Paris is for lovers

"Sitting there, alone in a foreign country, far from my job and everyone I know, a feeling came over me. It was like remembering something I'd never known before or had always been waiting for, but I didn't know what. Maybe it was something I'd forgotten or something I've been missing all my life. All I can say is that I felt, at the same time, joy and sadness. But not too much sadness, because I felt alive. Yes, alive. That was the moment I fell in love with Paris. And I felt Paris fall in love with me." -Carol from Paris, Je T'aime 


My roommate showed me this video clip upon my return from Paris and I love it. It's so simple and quirky and perfect. Only my moment in Paris when I realized that Paris had indeed fallen in love with me as well, was when we walked up the steps to Sacre Coure. A harpist in the plaza was playing "let it be." I wear that saying on my bracelet every single day. 


I was near euphoric in Paris...and I think a large part of it is because I was NOT planning on loving it..at all really. I don't feel like laying out my every move, but I'll do a snap shot of each day and then list you all the reasons why I love Paris :) deal? deal. 


Saturday- Patrick picked me up from the airport and assured me that there was no customs that I accidentally passed. When you travel within the EU, you're good to go! I was soooo tired, but the drive in to the city took that tiredness away in an instant. At lunch, I sipped my first wine that I thoroughly enjoyed (Bourgueil, chilled) and tried Foie Gras (duck liver). That afternoon we went on a river boat tour. I love being on or near the water, so you can imagine how happy that made me. Dinner that night was a fancy one! Patrick's joke is that its his neighborhood McDonalds...he goes there fairly often and it's just around the corner. 


Sunday- We went to a market that was set up under the elevated metro. I saw lots of foods that are typical of France. Patrick even bought Escargo! ahhh. We picked up my friend Erin and gave her a little driving tour of the city. We bussed to Notre Dame, walked through a flower market, got delicious ice cream (I got salted carmel and spice cake flavors) and walked back through the gardens of the Louvre. That night for dinner Patrick made a roast, white asparagus, salad and potatoes. We set up a table on his balcony and watched the city go to sleep. We had cheese, wine and desserts after dinner and talked for hours. 


Monday- Erin and I took the metro up to Sacre Coure, one of the big famous cathedrals in Paris. A few blocks away from the cathedral was a little plaza where all the artists hang out...so cool! I got an egg chicken and cheese crepe for lunch and then we went searching for Moulin Rouge. We walked along the river to check out the book and art stands. On our meandering walk back to the apartment for the night, we stumbled into the Luxembourg gardens, which were also very pretty :) Before heading in for dinner, we decided to see "the best city panoramic view" at the top of the Montparnasse tower. That night we had sausage (mandated by my dearest father...now my duty is to report on it for sausagefest.com). That night we went to the Eiffel Tower to see it light up. We sat watching hundreds of tourists take pictures with their friends and lovers in front of the glittering Eiffel tower while eating chocolate and banana crepes. Solid night. We also ran into our friend who is studying in Sevilla with us on the street corner with her family! Small world. 


Tuesday- After deciding to not wait in line to go inside of Notre Dame, we went to the famous Ladureé macaroon shop, yummmmm. We strolled down the famous Champs-Élysées up to the Arc de Triomph. From there we took a train out to the Palace of Versailles. Houuuurrrrrrrsss later, we are finally in and exploring the gorgeous, gigantic, royal palace. Despite all the shining gold and luxurious decorations, my favorite part was the gardens. They were so colorful, plentiful and intricate. But it made me wonder, how much of these gardens, and this land did the royal family reallllly, and i mean really, get to appreciate. With a place that big, there's hardly time to appreciate it all! Patrick picked us up on his way back from work and we stopped at a bistro in the city for dinner. A "bistro" to the french is a certain type of restaurant characterized by a line of tables set up close together against a bench, and chairs on the other side. Because of the design, it is very common to be sitting shoulder to shoulder next to a stranger for dinner! How cool. We watched Avatar when we got back. It was so nice to relax a bit after a few long, full days of walking. 


Wednesday- When we got up we went to the neighborhood bakery for breakfast, and stopped in the supermarket to buy a box of the best cereal ever to bring back to Sevilla. Patrick made us a beautiful, delicious cup of coffee to go along with our breakfast treats...and then we hit the road to the airport! 

Reflection- I think.......... had stayed in a hostel, by myself, ate crappy food, and had the famous monuments been non-existant......I still would love Paris. But yes, the hospitality, food, wine, locally-proposed walks, and relaxing aspects of my trip definitely added the cherry on top and made my time spent there euphoria-istic :) If i knew any french at all, and if I was European-born, I would consider living there*. 


*After being here for a few months now, I do LOVE "European" life. Their way of life, style, people, mindset, cities, music and cafes are awesome. But I am indeed proud appreciative to be American and do want to live and settle down in the good ol' US of A. Not to say that there won't be more, and many, long-stay travels to Europe. Destination? to be decided.  :)


Other little reasons why I loved am obsessed with Paris: 

• The way the chairs at cafes and restaurants are placed very close together and face the street
• The metro and bus system (soo easy and goes everywhere!)
• The idea of a french apartment 
• Food/entertainment based culture
• Wine and cheese
• Plage du Paris (they haul in sand and dump in on a street that lines the river for a month in the summer for those who can't vacation. Young people and adults alike LOVE it). 
• Summer solstice music festival
• Everyone knows what region of France specific foods come from
• Bakerys
• Macaroons
• CREPES!!!!!!!!!!!
• People will drink their wine and have appetizers on a dumpster and be perfectly content
• Their alternative/hip yet casual style >>
• Their attitude with foreigners
• How much people love their ice cream
• Street performers performing for fun, not money
• The accordionist on the metro
• The young man sitting at a cafe, wearing a beret, smoking a long cigarette while reading the newspaper
• River vendors
• How the museums are free for EU members under 25. It encourages the youth to be interested in their own history and culture. 
• The agriculture: mustard plants, cherry trees and chestnut trees

Sevilla update: I love Gracita more and more each day. Tally and I are worried about these next few weeks thought because this is the time of year when her husband passed away 3 years ago. She was brought to tears the other day at lunch when talking about gifts he gave his grandkids, and she slept until noon today :/ We're planning to make her cookies and dinner soon so maybe that will distract her a bit. She's also got a few health problems on the rise which is scary too. But on the bright side, we have officially beaten Carolina and Jenny on being the favorites :) She said so today. chka-yeaaaaaaa