Paris.

The name stands for itself. I went to Paris for the weekend with Edo and Mireille and Julie. I had forgotten that I used to dream of going to the city of love. I must have been immersed in literature and history about France and Paris, in the days before I learned Spanish and became part of that world. Being in Paris from Friday to Sunday was like waking up to a long-lost daydream I had once. It was amazing.

I am not a very good tourist. I feel awkward or nonplussed over most things I should be excited about. Sometimes things don't seem very impressive to me because they are what they are. Although I may have acted like that on the outside this trip, all of Paris was impressive to me. In my head I just kept screaming, "Paris! Freaking Paris!"

Edo and Mireille made sure that I saw most of the famous things of the city. Of course there is always more to see, but here are a few things that I witnessed:

-Ile de la Cité and Ile St-Louis, islands in the Seine River

-Eiffel Tower at sunset

 -Opéra National at Palais Garnier (people were dancing to music on the steps outside)

-Louvre museum (that old palace now art museum is ridiculously huge! I was in awe just of the outside)

 - Typical Parisian chairs and parks

 -Jardin des Tuileries (a very nice garden area connecting the Louvre to the Place de la Concorde)

 -Obelisk of Luxor (a trophy of Napoleon the the center of the Place de la Concorde)

 -Galeries LaFayette and La Printemps (major shopping buildings full of different designers on each floor. I almost bought some shoes but didn't. However, we got a dress for Julie!)

 -Avenue des Champs-Elysées (Mireille and I cycled on it, but it was sort of a stressful experience, and very crowded)

 -Arc de Triomphe (yes, I cycled around it, just a day before the Tour de France participants!)

 -The Seine River

-Place de Justice

 -Centre Pompidou (a contemporary art museum with an interesting exterior)

-Parc de Buttes Chaumont (we had a picnic there with a nice view of the water and the butte with a pavilion on it)

 -Parc de la Villete with the reflecting sphere Géode and the Musée de Musique

 -Basilique de Sacré Coeur and the surrounding Montmartre area (great view from the church of Paris)

 -Place de la Bastille

-Place des Vosges (we stopped for a rest in this park located in the Jewish area, and I saw the entrance to Victor Hugo's house)

 -Notre Dame Cathedral (celebrating 850 years this year)

 -Les Invalides and the Pantéon from afar in city views

-St. Martin Canal

-Pont Neuf, Pont Alexander III, and other bridges over the Seine

-Musée d'Orsay (but only from the outside; it's a renovated train station made into a museum)

-Other neighborhoods and museums and places...

Edo and Mireille might be a bit disappointed with my lack of recall, but we saw a lot! We did not go into any museums, but I saw many of them from the outside. A lot of times the significance of the place was lost on me, but this site gives some more description for a post-trip education...

All in all, it was a great trip. We ate good food and enjoyed the Parisian life for a few days while also trying to do the tourist things. I was very glad for this experience and to share it with Edo, Mireille, and Julie.

Life Moments

Twentieth-century Presbyterian theologian and writer Frederick Buechner has written:
"Who knows how the awareness of God's love first hits people? Every person has his own tale to tell, including the person who would not believe in God if you paid him. Some moment happens in your life that makes you say Yes right up to the roots of your hair, that makes it worth having been born just to have happen. Laughing with somebody till the tears run down your cheeks. Waking up to the first snow. Being in bed with somebody you love. Whether you thank God for such a moment or thank your lucky stars, it is a moment that is trying to open you up your whole life. If you try to turn your back on such a moment and hurry along to Business as Usual, it may lose you the whole ball game. If you throw your arms around such a moment and hug it like crazy, it may save your soul. How about the person you know who as far as you can possibly tell has never had such a moment? Maybe for that person the moment that has to happen is you."