An American in Paris (part deux)

After our late night of celebrating, Ardena and I slept in past the breakfast hours at the hostel. We decided to go for brunch in a quieter neighborhood of the 17th district. As it turns out, brunch is only offered on Saturday and Sunday, but we happened to find this quaint little bar/coffee shop that was serving a typical French breakfast of bread and jam, alongside fresh-squeezed orange juice and espresso with cinnamon sticks. The place had lots of character with mismatching bar stools and tables, a hodgepodge of art, and interesting local people which gathered there to socialize and sip coffee.

We passed through the Luxembourg Gardens again and walked through the carnival there. Riding on the giant pink swing offered some pretty incredible views of Paris and allowed me to feel like a little kid again. Afterwards, we rented bikes and rode them along the Seine, past the Notre Dame, and to a really eclectic shopping area. It's been at least three years since I've ridden a bike, so trying to avoid people and cars on the busy streets and sidewalks of Paris was a terrifying thrill. But it was so much fun and certainly an adventurous way to see the city.

"I love Paris in the summer, when it sizzles." -Cole Porter

We window shopped for a couple of hours and shared a quiche, salad, and gazpacho for dinner. Afterward we took the metro to La Tour Eiffel in hopes to view the sunset from the top. Unfortunately, the lines were miles long. Rather than spending five hours of our short weekend waiting in line, we plopped down in the grass of the Champ de Mars, people watched, and bartered down a bottle of rosé from 15 euros to five. Back in the Latin Quarter, I satisfied my sweet tooth with a nutella and banana crepe and then we went out for drinks with our new Brazilian friends. Two beers and 16 euros later, I headed back to the hostel to crash for the night on my rickety bunk.

Saturday morning we woke to a rainy day in Paris. After eating breakfast at the hostel, we took the metro to the Marche aux Puces Saint-Ouen, one of the largest markets in Paris. There were lots of antique shops, vintage clothing, and specialty stores. The prices weren't exactly what I would consider flea market prices, but it was still fun to look around at all the pretty little objects that each stall had on display. I could have spent an entire day at this market.

Since the weather was less than ideal, we saved all of our indoor activities for Saturday. We went to the Musée du Louvre, the largest art museum I have ever seen and the most visited one in the world. The museum is in a former palace, which is like a work of art in itself. Inside there are more collections than a person could see in one day. I found the museum to be completely overwhelming and overcrowded.

But we couldn't leave without paying the Mona Lisa a visit. There was probably a hundred people in the room trying to crowd around one small portrait of a smiling woman. I would have had to swim through a sea of tourists and flashing cameras to try and get a closer look at the painting. It wasn't worth it to me. I still do not understand all the hype about this simple portrait. I recognize that Da Vinci was a brilliant man in all domains, and I may sound like a snob for saying it, but I think the Mona Lisa is a tad overrated. There are hundreds of other pieces in the Louvre which arguably deserve equal attention. Exhausted from dodging hordes of people and walking for kilometers, Ardena and I had a picnic of bread, cheese, fruit and cookies on a bench in the same room as the Mona Lisa.

Next we went to the Musée d'Orsay which features art from my favorite Impressionist artists--Renoir, Monet, and Degas. The museum is housed in a gorgeous 19th century railway station with many windows that let in a lot of natural light. The museum layout is smart and categorized by artist, and it was far less busy than the Louvre. I enjoyed being able to examine the art up close and in an unhurried manner.

In the evening we took shelter from the rain by ducking into the Shakespeare and Company bookstore. It was definitely one of the coolest bookshops I ever been in and a great place to find books in English. Afterwards we went to see Woody Allen's latest film, Midnight in Paris. It was fun to count all the places I had seen earlier that day which were featured in the film. The movie captures the exuberance of 1920s Paris and all the artists which made the city their playground. When we left the cinema, it was midnight in Paris and raining. We ended the night with a glass of Sauvignon blanc and live music at a little bar called Moliére.

"If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast."  -Ernest Hemingway

"You can't escape the past in Paris, and yet what's so wonderful about it is that the past and present intermingle so intangibly that it doesn't seem to burden." -Allen Ginsberg

afterwards the tourist wearing the beret in the background, picked up a guitar and started playing with the band

macaroons, pastries, and Kusmi tea :)

Ardena and I had fun imagining what our lives would be like living in one of these dreamy Parisian apartments

It's impossible not to fall for the romance of the city.

breakfast on my last morning in Paris: cafe eclair and an espresso. Yum!

My time in Paris was short but sweet. I now understand why it is the number one travel destination in the world. The city has so much to offer. There were many things I did not have time to see during my weekend visit, but all the more reason to return one day. And hopefully next time I'm in Paris I won't be a broke college student with an unpaid internship, so that I will be able to experience other things like shopping on Champs-Élysées or sampling fine French cuisine instead of feeling like Aladdin for stealing extra pieces of baguette from the hostel breakfast to save for lunch. I had a fabulous time in the City of Light-- experiencing the French culture, catching up with a close friend (check out her adorable blog), making new friends, and enjoying all things Parisian. Until next time...Au revoir Paris!

"Oh, but Paris isn't for changing planes, it's for changing your outlook! For throwing open the windows and letting in... letting in la vie en rose." -Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina (1954)