Baden Baden, Germany

The adventure began early in the morning, as we attempted to quietly pack up our things without disturbing our hostel roommate. She was from Japan and was a huge fan of Amélie, so had spent most of her time in Paris hanging out in Montmartre. She was very excited, the first night we were there, to show us a drawing a street artist had done of her somewhere along the road by Sacre Coeur. The nights we stayed, she unpacked two giant makeup bags and spread the contents all over her bed along with half her suitcase and fell asleep on top of everything, one foot up on the wall. I liked her.

Loaded up with bags again, we returned to Gare du Nord and hunted down the car rental place. We signed a bunch of things and then headed into the creepy labyrinth that is the underground parking structure of the train station. I had no idea it existed. After a considerable amount of time was spent escaping from the maze surrounding the elevators, we walked out into the cavernous underground parking structure, echoing with weird French muzak. It was mildly unnerving. We found the car, tossed our stuff in the back, and I got to experience driving in France. It was terrifying (little did I know, this was the easy part).

Our car was adorable. It was an Up, and it was cute and tiny and surprisingly fast. Mom and I traded seats halfway to Baden Baden so I could enjoy the lovely and detailed highway signs along the countryside. I even managed to stay awake for pretty much the entire car ride!

We passed the time searching out the weirdest music we could find on the radio (just like Mexico, I was disappointed by the radio here - so much American music!) and telling each other stories of what all we had seen in Europe so far. It was lovely. The roadsigns gradually became more German and less French. We arrived in Baden Baden in the late afternoon, and checked into the second hotel of the trip - a Holiday Inn. The parking was awful, but everyone was ridiculously friendly. Mom wanted to have a German beer in Germany and just explore. I was convinced there was something we needed to see here, so since we had free wifi, I decided to do some quick research while we all decompressed from the car ride. It turns out there is a castle in Baden Baden - Hohenbaden castle, built in 1102 - and, like, a ten minute drive from the hotel - in the Black Forest!! This whole place just seemed like a fairytale.

Deciding that the castle was far more important than food, we did a quick map check and headed off toward the Black Forest (I just like saying that). It was literally two turns from the hotel, but  we started up the hill in what seemed like the wrong direction. I panicked a little, wanting to turn around because I was convinced we were lost and would die in the forest (even though we were in a car, on a road, with plenty of other tourists and a few picnic areas). 
Now let me tell you, I saw quite a few castles during my stay in Europe, and this one was by far my favourite. Walking up from the parking lot, we catch glimpses of the city far below through the trees, and as the road winds up to the entrance, we begin to notice people in fancy, 1800s-esque clothes. I thought maybe there was an event, or a wedding, or some such thing, but apparently people just dress up in period clothes and wander the castle. It's completely free, and you can just explore the whole thing, including a few hiking trails that meander out into the forest behind it. It was bloody amazing.

To the Black Forest (it should look less inviting).

Hohenbaden (Altes Schloß)!

 There's a restaurant and little shop to your immediate left as you walk in, the trail to the forest is straight ahead, and if you head right, there are windy staircases and crumbling walls in each direction - take your pick. Heading right, a short doorway opens up into a courtyard with an upper tier that you can walk along as well, and an aeolian (wind) harp. We circle around the courtyard in a sort of awe. The castle in Edinburgh was totally intact, but so full of people in modern clothes that it seemed more tourist attraction than something that had existed thousands of  years ago (don't get me wrong, though, I love you, Edinburgh!). Most of the other places I saw were either mostly ruins, or so intact that they seemed almost modern. This place was a perfect in between. It was intact enough that you were able to tell what everything had been, but it was crumbling just enough to show its age, and to remind you of how long it had sat there on that hill.
Walking along the lower levels, I realize I'm hearing bagpipe music, and look up to see two men walking around the grounds, playing music. They circle around and then climb the stairs to the second level, playing all the time. Throughout the time we were there, a few groups of musicians wandered in and out of the open stone doors, providing a soundtrack to our wanderings, helping to keep the feeling of being transported back in time.

We spent hours at the castle.There was an empty room with a ledge on a wall that could have been an unfurnished two bedroom house. There was a lookout that to get to, you had to climb up some creaky, old stairs in the pitch black until you came out into the shock of blue sky, a giant flag flapping madly in the wind. The view from up here was spectacular. There was a path leading nowhere really with a perfect climbing wall, a nice little sitting ledge halfway up (yes, I had to barefoot climb another castle. I couldn't resist). There was a dungeon that made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end and dark rooms behind half closed doors and the smell of water everywhere. The only reason we finally left was because we were all starving. And since we had driven all this way, we might as well check out the modern part of town as well.

