As I prepare to make my trans-atlantic flight to Paris I think about the things I’ll feel when I arrive. I will arrive in the morning, the time when Paris has the best light streaming through each avenue and back street. Markets will be set up, coffee poured, and traffic shall hum in its constant muttering drone. I’ll arrive in the 20eme arrondisment near the cemetery Pere lachhaise- the resting place of Oscar Wilde, Frédéric Chopin, Maria Callas, Max Ernst and Moliere. Quite the celebrity line-up along with hundreds of other French people who were probably also celebrities in France- for instance, Honeré de Balzac. This neighborhood is one I have yet to explore in Paris- delightful new territory to discover and new favorite places to find. Each little neighborhood in Paris has it’s hidden treasures- a corner bakery, hidden alley bookstore or vintage pearl shop. I look forward to spending three weeks with this place.
My trip is not solely one of Parisian content. I plan to make a trip to Versailles and possibly to the southern small village of Grasse to explore the jasmine gardens where the flowers for º5 are cultivated. After three weeks in France, I will be taking a short trip to Belgium, Holland and Germany respectively with a good friend from St. Olaf College. Fortunately for me she speaks fluent German and will be the language guide through these decisively non-French regions (though Brussels will be both- we’ll share the load in that city).
My clothes are packed into my backpack (oh little backpack! I utilize your 3,000 sq inches ever so neatly!), my passport it out and ready and my tiny toiletries are stuffed into a plastic bag for the trans-atlantic journey. All that remains are goodbyes and last minute checks for forgotten necessities. When next you hear from me it will be from across an ocean. Until then- bisous (kisses).
No comments:
Post a Comment