Well, I decided to split my blog entry between the two countries I visited this Christmas break because they were two separate experiences and there is so much to say about both of them that I didn’t want one entry to become a novel. But I warn you, it’s still really long! Paris was my first stop so naturally I will talk about that first. How do I begin with such an amazing city? I visited Paris once before
when I was 12 years old with my family. I can’t remember exactly how long we stayed but we had an intense itinerary to complete and it involved a large part of the country of France so I don’t think we were in Paris longer than four days. I also saw it through a child’s eyes and obviously because of that, I didn’t remember too much.
Everyone asked me, “Are you going alone to Paris?” Well, technically I guess I was but I didn’t think of it that way. You see, I have relatives that live there and ever since I knew I was coming to live in Spain I had the idea to go visit them (for only the second time in my life) while I was in Europe. It happened coincidentally to work out for them and me to come during Christmas. Right here I have to say that if you have any family (no matter how extended) that you don’t really know, you should definitely make an effort to get to know them better. I say this because it was so completely gratifying to really get to know Lily and Serge Sokolowsky and to feel so at home and like family with people I have hardly spent any time with in my life. I’m not saying all extended family will be as great as these two were, but they went above and beyond to make me feel comfortable and to make sure I got a nice, well-rounded taste of the fabulous city of Paris.
I ended up spending most of my 6 days there with Lily, who was like that really cool aunt that everyone wishes they had in their life. She knew the most English so it was her job to do most of the communicating and explaining of the city. Although she didn’t think her English was very good, I told her when you put it into perspective with my learning Spanish and speaking it every day for the past four months, compared to her only learning English in school and not speaking it for about 15 years it was phenomenal how well she did. She was not only very well spoken, but you got to see her hilarious sense of humor, which is also a difficult side to display in a different language. But I swear, I was laughing all the time while I was around her. She has this infectious spirit that makes you want to be around her and be her best friend. So thank you Lily for being so amazing.
OK, onto the touristy stuff: My first evening was nice and calm. Lily came to pick me up from the airport and we checked into my cute little hotel in an area right outside of Paris called Levallois. The hotel was perfect and comfortable and it was nice to have the privacy (no offense roomies). Then I went back to Lily and Serge’s flat where she somehow managed to cook an amazing French dinner in between picking me up and driving me everywhere. Serge automatically began speaking to me in French because when I said hello I had one French phrase memorized (oops). So that was fun. I pretended I understood and just kept sipping on the champagne he had opened hoping something would sound like Spanish every once and a while and waiting for Lily to come translate. Serge actually knows and understands English perfectly but he just doesn’t like to speak it if he can help it. After a lovely dinner complete with Serge’s best French wine and some awesome French cheese I turned in.
The next day, I went with Lily and her niece, Alix, to Musee du quai Branly where we saw a huge exhibition on primitive art. Surprisingly, there was hardly any translation into English. Supposedly, many museums and other public institutions are fading out the use of English always being a second translation. I was actually really surprised in general to see how few people knew much English at all in one of the most touristy cities in the world (thank God I had Lily!). Anyway, the exhibition was great and then we headed to a very French bistro in the middle of the city and had a fabulous lunch. I had some kind of duck dish, which was very characteristic of the French cuisine. It was divine of course. Then we of course had to go to the Eiffel Tower. It was one of the most perfect days to go. The lines weren’t too bad and the day was not too cold and the sky was very blue. So we went up to the second level (Lily was afraid of heights so she really gets a gold star for coming) where you can see the entire city and all the landmarks from an aerial view. I took loads of pictures (which you have probably already seen by now) and really enjoyed doing probably THE MOST touristy thing you can do in Paris. That evening, I went to see the official American Broadway show of West Side Story with Lily and Serge at Theatre du Chatelet. I don’t know how Lily did it, but we ended up being in the second row of the orchestra seats! We were so close I could see every bead of sweat on every actor! The show was amazing, as I knew it would be and the theater was absolutely gorgeous. That was an experience I will never forget.
(Chocolate at the Angelina)
The next day I think I had the most sinful breakfast I will ever have in my entire life. Lily took me to one of the most famous chocolate bakeries called Angelina where they serve basically liquid gourmet chocolate. As Ari would say, I’m pretty sure it has some crack in it. No, it was so good. I also (I’m such a sinner) ate a croissant thing with chocolate in the middle. We took pictures because it was such an elegant, old-fashioned place and it all looked so beautiful. After gaining about 5pounds from one sitting we walked to Jardins du Palais Royal, a beautiful area where there are lots of civil ministries bordering some beautiful fountains and an art exhibition of black and white pillars of different heights springing up from the ground. Later, we walked through the outside of The Louvre (I do remember this one as a child and we really didn’t have time to visit the museum because it was so huge and would take days). We walked through the Jardin du Tuileries, which was huge and had tons of fountains where you could see birds standing on the frozen ice and people just sitting around watching the birds. We finally made our way to Musee de l’Orangerie where they were exhibiting Monet’s water lily project of paintings with every time of day and every shade of light. The paintings were set up in a panoramic perspective. It was beautiful. Then on the bottom floor, there were all kinds of famous paintings by my favorite impressionists. Lily and I began playing a game that she and her cousin originally made up where we got to choose two paintings that we were going to buy from each museum…even if we had to fight over the same one! I of course wanted more than two in this museum but I was happy with my selection. After that we walked around Place Vendôme, where some of the world’s most famous jewelers are set and we gawked in all the windows…also picking out which pieces of jewelry we wanted. Of course I’ll have to go back when I’m rich and really pick a piece out. That’s a goal anyway. After that, we wandered to Place Concorde where the famous ferris wheel sits and where you can see a great perspective of the Champs Elysees. Then we went to eat lunch in a busy and yummy bistro called Café Madeleine. That evening, Lily and Serge’s son Jeremie surprisingly flew in and we all had another fabulous dinner at their home. Jeremie spent a week or so in Houston when I was ten years old and that was the last time we saw each other. When he walked into the flat, the first thing he said was “Wow, you look different.” I would hope so! Anyway, he’s currently living in London working in finance. It was really great to catch up with him.
