So, Paris…
It’s been done a thousand times
before. Twenty two thousand, three
hundred and twelve just last week in fact.
The world loves Paris, and why not?
Hundreds of years of history, passion, culinary tradition and art. Add one part difficult language, along with an
incredibly difficult accent, and you’ve got the City of Light.
There is too much too see in
Paris. Even those who live here don’t
know the entire city. An inevitably,
someone asks you “Hey! Did you go to the xyz I told you about?”.
To which we always have to reply “Oh no! We tried, but we just didn’t have
time.” What we really want to say is “We
found seven other xyz’s that are
better than the one you suggested, and three others that were just as
good.”
Trying to “do” Paris in a week
would be like trying to grasp the depth of culture in America in the same
amount of time. One couldn’t possibly
eat the country's best Louisiana gumbo, enjoy fresh wild-caught Washington (state)
salmon, grub on a fresh Maine lobster
roll and tackle a plate of authentic Chilaquiles in a week. Without the help of a private jet, of
course. Throw in seeing iconic things
like the Grand Canyon, Statue of Liberty, San Diego Zoo and Golden Gate Bridge,
and you have an idea of what you’re trying to take on by “doing” Paris in a
week.
And in the end; Paris is really
about slowing down. Enjoying that
perfectly baked, caramelized, crunchy, chewy Savoring a
hand-made pan au chocolate. The two
itineraries are completely at odds with one another. “Doing” the city requires hurrying through
the list of landmarks and icons; “living” the city requires one to slow their
pace to a crawl. To focus on the mundane
and enjoy what one finds fulfilling.
Ultimately, we chose to do things that were important to us, even if
that didn’t correspond with the items we found in the list of “1000 Places to
See Before You Die”. baguette.
When we arrived in Paris, our host had recommended that we walk as much as possible. The neighborhood we stayed in was the number 10 (10th Arrondissment). There are a total of 20 in Paris; each as complex and chalk full of restaurants, bars, coffeeshops, boutiques and landmarks as the last. We began our week staying locally. We went to a French Marché near our house that offered a cornucopia of fresh fruit, cheese, meat, fish and flowers. Really incredible quality and super friendly vendors. Our first night in town we took our host’s suggestion and procured some items and made our way to the Saint Martin Canal. Locals gather weeknights around 7:00 and weekends all day to sit on the edge of the canal, enjoy the views; sip (or chug) wine and beer and converse. What they converse about… we don’t know. But they do converse, sometimes loudly. The evening was as close to “magical” as one could ask for. The clouds lingered above our heads long enough to turn pink as the sun set, and the temperature never got below 65 (that's Fahrenheit, yankees). Bellies full and spirits calmed; we retired a bit early our first night, a bit jet lagged from our flight from Iceland.
Day two was all about landmarks. We went ahead and did them all in a day. First was the Louvre. We didn’t go in… we can have a lot of fun for 39€; and standing in line for 45 minutes, walking 1.74 kilometers on marble floors and staring at paintings by artists (75% of which) we never heard of is not our idea of it. So, the Louvre was a 15 minute adventure; took some photos and forged onward. Next was the “Lock Bridge”. We purchased a lock from a street vendor (certainly licensed) and wrote our names on it, along with a special message and the date. After that, we secured it to the fence on the bridge and banished the keys to the bottom of the Seine forever. What a cool experience. Notre Dame was next, it was as beautiful as expected. The air inside cathedral feels unlike that of the outside. We snapped a few (dozen) photos and enjoyed every wall, ceiling and painting in there. After that it was off to the Tower. You know, the most recognizable building in the world? Yeah, that one. Seeing it in person for the first time is really one of those great moments in traveling. A moment you realize that lugging 49.9 pounds of luggage (to avoid the heavy bag charge) and eating Dominos instead of real restaurant food are worth it. It’s enough to bring someone to tears. (And it just might have, but my lips are sealed).
After about 5 miles of walking, we trudged onward to the Arc De Triomph. With very little gas (read 'baguette') in our stomach, we snapped some Instagram shots and headed home.
Paris overall was amazing. We had great food. We saw amazing sights. But what I think we both remember most are those “Parisian Moments”; sitting on the Canal with wine and cheese, perusing the farmers market and hanging at our rented apartment listening to the rain tap on the window. Sure, the Eiffel tower is crazy cool, and the Louvre collection of impressionism is second to none. But at the end of the day, I’ll take my Parisian memories over TripAdvisors “top 10” list of landmarks any day. Until next time, safe travels everyone!
Sacrè Couer
Canal Saint Martin
Versailles
Notre Dame
No comments:
Post a Comment