Life in Paris

Neighborhood Fromagerie

Paris was a really great trip – one of my favorites – but you probably got that from the last post.  What you probably didn’t get is what we actually DID in Paris.  So here is a brief rundown of the trip.

We rented an apartment that we found listed online.  We did this in Germany too – it was a great time and we’ll probably do it again on our next trip!  I landed a few hours before Paul, so I dropped the bag at the apt. and headed out walking.  I think I walked a spiral around our apartment trying to get the feel of the neighborhood (which was awesome!) and eventually made my way to the water, hoping for my first glimpse of the either the Eifel Tower or the Louvre.  Right as I sat down with my map – Paul called.  I quickly walked back to the apartment (okay...I had to go quickly to make up for the time spent in a scarf shop on the way there).

Friends recommended a few places for dinner, but it wasn’t even dark yet so we decided to walk and see if we found something cute and popular.  By the time the sun set and we’d found a place it was 10pm.  This happened most nights because a.) the sun set late, b.) we were snacking at every cheese shop we passed, and c.) we were just not paying attention to the time. 

Butcher in a market.

The next day was more walking, we do this a lot when we’re in a new city.  I think we’ve made my dad walk about 10 miles every day on every trip he makes to see us.  We even made my mom and little brother walk about that far at about 5am in January (yes, it was cold!).  Back to Paris…

We did picnics in the parks, at the Eifel Tower, walked around the beautiful neighborhoods, went to church, stopped at cafes, tasted tarts…it was wonderful.  What we didn’t do was museums or tours or schedules.  Paul had a conference to attend on the last three days so I wandered by myself.  The first thing I did was go to the Lourve. 

Lost.

I thought I’d spend hours enjoying the art – I was out of there so fast.  Too many tourists, not enough (if any) abstract pieces.  I had lunch with a friend and she pointed me in the right direction, to a museum full of abstract art from Monet and the Duffy brothers.  Well…there went my afternoon!  It was wonderful.  I was in such a good mood that I got lost walking back to the hotel…but getting lost in Paris means you end up in another beautiful neighborhood with a beautiful bridge and gold statues! 

On the second to last day I discovered the joy of shopping in Paris!  Yes, it took me that long.  I went into 5 Zarras (yes, I know they are all the same, but maybe I missed something in the first four!).  I loved every store and the experience of trying on clothes was so much fun!  They were so friendly (Voila! Here is the dressing room) and so cute when I didn’t buy the clothes (C’est non?!?).  And when I did buy something I was surprised by the price – I conveniently forgot to look up the exchange rate so everything at least looked cheap (I think the real price was about 20% higher) and a lot of times things were on sale (but there was no sale sign).

The last day in Paris was a wild goose chase as I went searching for that scarf shop from the first day.  I was in a hurry the first day so I didn’t actually BUY the scarf, but the thought of having it taunted me the whole trip.  Again, I spiraled the neighborhood for about 2 hours before giving up…and then there it was!  In my last few hours I grabbed a scarf, some macaroons, two limes (we usually can’t buy them here) and jumped on the metro.  The city really felt like home from the minute I got there, making the six days feel like I’d been there for months.  Sitting on the plane I was listening to my music and it sounded happier.  The people looked happier, the food tasted better.  Now it seems like it was such a short trip, taken so long ago. 

Picnic with a view.

Paree Paree!

Oh Paris!  I miss you!  I haven’t written this post (or the postcards) because they are all in the past tense – and that would mean my trip to Paris has ended.  But now that I’ve written it, I see that it hasn’t made Paris a part of the past, it has taken me back to Paris.  

Paul and I are sitting on a shawl in Park Luxembourg.  We can hear other Americans around us, but mostly French.  I’m pretty sure we’ve blended in and – as long as they can’t hear us – they will all think we are French.  We’ve snagged a little spot on the green with an amazing view of the Mansion.  There are walking paths on 3 sides of us – but far enough away that we aren’t bothered by the passerbys…not that they would bother you because they are just strolling along in their perfectly fashionable and dressy outfits chatting about art and wine and great food! And I just want to replay this moment over and over and over again.

We happily discovered that when you buy a bottle of wine here they don’t mind opening it for you and leaving the cork 1/3 of the way in so it doesn’t spill in your bag on the way to the park.  Supposedly you aren’t allowed to drink in public, but our guidebook says “the French don’t obey laws that they think are senseless.”  Oh, I love this city!  Renting an apartment was a great idea!  It makes me feel like we are Parisians!  Every time I say this (when crossing the street on a red light, sipping coffee in a café, buying cheese, spinning around in my new dress!), Paul reminds me that I AM Parisian!  (More on this in the next post.)

(This is my favorite part!)  We leave our apartment early this morning, walk down the 5 flights of winding warped centuries-old stairs.  We pass the crepe place, the brasserie (bar and food), the boutique, the patisserie (pastries), and the fromagerie (cheese)!  Actually, we don't just pass any of them – we stop to look in the window at all of them, and get drawn into the fromagerie!  How could we resist?!?!  Cheese for our picnic!  Eventually we find a table in the sun at a café with a great view for people watching.  We order two coffees and two croissants.  This is so flaky and warm and gewy and delicious!  I didn’t know what a croissant was until this very moment.  Should I order another?

Eventually we move on and walk through the beautiful neighborhoods that lead us past the museums, over the river, past the Notre Dame…we walk as if we’ve seen them a million times – and yet every time we see them I light up with the excitement of a little kid!  This is Disney World for adults!  We stay longer than we normally would at the café and the store because that is how you do it in Paris, and because every moment is so enjoyable that you don’t want to move on.  We walk a little slower, smile a lot more, daydreaming along the way.  As we approach the park we pass through a small market and grab some meat, fruit, bread, and a bottle of wine. 

It didn’t take us long to find this most perfect spot to sit in the park, and I think we’ve got the Parisian thing down from the daily routine to the food – and my French is improving!  The city instantly feels like home.  I let out a long slow sigh as if I’ve finally arrived at the place which I’ve been in such a rush to get to.  The rest of the world becomes a quiet blur, circling around this very spot on this little shawl in this beautiful  garden in Paris.