Day 2--Arrival in Paris!

Bonjour!
Our journey began at the airport, where over 30 girls and their parents gathered in one large mob by the airfrance check in station. I spotted our group immediately, seeing as they are all required to carry the EF Tours backpack. It's basically a source of humiliation that screams "I AM A TOURIST" in bright blue and vibrant orange. The girls decided to decorate them with puffy paint and ribbons, thus giving them an appropriate AHC look. 
I was assigned a group to look after as we made our way through security and  found our way to the gate. Security went smoothly, though I felt rather violated by the 360 x-Ray scanner they use at Dulles. It basically strips you down on the computer, and whoever is reading the screen sees...well...a digital image of what I'd rather people NOT see. Yet, I couldn't help but chuckle as the security guard told me to hold my hands over my head, stand still, etc. 
We finally made our way to the gate, where our plane was being prepped. A DOUBLE DECKER PLANE. I had only read about these in SkyMall! I had some time to kill, so I sent my group members out to eat, and grabbed an overpriced panini (but a very tasty overpriced panini) and relaxed for a bit.
When it came time to board, we were seated in the back of the plane (joy.) and we sat...and sat...for about 45 minutes until the pilot came on and told us we were heading out. And away we went!
The flight itslef was...well...uncomfortable, to say the least. On top of being confined to a very small space, we were seated around 2 small babies, and a whole crew of loud, disrespectful children. The little boy and girl in front of me were persistent in screaming (and I mean it) "MOMMY, I NEED (insert everything and anything)". It was incredibly frustrating. I attribute their yelling to the reason why I couldn't sleep a wink. For those of you who know me well, I need my sleep, and very rarely don't get sufficient amounts of it that my body wants. Needless to say, I certainly felt like whining as much as the little boy in front of me. But instead, I sat in my seat, and thought about introducing the concept of a pacifier to the mother of those kids. I couldn't help but wonder...do they have pacifiers in other countries? (I failed to mention that all of these children were from India).
I decided to watch some French TV to pass the time, and jammed to some Michael Buble. At last, we landed without any difficulty, and were freed from the children screaming. Paris was all ours at 6:15am!
Now, what exactly is there to do at this time on a Friday morning in one of Europe's largest cities? Well, sit in traffic of course! And we did. Fortunately, we had been introduced to our guide, Sabrina, who gave all of us the lowdown for the rest of the day. She informed us that we would stop at the hotel, drop our stuff of, and metro into the heart of Paris to explore the Louvre. (Keep in mind that many of us have been awake for almost 24 hours at this point.) 
We arrived at the hotel, and were...surprised. EF had described our accomodations much differently. Our hotel, a hostel-looking building connected to a mcdonalds, is basically located in the projects of Paris. The area around it resembles the south-east Washington DC area for me. But hey--can't complain. I got a good deal on the trip, I'm in an amazing and fascinating city across the world, and the hotel is a 10min walk from the metro. Bien.
The Louvre was just as I remembered it. The arc, the gardens, the pyramid and unique architecture, and of course it's massive size. After a free lunch and lots of pictures, we headed in to the museum itself to explore. My mom and I hit up the biggies: Venus de Milo, The Wedding Feast at Cana, The Nike, Hammurabi's code, and of COURSE the pathetic little Mona Lisa, which is always fun to marvel at.
We were all so tired from not sleeping--many girls took naps around the louvre. After dinner at "Hippo" we got on the metro again (this was the 6th time today) and headed back to the "hotel"...but not withou making 3 transfers first! It was so stressful keeping track of 40 people on one of the wod's most complicated metro systems. But we succeeded, and made it back to the hotel, checked into our rooms, and are finally free to relax. Thank you God! 
Now, I don't mean to sound whiny and complainy as I describe se of these events. I promise you that after I post this, I will be sleeping, and will be in a much better mood after my body has a chance to recharge. Note to self: never stay awake for 31 hours straight again. :)
Tomorrow we are off to explore Paris via bus with a local tour guide. Should be interesting. Me oui!