Day 7 Part 1: The Train Station and Cecile's Apartment

loved the detail above her fireplace

Sunday, 25th June 2017

Cecile's couch where I slept

Here I am sitting on the train watching this beautiful countryside lush with gardens and animals, and villages with so many houses of earthy yellow walls and clay tiled roofs that it’s hard to tell if it’s 2017 or 1817. Sometimes it does feel as if I’ve gone to live in the past in France. It’s hard not to with all the ancient handcrafted architecture. Modern buildings don’t have the embellishments of the past, and I wonder when did we stop appreciating craftsmanship and let industrialization take precedence over beauty and art?

            In the train station a man played a piano right in the middle of all the people with their luggage waiting for their trains. As I walked past the platform entrances, and listened to this music from another age, I could see the men in top hats and women in swishing dresses and parasols walking up and down the aisles to find their trains.

the toilet room: every place I stayed the toilet was in a separate room of its own

            The station was easy to navigate and I had no issues finding my platform. Many thanks to Cecile for insisting I take the bus to get there. I had intended on taking the metro because I didn’t want to risk getting lost on the way and missing my train. (I think the experience getting to Versailles has traumatized me a bit, I never want to have that feeling again). The problem with the Metro is there’s a lot of stairs, and it would have taken me a long time to lift my big suitcase step by step in and out of the metro stations. This morning Cecile surprised me saying she had found a bus route that would take me straight to Gare de Lyon without any transfers. Since there was no time for me to study the map, she walked me to the bus station. I felt like a child, but a very grateful child, as I would not have to lift my baggage on stairs.

tiny tiny kitchen

            I’ve just realized that I never wrote about Cecile. She is my age and is one of the editors of a video game magazine. Like Eleonore, she also went to school here in France for journalism. She would like to write someday as well, and she has some writers in her family. Her grandfather wrote about his experience as a POW in WWI, and her father wrote about his 2 years spent serving in the French military. She edited these books for her family, and they had them bound and printed. Cecile is also not from Paris, but grew up in a large house. Large compared to the tiny apartments in Paris. I think the kitchen of Cecile’s apartment was like 6ft x 4ft. I didn’t use a tape measure, but just imagine, tiny tiny tiny. 

Day 6: Le Picoute

Saturday, 24th June 2017

My feet, ooooh my feet. I did not know feet could hurt like this. I decided to stay put and get a day of rest. This might offend some people that I didn’t go anywhere, but I had seen all the things that were on the top of my list to see in Paris, and although there were things I would have liked to do, such as actually take the tour of Les Invalides, or go to Monet’s Giverny garden, or try again to go the temple, which I acutally did attempt, but the Metro line that goes directly there was closed on Saturday for construction, and it would have taken me 2 hours to get there by a different route, and different train, and many more transfers, and I just didn’t relish the idea of possibly getting lost again. I know, I’m a wimp, but anyways, I couldn’t have written all this stuff down if I’d gone, and for me, getting a day to sleep in, relax and write as much as I want without distraction or interruption is heaven, and I didn’t want to the spend the day any other way.

            So, that morning I walked downstairs, bought some nectarines from the Franprix and came back upstairs to write. I wrote all day, but I started to get hungry, and I figured since I hadn’t eaten at an actual sit down restaurant yet, that would be a good way to end the trip. I made a reservation at a place nearby called the Picoute and walked over at 7pm. I decided to get something I wasn’t used to, although the risotto looked really good, I wanted to try something different. I had White Sea Bass. It’s hard to describe, I’m not sure if maybe the fish was pickled or something, but it was served cold, and it didn’t flake like a cooked fish, and yet, I could tell it was cooked, but I had to cut through it with a knife, and yet, in my mouth it was very soft, not chewy. It had a wonderful citrus flavor, topped with purple onions and cilantro. With it, there was this eggplant that was pulverized, but with whole pieces of the skin and supposedly there was caviar in it, but I couldn’t see or taste the caviar. A little forkful of this with the White Sea Bass was very good. It also came with a fried patty of mashed potatoes and onions. It was very good as well, but hard to describe as it wasn’t as foreign to me as everything else.

            I left with my belly full and went home to pack for the train journey to Grenoble on Sunday.

Day 5 Part 2: Monmartre again because it's worth seeing twice

Friday, 23rd June 2017 

Right in front of the Chateau I hopped on the Metro to go to Monmartre, which I had been wanting to explore more fully. I also wanted to get a crepe there, since the one I got at the concert wasn’t that good.

