we left oxford at five to take taxis to london for six, six-thirty at the latest. we got to the international train terminal around six-thirty, and luckily for us, right after we checked in with eurostar, our train was boarding. i slept the entire ride, so unfortunately i have no idea what it was like riding under the channel or anything, but it was definitely a nice surprise to wake up and be in another country. as soon as we stepped off the train i expected to have culture shock, but i didn't. the signs were in french and the people were speaking the language, but thanks to eight years of spanish, i could decipher most everything. and then it happened. beggars. in the form of gypsy women. my experiences with beggars haven't been good since my travel to china three years ago, but luckily these people were less beggars than they were scammers. a lady approached carly, steven, and i with a note saying her father was sick, and they needed money to survive. luckily, i had been warned about gypsies and told her i had no money. however, they wouldn't leave us alone. within the next twenty minutes when we were trying to catch a taxi, i was approached by three other women. one i pretended to speak only japanese too, and the others i just ignored. we finally stood in line beside the station to catch taxis, and it was then the adventure started.
we were dropped off at our hotel, the pullman paris tour eiffel, only to find out our rooms were not ready. we left our stuff with the concierge and started our day of exploration of the city. thankfully i happened to remember that the louvre was closed on tuesday, not monday, so dr. collins changed our itinerary and we decided to go there first. walking was our mode of transportation. we passed so many vendors selling ridiculous toys, however one was hilarious and i would have bought it if we had slowed down. a gypsy man was selling disney characters that had string arms and legs with magnets attached, but somehow the characters danced. this particular day, the music being played was bollywood music, which solely added to the hilarity. we stopped at the eiffel tower, and i was quite surprised for many reasons. first, i never realized what color it was. i had always known it was metal, however it's been painted a light brown color which doesn't show up in photographs. i also had no idea that the city of paris owned the rights to any pictures of the tower taken at night. apparently people were recording the light show, so the city intervened and gained rights to night images. after barry gave his report and got harassed by a gypsy, this time in a gorilla suit, we decided to trek onwards. it was about this time we realized how hungry we really were.
brasserie de la tour eiffel. twelve american dollars for three fried eggs and some lettuce. not to mention we had to buy bottles of water for the table. it was ridiculous, but it was an experience i needed. i have learned that i am capable of eating runny yokes. in fact, i enjoy them more than i enjoy hard yokes. thank you paris for teaching me this. especially for the twelve dollars i paid.
and finally, after a forty-five minute walk from the restaurant. we get there. the louvre. i always underestimated the size of both the building and its surrounding property, but i now appreciate the museum for everything it is. i was completely overwhelmed in the museum, both by the works of art and the heat which did not combine well with my level of dehydration. the major pieces that will forever change the way i view art are the only ones i have the ability to begin to describe. i saw so many great things, works by david, ingres, da vinci, sculpture from the parthenon, egyptian art, but a few pieces will forever stand out in my mind.
nike of samonthrace. yet again, i had poorly judged the size of this sculpture for years. i had imagined it to be monumental in size, but it was barely bigger than life size. its presentation was enough to floor anyone looking at it. the drapery on athena is so detailed and carefully placed it is hard to believe that each fold was carved individually. the power and movement she contains can be felt when looking at her from all angles. the most impressive thing about the statue was how close it actually was. it stood at the top of a staircase leading up the section of teh museum containing both sculpture and european painting. there are no ropes around it nor blockades stopping you from getting close, the only thing stopping one is free will. she is breathtaking, and i doubt any other sculpture will create that impact on my perception.
venus de milo . there's not much to say about this venus besides the fact it was surreal to see one of the most publicly recognized sculptures in person. unlike the nike, she was blockaded off so that no one would harm her. she is more fragile than the nike, but her impact is equally as incredible.
mona lisa. i waited five minutes to break through the crowd and to stand in front of her. she is the piece i've recognized since i was little, and being a fan of the movie ever after, i love leonardo da vinci. she was worth the wait, no matter what any other person may say. yes, she is behind glass. yes, you're like twenty feet away from her. yes, she is protected by glass. and yes, it's one hundred percent as much of a masterpiece as i had always hoped it to be.
hippopotamus. i spent thirty minutes looking for this tiny turquoise piece from middle kingdom egypt. for some reason, i have always been drawn to the work, and to see it in person was an opportunity i refused to pass up. after being told it was on the first floor or one of the others instead of the floor it was really on, i went on a wild goose chase, only to be relieved when i found it. though it is small, barely bigger than my fist, the intricate lotus patterns were something i had hoped to admire in person for some time now, and it has finally happened.
of course other aspects of the louvre were equally as amazing. the i. m. pei pyramid. the apple store. the castle built beneath the museum. but those four pieces were the highlight of my excursion. one i will never forget. after leaving the louvre we went to the hotel and got our rooms. carly and i shared a room, complete with two spectacular views. one of the eiffel tower which was so close it seemed as if you could touch it, and another of a soccer field. complete with shirtless men practicing. it was definitely a nice view either way you looked at it. and the bed. the luxury bed was more than i expected. after a relaxing bath i fell asleep only to wake up at 9:15 to find it completely bright outside. we got ready for dinner at les ombres, and throughout the entire dress, hair, make-up process, the sun never set. finally, around 10:30 we truly got to see paris at night.
les ombres. oh it was quite the experience. it is a five star restaurant atop the bramley museum with a glass ceiling which is directly under the eiffel tower. though my back was turned the opposite way, i could see the lights from the light show dancing across the glass and reflecting on the panes in front of me. then dinner started. they brought us green bean and cream puree with diced dried olives as the garnish. it was a flavor unlike any i've encountered before, but i really enjoyed it. it was creamy, yet light, and the flavor had hints of green beans, but it wasn't overbearing. after this, they brought us bread. though it was cold, it was quite soft inside and was a great contrast to the hard, flaky outside. and then the moment we all had looked forward to. the main course. dr. collins had ordered a bottle of smooth red wine, so i had saved most of my glass until my dinner came. it was incredible. i got paella, a risotto with chorizo, saddle of rabbit, mussels and prawns. though the rice was not as tender as i would have prepared it, the flavors were incredible. i had never had rabbit before, and i was so thrilled by the texture and taste it had. i'm normally not a huge fan of chorizo, but these sausages resembled something more along the lines of pepperonis and had a very sharp flavor about them. i was extremely pleased with my dish, and also with josh's. he asked to try a little bit of rabbit, so he gave me some of his sweetbreads. yet again, i had never had a sweetbread, but it was so tender it completely melted in my mouth. the flavor was, again, to die for, and i was extremely happy to have tried it. after dinner they brought us a small sampler of bite size pound cakes, strawberry jellies which barry and josh said were virtually passover candies, and strawberry macarones. after the long meal and exhausting day, i got back to the room and fell right to sleep.
paris so far.
eiffel tower.
view from the louvre courtyard.
arch outside the louvre.
i. m. pei's glass pyramid.
the nike of samonthrace.
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