Thursday, October 10, 2013

Euro Trip 2013: Paris

I never really got Paris. I always thought of Paris as kind of like New York. That mythical mixture of dreamland and city. A destination that people flock to in hopes of finding something that fills that hole in your heart you always had, but never noticed. I never really bought into it. 

When I went to New York, it was busy and crowded and overwhelming. Yes, I felt like I was in the middle of a movie scene and there were so many opportunities for pictures, but I felt like I was leaving an amusement park that was jumping the shark. It just seemed so forced and overdone. But Paris... now I get Paris.

The city of lights was better than what the movies show. The food, the architecture, the ambiance; it all seemed so charming, so effortless. 

This was the first country that I had been to where I did not speak any of the native language. Boyfriend speaks a little, but unlike Tokyo and the Dominican Republic, I had zero speaking ability. But the most beautiful things about Paris require no words. The cafes with woven chairs, the ivory buildings with iron balconies, the cobblestone walkways and wine with every meal.

Breakfast



















Pont des Arts aka The Lock Bridge


Our lock


Lunch at Marc MitonnePâté, salad and champagne



Boyfriend's first palmier in front of the palace



The Louvre





Tour de Eiffel










Dinner in Monrmartre: Cote du Rhone, escargot, boeuf bourguignon, and crème brûlée

Sacré-Coeur Basilica

Taking our wine to go

Nighttime entertainment


Arc de Triomphe


Champs-Élysées

Paris was like a dream, one that I never imagined I could live. The dream was only made more sweet by going with Boyfriend. But Paris was indescribably beautiful. The next day would be a full day of Disney, Disneyland Paris that is. You didn't think I could go to Paris without going to Disney, did ya?

-Akemi-chan

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