Joyeuses Fêtes!

So, it's been a little while since I've updated and this is because I've been both a little bit busy, and too lazy to update my blog.  Mostly the lazy part though.  The good news is, that means you get tons and tons of pictures today!  Wee, I bet you are so excited!

One day I saw this boy wearing a sports shirt and on the back it said, "Gobelins."  I thought for sure that he was playing for a sports team with a goblin mascot.  Turns out that Gobelins is actually a place and it's also not at all pronounced like goblin.  That doesn't stop me from pronouncing it as goblins though.  

Peter and I take lots of walks all around the city.  One day our walk ended up taking us past the festively decorated Pantheon.  It's fancy.  

This one is for Jay.  Hey, Jay, maybe you can see about a transfer to the Paris branch.

We took a lovely walk in the Jardin du Luxembourg.  We sat by this pretty duck pond for a really long time.  Peter likes to watch the ducks.  He's going to be one of those old guys that walks to the park to feed the ducks someday.  

We visited Galerie de paléontologie et d’anatomie comparée (paleontology and comparative anatomy).  It had lots and lots of bones, as well as organs and heads in jars of formaldehyde.  Peter liked the organs in jars.

Lots of whales!  

We stopped by the Galeries Lafayette, a huge and very expensive department store in Paris.  They have a giant, 65 foot Christmas tree in the middle of the store.  It's pretty impressive.

I really liked the store, even if I can't afford anything in there.  They had sections for Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Dior, Chanel, Marc Jacobs, and Tiffany to name a few.  I checked the price of a plain black dress out of curiosity and it was almost $1000.  

Oh, and there's a cocktail bar by the Louis Vuitton section.

We saw some jeunes hommes (young men) playing soccer outside of a beautiful old church.  

Waiting to cross the street.

The Bastille.

These trees were made from recycled soda bottles.  I thought that they were pretty cool.

The front of another department store.

We went to Champs-Élysées Christmas market with our friend Barrett.  It was near quite a bit of the famous tourist attractions.  Here is a ferris wheel set up behind the Obelisk.  

It was so much fun to walk around and look at all of the stands.  

A blurry Peter and Sara in front of some Christmas decorations.  Peter drinking his Glühwein (hot wine) to help keep him warm. 

We wandered past some of the famous museums.  

Peter crossed the street before we did.  I managed to snap a picture of him waiting for us, just before crossing a bridge over the Seine.  

Standing on a bridge over the Seine.  It looked like we were a lot closer to the Eiffel Tower than we were.  It was a bit of a hike.

Icicle lights!

After about a thirty minute walk, we finally made it!

It's huge.

Peter and I posing with le Tour Eiffel.

Peter and I woke up this morning and opened our presents from his mom and grandparents, and exchanged gifts with each other.  He got me a train ticket to any place of my choosing in Europe!  I'm not sure where I'll pick yet, but probably someplace more South!  I got him ten things, nine of which were food items, haha.  Hopefully later we will get to Skype with all of our family members!  Lydia will be here on Tuesday, and Oliver will be here on Wednesday!  I'm really excited for them to get here.  We're going to have a very crazy time in the City of Lights.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas and/or Hanukkah!

Joyeuses fêtes!