We may be college kids traveling on a dime, but Paris has always been deluxe. From my freshman year home stay in Le Vésinet to an apartment in the 16th across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower in my junior year to the Ambassador's Residence in Paris for Whiff year, I've always had fun getting to know different parts of the city.

Fresh off the plane, we raced to the embassy to sing a concert. Timing was close, so we sang in street clothes. But it was an excellent concert. We even learned an older Whiff arrangement of "Slap that Bass" beforehand to sing with Ambassador Rivkin as he sang his old Whiff solo! He sounded great. I was happily surprised to see Prof. John Rogers, a Whiffenpoof and DUS of Yale's English Dept. at the concert with his family. He gave the Milton lecture that Max and I still frequently chat about.

Between concerts, Brandon, Andy, Reuben, and I checked out our beautiful rooms in the Residence. Reuben and I were in the Lindbergh room, where Charles Lindbergh stayed the night he landed in Paris after his solo transatlantic flight.

Then, Brandon, Reuben, and I threw on our running gear and set off on an epic sightseeing run around Paris. We ran to the Arc de Triomphe, La Tour Eiffel, and Notre Dame, and even got what's called Paris' best felafel at l'As du Fallafel ("the ace of felafel"), which was the perfect end to our run.

In the evening, we performed for the US Mission to UNESCO. US Ambassador to UNESCO David Killion and his wife were wonderful hosts, and the reception after our concert was a ton of fun.

The next day, we set out to see all sorts of sights. First, Andy, Brandon, Spencer, and I went to the Catacombs, which were fascinating. The old limestone mines beneath Paris go on for miles, and even our short tour was 45 minutes of continuous walking. After 15 minutes of slow going through dimly lit tunnels, we reached an ominous sign:

We passed millions of skeletons neatly, even artistically arranged along the walkways. Interspersed were classical and modern verses about death, heaven, etc. Creepy, but amazing.

Afterwards, we headed to the Louvre for a whirlwind tour of history's masterpieces, with outstanding classical and historical commentary from Spencer. I even discovered new favorites in the large format French wing, my favorite part of the museum, of course!

That evening we sang at the beautiful St. James Club, which seems to have once been the location of an air field for hot air balloons. The deluxe but zany decorations included zebras and hot-air balloon-styled outdoor bars.

Best of all, we had a delicious dinner there after our performance.

The next morning, Reuben, Spencer, and I met up at Shakespeare & Company across from île de la Cité. It's exactly what it sounds like, and owned by Walt Whitman's great grand-daughter. Spencer and Reuben played a game of chess in the upstairs library while I read about the life of J.M. Barrie.

After a lunch of Croques Madame along the Seine, we toured the Musée d'Orsay before returning home and relaxing with some Yalies on the lawn.

The evening concert was an outdoor Mory's style performance near the Eiffel Tower. Apparently the publicist who threw the party that brought together Sarkozy and Bruni was eating dinner when we arrived!

Afterwards was a champagne brunch where I re-met one of my homestay hosts from last year, Chip Seward, and a whole host of other Parisians.

Onward to Le Mans!