            I found a crêperie quickly as there are many in the area. This place is also swarming with tourists, and was very crowded, but I came during the slow time, when restaurants are usually closed for lunch, but since this was such a touristy place most the restaurants were still open. It was nice having the restaurant to myself while crowds of people walked by outside. I ordered their specialty, ham mozzarella cheese, mushrooms, tomato sauce, and egg. It was ok, and probably more than ok because I was very hungry, but it tasted like pizza, which was a bit disappointing. I don’t think pizza when I think crepe.

The best part about it was that the chef was sitting at a table having a cigarette, and the waiter started yelling at him for not helping to serve people outside, and sitting down while he was doing all the work. It was a full on man tantrum. I’ve never seen anyone get that mad in public before. I have to say it was the greatest entertainment one could ask for with a crepe.

            I booked another walking tour for 6pm that night, so while I waited I walked around Monmartre and looked at all the shops. I tried to avoid the touristy shops, as they all had the same thing anyways, but I found a nice jewelry shop, and a handmade clothing store with lots of linens and dresses. There were also many cute patisseries and glacé shops.

            The walking tour met in front of Starbucks and the Moulin Rouge (by the way there are so many Starbucks in France, and 2 in Monmartre). Our guide was a quirky Irish guy with more of an American accent than Irish. His mother is Irish and his father is American, but he traveled to France once and never left. He’s been giving tours for 2 years now. We got to learn the history of the Moulin Rouge, which was interesting. Originally ladies only kicked high enough to show their ankles. Then this lady, the star of the show L- started kicking higher, showing her knees, until finally she said to hell with it, I’m going to kick as high as I can. She kicked a man’s top hat off and caught it in her hand. She is essentially the inventor of the can-can. Well then, she started cutting holes in her tights and underwear. Then, everybody else did. They actually had to create a law that made it illegal to wear underwear with pantyhose that were cut. So every night before the girls would perform, someone from the police was sent to every show to check the girls beforehand to make sure they didn’t have any holes in their stockings and underwear.

Inside the creperie

            We stopped outside the house of Pablo Picasso, and got to hear all about his life, which was really sad. He was a drunk, and he used his mouth to clean his paintbrushes, so he probably had lead poisoning as well as some mental issues, maybe schizophrenia, bi-polar etc. He got a girl pregnant and left her which is when he came to Monmartre because his brother lived there, and he was basically a freeloader for many years. He also didn’t start painting until he was 27 years old. Up until then he had only sketched, but he was fired from his job as an art dealer because he would yell at customers and basically had bad behavior all around. So he decided he ought to try painting himself. He painted while he lived in Monmartre with his brother, but he suffered from severe headaches and he finally checked himself into an asylum and it was there he had his most productive period. He lived there for a few years. There is a theory that he cut off part of his ear to try and distract from the pain of the headaches. Though, I don’t remember why he sent that piece of his ear to a woman. When he left asylum he began to go downhill once again, and finally a year or two later he tried to kill himself by going into a field and shooting himself in the chest. He missed his heart but the bullet did not go all the way through him. Someone found him, and he died 27 hours later in the arms of his brother.

            Next we walked past some men in a little gated park playing piccoult a game with a ball where you try to throw it as close to this other wooden ball without actually hitting it. It was really cute to see all these local neighborhood people gathered together, and all these old men involved in their game. Inside the park is a statue of St. Denis who was martyred and said to have picked up his head after it was cut off and carried it about 10 steps then asked to be buried in that spot, which is now the Sacre Coeur Cathedral. Funny story, the people who killed him were pagans. It was illegal to be Christian. The pagans thought Christians were cannibals, incestuous, and child murderers. All one big misunderstanding. You see, Christians invited people to come eat the body and drink the blood of this guy name Jesus=cannibalism. Then they keep marrying people who referred to each other as brother and sister, taken literally the pagans thought this was incest. And lastly, the pagans witness Christians fully submerging children in water for baptism. I guess the pagans didn’t stick around long enough to see the kids get pulled out of the water.

