| le 29 septembre | |
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Paris! I am so glad to be back here. We just got here this afternoon, but I've already done a bunch of stuff - I went to the Museum of Advertising, went shopping, and poked around the FIAP, where we're staying. In the elevator I met a nice guy from Limoges who trains seeing-eye dogs! I talked to him for an hour; he was really interesting. Paris is the only city in the world where I feel comfortable. Since I got off the train, I've felt energized and ready to explore. I'm gonna fill up my time as much as possible so I can really take advantage of my stay here. | |
| le 30 septembre | |
 Today we took a tour of some covered walkways. It was a really constructive visit; these passages really preserve the atmosphere of another era in Paris. This ambiance particularly touched me because I'm reading Zola's Nana right now. Sometimes it's hard to imagine a city like it was a long time ago, but under the glass roofs of the galleries we visited today, the past is still breathing.After such a sunny visit this morning to Paris' lively past, this afternoon's visit fell a little heavily on my spirits. We went underground to the catacombs, an old quarry become resting place for the remains of about six million Parisians. I can't even imagine the enormity of the work that it must have taken to construct and fill those catacombs. And didn't I say I'd load my schedule as much as possible? After the visit to the catacombs, I went shopping again, returned to the hotel for a Dickinson family dinner, and then we all went together for a bateau mouche ride! Here we are on the banks of the Seine:
 
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| le 1er octobre | |
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I have never seen Paris in the morning like today. Erin and I left the hotel early to take advantage of the morning by visiting two museums before lunch. The area around the Louvre was so animated this morning, but not with the tourist groups everyone's used to seeing there. I had already been to the Louvre and the Musée d'Orsay, but I still would have liked a full day to visit each one. Maybe another time I'll have the chance.
 Erin leaning on the Louvre pyramid Then this afternoon we went to Versailles. I visited the inside of the château for the first time. What extravagance! It's unbelievable that someone could build such a confection - the magnificence of the château is just the beginning, because afterwards there are hundres of acres of garden and park to see - just to please himself and to declare his own glory. However, I wouldn't have liked to be Louis XIV or any of his successors; they didn't have any private life. Everything was public: they got up in front of spectators and went through an interminable series of ceremonies all day long. Even the process of going to bed entailed a ceremony. Be a monarch? No, thanks.
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| le 2 octobre | |
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Too much to tell about this elongated day. This morning: the Marais, some great tea, some purchases. This afternoon: three little ballets at the Opéra Garnier! This evening: LA NUIT BLANCHE - the best felafel I've ever eaten - a race through the streets of Paris after realizing I had left my purse on the sidewalk somewhere - a seven-hour stroll EVERYWHERE with Parisians who, like us, wanted to take advantage of the night-long exhibits and performances - a bus trip squashed between the door and a tall stranger - and, finally, profound pain in both feet and profound sense of well-being which shall follow me to sleep.
 The purse is recovered!
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| le 3 octobre | |
That's it: we have said "au revoir" to Paris. We came back to Toulouse this afternoon, worn out and happy. Everybody is going to get some good sleep tonight. It was an impeccable trip.
 Paris, from the Musée d'Orsay |
