If Paris Was a Cosmetic, It Would Be Glittery Eyeshadow

It saddens me that this post has taken so long to come into existence, when my marvelous Parisian adventure was almost a month and a half ago. However, I can only attribute my epic lateness to the fact that the entire trip, as well as the rest of my abroad experience, was so unbelievable and amazing that it transcends words. And I always believed that no matter how much I love writing about my experiences, I would much rather get caught up in living life than in recording it. So, while this is extremely overdue, I am happy to present the beautiful pictures that chronicle a most epic 4 days in one of the world's finest cities.

I had so many preconceived notions about Paris. French people are rude and uppity; everything is expensive and overpriced; they have a grudge against Americans; it is overwhelmingly romantic and beautiful. I'm happy to report that the latter is the only truism of the bunch, and the city was even more magical than I could have thought. There's a kinetic energy in every part of the city, but at the same time, a relaxed and calm aura that makes you feel very welcome. And despite any bad rep given to the French by the media, they are perfectly charming, amiable people! As far as my experiences went, they were happy to accommodate our non-French speaking selves, and were polite, cheerful and helpful in every aspect. Between asking for directions or prices, ordering food, and checking in and out of the hostel, they were extremely helpful and patient with us. It really helped shape my trip in the best ways possible, because at least for me, so much of my impression of a city is based on its inhabitants.

To start our marvelous visit, we took the subway to the Palace of Versailles. The pictures speak for themselves.... I could never describe it's beauty in words. Observe:























After row boating around the lake, standing in awe of the unbelievable bush designs in the garden, and taking a grand tour of inside the palace, we decided we were famished and thought of no better way to settle down and take a break than to enjoy some French pastries!

So delish!! The tour of Versailles took pretty much the whole day, and we got a nice quaint dinner in a French cafe near our hostel, which was located in the hip and trendy area of Bastille. The next morning, we took a tour of many of the big tourist attractions. Paris is big on their carouselles, and this is a particularly pretty one:

Afterward, we went to the world famous, ever renowned cathedral - Notre Dame.




It was beautiful, but the line to get to the top and see the gargoyles was way too long at that point. We decided we would wake up early the next morning and be sure to get up there!


After that, we found our way to the Louvre - whose dichotomous outside was so stunning to look at, with its classic architecture contrasted sharply by the modern looking, notorious glass pyramid.









Next stop: the Arc de Triumphe!! We had to climb up almost 300 stairs to get to the top, but the view was well worth it.








Then, the big moment - the Eiffel Tower! At that point, the wind had picked up dramatically and it was quite cold, but that could never stop us from experiencing the magic of ascending up the Tower's narrow neck to the top to look down on the world below us.






The Tower glittered and sparkled at night like a diamond. Or, like the blog title suggests, extremely glittery eyeshadow! Paris is quite vain, but in the most endearing ways possible.

After the tower, we enjoyed another French dinner outing where I had my first experience with escargot. I'm a big fan! It takes like a buttery, garlicy chewy blob of goodness.

We walked around and took in the view of Paris at night, to end our amazing, jam packed day.


The next morning, we did as promised - hiked up to the top of Notre Dame and hung out with the quirky monsters!



The famous bell tower.




Then, as per my mother's advice, we trekked over to Saint Chappelle to feast our eyes upon the most beautiful stained glass you will ever see in your life. This time, pictures don't come close to doing it justice.


It was unbelievable, and the colors can never be reduplicated elsewhere in the same magical way.

We then decided to check out one of Paris's famous parks - Parc Moncreu. It was quaint, lovely, and inviting.




We then walked up to the famous Chapel on the Hill - you have to walk up a ridiculous amount of stairs to get to this adorable little chapel. To help older people get there, they have a ski lift!!!


On our last day there, we traveled to Paris's main cemetary to pay homage to some of the greats that were buried there. My favorite writer, Oscar Wilde, is one of them, and here I am putting a rose on his amazing, lipstick-adorned grave!


Apparently the French love them some Oscar! There were more lipstick stains on that grave than I could even count.

And with that last symbolic gesture, we hopped back on the Eurostar train, bid Paris one grand "au revoir," and returned to lovely London for the last 2 weeks of the best time of our lives.

The remaining days of my abroad experience went swiftly, as I knew they would. Final papers and tests did add a bit of stress, as well as packing for home and trying to mentally prepare for the reverse-culture shock of going back to your roots. I made sure to soak in every last minute I had between all the schoolwork.... I walked all around Kings Cross, taking all the little known back roads and allowing myself to get lost, meandering through the streets and taking mental pictures of every new scene. My friends and I attended evensong at St. Paul's Cathedral... this is a hymn ceremony they do every week that lasts about an hour, where an all-male choir sings verses and pslams out loud. It was extremely beautiful and soothing. We ate out at restaurants we never ate at before, took walks farther than we normally would, and made every second count for something. Then, on the day before my flight, as I sat on my bed staring at my now empty dorm room and my two huge suitcases stuffed like sausages, and looked out my 14th floor window to the London streets, I had one of those out-of-body experiences. Random scenes from my 4 months in this magnificent city started flashing in my mind, tiny instances like trips to the grocery store, or mailing my first postcard, or swiping my Oyster card to get onto the tube, hit me with a new clarity I didn't see coming. Suddenly, every infinitesimal detail of the past 4 months seemed so novel that I would do anything to repeat it just one last time before leaving it all behind. I wished so hard that I could take every little experience, roll it up like a poster, tuck it away and once home again, unfurl the image in my mind and be able to repeat it all over again, just like the first time. But the best I can offer myself is the feeling of conviction, fulfillment, and self-discovery I have acquired because of those experiences. I will carry those with me forever, and though the tiny memories may escape me with time, the woman I am now will feel their power forever. London is as much a part of me as I, with time, became a part of it. I'll feel its influence always, and think of it like old friend - one who I admirably parted with as a necessary consequence of time, but should we cross paths again, I know we'd bond again as if no time had passed at all, and be eager to share all that had happened to each other since we first grew so close. And even now, over a month since we said our long goodbyes, I will carry London's soul with me and try to make her proud for all she did for me.

We will meet again, old friend. Never forget, forever cherish, always love you.



- LAP