Paris: The City of Lights

(Fig 1. Seine at dusk, photo from lonely planet)

This was it.  The final stop on what my friends, Cole and Ryan, and I like to call our Europe Jaunt.  This trip had been an amazing journey, and without a doubt, we ended the trip in the best possible way.  Paris is everything it is said to be and more.  The culture is amazing, the scenery is astounding, and memories are lifelong.

We got off of our flight and headed to our hostel, Young and Happy Hostel, which was located in the Latin Quarter of the city.  This is the classic scene that you picture when you here Paris, with the winding streets, and shop fronts everywhere.  We did not do anything our first night in the city, as we were just exhausted, and we decided to save our energy for the next day.

(Fig 2. Notre Dame, photo by author)

On our second day, we got up early and headed out into the city.  We first visited Notre Dame, the famous massive Catholic cathedral in the city.  The architecture of the building is astounding, and the atmosphere inside is awesome.  After that we headed to one of the Champs Elysees, one of the famous shopping streets in the city.  This street hosts many famous brands flagship stores like Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Chanel.  At the end of this street is the famous Arc De Triomphe.  We walked up and down this street for a few hours, dipping our heads into the different stores, enjoying the luxury without having to buy anything.

(Fig 3. Champagne at the top of the Eiffel Tower, photo by author)

Once our wishful shopping trip had concluded we headed to the Eiffel Tower.  When we arrived, we all agreed that it would be so cool if we could say that we climbed the Eiffel Tower, so we skipped the elevator and hit the stairs.  What we failed to account for was that the tower was that you could only climb to the second level of the tower, and to get to the third, you had to take the elevator to the third.  So we had to pay a bit extra to get all the way to the top.   We had to endure the long elevator lines, and the claustrophobic spaces like everybody else, but once we reached the top, the views were absolutely worth it.  They also offered Champagne at the top of the tower, so we naturally had to indulge ourselves.  After the Eiffel Tower, he headed back to the hostel, had a nice French dinner, and went back to the hostel.  It just so happened that we were in the city on the night of Fete de la Musique, which is a musical festival where hundreds of musicians take to the streets, and preform long into the night.  It was truly one of the best nights of the trip, as we were able to see an entire city express itself through music.

(Fig 4. Basilica of the Sacred Heart, photo by author)

On our second day we went to the Catacombs of the city.  This is a series of twisting pathways beneath the streets of the city where it is estimated that over 6 million people are buried.  The walls are lined floor to ceiling with bones, creating an eerie scene.  After the Catacombs we visited the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, which is the cities second most famous Catholic Church.  The Basilica sits above the city on a hill, and it provides breathtaking views of the city.  After that we headed back to the hostel, had dinner, and then headed back out towards the Eiffel Tower.  We wanted to see the tower at night, and to ensure that we enjoyed ourselves properly, we each bought a bottle of champagne and a baguette at the local grocery store.  That night we sat on the mall in front of the tower, enjoying our food, and the sparkling tower in front of us.

(Fig 5. The Boys visit Versailles, photo by Author)

On our last full day in the city, we went to Versailles, which was the palace of King Louis the XIV.  This palace is renowned for its decadence, having gold and marble in almost every location (Even the gate is gold!).  We took an audio tour of the palace, and then enjoyed a talk through the gardens of the palace.  After our excursion out of the city, we went back into the city to head to another of the cities famous cites, the Louvre.  The Louvre had free admission on Fridays past 5pm, which we took full advantage of.  We walked around the museum, seeing many world renowned works like the Winged Victory of Samothrace, the Venus de Milo, and, of course, the Mona Lisa.  After our visit to the museum, we headed to the last dinner of the trip.  One of the people I was traveling with Dads had requested that we have a dinner in honor of his late parents who had recently passed away.  He graciously offered to pay $150 per person for our dinner.  We visited Le Chemise, where I had probably the best dinner of my entire life.  We had a 5 course dinner, which included foie gras, steak, and a dessert platter.  All of these courses were paired with a wine.  After that we headed back to the hostel, and spent our last night in Paris.

I can say without a doubt, that this trip with my friends was my favorite trip abroad of all time.  I have been remarkably blessed in my life to have been able to travel and see so many different places.  I believe that these trips have prompted my love for discovering and seeing new places, and have also inspired me to pursue a career where I can travel.  I encourage all of you reading this blog to go see the world in whatever way you can, whether it is visiting different countries halfway around the world, or if it’s just a short car trip to the closest national park.  Wherever you go, I can guarantee that you will see something awesome, and create great memories.  I would like to end this blog by quoting Laozi, the founder of Taoism, who said “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”.  While this is definitely cliche, it is true.  All you have to do is take that first step to start a lifelong journey.