The Long and Winding Road Home - Part II - Paris
In case you haven’t heard, Paris is beautiful. Yes, it’s cliché, but it’s true - the buildings, the avenues, the rivers, the people, the food - it’s enchanting, and we were immediately captivated. The first night, after successfully navigating our way through an amazingly rich and wonderful meal with no more than five words of French between the two of us, I talked Paul into taking a quick walk across the river Seine. I remembered from my 12-hour stopover in Paris a couple of years back that many of the most recognizable treasures can be seen within a few blocks of each other near the river. We first came upon the Hôtel de Ville building, which was decorated with these strange glowing glitter puffs for the holidays.
Hôtel de Ville
Then, when crossing the river to Notre Dame cathedral, we caught a glimpse of a familiar sight in the distance.
The Seine with the Eiffel Tower in the Distance
Just a few hundred feet later, we were gazing in wonderment at the cathedral.
Notre Dame by Night
We wandered back to our hostel, starry eyed and content. By the next day, we had pretty much come to the conclusion that we had somehow been placed in the Arab Heaven section of Paris. Every time we walked out the door, there were like 10 beautiful French Arabs in crossing our path, answering our questions at the reception desk, serving us at dinner.
In general, the people in Paris shattered my preconceived notion of the French as a rude and cold people who shirked off foreigners at the first sign that they were different. There certainly were still strained moments, but it was generally a pretty positive experience. Perhaps nearly a year in Spain had transformed me into more of the aggressive tourist that gets results. At least we didn't succumb to "Paris Syndrome". It could have gotten downright ugly.
On day two, we set out on a trek of famous sights in what was a very icy-feeling gray haze. We passed by the Louvre museum, which is housed in what was for centuries the royal palace before it was opened as an art museum in 1793. The building is HUGE and beautiful, as are the surrounding statues and monuments. I love the pyramid, which was quite controversial when it was opened in 1989.
You've Got to Love the Louvre
Inside the Pyramid
Paul got a couple of really nice pics while we were strolling through the adjacent Tuilerie Gardens, including a near-perfect image of a quintessentially French soldier in his red beret and fatigues.
On Guard in the Gardens
Statue in Tuilerie Gardens
We went to the Louvre the next day and saw the Mona Lisa, among other amazingly famous and beautiful works of art. I was actually unimpressed with the Mona Lisa, although I'm a bit of an artistic neophyte. I don’t really understand why it is such a famous and ubiquitous icon in the world's art culture. We saw another DaVinci at the Louvre that I think far surpasses Ms. Lisa in overall effect - The Virgin of the Rocks.
The Virgin of the Rocks (Louvre File Picture)
We continued on to wander through the gardens and past a huge ferris wheel (but not as huge as the one we were to see in London in a few days.) Just when we thought we might freeze to death, we made it to Champ Elysées to stop for a café au lait in a very crowded sidewalk café. Paul tried to sneak a picture of this amazing old French woman with a huge fur coat puffing at a cigarette with a very long and elegant cigarette holder. The flash went off, completely startling Paul, and the picture blurred in Paul’s rush to conceal the camera. The woman immediately noticed that something strange was up, but Paul just flashed her a big smile, which she reluctantly returned before cattily turning her attention back to her never-ending cigarette and steaming coffee. Although we missed the shot, the image will be forever burned in our memories as a quintessential Parisian experience.
Off we meandered anew with our renewed energy and warmth. At the end of the shopping district on Champs-Elysées is the Arc du Triomph. This is one of those images (as are many in Paris) that is so famous that you have seen it a million times in Photographs, on advertisements, in movies. I was actually taken aback by how big the thing is. Look close at this picture and you can see the people on the top walking around on the observation deck. I thought it was like a one-car tubular deal, but NOOOO, you could get a freeway through there, and they pretty much do :)
Arc du Triomph
About the time of our second and more severe impending frostbite, we finally started to approach the Eiffel Tower. The tower is probably the most famous image in the world, so to come up on this thing from afar at dusk in the freezing cold was quite an experience. The fear of death by freeze made the pilgrimage all the more intense and special… as long as we would be able to make it. While the tower was still off in the distance, the hourly light show that has frequently been chided as tacky and inappropriate started it’s little dance. Paul took one of those surreal flash in the dark pics of me with the spectacle.
In spite of losing feeling in various body parts, we pushed on to the glowing monument. When we finally arrived, you could barely see the tip from the base, but all the fog gave a very cool effect.
Eiffel in the Hazy Dusk
Eerie Eiffel Glow
The next couple of days were very low key. We took in the good food and enchanting atmosphere without too much pressure to fill up our itinerary with essential sights and activities. I went back to Notre Dame during the daytime to get some pictures of the gargoyles on the sides of the church that are sooo strange and creepy.
I also ventured inside during a special holiday choral performance and got a couple of good shots of the inner sanctum.
Strange Use of a Picture Frame for Accent
Psychedelic Chandelier Shot
The final night, we made the trek up Montmartre to see the Basilica of Sacre Coeur. In addition to it's long and crazy history, this spot has one of the best views of Paris. Strange about European cities, though: the great views just don't have quite the same impact as in American cities. Something about those dramatic U.S. skylines... I really loved the basilica, though. It looked so majestic perched atop the hill.
