5.3.2014
First time indulgence in Paris!
Several months of excitement about a first time visit to Paris... Finally I am there, I have arrived... For the last three months, I have been watching movies based on revolutionary era French literary work, reading books produced during or a bit before or after the same era, reading about the literary folks of the last several centuries from France and the USA, who called Paris home for at least some period of time, listening to Pimsler's French audiobooks to learn just a bit of the language, and finally reading a bit of travel books as well. Although, upon my arrival on the Ile de Cite/Island of the City, where Paris was originally established as a small village I felt as if I had known this city for a long time with all the reading that I did, seeing, feeling, touching, and beginning to absorb the very things I had learned about is a totally different experience. Without coming to face to face with all that the history rewarded Paris with, or perhaps rather she deserved through hard work of history-making, it is impossible to say "I know this city".
Paris from sacre cour in Monmatre
With the first day's experience in this city, I feel as if I have started taking tiny baby steps toward hopefully being able to say "I have learned a little bit about Paris..." However, I will soon discover that the more I learn about her in the next week, the more I will understand there is so much more to be learned. What I will learn will only tell me how much more there is that I don't know, perhaps that will be the reason at the end of the week I will leave this city of legend with ambivalent feelings of much closeness as well as a bit of apprehensive distance, feelings of much amazement as well as slight indifference, feelings of identification as well as a little alienation, on and on and on. Who knows perhaps what Paris will come to mean for me will be an ongoing process to unfold over time with assessing what it will give to me in the next 7 days over the next months and years perhaps with recurrent visits. Who knows...
Eiffel tower, to me, an overrated tourist destination
Paris airport turns out to be an easy and friendly place lacking the commercial arrogance of some other metropolis airports like London, New York City, Berlin, even Istanbul. Staff is extremely friendly, thanks to my "Par le vouz Englais?", we switch to English very quickly and I obtain answers to all my initial questions without wasting staff's precious time. Hence, in 15 minutes I am on RER B train on my way to the heart of the city. When I surface from the underground world within 35 minutes into what I think would be the vicinity of Notre Dame, not being fully oriented yet, I take the wrong turn and find myself on the Ile de Cite facing Notre Dame with all her grandeur!
Notre dame at sunrise
I am almost frozen in time and space with amazement. I expected it to be huge of course, but nothing of this nature. Its towers are rising to the sky almost endlessly. My social conscience automatically throws at me a question "I wonder how many poor Parisians died in building this wonder." I will discover soon that indeed thousands and thousands of them did. Part of me wants to stay there and just stare at Notre Dame to take in every single detail on her facade, on her towers, over her doorways... But part of me tells me, if I drop off my luggage at my hotel, which should be very nearby, I can do it much more easily. I listen to the practical half of my brain and consult my "go maps" app, which my dear friend Greg uploaded on my phone just before leaving home in Iowa City, and it works!! I can even see my location on the map, and voila... I am at my hotel in no time, Hotel Esmeralda, built in 1600s, will be my home in the heart of Paris for 8 nights.
Medieval building at latin quarter right around our hotel
Francisco is at the desk, the gentleman I communicated with for the last several months. He is a soft spoken, medium sized, spectacled, dark skinned gentleman, who happens to be from Peru originally, first generation immigrant, just like I; he from the new world to the old, I from the old world to the new. Greg later on will learn that he immigrated in 1978 and a friend of his engaged him in this hotel business. He and Greg especially will hold some interesting, intellectual conversations. He carries my luggage all the way up to the third floor while puts me on duty to be the receptionist for a while, how sweet. My room is small, but manageable, clean, well aerated, and warm when I need it be. Once I dump all my weight in the room and arrange what minimal I need to take with me, I find myself out in open air "en plein air" as French impressionists would say.
Artist in painting Eiffel Tower en plein air
I am surprised to see that the lines for entrance to special sightseeing places my travel book mention are indeed prohibitive!!! From the crowd in front of Notre Dame, I can tell I will easily have to wait for two hours if I want to climb up the towers this afternoon. I decide not to lose those special hours: I tour all around Notre Dame in half an hour and adore its size, external details, beautiful facade and gates and gardens as a starter. I want to get a sense of the place to start with and I know that is possible only by walking a city. I am now heading toward the right bank. In order to do that, I have to cross the bridge from Latin Quarter onto the city island (Ile de cite).
