Paris

Woke up in spectacular fashion today.
I heard some rummaging in the room and felt the air move close my face. I opened my eyes to see Thijs’ face, hovering an inch above mine. With a devilish grin he softly spoke: “Boo!”, terrifying me to my very core.

I tell you, that kid is evil. Spawn of Satan for sure…

Wide awake at least, I quickly collected my belongings and packed my bag. Even though the early morning adrenaline helped kick-start my day, I felt I could definitely have used a couple more hours of sleep. Really wanting to finish yesterdays entry, I crawled into my sleeping bag sometime around 0200 AM, leaving me with a mere 5 hours before we had to get ready again.

I cooked the guys breakfast, but still a bit shaken up I burned the bottom of the pot of oatmeal. Gino, had now joined us for breakfast and took it as a good sport, telling me not to worry about it, and he would fix the mess later. Fortunately the oats were still edible. After breakfast we said our good-byes, and headed outside.

It really was great to see Gino again, and if it’s up to me I’ll definitely come visit again this year. Can already look forward to some hiking in the spring/summer time. For now:
Bye-Bye Grenoble, Hello Paris!

Thijs and I walked over to the train-station, got coffee and pastries and got comfy in our seats. For a small fee we were able to upgrade to first class, and it was well worth it. The chairs were incredibly soft and very well suited for napping. I felt a relieve knowing I would be able to catch up on some of last nights sleep I had missed out on.

Heading straight to Thijs’ apartment to drop our bags, we took a short trip on the metro. He showed me around the premises of the Cite Internationale Universitaire de Paris, on which students and PhD-participants are housed. The impressive architecture of the mansion-like buildings, erected in the early nineteen hundreds, emanated a sense of ancient wisdom and history. I looked across the courtyard from Thijs’ little balcony, observing the impressive features of the adjacent buildings. We truly are in Paris alright – I thought, feeling in my element.

Thijs and I discussed the itinerary for the afternoon.
Paris in a day. What to do…?

I proposed we’d just stroll around without a specific plan, as I never mind a little walking. Thijs agreed, but suggested the general direction and start-point of our walking-tour and just take it from there. So we found ourselves going sub-zero again, and getting out at metro-stop St. Michel – Notre Dame.

It truly was a lovely afternoon, and I just let the energy of this marvellous city fill me up. There’s something about the immense buildings and large open spaces in Paris, that works very well for me. The endless views along the Seine beneath a soft winter-sun has such a strong feeling of openness to it. Just being there, immersed, I felt it charge my internal battery. Walking around, chatting amicably with my close friend, I was grateful to be there, so very in the moment.

We nipped into a cafe for a quick caffeine-fix, and I enjoyed watching Thijs orate about things that matter.

Our bellies rumbling now, and we found a nearby etablissement where we enjoyed a wonderful dish of volaille and potato mash, with rice pudding for desert. Satisfied we continued our stroll along the Seine until we got close to the Eiffel-tower.

Friendly declining the market-salesmen trying to sell us merchandise, mostly miniature versions of the Eiffel-tower, we discussed that the majority of these one-man-ventures were simply covers for attempts at selling drugs to tourists. And sure enough, within in minutes of passing more of these lads, we heard one of them whisper underneath his breath the variety of narcotics he had to offer. Smiling politely we just walked on.

Slowly the afternoon turned evening, the dusk slowly setting in. We thought out loud about how we would give shape to the remainder of the evening. Time for a new plan, and time for a quick refreshment in a pub Thijs remembered from a while ago. I was craving hamburgers, and googled top 10 burger-joints in Paris. We settled on Baagaa, which seemed like a solid hipster-proof place several metro-stops away.

The hamburgers were good, but the busy day full of impressions had not left us entirely untouched. We both thought it nice to grab some snacks and just kick back at the apartment. I felt like I had checked all the boxes I wanted anyway.

Fervently typing away, I tried to put my experience about today into words. I questioned them out loud, what it was I felt. Instantly Thijs answered me so very succinct:

“It’s like being totally in tune with the city”.

Today I really was.
A wonderful day in Paris.
And I loved every minute of it.

Move with me now
Move with me now, I’m calling you out, ooh
Balance me out
Balance me out

Move with me now
Move with me now, ooh
Balance me out
Balance me out

Buy me all the things a girl could want in Paris
Did I ever give you more than you could manage?
Give me everything that you want to forget
By the time you changed your mind I would have left

Paris – Fickle Friends