The next morning we took a metro/train to the center of Paris, ate at a café and went on a hop-on, hop-off boat tour of Paris which runs up and down the Seine and stops at all the major sites along the river. We got off at the Eiffel Tower stop and paid to go all the way up to the top. It was much higher than I expected and it offered an amazing view of all of Paris, so it was definitely worth the extra money to go all the way up to the top. It was a nice moment for me because I have been very familiar with all the famous sites in Paris since I took French in high school, and I was finally able to see them all at once before my eyes. The Eiffel tower itself is a marvelous structure (although many Parisians initially wanted the tower to be demolished), and I felt that it definitely lived up to its fame as the French national symbol, especially at night when it is illuminated by blue lights and sparkles with many small lights for 10 minutes at the top of every hour. As a future structural engineer, it was also nice for me because the tower is essentially just a structural body, and yet it is still very beautiful. It is also noteworthy because it has very little wind resistance since the wind can pass right through it, allowing it to be taller with less sway. That night we had dinner at a Japanese restaurant with Trinh, her sister and her sister’s husband.
For a farewell-lunch the next day, Trinh’s sister made us an authentic French meal of potatoes, meat (mainly ham but also some beef), lettuce, and different kinds of cheese which are placed in a small frying pan which is put on a central heating dish, then once the cheese is melted a wooden stick is used to scrape the cheese onto the ham and potatoes. It was a delicious meal and reminded me of Fondue. We said farewell to Trinh and her sister then headed to the Latin quarter of Paris (located south of Notre Dame), where we checked into our hostel (Young & Happy Hostel). After walking around different shops to put together a dinner for myself (wine, grapes, baguette, cheese, and meat), we walked to the Pantheon then headed down Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe, and walked down to the Eiffel Tower for a second time to see it during its night-time splendor while eating a crepe. Paris is definitely best seen at night and would be a great place to visit with someone you love.
The next morning we visited Versailles. The line to get into the palace itself was long but I thought it was worth seeing the many ornate rooms, paintings, and the famous Hall of Mirrors. Louis XIV was an unpopular monarch but he sure knew how to show off and live lavishly. The gardens were even more impressive to me due to their vast size and upkeep, as well as the tremendous amount of statues lining the walkways. I also studied Versailles in my architectural history class, where I learned that forests were then seen as dark places filled with evil and danger, and by bringing forests under control by turning them into orderly gardens, it was believed that this would lead to a place that was much more safe, benign, and Christian-like. Since Louis XIV was a very religious man and thought he was divine himself, it’s no wonder he has such a large garden and has a chapel and many godly murals and statues. In fact the largest mural ceiling in all of Europe (maybe even the world) is in his palace, depicting Hercules ascending into heaven. That night we had an authentic French dinner at a restaurant called Au Piano Muet, located down the street from our hostel. For my entrée I had a cheese tart and salad, and for the main course I had beef bourguignon, followed by the best crème bulle that I’ve ever had for dessert! To top it off we had Medoc wine from Bordeaux and cleansed our pallets with the endless basket of bread complimentary in every French restaurant. That night we met a Canadian girl and went out to a couple pubs with her. On our way over to the pubs we noticed many people with candles heading towards Notre Dame so we followed them into the cathedral where we saw part of a religious/worship projected video by candlelight… quite an unforgettable experience.
The next day I headed to Notre Dame to see it and its famous rose window during the daylight. I studied Notre Dame and cathedrals in my class… in cathedrals the tympanum (relief above the doorway) usually depicts Judgement Day and people going to heaven or hell depending on whether or not they have faith in God. This and other sculpture work on cathedrals were used to tell the stories of the Bible to illiterate peasants in order to convert them into Christians. The Notre Dame in Paris is Gothic cathedral (more developed than the earlier Romanesque), so it was able to have larger windows (like the famous rose windows), and stylistically had more decorations like reliefs and sculptures (such as gargoyles!).
