Aimlessly Strolling

I woke up Sunday morning to find out that the sun was out for the first time since I got here and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. So, I decided to go for a walk around my place without any real purpose other than to take pictures of buildings and watch the French do what they do (which is mostly having drinks at cafes). 

This viaduct runs all along the street that I live on. There is actually a walking path on top with benches, shrubs, and trees. I decided to eat my lunch up there and found out that it was pretty packed with people jogging or walking with their families and dogs.

Viaduct on Avenue Daumesnil

 These are just a few pictures from my walk.

Gare du Lyon

Outside of Gare du Lyon.

 For some reason I love taking pictures of all the apartment buildings. Possibly in hopes of someday living somewhere as beautiful. These are on the Seine River.

As I kept walking, I came across this bridge and realized that I could see the back of Notre Dame in the distance.

View from the Gare du Lyon.

I went back to the Bastille to actually see it during the day. There was so much activity going on around this square-- kids skateboarding, teenagers hanging out on the steps of the opera house smoking, somewhat of a carnival with a cotton candy stand, and of course cafes with people drinking and/or making out.

Walking around that day made me realize that I could take a thousand pictures but I will never really be able to capture what it's like walking down these streets. I really hope everyone has a chance to experience this at some point in their lives. 

This last few days have made me realized that I have not been this relaxed and stress-free in probably four years. I have been able to just do the things that I want to do without having a list in the back of my mind replaying all the things I need to get done (which is how I normally feel at home). I even started reading a book. For fun. Chelsea has been letting me borrow Eat Pray Love and it has been very entertaining and eye-opening.

This week I started orientation at school and I really like it! I'm actually looking forward to starting my classes. More details on that later :)