Vineyard in Monmartre

            I’m skipping a lot of parts, like the street art of Mystique, a singer who lived there De Nilas, and a writer who wrote about a man who could walk through walls. But I figure I’m only going to write the most interesting parts.

pub that famous artists used to hang out at

            Next we get the La Maison Rose. I was so excited about this part, because I had walked past this house already and wondered if there was a story behind it. Well, yes there is, though it’s probably a joke and not really true. A woman painter lived there, she would pose for other painters as well, and was kind of a promiscuous model. She fell pregnant and didn’t know who the father was. She approached Renoir and told him he was the father. Renoir said he’s not my kid, the coloring is all wrong. So then she approached Degas and told him he was the father, and he said it’s not my kid, the perspective is all wrong. So she goes back to La Maison Rose to have a drink and a man asks her what’s wrong. She tells him she has no father for her son, and he’s going to have a rough life, and her son has no last name, and he’s going to be mocked all his life, and she’s a terrible mother etc. So the man, who is also a painter says she can give her son his name. She asks him why he is doing this extremely kind thing, and he says it will bring him connections so that he can have his paintings hung beside a Renoir and Degas. And so it was. Now the son got addicted to absinth when he was 12, and he also turned out to be a painter. His mother got him weaned off the absinth and bribed him to paint with wine. If he painted a good painting she’d let him have a drink.

Inside the Sacre Coeur

            Next stop was the last vineyard in Monmartre. It was turned into a vineyard because that’s what it was anciently, and the locals couldn’t bear to have an apartment building go up in its place, but since it’s in the middle of a city with tons of pollution its terrible wine, our guide says. He’s tried the rose and the blanche, and both awful. But it is rare, because it’s such a tiny vineyard they only make 1000 bottles per year, in a cellar under city hall, and all the profits go to charity.

            Last stop was the Sacre Coeur where we learned it is built of travertine stone, and that’s all I remember about that part. Oh, wait, and St. Denis died there, and the locals donated money to have it built because some bad things happened (I can’t remember what bad things) but the locals thought maybe they weren’t being religious enough, and they had turned their backs on God, so they decided to build a Cathedral on the highest hill in Monmartre.

Band playing outside the cathedral

            I finally went inside the Sacre Coeur this time since it wasn’t as crowded anymore. There’s these machines all around where you can put money in to have a special touristy coin made. And for 2-4 Euros you can buy different types of candles to light and place in front of your favorite saint. On each side of the door there’s holy water too, which a lot of people dip their fingers into and cross themselves. Also note, the Sacre Coeur doesn’t have a dress code, but if you go to Notre Dame, you can’t show your shoulders. Interesting right? I don’t get why the dress code is different at one Catholic Cathedral than the next.

Day 5 Part 1: Chateau de Vincennes

Forest of Vincennes

Friday, 23rd June 2017

Cecile’s apartment is in the 10^th arrondisement in an area named Vincennes for the Chateau de Vincennes. It is very near a large city forest, and park with a zoo, menagerie, lake and small island. For this day I decided to walk through this park and forest to get to the Chateau before taking the metro to Monmartre. I knew the area was very large, and yet for some crazy reason I thought it would be a good idea to take a hike in a forest before I hiked all over Monmartre. I also had blisters between my big and second toes, on the pads, and the heels of my feet from wearing sandals to Versailles. I did wear my sneakers this day, but still, I don’t know what I was thinking.

Lake in the center of the Park

Can you spot the river rat?

            On my way to the park I passed a vélib station (bike rental) and I stopped and thought for a long minute if it would be a good idea, after all, I knew the green area was huge. But then, I haven’t seen many vélib stations around the city, and what if I couldn’t find a vélib parking place when I got to the Chateau? I didn’t want to be stuck biking all over the city trying to find a place to park the thing. So I decided to keep walking. (I know, I worry too much) I came to a very nice park but as I walked further on, all the grass was yellow and dead. I think the heat wave this week must have killed it. I made my way towards the lake where I passed a group of swans. There were 5 in total, though I could only get 2 in the picture. Swans are so gentle and regal, I felt bad for ever having eaten the one Mike killed.

            At the tip of the lake I started to get tired. I pulled out my airplane blanket and took a nap on the grass. This grass was a little greener. After my nap I discovered there is a road going through the park which I had to cross to get to the forest part. On the other side of the street. It was as if I was in Millcreek canyon at the start of a hike. There were no hills, in fact it was a completely flat area, but the feel of the trees and leaves and plants was the same. Not far inside there was a stream where I saw something move. A squirrel? A rock chuck maybe? As my eyes focused on him and saw past his camouflage, (he blended in very well with the tree next to him) I met a river rat. Isn’t that lovely? Haven’t you ever wanted to meet a river rat? He was very curious, as he stood and looked at me for several minutes, but he must have been wary of humans, and he scampered across the river when I got too close.

