Paris

15 May 2010

Just got back from Paris – kind of went on a whim; knew I definitely wanted to go but wasn’t sure when would work after spring break. I ended up just ordering the tickets one morning for the week between my first and second exams, and even though couldn’t work out going with anyone it was great just going.

Stayed at a fantastic hostel (Plug-Inn Hostel) in Montmarte, which was great as well and one of my favorite parts. The hostel staff had great recommendations and was very friendly, and the other people there were fun and easy to talk to as well. The convenient internet access and accommodations also made my stay enjoyable.

Took the super-early train from London (525 am, yech), which I actually nearly missed because I timed things poorly and missed a bus. After getting to the hostel, I went to a free tour with a couple of Canadians (Kat and Katie – confusing, right?) who were traveling before their graduation. Saw Notre Dame, walked along the Seine towards the Louvre, and saw the Tulieres Garden and ended up down by Champ Elysees, which we walked down towards the Arc De Triomph. After that I wandered down to the Eiffel Tower, with all the associated hoopla. As impressive as viewing the structure from up close (and especially, underneath it), what I like most about it is how you can see it as a beacon from all over the city. It’s hard to imagine how such iconic structures as the Eiffel Tower and especially the Louvre pyramid have been added so recently – how much have they added to the image of Paris?

Ended up having dinner at a place called le Relais Gascon, where I got the Salad Fraicheur – smoked ham, bacon, fried egg and these great fried garlic potato slices over a bed of greens.Walking to it in Montmarte, I passed 2-3 bars that had terraces that were just packed with people having a drink and smoking. Even though the weather was relatively chilly, it just seemed like such a pleasant thing to do. Being able to join friends at these places was one of the reasons why I could see myself living in/near Montmarte someday (although apparently it’s super expensive these days…)

Being able to speak a language as elegant as French would be another of those reasons. For all the stated benefits of learning Latin (higher SAT, word roots, grammar, etc.) I think that actually being able to use a language is infinitely more practical. After traveling to places where Spanish, German, French and Italian were used and being completely reliant on others’ knowledge of English, it just feels like you’re extremely limited without that knowledge of other languages.

That night, we actually wandered up the hill that is Montmarte to the Sacre Coeur (Church of the Sacred Heart). It’s an instantly recognizable church that combines many different architectural styles and can be seen from all over Paris as well. Its location at the top of the hill means that it’s got an incredible view of Paris, which just sprawls as far as the eye can see. We just sat on the steps, along with a pretty good crowd that was just enjoying the night with friends (and the fact that there are no laws prohibiting alcohol in public places). I also really enjoyed taking pictures of Montmarte at night (and enjoy night scenes in general) – wish my camera had a better image sensor that facilitated that, though…(consumerism fixes everything though =D)

Spent most of the next day at the Louvre which (along with the British museum) is probably the sprawling museum I’ve ever walked through. You could easily lose days in there, and even only trying to see the highlights I managed to spend a solid 4 hours there. The museum had famous and beautiful works from so many different eras that it makes sense that the museum used to be three separate buildings before the pyramid created a unified entrance. The inverted pyramid in the entrance of the Carousel entrance was probably even more impressive to behold because it was just as large but much more unorthodox.

The Mona Lisa was, predictably, a bit of a zoo, with a crowd 10 rows deep just jostling to take pictures – the fact that it’s behind a thick sheet of glass now doesn’t help. It actually wasn’t until I walked towards it a second time from behind the wall on which it was mounted that it captured my imagination a bit. In general, though, I’m coming to the conclusion that I enjoy the secular historic subject matter of more recent art more than the religious art that dominated the Renaissance. Accordingly, I rather preferred the rooms that had huge paintings by David, Delacroix and Gericault to those of the Italian masters.

Went on a tour of Montmarte at night – one of the highlights was definitely the café (the two windmills) where Amelie was filmed. Another of my favorites was the restaurant where a young artist used to trade paintings for food – a wise investment by the owner, since the artist was Picasso! It’s also incredible to think how so many other artists and writers, including Hemingway and Van Gogh, also walked those same narrow streets. We also walked back up to the Sacre Coeur and went inside this time; as much of a mashup as it is outside, it’s very much a traditional (and gorgeous) Catholic church on the inside. Grabbed dinner at a great hole in the wall creperie, where the space was barely wide enough for the guy to turn around. I knew it was a good place when the girl in front of me was one of the hostel staff stopping by at the end of her shift.

Last day in Paris was primarily the Musee D’Orsay, which basically picked up where the Louvre left off around the 1850s. Its smaller size and great collection of Impressionist and Post-impressionist art including Manet, Monet, Degas, Renoir, Van Gogh, Cezanne and others suited me much better than the Louvre, although somewhat surprisingly I had to wait in a longer line to get tickets than the Louvre. Props to both the Louvre and Musee D’orsay for not charging admission (but only to EU students – yet more money that my UCL id saved me).

Spent the afternoon walking down Champ Elysees again, where I made it a point of grabbing lunch at McDonalds, where I got a Royale with cheese (after Samuel L talked about it in Pulp Fiction, how could I not?). I also window shopped at some of the more upscale places (seems like there’s always the one area in each major European city that just has multiple stores for all the big designers). I’m not sure how intended it is, but the sales staff at these places always seem so intimidating if you walk in when there’s no one else around, and it just doesn’t look like you have any business being there. Another example of the rich keeping the poor down, I guess =D

Finally just spent the last hour wandering through the Montmarte cemetery, which occupied a few city blocks and is the final resting place for more than a few of Paris’s famous people, including Hector Berlioz. The sky seemed on the verge of rain, and it was an interesting dynamic walking through the cemetery and seeing all the different styles/states of upkeep of the tombstones and the flowers and other tributes that people had left while smiling from listening to the funny “Wait Wait, don’t tell me” news podcast. Just a strange combination of things.

Having traveled to most of the other cities this trip with a couple other people, traveling by myself to Paris was an interesting change of pace. I enjoyed the time I got to think and reflect, and enjoyed meeting and talking to different people at the hostel (including FIVE people from Toronto (in 3 different groups) out of the like, 10 that I met)