 We sat outside the castle walls for a bit while mom sneakily took pictures of a guy in a kilt behind me. Then we headed into the town. The unspoken rule seemed to be that Mom was fine as long as we were driving on a freeway, Noah wanted nothing to do with any of it, and I would be the one doing all the driving in the cities. This was decidedly less bad in Germany, but I was still completely unclear about what I could and could not do. At least in France I could read the street signs, but in Germany I didn't even know what letter I should be looking for to determine whether I was in a no parking area or not (you know, big crossed out "P" in the states for "no parking"). We drove through the main part of town once and decided it would be a far better idea to just park back at the hotel and walk into town. It was super close and after all the driving I felt like I needed the exercise anyway. I was used to walking up at least a thousand stairs a day (or more) and all the sitting was not agreeing with me.
We made a German chocolate pit stop and walked into town, where there was an old car show going on. The town itself is absolutely adorable. Although it was a Saturday and relatively early, most of the shops were closed or closing. But the sun was out, it was warm, and there were a few restaurants with outside seating. We headed into one and I glared at everyone taking up the lovely outdoor tables. I ordered  a salad (sweet, sweet greens!!) and we each got a Hefeweizen. They were huge and brewed there, and we were drinking Hefeweizen in Germany, in a town where my relatives had come from. So awesome.

So excited!

They also had potato pancakes, which were something my sister and I grew up eating. My mom makes the best potato pancakes. After we all ate she said she wanted them for dessert, and we were in Germany, so why the hell not? We paid the bill and went out to wander around a bit. Off the shopping area, there was a sprawling hotel bordered by a little creek and some bridges, everything dotted with gorgeous flowers. The sun was starting to set and all the lovely European streetlamps were coming on. It was just picturesque and gorgeous everywhere you looked. Around the backside of the hotel, we could hear a waltz playing and through the curtains we glimpsed flashes of colors as people danced past.

Germany's version. <3

We passed a big, gorgeous church, and then headed back toward the main part of town. A giant tent outside of a little handmade ice cream and sweets shop caught my eye, as it was absolutely filled with people. We spied the giant ice cream cones being carried around and decided to go check it out for ourselves. I was extremely and delightedly surprised to find they had vegan selections! I guess I shouldn't have been so surprised - Germany is the only European country that boasts its own vegan supermarket chain - but still. So we all got ice cream and walked around the darkening streets. I kind of fell in love with it there. I'm dying to check out more of Germany now.
We started the walk back to the hotel, finding a back path that curved along a park and a stream behind the buildings. When we arrived, we realized none of us had room keys. Noah ran the long ways back to the parking garage to check the car, and about ten minutes after he'd left, mom found the key at the bottom of her purse. Oops.

The next day was le Fête de l'indépendance in Paris, le 14 juillet, and the second reason I had planned to visit Paris last on the trip - I wanted to see the fireworks at the Eiffel Tower. We would have to get up early to drive back to France, and meet my sister and her husband who would be getting in on the train late that day. But first, a big, fluffy, cushy, real bed awaited me.

To be continued



*thanks Mom, for a handful of the pictures!

Paris, France → Baden Baden, Germany

The next morning, I had intended to get up ridiculously early and get to the Eiffel Tower before the lines became absurd. But I was pretty sleep deprived, and we had warm beds and one very small bathroom, so we ended up getting a later start. And then we were all hungry, of course. We hopped on the metro in the direction of a vegan restaurant I had read about, Gentle Gourmet Café. It was basically in the opposite direction of the tower, but I was really excited to go to at least one restaurant where I would be able to eat everything on the menu. It was right off the metro line and super easy to find, but we walked in and they said they were having a problem with something or other, and they were not accepting any more customers. So, having told my mom about Huré, we decide to kill two birds with one stone and go check out Notre Dame, as our breakfast had now turned into lunch. Noah had to seriously talk me out of going into Notre Dame the day before, so I was determined to go inside today. Deciding that it's a good idea to walk there (it's not that far!) turns out to be the opposite of a good idea, because it is that far, and we're all very hungry at this point.

This bread is so ridiculously good.

We come up on it from the opposite direction, so we hit the food first. I grab one of the amazing looking olive rolls along with a sandwich, and we head to the Seine - but the closer bank this time, since none of us can wait - and sit on some steps to eat while some fat Parisian pigeons eye us hungrily.
Notre Dame is slightly less crowded today, and we get into the long line to get inside. It's free to go into the church, but you have to pay to do the walk along the top of the building. As lovely as I'm sure it is, I was getting tired of paying to go up things, and we were already planning on going up the Eiffel Tower. I decide that view will be much nicer, anyway.
Notre Dame did not disappoint - the ceilings are vast and it's absolutely beautiful inside. It's also the noisiest church I had been in yet.

Charlemagne

The lighting makes everything look painted.