            There were a lot of horse trails through the forest as well, and I noticed as I got closer to the Chateau that there was an equestrian park inside. As I walked by a parade of children started to exit the building on their little ponies. It was very cute, and who knew you could send your child to ride a pony in a forest if you live in Paris? I didn’t, but it was wonderful.

            Once outside the forest you can see the Chateau de Vincennes, which I’m guessing must have been the home of some royal relation. I thought it was going to be a very small palace, but it was quite a bit larger than I expected. That has been the way with all the chateau’s I’ve seen, except Moulin Rouge, it is quite a lot smaller than any one expects. I didn’t go inside because I’d read most of the rooms were bare, and it didn’t seem very interesting to go and see bare stone walls from the inside for 9 Euros. 

Day 4 Part 2: Eiffel Tower & Seine Cruise

Thursday, 22nd of June 2017

When I got off the RER I realized I was at the Eiffel Tower, it was right there. Although seeing the tower was not on the top of my list, I thought it would be nice to take a boat ride down the Seine and rest my feet. So, I stopped at a patisserie on my way and enjoyed eating a Tarte chocolate for dinner. It was just about sunset when I boarded the boat and it had started to cool off. Once again, I learned so many things, like, there is a Statue of Liberty in France. I totally did not know this, and I had a much better view of this one, than I did of Lady Liberty when I went to NYC. Also, there is a white house in Paris. Our white house in the US was actually a replica of this smaller white house version in France. Seeing all the bridges and the cool figures carved into them was also very cool and something I couldn’t have been able to see very well from land.

Being out on the water felt so good. There was a cool strong breeze, and I had never been happier to have chills on my arms. I never thought I would want to be cold ever in my life, but this was the end of the heat wave, and you could feel the temperature dropping rapidly to a degree much more comfortable. The boat tour to was definitely worth it to learn about the history of everything around me.

            I also noticed many of the private boats had gardens built on them. I tried to get a good picture but failed, so I’ll have to explain. This boat had a fence, like a wooden fence you’d see in a garden on one side, and potted plants and vines all around its top deck. So freaking cool. I want to live on a boat with a garden, but I probably couldn’t keep the garden alive, my brown thumb and all. Still, so pretty.

I couldn't get over the gorgeous details on all the bridges

My dinner, a giant pain au chocolate

Day 4 Part 1: Uber Adventures & Versailles

Thursday, 22nd of June 2017

The plan for this day was to leave Eleonore and Anthony’s place early in the morning, drop off my stuff at my next couch-surfing home, and then take the train to Versailles and then walk to the LDS temple. This day did not go according to plan, at all, but as they always do, things worked out.

            Eleonore’s street was partly closed for construction. I ordered an Uber at their apartment, but because half the street was blocked off, I couldn’t select the right location on the map. Once I walked to the end of the street to meet the driver, I wouldn’t have Wi-Fi anymore, and wouldn’t be able to tell when he was getting there. I’d just have to look for him. So I requested an Uber, walked with my huge suitcase and carry on down the hill and waited. An Uber guy who totally looked like my driver pulled up and got out, but he started saying Camille. I said no Anya, and he showed me his phone said Camille. So he left and I kept waiting.

Although since its Uber pool, I don’t get why he didn’t pick me up too? I don’t know, maybe it doesn’t work unless they are connected to you in the app first. So I wait some more. No more drivers. I’m sure he should have been here by now, so I walk back up with hill with my big bags to get near enough Eleonore’s apartment to use the Wi-Fi. I then see the first driver has canceled.

Versailles Impressive isn't it

So I order another one and hike back down the street. I wait again, and I see several drivers that look like they could be mine, but none of them stop. I wait and wait, and nothing, so I hike back up the hill. I get back on the Wi-Fi and order another driver, only then I realize the route the map is giving these drivers is down the closed street, so these guys are probably driving around forever and can’t get to where I am. I’m desperate this time, and I’ve been waiting over 30 minutes to get a ride, so this time, I call the driver. Which I hated to do, and really wanted to avoid, and was really regretting that I hadn’t because at this point, all of this could have been avoided if I’d bought an international phone plan for $40 per week on Verizon, which is outrageous, and yet would have been cheaper than the $1.79 per minute I spent on the phone with this driver trying to explain in French that he could not use the route Uber was giving him, and he needed to go all the way around the neighborhood to get to the other side of the street.

