Well, obviously I wasn't able to keep up with blogging while I was in Paris, but that's because I was so busy having a great time! It is a challenge though- writing more regularly is something I want to become a permanent fixture in my life, but I also find that it's a very time consuming event for me- not because I struggle to write, but because I find that once I start, I always want to write so much!
In any case, because so much happened in Paris, I'll only make a relatively brief recap of my week there in this post, perhaps almost bullet-point in format with a couple of more detailed anecdotes at the end. I think I'll likely write another blog post sometime soon, maybe later today or tomorrow, that will be about general reflections on my adventure and the lessons I've learned as a conclusion to this particular blog; but this entry will strictly serve as a journal record of what I did.
I left off with doing my laundry near my hostel in Montmartre on Monday around noon. After that I spent most of the rest of the day exploring the neighborhood on foot- starting with walking up the steps to Sacre Coeur Cathedral, just on the opposite side of my building. Unfortunately it was extremely rainy, cold, and perhaps worst of all, windy, so I ended up having to buy a poncho rather than an umbrella to be able to be outside at all. While I loved Paris, the truth is that the weather was pretty damn miserable the whole time I was there. Anyway, I climbed the steps to Sacre Coeur, and despite the thick clouds, the view was still pretty incredible. I went inside the cathedral (mostly to warm up, but also to take in the architecture and stained glass) and I distinctly felt like some kind of pilgrim from the middle ages- having traveled far, climbed the steps in the rain, and wearing a poncho, haha. Of course, the cathedral wasn't actually around in the middle ages, having been built in the 1800's as something of a French nationalist monument more than a religious institution, but I had that feeling all the same. It was definitely peaceful and quiet in the chapel, but I have to admit that at this point, despite how much time in my life I was a devoted Christian, I now find much of the dogma of Christianity and its associated art to be pretty weird/disturbing.
I spent lots of time wandering around little back alleys, and eventually found a restaurant that looked like the right vibe for me near the Theatre de l'Atelier just down the street from my hostel, and had some delicious lamb soup poured over couscous and vegetables. Eating great food, from street food to nice restaurants and everything in between, was definitely a fixture of my time in Paris.
I think at that point I was so wet and cold that I ended up just going back to the hostel for a bit to dry off and make some plans for what I could do to enjoy Paris in the rain. Meanwhile a new roommate showed up, who was an Irish guy with what seemed like a pretty severe condition of Asperger's, who was able to offer me some good advice about finding independent movie theaters here in Paris as he apparently came here quite regularly. Eventually I set off again, walking along Boulevard de Rochechouart towards a cinema near Place du Clichy. My path took me along the biggest red-light district that I've ever personally seen in my life- every other store was some kind of sex shop, strip club, or even a museum of eroticism! I actually wanted to check out the museum, but never ended up being able to make time for it; maybe one day I'll get back and check it out. My walk also took me past the world famous Moulin Rouge, though again, I didn't get to go :-/ It was interesting to me however how all of the sex-related shops and businesses would be right next door to totally "normal" businesses and no one seemed to be bothered by what feels like contrast to an American such as myself- it really didn't seem like people avoided eating at restaurants with a sex shop on one side and a strip club on the other- it's just taken for granted in that area.
I saw a new French movie (entirely in French, without subtitles) called "Exchange of the Princesses" which was about the arranged marriages of King Louis XV of France and the son of Philip V of Spain, where basically the already interrelated families agreed to swap female relatives to be brides for the other, in order to secure an alliance and prevent war between the two nations- but the nature of the arranged marriage can be much more complicated than "arranged" would make it sound, and ultimately both marriages failed. The movie actually focuses at least equally if not more so on the princesses exchanged as it does the male royals, and was really quite good, particularly if you have an interest in the history of that period. I enjoyed it, but it was also useful for me as an opportunity early in my trip to just sit listening to complex French sentences being spoke for two hours, helping ramp up my ability to converse for myself.
I accidentally took the wrong way back to my hostel afterwards, and ended up walking around through the cemetery of Montmartre in the dark, which was pretty cool. I finally made it back to the hostel though, and went right to sleep.
On Tuesday I was a bit delayed leaving the hostel which I found frustrating, as the Irish guy decided to take two (2), very long showers, despite the fact he had taken one the night before as well. This sadly wasted some of the short period of cloudless sky that was available that morning before Paris returned to extremely cold rain and harsh wind, but there was just enough sunlight left by the time I got out the door to climb the steps to Sacre Coeur once more to see the city of Paris from that vantage point much more clearly. As usual, I enjoyed delicious crepes and coffees and wines as I wandered around, but primarily that afternoon I went to the Museum of Montmartre which showcases some art, but is primarily an art history museum, going into detail about the lives of the many famous artists who came to live in Montmarte for a long period in the second half of the 1800's and came to be known as "The Paris School". Definitely cool to be in the same places as people like Degas or Renoir or Utrillo or Picasso or Hemingway or.....
