After more than 2 months of living in France, I finally made a trip to Paris to actually enjoy Paris!
Up until Saturday, I had taken the train to and from Paris numerous times, but each time Paris was just a stop on the way to our final destination. This time, we got to stay in Paris and experience some of the things she has to offer.
Before I tell you about that, I'll start with where I left off in last week's blog. Between our Italy and Paris trips, we had 3 days to relax/mentally prepare for another trip/do laundry. I spent much of that time on Netflix. (Currently in Season 3 of The Big Bang Theory.) I did the bare minimal amount of laundry (sweaters and jeans) and the minimal amount of grocery shopping (fruit and microwave meals). I just couldn't be bothered to do anything really productive.
Of course, now that I've returned, I'm feeling the repercussions of those minimal actions. I now have even fewer clean clothes and no food! Easy fix, right? Wrong-- I actually have three days of class this week! Yay for a Saturday full of chores!
We left Poitiers bright and early Saturday morning (6:20 am) so that we would have a full 3 days in Paris. The train ride is only 2 hours, so we were there by 8:30, and got settled in our accommodation by 9:30. However, that morning I woke up with a raging headache and a stuffy nose, and all the way to Paris I felt like I was going to puke all over the place. (This put me in an extremely bad mood, that I took out on my travel mates-- sorry Joe.) When we got to the flat, I passed out on the couch while Joe and Lizette went to buy groceries. They brought back medicine and by noon, I was feeling up to getting out of the flat. (They're such good friends for putting up with me.)
We set out to see Musee d'Orsay-- a famous museum, although not as famous as the Louvre. We got in for free because we're residents of France, even though I left my passport in Poitiers. (All of that OFII stuff was worth it!) Orsay was really fantastic. They had a collection of Degas, Renoir, Van Gogh, and Monet. The museum itself is housed in a former train station, so the inside is quite beautiful with the tall ceilings.
After the museum, we went to Cathedrale Notre Dame de Paris. It is quite a famous church and for good reason. It's beautiful both inside and out. Once we got inside, we walked the perimeter, then just sat for a while in the nave. (This has become our routine for churches. Sometimes we sit together, but more often we sit separately and just enjoy the beauty of the place we get to see.) I thoroughly enjoy churches.
Right behind the Notre Dame is the famous Lock Bridge, or Pont des Arts. Since it was close, we walked across it. There were so many locks on it. If you don't know what I'm talking about, here's a little background: The practice of placing locks, or lovelocks, on bridges began more than 100 years ago when two lovers would meet on a bridge. They were madly in love, but the man had to go to war and while away, fell in love with another woman. The woman never recovered from this heartbreak and eventually died. Girls would then go to the bridge where the lovers had met and place locks on the bridge and throw away the key so that their love could never be broken. The tradition did not start in Paris, but it very prominent on many of the bridges and has become something of a tourist attraction. (Although you can cross nearly any bridge today and undoubtedly find a lock on it.)
We returned to the flat that night and cooked dinner. It's so much cheaper, especially in Paris, to buy groceries and cook for yourself if you can. We reserved a flat off of Airbnb again and had much better results this time. We were very happy with our accommodations. Our host was in the south of France during our stay, so we had the entire flat to ourselves.
The next day, we went to the Musee du Louvre. You hear that it's impossible to see it all in only a day, and I can absolutely say that is true. It is monstrous. There is so much to see. We walked through quite a bit of it, but it felt like we walked miles and miles by the time we were done. We got there at about 10:00 and left at 3:00 or so. We didn't have lunch until right before we left, so we were hungry and worn out by then.
It is a really cool museum though. We spent most of our time in the Egyptian exhibit, simply because that's not something we get to see in the United States and we don't have plans to travel to Egypt any time soon. It was incredible. My favorite part was seeing all of the sarcophagi and the ancient writings. It's hard to imagine a civilization that existed so long ago, but so much has been found of what they did and how they lived. It was very fun to see.
