(no subject)
Paris
Paris could not have been more complete.
I've been trying to put into words how amazing it was to be there and how incredible it was to be there with Seth. And I just can't. Because the words won't recreate the 6 hour ahead time change, crazy changes in weather, the corner pastry place, or the monuments you'd only heard about in 10th grade AP Euro History. But I'd like to at least try.
Our first encounter with Paris was via the trains and metro trying to get from the airport to our hotel (Scare Coeur) in Montmartre. If you can imagine us both lugging our suitcases onto like...the RTS x 12 then you get an idea. Luckily someone pointed us in the right direction and we checked in. And the first thing we did in Paris? Pass out.
Our intended short nap turned into a considerably longer one and we both woke up at 8 p.m. Not wanting to waste any more of the day we grabbed dinner (don't laugh, it was a pizza place) and explored Montmartre in the dark. It's the greatest feeling to accidently stumble across amazing things. We'd be walking down some street and look up and we've dead-ended into the Moulin de Gallet (one of the remaining windmills in Paris) or Sacre Coeur. The latter was my first introduction to European cathedrals and the Catholic in me thought I would die! It was absolutely gorgeous, and huge, and peaceful and... There was a mass going on despite it being almost 10 and we sat for a good bit of it. Granted I don't understand much French but there is something universal about religion. Or mine at least. :)
We wandered through the real touristy part of Montmartre but because it was winter the red umbrellas and outdoor tables were gone. The cafes were still lit with colored Christmas lights and their were a few sidewalk artists too. Seth bought me a rose that cost 5 euro (good Lord!) b/c I was an idiot and took it from the man who offered it to me. You'd think time in Mexico would make me better at realizing they're trying to sell it to you! :)
Seth was master planner for our trip in addition to being a romantic boyfriend (haha). Armed with the Frommer's guide he knew what metro we had to take, what places were near each other, and successfully navigated our way to at least 3 major landmarks (plus some cute spots) every day. He also was great at kicking my ass out of bed at 8 a.m. (which was 2 a.m. our time). I love him.
Our first full day in Paris was gorgeously sunny despite being somewhat colder than the weather we'd left in Florida. We started off at Notre Dame which was just...wow. It's like you learn about all these places and then one day they're just in front of you. The inside with it's countless mini-altars and just it's aura was unreal. I got my Mama and Chungs a rosary that was blessed by the Pope and made from dried rose petals.
We had lunch at a gyro place in the Latin Quarter that put french fries in their pitas. It was like Paris' quarters were different worlds and all it took to get to them was wandering down a street.
Our afternoon quest was to find the Shakespeare & Co. bookstore and on the way we wandered into the St. Severine church. It was a lot smaller than Notre Dame but it was charming. I made an offering in front of the Virgin Mary statue and prayed for my family and friends to be as content and happy as I was at that moment.
What an ordeal finding that bookstore was though! It was well worth it when we came acrossed it though. If it was up to me I would quit UF, move to Paris, and live in that store. It's an English major's dream. The upstairs is nothing but beds for people to read/sleep on and some of the oldest, most varied books I've ever seen in my life. Downstairs were new ones you could purchase and some of the best looking guys of my life. Australians and Americans with pitch dark hair, intellectual glasses, sigh!
The Musee de Modern was next. It had once been a hotel/bathhouse/just plain house and was turned into a museum. All the tapestries and altar pieces from old France were in there. That was the first taste of the extravagance that is the French.
Then it was off to the Pantheon. Seth refers to it as the building to France's ego. It was a little ridiculous....when it was built the exumed some of the bodies of France's most famous citizens and re-buried them there. The pull for me was to see Alexander Dumas and Victor Hugo's grave. Because this English major had turned me into a dork.
We came back to Montmartre for dinner at a small Japanese place that had the best spring rolls and of course drank red wine. What can I say? I love my wine!
Day number deux The day of the greatest sites in Paris! The morning began with the Arc de Triumph. You came up from the metro and were right across the street from it. Standing under it makes you feel really small and yet part of this bigger thing at the same time. I was amazed that on a day as windy as this one that their Tomb of the Unknown Soldier flame was still going. We climbed all the way to the top because some of the best sightseeing in Paris is from it's rooftops. I naturally took a lot of aerial pictures and Seth and I got some of us doing out best snowbunny poses.
After the Arc we walked half an hour to the Tour de Eiffel. You know how sometimes there's so much hype around something that it's actually a letdown when you see it? This was definitely not the case! We met a couple who took a picture of us before we went up it. They knew English also and were so excited to find someone else who did that we had a whole big conversation about where were from, etc. We went all the way to the top of the Tower and I just couldn't get over how high we were. We could even see Montmartre on it's hill in the distance. You could see everything!