Saint Chapel Cathedral on Ile de Cite
Saint Chapelle alongside the Justice Palace is another extraordinary historical monument for Parisians. However the lines again are prohibitive. I walk along the upper shore of the island until I reach its westernmost tip. Seine through Paris is slightly reminiscent of Amsterdam and her canals. Eventually, seeing that there are many tour boats where I am right now, I decide to take a river tour to see from afar what I will see closer-up in the next 6-7 days. It turns out to be a very good idea. My desire to visit The Louvre and Muse D'Orsay grows more intense. I will definitely visit Notre Dame's inside and her tower and would like to take leisurely walks along the right and left banks to the east of my hotel. I will try to visit Eiffel, too, however, if I can't squeeze it in, I won't worry much. This decision becomes more concrete once I spend much more time around Eiffel during the next four days of my conference. The most exhausting looking crowds are around Eiffel, which will definitely deter me from even trying to climb up the tower.
Seine River cuts through Paris along left and right banks
Once the tour is over, I start looking for a place to eat some of the exceptional French food, which I need to find out for myself since French dishes I have had in the USA haven't necessarily impressed me that much other than their butter load and creamy flavors. I start walking toward Sorbonne having reviewed that some of the most well known cafes of Paris are in that direction. First I walk into Le Cafe de Flore; too crowded, service poor, after 20 minutes of nobody asking me even whether I want any water or not, I decide to leave. Cafe Les Deux Magots, right around the corner is better. It is not as cramped, not as crowded, and service is much better. Since I won't be able to eat both a main dish and a dessert, I choose my chance for dessert along with mint tea with lemon. Tea arrives right away followed in a bit with an enthusiastic female waitress bringing me a tray of a dozen kind of desserts just like they would bring meze platters in Turkey. I am pleasantly surprised, I choose a milles feuille dessert, which turns out to be very fresh, clearly made from scratch and delicious, but soon the cream in it, makes my stomach turn a bit. I should have known better. Luckily, mint tea counterbalances the cream and soon I feel fine. By the way, tea is more expensive than wine in Paris!
The two magots of cafe de deux magots
A couple sitting next to me seems interesting. They both seem to be close to retirement age. An interesting conversation goes on between the couple and the waiter. The couple is speaking a language that sounds like Slavic. The waiter addresses the woman in that language. She responds to the waiter in French. The husband makes a comment in English. I smile to myself thinking globalization has some very positive side effects that the "globalizers" didn't plan at all. The man's English is so clear, I ask them whether they are from the USA or not. I am so pleasantly surprised one more time that they are from Portugal and out of all places live in O Porto, my favorite Portugese city. We start chatting. I learn that he was a chemical engineer, which took him to England when he was younger. His wife was born in Portugal and her family moved her to Brazil, from where she returned to her home country at 18 years of age. They have children from previous relationships but not together. We discuss politics a bit, too. It looks like we definitely could become friends. we both wish each other "bon vacciones".
My friends from Portugal accompanying me to monmartre
I start walking toward Sorbonne. Now that I am this close, I probably should see it. I hit a majestic building, considering it must be Sorbonne. However at the end of the block it turns out that actually I had brought myself to Jardin du Luxembourg. As a result, due to getting lost one more time, I get to see how this place is one of the Central Parks of Paris. As I exit it on the east side, I see very large size and beautiful photographs of landscape anywhere from sunsets, sunrises to stark deserts, some depicting simply the beauty of our nature, but some showing how harmful war remnants can be on our environment. I can't help thinking "You can't plan too much in Paris: You never know how she will surprise you with her convoluted streets or what kinds of art and beauty she will throw on your path that will hold you back from doing what you had planed.
Jardin de Luxemborg
I am so glad, I did allow Paris surprise me and I am glad to have followed her leads. I am back to my hotel room with an unbearable jet lag but with a very sweet welcoming taste in my entire existence from finally having come to you and facing you Paris. I have a feeling I will like you.
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