My Weekend in the City of Lights!!!

The story of my trip to Paris can be summed up in two words: exceeded expectations. Like any other tourist, I went to Paris unsure of what to expect. I had heard it all, "The City of Lights," "The City of Love," and "The City of Illumination,"but I still had my doubts as to whether a city could live up to all of these tremendous names. I mean I don't know about any of you, but the sight of a lightbulb doesn't exactly make me swoon, but nonetheless, I came into the trip with an open mind and an already well-established love of pastries (I was obviously born to be Parisian). With that said, I can say without a doubt that Paris lived up to every expectation I could have ever had for it. The city is magnificent in every way possible, from the majestic and infinite lights, to the breathtaking skyline, and the rich history (just to name a few).

After living in Prague for the past two months, I had nearly forgotten that the sun still exists (sunlight is a rare luxury here), but there was certainly no shortage of Vitamin D in Paris. Unfortunately, my three glorious days in the sun still didn't do much to help my frightening paleness (sigh), but on a higher note, I still saw some extraordinary sights, and in true character, tried some fantastic food. Oh, and did I mention that I singlehandedly navigated myself and my travel group around the city?! You heard me. It turns out that I can read a map after all.

Here are some of my pictures from the trip. I had a rather difficult time picking my favorites from the 300 pictures that I took over the course of the trip, but I finally narrowed it down to these. Enjoy!

Me "touching" the top of the glass pyramid in front of the Louvre

The Tuileries Gardens

The Tuileries Gardens

Me in front of the Arc du Triomphe

Me in front of the Sacré-Cœur (Sacred Heart) Basilica

Me on top of the Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower at night (stunning!)

The Seine River at sunset (equally stunning!)

The Sainte-Chapelle Chapel

The Sainte-Chapelle Chapel

The Sainte-Chapelle Chapel (clearly I'm obsessed with these windows...breathtaking!)

My croque-madame sandwich...delicious!

Vincent Van Gogh and me hanging out at the Musée d'Orsay...no big deal. :)

One of the 30 pictures that I took of desserts over the course of the trip. Typical!

À bientôt (Bye for now),

Hannah

Lidice: Emotion Speaks Louder Than Words

This past Friday, the students in my program and I had the opportunity to travel to Lidice. Lidice is a small village in the Czech Republic that was completely destroyed by German Nazi forces in reprisal for the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich (a high-ranking Nazi official). On June 10, 1942 in Lidice, every man over the age of 15 was murdered on the spot, and women and children were sent to Nazi concentration camps where nearly all of them were killed. Even the bodies buried in the cemetery were dug up. Upon their departure, the Nazis burned the entire village to the ground as a final act of hatred. This event brought significant international attention to the atrocities being committed by the Nazi regime throughout Europe. 


During the first part of the trip, we toured the museum located on the grounds of the former village of Lidice. Although the museum had several artifacts from the village on display, what I found most compelling were the images. As I scanned the images on the wall, I saw families posing in front of their homes, children playing in the creek, women cooking together, and men at work as blacksmiths, carpenters, and butchers. The village of Lidice was just an ordinary Czech village prior to the Nazi massacre. Seeing these pictures led me to realize how truly arbitrary and sadistic this act of violence was. It is realizations like this one that often cause me to question my faith in humanity.


However, it is pertinent to remember that for every aggressor, there exists an innocent victim, and during the second part of our trip, we were given the unique opportunity to meet a rare survivor of the massacre. Jaroslava Skleničková, the woman that we met, was 16 at the time of the massacre, and was thus classified as an adult by the Nazis, although she was the youngest of the women of Lidice. Along with her mother and sister, she was sent to Ravensbrück, a concentration camp located in northern Germany. It was not until three years later when she was released from the camp that she would discover the devastation that had occurred in Lidice three years prior. She continues to live in the new village of Lidice located next to the site where the old village once stood. One of the most compelling moments during the question and answer session was when one of the students in my program asked why she had chosen to come back to Lidice after everything that she had experienced there. With tears in her eyes and an expression of pride on her face, she responded (English translation),"Because I will forever be proud to be Czech."


Due to the fact that she spoke no english, our questions for her, and her responses for us were translated. Watching her speak was so moving for me. It was perhaps the first time in my life that I realized that language is not always the most powerful means of communication. Rather, sentiment has no language barrier. It is a universal language in itself. Although her words were meaningful, her emotional expressions conveyed more than words ever could. It was a truly unforgettable experience.


Here are some pictures of Lidice:

The Lidice Children's Memorial

The Sign of the Lidice Museum

A view overlooking where the former Lidice once stood


Best Regards,

Hannah