Oh la la - Paris! (PAH-ree)

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What an amazing weekend! The Knox group took the TGV (translation: very fast train) Thursday afternoon to Paris, and we returned Sunday night. In between, I had one of the best weekends ever. I busted my hump to be super tourist, and succeeded it hitting most of the highlights of the fair city. Thursday evening after getting settled into the hotel, I picked up some lost souls from our group and took them to the Patheon, which was no more than a five minute walk from our hotel in the latin quarter. There we saw the final resting places of Voltaire, J.J. Rousseau, and Victor Hugo to name a few. Afterward, the entire group was invited to dinner with these two american ex-pats who happen to have a Knox connection. The Fellowes, who lead quite a cushy life, were very welcoming to all of us and also quite anxious to hear of our study abroad adventures, as they both studied in Europe il y a plusieurs epoques. The next morning, we were dragged by our teeth to the Musee D'Orsay. It was almost a religious experience seeing all the impressionist art there. Van Gogh, Degas, Cezanne, Monet, Manet... it was stunning. That afternoon, I led the way (and a few more lost souls followed) to pont neuf (the longest and most famous and beautiful bridge in the city). Along the way, we stumbled upon some Cathedral you may or may not have heard of. Something about Notre Dame... I don't remember. It was really big and had a lot of flying buttresses. Didn't have the time or the patience to go up the towers. Plus that would have given me away as a tourist. I speak enough french now to fit in more or less, and that was the goal. It keeps the pickpockets and scam artists away. After notre dame, we went to check out the view from the top of La Samaritaine, but it was closed for renovations unfortunately. We then passed through Les Halles, a huge garden of sorts, and Eglise St. Eustache, on the way to Montmarte and the Sacre Coeur Basilica. The views up there were amazing. We just happened to catch the sunset after we saw the inside. You just have to see the pictures, but even then it isn't quite the same. After dark, we stumbled upon one of the seedier districts of the city, and checked out Moulin Rouge and the Musee d'Erotisme. It was very interesting to see how different cultures all over the world seem to enjoy penises and breasts. I guess we're all teenagers at heart to a certain point.

Saturday morning the sun had disappeared and everything was wet. This is why French people are always depressed and smoking, because it never stops raining. Nevertheless, we managed to stay dry during our visit to the Pere Lachaise Cemetary. I paid my respects to the likes of Rossini, Chopin, Poulenc, Jim Morrison, Moliere, Delacroix, Balzac, Proust, Edith Piaf, and Oscar Wilde. We then grabbed lunch and ate on the steps of the Opera at Place de la Bastille. We saw a grand procession of soldiers on horseback commemorating the artmistice, followed by street sweepers to clean up their droppings. Then it was off the comedie francaise to catch Le Cyd. It was a drama, and all in french, so I fell asleep a couple times. Still, I am glad to have had the opportunity to see a show there. I would have preferred Cyrano in the evening, but that was sold out so our director had to settle for the other. Before the play started, we had about twenty minutes to walk around the outside of the Louvre. It was one of the most impressive buildings I have ever seen, and I can't wait to return next weekend to actually go inside.

After the play, we checked out a really hip (and pricey) store called Collette. They had everything from books to ipods to designer fragrances to 115 euro tshirts. I took a free catalog. We then marched onward to Place Vendome. Unfortunately, it wasn't lit up yet, and it was almost dusk, so there really wasn't much to see. It was then on to Eglise de la Madeleine, another impressive church built in the style of a greek temple. I noticed there was a concert there that evening of the choruses from Handel's Messiah. I ended up going with a few girls from the Knox group. The orchestra was good, but the choir was lacking. 16 men and 46 women weren't enough to fill that church. Not to mention their English diction left a great deal to be desired. All the same, I got chills hearing the acoustics at the end of the Halelujah chorus. Oh, and the French don't stand for the Halelujah chorus. I thought about bringing that tradition to Paris, but I decided it wasn't my place and I might have offended some people.

Before the concert, we walked all the way up the Champs Elysees from Place de la Concorde all the way to the Arc de Triomphe. I can understand why they built that arch now. That street is really long and, although you don't notice it from far off, it goes steadily uphill the whole way. Alas, you feel quite a sense of accomplishment by the end of the march.

Sunday we went to the Tour Eiffel. It was too crowded and too cloudy to make going up worthwhile, so we sat at the base and tried to take it all in. It was such a fitting way to end such a perfect weekend. I can't wait to go back.

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