The experience of seeing Paris for the first time was like walking by a candy shop window every single day of your life, and only at age twenty one years old being able to FINALLY go in and taste a macaroon. (The world-renowned macaroons at Ladurée on the Champs Elysée did the trick for this fantasy!)
"An artist has no home in Europe except in Paris."
-Friedrich Nietzsche
The art, architecture, culture, food, and language had me absolutely dazzled and dying for more. We rode around the city on a red double decker bus tour called "Les Cars Rouges." This was a fabulous way to see the main sights of the City of Lights.
Notre Dame Cathedral inspired awe and silence as the vaulted Gothic architecture evoked spirituality and reverence. Voices echoed and droned as we observed the relics and large stone pillars that surrounded us. I loved this church even more than Saint Peter's...which appeared gaudy in comparison with its Baroque elaboration. We were fortunate enough to attend Mass here (entirely in french) on Saturday night. I spotted Quasimodo hanging in the bell tower conversing with the gargoyles and I am almost positive the gypsy who begged for money outside was Esmeralda.
"Good Americans, when they die, go to Paris."
-Thomas Gold Appleton
The Champs Elysée was the place to be. With high end shopping and fashionable madames dressed to the neufs, this is certainly where the plush and wealthy saunter. We had an authentic lunch at a bistro called Charles V. We spotted a little pug wagging it's curled tail behind a swirling wrought iron banister of a second story window along the rue. As we watched the embroidered silk curtains dance in front of him as the crystal chandelier hug above, we knew that we had caught a glimpse of the real Paris.
"All I wanted was to connect my moods with those of Paris. Beauty paints and when it painted most, I shot."
-Ernst Haas
The Opéra and Grand Palais were breath-taking. Madame Butterfly was playing and I would have given anything to have seen it in the grand theatre. Trocadéro (named after the Spanish battle) was the perfect bookend, complimenting the Eiffel Tower, to border the Champ de Mars (once a training ground for young soldiers...it got its named from the mythological diety Mars, the god of war.)
Walking under arches to enter the courtyard of the Louvre was quite an experience. With the dark of night contrasting each elaborate window lit up in waves of gold with fountains spurting everywhere, I have never felt so excited. A French man played his sultry viola as the gushing water sprayed my face and the anticipation of seeing famous art aroused my soul. This moment of awe was the epitome of bliss pour moi.
Inside the Louvre, seeing the Mona Lisa, the Venus di Milo, the Nike of Samothrace, Botticellis, and other famous historical art melted my heart.
However, my most significant artistic moment happened at the Musée d'Orsay. Within an old train station with high glass ceilings exposing the fine works underneath, this place I could spend all day in. The Impressionists and Post Impressionists that I have been learning about for years hung heavy with textured impasto paint on the walls. Renoir's "Dance in the City" literally took my breath away as I stood in front of it. I had an outer-body experience as I set eyes on a work I have studied intensely and replicated into fresco form in an art history workshop.
"America is my country and Paris is my hometown."
-Gertrude Stein
We climbed the Tour Eiffel on foot...all six hundred something stairs. The panoramic view of France's capital was entirely worth every step up the iron structure. The ice rink on the second level was a pleasant surprise that I would love to revisit someday.
Built as the entrance to the 1889 World Fair by Eiffel, the lattice tower was meant to be temporary. Now, it remains as an icon that I have dreamt of seeing from childhood. My favorite moment shared with the 'iron lady' was when I stood munching on a croque monsieur while the monument sparkled brilliantly and lit up in the night sky!
"Going out in Paris was like going out in the '30s dressed like the Andrews Sisters. It was everything I'd seen in books at my grandparents' house, only it was our generation."
-Christina Lacroix
Our last day was spent at Versaille. This palace was the largest, most elaborate structure I have ever set foot in. I felt like a princess as I meandered each gold-leafed, color-coded chamber. The floral canopy bed of Marie Antoinette was my favorite part. We got to see through the small hidden door through which she escaped the night Versaille was stormed during the French Revolution. After the tour, we got the royal treatment as we delicately ate eclairs and tarts in the palace cafe. Outside, the green gardens twirled and turned in labyrinths of topiary twists. The fountains, lawns, and wooded areas stretched for miles and I can only imagine what it felt like to own such astounding acreage.
This was initially meant for one of my very loyal readers, but I will repost it because I personally found the food my favorite part of Paris:
l'addition a la fin di paris:
soup de l'oignon 9€
beignet sucre e chocolat 2€
crepes avec nutella e banane a la Bastille quartier 4€
croque monsieur a la tour d'eifel 4€
croque madame alla baguette avec oeuf 10€
macaroon caramel a la Ladurée Champs D'Elysee 1€
eclair chocolat a la Versaille 2€
vin rose (not grapejuice!) 4€
croissant le beurre a la PAUL 1€
cafe au lait vanille 4€
quiche avec salmon 1€
french fries 2€
a weekend of eating NONSTOP, priceless.
I could talk about Paris all day, but dreams must be awoken from and this post must cease at some point. I was able to use all that French I learned in high school, I was able to eat crépes till I exploded, and I learned a lot about traveling in Europe. Despite some minor crazed events that occurred this weekend, I had a fabulous time galavanting through the city with some wonderful people. Paris literally holds the Key to my Heart, but arriving back in Italy felt like coming Home. C'est la vie.
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