The Lily Pads (or How I Visited A Dorm Room Poster)

Last weekend the ESA program took us on a day trip to Giverny to see Monet's house and waterlilies; and then to Rouen to see where they burned Joan of Arc. It's all about variety.

After everyone jockeyed for positions, the buses took off at 8am. Leaving the city was interesting, as we got to see some areas that we hadn't seen before and probably wouldn't visit. There're some really architechtually interesting buildings on the outskirts of Paris.

The ride to Giverny took about two hours and we arrived under cloudy conditions, but the place was extremely pretty. It was a very relaxing atmosphere until Prof. Blair started yelling that we had a timeline and had to hurry. And then the German tourists arrived and we had to race to get to the waterlilies before they did.

Seeing the actual waterlily pond and the bridge that Monet painted, and that we're so familiar with from books, postcards, and posters, was really something. Even with people milling around and taking pictures (yes, me included) it was a completely lovely place.

From the garden, we visited Monet's house, which contained his collection of japanese art. And then we were rushed out to get back on the buses to make it to our next destination. On the way to the buses, we got yelled at by Prof. Blair. Something along the lines of, "Carlos. Gina. Stop taking people the wrong way. We don't have time for this.". Why he thought we were leading is a mystery, since I'm not a tour guide and we were following his staff, but whatever.

Everyone made it on the bus, and we headed off to our next destination.