I still cannot believe that yet another one of my best friends has turned 21.  I feel like it was just yesterday when my friends and I were 12 and encountering pimples for the first time; 14 and entering high school; 16 and getting our driver’s permits; 17 and getting dressed for Junior prom; 18 and receiving our high school diplomas, only to enter college a couple of months later.  And now here we are, 21.

There is no doubt in my mind now: le temps passe trop vite (time passes too quickly).

It seems like it was just yesterday that I was lugging my two gigantic 49.999-pound suitcases up our ridiculously uneven and crooked staircase for the first time, and yet it has been almost three whole months that I have been here in Paris.

Upon this realization, I scrambled to make a list (after all, list-making is one of my favorite hobbies…those of you who know me can attest).  This list was titled, “Things to Do in Paris Before I Leave.”  It was incredibly long, taking up more than a page in Microsoft Word.  Had I really been in Paris for almost three months, and not accomplished any of these things? Feeling pretty bummed, I set out to cheer myself up by making another list, which I titled “Things I Have Already Accomplished in Paris.”  Much to my surprise, this list was nearly as long as the list of things I have yet to do!  I smiled contentedly, as I had learned my lesson: there is simply an INCREDIBLE wealth of things to do in Paris, and it cannot all be accomplished within a three-month time-span.

I gazed at my list while my professor rambled on about prairie dogs – or was it hamsters in the Pyrenees? – and a feeling of determination settled down in my gut: I was going to accomplish every single thing on my list, no matter what.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was that.

It started out wonderfully last night, as my two fabulous roommates Kelsey and Simone took me out for a drink at midnight!  One drink turned into two, which turned into several, and before we knew it, hours had passed.  I tried my first Bombay Fizz, (a personal favorite of Kelsey’s) which was quite delicious.  The bartender at the next bar surprised me with a flute of fancy champagne, and Simone treated Kelsey and I to a round of tequila shots.  We then went to another bar, Chez George, which was so incredibly French and so incredibly fun.  We had some wine, chatted with a few French students (one of whom is leaving for New York next week!), and discovered a crazy dance floor beneath that bar (France, why are you filled with so many surprises?).  After Chez George, we found another bar that was open late, so we went there and befriended some rugby players, one of whom was also celebrating his birthday (albeit several years older).  They offered to share some more champagne, and thus we were sufficiently jolly by the time we left the bars around 3.

I slept in this morning (and by sleeping in, I mean I slept until 9), woke up, and made my first omelet as a 21-year old!  IT TASTED SO DIFFERENT!  Ha, okay, kidding, except it was a pretty tasty omelet.  I had class at 12:30, which I actually just got out of and decided to explore Paris.

I walked to my favorite pâtisserie to buy a macaron au café, my absolute favorite.  I delicately put it in my bag and continued to walk toward the Jardin de Tuileries, which is right by the Louvre and Musée d’Orsay.  While I was walking, the most beautiful song started playing on my iPod: Dream by Priscilla Ahn (I posted it below this paragraph so that you can hear it and try to imagine how I was feeling).  I can honestly say that I will never forget how incredible it felt to be walking over the Seine with the gentle, Parisian spring breeze blowing through my hair.  I stopped halfway across, and simply marveled at the city spread out before me – how did I get so lucky?  How can I actually just live here?  There was simply no way to avoid it…I broke the Parisian code, allowed the scowl to slip from my face, and cracked my very American, very goofy grin.  How could I not?

So now here I sit, on a cement wall in the center of Tuileries.  The sun is shining on my back, I’m typing up a blog that doesn’t do my feelings justice, and I’m nibbling on the most decadent macaron I have had yet.  How can this day get any better?

And yet…it will.  I’m going to the Musée de l’Orangerie, which is filled with impressionist and post-impressionst artwork (Renoir=my favorite)!  There’s also quite a few of Monet’s paintings there, so I’m pretty pumped to see those.  And later on tonight after class, my roommates and I are throwing a wine and cheese party!  We invited about 35 people, most of whom will be in attendance at least for a bit.  I can’t wait to show off our beautiful apartment and spend my birthday with some amazing people.

In short…I will never forget this very beautiful, very Parisian birthday.

Today was a day filled with broken…well, everything.  The first (and worst) thing that wasn’t working was the Internet; for some reason, we lost the connection in our apartment and can’t seem to get it working again, no matter what we do.  I’m worried it won’t ever get fixed…the French seem incapable of doing anything in a timely manner, especially things of importance.

The next discovery was in our bathroom.  As I was taking a shower, I looked down, and saw the water spilling over the rocks and onto the bathroom floor, creating a pool – no, a lake of water around the sink and toilet.  Upon further inspection, I realized our drain is a bit clogged, and thus the water is building up and spilling over onto the floor.

The third broken object in our house is the bathroom sink, which appears to have sprung a pretty severe leak.  It’s pretty much a geyser that jet propels water out of it whenever you turn it on, even if it’s just a trickle from the faucet.

So, I bucked up and called Sabrina, our crazy landlady, who informed me that she would work on it.  I guess we’ll see how many weeks we go with a new man-made lake in our bathroom.  Maybe if I put my bathing suit on I can go swimming?

Also, I should inform you that I’m going to London tomorrow morning at the crack of dawn!  I’m excited to see Nadia, Jeff, and their friends again, and hopefully they’ll all show me a good time!  I’m going armed with a checklist of sights I want to see and things that I’d like to do/buy/eat while I’m there, so if I’m anywhere near as successful as I was in Ireland, I’ll be content. I’m also excited at the thought of drinking Bulmer’s on tap again…oh dear, it’s going to be a fabulous weekend.

Today was largely uneventful.  I had French today, and went out to lunch afterwards with a few girls from the class.  We went to this place called the CROUS, which is a student cafeteria where you can get quite a bit of food for not too much money.  I ended up getting some seafood paella with fish (bad call on the fish…I’m still nauseous thinking about it), and a little apple-y tarte for dessert.  It only cost 3.45 euro, which I guess in the grand scheme of things isn’t bad at all.

Other than that, I worked on my two papers and exposé all day.  Fun.  This whole school thing is interfering with my life over here…

More tomorrow.