly a mosh pit of angry French people! Beauvais offers a shuttle system back to Paris, which of course due to the snow had been delayed for hours, and there are about 200-300 people fighting to hitch a spot on the buses. We ended up having to wait 2hrs outside in the freezing cold! At 1:30am I finally make it to my hotel, Mama Shelter, where my good old Red Bull Crew is waiting there for me with a drink.
Day 2:
The crew gathered up (there was about 18 of us) and we metro down to go visit the city! We headed down to the Christmas Village at the bottom of the Eiffel Tower. As we get to the Eiffel Tower, we see the line going for miles!!!! Travelling tip: if you plan on going up the Eiffel Tower, head out there early in the morning in order to avoid lineups! Later on, we headed down to the Shopping District where all the fancy boutiques are (close to the Champs d'Elysee). After being in the freezing cold all day, we went back to the hotel to relax, get some dinner, and get ready for Red Bull 3 Style International Final. The show was absolutely amazing! We had a great time, and a blast cheering on our Canadian DJ - DJ Drastik, who placed 3rd!
Day 3:
I think it is safe to say that after last night, no one could move for a few hours! After coming back to our hotel at 6am, most of us opted to stay at the hotel and relax, as we have another big night coming. Later that evening we all headed out for some traditional Lebanese dinner, and afterwards MOULIN ROUGE!!! - To everyone planning on going to Paris, this is a must!! This classic Paris entertainment is spectacular to see, but is also quite expensive! After sipping on champagne with the Red Bull crew and friends, we headed out to Social Club to check out some other famous DJs.
Day 4:
Back to sightseeing! Having a smaller crew that day, we decided to bike around the city centre, where we headed to Gallerie La Fayette and Printemps. Again, they were amazing spots, but expensive shopping and eating! Later that afternoon we headed to Centre Pompidou - great museum to see, however if you are not really into arts, it might be a bit a waste of your time. It isn't really expensive, but I was more attracted to the building itself than the exposition. They also have various expositions for short periods of time, which one may particularly interest you.
That evening we when to a traditional French restaurant for our dear friend Kenny's birthday. Great food - however for vegetarians, options are extremely limited! Afterwards, we headed out to Showcase for some drinks. This bar has to be the coolest bar in Paris!!! It is located underneath the bridge on Champs d'Elysee and is an attraction itself!
Day 5:
Back to Beauvais to fly out to Madrid!!
Some quick tips:
- If you plan on seeing specific locations, take a quick look online if reservations are possible, it will save you A LOT of time!
- Cabbing in Paris is ridiculously expensive! If you call a taxi ahead instead of just hauling one, they will start charging you as of the moment you call. Metro is really easy to figure out, and will bring you pretty much anywhere you need to go. Passes for 3 or 5 days are also available for very cheap with unlimited trips.
- Beauvais Airport is a nightmare!!!! Avoid this airport at all costs! I know low cost airlines tend to fly there, but also factor in that it will cost you 15euros to shuttle to Paris and 15 to go back to the airport. From the shuttle station, you will also need to cab to get where you want to go, it adds up! From Charles de Gaulle Airport, you can easily metro anywhere in the city.
- Paris is a very expensive city, you do not need to stay in the dead centre in order to visit, the metro will cost you less than an expensive room downtown! The attractions are also scattered around the city, you will most likely need to metro between most of them anyways, unless you're willing to walk 45mins to an hour between them.
This trip would've never been this amazing without the Red Bull crew, our friends, and Erin.... I have so many thanks to give out for this trip!!
Can't wait to be back in Paris in April with Mom and Dad to visit the rest of this amazing city!
After most of our friends left us to go back home with their families, my friend Ana and I were pretty much left here by ourselves. The first few days weren't so bad as we still had classes and had a few errands to run. We also went downtown to see the Christmas lights (as we had none in our apartments), and check out the Christmas Market, where local merchants come to sell hand-made toys, jewelry, clothes, treats,... We also found a Christmas Village going on, which was quite...bizarre. We saw some camels, goats, rabbits, and many other animals, as well as a Santa-Dinosaur. 
