January 22nd, 2009 - Paris, France

We arrived in Paris with our Aussie friend Nikki around 3pm. Starving
and exhausted from the back and forth traveling from bus to plane to
bus to metro to other metro, we found the first restaurant we could.
Pizza Pino. We ordered pasta and salads that, as you could have
guessed, were fantastic. Pricey, but we weren't about to be picky due
to our intense hunger... After a good pasta meal, its hard enough to
breathe, let alone walk around Paris, so we walked down to our hostel
and took a late siesta before meeting a couple friends near The
Louvre. We bought a couple bottles of wine and ran around the Louvre
like little kids, taking pictures and laughing so hard that our
stomachs began to hurt. Obviously a bit drunk, we decided the best
idea would be to eat some crepes and find a bar. We walked around a
bit and ended up at the bohemian bar I had visited with a French woman
I met last weekend. We drank some more, and met a couple locals that
spoke very elegant english (which is extremely uncommon for French
people I have noticed...) We talked about many things, but it seems
the topic of conversation for most people right now is Barack Obama.
The discussion was very interesting, because they spoke about being
skeptical of an Obama presidency. They were only really playing
devils advocate, because I know that they are very intelligent people.
It is great to hear other world views. We are really fed the same
things over and over again in our little bubble. The same is true for
every country, as they all have some kind of agenda, but hearing other
views is a great thing that we don't get to experience enough in the
US. The French have a long history of having strong political and
philosophical views that challenge "the norm". After the bar closed, I
decided to walk Nikki back to her hostel, which was a long walk along
the canal by our hostel. It was a cold, lonely walk back, but
fantastic. The lights from all the lamp posts were shining so
amazingly off the canal waters, that it kept me warm. Paris is the
best city in the world. I absolutely love everything about it. We
leave for Israel tonight, getting in around 3am, which would be around
8pm EST. Even though we wish we could stay in Paris longer, we're
excited to see a couple of our Israeli friends one last time before we
head home... It'll be sad staying in Israel without the whole group.
I'm getting very excited to come home though. Not so excited for
another long flight...

See you in Tel Aviv!

January 17th, 2009 - Paris, France

I'm sitting in a Canadian Sports Bar right now in Paris watching the Eagles slowly come back. It's pretty exciting watching the game with an entire bar packed full of Philadelphians in a city where I really haven't been able to understand anyone. Well... To tell you the truth, it's kinda hard to understand all of these screaming Philadelphians also! I'm meeting people from Upper Dublin, Lower Merion, even Rittenhouse. It's bizarre... I ate some macaroons today and paid a fortune for a meal that resembled McDonalds, only worse service! I'm sad to leave this city! I will be back for one more full day after Barcelona to finish up my business here. I got to hang out with Jim Morrison today, reincarnated as a cat at his grave site. One of the coolest cats EVER. We named him Morris. The picture is from a hike in Northern Israel at our tourguide Dani's kibbutz. I have some really great memories from this place. It is truly magical. GO IGGLES!

See you in Barcelona.

January 18th, 2009 - Paris, France

The Louvre was fantastic, I am extremely inspired right now... All I
want to do is paint! Last night was a blast as well... Jackie and I
were so tired from trekking all over the city that our late afternoon
nap turned into a full blown sleep. When I woke around 10pm, Jackie
couldn't open her eyes to get dinner- so I decided to get lost in
Paris... (which I have been trying to do since we got here!) I ended
up at a creperie, meeting all sorts of people. An Algerian man
studying translation was working as a barista at the creperie; we
began talking about many interesting things. We discussed Israel,
which by the way, people do not generally like at the moment. He
guessed that I was from California because I spoke slow and attempted
to speak French. We discussed linguistics for some time before the
night rush came through the Creperie. As more and more people started
showing up, I began to talk to people in the little French I have
learned thus far... I met a reggae musician that taught me some French
slang, and gave me advice on how to meet French women. The
advice worked, because I ended up at a bar with a 33 year old French
woman who spoke almost no English... (I think she was trying to seduce
me!) I didn't succumb to her smelly armpits. We drank a few glasses of
wine and talked about graphic design... She turned out to be a
creative director for Hermes handbags. Jackie is now trying to get me
to call her for a discount on a bag. While at the bar, I met a
Parisian Communist that thought I was interesting and wanted to pick
my brain. French people do not speak English well, and Justin does
not speak French well either, so the brain picking probably made me
sound mentally ill. Today, we are visiting Pere La Chaise, the famous
cemetery where Jim Morrison, Eugene Delacroix (finally saw his work at
the louvre...), Visconti, Suerat, George Mieles, Max Ernst, Stephane
Grappelli, Oscar Wilde and Gertrude Stein are all buried. The list
goes on, but I will spare you... I hope I can conjure up some more
inspiration there because I am already so excited to work... It is
raining today, which is ok for most activities in Paris, but another
thing we are attempting today is a Giant flea market that all the
Parisians love, called Le Saint Ouen. I hope the rain doesn't ruin it.
Later, I plan on eating a macaroon at Les Champs Elysee, "The most
beautiful avenue in the world". We leave for Barcelona early in the
morning, so before we head back to the Penthouse Suite, we will run
around outside The Louvre after sundown, which we have heard is one of
the most amazing things ever. I think the most amazing thing ever is
the Croque Monsieur Vegiterienne I ate in a little cafe in the gallery
district here... A piece of real toast with goat cheese and cucumber
slices - smeared with french mustard. Lets see if the macaroon can
hold its own...

January 16th, 2009 - Paris, France

I'm sitting in a quaint little bar called Le Voyageur in the heart of the Third District of Paris watching a quartet of French Gypsies swinging it away to the music of Django Reinhardt. I'm wearing a new suit that I bought this morning and my new winter jacket is by my side in case the amazing weather takes a turn for the worse. Jackie and I just finished our French Thai fusion down the street. We walked through the catacombs today and saw the Eiffel Tower. We ran through Notre Dam and drank some afternoon wine... Tomorrow we are visiting Le Louvre and I am sketching people inside a cafe. I have decided to buy an expensive block of cheese and some good bread to keep with me all day tomorrow. My beard has turned red and has grown out of control... I look like a lumberjack with a nice suit. Jackie and I decided to go for gold and upgrade our hostel room to a private suite. The four person room was the size of a baguette. Our new room is twice the size and half the amount of people. It's time to go back to the penthouse for a quick nap before we go out for drinks at another jazz club.

Over and out.