The Paris Paradise

First know this. That everything you heard about the French is true. They are crazy, they do eat a lot of garlic and cheese, they do dress superbly well, they can be wonderfully rude at times and they do entirely believe that form trumps over function almost every time. If you could live with these known facts, then your time in France would be just fine.

My time in Paris was nothing short of spectacular. It is by far one of the prettiest and nicest cities I have been too. What made it really stand out that I saw the city through they eyes of a local. A friend who could speak the local language so well, that, when she spoke French I found myself standing by a complete different person. Also, A friend whose walking capacity has me completely dumbfounded…

So, welcome to Paris! A city that wouldn’t waste one second before letting you know that you aren’t French and that you don’t belong. And perhaps give you two more seconds before making you begin questioning your dressing sense for the past few years.A city that ensures every car gets at least three dents. But a city so beautiful that falling is love with it is completely reasonable.

The night I landed in Paris, the craziness began. I was instructed to take the RER B train to Paris from the airport. While that seemed like a simple enough instruction, getting out of the airport took some considerable effort. The signs were anything but helpful and the train’s directions were anything but definite. Once getting a verbal confirmation from the conductor, I climbed aboard hoping I had the right train.

She had come to get me. Probably a good idea as we switched a couple of trains before reaching her place. A quick shower and we were off again. To Paris, I declared.

The Bastille

The walking had begun. Over cobblestones, though narrow and glittering alleys and under historical arches. Everything I saw oozed history and drama. The architecture was mixed but all off it screaming cries of the French Revolution and the periodic governments that came after. Yellow hues adored historical buildings, bringing out their yester years. Eventually our feet brought us to Bastille. The place signifying where the French revolution had begun…

A stone’s throw away, as she explained, was the very famous Louvre museum (that houses the Mona Lisa). Of course, she forgot mentioning that this throne was obviously and repeatedly thrown by Hercules.

The Louvre, at night

The calories I was burning were aptly being replaced by just superbly fantastic views. The Louvre glowed in the night. The old architecture and the new glass Pyramid lay together in an engineering harmony. What priceless wonders lay under the pyramid were for me to discover the next day. But for that night we just wandered aimlessly on those huge stoned courtyards.

Until, that is, I was stopped dead in my tracks with the sight of the Tour Eiffel! It shone far but its shape was unmistakably dramatic and dare I say it, perfect. She could see me visibly excited but offered me a sly grin. And surely, as we walked towards the general direction of the tower, it began literally sparkling. There were lights perhaps on every tress of the tower and they shone as if like it were a diamond on the red carpet amidst flashing flashes. I could perhaps describe this more but I suggest you take a look personally when you get a chance.

The wonderous base of Eiffel Tower

And expectedly, we started our next day again with the Eiffel tower. I had readied myself for the fact it wouldn’t be tall as I had expected but in terms of architectural brilliance, it satisfied entirely. The arches were magnificent and the base tapered upward in symmetry that you can only see in nature.

Tour Eiffel

As we walked away from the tower the view just got better. It is one thing to watch a towering structure from the base but to watch it from a mile away making its presence felt is an entirely different matter. I fruitlessly used my camera to capture the view.

After short train ride, we reached the Arc de Triomphe; A monument honoring the French war veterans. It also marked the beginning of the very famous avenue of Champs De Elysees.

Arc De Triomphe on the Champs De Elysees

So we walked, on this very famous road, towards the obelisk of Concorde. As my eyes wandered left and right, they came upon a plethora of fancy stores and fancy names. On one of numerous branches, lay fashion houses that are best approached by those who understand the concept. And while she practically practiced it, I avoided embarrassment and marching straight forward. Only stopping at a fancy Peugeot showroom…

Concorde was supposed to be a short (??) 20 minute walk but she decided it would be a good idea to swing the Royal Palace and the Small Palace that lay on side route. I wasn’t about to argue so I followed her. To more old but wonderfully kept up buildings. I feared any moment Napoleon would confront me. I am taller then him but only in physical stature.

The Concorde with the Eiffel overlooking things

And if you were the look around types, you would soon notice that Eiffel tower was almost always visible. As it were looking after its beloved city! Eventually we got to Concorde when she mentioned that the next stop was the Louvre Museum.

If you haven’t been here before then nothing, I repeat, nothing can prepare you for the sights you are about to witness. We opted for the Da Vinci code audio tour, not because I was any fan of Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code (Yuck) but because it covered the important paintings and mostly because I have always been fascinated by the mathematical artist that was Leonardo Da Vinci.

As we walked through the museum with earphones in our ears, the information seamlessly drowned out the other voices in the museum. Each painting withheld so much history behind that it all was soon very overwhelming. There were frescos on the wall that were made in times so long in the past that it became difficult to keep track of eras. The paintings that directly dealt with Christianity were my favorites as capturing faith on walls seemed like an impossible concept to me. Most paintings were large, if not huge and made you walk a few steps back to grasp the occasion.

Mona Lisa on the other hand was much smaller then I had imagined. Cocooned in the centre of a large gallery, she sat smilingly in her own air conditioned air. Finally, I had seen the original Mona Lisa with her ever enigmatic smile. Perhaps the most expensive painting I would ever see. If you ever come to Paris and not visit the Louvre (despite the crowd) then I assure you that you would have missed an art lesson for ages to come.

Inside the Notre Dame. Napolean crowned himself here

From the Louvre, we headed on further to Opera and the very famous church of Notre Dame. The largeness of structure belied it inside splendor. There were stained glasses that rose for over three floors. Candles were lit the inside of the very large church and our timing couldn’t have been more perfect as very soon mass began. The sound of the huge church organs coupled with the pitch of the choir singers was exemplary at best. It was grand.

Dinner at snail’s pace.

All this walking no doubt ensured a huge appetite. And since I was in France I wanted something decidedly french. So over snails, fondue and wine, two friends caught up on the famous rue Mouffetard. The dinner lasted for over two hours and ended with truffles and ice cream. It couldn’t have been better.

Beautiful by day. Superb by Night.

I still hadn’t gotten over the Eiffel tower so we promptly went back to it for an after dinner stroll. The Eiffel tower just looks spectacular in the night. We went to the top but I preferred a view from the base.

Now charged with food and perhaps an everlasting memory of the tower, we decided it would be best to muse over some very fine french coffee. Of course, when it came to the locals, no ordinary café would do. So we took the underground and walked further to an uber cool part of town called the Montmarte. On the way, she managed to walk me through the infamous/now famous cabarets and the countless sex shops/ sex show theatres. Believe me, if a city housed an intellectual revolution and renaissance, then, sexual liberation couldn’t possibly be far away. I found the whole thing quite amusing. Especially the Erotic museum!

The origin of Cabaret

By the time we got to the café, it was already closing down. That meant too that we had better catch the last train back. We did get back but late enough to consider thinking listening to french songs a reasonable idea at the time.

It had been just an amazing day. The miles I had walked were incomparable to what I had seen and to what she had shown.

And it became frightfully obvious, that in this beautiful city of endless art and in the company of perhaps the greatest artists, the Mona Lisa needed no mystical reason at all, to smile.