What is Paris? What is Paris? Paris is a city that everyone says the most beautiful city in the world! Paris is a city that everyone responds like "Wow!!!" when told that you will be going there for vacation! Paris is the greatest city in the world! There are two places in the world -Paris and Hawaii that probably never are questioned for being the greatest places to be. Oh, Paris, Paris.... what can I say! You are just so hot and great! Interestingly, ever since I came back from Paris till this moment I'm writing down this journal, all I can remember about Paris is the lazy, slow and classic song "oh.... Champ Elysee..... oh..... Champ Elysee...". That's all for me about the city.
Maybe because I'm a sort of critical traveler and sometimes a rebellious thinker, I went to Paris with a subconscious intention to validate the common statement? I don't know what it is. What I can say, the entire time (one week) I was in Paris, I had an "uneasy" feeling about this city.
The first meal I had in Paris included 2 skinny crepes stuffed with melt cheese and mushroom priced at 10 euro and a small bottle of sping water priced at 5.50 euro, served after 15 minutes wait at the outside cafe and a couple of signal requests by a French waiter who was running to drop off the menu and running to put down the order and tuck a bill beneath of the menu and running away. After the meal, in order not to sit around till mid-night before we were finally noticed, we had to get the waiter back to pick up the money. Of course, he ran to pick up the money and ran away not even taking a look at us. Actually I don't even think he ever looked at us. That turns out a very typical meal and service I've got during the entire stay. French (or I should say Parisian) give you anything as great as you can imagine like Musee Louvre, Seine river, Eiffel tower etc. but their tiny bit of attention!
Yes, I did all a typical traveler would do,go and see. I got up early in the morning and came back at night, running all over the touristy areas of the city, planning out the daily destinations and marking off them at the end of day. I brought back an extremely wrinkled and broken map with all the circles and "cross" marks that indicate that I've been there and seen that and I'm done! Except for all the touristy rush, I did have some great moments when I was strolling along Seine river in the mornings, I enjoy being there not just getting there.
One bonus that's worth mentioning from the trip is that I met a girl named Elysee from the BVJ hostel where I stayed. A girl that's unbelievably like me. Surprisingly, she's not a Leon.
I decided not to buy anything in Paris. It's not because I can't effort (I guess I can still afford something if I really want to). I simply can't or am too scared to open the heavy doors to those elegant boutique shops. This is what I did. I window shopped and saw myself through the window and thought about this: oh, my Gosh, look at me, do I look really fatty, plain, messy and I smell stink? Then I was standing in front of the window, staring at a piece of stylish jewelry, scarf or whatever in the window. Then instantly I noticed ( I noticed this all the time) a slim and georgeous French woman passed by in the elegant black stockings, black coat and black boots with a cigarette between her fingers. My eyes followed her all the way till she disappeared. The next thing I did is to run, run away as fast as possible. Ran back to my humble hostel, I was obsessed with the idea how to transform myself to a Parisian? Maybe I need to get myself some black stockings and boots and starve myself for next a few days to be able to lose 2 pounds before I leave? Oh, I need to hurry up to learn to smoke!
I finally ran out of the spell on the day I left Paris. After the last drama in the train station where the ticket office French woman refused to sell me a ticket worth 8 euro for 10 euro I handed to her because she doesn't have any changes, I finally hopped to the plane. With the spell fading away and knowing that I'm on my way to home, I was so relieved and realized how much I missed my home in California.
I brought home with me two things: a broken and wrinkled Paris map and the memory of the "Champ Elysee" song I overheard at a little cafe while I was strolling through the "Monmartre". The relaxing and beautiful rhythm and an old avid violinist and a pretty French waitress smiling face remain the best of the trip in my memory!
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