Paris

by annie

I took a posh elevator to the 19^th floor of an apartment building a few minutes walk from the Eiffel Tower. My couchsurf host, Rolland, greeted me mid-shower in a towel and shampoo saturated hair, and led me to his grandparents' flat. They were on vacation and I would have the massive apartment to myself for the next two days. When leaning out of the window, I could see the Eiffel Tower, where I met Christine and Jonathan the following afternoon for a picnic. There, it was people-watching at its best as adults and children ran from pigeons, stood in a 2 hour cue for a ride to the top or engaged in long family arguments.

Instead of waiting in line there, we took in views of Paris from the Sacre Coeur. We then visited the Arc de Triomphe, took in some free music in a park and then made our way towards "little India" for fantastic food. The next day, we picnicked and napped in the sprawling gardens of the Versailles Palace. I met my second couchsurf host, Noel, in South Paris and spent the evening on foot, walking to the Luxemburg gardens, the Pantheon and the Latin Quarter.

In the morning, Noel fed me freshly baked croissants and orange juice before taking me around Paris on his vintage Vespa. He taught me how to avoid fares and long lines at monuments- just sneak in the exit! And so we did at Notre Dame and the towers of the Sacre Coeur, before having a drink in the Montmartre neighborhood. We stopped in a sweet cafe, eating a slow meal of salmon and veggies in sesame sauce in the open full length window. I loved watching the world go by in the street as we munched on lunch and tried our best at deep conversation in Noel's second language.

Later that evening, I met up with Christine and Jonathan to relive Indian cuisine perfection. We ate masala dosai, creamy eggplant and curried vegetables before heading to the Seine for a romantic walk (complete with cheap sparkling wine, drunk tourists and rats scurrying in the corners). Seeing the monuments lit at dusk, reflected in the river with dark blue cloudscapes seemed un-improvable... that is, until the Eifel Tower started sparkling.

Other Paris highlights include the Mona Lisa, live accordion music on the subway and seeing Tour de France arrive in Paris on its final day. It's true what everyone says about Paris being romantic and utterly charming. The streets are beautiful, the monuments impressive and the vibe surprisingly slow for a city its size.

Paris

Brian and I recently reunited on a helpx homestead in Normandy. We'll be here another week before going to a helpx site in Brittany. More to follow!

If you missed my Berlin adventures, click HERE.