This past Sunday I returned from a five day solo journey to France. My adventure started with waking up before the butt crack of dawn. Walking to a bus station about a mile and a half away. Then hopping on a direct flight from Seville to Paris.
Paris blew my mind with its overwhelming beauty. The old buildings and streets were painted with a beautiful history. Had an interesting culinary experience eating raw meat and then Chinese food for breakfast.
The Catacombs, Montparnasse Tower, Luxembourg Gardens, Louvre, and sitting by the Eiffel Tower are all must dos in Paris.
I also visited Lyon and it turned out to be my favorite French city I have seen yet. Lyon is an amazing combination of historical and modern. There is just a great vibe going on in Lyon that instantly made me feel at home. One of the highlights was the hostel I stayed at. The away hostel and coffee shop made my stay 10 times better. The hostel was full of young travelers and made me feel like I was part of club of global citizens. I had such an amazing time in Lyon but was unfortunately cut short because of my faulty planning.
Instead of spending two days in Lyon, I spent one and a half. The half day I spent on a bus going back to Paris. From Paris I hopped on a train, then a bus and arrived in Beauvais. Which is a small town a few hours north of Paris, not an ideal airport to fly out of. I learned my lesson of doing research on my flights because after arriving in Beauvais at about midnight. I walked an hour and a half to the airport intending to sleep in the airport until my 7:30 flight. Upon arriving at the airport I discovered it does not open until 6:30. With no place to go I waited outside the airport until 6:30.
My trip to France was a unique one but a great one. It really was an adventure more than a vacation.
Advice:
Do research on where your flights land and depart from.
Use your student visa to get into museums for free.
Buy groceries to save money on food.