On Christmas day, Lily took me to the Jewish/gay district of Paris (because of course there would be things open there!). We ate breakfast in a wonderful Jewish deli where I had my first bagel since I had left Texas. It was awesome of course! And mom, I ate a fabulous Napolean there too, even though they don’t call them that in France-they are called Millefeuilles. I thought you would be proud of me eating the infamous pastry once again in France, where my obsession with it all originated. Then we walked around the area, making sure to see some of the synagogues and the Place des Vosges, which is a very luxurious area to live and is known for its beautiful architecture. It was really neat to be surrounded by a Jewish environment all of the sudden in a place that is very much considered a catholic country. Of course, there is nothing like this in Bilbao so I really enjoyed getting a chance to feel Jewish again…even if it was just for a few hours. Then, we went to see the Hotel de Ville, which is Paris’ city hall. It was grand and huge as you can expect. And there was even an ice-skating rink outside of it where you could get a picture perfect image of ice-skaters on Christmas in Paris. Later, we went to an artsy district called Abesses making sure to stop by Moulin Rouge in the Pigalle district (or hot spot area of Paris) to take a few photos. Then we went (or should I say climbed up)Montmartre where the famous cathedral or Basilique du Sacré Cœur sits on top of a mountain where you can see all of Paris. For Christmas, there were quite a lot of people/tourists walking around! From far way, like from the Eiffel Tower, this huge white cathedral looks like some mythological and magical place as its white grandness stands out from the rest of the city. Once you are there, you see how huge it actually is and why it’s such a perfect location to sit. Montmartre is also known for its “starving artists” where everywhere you turn, people are asking to draw or paint your portrait. There was a large square, Place du Tertre, full of paintings (mostly of the city) that were being sold. I actually thought some were quite good. I loved photographing the atmosphere there. Lily and I slowly walked down the hill to a famous area of Abesses where you could find Le Bateau Lavior- known for where the great artists such as Picasso used to have their art studious. Then, we drove to Lily’s parent’s house (Therese and Henri Broun) where Lily’s mother who said she wanted us to come for a small snack ended up making this enormous and delectable Christmas feast complete with a turkey and lots of yummy Jewish food. It was like the Thanksgiving I didn’t get to have! Of course it was delicious and although the plan was to come for about an hour, I believe we were there for at least 5 hours! It was really nice to see them though, and Henri spoke English very well because he worked for the US Army for a while. He still talks about how he worked for the US but never got there and that he missed out on his big chance to become an American. Of course I don’t think it’s so lousy to remain a Parisian! Although I don’t celebrate it per se, it was great being around actual family on Christmas. If I couldn’t be home in Texas, I have to say it was good planning on my part to make sure I was with some sort of family.
(my French family)
The day after Christmas, Lily and I went to one of the most famous museums in Paris (although there are hundreds it seems) called the Musee d’ Orsay. I’m pretty sure I was here as a child too because it’s pretty difficult to forget the amazing architecture of that place. Lily and I saw the Holder exhibit, an interesting Swiss artist who is well known for his landscape paintings. We both really liked it. We also saw a photojournalism exhibit, which I really enjoyed. Then we went to visit some popular districts of Paris such as St. Germain and Jardin du Luxembourg. We walked by the famous Odeon Theatre and window shopped in St. Michel. Later that evening Lily took me to this gypsy horse show called Battuta Zingaro, where real, live gypsies had trained horses to perform with them along with a Turkish band who played along to the show. It was really quite strange but also so entertaining! These men and women would do all sorts of acrobats and dances on top of moving horses. It’s one of those things you have to see for yourself and is really hard to explain, but it was definitely quite a sight to see.
My last day in Paris, Lily and I ate a wonderful brunch in Levallois and then went to Musee du Jeu Paume, where a famous photographer, Steichen, had one of the largest exhibits I have ever seen in my life! It began with his very first photo of his sister when he was a little boy and ended on the second floor with his success as a gallery manager for the MOMA in New York City. I have to say, this man is truly a legend. I know I have seen his work before but never knew him by name. He’s done so many different forms of photography including portraits of the old Hollywood greats as well as fashion photography for Vogue. You name it, he’s probably done it. Anyway, it was intriguing and inspirational and very, very long. Lily had to pull me away because it was time to leave for my flight.
So that’s where Paris ends and England begins. Come back soon to read about the rest of my adventure.
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