Since I can’t possibly share EVERYTHING, I’m just going to do a few short vignettes...
Montmartre and the rainstorm: It was early on a Sunday evening and I decided I wanted to explore a little. I got on a bus, without any idea where it was headed, and found myself in Montmartre once again. I wandered through the cobblestone streets and reached Sacre-couer, this time climbing the 300 hundred steps to the top of the dome. The view was absolutely spectacular—panoramic Paris in the foreground, with dramatic thundering skies and a strip of distant green countryside in the background. (Look at my photos and you’ll see how beautiful it was). I think it was at this moment when it really hit me that I was actually in Paris, France, on the other side of the world. I’ll never forget it.
I spiraled quickly back down the stairs just as rain started pouring down in sheets and forming little rivers that cascaded down the sides of the steep, narrow streets. Drenched, but feeling light and poetic, I tucked into a corner creperie. The waiter raised an eyebrow at me and laughed a little at my sopping wet hair and the growing puddle at my feet, but I just shrugged and smiled. I picked a table in the farthest corner and ordered a coffee, and sat there writing letters and drying off until the rain had stopped and the sun was nearly down. As I left, my waiter asked me where I was from, and when I responded “California,” he said “Ah. this is why you are so pretty.”
My first Paris bar experience:
I’ve made friends with a girl from Argentina here in Paris, and she invited a few of us to meet her at this cafe/bar one night. I was pretty excited, because as I am not drinking age in the States, I have never really been to a bar! It was a cool place, and we met some very interesting French people. Unfortunately, at one point I got stuck sitting next to this guy who could talk about nothing but electronic/techno music, how lame he thinks nightlife in Paris is, and how men wear their collars in various parts of Europe. (In case you were dying to know, he likes to wear his popped-up, like the Italians.) Then, oblivious to my blatant disgust, he proceeded to suggest we go back to my place. Um, excusez-moi? no. Anyway, he was a reaaal keeper, that one.
Minus the creep though, I had a really great time!
Velib!:
I’m from Davis, California, the bike capital of the world. I can handle riding a bike through Paris. Right?
Well that’s what I told myself, anyway.
I mean, I guess I was right; I could handle it. I am here to tell the tale...
But it was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life. Especially since I chose to ride on a street with no bike lane, heavy traffic, j-walkers, dogs, gawking tourists, pigeons, vespas, ambulances, ambiguous traffic signals, other bikes, old people, strollers, formula-one racers, a stampede of rhinoceros, mimes pretending to be driving cars, left turns, flash floods, right turns, loopedy-loops, downhills, uphills, an army of orcs, and of course, the worst, Parisian drivers.
A little terrifying, yes, but exhilarating. What a fun way to see Paris!
A perfect evening:
Faith, Sahar, and I met up at the Luxembourg Gardens one afternoon to discuss our travel plans. Finding a bench in the shade to get out of the muggy heat, we sat and listed off the places we’d like to see while in Europe. Mine goes like this:
North, south, east, and west in France
Switzerland
The Netherlands
Great Britain
Italy
Germany
AND/OR possibly
Greece, Spain, The Czech Republic, Scotland, Ireland,
and I think a few more but I can’t even think of them now...
Now obviously that’s a lot of places to visit on a small budget and during a short time, so it’s unlikely I’ll be able to hit them all. We shall see!
After talking for a couple of hours, we set out on a quest to find some Escargot! Instead, we found ourselves in a neglected but charming little alley near Place d’Italie and decided on an empty Vietnamese restaurant. Inside, it was decorated with colorful artwork and illuminated with strings of multi-colored lights and lanterns. The man serving us was so friendly, and when we got our menus we saw that they served frog legs! Score! A surprise thunderstorm splattered rain against the trees and pavement outside as we sat and talked in the warm restaurant with tea and delicious food (p.s. frog legs are really good!). We ordered desert, a vanilla, meringue, and praline piece of heaven, and stepped out into the evening just as the rain stopped. As we walked through puddles past glowing street side cafes to find the closest metro, we came to the conclusion that we would have to become frequenters of this little off-the-beaten-path restaurant that no doubt serves the best Vietnamese-chili-flavored-frog-legs in that part of south-eastern Paris. :)
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