I made my way downtown and got more food near Point Neuf, shopped for some traditional souvenirs, and walked around the Louvre (but it was closed that day being Tuesday- in Paris things are just closed on random days, you really need to check in advance as to whether places will be open) and then walked through the Tuileries along the Seine, crossed the bridge of Leopold Senghor where I locked a padlock "carrying my secret" to the bridge, and then tossed the keys into the river- forever keeping my secret. I admired the statue of Thomas Jefferson on the south side of the bridge, and then briefly wandered through the Musee d'Orsay looking at some great art, before I needed to hurry over to the Hotel de Ville neighborhood downtown to meetup with a friend.
Jade, who is originally from Chartres in France, and I met while she was studying at San Diego State University, where we had some classes together and attended meetings of the ISCOR Student Society together- eventually working together on a big class project and getting to know each other pretty well. When she graduated from SDSU we promised to keep in touch, so as soon as I knew that I was going to Paris I let her know that I would be coming to her beautiful country, and fortunately for me she's living in Paris now, so we made plans to get together for dinner and drinks. We had to wander around for a while to find a bar, and then later a restaurant that we liked, but we did, and we ended up having a great time talking the night away with topics like politics, religion, life ambitions, and of course comparisons of French and American culture.
When I got back to the hostel, I had a new crew of roommates, three really awesome guys from Argentina who would be my roommates for the rest of my stay there, and so I ended up staying up quite late chatting with these guys, comparing notes of our travels and talking about a wide range of issues, but ultimately not getting to bed until late- which was rough as...
Wednesday was my Louvre day- it's the only day of the week that it's open all day long, so I planned to spend all day there, knowing that I really couldn't afford to do another day there not having been able to enter on Tuesday. So I woke up early, rushed downtown, and then from the moment the doors opened until after the museum was closed, I spent the day inside- more than 13 hours worth, with only two 30-minute breaks for food and getting off my feet. Somewhat grueling, but totally worth it as I saw A LOT of really awesome art that I loved. In fact, I feel quite privileged to say that I am confident that I truly saw at least 85% of all the art they have on display there, and perhaps even as much as 90%; which I believe is quite a feat for anyone in general, let alone to accomplish it in a single day. I was very thorough, and went into every single gallery. The only things that I walked quickly by were some of the large collections of small artifacts- silverware, jewelry, etc. and likewise (but to a lesser degree) the "objects d'art" sections that showed off what the Louvre was like as a palace (primarily for Napoleon III). When I got out it was quite late and I was quite tired, so I think I just got some kebab for dinner (there's great Turkish kebab everywhere) and went to sleep.
Thursday I was determined to see the Musee de l'Armee on the recommendation that Jade had given me, but I was also in pretty bad shape in terms of my back, legs, and feet. I have an old back injury that I got in Afghanistan which I subsequently re-injured quite seriously a couple more times within a year of the original injury, which means that I suffer from pretty bad sciatica, and even just standing for long periods of time can be pretty painful for me, let alone all the walking I've been doing on my trip in general, let alone walking as much as I did in the Louvre the day before. I decided to get a massage to help me manage the pain, which was great as it definitely helped significantly, though it also wasn't cheap :-/
After the massage I worked my way from Eglise St. Germain des Pres over to Notre Dame, where I ate crepes out front, and then walked around the inside. It was alright, but nothing super special to be honest- very similar to what it was like walking around at Sacre Coeur. Not wanting to waste any more time, I decided I needed to get to the Musee de l'Armee.
I worked my way over to Les Invalides which is where the Museum of the Army is, as well as being the site of Napoleon I's tomb, which I specifically wanted to visit. Unfortunately, by the time I got there, there wasn't a lot of time left before the museum closed, so I was in quite a rush there. I dedicated a lot of time to examining the cannon and artillery collection that they have there, as I've recently developed something of a micro-fascination with better understanding military strategy and logistics from the 14th Century to the 19th Century, and then tried to hurry through their exhibit covering the evolution of French military affairs from the Bourbons to the foundation of the 3rd Republic- but it was difficult to rush through as I was SUPER interested in everything there, and they did an exceptional job of presenting it all. Sadly this meant that not only did I not finish that exhibit, but I also was unable to visit Napoleon's tomb. I'll just have to go back. They did keep the gift shop open a little longer than the museum though, and so I bought an awesome set of hardcover comic books that tells the story of Napoleon's life (in French) that I'm very much looking forward to reading- for the benefit to my French skills, for learning more about the history of the Napoleonic era, and because it just looks like a fun read with great art!
