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| The beautiful Fall colors in France in the Tuileries |
Paris originally gets its name as the city of lights because
it was the birthplace of the Age of Enlightenment and was revered as one of the
greatest centers of education and ideas.
Though the fact the city was the first in Europe to adopt street
lighting may have contributed to the factor, its name was born upon the success
of some of its greatest thinkers and philosophers such as Voltaire and Jean-Jacques
Rousseau. So, by the book the quote takes on a more figurative translation,
though I personally enjoyed seeing Paris as “the city of lights” for its more illuminescent
qualities. From the sparkling
Eiffel Tower that stood proudly against the night sky to the carousels
scattered at every corner lazily lighting up children’s parks and tourist
destinations, Paris definitely dazzled its way right into my heart.
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| Living up to its name, La Ville de l'amour |
Outside of Paris being simply La Ville-Lumière, Paris has also been quite popularly noted as La Ville de l'amour, or as you might have already guessed, the city of
love. And once you visit the city,
you really need no explanation why if you just take a look around. Even getting onto the plane Jessica and
I noticed several honeymoon couples.
Either hand in hand, a head resting on a shoulder, or a quiet smile
acknowledging the window of shared experiences, Paris earned its nickname for
me right away. And once arriving
in the city of love, my blurred understanding of the name became crystal clear,
as the atmospheric existence almost seemed to beckon romance. From lovers on
picnic benches melting in eachothers arms to a passionate midnight kiss at the
base of the glistening Eiffel Tower, its impossible to not be intrigued by the
romance waiting at every street corner.
And if you need more reasons to call Paris La Ville de l'amour, bring somebody special for yourself so you can
understand first hand just exactly what they mean. From the three kisses it
takes two lovers as they throw the key into the Seine River from the padlock
that they just securely latched on the bridge of the Pont des Arts to the Bateaux-Mouches gently glistening against the softly curving Seine
River, there is not a moment you would be able to escape without experiencing
some sort of blissful romance. And one more thing… let us not forget French,
accurately known as the language of love, definitely sounds sweet, especially
against the lips of a young man who you strike up conversation with at the base
of the Eiffel tower. But that’s
another story, so we can save that for another time.
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| A little girl finds joy in the simple things in life, like giant bubbles |
But outside of this, you have to make sure to also pay
attention to all the other little things.
From the smiles to the eager existence of the locals hoping to strike up
conversation, to the calming patience of the metro riders, to the lingering
mystery in the cold evening air, it was a collage of small instances that
defined my overall experience.
Just walking down the street, and noticing the symmetry everywhere was
spectacular in and of itself. The
precision and the perfection noted from the perfectly straight alignment of
trees of the Tuilerie Gardens to the
eight streets perfectly leading out from the Arc de Triomphe, everywhere I felt like I was wandering a labyrinth
that had been perfectly designed and planned out.
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| A Bateaux-Mouches passes by the Cathedral of Notre Dame |
But let us not forget that the design of the city didn’t
happen by accident, it was a complete reflection of the monarchy that ruled
over France since the 16th century. In the 3-hour walking tour that Jessica and I took around
Paris during our first day, I really got a true sense of the history that built
this amazing city, and the stories behind each and every monument that we
passed by. From the Arc de
Triomphe, commissioned by the Emperor
Napoleon to honor the victims of the Napoleonic wars to the 3,300 year old Egyptian
Obelisk brought by Napoleon in the year of 1860 in the hope to put France at
ease after the troubled Revolution era, I really was able to get to know the
city on an entirely new level.
The highlights of the tour though was definitely Cathedral of Notre
Dame, the best example of Gothic Architecture that took 200 years to build and
the snippets of history our guide shared about King Henry IV. King Henry IV was
probably the most hated of the rulers of France, most likely because he was
trying to rule with a Protestant crown where 80 percent of the population was
Catholic. He was hated so much,
there were 27 attempts to kill him, and with only the last one only being
successful. After he was stabbed
in the stomach by a fanatical Catholic, François Ravaillac, the last words he
muttered were, “Is that all you can do?” which prompted Ravaillac to stab the king in the heart, promptly
ending his life.
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| The Pont des Arts leading up to the French Institute |
We also passed by a number of the 150 museums that reside in
the city, each of them built with beautiful architecture and design. L’Institut de France, or, the French Institute, was one place though that
especially stood out to me. In the
institute there are five academies, the oldest being the French academy
consisting of 40 members known as immortals, each of whom stake their place in
the institute until the can be replaced only after their death (hence the name,
immortals). It is these people
that protect the French language, and are charged with the weight of producing
the language’s official dictionary.