All that climbing to the tops of Paris made us hungry. Seth found a family-owned-style restaurant where we had duck and garlic potatos and a bottle of red wine. Seth drank practically the whole bottle b/c I was too dehydrated to drink (amazing, I know). It was cute to leave there with him feeling good and having that tint in his cheeks.
We walked off our most excellent lunch by at the Hotel de Invalides. It reminded me of St. Augustine's forts. There were old canons lining it and door upon door where Napoleon's soldiers had been housed. There was an extravagant soldiers chapel with flags and chandeliers and Napoleon's buried just on the other side of it. Because we got their just before closing time though, we couldn't go through the museum or to the King's chapel. So, we made plans to come back.
That night we skipped dinner and fell asleep early. We're so exciting!
Wednesday we woke up to our own Winter Wonderland. Seth went down to get us croisants (sp?) from the corner bakery and came back with snow flakes too. We went to the Jardin de Tulieries which is probably the most beautiful place when it's in bloom. But I was perfectly happy with it being covered in snow because it just had the most atmosphere about it. Since it was 8 a.m. there weren't many other people around. It was just so peaceful and possibly one of my most favorite memories from the trip.
We went back to Notre Dame to see the crypts (the foundations of the old houses and streets that had been there before they redid it around the church) and so I could take a picture in front of it with my "olive juice" (sounds like "i love you") sign for my family. I like comparing the pictures from the first day we were there with the ones from this day.
We escaped the snow at a tiny Italian place that was better than Olive Garden!
On Wednesday's the Louvre is open late so we went in prepared to be their for a while. I can't even tell you how overwhelming the Louvre is. We were in there for like 4 hours and still didn't see everything. Seth didn't know there could be so many painting of the Virgin and Child. Highlights were the Mona Lisa of course and the Eros and Psyche statue (amazing in person!).
For dinner we went to a Lebanese cafe for a 3 course meal which was wonderful even if they did have black & white pictures of naked women on the walls. Parisians are a lot more open with their sexuality, that's for sure.
On our way back to our hotel we stopped at a grocery store to replenish our stock of alcohol. The 2 house French beers are 1664 and Kronenburg (I think that's the name). This isn't no Natty Light kids. They taste like Heiniken and are twice as cheap! And what better way to chill your beer when you're minus a fridge than to put it on your baby balcony? It also let's you get to know your neighbor in the apartment behind the hotel (we nicknamed him Pierre).
Thursday the weather mimicked our mood. We were kind of sad about it being our last full day in Paris and the nice fluffy snow from the day before was relaced with rain-snow and slush and it was 30 degrees. A lot of the sites were closing down because the weather was so bad.
The Consierge was up and running though and we wandered around what used to be the prison during the French Revolution. You couldn't really fathom the number of people that has passed through there during that time.
Continuing with the famous places in French History we returned to the Hotel de Invalides and saw Napoleon's tomb. It's daunting. He's apparently burried inside more than one coffin like those nesting dolls. In places like these you kind of wish you had paid more attention in that Euro History class or when your boyfriend was watching the History Channel.
We had lunch at the Hotel's cafeteria and then headed home to Montmartre because I wanted to spend some more time there before we left.
Montmartre is to me what Paris must have been like before it got so commercialized. It's romantic, it's hidden, it's just perfect. It's also where I did most of my shopping (except for the purse that called my name in downtown). I bought a ring, I bought bags, I bought more beer. It was great. Seth was a doll and followed me through the town while I chased down places that had been in the movie Amelie. If you haven't seen that, go rent it or come borrow it from me. Boys will even like it. It's my favorite. So, we found the Cafe that she works at in the movie and the grocery store. The guy who was working in the grocery was so great. I must have looked like an idea standing outside it in the rain being stupidly excited. And when we went in he educated us on the rules (or lack thereof) for drinking in the streets. I like conversations that borrow from different languages. They're amusing.
Our final Parisian meal was at a fondue hot-spot in Montmartre where you sit practically on-top of your neighbors (we met 2 women sheriffs from Colorado) and have to climb over the table to get to the booths. They also serve their wine in baby bottles and give you the most incredible orange liquore with dinner. The fondue wasn't bad either..haha. Needless to say, at the end of the night the combo of alcohol and warmth for a change made it difficult for me to jump back over the table gracefully.
Friday we got up early to check out and make our way back to the airport. We said goodbye (figuratively) to Pierre and our cozy little hotel room. To Paris and it's sites. To the only bank that would take my Visa. To Montmartre. And wouldn't you know the sun was shining for the first time in 2 days.
Paris could not have been more complete.
And neither can I for having been there and been there with Seth.
for Paris in (our) pictures: http://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=TheGalNxtDoor
Paris could not have been more complete.
