Tuesday, August 6, 2019

#479 The Year of 50: An American Girl in Paris


Sitting in the outside "courtyard" of the Louvre
Just when I thought my Year of 50 festivities had come to an end, up popped another trip. 

My friend Kerstin and I had talked about someday going to Paris.  Someday got a little more specific with both of our 50th birthdays approaching (she’s also an October baby) and we contemplated going in 2018. 

At first, I thought I could still swing it, even after my castle adventure with Tammy in July.  But after paying my Visa bills from all my trips I decided that it would be too expensive.  I encouraged Kerstin to still go, and she found two friends from Germany (where she’s originally from) to meet her there. 

In late October Kerstin mentioned that she had been tracking flights and bought a ticket for around $600 and was going in early December.  The wheels began to turn in my head.  $600?!  I’ve paid over $500 to fly to Connecticut when traveling to The Hole In The Wall Gang Camp! 

She gave me her flight numbers.  I called Delta and talked to the nicest woman, who helped me get on the same flights for $660.  She asked the reason for my trip and I told her about both of us turning 50.  Then I asked about exit rows and told her my height.  She fixed us up with FREE exit row seats on the way back (none were available on the way there).  In a matter of an hour, I had booked a trip to Paris! 

A friend of mine had visited Paris in spring of 2018 with her family and had recommended their Airbnb. I got the information from her and booked it.  It was located near Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, a few miles northeast of the city centre.  It was a great location – metro and bus stations were down the street.  I loved checking out the park.  We could even see the Eiffel Tower from a distance at night.  Here are some of the trip highlights:

Legroom
The legroom in the standard seating area wasn’t bad.  After they closed the doors, one of the flight attendants offered us two seats together in an exit row.  Hallelujah!  

Notre Dame
Notre Dame was first on our list and was incredible.  I’ve been in my fair share of cathedrals, but this one ranks high up there, along with St. Peter’s Basilica.  So massive, and yet so beautiful, with the rose windows and ornate decor.  You can’t aptly describe it to others – you must experience it for yourself.  Watching it burn on TV this past April made it that much more personal.  I’m thankful that it was not a total loss. 

View of the back of Notre Dame and the Seine
Deportation Martyrs Memorial
This memorial was listed in my Rick Steves Pocket Paris book.  Located underground behind Notre Dame on Ile de la Cite, it is a memorial to the 200,000 individuals deported from France to the Nazi concentration camps during World War II.  I likened it to 9/11 Memorial.  Very somber, but also beautiful in places.  I highly recommend. 

Inside the memorial.  Each light represents one of the 200,000 people deported.
Arc de Triomphe and Champs Elysees
One of the most iconic structures in Paris next to the Eiffel Tower, I think I took a photo of the arc at every angle.  The day was rainy, but still enjoyable.  We stopped in several shops along the Champs Elysees (and a café, of course) to get out of the rain.  The sun did eventually make an appearance and made the sidewalks and street glisten. 

I kept stepping out into the street to get a good view of the Arc.  
Eiffel Tower
We chose to go up into the Eiffel Tower at night to experience all of the lights.  Being that it was December, the lines were relatively short, but we did stand in the cold for a bit about halfway up.  I would rather brave the cold than stand in line for hours in the heat of the summer.  What an amazing piece of architecture!  And what views!  The tower lights up in the evenings every hour for five minutes.  We timed it perfectly and were back on the ground to catch the bedazzling show. 




Louvre
I’ve heard how massive the Louvre is and they aren’t joking.  Again, we followed (mostly) Rick Steves’ advice and hit the hot spots.  You could spend days in there! 

Mona Lisa

Venus de Milo

·         Ponte Des Art – Love Lock Bridge (from Sex and the City).  I love Sex and the City and had a short list of places featured in the last two episodes of the last season.  As we walked around the city, none were quite close enough for me to say to the non SATC fans, “Hey!  Let’s go over there and see the fountain where Carrie washed dog doo off her shoe.”  I WILL return to Paris again, and I will definitely see those places.  The closest I got to any of them was while inside the Louvre.  I looked out a window and saw the bridge where Big told Carrie, “…you’re the one.”  (Sigh)  That was close enough.  This time. 

My view of the Ponte Des Art bridge

Big and Carrie on the bridge
Versailles
It’s worth a day trip to see the Palace of Versailles, the former French royal residence.  Wow.  Beautiful grounds.  Extraordinary buildings and décor.  So much history.  It’s interesting – Versailles was created to be a “country home” away from the big city.  Then they had to create a farm on the property to get away from the country home.  The Queen’s Hamlet and the immense gardens and fountains were my favorite part. 

Versailles front courtyard.  Massive!

