Make New Friends, But Keep the Old Ones

When I was 8, I was a brownie (Girl Scouts brownie). I hated it, but I learned a few good songs, enjoyed the camping, and met Jenn, so overall it was a positive thing. One song that I learned goes like this:

Make new friends, but keep the old ones.
One is silver, and the other’s gold.

My 8-year-old really liked this sentiment, even though I didn’t really have any new vs old friends to fully understand its meaning. But now, it seems so relevant!

The nice thing about coming to Paris on my own is that I’ve been forced to make friends and interact with people who I would otherwise never have met. I’ve met some really awesome people. Most of them are around my age, and they’re all fulfilling their dreams by pursuing their careers and education, learning French, teaching music, etc. They also all speak a lot of different languages, which is crazy.

However, I miss my friends and family back home dearly. Keith and Amy paid me a visit this past week and it was so good to see them! It was a double treat since they no longer live in Philadelphia anymore, so I only get to see them a couple of times of year and usually have to share them with hoards of others suffering from Keith-Amy-Deprivation-Syndrome. Plus, we’re in Paris and it’s awesome here and I got to do a lot of touristy things that I’ve put off in anticipation of my friends coming to town. I think I walked an average of 8 miles a day when they were here, and every step was fun!

Here’s the itinerary we followed so that I don’t forget and in case anyone wants to know:

Sunday – Catacombs, Pantheon, Gelato in Jardin Luxembourg, traditional french restaurant at Au Père Louis
Monday – Notre Dame towers followed by interior and Notre Dame Treasures Museum, Fete du Pain outside Notre Dame, Saint Chappelle, la Conciergerie, drinks and Solo playing at le Dernier Bar au Fin du Monde, bottle of red wine at home, Thai food across the street at Monthai
Tuesday – Sat on Champ de Mars and enjoyed the sun while Keith and Amy went up le Tour Eiffel, walked across les Invalides and then enjoyed the Rodin Museum, Met up with Amy’s friend Claire in Montmartre for cheap beers and had pizza delivered to bar from across the street
Wednesday – Keith and Amy went to Versailles while I went to Musée Carnavalier (Paris History) with my friend, Christophe, then I worked and caught up on chores and Keith and Amy enjoyed a private hotel room and nice dinner out
Thursday – Lazy morning followed by long picnic at Parc des Buttes-Chaumont with wine, cheese, chocolate, and a baguette, amazing Crepes for dinner at Little Breizh, walked home through the city center and caught the light show of the Eiffel Tower and also beautiful music inside one of the outdoor walkways at the Louvre
Friday – I worked in the morning while Keith and Amy checked out the Science Museum with a robots exhibit, met them at the Institute Suedois for a quick bite of lunch, Keith napped while Amy and I sat at a café nearby in the sun, then Keith made delicious fish, asparagus, and fingerling potatoes and we served a birthday tarte for Keith’s birthday, Grabbed 6 different Belgian beers at a place near me and then headed to Pont Neuf along the Seine and found a spot along the river to enjoy the beer, walked back at midnight to catch another light show of le Tour Eiffel
Saturday – nice long sleeping in followed by brunch at Chez Maman and reluctantly allowing Keith and Amy to go back to the airport and head home