This was the day I've been waiting for my enitre life. I woke up as giddy as ever... not caring that I only slept for 3 hours, not caring that my hair looked ridiculous (again), not caring that I was about to drag my luggage to another country.
Oh hello, train to the land of my dreams...haha. I LOVED traveling on the Eurostar. Such a lovely way to get around!
I got up so so early because getting to St. Pancras station would take a while. My train to Paris was leaving at 8AM. I hopped on the 10 bus that takes you to King's Cross/St. Pancras and arrived just in time... not too early, but not too late.
The train ride was quick... or was it? I remember eating a croissant (how French of me) and I remember attempting to read a page from my book. Then I remember arriving at Gare Du Nord. Nothing in between... I was out before the train even started moving.
When I arrived at Gare Du Nord, I met up with Elliot and Aurelie (his fiance). Elliot's family graciously offered to let me stay at their house for the length of my stay in Paris. Aurelie had just arrived from Brussels a while before and they were there to greet me and take my bags back to the Mourier's house... This was good since it allowed me to get right to seeing Paris without having to trek all the way to their house to drop off my luggage.
Eh, Bounjour, tierre de mes reves... Ah... the excitement to be in France!
Elliot and Aurelie explained the Paris Metro system, and gave me a few suggestions on where to start. I decided to start with Musee du Louvre, but when I got there, I realized the museum was closed, as it is every other Tuesday. I decided to walk around the outside of the Louvre and find a good place to have lunch.
I don't care what people say... The NYC Subway system is nowhere as confusing as the Paris Metro. If it had not been for Elliot and Aurelie's long explanation I may have died of confusion.
I found this adorable cafe called Cafe Palais Royal. It was so picturesque and adorable. I loved sitting there and taking in French culture... Well, or the culture of the French staff since everyone eating there seemed to be a tourist. I had an amazing quiche lorraine with a green salad and of course, a cup of chocolat chaud (Did I mention it was pouring rain and absolutely freezing?). I made conversation with an elderly couple from Pasadena and some boys from Canada. The tables were so close together that I felt like we were all sitting at the same table.
The charming Cafe Palais Royal... Footsteps away from the Musee Du Louvre. Such an excellent way to start my Parisian adventure.
A gorgeous little plaza en route to the Opera House
After lunch, I made my way to the Paris Opera House.. still in the pouring rain. I had a raincoat but my shoes were entirely soaked. When I arrived at the Opera, I found out that the main hall was not open due to rehearsal. I was a little bummed out but didn't want to spend the money on a ticket if I couldn't see the mail hall. I walked around though and took some pictures of the outside.
Beautiful...Paris Opera House. Another borrowed shot because the ones I took are not stellar.
I randomly found the bus that takes you straight to the Musee D'Orsay which was lucky because I was so so so cold and frustrated that everything I wanted to do and see was not working out. I arrived at Musee D'Orsay to find an impossibly long line, but I stood in it, in the rain, with my newly purchased umbrella (which by the way I paid a lot for).
Musee D'Orsay and the Seine
What I saw inside the museum was worth every minute of standing in that line in the freezing rain. The Musee D'Orsay houses art mostly from the Impressionist period... My favorite! I about died just seeing all the original pieces I had heard about for so long. There was a good mix in between realism and impressionism that I found really charming and pleasing to look at. I focused mostly on the impressionist pieces because I knew I would not have enough time to look at everything. Monet, Manet, Van Gogh, Degas, and that is just the list of the really well-known painters... There were many other less popular by equally stunning pieces.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Bal au Moulin de la Gallete, 1876. My favorite thing about this piece is hands down the way Renoir created light... All those little spots are so amazing. It makes me feel like I am sitting there alongside these people taking in the sun.
Claude Monet, Villas in Bordighera, 1884. I have always loved his choice of color palette. Even when he's using cool colors, his pieces are always warm and charming. I especially love the juxtaposition of the structured architecture and the free strokes used to create the vegetation, ground and sky.
Monet. I honestly wish I could figure out specifically which of his Water Lilies this is... but I actually have no idea.
Claude Monet, Essai de figure en plein-air : Femme à l'ombrelle tournée vers la gauche, 1886.
Top: Edgar Degas, Deux danseuses au repos, 1898
Bottom: Edgar Degas, Danseuse au bouquet, saluant sur la scène, 1878
Edgar Degas, Danseuses Bleues, 1890. My favorite Degas piece ever.
About as classic as impressionism gets. Vincent Van Gogh, Self Portrait, 1889
I was so so sneaky and took a picture.. haha. You're not supposed to but I wanted to remember this moment forever... Musee D'Orsay used to be a train station, and it has been beautifully restored to house all this amazing art.
I spent about two hours inside the museum before heading out to my next stop. I walked along the Seine until I arrived at Place de La Concorde... which was beautiful but really just a stop and look sort of thing. If you stand right at the middle, you get a beautiful view of the Jardin de Tuileries on one side and the Arc De Triomph on the other.
Oh la la! Les Crepes Sucrees! I wish NYC had a crepe truck!
I love this picture... And I love the chiaroscuro effect that the sky and darks in the picture create. Not bad, considering this was a timed photo set up on a little pillar.
I stopped to take some pictures and eat a crepe that I purchased from a crepe truck (!) just outside the Jardin de Tuileries. By then, I felt more used to the rain and felt more like I was in Paris than I had up to that point... I walked along the Champs D'Elysees stopping at every store that called out to me. It took a long time, but I finally arrived at the Arc D'Triomph just as the sun was setting. It was a beautiful sight. The traffic was insane, so I didn't dare cross to the Arc but I admired it from afar, took many many pictures and decided to call it a day.
Oh, hey... Just practicing my tendus here in PARIS. I have noooo idea why I look like I am doing a tendu. The only disappointment was that if you look closely at the two panels on either side of the arc, they are fabric... covering up the originals, which I am guessing they're restoring currently.
A beautiful sight. I have a postcard that I've kept around for a good 15 years now and I wanted to take my own picture of the picture I've been looking at for so long.
Before getting on the train, I grabbed some dinner at this amazing restaurant which I can't actually remember the name of but it was just footsteps away from the Arc De Triomph. I had an amazing dinner and some sort of dessert the waitress described in English as "Floating Island." No clue what it was... but it was tasty.
Then, I hopped on the RER A train towards Noisy Champs where Elliot was waiting to drive me to their home in Champs-Sur-Marne. It was great to meet the Mourier family. They were all so welcoming and I had so much fun just chatting with them and getting to know them.
So, not only do I have to keep things straight between the Metro and the RER lines, but I also have to make sure I get on the right RER A train... So not the one that goes to Boissy but the one that goes to Marne-la-Vallee or Torcy. Tricky Frenchies...
RER A platform at the Etoile station
Noisy Champs station. Picture not from Day 4, but irrelevant any other day. :)
I went to bed completely exhausted but excited for what lay ahead... I fell asleep watching LOST, in French... Ah, Monsieur Locke. You were crazy.
Cast of Irena's Vow
