Ah, Paris!

After a much appreciated restful hiatus at my friends' home in Brussels, I caught the fast train to Paris and met up with some other dear friends - Eli & Paula, who I last saw three years prior when I visited them in Romania. It was as if no time had passed at all, and we quickly fell back into our comfortable banter, as if no time had passed at all.

A fine first impression - L'Opera

From my first few minutes, I was struck by the absolute beauty all around me.  There is a reason why so many people fall in love with Paris!  Like a true Northwesterner, I was also relieved to return to some familiar weather - mixed rain showers, a bit windy and overcast.  We had hired a flat in the L'Opera neighborhood, with the plan to have one night in Paris then hire a car to spend the next week exploring Brittany and Normandy - ending our time in France with another couple of days exploring the city. 

Paula poses with the fabulous red veto parked in the stairway below our flat

Our quick intro to Paris included a window-shopping walk with Paula to the Musee d'Orsay, which to our luck was open late and had discounted ticket price. Because of the late museum hours, we were able to take our time, soaking in all the little treasures we came across on the way.  We were just on the edge of being giddy, walking the streets of Paris and being delighted by window displays, graffiti or just the pure beauty of our surroundings. Just like in Iceland, I found myself at times overwehelmed with intense feelings of awe and appreciation of the moment and place that I was in. We were both pretty psyched to spot some of Invader's cool tilework graffiti along the way.

First walk and we spotted an Invader!!!

La Comédie Française

More fabulous window displays - eyeballs!

Musée d'Orsay

Paula and I stayed until the museum closed, then we walked over to the Left Bank and met Eli and his friend Benoit at a place aptly called Tennessee Bar. Eli & I both being TN natives, we had an even deeper appreciation for this quirky dive bar with a basement open mic.  A couple of drinks, and a lovely walk by the Seine brought us across an impromptu brass band jam under one of the bridges which we stopped by to check out, and as luck would have it - to perfect timing.  It started to pour rain, and so we felt quite lucky to find ourselves under a bridge with a brass band to keep us company!  A little dancing in the rain under our toes, and then we walked home in the rain abuzz from the spirit of this wonderful city and ready to start a new adventure the next morning.

Rainy evening stroll along the Seine - with a brass band jam happening in the tunnel!

After a six day road trip through Brittany and Normandy (which you can read about in the next post), we returned to Paris, this time staying in a flat in Montmartre.  What we found was another lovely neighborhood to explore on foot - with stunning views of the city.  I had no idea Paris was so big until we took in the view from Sacre Coeur.  I especially enjoyed people watching at this spot (and taking sly photos of people taking selfies).

Watching people take selfies at Sacre Coeur

Nice stroll through the neighborhood.

Happy hour in Montmartre

For such a big city, Paris really was quite easy to navigate and seemed like a very livable city to me.  Sure, there are ALOT of people (and many, many tourists), but the city has such charm, with each arrondissement having its own distinct personality.  

Metro stop near the Moulin Rouge

I spent my last day in France exploring the city by Metro and walking, ending up the day at Cinematheque Francaise, where an old Appalshop colleague now works.  I was amused to find that the current exhibit was on Portlander Gus Van Sant and found it to be quite interesting.  And I was really impressed with their collection of immaculately restored early film cameras and equipment.  The best part came after - catching up with an old friend over wine and classic French fare at a local restaurant. It never fails to delight me how easy it is to reconnect with old friends.  Ten years isn't really that much time when you get down to it... This is especially the case when you find yourself drinking wine and talking late into the night in a Paris cafe.

Another Invader spotting!

Some places you check off your list, but Paris is not one of these.  It is a city that you need to spend time with, and I hope to return to again and again. Luckily, I have a friend here who I have promised to visit again soon!