From Les Invalides I walked towards the Champ du Mars, found a restaurant along the way where I had a great gin cocktail and more delicious French gourmet cooking, while also talking a little bit with my waiter, as my French speaking skills had definitely significantly improved by this point. After dinner I walked the rest of the way to the Eiffel Tower, where I was somewhat mad to discover that the top was just straight up closed. I was able at least to get tickets to the 2nd level, which is the highest level that's not the top, so I went up. The view was stunning, even from just that 2nd level, but unfortunately it was extremely difficult to be up there because the wind and rain was just MISERABLE. I forced myself to stick it out as long as I could to see as much of the pretty view of the city at night as I could manage; but eventually it was just too much to stay out there risking hypothermia, so I caught the metro back towards Saint Michel (near Notre Dame) where I met up with Jade again, and we found a cool Irish pub to hang out in, talking our way late into the night again.
Friday morning I packed up my bags and checked out of the hostel, keeping my bags in their storage room while I rushed out in an attempt to see l'Arc de Triomphe, again on the recommendation of Jade. Fortunately the weather happened to be clear while I was there, but it was still quite cold and windy. Nonetheless, I was quite impressed with the patriotism of the monument, and quite impressed with the great views afforded from the terrace on the top of the monument- from La Defense on one side, to the Louvre on the other side, and everything at every other point of the compass, near and far. I soaked in this last bit of Paris I could enjoy.
I rushed back to the hostel, grabbed my bags, rushed to the metro, and got to the airport as quickly as I could. As I approached the Norwegian Airlines check-in area, I knew that I was cutting it close (a little too close), but I also knew that my flight had been delayed by half an hour, and so I thought I should be okay. Then as I approached the desk, an employee approached me while I was still in line asking me in English "You must be headed to New York, right sir?" to which I replied, "No, Los Angeles." and immediately there was a look of concern on her face. "Oh no," she said, "I think it's too late." She rushed me to a counter, where I explained that I could run if I had to, but I had to catch this flight. The agent there argued with me quite a bit saying that the flight was already "closed", leading me to believe that the doors to the airplane were in fact closed, and that the plane would soon pull away from the jetway. I couldn't believe it. I again insisted that I could be fast, and was told no. I asked them so what am I to do then? I was told that I needed to call Norwegian to deal with it. I asked why do I need to call? Is there not some agent I can speak to here AT THE AIRPORT? Was the person I was talking to not that very agent that I would need to talk to? Finally he relented and got on his radio to inquire about the status of my flight. After he got an answer he told me to put my bag on the conveyor belt quickly, and handed me my boarding pass, telling me that I would have to run. I asked him which way, he said two floors up and then up the ramp from there, and I was off.
I sprinted through Charles deGaulle Airport at breakneck speed, up the escalators, up the stairs, up the ramp, along the moving sidewalk, finally arriving at security where I got through in a couple minutes, and then ran directly for my gate. There was a huge crowd of people around my gate that I assumed were for the next flight to depart from this gate, and so I pushed past all of them to run up to the gate agent exclaiming that I was Nicholas Campbell, headed for Los Angeles! I assumed that they would be specifically waiting on me, that I would be the very last person on the plane, that the plane was literally being held up on my account.
Instead, she looked at me like I was crazy. I again repeated that I was going to Los Angeles. She gave me a look like "are you stupid or something?" and waved her hand all around at all of the passengers near the gate and said, "Yeah, we all are waiting to go to Los Angeles. You can get in line if you'd like." Pretty irritating. Like, why did the check-in agent give me so much trouble about getting on the flight, specifically telling me that I had to run, if the plane wasn't even going to begin boarding for another hour, and then not finish boarding until an hour after that? Really irritating. I played a little piano in the gate waiting area on a piano available to the public while I waited, poked around in the duty free shop for some cheese and wine to take home, and finally boarded.
The flight was pretty uneventful, though not exactly great. I was wedged between a couple French guys, one of whom kept farting the whole flight, and the other didn't seem to understand the basic Jim Jefferies rule of jetiquette: "Window gets an armrest and a wall, middle gets two armrests, aisle gets an armrest and a little bit of extra legroom". But it was not the worst flight I've ever been on, by a long shot. I stayed awake the whole time by watching a bunch of movies, with the intention of just being really tired come night time in California, so I could forego the jetlag. Fortunately when I arrived, my good friend Kylie was there to pick me up, and before long we were on our way!
We stopped for a while at my friend Josh's house to talk about how my trip went, and then got back on the road around 11pm, and I finally fell asleep in the car for an hour or so, and we arrived in San Diego around 0230h on the 20th. My roommate Nick woke up when we arrived, so I briefly checked in with him (as he was going to take off camping for the weekend in a few hours) and then after getting Kylie settled in on the couch downstairs, finally got some real sleep.
That's the conclusion of my travels for January 12,018 but there's lots more to think about in terms of what I learned, how I felt, and how the experience of travelling by myself might have changed me, so I expect I'll write another final blog entry sometime soon to be the actual conclusion of this blog. If you've made it this far, not only today, but through all of my other entries, thanks for coming along for the ride! I hope you've enjoyed reading it all so far!
Reminder that you can find all of the pictures I took while abroad in this folder: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=1ON9TolPIyHUFh0kqSZ7uZju4URhKw1nQ