I've been trying to put into words how amazing it was to be there and how incredible it was to be there with Seth. And I just can't. Because the words won't recreate the 6 hour ahead time change, crazy changes in weather, the corner pastry place, or the monuments you'd only heard about in 10th grade AP Euro History. But I'd like to at least try.
Our first encounter with Paris was via the trains and metro trying to get from the airport to our hotel (Scare Coeur) in Montmartre. If you can imagine us both lugging our suitcases onto like...the RTS x 12 then you get an idea. Luckily someone pointed us in the right direction and we checked in. And the first thing we did in Paris? Pass out.
Our intended short nap turned into a considerably longer one and we both woke up at 8 p.m. Not wanting to waste any more of the day we grabbed dinner (don't laugh, it was a pizza place) and explored Montmartre in the dark. It's the greatest feeling to accidently stumble across amazing things. We'd be walking down some street and look up and we've dead-ended into the Moulin de Gallet (one of the remaining windmills in Paris) or Sacre Coeur. The latter was my first introduction to European cathedrals and the Catholic in me thought I would die! It was absolutely gorgeous, and huge, and peaceful and... There was a mass going on despite it being almost 10 and we sat for a good bit of it. Granted I don't understand much French but there is something universal about religion. Or mine at least. :)
We wandered through the real touristy part of Montmartre but because it was winter the red umbrellas and outdoor tables were gone. The cafes were still lit with colored Christmas lights and their were a few sidewalk artists too. Seth bought me a rose that cost 5 euro (good Lord!) b/c I was an idiot and took it from the man who offered it to me. You'd think time in Mexico would make me better at realizing they're trying to sell it to you! :)
Seth was master planner for our trip in addition to being a romantic boyfriend (haha). Armed with the Frommer's guide he knew what metro we had to take, what places were near each other, and successfully navigated our way to at least 3 major landmarks (plus some cute spots) every day. He also was great at kicking my ass out of bed at 8 a.m. (which was 2 a.m. our time). I love him.
Our first full day in Paris was gorgeously sunny despite being somewhat colder than the weather we'd left in Florida. We started off at Notre Dame which was just...wow. It's like you learn about all these places and then one day they're just in front of you. The inside with it's countless mini-altars and just it's aura was unreal. I got my Mama and Chungs a rosary that was blessed by the Pope and made from dried rose petals.
We had lunch at a gyro place in the Latin Quarter that put french fries in their pitas. It was like Paris' quarters were different worlds and all it took to get to them was wandering down a street.
Our afternoon quest was to find the Shakespeare & Co. bookstore and on the way we wandered into the St. Severine church. It was a lot smaller than Notre Dame but it was charming. I made an offering in front of the Virgin Mary statue and prayed for my family and friends to be as content and happy as I was at that moment.
What an ordeal finding that bookstore was though! It was well worth it when we came acrossed it though. If it was up to me I would quit UF, move to Paris, and live in that store. It's an English major's dream. The upstairs is nothing but beds for people to read/sleep on and some of the oldest, most varied books I've ever seen in my life. Downstairs were new ones you could purchase and some of the best looking guys of my life. Australians and Americans with pitch dark hair, intellectual glasses, sigh!
The Musee de Modern was next. It had once been a hotel/bathhouse/just plain house and was turned into a museum. All the tapestries and altar pieces from old France were in there. That was the first taste of the extravagance that is the French.
Then it was off to the Pantheon. Seth refers to it as the building to France's ego. It was a little ridiculous....when it was built the exumed some of the bodies of France's most famous citizens and re-buried them there. The pull for me was to see Alexander Dumas and Victor Hugo's grave. Because this English major had turned me into a dork.
We came back to Montmartre for dinner at a small Japanese place that had the best spring rolls and of course drank red wine. What can I say? I love my wine!
Day number deux The day of the greatest sites in Paris! The morning began with the Arc de Triumph. You came up from the metro and were right across the street from it. Standing under it makes you feel really small and yet part of this bigger thing at the same time. I was amazed that on a day as windy as this one that their Tomb of the Unknown Soldier flame was still going. We climbed all the way to the top because some of the best sightseeing in Paris is from it's rooftops. I naturally took a lot of aerial pictures and Seth and I got some of us doing out best snowbunny poses.
After the Arc we walked half an hour to the Tour de Eiffel. You know how sometimes there's so much hype around something that it's actually a letdown when you see it? This was definitely not the case! We met a couple who took a picture of us before we went up it. They knew English also and were so excited to find someone else who did that we had a whole big conversation about where were from, etc. We went all the way to the top of the Tower and I just couldn't get over how high we were. We could even see Montmartre on it's hill in the distance. You could see everything!
