The alarms went off at 8:30 so we quickly got dressed and went downstairs to grab some of the advertised 'complimentary breakfast'. Now, generally speaking, I consider complimentary breakfast to be something of nutritional value...not sliced bread, Nutella, and tap water. Back in the states, we call this false advertising, here in France its just business.
After a walk down the canal, we hopped on the metro and got off a couple blocks from L'arc de Triumphe. You've more than likely seen a picture of this Parisian monument although you may not recognize it by its given name. The monument consists of a traffic circle (the largest in the world, so claim the Frenchies) encircling a single arc monument. This historic landmark was commissioned in 1806 by Napoleon Bonaparte in commemoration of his victories in battle (I learned that ego is a reoccurring theme in the French), however as the tides of battle changed, the monument's completion was delayed until 1836. We made it to the arc pretty early in the morning, before the sun was even fully shining. We paid the 5.30 euro and climbed the spiral staircase to the top. The view from atop L'Arc De Triumph is all meanings of the word, breathtaking. Standing there was one of the coolest experiences I've had since arriving in Europe.
I remember studying world monuments and icons back in Shelley's AP European History class just hoping that one day I'd be able to actually go visit them, and here I am. I feel like a lot of tourists (90% of which seem to be of Asian decent, no joke) see the monuments and sights because its on the "Sights to See" list from the visitor center or an add in SkyMall, not because they understand the historic relevance and impact such things had on the culture and history of the country. I think knowing such details gives much more meaning to visiting these places.
After descending the winding staircase of the Arc, we grabbed some lunch off of the Euro menu at McDonald's (Abroad or not, I'm still on a college budget). We strolled down one of the many cobblestone boulevards leading away from the traffic circle. The streets are lined with designer stores stocking everything from Louis Vutton, Armani, Gucci, Rolex, and so on.
Word of Advice: No matter what part of town you're in, Paris is full of gypsies. Its hard to go two blocks without a shawl covered middle eastern woman begging for spare change, claiming the generic misfortune of being displaced with "many hungry babies". If you make the mistake of giving one of them spare change; take a picture, because within seconds twenty others will materialize out of thin air begging the same story. Avoid all of this; just keep on truckin' right past.
The next major monument we came to was the Musee De Louvre. The Louvre was constructed as a fortress by Phillippe - Auguste in the mid 13th century and rebuilt for residency in the mid 16th century. It was transformed into the Musee de Louvre in 1793, the nation's first and foremost museum. The building is divided into four main sections: The Sully, Devon, Richelieu, and the Hall Napoleon. The museum houses an astounding 35,000 exhibits making it nearly impossible to see it all in any time frame under an estimated 9 months (I did not make that up, 9 months). The collection displays a diverse area of emphasis ranging from Islamic artworks to Egyptian Artifacts all the way to a fabulous collection of Greek and Roman antiquities. However, the most attracted collections of de Louvre are without a doubt its' paintings. Such displays feature works from Raphael, Botticelli, Titan, and of course Leonardo da Vinci.
We, like most Louvre visitors entered through the nearly entirely glass pyramid centered in the estate. After descending two stories into the Earth, we stepped foot inside the Grand Hall and lobby of the Louvre. The pyramid (like the rest of Paris) is completely illuminated at night and quite a sight. We were a bit crunched for time (I don't know anyone that has 9 months to spare) so we spent most of our time inside the Egyptian and Roman displays. We eventually made our way to da Vinci's Mona Lisa and I gotta tell you it was cool to actually see it in person; but I was honestly really surprised how small it was. With all the hype it gets, I expected it to be a bit larger than life. Regardless though, it was cool to get to finally see da Vinci's lady.
Walking through the rest of the museum was amazing. Its such a huge building and requires a lot of walking...a LOT of walking. Fellas, I'm going off of experience here, but unless you're the kind of guy that has the
honor of going shopping every weekend with his lady and holding her purse while she tries on clothes for
you to buy, you are in no way conditioned for this trek. Fortunately for us, the curator of the Louvre must also be male, because there is an abundance of comfortable chairs in nearly every exhibit. The only improvement I would suggest is perhaps recliners on a moving sidewalk, but excuse me, that must be the American in me talking.
After seeing a decent portion of the Louvre, we set off for La Tour de Eiffle. Built for the world fair in 1889 Exposition Universelle (World Fair), many Parisians thought it a blight on the city and dubbed it the "metal asparagus". The tower was nearly town down in 1909 and was only saved because radiotelegraphy scientists realized that its "molecular composition and precise structure" (large, metal antenna) made it ideal for transmitting radio signals. A steep climb at 324m of vertical staircases, we chose to save it for the next day.
We ate dinner at an French bistro and relaxed under the space heaters for a while. I think it would be strange to travel to Mexico and not eat at the very least, a taco (sorry for you Fourth Meal lovers) and the same applies for France. I ended up ordering 25cl of French
vino, Bordelino. Warm food and a glass of wine beneath the evening glow of the Eiffel tower helped us to catch our second wind and before long we back out in the city. We navigated our way through Paris' extensive metro system back to the hostel and called it a night on account of everyone being so exhausted.
From our experiences on the first day, I can already tell that Paris is a beautiful city which almost seems like a paradox in my mind. I generally don't like the idea of big cities, but Paris combines history, nature, and architectural beauty to create an awe inspiring city.
Authors Note: Keep checking back as I post my travels through Paris last weekend. Please feel free to comment at the bottom of all the posts. Feedback of all kinds is appreciated.
All good; all the time,
Thomas
their tomb beneath the grand streets of Paris. The tombs stay at a comfortable 14 degrees Celsius but the lingering presence of death and utter silence makes you shiver regardless. The endless walls of human remains is simply put, overwhelming. The entire time spent beneath the city is somewhere in the neighborhood of 45 min-an hour.