Whenever a new English word is pronounced, the congregation carefully
chooses a French synonym or; for a word such as iPod, they choose whether it
shall be masculine or feminine. I
thought it was interesting when they tried to come up with a word for “weekend”
in French because there were no French synonyms. So they came up with the word “vacancielle,”
though none of the French adopted the word and simply continued to just use the
word “weekend”.
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| Love padlocks covering every inch of the Pont des Arts |
And as I said earlier, we passed over the Pont
des Arts, which is covered in an extreme amount of “love
padlocks”. The tradition is to
latch the lock on the bridge kiss three times, then throw the key into the
Seine river, sealing the couple’s everlasting love. The tradition became hugely popular after the locations
debut in final episode of Sex and the City. What I found most entertaining though was the combination
locks that I found sporadically latched onto parts of the bridge. The idea just didn’t completely make
sense if there was not key to throw in the river … I could just imagine someone
returning in rage or sorrow undoing the lock and throwing that instead of a key
into the river.
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| Inside the Louvre, beneath one of the 5 pyramids |
During our tour, we also passed by the Louvre, which was
originally part of a fortress wall that protected the city from invasions. King Louis XIV actually lived there,
until he moved to Versailles a short time later. It is home a mixture of architecture and 35,000 pieces of
art. In the courtyard of the
Louvre there are 5 pyramids, with the 5th one being underground
which is at the center of the underground shopping mall just west of the
Louvre. I honestly didn’t realize
how utterly gigantic the Louvre was until Jessica and I wandered the
museum/gallery for a few hours the day before we left. There are 4 flours in total, and you
can literally get lost trying to find your place from one area to another. It was definitely put together
beautifully though, with each section dedicated to a certain culture or a part
of history. My favorite was
definitely the Napoleon Apartments, which were elaborately adorned with the
decorations, and furniture that defined the livelihood of Napoleon Bonaparte’s
lavish life while he lived there for several years.
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| The decadence of the Dining Room in Napoleon's Apartments |
During our free time Jessica and I had fun exploring the
city and taking the maze of metros that basically curved and etched their way
throughout the entire city. Though
they were pretty easy to figure out, I wasn’t the best navigator so I
definitely kept my collection of maps near me at all times. We discovered the Christmas markets
that they set up along the Champs-Elysées, so we perused through them snacking on warm Nutella
crepes and the occasional perfectly crisp croissant (yes, French croissants do
deserve their fame). Though I
wanted to try frog legs and the famous French Onion Soup, we ran out of evening
meals to spare for such suppers.
But one day I got to try the famous bread with the melted cheese and egg
on top made complete with spinach on the side. It was quite delicious, though I much preferred the sweets
that I tried over the course of our three days. Like I said, the crescents were indeed delicious, so much so
that sense then I haven’t had the appetite to snack on another one back here in
Italy.
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| The Eiffel Tower standing proud |
With one of our free afternoons we decided to stake out and
look for the Eiffel tower, which proved almost to be slightly difficult until
we saw it proudly peaking behind the thick curtain of fog that loomed in the
city that afternoon. So without
really looking at our map, we just walked and walked until there we were, right
at the base of the Eiffel Tower.
And oh man, there was just no words to describe the height and size of
that magnificent structure. I
honestly hadn’t realized how gigantic it truly was, not only height, but also
the width of each of the legs that held it up, which hosted mazes of stairs,
elevators, and even restaurants.
Though we really wanted to climb it, the stairs closed when we arrived,
and the view wouldn’t have been great with the thick layer of fog.
The tower was truly magical how it lit up the night sky the
way it did, and about every hour the entire thing would literally glitter, with
the 20,000 light bulbs sporadically being turned on an off. Actually, during one of the instances
it occurred, I was standing at the base, just admiring how it lit up the night
sky, until suddenly, at once, the entire tower began to sparkle. And in that moment, the entire crowd
softly gasped in awe, just smiling in amazement at the magic of the whole
experience. I couldn’t help but to
be filled with such a warmth and happiness in that moment, just taking in all
the sights and sounds of that cold November evening. From the tower to the twinkling eyes of the passersby, the
smell of warm crepes and children bundled in mittens and fur, everything about
that evening was priceless.
