Paris Day 1...

London is always calling me.  I've been trying to set up a trip with a couple of friends for the past three years, since I was there last.  It worked out that I could meet up with one set of friends in Paris, and have a few days there.  Then meet up with the other set of friends in London and see them too.  

It took a lot of planning, but when the day come to travel, I was ready.  I really dislike long-haul travel. To be honest, I dislike all modes of travel.  I just want to get to the destination.  I'm sure there is some sort of telling truth about my personality in that statement.  

After a layover in Dallas, I boarded my flight for Paris.  I got to sit next to a couple who insisted on getting up every hour to walk around.  That made it a bit obnoxious to try to sleep.  But, I got some rest in and didn't feel totally wasted by the time I landed.  

My friends, Kris and Tom were already in Paris for a wedding and met me at the airport.  We waited for a while longer to meet with our friend Gwen to complete our party. 

From the airport, we took a taxi to our apartment in the Marais district in Paris.   We went with apartments for this trip through AirBnB.com since there were so many of us.  It allowed us room to spread out a bit more, and a place to eat, which saved money.  

The view from the apartment was beautiful!

It was on the fourth floor, which was a hike some days, but for those days there was a little lift that could take one person at a time up.  I only used it the first day with all the luggage.  The other days I just slowly went up and down.  

Once we got in a freshened up, we set out to get a bite to eat and see a few sites.  We stopped to have lunch at a cafe, where the waitress spoke a beautiful Frenglish.  In the end, although we all ordered different salads, we all got the same.  I started with this plate of white asparagus, and had a chef's salad, complete with potatoes. 



After lunch, we walked towards Notre Dame.  We joked at the idea that you would likely not be passing under a construction crane in the states.  There, they had work to get done, so cross the street if you don't want to be under it.  

We first came upon the Hotel de Ville.  It's basically the Mayor's office.  Pretty fancy for a mayor's office, no?


Look closely...do you see the volleyball game going on?  I don't imagine people get much city work done while there's a live volleyball game to watch all day.

From the hotel de ville, it was a short walk over to Notre Dame. 

It did not disappoint, again.
 





Something interesting to me both times I've been in Notre Dame, is the question of what is this place?  I have a deep reverence for holy places.  I have visited mosques, churches, cathedrals, and temples of multiple faiths. 

Each time I enter one, I sense a need to be quiet, and respectful.  Although I may not practice their faith, it is a place of holiness for the people who do come to these buildings to find peace or bring their words to their gods. That being said, I always feel a bit, what is it?  Rude, I think, coming in to view them as a museum.   Of course the history and architecture are breathtaking, but at the same time, there are pilgrims and worshipers alike bringing their prayers forth amongst the picture taking.  

Both times I've been to Notre Dame, I've been brought back to the reality of it being a church more than a museum by the silencing hush brought on by the announcer over the speakers...."Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.  Silence, Please." he whispers, and the entire place returns to it's reverence.  I snap a few photos, whisper a few prayers of thanks for getting there safe, and gratitude for the opportunity, and scoot out of the way.

We walked along the bridge of locks and keys next.  I think this is a Parisian thing of late, lovers' locks.  They place the lock on the bridge, and throw the key into the Seine.  



This point always makes me a little wistful for Steve to be there enjoying Paris with me.  It's not hard to find myself wishing him with me on these excursions, but I try to let the moments be brief, as there is little we can do to remedy that at this time of life. 

We crossed over and visited the Holocaust memorial, called Mémorial des Martyrs de la Déportation.  This memorial was built as a reminder of the 200,000 people deported from France to concentration camps during World War II.  The architect's intent was to make it feel claustrophobic.  There are plenty of claustrophobic spaces in Paris, but nothing has made me feel the torment quite like this place.  A had a moment of silence in front of the narrow chamber with 200,000 lighted crystals symbolizing each life lost in a concentration camp, then made my way out to fresh air, mindful that it was not all that long ago. 

The sun was really quite hot at this point, so we stopped over in the (I believe) Chatelet district (corrected in comments:  Ile St. Louis) to get gelato/sorbet/ice-cream and pop into a few shops.  I went for peach gelato.  



We walked along the Seine's shaded trees to make it to our next destination of Luxembourg Gardens, which is the garden of the state sentate.  This reminded me a lot of a portion of Central Park in New York City, and even parts of it reminded me of our little park in Denver we like to go to.  I think mainly, it is a space for people to gather, outside and enjoy nature in the business of a city. 







I even saw Lady Liberty!  The original model, that is. She's much smaller than our lady. 

We sat and watched children play, and enjoyed the breeze and shade of the large trees, then made our way towards the Saint Sulpice Church. 



The great organ was impressive, but the inside of the church was completely empty.  Leaving it feeling a bit eery to me. So, I made my rounds to quickly view, then back outside to the fresh air. 
 

Our next stop was to get a drink and rest our feet!  Kris and Tom introduced us to Les Deux Magots, a famous cafe in the Saint-Germain-des-Pres district.  It was made famous by patron artists and writers such as Hemingway, Camus, and Picasso (think Midnight In Paris). It was pretty shi-shi, I noticed, as I needed to leave some change to use the toilets for the lady sitting and doing what, I don't know...watching tourists go to the toilet and leave her change.  But, the lemonade was delicious, and the people watching fun.  Especially the crotchety waiter who sniffed and huffed when he wasn't left a good tip.  



We started to make our way towards a metro station to head back to our apartment, but the smells from a local cafe stopped us to eat. 



We sat outside and googled different menu items to decide which was the best choice.  The cafe on the opposite side of the street was playing live jazz music, complete with a very French voice singing old, very American jazz songs, such as It Had To Be You, and Just The Way You Look Tonight. you could have plopped me in an old black and white and it wouldn't have felt any more realistic.  It was like sitting inside someone else's dream. 

I chose the roasted something, with some-such relish on the side, and cold potatoes with salad.  And it was indeed yummy. 



After dinner, we headed back to the apartment via the Metro and a grocery store to pick up some breakfast things and snacks.  The sun set on Paris for day 1, and I fell quickly and deeply into sleep, ready for day 2, one of the most eventful days of the trip.