All that climbing to the tops of Paris made us hungry. Seth found a family-owned-style restaurant where we had duck and garlic potatos and a bottle of red wine. Seth drank practically the whole bottle b/c I was too dehydrated to drink (amazing, I know). It was cute to leave there with him feeling good and having that tint in his cheeks.
We walked off our most excellent lunch by at the Hotel de Invalides. It reminded me of St. Augustine's forts. There were old canons lining it and door upon door where Napoleon's soldiers had been housed. There was an extravagant soldiers chapel with flags and chandeliers and Napoleon's buried just on the other side of it. Because we got their just before closing time though, we couldn't go through the museum or to the King's chapel. So, we made plans to come back.
That night we skipped dinner and fell asleep early. We're so exciting!
Wednesday we woke up to our own Winter Wonderland. Seth went down to get us croisants (sp?) from the corner bakery and came back with snow flakes too. We went to the Jardin de Tulieries which is probably the most beautiful place when it's in bloom. But I was perfectly happy with it being covered in snow because it just had the most atmosphere about it. Since it was 8 a.m. there weren't many other people around. It was just so peaceful and possibly one of my most favorite memories from the trip.
We went back to Notre Dame to see the crypts (the foundations of the old houses and streets that had been there before they redid it around the church) and so I could take a picture in front of it with my "olive juice" (sounds like "i love you") sign for my family. I like comparing the pictures from the first day we were there with the ones from this day.
We escaped the snow at a tiny Italian place that was better than Olive Garden!
On Wednesday's the Louvre is open late so we went in prepared to be their for a while. I can't even tell you how overwhelming the Louvre is. We were in there for like 4 hours and still didn't see everything. Seth didn't know there could be so many painting of the Virgin and Child. Highlights were the Mona Lisa of course and the Eros and Psyche statue (amazing in person!).
For dinner we went to a Lebanese cafe for a 3 course meal which was wonderful even if they did have black & white pictures of naked women on the walls. Parisians are a lot more open with their sexuality, that's for sure.
On our way back to our hotel we stopped at a grocery store to replenish our stock of alcohol. The 2 house French beers are 1664 and Kronenburg (I think that's the name). This isn't no Natty Light kids. They taste like Heiniken and are twice as cheap! And what better way to chill your beer when you're minus a fridge than to put it on your baby balcony? It also let's you get to know your neighbor in the apartment behind the hotel (we nicknamed him Pierre).
Thursday the weather mimicked our mood. We were kind of sad about it being our last full day in Paris and the nice fluffy snow from the day before was relaced with rain-snow and slush and it was 30 degrees. A lot of the sites were closing down because the weather was so bad.
The Consierge was up and running though and we wandered around what used to be the prison during the French Revolution. You couldn't really fathom the number of people that has passed through there during that time.
Continuing with the famous places in French History we returned to the Hotel de Invalides and saw Napoleon's tomb. It's daunting. He's apparently burried inside more than one coffin like those nesting dolls. In places like these you kind of wish you had paid more attention in that Euro History class or when your boyfriend was watching the History Channel.
We had lunch at the Hotel's cafeteria and then headed home to Montmartre because I wanted to spend some more time there before we left.
Montmartre is to me what Paris must have been like before it got so commercialized. It's romantic, it's hidden, it's just perfect. It's also where I did most of my shopping (except for the purse that called my name in downtown). I bought a ring, I bought bags, I bought more beer. It was great. Seth was a doll and followed me through the town while I chased down places that had been in the movie Amelie. If you haven't seen that, go rent it or come borrow it from me. Boys will even like it. It's my favorite. So, we found the Cafe that she works at in the movie and the grocery store. The guy who was working in the grocery was so great. I must have looked like an idea standing outside it in the rain being stupidly excited. And when we went in he educated us on the rules (or lack thereof) for drinking in the streets. I like conversations that borrow from different languages. They're amusing.
Our final Parisian meal was at a fondue hot-spot in Montmartre where you sit practically on-top of your neighbors (we met 2 women sheriffs from Colorado) and have to climb over the table to get to the booths. They also serve their wine in baby bottles and give you the most incredible orange liquore with dinner. The fondue wasn't bad either..haha. Needless to say, at the end of the night the combo of alcohol and warmth for a change made it difficult for me to jump back over the table gracefully.
Friday we got up early to check out and make our way back to the airport. We said goodbye (figuratively) to Pierre and our cozy little hotel room. To Paris and it's sites. To the only bank that would take my Visa. To Montmartre. And wouldn't you know the sun was shining for the first time in 2 days.
Paris could not have been more complete.
And neither can I for having been there and been there with Seth.
for Paris in (our) pictures: http://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=TheGalNxtDoor