He did finally arrive, and I was just happy he stayed on the phone with me to try and figure out how to get to the street. He was a wonderful driver, very friendly and nice, and I had a great time talking to him as we drove to the apartment of Cecile and Adrien. I had planned to get there at 8:30 am, but didn’t end up getting there until 9:30 am. I probably would have cancelled Versailles and done it another day, but I had already bought a ticket online, so I didn’t have to wait in line, plus I didn’t really want to go on Friday or Saturday when it would be even more crowded, so there was no choice but to go anyways.

So I dropped my things off, met Cecile who was extremely nice as well, and then hopped on the metro. Cecile warned me that there is more than one train that comes through the station and it is confusing to get the right one to the Chateau, so it would be best to just ask someone when the train arrived. Well, the train arrived and I asked the first person I saw, and he said, yeah this is to Versailles. So I sat down. As we neared the next stop, they guy sitting in front of him says, “You are going to Versailles? Oh, this is not the right train.” And he flicks the other guy in the head! So I get off with the intent to hop back on to go the other direction to the last station, and the guy who gave me wrong information hops off too. He tries to tell me he’s so so sorry, and that he doesn’t even know where he is, he’s sorry again, and tells me he’s drunk. Awesome! Tip for later: don’t ask drunk guys for directions.

Hall of Battles

So I’m kind of terrified to hop back on the next train, because what if it doesn’t go back to the last stop, what if it’s going somewhere else? So I decide I better figure out how this train system works. I start reading the signs and walking all up and down, and I’m getting kind of frustrated, I can’t seem to figure out the system even with my Metro map. I can feel myself getting emotional because not only am I leaving an hour later than planned, but I’m lost. So I move to plan B, ask people for help again. I see this Asian family with 1 daughter sitting at the end, and I think, I’m pretty sure they’re not drunk, I’ll ask them.

I begin to ask in French and they tell me they don’t speak French, only English. So in my mind I’m like great! So I ask again in English, and it turns out they did exactly the same thing as me. They hopped on, asked someone if it was the right train, they said yes, got to the next stop, realized it was the wrong train and hopped off. They were sitting there lost, also trying to figure out how to get back, because they were also going to Versailles.

So we figured out that either of the trains which came along would be going to the same station, the one we came from, and I was like, I’m following you guys. We made it back together, and then had to run to get on the right train because it stopped way ahead of us on the track. It was so nice to know we were heading the right way, and I met this awesome family along the way.

Jerry, Lauren, me and Lisa

Turns out they are Taiwanese. The mom is Lisa, dad Jerry, and their 10 year old daughter is Lauren. They both came to the US for college, met in college, got married and then Jerry got a job in New York, so they decided to stay in the US. She said they haven’t been back to Taiwan for 20 years. Since they had their daughter they moved to New Jersey and Jerry takes the train for 2 ½ hours every day into New York where he’s a computer programmer. Lisa majored in Math and worked in accounting until she had Lauren.

I wanted this library in my house!

Can I just say I love Lisa. She kind of adopted me along the way and when we got to Versailles she says “you come with us” so we stayed together to see the Chateau and ended by having lunch together at the café inside. It was kind of funny when we were standing in lines to go inside because they would let each group through one at a time, and they kept trying to rope off the entrances between me and Lisa’s family and Lisa kept having to tell them, no she’s with us, we are a group.

Once again, meeting people on the fly is not something I ever thought I was capable of. And to be honest, I would have been so much more flustered if I hadn’t met Jerry and Lisa. I kind of felt like God was watching over me that day, and sent me their wonderful family.

And these piano's

A sandwich with the most brie I have ever seen or eaten. It was dry and crusty, but I loved every bite of cheese.

