Hey there, Paris!

A few years ago when I went to Italy I was nervous about going to Florence because I had been there when I was in high school and absolutely loved it - the food, climbing to the top of the duomo, a crowded, smoke-filled dance club and then running back through the streets to get back before the hotel curfew. I had such great memories and was worried it would not be as wonderful returning years later when I was older and a different person than I was at 15. I had the same feelings about Paris having visited almost (but not quite) 10 years ago for my 25th birthday - late dinners in small cafes, a couple great concerts, wandering through rain-covered cobblestone streets in the early morning hours with a bottle of champagne - and I when I left Boston I wasn't planning to come to Paris at all.

Luxembourg Gardens

Well, my plans for this trip have changed every few days based on what I wanted from the next town (city? mountains? ocean?) and on recommendations from fellow travelers (Ljubljana, Strasbourg) and somewhere along the way Paris made it onto the list. Florence the second time was amazing - running along the Arno with my friend Lori (for exercise this time, not to make curfew), seeing Michaelangelo's David, eating prosciutto and drinking Gaja in the back room of a wine shop - so why not give Paris another go?

Rats!

I am so happy I did. Balanced somewhere between the complete (and yet oh so fun) debauchery of Berlin and the super civilized (and yet a little too clean) persona of Vienna, Paris is, to me, a perfect balance of history and progress, beauty and grit, civility and lewdness. It is a city that is palpable with life and one can't help but just wander and watch the world go by.

A street in Montmartre

Le Place de Vosges

In the Marais is the elegant Place de Vosges where Victor Hugo lived before being exiled. His house was a great stop as was the Musée Jacquemart-André, a mansion formerly owned by wealthy art collectors that had assembled during their travels an incredible art collection that includes a couple Botticellis, a few Renoirs and a bronze sculpture by Donatello.

The crowd at Sacré-Coeur

I stayed in a beautiful apartment in Montmartre, just steps from Sacré-Coeur. It's a wonderful area of cafés and fun shops - touristy, but full of locals as well. Out for a drink with my airbnb host, multiple people from the neighborhood stopped to chat.

Strolling along the Seine

Should have stayed here!

There was a moment when I was walking down Rue L'Opera with the enormous old opera building in front of me and I was listening to music (trick to keep me going when my feet get tired). The sun was shining on my shoulders and as I bit into a vanilla macaron, I smiled because I realized that at that moment all my senses were happy. Beautiful city, great tunes, warm sun and the crunch of the cookie then smoothness of the filling with the delicious flavor and scent of vanilla and sugar. Perfect!

 

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