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At the airport getting my boarding pass to Paris. Look how big my backpack was!  Oh my gosh, it was so heavy!!!! Going through security before we got to the gate at the airport. They had to check our passports and passes several times.

Here's a daily log of what I'm up to while I'm gone.  Be sure and check back for updates!

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Day 1-Tuesday-June 13

• Left for Paris from Dallas

Day 2-Wednesday-June 14

• Visited the historic Montmartre area, a haven for artists and writers before WWI.
• Saw the Basilique du Sacré Coeur. The dome is the second highest peak in Paris.
• Journaled my first impressions of France, which you can read when I return.

• Started our day with a French language course where we learned some simple phrases.
• We took a ride on a bateaux, that’s a riverboat, where we got to see Paris from the water. It was awesome! We also got to visit the Eiffel Tower. It’s 889 feet tall and was built in 1889 for the World’s Fair to commemorate the French Revolution.
• I went to the Hard Rock Cafe in Paris and had totally American food...a burger and fries...lol!
• Journaled about the day’s experiences.

Day 4-Friday-June 16

	We toured Paris with a guide today and saw the Latin Quarter which is where students and professors used to only speak Latin before the Revolution. Visited the Château de Versailles, which has a huge history that goes back to 1623. The thing I like were the stables of course...lol. They were built in 1682 and housed the king's 600 horses and people who took care of them.
		* We saw Notre Dame and found out that it took 200 years to build. (Left:me in front of the Notre Dame Cathhedral) * Then we traveled I guess an hour and a half or so to Chartreuse where we are staying in a guest house for 3 days

Day 5-Saturday-June 17

• Today was fun! We met some kids and played soccer. So that was cool.
• We got to help a youth group for our service project.  They are gathering hygeine items and school supplies for a gypsy community in Romania.
• We also got settled in our guest house where we will stay 3 days.

Day 6-Sunday-June 18

• We got to do this cool scavenger hunt around the city.  That was fun except when I went to the restroom, I came out and didn't know where anyone was. That was kind of scary, but I caught up with everyone in about 20 minutes.  And oh my gosh, did you know you have to PAY to use the restroom!  It's like $ .40! Goodness!

Day 7-Monday-June 19

• We got to do this cool scavenger hunt around the city and got to see the Musèe du Louvre and the real Mona Lisa!
• Then we also got to ride a train all night to Italy. We had to stop along the way though because one of our delegates got sick and had to go to the hospital. She is okay now.

* We went through the Grand Canal on a gondola. That was cool. (Pic of that to the left) *We chased the pigeons in fron of the Piazza San Marco *We visited the Venetian glass factory, Veccia Murano. It was awesome to see them make things!

 Day 10-Thursday-June 22

We went shopping in Pisa We took a tour of Florence and of the Academia Gallery, an art museum where we saw the staure David by Michelangelo I tried gelotto (italian ice cream) and that was so wonderful! I wish I could bring some home for my mom! I know she would love it!!!! The pic to the left here is of me in front of the Duomo, the famous symbol of Florence and the tallest building in the city.  The bronze doors on the this building (in the pic) are known as the "Gates of Paradise."

Day 11-Friday-June 23

Day 12-Saturday-June 24

Day 13-Sunday-June 25

Day 14-Monday-June 26

Day 15-Tuesday-June 27

Day 16-Wednesday-June 28