I also saw the Mona Lisa! I was really, really excited when I finally arrived at the room she is displayed in. Although, maybe it was that I was tired and hungry, but when I saw her, I was mildly disappointed. Maybe it was just my mood that day, but I was not as impressed as I anticipated. I'll go back to see her and see how I feel then.
My only complaint about the Louvre should not come as a surprise, but somehow it surprised me. Wouldn't you think that the most famous, most visited museum in the world would have descriptions and explanations of the items on display in English?! Or is that just me? There was not a single thing in English. It was beyond frustrating.
After the Louvre, we returned to the flat for a nap before heading to see the Eiffel Tower at night. We all fell asleep quickly and didn't wake up until much later than we planned, so we just fixed dinner and stayed inside for the night. (I know, I know, we're lame.)
The next morning, we stepped outside and it was miserably cold and windy. Unfortunately, we had already done the museums (inside activities) and were planning to see a church, a cemetery, an arc, and a tower (outside activities). However, we pushed forward and went through with the planned activities.
Our first stop was Sacre-Coeur-- Sacred Heart Cathedral. It's on top of a hill that usually provides a stunning view of Paris, but it was foggy that morning, so I can't verify that. The church was amazing. The dome had a gold and blue tiled picture of Jesus with arms outstretched. As you might have guessed, we sat for a good long while before moving on.
From there, we went to Arc de Triomphe. It was pretty cool, but what's really neat about it is that you can climb to the top and look out over Paris. It is a terribly long and winding set of stairs, but it was worth it once we got to the top. The Arc is situated in a roundabout that connects 12 different roads. Every direction you look is incredible. From the Arc, we caught our first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower. (Previously we had only seen it from the plane.)
We then climbed down and headed in the direction of the Tower. On the way, we stopped for a late lunch, then continued on. By now, it was much warmer and less windy than it had been, but still rather chilly. We finally got to the tower and it was so much bigger and more impressive than I had imagined it. I've only ever seen pictures of it from a distance, but standing under it, you really get a sense of the enormity of it. And the iron structure is so intricate and beautiful. It is quite enchanting. I'm glad they decided not to tear it down after the World's Fair. (It had a permit to stand for only 20 years, and was then to be dismantled by the City of Paris.)
We had some extra time that we hadn't planned on, so we went to see Moulin Rouge. Moulin Rouge is one of Lizette's favorite movies so she wanted to see the famous red windmill. The Montmartre Cemetery is very near there, so we walked over to see it. (We hadn't gone to the cemetery that morning because of the cold.) It was so awesome-- probably one of my favorite things we saw. It is packed with ornate tombs of all sizes. Montmartre began as a mass grave during the French Revolution, and was later turned into the cemetery it is today. It is below street level, with only one entrance, so when you enter, it's almost as if you've left the city completely. It is so serene and picturesque. There are tall trees and moss covered graves in every direction. I'm so glad we decided to stop here.
We returned to the Eiffel Tower that night to see it lit up and sparkling. The tower was even more magical at night. We bought some churos and chocolate and sat by the river to appreciate the night. The tower only sparkles every hour, so we had to wait nearly 50 minutes to see it. It was definitely worth it, though.
The next morning, we got up early to see the Parisian Catacombs. Upon our arrival, we discovered that it was closed that day because of the public holiday. Instead of that, we went to Jardin du Luxembourg. We didn't see a lot of it, but what we did see was very pretty. We walked through part of it where people were out with their kids, and playing tennis and basketball. It would be fun to live near a place that is so alive in the morning.
Our train left Paris that afternoon and we returned home happy and exhausted. From here on out, we have class nearly ever week, so we won't be doing the extensive traveling that we've done for most of October until now. As much as I have enjoyed it, I'm glad to be home for a while. I'll be happy to establish some sort of routine, no matter how temporary it may be.
Today, I had my first class since October 10. I was really dreading it, but once I was sitting in class, I realized how much I actually like going to school. We have a really great (American!) teacher this time. The class is Global Leadership, and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I think my group for this project will be very fun and easy to work with, so I'm looking forward to that.
Until next week!
Je t'embrasse,
Sarah
Here's the link to the pictures from this trip: click here. I didn't take nearly as many pictures this time :)
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