24 May, 2008 | Leave a Comment
I spent two days in Paris this week. Ahhhhh, it was lovely. I keep my Paris trips short because I spend too much money while I’m there. I don’t shop, but all those pots of tea in cafés must add up because by the time I get home I’m shocked at how much I’ve spent. Still, it’s worth every centime.
I’ve noticed over the past six months or so that it’s become very important for me to get away when I can. Sometimes I feel an urgent sense that I must flee, at least for a few days. I live in a hall of residence and also work here. It’s an intense environment and I need regular breaks from it. I also work from home mostly and live in a very small room. For the sake of my sanity, I have to get out of here periodically. A couple people have asked me why I keep going back to Paris and don’t venture to another place. In these days of Ryannair and EasyJet, I could fly to almost anywhere in Europe for the same price as the Eurostar ticket to Paris. I guess part of it is laziness. Going to Paris from London is easy. I can walk to the train station and in 2.5 hours I’m in Paris. That’s pretty amazing.
But more important than convenience is what Paris gives me in just a couple days. When I go away for a short break, I crave the sense of being transported to another world. I want to shrug off my normal life and forget about everything. Paris offers me this and more. It tantalizes my senses — senses that, in my ordinary daily life, are dormant. Everything is heightened for me in Paris — the visual beauty, the tastes and smells and sounds. There are lovely cafés everywhere and boutiques and flower stalls, rather than dull and ordinary Costa Coffee and Boots and Tesco on every corner. Blah. Don’t get me wrong — I much prefer living in London. For me, London is more livable. Paris is a dream world that I prefer to experience as a tourist who dips in and out. In Paris I spend my days literally walking for hours and hours, sitting in gardens, going to cafés. Tuning out in this way totally recharges me. I almost always make progress on my novel as well (this time I had another major breakthrough!). The other day a writer friend told me, “Paris is your muse.” I think that’s true.
ranunculuses everywhere!
As for the details of my trip this week, here goes…
I did so much walking that after two days I was in pain by the time I left, but it was a good kind of pain. I wasn’t wearing the right shoes. When I do a lot of walking, I normally wear my athletic shoes, but when I’m in Paris I’m more conscious of my appearance, so I wore black flats instead. This resulted in my calf muscles and feet hurting a lot. You see, putting beauty before comfort is just wrong on every level and violates all my feminist principles.
I arrived at Gare du Nord and walked all the way to Saint-Germain-des-Prés. I don’t recommend taking the 05:25 from St. Pancras. Yowza! That is scary-early, but it was also cool to arrive in Paris at breakfast time. Here is what you get for breakfast in Paris:
Weetabix? Non! BTW, that jar of Nutella was warm and the chocolate was pure liquid. I’m not sure how they warmed it up, but sweet mama was it tasty. The idea of chocolate for breakfast is not foreign to Americans, but it’s usually in the form of Cocoa Krispies or Nestlé Quik. The French treat chocolate as it should be treated — like a pure narcotic.
My last few trips to Paris have been in the off-season so it was quite a shock to see how many tourists were there this time. The weather was nicer, however, so that’s the trade-off. While in the autumn and winter Paris seemed to be filled with British tourists, this time they were virtually all American. British, American, it doesn’t matter — what it boils down to is this: Embarrassment! What is it with English-speaking people? The British ones tend to be loud and rude and want the French to cater to them as if they’d never left British soil. The Americans act the same way, but their manner is less abrasive. They act more like morons, as if this trip abroad represents the first time they’ve ever left their hometown, which has 35 residents. A woman I sat next to in café tried to pay her bill with dollars. And everywhere you go, there are these college-aged American guys wearing t-shirts with ridiculous slogans. They all have goatees and no necks and giant bright white teeth. It’s like every college football player in America got a free trip to Paris this week. Yuck.
I spent a lot of time in the Luxembourg Gardens. Believe it or not, I’ve never seen it green! I’ve always been there in autumn and winter. I prefer autumn, hands down, but of course it was still stunning this time of year.
I also spent a few hours reading in the Tuileries, right in the shadow of this sculpture of a giant spider. What a freaky sight. Let’s hope it’s temporary.
I went to Ladurée and had the best peppermint tea of my life. Peppermint tea is my favorite. They brought me a steaming pot packed full of the freshest peppermint leaves. I can’t even begin to describe the taste:
I also went back to Sadaharu Aoki, the Japanese -French patisserie. The beauteous Saya pastries, now red instead of pink:
Something I’ve never seen at Aoki before — Bonbon Maquillage (chocolate makeup to be eaten, not worn):
And I had this — Cassis Chocolat (blackcurrant and chocolate):
While I was there, a college-aged French woman came into the shop. She had just rode her bike over specifically to buy a Cassis Chocolat — her favorite. She saw that I had ordered the same thing and she became giddy with excitement, waiting for me to try it. She wanted to know if I liked it as much as she does (I got the impression she eats one of these at least weekly). My verdict: pretty damn tasty.
