paris

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April 16th, 2007

Two days after my London experience I headed back; repacked and refreshed. Unlike the previous trip, my train journey from Chester to London Euston was not crowded, which came as a welcome relief. From Euston Station I jumped the Tube to Waterloo. The Eurostar left from Waterloo Station; as I headed from one end to the other, I felt as though I were in line waiting to board a plane. The entire trip from London to Paris only lasted about three hours.

Stepping out of the train and onto French soil was more than a little thrilling. Although the station included English signs alongside French, I knew that as soon as I stepped out of this British-French station the English words would melt away. I had a battle plan soon after leaving the station. I wrote in my journal the streets I needed to take to get to my hotel; even noting which way to turn once I left the station. I walked out into the brilliant French sunshine; the absolute hub of the city encircled me and I chickened out to the point of following other British tourists to the line waiting for taxis.

The ride was not very long and cost 7.10 Euros. It was a taxi I was glad I had gotten; traveling is such dirty work and who wants to haul a suitcase around a foreign city looking for a hotel? I was dropped off in front of my hotel--Hotel Paris France on the Rue de Turbigo near the Republic--and happily was shown my room. The whole hotel was done in a blue/gold style with a sleek-looking rounded elevator that could just barely hold one person and one suitcase. My room was at the top of the stairs; I had a huge bathroom, all tiled white with only a shower. The thing I do not understand about showers in Europe are that there is little to no lip to stop the water from spraying absolutely everywhere. My bathroom was no better; the showerhead was placed right in front of the toilet. The room itself was quite spacious for a single-room. The bed was nice and clean, I had two sets of large French doors opening onto the beautiful and busy Rue de Turbigo. A little overhang allowed me to walk out and take beautiful pictures of the surrounding buildings. At night I could even see into other people's apartments across the road. I was more than a little surprised when I discovered there was no trash bin whatsoever in the room.

Not wanting to waste the rest of the sunny day, I followed my directions to get to the Carphone Warehouse to get a Virgin Mobile Sim Card. I haven't been in many cell phone stores in the US but I ended up waiting for almost an hour. When it was finally my turn, I tried in simple English to show her what I needed. After a lot of finger pointing and more useless English, I finally got what I needed. I wanted a quick dinner because 1) I was tired beyond belief and 2) I did not want to be caught in Paris my first day after dark. Now, it was a longish way off till total darkness, but nevertheless, I wanted to get something quick. I bypassed a McDonalds and finally decided on KFC. I ordered well enough for knowing no French whatsoever and took my meal back to the hotel. Somehow I did not realize that I would have French instructions for the Sim card and therefore it was rendered totally useless.

I went downstairs to ask the hotel desk clerk who checked me in to help me with my phone. He listened to the instructions but could not decifer what exactly I had to or wanted to do. He suggested that I try using a pay phone with my credit card because it would probably be the cheapest option. I went a block or so down the street and found a payphone and tried calling home; I was able to connect and was relieved that I was able to talk to mom before she freaked out and emailed the hotel confirming my arrival. I did not realize, until a few calls later, that the rate was quite expensive--more or less $70 for an hour call.

After chatting, I headed back up the street and to my room where I watched ER and 2 1/2 Men in French. I watching two television shows I would never watch in America, I realized that it was because of a need for familiarity in an unfamiliar place. I fell asleep at 8:30om and slept until 9am.

April 17th, 2007

I woke, took a shower and headed out into Paris for the first time on my own. I decided to bite the bullet and try my luck at the Metro; if I didn't then, I wouldn't get anywhere. I had previously read online how to use the Metro including how to insert the ticket and so on. I made it through Art Et Metiers station and headed to Chatelet. The thing about the Metro, which is similar to the Tube in London, is that there is a woman announcer for each station and therefore was able to learn a little more French.

At Chatelet I emerged from underground and found in the beautiful sunny blue sky day an even more beautiful city. From my first few moments in the heart of Paris I knew that I loved it more than I ever would London. Firstly, the weather was much warmer and sunnier than my time in London; secondly, the stone in which most of the buildings were made out of were of a light cream color which enhanced the light and the cheerfulness of the city.

I walked over Pont Au Change to the Ile de la Cite to experience a classic Parisian sight: Notre Dame Cathedral. I remembered back when my dad had found a 360 panoramic view of Paris from the top of Notre Dame on a winter's night. At that time in my life, I did not know that I would be going to Paris and so I viewed the picture with a heartfelt longing and desire to experience the magnificence of Paris.

Completely unexpectedly, there was a small fee for seeing most of the museums and churches in Paris; I will conceed this point is the only point in which London wins over Paris. I cannot remember how much I actually paid to enter the cathedral but to pay anything was overpaying in my opinion. I thought it would be much grander and beautiful than it actually was; I was thoroughly unimpressed by the whole experience. The tour groups and families with small children were loud and the cathedral's vaulted ceilings only served to magnify the noise. Thinking back to that day, I cannot specifically remember any particular part of Notre Dame; I did enjoy the outside of the cathedral more than the inside. I took lots of pictures around a beautiful pink flowering tree. The flying buttresses were a sight, much more interesting than anything inside. I walked around in capris and a t-shirt, the temperature hovered in the lower seventies.