 We spend a good long time exploring the church (it's also one of the few that I took photos in), and when we head out I realize I'm getting antsy. It's time for the Eiffel Tower now right?? We're walking along the water trying to decide which way the closest metro stop is, and end up at the BatoBus. The BatoBus stops at all the major tourist attractions along the river. It is super touristy, but it is also a chance to be on the Seine. Plus it's really hot out and sounds like a fantastic idea. Mom is kind enough to pay for all the tickets, and we hop on the boat, stopping at pretty  much every single stop along the way to the Eiffel Tower. We stand out on the back of the boat along the railing, passing under so many of Paris' bridges.

The Avenue des Champs-Élysées

My friend sent me a message the night before
about this giant silver T-rex that had just
gone up a week earlier. We were on the lookout
for it and just caught it as we went by in the
opposite direction!

All my hair in his face!

I love this guy.

I decided, about two seconds into the boat ride, that I didn't care how touristy it was. It was lovely. And when we came up on the Eiffel Tower, my mom and I grabbed each other and nearly started jumping up and down. I am so glad she was there the first time I saw it close up. No one else could have appreciated how exciting this was, because it was that exciting for her too! I probably took about eight thousand pictures of the damn thing in the few hours we were there.

from the Seine

We walked up the steps from the water in awe. I had told Noah, when we saw it from afar, that I was mildly disappointed - just mildly - because it seemed less impressive. Silly me. I was miles away from it at the time. I took it all back as we came up the stairs and saw it from across the street. It is massive, and just as impressive as I had originally expected it to be. I couldn't wait to climb it. We explored around it, walked under it, and wandered into one of the parks next to it. Thankfully, everyone was up for doing the stairs rather than the elevator, as it was slightly cheaper, the line was shorter, and I really just wanted to be able to say I climbed the Eiffel Tower.

Second floor view!

Le Champ de Mars

Toy city.

 The stairs were numbered, and we got to 700 something before I stopped paying attention. At the bottom, there was a notice about the very top level being closed, which we were all a little bummed about. However, after exploring the second level for a little while, we noticed a line and a ticket booth for "summit" tickets. Thankfully, the only way up is on an elevator (or I would have made us all walk it, and everyone would have hated me). So up we went, and it was terrifying. I am horrendously afraid of heights. It makes no sense, for one thing, and it came out of nowhere for another. As a child I climbed everything - the higher up, the better. In any case, the elevator had glass walls, and being pressed against said walls in the crowded car, my stomach dropped and I felt a little queasy as we started going up. The glass is also floor to ceiling, which gives you the uneasy feeling of being catapulted up to the top on nothing but air, and affords you a view of the absolutely straight down-ness of the elevator shaft. The view from the top was lovely, though, and worth the minor terror of the way up. We searched out the Arc de Triomphe and the ferris wheel we'd ridden the night before. They serve champagne (for an exorbitant amount of money) at the top, which I was super tempted to buy anyway, just because drinking champagne at the top of the Eiffel Tower seems like something everyone ought to do at least once. But for the second time in two days, I exercised some measure of self control, and instead took tons of photos and wandered around until it was too cold to stay up there any longer. Plummeting downward in the elevator was even more terrifying than going up.

Bein silly.

Mum and I at the top!

L'Arc, et la ville

Holy crap I'm on the Eiffel Tower face.

Lyra!

All in all, we ended up spending something like four hours on the tower. We were all very surprised when we headed back down and looked at the time. The BatoBus was about to stop running, so we hopped on one of the last and took it in toward Notre Dame again, getting our money's worth and doing the whole route twice. They were setting up along the Seine for le 14 juillet celebrations, and I noticed, as we were passing near the Musée d'Orsay stop, that there were aerial hoops set up. I do aerial silks and trapeze, and had been trying to find a place in Europe to go at least once during my trip, but without any luck. I made everyone jump off the boat to go investigate. It was for a show the following night (which I made note of, and promptly forgot about), and they had a little booth set up nearby. I went and spoke to the woman who handed me a few brochures, all advertising classes nowhere near Paris. At least I know it exists in Europe!

We got back on the boat, figuring out our stop and how to hunt down the metro from Chatelet back toward Gare du Nord. First, we headed into the shops and restaurants to find dinner. We ended up at a Greek place which put cheese on everything, so I (kind of grumpily) ate some pita bread before getting lost for a while in search of the Metro.

très Paris

The sunset and Notre Dame

Back at the hostel, we hopped on the wifi to do some investigating. Dylan (our Hawaii friend we met up with in Spain) had suggested something brilliant on our travel planning day - why not rent a car and drive to Baden Baden if everything else was too expensive? I wanted mom to get to see the place (it was kind of her Cinque Terre!), and I wanted to drink a beer in Germany. So, I told her what he'd said, and she thought it sounded like a fine idea. We researched train tickets and car rentals, and decided it was cheaper (and faster) to get a car. In fact, it probably wasn't, as they tacked on a ton of fees and the whole ordeal was a bit ridiculous. But, completely worth it (hopefully she thinks so too!). We booked a car and planned on leaving early the next day for the 5 hour drive to Germany. Road trip in Europe!!

To be continued