With love, Carly

Ah, Paris. The name alone tugs a little at my heart strings. From the moment I booked my flight, I was already in love with the City of Love. But I had no idea what was really in store. I had been to Paris when I was younger, much too young to remember most of it, so this time around was going to be different. I was traveling with my best friend and to say we had the “Trip of a Lifetime” would be an understatement.

Even the drive into town from the airport had me speechless. I was staring out the window in a Parisian dream when the silence was broken by my driver who let out an exasperated laugh after he had given up communication attempts with me upon noticing my pure awe at the city he called home.

I was greeted at the apartment by my best friend and we spent the remainder of the night on the little balcony attached to one of the rooms. It was straight out of the movies.

The next few days consisted of a lot of food, a lot of walking, and a lot of happiness. Some of my favorite meals will be highlighted in another post but French food and the entire attitude around meals will always have a special place in my heart. It is way too good.

We visited a few museums and it was so incredible to see art pieces I had learned about in class. I kept thinking “these are the real ones!” “the artist actually made this!” It was so surreal. We went to The Louvre and my favorite part was all of the Renaissance era pieces. We went on a pretty mellow day so we actually got to walk right up to the Mona Lisa. By “right up” I mean up to the barricade that blocked off the thick glass encasing that is home to Da Vinci’s masterpiece. But naturally, we couldn’t leave the iconic museum without doing a Mannequin Challenge surrounded by statues…

My favorite museum in the city is the Musee d’Orsay located right on the Seine River. There was a Van Gogh exhibit, as well as Monet, when we visited and it was so exciting to be inches away from such incredible art. The museum also features a large, functioning clock that is a window to the Seine and a beautiful room decorated with gold that exudes beauty. We left the museum and walked across the Seine where we saw people locking locks to the bridge and we knew we had to participate. We wrote our names on the Padlock and threw the key in the Seine, forever locked in Paris.

One afternoon, we spent in Le Jardin des Tuileries (Tuileries Garden) and sat around the pond watching the ducks and the slow turning of the Ferris wheel in the back. Another bucket list item to cross off is visiting the Notre Dame Cathedral. The detail and intention behind the design of this building is incredible. There is a special ora inside and I highly recommend paying a visit.

Nothing will come close to the pure joy and stillness felt when you make it to the Eiffel Tower just in time to see it twinkle. At night, every hour, on the hour, the tower lights up for those watching and there is something so indescribable about it that you can’t help but stare. (Try watching it from the top of the Arc de Triomphe for a bird’s eye view of the city.)

There’s too much to say and I could go on forever, but I’ll leave it at this. Paris, you have my heart.

(Also, not bitter at all that the Chainsmokers released “Paris” and Lorde released “The Louvre” post trip…. nope, not bitter.)

With love,

Carly