Paris

This past weekend, Nathan and I celebrated our anniversary in Paris. Because you can do things that romantic when you live in Europe! I still can't believe this is my life.

Anyway, we began by taking a night train to the City of Lights, which was an experience in and of itself. It was cool, but cramped, even in first class (which is the only way to have a private room). Sleeping was a bit difficult, but somehow we managed to get some rest. I think my favorite part was showering. I kept thinking I was going to fall out of the shower with the instability of the train, but it was easier than I thought. And I got to be clean upon arrival!

When we arrived in Paris, it was cold and rainy, but that just makes it more romantic, right? So we checked into our hotel in the 7th arrondissement and with a view of the Eiffel Tower. I'm not sure why, but the tower is now lit with blue lights and a searchlight at night. Maybe because the European Union color is blue, not sure. Then, at every hour on the hour, the tower sparkles like a firecracker for about 5 minutes. It was cool to us tourists, but I'm sure the Parisians are really annoyed by it.

While there we visited Sainte Chapelle, the Louvre (again, because there is so much to see there) and Montmartre. Here's a tip: if you have never seen the Mona Lisa, you may want to go soon. They keep pushing visitors further and further away from the painting, pretty soon we're gonna be looking through binoculars to see her. Sheesh.

And of course, when in Paris, you have to have steaming hot bowls of French onion soup in the Latin quarter, cry-it's-so-good baguettes, and even a plate of stinky cheeses and escargot. Which we did; and it was great.

A friend of mine in Munich, who lived in Paris for a summer before moving here, likes to say that, (I'm paraphrasing here): Paris is like the hot girl, very seductive, everyone wants her, but she's high drama and it's a rocky relationship. Munich, however, is the girl who you take home to the parents and cooks for you. Basically, Paris is great to visit, but Munich is a more livable city. Besides, even mousy Munich gets to let her hair down and go wild once a year...at Oktoberfest!

I hope she's right. Because a rendezvous in Paris always seems like a dream.