Sacre Coeur
The next morning, we reluctantly packed up to continue on to the next leg of our journey, and boarded the Eurostar train. It goes from Paris to London in less than three hours. Pretty quick, eh?
Off to another culture, and my last European destination on this trek. At least we'd be able to speak in our native tongue... well, sort of.
In case you haven’t heard, Paris is beautiful. Yes, it’s cliché, but it’s true - the buildings, the avenues, the rivers, the people, the food - it’s enchanting, and we were immediately captivated. The first night, after successfully navigating our way through an amazingly rich and wonderful meal with no more than five words of French between the two of us, I talked Paul into taking a quick walk across the river Seine. I remembered from my 12-hour stopover in Paris a couple of years back that many of the most recognizable treasures can be seen within a few blocks of each other near the river. We first came upon the Hôtel de Ville building, which was decorated with these strange glowing glitter puffs for the holidays.
Then, when crossing the river to Notre Dame cathedral, we caught a glimpse of a familiar sight in the distance.
Just a few hundred feet later, we were gazing in wonderment at the cathedral.
We wandered back to our hostel, starry eyed and content. By the next day, we had pretty much come to the conclusion that we had somehow been placed in the Arab Heaven section of Paris. Every time we walked out the door, there were like 10 beautiful French Arabs in crossing our path, answering our questions at the reception desk, serving us at dinner.
In general, the people in Paris shattered my preconceived notion of the French as a rude and cold people who shirked off foreigners at the first sign that they were different. There certainly were still strained moments, but it was generally a pretty positive experience. Perhaps nearly a year in Spain had transformed me into more of the aggressive tourist that gets results. At least we didn't succumb to "Paris Syndrome". It could have gotten downright ugly.
On day two, we set out on a trek of famous sights in what was a very icy-feeling gray haze. We passed by the Louvre museum, which is housed in what was for centuries the royal palace before it was opened as an art museum in 1793. The building is HUGE and beautiful, as are the surrounding statues and monuments. I love the pyramid, which was quite controversial when it was opened in 1989.
Paul got a couple of really nice pics while we were strolling through the adjacent Tuilerie Gardens, including a near-perfect image of a quintessentially French soldier in his red beret and fatigues.
We went to the Louvre the next day and saw the Mona Lisa, among other amazingly famous and beautiful works of art. I was actually unimpressed with the Mona Lisa, although I'm a bit of an artistic neophyte. I don’t really understand why it is such a famous and ubiquitous icon in the world's art culture. We saw another DaVinci at the Louvre that I think far surpasses Ms. Lisa in overall effect - The Virgin of the Rocks.
We continued on to wander through the gardens and past a huge ferris wheel (but not as huge as the one we were to see in London in a few days.) Just when we thought we might freeze to death, we made it to Champ Elysées to stop for a café au lait in a very crowded sidewalk café. Paul tried to sneak a picture of this amazing old French woman with a huge fur coat puffing at a cigarette with a very long and elegant cigarette holder. The flash went off, completely startling Paul, and the picture blurred in Paul’s rush to conceal the camera. The woman immediately noticed that something strange was up, but Paul just flashed her a big smile, which she reluctantly returned before cattily turning her attention back to her never-ending cigarette and steaming coffee. Although we missed the shot, the image will be forever burned in our memories as a quintessential Parisian experience.
Off we meandered anew with our renewed energy and warmth. At the end of the shopping district on Champs-Elysées is the Arc du Triomph. This is one of those images (as are many in Paris) that is so famous that you have seen it a million times in Photographs, on advertisements, in movies. I was actually taken aback by how big the thing is. Look close at this picture and you can see the people on the top walking around on the observation deck. I thought it was like a one-car tubular deal, but NOOOO, you could get a freeway through there, and they pretty much do :)
About the time of our second and more severe impending frostbite, we finally started to approach the Eiffel Tower. The tower is probably the most famous image in the world, so to come up on this thing from afar at dusk in the freezing cold was quite an experience. The fear of death by freeze made the pilgrimage all the more intense and special… as long as we would be able to make it. While the tower was still off in the distance, the hourly light show that has frequently been chided as tacky and inappropriate started it’s little dance. Paul took one of those surreal flash in the dark pics of me with the spectacle.
In spite of losing feeling in various body parts, we pushed on to the glowing monument. When we finally arrived, you could barely see the tip from the base, but all the fog gave a very cool effect.
The next couple of days were very low key. We took in the good food and enchanting atmosphere without too much pressure to fill up our itinerary with essential sights and activities. I went back to Notre Dame during the daytime to get some pictures of the gargoyles on the sides of the church that are sooo strange and creepy.
I also ventured inside during a special holiday choral performance and got a couple of good shots of the inner sanctum.
The final night, we made the trek up Montmartre to see the Basilica of Sacre Coeur. In addition to it's long and crazy history, this spot has one of the best views of Paris. Strange about European cities, though: the great views just don't have quite the same impact as in American cities. Something about those dramatic U.S. skylines... I really loved the basilica, though. It looked so majestic perched atop the hill.
The next morning, we reluctantly packed up to continue on to the next leg of our journey, and boarded the Eurostar train. It goes from Paris to London in less than three hours. Pretty quick, eh?
Off to another culture, and my last European destination on this trek. At least we'd be able to speak in our native tongue... well, sort of.
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