I then headed off to the Louvre and tried looking for the Lions gate entry which very few people know about (so I would have been able to enter the museum without much of a wait), but found only an exit there instead. Once I entered the museum through the main/pyramid entrance I entered the Sully section where most of the ancient and classical work is. I rented an audio-guide and took my time enjoying the Ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman sections. My favorite pieces were the Venus de Milo and Winged Victory statues (mainly due to their prestige), although I highly enjoyed all the Greek and Roman sculpture. The Venus de Milo was discovered by a farmer on his plantation and is famous for its S-shaped curve of the body, being armless, and having high detail in the waves of the dress. The Winged Victory statue is simply awesome: a winged goddess/angel (missing her head and arms) is landing on the bow of a ship, with the wind ripples apparent in her dress… although made of marble it looks incredibly light as if it were about to take off and fly. I then rushed to the Mona Lisa which was crowded as I expected. I think it is overrated because it is small and just a portrait, but it’s amazing how her eyes really do seem to follow you as you walk through the room. I then ate a quick dinner and realized that the Louvre would be closing early since it was a holiday (it usually stays open late on Fridays), so I had to leave earlier than I would have liked but I’m sure that I will be back. I then went back to my hostel, ate a sandwich-like crepe and headed back to the Louvre that night to meet up with some American girls who Pepe had met and we went to some pubs with them. We made plans for all of us to see Omaha Beach and the Normandy American Cemetary and Memorial, so we got up early the next morning and headed there by train and bus.
It was powerful to see the thousands of American gravestones, and made me appreciate the sacrifices that American soldiers have made. I walked down to the beach and soaked up the site, envisioning the battle that had taken place only a little more than 60 years ago (strange because it was relatively recent and yet now is a quiet cemetery with many peaceful visitors). I collected some sand from the beach as a souvenir… I might start a sand collection as some travelers do. We missed the first bus back to the train station so we got back to Paris too late to make it to Brussels so we had to cancel our first night’s reservation at our hostel and instead slept on a train docked at the Paris du Nord station. I was sleeping on an uncomfortable bench initially but then the police came, checked everyone’s tickets, and made everyone who had a ticket sleep on the train or else be kicked out of the station since they were closing it for the night. I actually slept decently on the train on a row of seats and used my bag as a pillow. We then took the earliest train (at 6:55 AM) to Brussels.
I highly enjoyed my time in France. Ireland seemed too similar to America in its food, language and culture and only had a few amazing sights, although seeing the Guinness factory was a lot of fun and I enjoyed the Irish jig music and pub scenes. I liked London more than Ireland because it was slightly less similar to America, had much more history and amazing sites to see, plus it was more advanced with the transportation systems (although the Tube can initially be very confusing). France was much more pleasant for me since I was speaking a language other than English rather successfully. Also, the city is extremely beautiful (especially at night), and I was able to experience an authentic French lifestyle while staying at Trinh’s sister’s house. Although the French have a reputation for being cold/mean, once you “break the ice” with them and speak a little French they are just as warm as anyone else. In fact, the French kiss-on-each-cheek greeting is more amiable than the typical hand shake that most Americans use. At the same time that I see many European ways that would benefit America, being in Europe has made me realize and appreciate American hospitality and wealth. For instance, I miss not having to pay for water at restaurants, and although I like paying exactly what the price says in Europe (service charge included instead of a supplemental tax, and tips usually not necessary) the waiters who know that they aren’t going to be tipped for their service or hospitality can be cold and just throw your silverware on the table instead of set it nicely in place, plus they rarely check on you to see if you need anything. I suppose that I am realizing that I have been spoiled by the luxuries of living in the United States. Another example is poor plumbing which has lead to showers and toilets with low water pressure in some places I have stayed (Dublin in particular). The one major benefit of living life like a European is slowing down and learning how to enjoy life. I’ve realized that the American lifestyle is extremely fast paced and I am appreciating the new aspect of the café culture of sitting down outside and slowly enjoying a drink. Europeans also seem to have more free time and holidays, and I wish that America had a gap-year between high school and college like many Europeans so that almost all students could experience what I am experiencing. I have met many Europeans my age so far and most of them seem very well informed about world issues, whereas many Americans my age know very little probably since we are physically isolated from the rest of the western world. Another amazing experience is the number of Middle Eastern women I’ve seen with veils over their entire bodies and faces… something that I would almost never expect to see in America. Maybe more Americans would be more understanding of Middle-Eastern ways and culture if we had to live with more of them. Anyway, I feel a very subtle change happening in my world-wide perspectives as I experience slight differences from my own culture and compare and contrast them. I know that I will definitely come back to Paris some day, but as for now I will continue to explore the rest of Europe and especially Italy in about a week =).