After lunch we parted ways, and I went to go see more of the Chateau. They were eager to see the gardens. I was not eager to go outside since it was still 98 degrees outside. I toured everything else, the hall of mirrors, hall of battles, and King Louis’ daughters’ apartments with the audio guide again, which was fabulous and also included in the cost of the ticket. The other museums charge $5 for them, so that was a bonus. Maybe it’s because I’m a girly girl, but I could have cared less about the hall of battles, the best part was seeing the apartments of Adelaide and Victoire. One played violin and the other, the harp, plus they had 2 harpsichords for entertaining, and even a little organ in one of the rooms. It was so great to see how they lived, and yet, the king was overthrown and they died penniless living with relatives in the country, and were never married. So sad.

and this piano. . .

I wanted to wait until later in the evening to see the gardens hoping it would cool off a bit. When I did finally go out there, my feet were so sore because I had worn sandals instead of my sneakers, and I had no desire to wander around the gardens in this heat. Plus I knew they were so huge I would only see a fraction of them by foot. So I paid an outrageous $8 to get on a little train that stops at 4 different sites around the garden. I only got off at Marie Antoinette’s house because who doesn’t love Marie Antoinette right? Love it, I could totally see myself living there. There was this courtyard in the center that was mostly shaded, and there was kind of like a hose spigot where everyone was refilling their water, so I went in there and refilled and cooled off in the shade. I figured I was about done, so I started thinking about how to get to the temple. Then I realized I had not book-marked it on the offline map I’d been using to navigate through the streets. I also realized I’d forgotten my great-grandmothers card to do her work. I knew the general direction of the temple, but was a bit weary and I didn’t think I could handle it if I got lost again. Plus, I felt a little weird about being so sweaty, and going to the temple with B.O. I decided I would just go back to Cecile’s and rest up for the next day. 

Day 3 Part 2: Fete de la Musique

Wednesday, 21st of June 2017

After Musee d’Orsay it was time to head back to the apartment to meet with Eléonore for Fete de la Musique. I thought we were just going to walk thestreets to hear all the musicians play, but we did a lot more than that. We walked to a bus station to take a bus to Clichy which is not Paris, but just outside. She said that most of her friends were having kids and had moved from Paris to Clichy because it’s cheaper. We went to the apartment of Élodie and Mattiue and their little son. More friends were there as well, Stephan, and Mattieu’s sister, and two more girls whose names I have forgotten.

This was my first time doing an authentic French greeting. So I thought it was more like kissing the air as you move your head from one side of the persons head to the other, but no! You actually touch cheeks while making the kissing sound with your lips, and then do the same on the other side. I have to say, I was very awkward at first, but with six people in the room to greet, by the last person, it didn’t feel weird at all. I was also surprised they would greet a friend of a friend this way, so I felt very warmly welcomed to be there.

            We sat down and snacked on orange juice and chips. Everybody was talking and laughing, and I was happy to just be there. I could only catch a few words in each sentence being said, and most the time missed the overall meaning. I did speak a little bit with Stephan and once with the group, just because they asked a little bit about me. It’s so funny though, when I tell people here I’m from Utah. Everybody gives you a weird look, and I think they’re all wondering if you’re Mormon. When I told this group I was from Utah, somebody said, “Utah! All we know about Utah is the Olympics were there, and Mormons.” Then everybody laughed like it was great joke. I was surprised nobody followed it up by asking if I was Mormon, because I seem to get that question a lot.

            It is funny to hear people’s perceptions of Mormons. Before meeting me, Eleonore thought that Mormons were like the Amish, and that we wore pioneer dresses. She also thought that we were not allowed to marry non-Mormons, and that we had special diets where we are mostly vegan. I’m not sure if she got that misconception from me though, since I don’t normally eat meat. Although I have on this trip, and it has been delicious.

            There is a park across the street from Elodie’s apartment where we walked to see a concert. Stephan was very excited, and telling us this was a very good band, they were famous, and he’s seen them 4 times. We waited in line to have our bags checked, and passed the military men with guns again. I have to say I did worry a little bit about being on the streets during Fete de la Musique, because of terrorists, but at the same time I feel like I have to live my life. I can’t not do things out of fear, and if I die early, then it was God’s plan. Granted I’m not going to tempt fate by jumping out of a plane, everything within reason.

            So we hear this band, and they’re ok, but not great. Everyone is dripping with sweat where they stand, and its smelly bodies all around. Eleonore and I had not had dinner yet, and there was a little crêperie in the park so I had my first crepe. It was not that good. I got it plain with sugar and bananas, and it was a little undercooked because they were in such a hurry. There was a huge line and they were already like five orders behind. So I decided I would get a crepe next time I went back to Monmartre because I had seen a lot of cute crêperies when I walked there the night before.

