Everyone is barbequing, boating, tanning, hanging out with friends and family, and wearing their Old Navy $5 Fourth of July tee shirts and matching flag flip flops.
moh. :( Hope you guys have fun!
Now, if you’ll please pardon my expatriotism while I tell you about my visit(s) to the Eiffel Tower.
I visited the Champ du Mars and Trocadero several times to see the Eiffel Tower on my weekend in Paris. I just couldn’t get enough of it—it feels unreal to stare at it, like you’ve opened a coffee table book and stepped inside.
On my last night in Paris, I decided to make a date with the Eiffel Tower, in the spirit of being a Parisian tourist. I got a little dressed up and took the Metro down to Invalides. The sun was heavy in the sky and I walked around the streets looking for a nice place to eat. The area is quiet, with wide untrafficked streets lined with massive chestnut and lime trees, and there are old buildings with sunwashed shutters and pale slate roofs on either side.
I stopped into a nice bistrot with what seemed to be a large percentage of local clientele. That’s something I’ve come to rely on—following locals. If they like it, it must be worth trying, right? And that way you can really get a taste of true Parisian life, too.
I had a glass of wine and duck confit (a kind of preserved and roasted duck in gravy) on the veranda on the street and people-watched until the sun began to set. The Eiffel Tower peeked over the roofs as I made my way to Champ du Mars, which is the lawn in front of the tower:
As you can see, it’s got a pretty good view. I had an ice cream on the lawn while it began to get dark. The crowds were still pretty bustling—plenty of tourists taking a break and locals having picnic dinners with their friends.
It got darker and darker and the tower glowed orange with the lights that shine on it. Just as the sky began to go black, the tower lit up with a million sparkling lights and twinkled from top to bottom. Everyone on Le Champ cheered! It was so amazing, and when it finally stopped (it glitters for 10 minutes every hour), I looked at my watch and realized I had sat there for on hour!
Afterward I walked around the tower and up through Trocadero. It was a great way to say goodbye to the city, because the next day I headed off for Versailles, which is about an hour outside of Paris.
Every good city has a phallic symbol…
But I believe the Eiffel Tower is one of the best. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment