La Vie En Rose

I can't hope to describe Paris, so here are some of my favorite snapshots and moments from throughout the trip.

Our first sighting of the Eiffel Tower! We were walking down a side-street when Heidi paused and said (completely deadpan), "Hey guys, I just realized something..." and pointed. I couldn't really believe my eyes. 

An army of brightly colored bears marched on Paris while we were there... This is a display of bears that each represent one country in the world. They lined the park in front of the tower, and were a silent plea to foster international community and understanding for the sake of abused children around the world. Or something like that. It's a really good idea, actually--each bear was unique and showed some different characteristic of the country. 

Even prettier when it lights up. We were investigating a carousel as dusk was falling when it started to glow. 

Café au lait after a long, cold day. This corner café is one of my favorite memories from Paris--my travel buddies and I enjoyed the warmth, laughter,  conversation, and free water (which we haven't had since we left the USA!). 

Doesn't do it justice. It sparkles on the hour, and literally takes your breath away. 

First crépes, with Nutella! Delicious. :)

Fall foliage. Never thought I would miss it this much. These are the gardens by Sacre Coeur, which we meandered through and then climbed the dome to get a view of the city.

This harpist was incredible. Another favorite memory was sitting with Jo and Kate on the steps of Sacre Coeur overlooking the entire city of Paris listening to this man (named Hugo) play "La Vie en Rose."

Angel we met on the way up Sacre Coeur..

View of the Eiffel Tower from the top of Sacre Coeur, complete with gargoyle. Paris is just massive: the sprawl continues in a complete 360, as far as the eye can see!

My travel buddy. :)

Tintin's Detective Thompson meets James Bond in Parisian graffiti. I don't get it either. 

Artists selling their paintings on the street! Loved the atmosphere, but couldn't exactly bring anything home. If I had a million dollars... 

Europe has a thing with bridges and locks (there were locks on the Duomo, on bridges in Switzerland, and on the bridges of Rome, too), but this bridge in Paris (Ponte d'Arte) is famous--couples write their names on a lock and leave it here to symbolize their commitment, and it's absolutely covered. I think it's really sweet, but to keep the real-estate available, they periodically clear the bridges of all the locks. This was the oldest that we found, and it's from 2005.

...apparently I need to find this Marcello character...

Notre Dame! Hearing Vespers sung by a boy choir at sunset was a highlight. 

It's so beautiful, tall, and awe-inspiring. We just sat and took it all in.

Candles in Notre Dame.

I took 1453 photos over fall break, and I think about 300 of them were the Eiffel Tower. It was compulsive photo-taking.

On Sunday morning we worshipped in the American Cathedral, which had Anglican/Episcopalian services in English. It was a beautiful building, and a large community of very welcoming people gathered to worship. The amount of Scripture and beautiful singing by the choir was also really refreshing. I had never worshipped in an Anglican church before--I'd say it was a good and refreshing introduction to a type of church that's fairly different from my own leanings.

The park next to the Eiffel Tower. We tried to estimate how many couples got engaged here. Any guesses? :)

Break-dancers street-performing at the Eiffel Tower. They were good. It reminded me of the troops that perform outside Quincy Market ("White people! Find your rhythm!").

Old boats, Seine, autumn leaves. 

I found myself picking my jaw up off the floor when I first walked in to Sainte Chappelle. It's a relatively small chapel, but all light and glass and vaulted ceiling. 

Another situation that just took some sitting and staring. I didn't want to leave.

River Seine at night... where are my oil paints?!

We were very excited to finally see the Arc de Triumph. 

Arc + Eiffel Tower + Champs Elysee... Is this real life?!

Dawn over Paris, seen our last morning from our hostel window. My camera still didn't capture how orange this was.

Kate and I hoped to explore the Musée D'Orsay, but it was closed when we tried to get in. We were disappointed to miss out on the Impressionist paintings, but were allowed into the Louvre for free! I've always heard that the Louvre is enormous, and, well, it's a little overwhelming. Kate and I wandered and absorbed everything, and just "happened" upon the only room in the entire museum that held some Impressionists. What a gift! This is Renoir's "The Lecture." :)

Monet.... *happy sigh* I've seen this painting in my art room since I was 14 years old. 

...along with this one. :) I was thrilled.

Winged Victory of Samothrace! I've wanted to see this since I was about 12. I was honestly more excited about this than the Mona Lisa. I felt like I was on the Green Line coming home from a Red Sox game when we saw her--it was packed and people were mobbing forward trying to get a picture. It didn't help that the Mona Lisa is so small--the crowd was almost crushing. Winged Victory, however, was in this main hallway that everyone moved through. She needed to be in a big space. 

One of my favorite painters is Georges de la Tour. Most paintings don't portray Jesus' relationship with Joseph, so this was different, and I love the light. I also love the little glowing hand.

I don't remember this one's name or sculptor, but it was sweet and captured a moment. We saw lots of famous paintings that were pretty exciting to see, but I just like the simplicity of this one. 

After the Louvre, we headed to the airport. Au revoir, Paris! I'll be back someday...