La Vie En Rose

Arc de Triomphe (Personal Photo)

Paris. It is La Ville Lumière, a rose-coloured dream of monuments and history-saturated streets, a city I had envisioned visiting of since I first said bonjour in fourth grade, a city I had begged to visit for years. Family discussions of this nature often went like this:

Parents: Laura, where would you like to go for vacation this year?

Me: Paris!

Parents: Where within driving distance*?

*Side note: Florida counts as “within driving distance”: it takes about twenty-two hours including gas and coffee breaks, but we’ve done it... and without changing drivers – my Dad drives it all!

When I signed on that crazy ride to spend a year abroad in Nice, France, the first destination on my list of “Places to See” was Paris... Oddly, it was only in January that I visited the city. Italy, The Netherlands, Spain and Germany squished in before it.

As such, the moment I set the TGV train to go to Paris for the first time, so many butterflies filled my stomach that I thought I would float off the ground, suitcase. When I popped into Paris from Germany and saw the Sacré-Coeur Basilica, that was not Paris. That was a tidbit, a teaser—to say that I visited Paris for the first time on my previous trip would be like saying you experienced a fine red wine after but inhaling the bouquet.

Sunset at the Eiffel Tower (Personal Photo)

I would be staying with family in a small town twenty kilometres from the city centre—family I had never met, and whom my parents had not seen for many years. I hoped that they would like me. My parents assured me that I would be fine. When I arrived at the Gare de Lyon after a five-hour train ride, I made a beeline for my uncle’s workplace at the other end of the city, where we had agreed to met, so that I could drop off my bags and determine how the rest of my afternoon would go.

I planned an ambitious but achievable loop that would start and finish with the Eiffel Tower. First, in daylight, and then at sunset. When I first saw the Eiffel Tower, I thought to myself, I am in Paris! I really am in Paris! I blinked, but it didn’t go away. After asking a young couple to take my photo, I power-walked to the Arc de Triomphe, where I climbed up to the very top up a dizzying spiral staircase to a lovely view of the. Absolutely free, I might add, because I had proof that I was a resident as opposed to simply a tourist. It would not be the only place my wallet would be spared.

After walking down the Champs-Élysées and across the Seine, I dashed into the Hôtel des Invalides (also free for me) before closing time to see Napoleon’s tomb. From there, I returned to the Eiffel Tower. My mind lurched at the line for the elevator, the expected wait time 45 minutes. That long, and I’d miss the sunset. Another sign said that the very top was closed: the second level was as high as you could go. 

The Eiffel Tower at night (Personal Photo)

Glancing at the one person in line for the stairs—and the half-price ticket—I braved the 700+ steps. I have no idea how I did it, especially after having already climbed the Arc de Triomphe, but I made it in time for a gorgeous sunset. The tower lit up while I was on it, and by the time I got back down, it was sparkling. However... I was a bit behind schedule!

As I was running back, on the other side of the Eiffel Tower... I happened to bump into the very same couple that had taken my photo earlier. With my silver fedora, I must have been memorable, for they recognised me before I recognised them! We were walking in the same direction, so I told them how to get to the Arc de Triomphe before sprinting back to my uncle’s workplace. My timing was perfect.

Dinner was spectacular. Lamb chops with vegetables and a red wine as old as I was! After sipping a tisane (an herbal infusion — technically not tea), meeting their cat Leo, and Skyping my parents, I tucked it in for the night. Snuggled in a real bed, belly still warm from the home-cooked meal, and mind fluttering with the afternoon’s adventure and the following day’s promises, I drifted off.