Originally, I felt very nervous to navigate myself around Paris since the city is so large and I had many stops that I wanted to see. We only had one free day in Paris so I knew we had to make it count. I was intimidated about using the metro because I’ve had few experiences using anything like it, and I have always relied on my parents to help direct me in the past. Additionally, everything is in French, and I only knew basic French phrases. Initially, it was very confusing, but there are maps everywhere and speakers that clearly announce the name of each stop, making the language barrier no issue at all. Of course we made a few mistakes our first attempts and accidentally went in the completely opposite direction of where we wanted to go, but eventually, we got the hang of it and it became very simple. Paris pleasantly surprised me, and it ended up being one of my favorite spots the whole trip. We were able to climb to the top of  the Arc du Triomphe, get amazing coffee at a small cafe, walk along the Champs Elysees and window shop, eat a macaroon by the Eiffel Tower, see a great Van Gogh lights exhibit, grab dinner outside and people watch, see Notre Dame, and eat chocolate while waving to the people on boats passing by on the river. It was an adventure filled day and all of my original anxieties went away very quickly. Every time I look back at pictures I get excited and hopeful that I might get to go back and explore more of Paris one day. It’s filled with such a rich history, and it feels pretty magical to sit by the Seine river as the sun begins to set!