Kerstin and me having fun in the Hall of Mirrors.


View down the Royal Drive, with Latona Fountain

Montmartre/Sacre Coeur
Montmartre is an artistic part of town that sits on a hill north of Paris’ city centre.  Our first stop was to tour the Sacre Coeur (The Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Paris) and go up into the tower for a spectacular view.  After our tour we grabbed a crepe at the market at Square Louise-Michel and sat on a bench people-watching and basking in the warmth of the sun before wandering through the narrow, cobblestone streets. 


Sacre Coeur



We meandered down Boulevard de Clichy to see the famed Moulin Rouge.  We didn’t catch a show but was fun to see the building. 


Moulin Rouge
From there we came across Montmartre Cemetery, which was fascinating and reminded me of cemeteries in New Orleans.  Everything is above ground.  It looked like a neighborhood complete with “house” numbers.  Really interesting.  One grave stood out and I learned about the Italian actress and singer, Dalida. 


Montmartre Cemetery

Stunning memorial to Dalida
Rodin
The Rodin museum is miniscule compared to the Louvre.  The original sculptures are housed inside, while larger replicas are outside in the lovely garden. 


The original Thinker
Food! 
While in Paris, we had to have crepes.  I had several variations – sweet and savory.  I had a wonderful Nutella crepe in a café along the Champs-Elysees.  One night we had fondue (us non-vegetarians had meat and potatoes along with bread).  I had a great pasta dish at Tribeca on Rue Cler.  My mission was to have boeuf bourguignon in Paris and I was successful.   We even found a great Chinese restaurant near our apartment.  We ate breakfast each morning at the apartment – what a spread!  Wonderful breads, fruit, jam, yogurt and avocados. 


Crepes!


We stopped at a cafe for some sweet treats and a hot chocolate

Breakfast at the apartment

Nutella crepes along the Champs-Elysees

Pasta at Tribeca

Boeuf bourguignon
Christmas Market
One of the best parts of traveling is finding things that are not on the list.  The Christmas market at Jardin des Tuileries was our best find of the trip.  We loved it so much we went twice.  The market was a feast for the eyes and the stomach.  Photos cannot do it justice.  As we walked through the market, we made mental notes of what we wanted to come back and eat.  Not enough euros and not enough room in the belly.  Brats, vats of potatoes and cheese, frites, hot pasta that they would ladle onto a wheel of cheese on its side to soak up the cheesy goodness, chocolate, pastries, nuts.  Along with the food, there were carnival rides and gifts, and some drinks as well, but I saved my money for the food (and a hat), opting for an enormous serving of cheesy potatoes with ham and onions, and cut up sausages.  We returned the night before we flew home but that night was very cold so we didn’t stay as long. 


Ferris wheel at the Christmas Market


Croustillons are like large donut holes with sugar


So much chocolate!


Cheesy potatoes with a brat

Airbnb
As I mentioned before the Airbnb was a great find.  The size suited us, with one bedroom and one pull-out sofa in the living area.  Kerstin’s two friends (another Kerstin and Natalie) stayed for the weekend so we had our own rooms for the rest of the stay.  There were a couple of funny occurrences.  One night as we played cards, we started hearing noises.  We stopped to listen, and realized people were having sex in another apartment.  We heard it one other night as well.  Thin walls! 

View from apartment
Parc des Buttes Chaumont
This public park was a few blocks from our apartment.  At 61 acres, it provided a great morning workout, with winding paths and hills.   I walked two mornings and came across a couple of groups - one was older people doing Tai Chi, another was Asian women doing some kind of line dance (that's the only way I can describe it.)  I wanted to join in both, but just observed as I walked by.  


One of the many paths in the Parc de Buttes Chaumont
Friends
I’ve known Kerstin for almost 20 years.  What fun it was to meet two of her lifelong friends.  They spoke English very well and we had lots of laughs during the weekend they were with us.  One evening back at the apartment we played Spot It, which is a matching card game.  After several rounds I decided to learn a new German word for each subsequent round.  (When you lay down a card that has a matching photo, you say the name of that item – pencil, car, etc.).  I learned baby bottle (babyflasche), lightning (blitz), car (auto), apple (apfel) and lips (lippen).    

Another time, as we walked through a train tunnel, they were all talking in German and Natalie turned to me and said something to me in German.  I smiled and nodded.  Then she burst out laughing, realizing what she'd done.  Apparently she was comfortable with me pretty quickly. 

As I look back on my Year of 50, it feels a bit extravagant.  Thankfully I had the vacation days and the means to make these trips happen.  Most importantly, I was able to share these experiences with my current (and new) friends.  That is the greatest blessing.  Here's to the next 50!