A Weekend in Paris

So I finally took a trip! I went to Paris for the weekend. Lauren, a new friend of mine from Australia who has taken an au pair position on the other side of Lake Geneva, and I took the train from Geneva on Saturday morning and were in the center of Paris by 10:30 am. Here is a photographic chronology of our time there:

As with any good tourist in Paris, we began with a trip to the Eiffel Tower. The number of people there was incredible--I heard more languages than I have ever heard in one place in my entire life. The line to go to the top was ridiculous, so, both Lauren and I having been before, we didn't go up. But there is this fantastic spot just a short walk away with this amazing, full view of the tower. As you can see, the day was absolutely perfect--the weather couldn't have been better, making the entire day seem like something out of a movie.

This is the Luxembourg Gardens. Absolutely beautiful. It looked like a lot of locals come here to read or sun bathe on a nice afternoon--that's what I would do if I lived there. There was a pond where kids were sailing little boats, and, for some reason, donkey rides around the park...There is also the Luxembourg Palace there--grand and very French--where I assume at some point a small group of rich people stayed and kept all of this splendor to themselves.

This is the Pantheon. This place is truly amazing, breath-taking, especially when you consider that it was all built by hand hundreds of years ago--how is that possible?!

A picture can't really capture the scale of this place--just consider the average height of the people in the bottom of the picture, and imagine how large and impressive this place is. 

I was so amazed that I had to take a video to try to share this with others and remember it forever for myself. Sorry it's a bit shaky--I'll never be a surgeon :)

Following the Pantheon, we moved on to Notre Dame. Again, the lines were crazy so we didn't go inside, but, even though I've seen it before, I just have to marvel at the architecture. 

Can you imagine how long it took to carve each of these figures? And apparently, each is the face of an actual person--a rendering of a saint or someone that the artist knew. This is just one of the doorways--the entire building is covered in this much detail.

Okay, look at the 4 figures...what's amiss here?

On Saturday evening, we made the trip to Mont Marte--where the original Moulin Rouge is--and climbed the many, many steps up to the Sacre Coeur. The church itself is obviously incredible, but it's position on the hill gives an amazing view of the Paris skyline.

This was probably my favorite part of the whole trip. There was a band of Senegalese men playing random songs on the steps leading up to the Sacre Coeur. It was just getting toward evening, the weather was perfect, and we sat on the steps facing the Paris skyline and listening to them play. It was truly, truly wonderful.

After dinner in Mont Marte, we took the Metro back to the Eiffel Tower to see it lit up for the night. It was even more crowded that it had been during the day, but it was absolutely worth it. I'm still not sure what the circle of stars is for--French national day was a few weeks ago, so maybe for that? Whatever the case, it sure is purty.

In a moment that everyone waits for, the tower lights up for about 5 minutes. Lauren and I sat on the grass in a park next to the tower, ate chocolate crepes, and enjoyed.

The next morning it rained, but a rainy day in Paris is better than a sunny day most anywhere else. Lauren went to the Louvre, and I walked over to the Musee D'Orsay. This is a bridge on the way--quite impressive--leading toward the tomb of Napolean. 

I will spare you the many, many, many pictures I took of French Impressionist paintings at the Musee D'Orsay--Van Gogh, Monet, Pisarro, Rinault, etc etc, which I stood in awe of for a couple of hours. But here's a picture of the museum inside--a work of art in itself. 

Not having to go far, I next walked over to meet Lauren at the Louvre. This is the entrance. It's housed in a former palace, so it is quite large and impressive.

The Obelisque, just a few hundred yards from the Louvre. If you look behind it, you will also see, along the Champs Elysee, the Arc de Triomph. I had a lovely afternoon strolling along the Champs Elysee with a ham and cheese baguette.

Unfortunately, at this point my camera battery ran out, so Lauren has the pictures from the rest of our afternoon. Following this, we went to the Rodin Sculpture Gardens--one of my favorite spots in Paris, and another place where I would probably just go hang out with a book for an afternoon if I lived there. After that, time was running short, so we had a quick cup of tea at a sidewalk cafe and then checked out of our hostel and caught the train home. 

So that was my weekend in Paris. Honestly, it could not have been better. Contrary to popular belief, the French people there were, for the most part, very nice. I tried to practice speaking French, but in an effort to make things faster and easier everyone would respond to me in English, which was a little bit frustrating. I bought some art at one of the street vendors along the left bank of the Seine--I even haggled in French, and, I think, managed to get a pretty good price. I will have to return to Paris sometime, I love it too much not to; and if I can manage to live there, just for a little while (sorry, Mom, I know how that prospect terrifies you), so much the better...