Euro-Trip: Part deux

I’ve had a sufficient break (and my family is demanding I write more!) so onto Paris!

Of all the three cities we visited, Paris was the place we stayed in the longest – 4 full days and 5 nights. The first time I went to Paris was nearly a month ago, and my love affair with the city of lights only grew with this visit. Mel was kind enough to place an emphasis on a lot of the sights I missed during my first visit. On our first day we ventured outside the city to the palace of Versailles. I was actually quite disappointed with the outside of the palace. The front was so plain and square – not impressive at all. But on the inside, the opulence and richness in the design is incomparable to anything I’ve ever seen before. They regarded their ceilings as the most important ‘wall’ in the room – always covered in a massive painting depicting the royalty as Roman or Greek Gods and Goddesses. I think the ‘backyard’ is really what amazes most visitors though. Even on a rainy grey day, you could see how far-reaching the gardens are. I remember learning in French class that a very typical landscaping design for the French are these symmetrical, geometric patterns. Marie Antoinette despised this rigidity in French design, and her area of the gardens is supposed to be quite the departure from the rest of the land. Unfortunately, it would’ve taken an hour by foot to walk through the entire gardens, and Mel and I needed to preserve our energy for the following day.

Next on our list was the Eiffel Tower – which I saw at night on my first trip. This time we got a view of the city in the morning, and as sparkly as the city gets at night, I much preferred the day-time view (and the temperature!). After the Eiffel Tower we headed to Notre Dame, the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs d’Elysees. If you’re thinking I was just as ambitious with the walking as my first time in Paris, that’s not the case. Mel and I bought day-passes on the Batobus (boat-bus) and were able to visit everything by travelling on the Seine River. We were also really fortunate that a jazz festival was happening all over the city while we were there – so in the evening we went to this artsy restaurant where a really famous American trumpet player was performing with his band. The restaurant also featured a Michelin starred chef – I know only restaurants get stars but I think he must’ve been the chef at a restaurant that received the stars.

Before we went to the jazz show though, Mel had some laundry to do – and lucky for us there was a Laundromat near our hotel. So we went to do her laundry and while we were waiting this man came in and started speaking to us in French. I was able to carry on an entire conversation with him about the political situation in France and how nice it was that even though everyone in Paris had a different ethnicity, they were all still considered French. His opinion was quite different – he sees the French umbrella label as false. Even doing something as simple as Mel’s laundry in Paris gave us this opportunity to converse with the locals and interact. It was also a lot of fun to construct sentences outside of “Could I have a glass of water?” and “Where is the bathroom?”!

Our last two days in Paris were mainly spent wandering the more bohemian districts. We went to Montmartre and saw Sacre-Coeur (still my favourite), we also discovered that at the bottom of Montmartre is where all the ahem, ‘cabaret’ shows are. It was an interesting dichotomy to have this beautiful church overlooking all these seedy shops below. Disturbed by all the sex shops, Mel and I continued to Le Marais, a much quieter district in Paris – but still typically Parisian. One of the main streets in the area was lined with café’s and patisseries (Pastry shops) and we were just in time for lunch! We bought some pizza, tarts and macaroons and a basket of fresh strawberries and sat on the grass in the Place des Vosges – the oldest square in Paris, and also where Victor Hugo lived. It was such a sunny, warm day and Mel and I were so perfectly content eating our strawberries and people-watching – until the grass-patrol kicked everyone off!

The last day we saved for the Catacombs – which were closed for alterations! Honestly, what kind of alterations do bones really need?! Anyways, since we were already in the Montparnasse district, we decided to go visit the cemetery where many famous authors, playwrights, philosophers and others are buried. It was kind of strange to be in a place where so many great thinkers like Simone de Beauvoir, Jean-Paul Sartre, Jean Baudrillard and Emile Durkheim are put to rest. Usually I find cemeteries really disturbing places to see, but this one had a much different atmosphere. I know it’s just corpses and not minds or souls there, but it was a nice way to pay my respects to all the people that have helped shape my intellect, or even my artistic abilities like Vincent d’Indy and Samuel Beckett!

From there we headed to the Latin Quarter – named for the language all the students were studying at the Sorbonne all the time. This was a really fun area to visit because it was lunch time and all the university students were out in the Luxembourg Gardens, sun-bathing and socializing (and unfortunately smoking too). The youth culture in Paris is one of the most fascinating I’ve observed. The way they interact with each other, the importance placed on style and communication technologies, there’s this kind of adult immaturity about them that I don’t understand. They look so old with their cigarettes and dress-sense, and yet act so infantile…it would definitely be a paradox worth studying one day.

After the Latin Quarter we went to the Louvre – and this time we used a one hour audio-tour of the highlights in the Louvre which was helpful for navigation and information purposes. I learned a lot more about the history and meaning behind the most important pieces that I wouldn’t have known otherwise – and the GPS on the handset was perfect for finding our way through that maze of a museum! Speaking of museums, we also visited the Musee d'Orsay earlier in the week - known for its Impressionist and Surrealist paintings such as Van Gogh, Monet and Manet.

In conclusion, I still love Paris. I’ve seen the tourist districts and the local districts and they both have lovely experiences to offer. The food, shopping and sights satiate the appetite of all my five senses. I must’ve been born there in a past life because it feels like a second home. If there’s one place I would recommend everyone see in their lifetime, Paris would be it.

(psssst! Shant - do you have a big enough vacuum? Eeek! Hehe)

One other thing, before I forget - this trip to Paris will be especially memorable for Mel and I because it was when we found out that she got into teacher's college! This girl was meant to be a teacher - everywhere we went, she was taking pictures of historical sights that she thought would be interesting visuals for her lesson plans! Can you believe she is already thinking of her future students?! I know I've congratulated her already but I'm so proud of your achievement Mel! I knew you would succeed, just like I know you will make such a gifted teacher - because I learn so much from you everyday. I never forget how lucky I am, not only to have taken this journey with you, but a journey of the past 9 years together. Thank you for coming to visit me, I miss you already!

Ok...part three in this series coming up soon...