Okay, I have a lot to say about Paris, but I realize that not everyone will want to read a novel, so here is the Cliff Notes version:
Paris is, in a word, wonderful.
The city is built to impress. When you are there, it becomes obvious that many people through the years have lived there and thought, “I think I’ll build something big and beautiful to show how powerful I am and how great France is.” From the Arc de Triomphe to la Tour Eiffel, the city is full of structures that make you look up and say, “Wow.”
Surprisingly, I think that perhaps my favorite part of Paris was its natural beauty. Its wide avenues are lined with large trees, and the Seine is a beautiful backdrop for the city’s architectural wonders. Paris is also dotted with parks and gardens, which allow for relaxing walks and picnics (and also give a home to the city’s many joggers). Plus, since it was autumn, the trees were all changing colors.
If you want more detail, read here:
On Friday, I arrived early and spent the morning wandering around the city and impatiently waiting for Tim to get there. I visited the Museum of Perfume, which had a large collection of antique perfume bottles and some neat old distillery equipment. Around 4:00 I met Tim at our hotel, the Luna Park Hotel (which was much nicer than I had hoped, and pretty close to all the attractions). It was great to see him after being apart for way too long, but we were both anxious to get out and see the city.
After a quick picnic dinner of bread, ham, and cheese (Brie! How French!), we made it to the Louvre. I had no idea how BIG it is! Wow! When we got there, we spent a bit of time standing outside wondering which one of the giant buildings it was. Turns out it was all of them. Since it was Under-26 night, we got in for free and spent a happy evening wandering around the wonderland of beautiful paintings, sculptures, and ancient artifacts. I had heard from everyone that la Giaconda (Mona Lisa) was tiny and difficult to see, so I was skeptical, but we turned a corner and there it was, plain as day! There wasn’t even much of a crowd, and it was really cool to see such a famous painting. We also saw lots of old tapestries, a room of enormous Assyrian centaurs, and tons of Renaissance paintings and statues. As an added bonus, the museum itself is a work of art. It was once a palace, so every available surface is decorated with murals and carved wood and sweeping stone staircases. We weren’t ready to leave when the museum closed, but we were both beat from traveling, so we headed back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep.
In the morning, we woke up early, bought some tasty pastries (Pain au Chocolat? Yes, please!), and headed out for an epically long day of sightseeing. The weather was a bit cold and drizzly, but I kind of think that sort of weather suits Paris. Our first stop was Notre Dame Cathedral, which is every bit as spectacular and gloomy as it looks in the Disney film. We spent a little while admiring the magnificent architecture, then headed over to Saint-Chapelle, which was...
...closed. Not to be discouraged, Tim said “Let’s see what’s down this road,” and off we went, where we were delighted to find Place de Saint Michel, with its large fountain honoring the saint, and l’Eglise de Cluny, a neat old church surrounded by a peaceful garden. Further down the road we found Luxembourg Gardens, which may be my favorite place in Paris. Lovely old statues, well-tended flowers, and tons of beautiful, colorful trees... if there weren’t so much else to see in the city I could have easily spent a whole day there. Outside the gardens, Tim noticed a large dome in the distance and we went to investigate. It turned out to be the Pantheon, an impressive building that houses the tombs of some of France’s great intellectuals: Marie and Pierre Curie, Voltaire, Rousseau, Victor Hugo, and Alexander Dumas. It was really cool to think about those people really existing.
After lunch, we realized that we had gotten completely side-tracked, and headed back to Saint-Chapelle. This was also a good decision (it turns out you can’t really go wrong with Paris). The Saint-Chapelle is famous for its stained glass windows, which basically illustrate the entire Bible. The glass is incredibly bright, sparkling, and detailed. The upper chapel is so beautiful that the church has installed special benches (not pews) for people to sit and admire the glass.
