top of page
This site was designed with the
.com
website builder. Create your website today.Start Now

Au revoir, Paris! Wow. Our last day in Paris, our last day in Europe. In some ways it feels like minutes ago I was stepping off the plane in Amsterdam. In other ways it feels like forever ago. My life has been changed. Being able to see a part of the world I’ve never seen, participate in culture I never knew, and observe history that changed the world has left an impression on me that is permanent. We had one last day to soak it all in and I was ready.

The wow moment was my last few hours of the day- taking in the splendor of Paris. It was perfect, carefree, beautiful. When I first arrived I was curious how I would feel about Paris - ultimately I feel that Paris is a city to love.

France

Paris

May 26, 2013

Post Tour Day 1 (or day 22)

Wow Moment

Food

We enjoyed an almond and an apple pastry from the same shop on Rue Cler, and they were so good. My mouth is salivating right now. For lunch I had a burger, fries and coke - I was just craving that combo - which is kind of ironic because I almost never eat burgers in the states.

 

For dinner we enjoyed escargot, chicken skewers, and duck breast. We topped the meal off with some divine, creamy crème brulee.

Travel Tip

Do all you can to enjoy the atmosphere and ambiance of a city. Mike and I were truly able to do that our last night and it was the perfect experience and ending to our trip.

Originally we were planning on joining a city wide activity of rollerblading. Every Sunday in Paris they shut down some major streets and hundreds of people rollerblade. Mike and I both enjoy rollerblading and it seemed like a fun way to connect with Parisians. Unfortunately, the event was cancelled because a protest had been planned that same day and they could not spare policemen for both events. We decided to head over to the Marais neighborhood to explore that corner of town. I knew we made the right choice because once we entered the neighborhood it’s like we entered something alive.

We spent time eating gelato, visiting shops, and sitting in the park. It was a nice, relaxing day. At one point we walked through the Jewish Quarter. It was so fun to be in this part of town with Kosher shops and groups of orthodox Jewish men enjoying each other’s company.

Once you see it...

We made our way back home and on the way we visited the Bastille. We both had been fascinated learning about the revolution as we were in France, and we wanted to see this piece of history. We made our way there and enjoyed the view.

Eventually we made our way home. Once we were on the metro we discovered we were headed the wrong direction. We got off and got headed in the right direction. When we were getting close to our stop there was an announcement that we couldn’t understand, and when we got to our stop the metro just cruised by. We were confused and got off on the next stop and headed back to our destination and the same thing happened. So we got off at the next stop and decided that we would just walk to our place. When we tried to leave there were some armed guards blocking the entrance. They explained to us that a protest was going on above and that were weren’t allowed up. We went back down and rode the metro some more. Eventually we were able to get off at our stop and when we hit ground level it was fascinating to see the aftermath of the protest. There were cops packing things up, garbage on the ground, and flyers from each side strewn across the street.

Apparently France passed a law making gay marriage legal and people were protesting that. It was interesting to be in France when this was going on. 

 I felt a personal connection to France, as in America we are having similar conflict about these issues.

Finally we made it back to our hotel and rested a bit. We headed back out because we knew we wanted to enjoy the Eiffel Tower when it was lit up and sparkling (as far as I understand they light up the Eiffel Tower every evening around 10 and 11. For five minutes during those times it quite literally sparkles).We headed across the river to the Trocadero. It was a festive place - people rollerblading, selling crepes, and taking pictures. We found ourselves a seat and enjoyed the view of the fountains, the sparkling tower, and the evening. It was just perfect.  

Afterwards we decided to finally get our dinner. It was the perfect ending to our perfect evening and perfect trip- we were in the back corner on a red velvet couch, with a view of the street. It was such an ideal evening. We enjoyed our meal soaking in the ambiance of the place and soaking in our last moments of Europe.

Ultimately, we arrived back at our hotel at 12:30 at night. We packed up for our departure the next morning. Paris was amazing, Europe was amazing. I loved it all.

 

 

My last thoughts:

 

Travel should change you. A predominant therapist holds the theory that therapists should be changed by their clients, and if they aren’t they are missing the point of therapy. I feel the same way about travel. If you come home the same person then you are missing the point. Let travel change you. Be changed by the people you meet, the history you learn, and the culture you take part in. Because if you don’t, you might be missing the point.

 

Signing off!

 

Sincerely, Suzette

Thoughts & Observations of my French Experience

  • French value the details in life - at least that is what it seemed like. Everywhere we went food, gardens, and buildings were crafted to perfection (I seriously can't get their pastries out of my mind).

  • Similar to a lot of places we traveled, the French seem to really enjoy life. On our last night eating at around 11pm, I kept asking the waiter if it was ok if we were still there and if weordered more. At one point he just smiled and indicated that it was ok that we were there as long as we wanted to be. The whole time I was there I just had a sense that it was ok to slow down and enjoy life.

  • If you respect French culture they respect you. Ok, I realize this is a blanket statement, (really all of my thoughts and observations are blanket statements) but this is what I experienced. I realize some people really have had some negative experiences in France, but thankfully because of Reid’s lesson on French culture we were able to have some very positive interactions with French people.

bottom of page