Paris

Posted by Marci on Dec 2, 2010 in | 4 comments

The wind picked up as I stared at the lit Eiffel Tower. “Are you cold?” My new friend, a man who’d spent his Sunday giving me a tour of the city, asked.

“Un peu,” I responded trying to use the little french I knew.

He wrapped his arms around my shoulders. I leaned into his warmth as the sky darkened and the stars added their light to the scene. My guide brushed my hair away from my face and whispered, “Does it have the wow factor?”

I nodded yes, too caught in the moment to speak. I’d dreamt of this moment since I was thirteen. Now I stood, the city stretched before me, with a handsome stranger keeping me warm.

We continued our tour seeing the city by night: its golden lights illuminating the the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Elysees, the bridges of the Seine, and the pyramids. Cello music filled the courtyard of the Louvre Palace as we sat at the fountain lost in the ambience of romance.

For seven days I explored the city, pairing wines with rich, buttery sauces and cheeses covered in fig compote. I shopped in luxury stores unable to add weight to my suitcase, but trying on shoes, jewelry, and clothing. I took my time, staring at the art of Monet, Van Gogh, Degas, and Renoir in Musee d’Orsay – the paintings intoxicating me with their bright colorful worlds.

In the gardens of Versaille and Luxemburg Palace, I ate chocolate crepes as the smell of spring flowers floated in the air and children fed ducks by the water’s edge. Everywhere, spring blossomed, the buds on the trees poking their heads out of their winter homes, testing the warmth of the day. One afternoon, the rain came hard against the cobblestones, and I ran for cover under an awning of an ice cream shop. I sat with my chocolate mint savoring the creamy sweetness as I listened to the rain.

When the storm passed, the setting sun spun golden light across the buildings. I walked along the pedestrian bridge of the Seine and a rainbow appeared in the sky. I stopped and savored the perfect day and another dream come true.

Je t’aime Paris!