From there, we strolled down the Seine to the Place de la Concorde, which is the entrance to the Champs d’Elysses, a long stretch of grand stores and more trees. That avenue leads to the Arc de Triomphe, which is even more impressive than it looks in pictures. Napoleon was one powerful guy, and he wanted you to know it. Tim and I climbed up the winding spiral staircase to the top of the Arc, where we took in a breathtaking view of the city.
After coming back down, we took a much-needed break for crepes and a bit of sitting. Paris is exhausting!
We still had some time to kill before we had planned to be at the Eiffel Tower, so we crossed the Seine to check out the Petit et Grand Palais (two glass-topped buildings) and le Hotel des Invalides and le Musee de l’Armee (a cool building surrounded by antique cannons). As the afternoon ended we headed over to the evening’s main attraction: la Tour Eiffel.
It is SO TALL. Unimaginably tall. The kind of tall you can’t capture in a photograph. It’s pretty, too, especially when they light it up for the night. We headed up the stairs just after dark. At the second floor (we didn’t pay the extra 7 Euros to take the elevator to the top) we were presented with a spectacular view and had a good time picking out all the places we had gone that day. I understand now why Paris is called the City of Lights. It was wonderful. Plus, as a bonus treat, there was a light show on the tower with sparkling strobes and colored lights.
After reluctantly coming down, we grabbed some dinner at a Chinese place (I know, how authentic) and walked home via the Moulin Rouge. It was cool to see it in real life, but we didn’t want to go in to see a sleazy and expensive cabaret, so we dragged our tired feet back to Luna Park and went to bed. I haven’t slept that soundly in a long time.
In the morning we slept in a bit, were delighted to find out that we had gained an hour of visiting time due to daylight savings time, and headed out for a little more exploring. We saw the Bastile monument, although the tower is long since demolished, and not even a ruin remains. We went to the little island in the river, Ile Saint-Louis, where we saw a lovely old church. A little French man inside told us about their organ, which they had just finished restoring (in Italian! I still understand Italian!). Then we sampled a bit of Berthillon ice cream, which is unique to that one island. It was delicious, and very, very dense.
Afterward, we checked out the nearby Jardin des Plantes, which turned out to be a lovely park and a good spot for a picnic. Sadly, after lunch it was time to leave. Three days was not enough time to spend in such a wonderful place, and I certainly wasn’t ready to say goodbye to Tim again, but all good things have to end sometime. Au revoir, Paris!
In the afternoon, we explored Alcala. I took him to the botanical gardens, which have gotten a lot prettier since the weather has cooled down. In town, we walked around the historic buildings, ate some kebabs (still probably my favorite food in Spain) and visited la Casa de Cervantes, where we saw some neat old and foreign editions of el Quixote. We also tried Rosquillas de Alcala, a sort of tiny layered donut smothered in orange frosting. Apparently they are only made here, and I've been meaning to try them for weeks. In the evening, we visited the medieval Murallas and the Museo del Toro Bravo, one of my favorite places in town. There, this old man with a mile-long beard has filled a shop floor to ceiling with hundreds of his own colorful paintings.
Saturday morning we took a train to Madrid and set out to run the gamut of historical sights, all of the various Puertas and Plazas and Iglesias. Some highlights: la Catedral de Almudena, where we climbed up in la cupula for a spectacular view of Madrid; la Basilica de San Francisco el Grande, a HUGE domed church; and el Rio Manzanares, which turns out to be a very sad trickle of water. We also visited el Palacio Real, which is mind-blowing. Much of the palace is decorated in the Rococo style, which means that everything is decorated, opulent, shiny, and overdone. It is also absolutely enormous.
In the afternoon, we headed to el Parque de Buen Retiro, which was decked out in some splendid fall foliage. We took a rowboat out on the lake to enjoy the scenery and watch the park-goers. I even got to row for a while! :-) We also stumbled upon la Rosaleda, a large round rose garden that I had completely missed on previous visits. It seems like every time I go to the park I discover new things to like about it. It's still my favorite place in Madrid.