            During the concert another of their friends met up with us. Her name was Maha, and she is a gynecologist. We had a great time talking about babies and pregnancy, and schools and literature.

It felt so strange to be doing this. First, I have never been to a concert before. I just never had the desire to be in a crowd of people for music. Secondly, I was actually being social. Who knew that this was possible, and not even in my native language. I feel like if I can talk to people in my broken French, then talking to people in English when I get home is going to be 100 times easier. Who knows, maybe I won’t be as introverted when I return home.

            After the concert ended we took the metro home, but walked through the streets listening to people still playing for the Fete on the way. I was just following Eleonore, so not my fault, but we totally walked through I guess what you would consider Paris’ red light district, even though there is not legal prostitution, but oh my, sex shops galore, and these black guys all along the parkway offering us drugs. There was this Christian group singing what sounded like African tribal music about Jesus pretty close to the Moulin Rouge, which seemed odd.

            The best part, and the best music, was this guy singing from a balcony inside an apartment building. I love that anybody can participate, because then you get to see gems like this guy.

Day 3 Part 1: Walking Tour & Musee d’Orsay

Wednesday, 21st of June 2017

First thing I decided to take a free walking tour of the heart of Paris. I met my guide at the Fountain of St. Michel. My hosts tell me this fountain is “the” meeting place if you are going to meet a lover or a blind date. 

St. Michel Fountain

        We began by walking down a small street, which was part of the Latin Quarter, where our guide explained that Latin was not for Latino, but Latin as in the language. This has been an area where students have lived, and originally several hundred years ago, students all took Latin language courses. He also pointed out the architecture that we were seeing: 5 floors with balconies on 2 of the levels, and these tiny skylight looking windows at the very top. He said the maids used to live in those tiny rooms on the very top, but today, mostly students live up there. The Latin Quarter is still home to mostly students today.

            So then we learned the history of why France looks the way it does today. In the 1850’s, I think it was Napoleon III, who hired a man named Houssman to rebuild France. Previous to that time the streets were very small, very narrow, and every few years they were getting blockaded when the people had a rebellion. So it was decided to make the streets much wider, and these 5 story buildings were built. Which explains why you can see them all over Paris, not just in fancy neighborhoods, but all of Paris. They tore down 70% of the city and rebuilt it. People were given one week’s notice to move to the country during construction and when they came back, their rent had increased so much that only the very wealthy returned to Paris. The poor were forced to stay outside the city.

            We then walked to the first palace of the Louvre. Louis XIV was born in this palace and grew up here, but he hated Paris, which is why he built the Versailles palace and moved out there. When Napoleon Bonaparte took over, he lived in the Louvre Palace as well. We toured the rest of the outside of the Louvre and the Tuileries garden.

Embassy of Texas

            Later on in the tour we passed a building which used to be the Embassy of Texas. Back when Texas declared itself an independent nation before becoming part of the United States, France was the first country to recognize Texas as its own country, and therefore there was an Embassy of Texas in Paris.

            We ended at a pub where you get a discount on your first drink at the bar with your Free tour ticket, but I walked down the street and had a salad at a little Patisserie/Bistro instead. It wasn’t anything to be excited about, just lettuce, some pasta salad, and the end of a baguette.

            On the tour I heard the Musee d’Orsay had the largest impressionist painting collection in Paris. Impressionist paintings are my favorite, so to keep out of the heat, which was about 98 degrees again, I walked back to the museum.

            They were showing a special exhibit of the portraits Cezanne had done of his family and friends and of himself. He kind of strikes me as the first goth when I saw his first self portrait as a young man. He decided to paint himself in a very dark light, sort of glowering, all he needs are two pointy teeth and he would have looked like a vampire.

Another terrible selfie, but isn't the ceiling in Musee d'Orsay cool!

            So in this museum it was also the first time I decided to pay for a headset. Well I thought you got headphones, but it’s actually like an old cellphone you dial the number next to the painting and then hold it up to your ear, and it tells you about the painting. I had always thought these were for people who spoke a different language, but no! These little snippets of audio give you so much more information than what is written by the paintings. I will forever be using these things any time I go to a museum. It’s nice to look at ‘pretty paintings’ but ten times more enjoyable when you get to learn about the history of the painting, and why the painter did what he did.