August
2008
J’adore Paris Part Deux
Yesterday was a wonderful day in Paris. We kicked off the day with another pain au chocolate (those things are crazy good). Then we took the Metro to the Ile de la Cite, and went to Notre Dame. We walked around for awhile and did the audio tour, which was pretty cool. The cathedral is breathtaking. We decided against going up to the towers, because they charged for it and there was a huge line. I told Kyle I really didn’t want to spend what precious time I have in Paris in a line. So we decided to stroll around the Ile de la Cite and then we took the bridge over to the Ile St Louis. My tour book guided us to a delicious place for ice cream. I had tiramisu, and Kyle had chocolate. It was divine!
Somewhere in there we stopped for lunch. I had the pizza margarita and Kyle had a potato omelette. This was the first sit down restaurant we had been to in Paris. Our waiter was extremely nice and understanding of my inability to speak French. Who said that the French were arrogant and rude? I have found them to be quite charming.
After walking around the Ile St Louis, we walked back over the Ile de la Cite and went to Ste Chappelle. This place was amazing! The walls are completely made of stained glass. Kyle’s friend told him he should go to the Latin Quarter, which isn’t far from where we were, so I suggested we walk over there. However, on our walk, I spotted the Louvre from across the Seine! It was pretty late by then, so I figured it was probably closing soon. I checked my guidebook and it said that admission to the Louvre is half price on Fridays, and it stays open until 10! Lucky us! So we went in, and we saw signs that say that after 6 p.m., people under 26 years old can get in for free! Yay! For once, we don’t have to pay! We did, however, pay for the audio guides, because those things really make the experience better. We did the “masterpieces” tour where we saw the Venus de Milo, Victory, and the Mona Lisa, among others. Then we walked around on our own and saw some other wonderful paintings. My favorite is the Raft of the Medusa.
The museum was closing, so we had to leave, against our will of course. Our feet were killing us once again, so we sat on the ledge of a wall outside of the Louvre. We sat long enough to see the Eiffel Tower sparkle. It was magical! There was a carnival going on right outside the Louvre. I mentioned going on the ferris wheel would be fun, but Kyle didn’t sound thrilled about it, so we found the nearest Metro to go back to our hotel. On our way from the Metro station to our hotel, we found a street creperie. I had been waiting for this the whole time we’ve been on vacation! Kyle had an egg and cheese crepe, and I had the crepe royale (nutella, bananas, crown royale and cinnamon- they were out of coconut). They were both heavenly. We seriously wanted to go back for more! The man making our crepes was extremely friendly as well!
We got back to our hotel around midnight, and I don’t even remember what happened after that. I was so exhausted, I must have fallen asleep before my head even hit the pillow!
Today, the only thing I have planned is the Musee d’Orsay. I’m jonesing for some French impressionist paintings. I’d actually like to go to the Musee de l’art moderne, but we really don’t have time. There are lots of other things I’d like to do as well, but I don’t want our last day here to be packed with things to do. As I’ve said before, the best part of enjoying a city is to relax and not have much planned.
Paris is truly an incredible city. Simply sitting in a cafe, eating good food, and having good conversation is probably the most fun you’ll ever have.