Le Tour d'Eiffel
Home-made French meal (with melted cheese)
Versailles
Louvre
Venus de Milo (inside Louvre)
Winged Victory (inside Louvre)
Omaha Beach (site of D-Day in Normandy)
2 comments:
"I miss not having to pay for water at restaurants [...] the waiters who know that they aren’t going to be tipped for their service or hospitality can be cold and just throw your silverware on the table instead of set it nicely in place, plus they rarely check on you to see if you need anything [...] Another example is poor plumbing which has lead to showers and toilets with low water pressure in some places I have stayed "
Are you sure this is the way it is for Europe, or are you just taking a bad experience you had one place and assuming that is how it always is everywhere? Be careful not to take single experiences and extrapolate them towards all of Europe. Maybe you have been going to lower quality restaurants. In general, European restaurants are much more proper than American restaurants. You have probably noticed the higher quality of the food (at least if you are having French food in France instead of something foregin like Japanese food in Frace), the smaller portions, etc.
Maybe Europeans would rather have a tasty glass of wine or beer with their meal instead of a glass of tapwater. Maybe they think tapwater is weird in the same way you think their carbonated water is weird since you aren't used to it yet. Do you really think that drinking water which has been running through all those pipes is refreshing? Maybe it is a good idea to avoid drinking tap water in Europe... it may not have the same quality as tap water in America.
When I was in Paris, I went to a cafe and had all of the silverware laid out properly in front of me, and the waitress was even kind enough to suggest a type of wine when I asked her what was good. I was ignorant and ordered my coffee along with the meal instead of after the meal, and she just asked if I was sure I wanted the coffee with the meal instead of after it... that was a polite way of letting me know that it is traditional in their culture to have coffee after the meal rather than during the meal. I am glad she politely corrected me on that, because I learned about the French culture.
I think you need to try to give up your American expectations... take some responsibility as a traveler and try to mold to the cultural norms of each place you are visiting instead of judging the new cultures you are experiencing for not being like American culture.
I think you just had an isolated bad experience. And I realize you have many great things to say about Europe that you have notices. It is a normal part of the adaptation experience, I think... to assume that some things are better in your home culture. And if you lived in Europe long enough, you may actually start to prefer their cultural norms, such as not having waitresses bug you, asking if everything is okay, when you most likely are fine and don't need anything. You will start to see that it is superficial for waiters to ask you questions when they don't really care what your answer is.
As far as the plumbing... remember that most European cities have been around far longer than modern plumbing has been around. It is natural that the bulidng code is not the same for their old buildings as for their new buildings. You are just used to the modern building code with modern plumbing because that is what most of the buildings in America are like, since our buildings are so new. Maybe even their modern building code uses lower pressure plumbing because it wastes less water. There is no reason to have fresh water unnecessarily go to waste, especially in an age where the population is growing, the climate is changing, and the resources of our planet are rapidly being depleted. Maybe because Europeans eat less crappy food (no pun intended), they don't need toilets with as much pressure. haha.
Remember to keep an open mind. Just because it is not like America doesn't mean it is bad.
I am not trying to attack you, just trying to help you adjust to Europe. I think it is great that you are experiences new things abroad... and I think your reactions are perfectly natural. I am just trying to help you make the most of your European experiences! =)
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