Ooh I'm sure you've been waiting on the edge of your seats for my Paris entry and wondering why the heck I haven't posted it yet. Well in all fairness now (geez I'm starting to sound like my Irish roommates) I've been finishing up with papers and working on my Russian homework and spending some quality time with my Irish roommates. That and the internet as usual is blah for the lack of a better word. Though on the weekends I can get more things done since the 'peak times' don't really have anyone on it other than the international students. And it makes it great for calling home since I can go uninterrupted at least for about 4-5 min instead of every 20 seconds.
Paris was a very tiring trip but it was well worth it. I was very excited to go even though I know no more French than do you speak english or hi how are you and this is great. And what French I did know from 8th grade has long since been expunged from my brain attic. I think I found myself on more than on occasion asking people things in Russian without really realizing it. Of course they stood there looking at me like I had lost my marbles until I realized what I was doing. Then I proceeded to ask directions via miming by pointing to things on a map if they didn't really know French. However a good number of people know enough English in France to give you a hand from time to time. Someone once told me it had something to do with the fact that America is a world power. I just figured since we sort of were war buddies back in the Revolution some still knew French via that. Though that's the historian in me. I'm not much for analyzing politics unless it's from more of a historical impact perspective. I just hate all the cattiness of it all these days. So I think I can be a bit proud that on a whim if I needed my Russian convo skills to ask for things I could survive in Russia. Yes I underestimated my capability of that, but cut me some slack Russian is my second language I do better at writing and reading than I do speaking I like having time to gather my thoughts. Though it was quite funny when I asked one man where the metro station was in Russian since Metro sounds the same he got what I was saying so he pointed to the sign for me. I felt like the robot from a Russian cartoon I watched asking people where the metro was.
I had not really been on a metro before Paris. Sure I went on the Metra into Chicago but only about twice and never just on my own it was usually with teachers or family so I never had to try and figure the thing out myself. Out in Hampshire IL there isn't any metro you have to go to a town about 30 min away to get a metro stop to take you into Chicago. So I've always had to drive myself everywhere. I did find the Paris metro to be very useful, my roommate and I used it quite frequently to get from the bus station to the heart of Paris and out into the country for Euro Disney. Yes I went to Disneyland Paris so sue me for indulging the child in me. I know it's a large cash cow but I grew up with Disney and it holds a special place in my heart and deserves to come out every so often. I had been to the Disney World in Florida before but this time I got to choose where I wanted to go and what to do. It was very exciting and I got to be Indiana Jones for the day, ride the tea cups, listen to Halloween music and see plays in French and English about the Disney villains and I got to meet the French Mary Poppins and Bert!
Besides that I also went to the Notre Dame-I figured what the 3rd time is the charm I can go through the doors of a sacred place before someone decides to shoot me down with fire and brimstone and all that jazz because I don't really go to church. Occasionally yes but I'm more of a spiritual person and do things in my own lax Methodist way. That and I was sort of waiting to get shot down since I'm not baptized. Do I really believe this? No but it's sort of a funny thing you think about as you walk through the door waiting to see if anyone figures it out. Makes it even more amusing when you walk past a monk or a bishop or priest and they don't know the difference. Now if I was around a generation or so earlier I would've been considered some hysteric woman who needed saving. So I survived just like Catholicism did after the Cromwell invasion in Ireland. Anywho, the Notre Dame is massive inside and out and if you ever thought that most Cathedrals were hideous or just boring this one isn't. If there isn't any neat marble statue staring at you or wood carvings from the early days of Christianity there is always the hand made mosaic stain glass windows. In a separate room off to the side is where all of the fancy gold relics are kept. I can't imagine how long someone had to work on such intricate designs of goblets or crosses or containers for the communion. And then there is also the stunning needlework of bishop robes no longer being used. The Church then definitely was up on their looks. I have realized that at this point in time I really should have learned Latin because it would have helped a great deal in understanding the mass that was going on. And read any of the signs posted around though I had deduced that they were telling me to be quiet since mass was going on. Old iron chandeliers hung from the ceiling but these didn't hold candles they were run by electricity. I'm sure the people sitting under it appreciated the fact that hot wax wasn't dripping on them burning them to the point they felt like yelling out for all to hear and echo within the chamber walls. The stone carvings above the front door were very lifelike and I wondered how someone managed to do all of that. I would need one of those calibrated machines with auto cad to get that type of precision if I ever had to carve that. It was interesting to hear some soft music playing in the background-it's sort of that music you'd hear if you were wanting more of an imposing religion effect to it. It's hard to describe but hopefully you'll get the point.
I also spent about 4-5 hours in the Louvre in one wing and I didn't even get through all of it. The museum there is so massive I think someone said if you spent 1-2 min at each thing it would take you over 4 years to get through the whole thing. I don't doubt it since in 4-5 hours I barely covered half of one wing and there was about 4-5 wings. The Roman sculptures were really interesting to see though most people were walking right up and man handling the poor things. If you even get within so many inches or feet of a object like that in say Chicago museums an alarm goes off. In Paris-no one really gives a rip, the security guards are usually sitting in chairs texting each other of who is the most touristy looking person in the room. Or how bored out of their minds they are at staring at the same statue for a few hours. I saw paintings that were bigger than my living room at home, I saw paintings by the masters and ones that are older than I really felt like counting and all sorts of silver from different time periods. I also saw a wing dedicated to the Egyptians and some Greek things but they were re doing the Greek wing so I had to stuff my face between some bars to see inside.
We then went wandering the streets into the Latin Quarter and explored some shops and past vendors on the street, ate really good fresh pizza and went wandering some more until we ended back at the hotel and rested a bit until dinner at a cafe next door. The next day we went to Disney and on Sunday before we left we went to the Arch and the Eiffel Tower-but couldn't go up the lines were too long. After wandering around in a green park we then headed to the bus station got on the bus to the airport and landed in Shannon in time for the last bus to Galway.
Did I learn any French? Not really. I can say hello really well and thank you and ask how someone is in a good French accent but otherwise forget it because I ended up getting a massive pat down in airport security with an airport with 4 gates in Paris since security was talking too fast for me to understand or attempt to hear what he was saying. Then he dropped my Garda Immigration card into the scanner machine and I thought I lost it and freaked because that was my ticket back into Ireland without it I was going to get deported or have to spend over 300 euro for a new one. One of the security women came over and gave it to me I thanked her and she apologized for it getting dropped into the side of the machine. Note to self don't ever go somewhere without knowing more than hello in the language or if they speak English. Good lord I felt like a stupid touristy American. Probably didn't help I was carrying around a pet golfball. Did I care much? Not really I just was thinking to myself at least I realize how much of a crazy American I look like and stood there laughing out loud at myself while trying to sound out the name of a stop on the metro map.
I was glad when I got back to Shannon if only because as much of an American I am they still accept me as one of their own. In Paris I was one of the subjects of the security's lunch break. Overall I enjoyed it though I wouldn't really care to live in Paris-I can't walk in high heels and a mini skirt and a fur coat and pull off looking really amazing. I'm not that into fashion though it is a puzzling thing how someone thinks one thing is going to be the best outfit ever. Sure I try to not look like it's clash day but I really don't see how anyone can afford a 300 euro skirt. On the other hand the city was very pretty and it was nice to wander around see the sights eat the food and drink the wine though it's very dry for my taste. I think it's one of those acquired tastes like vegetables some you'd never touch as a kid but as an adult they're really good.
So that's my Paris trip and below are some photo links-some of the uploads were one or two photos so there is a few links since that's all the internet could handle. Sorry. Soon I will post up something on my next adventure. For now I'm going to bed.
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