Birthday Girl

I turned 21 this weekend.
After a bountiful serving of Sangria and homemade vegan birthday cake, I hit the bar with some of the friends I've made here.
At Falstaff, the student bar of choice, I felt like a princess when a large number of bar patrons bought me a variety of alcoholic beverages to commemorate the occasion. In France, you can start drinking at age 14, head out to the bars at 16 and drink liquor at 18. These people didn't entirely understand the significance of 21, but they still wanted help me celebrate because it was something I was excited about.
I was surprised with multicolored roses, cakes, a basket of fruit (!), perfume (with the old fashioned mist pump!), a journal and this tiny little purse for my cell phone.
I felt very welcomed and loved on my birthday.

As sort of a partial birthday gift/mostly souvenir to myself, I bought a pair of boots. It's the same pair I've had my eye on for the better part of the last two months. They're my big purchase and the only souvenir I'm taking home with me. They're well made, practical and beautiful. I feel so unbelievably European when I wear them.
I think they're a pretty big step up from an Eiffel Tower keychain and World Cup beret-- but that's just my opinion.