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| In Versailles, with the Grand Canal behind me |
Though Jessica and I only were able to stay in Paris for a
period of 3 short days, I was determined to go the Versailles, because I just
couldn’t imagine anything better than being able to see with my very own eyes
one of the most beautiful palaces and gardens in the entire world. So on Sunday, I went with the same tour
group, Sandeman, and caught a train with
the group to Versailles. It only
took about a half hour to get there, but the trip lasted all day, though I
enjoyed every moment. Our tour
guide took us around the gardens, where she explained to us the history of
Versailles, from its first mentioning in the 1600s as the “land of the marshes”
to the end King Louis the XVI reign when Versailles was turned over to the
Radical Revolutionaries.
Versailles was originally founded by Louis XIII who used the
grounds mostly for hunting purposes.
It wasn’t until the reign of Louis XIV though that Versailles was
expanded and became what it is today.
And the funny thing is, Louis the XIV in the beginning didn’t even
particularly like Versailles, but after realizing his financial minister had an
amazing garden, the Vaux-le-Vicomte, he
couldn’t stand the thought of his Financial Minster outdoing him in such a
way. So he recruited the same
design team of the Vaux-le-Vicomte
and ordered a garden 100 times the size.
From there it expanded into one of the most grand and beautiful gardens
in all of the world, and still today it stands exceptionally apart as a perfect
example of a French garden.
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| Admiring the symmetry in one of the the courtyard of Versailles |
Throughout our tour, our guide told us the history of Louis
XIV, who ruled for the longest time in the history of European monarchy, for a
total of 72 years. The garden
literally came to life through the stories of his reign to the symbolism behind
each fountain we passed. The
garden was a direct reflection of his rule and accurately illustrated the idea
of his complete control over even nature itself. In fact, the king would have samples of trees taken to him,
which would help him decide whether or not he wanted that specific specie of
tree in his garden. But he didn’t
want just any tree, he actually had the man go dig out the exact tree he
clipped the sample from and bring it to Versailles where he would have it
replanted. In all there are 2500
tree species and is today known as the perfect epitome of a French garden… (for
if things were to go out of order, it could be none other than that of an
English garden)…
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| Wishing for an eternity to get lost in the gardens of Versailles |
The garden really was simply amazing because it was just so
gigantic. When we first entered
through the palace gates, we got a view of the garden, which literally expanded
as far as my eyes could reach.
Leading down from the steps was the Grand Canal. The colors of the trees were literally
breathtaking, from hues of burnt orange to lime and emerald greens. Along the pathways there are literally
labyrinths of trees and hidden pathways where you can wander or stroll through
and take in all the scents and beauty of this one of a kind garden. Though a day seems like a lot of time,
it literally flew by in Versailles, and before I knew it, it was already
getting dark. The garden though
was so lovely and I definitely could imagine myself coming back and enjoying it
perhaps in the summertime when they have fountain shows and the colors are most
alive and vibrant. Of course, the
sun shining wouldn’t be too bad of a thing to add to the mix either.
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| The Queen's bedroom in the Palace |
But I took it for what it was, and I decided to peruse the
palace before they closed and before I had to catch the train back to
Paris. I met a girl from Australia
during the garden tour so we decided to check out the palace together (Did I
mention she actually got to see Steve Irwin, The Crocodile Hunter when she was
little… who just so happened to be my biggest idol all through elementary
school?! … Just wanted to throw
that out there). The palace was quite wonderful, though we only got to see a
few rooms because they closed it only about a ½ hour after we arrived. The highlights though were the King’s
bedroom and the Queen’s bedroom and the gold that seemed to literally cover
everything from the small alarm clock to the draperies. I couldn’t imagine trying to fall
asleep in a room so lavish it literally screamed royalty. It was sad to realize though what kind
of life these people were living while 98 percent of the population was poor
and miserable with their children starving to death. But obviously, these are instances of the past and what is
left now simply stands as a truly enlightening and invariably interesting
emblem of the past.
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| Paris earned its name <3 |
Obviously, my experience in Paris and Versailles was quite
magical to say the least, and the city literally just drew me in such a way, I
had completely unexpected it. I
thought that three days would be a decent amount of time to see the sights and
experience Parisian culture, but I didn’t realize how much I had been wrong. From the Louvre to the innumerable
amount of museums down every street, to the shopping, and the culture that
exists everywhere within reach, its just a place I feel you’d never feel like
your ready to leave. But
unfortunately, all good stories come to an end (… or do they?)… so I had to
pack up my bags and Tuesday morning Jessica and I bid our hostel goodbye early
in the morning to catch a plane back to Rome. It was a difficult goodbye, but there is a part of me that
almost knows I will some day have to return to this beautiful city, which
definitely earned its name as the city of lights and most definitely, the city
of love.
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