Walking around the area, I happened on a small cafe that looked user-friendly enough for me. Father and Son Restaurant had a large glass case filled with several levels of delicious looking sandwhiches and pizza and further down, desserts. I found out that there was a lunch special of a sandwichi or pizza, a dessert and drink for 7.20 Euros. I ordered a Roma Panini (chicken, cheese, mushrooms), a double chocolate eclair, and an orange drink. The panini was quite delicious but the eclair was amazing; nothing will ever compare to an eclair from France.

I decided to continue on my exploring and took the Metro to St. Michel-Notre Dame station, which was one of the most confusing stations I encountered except for the RAR train line. I emerged at the Musee d'Orsay and joined the already humongous line to get in. Luckily there was an English translation for which line to wait in and I joined the correct one without embarassing incident. Eventually I arrived at a security guard near a revolving door in which he only allowed a few people in at one time. Once inside, I went through a security checkpoint and then on to the cashier. Luckily he spoke some English and I got in with a student discount for 5.50 Euros.

I took an English map from the entrance and headed into the train station-turned-art museum and my breath was instantly taken. I had seen the inside several times online as well as in guidebooks but once I stepped into the main hall, I knew this is where I would spend the majority of my afternoon. I made a beeline for a traveling exhibit entitled "The Forests of Fountainbleau" and was quite astounded by the beautiful depictions of the once great forest surrounding Paris. One particular painting in the exhibit made me stop and soak the whole canvas in and that was a Gustave Moreau painting that resembled a painting depicting an Arthurian legend. Another favorite was "Orphee" by Francois-Louis Francios.

The main hall showcased statues and a few interesting miniature opera set stands from La Traviata and a complete miniturized layout of the streets of Paris underneath the floor with glass overhead. I wandered in and out of the galleries; I was thoroughly amazed by the gigantic proportion of some of the canvases. I recognized one immense painting from my art history class; I cannot remember the name but it had something to do with the painter sitting centrally while a half nude model looks over his shoulder and a cacophony of others crowd around to watch the masterpiece unfold.

Some of my favorite paintings were Monets, Manets, Degas and Renoirs. I saw "Olympia" and felt a boost of self esteem to recognize it. Because of the Musee d'Orsay I fell in love with a few new artists I had never heard of before; Celestin Nanteuil, "Un Rayon de Soleil," Hendrik-Willem Mesdag, "Soleil Couchant," and Jean-Francois Millet, "Le Printemps." I found that I am drawn to the pastel muted colors of landscape art, my favorite being Monet.

I sat on one of the marble-ish curved seats along the outside of the galleries overlooking the statue hall when a heavyset British man, who had been sitting near me for a few minutes, let a huge fart go. He even leaned his butt over when he did it too! I thought it was a joke or something but he continued to sit like nothing ever happened. I thought to myself, 'Excuse me, sir, what do you think of your stay in Paris? Do you like the French?' And his response would be that horrible embarassment of a reverberating sound.

I stayed in the museum for 2 1/2 hours; I headed upstairs to the topmost level to view the Van Goghs; this level was much more crowded, hot and dark and I did not care for it. I left as soon as I possibly could but not before snapping a few pictures of some famous Van Goghs, a Renoir and a Monet. I headed out onto a open-air roof-top terrace and took in the amazing view. I went down the escalators, wandered a couple more minutes, saying goodbye to a beautiful museum, and then left.

Into the sunshine and brightness of the day; I crossed the Pont Sulferino to the Jardin des Tuileries. Paris' gardens are quite wonderful little rest stops from the business of the street and tourist traffic. I walked through a grove of shady, leafy trees and saw a small boat pool where a few young children were piloting their toy boats. I exited the garden on Rue de Rivoli and, as custom, took a picture of the sign. I traveled the Metro back to Art et Metiers and it was when I was walking back to the hotel that I realized that I had no debit card and only 60 Euros in cash for the rest of my Paris trip. I panicked at first because I wouldn't do a cash advance on my credit card and my phone bills would be racking up soon and I hadn't paid off my card before I came so I was in trouble if I didn't watch my spending. As I neared the hotel I also realized that I still have my room to charge on my card. I would save my cash for a possible taxi to the train station and any emergency necessities that did not take credit card.

I figured that I would be okay until I came home and I was. I went out to a cafe near the Republic for dinner and brought back a hot dog panini (there was some gooey stuff inside and I thought it was cheese but it didn't have a taste like a cheese so I thought it was warm mayo but as I learned once I came back from overseas that it was Brie cheese) with flan nature (flan with fruit) for dessert.






April 19th

Part 2

After the quick rest at the hotel, I struck out to Pere-Lachaise Cemetery. I had read in multiple guidebooks that cemetery visiting was not an uncommon pasttime. I traveled the Metro and after walking a few blocks, I found the main entrance to the cemetery. I could see looming over the old rock walls a huge domed building which I found to be a crematorium. The cemetery was absolutely beautiful; tree-lined avenues, huge family masoleums, intricate sculptures and artwork, it took me by complete suprise. I entered the main gate and proceeded to stoll along the avenues in a random fashion. I saw a gorgeous tree-lined steep cobbled avenue and so up I went. The only thing I would change about the whole experience

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