Of course, no trip to Paris is complete without a visit to the lawyer’s office! This time I went to pick up a file containing all the exhibits and originals of all the documents, which are mine to keep. It was funny to see that copies of emails I’d sent to the landlady had been officially translated into French for the court. How very strange. And while I’m at it, I do have to give a shout out to the Evil French Landlady for funding this trip to Paris and I hope a few more this summer. Thanks Evil French Landlady — you’re the best!
Before I left on Wednesday, I planned to spend a few hours at the Louvre. It’s late opening on Wednesday. I went into the Carousel du Louvre first and bought some nail polish at Sephora. For some bizarre reason, there are no Sephora stores in Britain. While I do find Sephora to be creepy, it’s nice that you can shop for department store cosmetics and get everything yourself from the displays, without having to deal with some make-up zombie. So after shopping for nail polish [priorities! priorities!] I went to the giant reception area at the Louvre, under the pyramid. Bench space is limited, but I finally got a seat and decided to sit and plan the rest of my day before doing anything else. I was sitting next to a middle-aged American husband and wife tourist couple. Between me and the woman was her Rick Steves guidebook. That was how wide the space was between us. So this French lady walks up and says, essentially, “Move that book, I want to sit down.” She was demanding that the American woman move the book and that we both move over to make room for her. [She was not physically impaired in any way.] She wasn’t apologetic or even nice — just demanding. The American woman stared at the French lady, stunned. I just laughed. I couldn’t have imagined a British or American woman doing that. To me, it just seemed so French.
I sat on the bench next to the French lady and thought about whether to buy a ticket and go inside the museum. I’d only have about an hour in the Louvre. This was fine, as I’ve been there numerous times and had no agenda — I just wanted to wander around. But as I sat on the bench, I observed the literal hordes of tour groups pushing and shoving their way onto the escalators. Many of these tour groups were teenagers. In the face of this, I lost my nerve. By that time, I was too tired to deal with it.
My laziness, however, had a massive silver lining. I walked out of the Louvre and saw the most stunning Paris sky I’d ever seen — and I’ve seen many many many stunning skies in Paris. In this part of town (Louvre courtyard/Tuileries/Seine/Concorde) you have huge, panoramic views of the sky. The sun was hidden behind the clouds and there were thick sunbeams blanketing the sky in every direction. You can see this in the photo at the very top of this post and also here:
I know I always say this, but you really had to see it in person. The camera has its limits. I can’t remember the last time I saw anything so beautiful and I felt honored to have experienced this. You know what a nut I am for clouds and sun and skyscapes. Though I was exhausted, I walked all over the area to take in this sight. I heard tourists exclaiming to one another, “Look at the sky!” If I had stayed in the Louvre I would have missed this. And while I appreciate art hung on the walls, nothing beats this kind of natural beauty.
Anglofille said @ 5:15 pm | paris sights + walks | 8 Comments
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Great photos- I especially like the last one of the sky!
The Cassis Chocolate looks delicious and that peppermint tea with the fresh leaves has me wishing that I could enjoy a pot of it right now!
I’m glad you had a nice time in Paris!
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Silvana Says:
May 24th, 2008 at 11:07 pmI am so happy for you! I’m so glad you totally enjoyed every second of your visit to Paris. Of course, you know that I am jealous…wish I was there.
I completely share in your appreciation of Paris. I’d love to be able to travel there so conveniently by train. I’ve come to hate airports. They are such a hassle these days! But they are a necessity if you love to travel, and I do love to travel.
You must give me the address of that patisserie with the edible makeup goodies.
Your comments on the anglo-tourists you encountered made me laugh so hard! They are a pathetic, uneducated lot. An embarrassment indeed. I noticed they have the same behaviour when they travel to Latin America. Tsk, tsk!
Thank you for sharing your lovely photos. They will keep me inspired until July. Merci beaucoup!
Bon weekend
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Thanks William and Silvana!!!
The Sadaharu Aoki shop is at 35 rue de Vaugirard. It’s right near the Jardin du Lux…and also near Pierre Hermé!
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s. Says:
May 24th, 2008 at 11:48 pmSadaharu Aoki and Pierre Herme within walking distance of the jardin du lux… just isn’t fair, no?
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Pretty pictures! I try to bring back green tea chocolates from Aoki for my Mom whenever I’m in Paris.
I had an art history student ID for the Louvre, so I could drop by whenever by entering on the north end. You skip security lines and tourists. If you’re planning on going back a few more times this year, look into getting a pass. It’s worth it!
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I looked into getting a pass when I lived there, but they said there was nothing I qualified for. Having a pass would be brilliant!
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What a dairy, Anglo ! So rich and funny ! Concerning the pass, you can get one (not free, indeed) through the “Société des amis du Louvre”. But it worth when you live in Paris.
Et quelle gourmande vous faites !
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joy Says:
June 1st, 2008 at 6:35 pmBecause I wouldn’t want to live in any part of Paris that I can afford, and for lots of other weather and pace-of life reasons, I prefer living down south. But your photos always remind me of my best experiences in Paris, and all that is most beautiful and best about being there.
Thank you!
