After dinner we met up with Jean-Francois, whom we had met online when we were considering staying with a local. He gave us a very knowledgeable walking tour as we headed to the Marais district to check out the gay bars. At the lively "Open Cafe" we met a group of Israelis as well as an American student who was studying in Berlin, visiting Paris for the weekend. Since Jim was tired from jet lag, we went home about 2am.
We continued walking through the Tuileries Garden, past some beautiful fountains and an obelisk, and all the way along the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe. A visit to the top of the Arc is included in a 5-day museum pass we each decided to buy, so we took the stairs to the top for the views of Paris from the center of the Etoile (star) as this is appropriately called, with 12 avenues emanating from the monument like spokes from a bicycle hub. This reminded us of Jean-Francois's comment the previous evening about a couple streets in the Marais being from the middle ages. As Geoff pointed out, that means most of the rest of the city was changed in more modern times. The dramatic wide avenues of the Etoile were carved out of a city that was already filled with buildings and streets. Here are a couple pictures from there:
In the following picture you can see Jim in front of La Defense with its modern Grande Arche. La Defense is just outside the city of Paris, but I was told it's Europe's biggest business district.
I found the sites in Paris overwhelmingly numerous, grand, beautiful, and impressive. And I was struck by how militaristic many of the monuments are, with references to Napolean popping up everywhere. I forget about France's history as a major military power.
Next we walked to the Eiffel Tower, but decided not to wait to go to the top. We had some yummy, overpriced crepes from a stand outside. then took the train to the Orsay museum, which used to be a train station. After wondering through exhibits of sculptures and Beaux Arts furniture we came upon a large collection of impressionist paintings in crowded rooms with lots of tourists. The art was impressive, and Jim surprised us all with his interest in digging deep to appreciate all the art he saw.
After the Orsay, we were all ready to collapse, so we went to our apartment for a brief nap before Geoff and I met up with a couple we had met online, Walter and Benoit. They had also offered to host us before we decided to rent an apartment. We sat at a cafe and got to know each other over hummus and drinks. One topic of conversation was the state of gay rights in our countries. In France (and much of Western Europe) gay couples can have a legal status approximating marriage, but they cannot adopt. Our relationship has less legal recognition in California, but we can adopt children. Next we went back to the apartment until our friend Marc arrived (he lives in Zurich) on his train from Stuttgart, where he'd been at a conference. Jim decided our one-bedroom apartment would be too cozy for the 4 of us, so he checked into a hotel down the street.
After Marc arrived, Geoff and I went out to dinner with him; Jim decided to take the evening to rest in his room. After choosing less than impressive restaurants for us on previous trips together in Rome and Amsterdam, Marc felt pressure to take us to a good place. He lived in Paris for a year, a few years ago. So he did indeed take us to a very good restaurant in the Marais with a lively gay crowd.
After dinner we met up with another new online gay friend named Ian at a bar in the Marais, and Jim met us there as well. We had a fun, social evening, and headed back before too late.
Later we walked to Notre Dame. Here's Jim among the candles inside:
and here's Marc and Craig in front of the Rose window:
and Jim in front of the famous flying butts:
We also explored the small holocaust memorial at the very end of Ile de la Cité, then walked back across the Seine, as you can see Geoff, Craig, and Jim here with city hall in the background:
For dinner we decided to try something different, and figured Vietnamese food should be good in Paris, too (given the history). So we went to the Asian neighborhood around Place d'Italie and found a Vietnamese restaurant. Geoff's "Vietnamese Crepe" was an interesting (but overly heavy) combination of the two cuisines. Overall, it was a simple meal, but not bad.
and here's the church of Notre Dame from the its tower:
Next we explored the Latin Quartier a bit, including the Pantheon, which is a memorial to all kinds of fallen French heros, from military to literary people. It's a grand building with a beautiful classical design, and smack in the middle of it was this shockingly contemporary artwork: a couple of giant beach balls with designs on them mimicking the building's design. And surrounding them, a big white tube:
I'm so impressed with the Parisians' willingness to try and affinity for striking contrasts and new ideas in art. Here are Geoff and me in front of the scupture from a different angle:
Before long we took the Metro back under the Seine to city hall. Since the world cup was going on, they had place a giant TV screen in front of city hall so people could watch the games:
We were at city hall to meet up with a friend of Laurent's named Philippe, who is on the mayor's cabinet, doing a lot of work with the gay community. He was very sweet, telling us all about his job and local political issues while giving us a private tour of city hall. It's a stunning building, with beautiful spaces for events:
This room was designed to look like one in Versailles. Here are Jim and I feeling privileged to see it:
After our tour, we had lunch with Philippe before he dashed back to work, with his assistant calling him on his mobile phone.
In the afternoon, Geoff and Marc explored a bit while Jim and I went to Les Invalides, where Napolean is buried in a huge tomb with honors that almost made me sick. Then we walked to the Rodin museum, where Jim had something to say, making one think:
That night we went out to the bars and met a New Yorker named Jaime, who captured Jim's interest a bit. We exchanged numbers to meet up later.
This was our most touristy site; it was mobbed with large tour groups, and certainly beautiful enough to warrant them, but it was a bit hard to get much out of. Before long we returned to the city.
We had a very nice walk through some cool parts of the Marais to the Picasso museum, which was very nice. We loved this spinning fountain next to the Centre Pompidou:
For dinner Marc took us to and excellent restaurant called Bowfinger. Jim was too tired, so opted to stay in his room, so Marc invited a friend of his to join us. The food was fantastic, with lots of seafood and classic French food. (And more wine than we thought we could drink.)
After we left the Louvre, I was on my own a bit, and discovered this cool Metro entrance:
Then we met up back at our apartment, and Jim and I walked around a bit, exploring the Palais Royal (so many beauties and treasures in this city!) Jim opted to rest in his room while Geoff and I had dinner at the home of Jean-Francois. Marc said we were very lucky to be invited to the home of a Parisian - he found that to be rare when he lived there. Both the meal and conversation were very good.
We walked into Sacre Coeur to find they were in the middle of a service, but tourists were still able to walk around without causing much disturbance. The singing was beautiful, and it was neat to see the make-up of the congration - very mixed ethincally, with a large North African element, much like the neighborhood. As we approached the exit, the congregation started exiting in the Eucharist Procession, accompanied by angelic singing by some nuns and many of the congregants. So we felt like part of the service as we exited with the congregation and followed down the steps overlooking the city and to the lawn next to the building where they held communion. It was a beautiful way to experience the church.
Next we walked down the other side of the hill toward Place Pigalle, to see the Moulin Rouge, etc. Here's Craig in front of a windmill (the windmills date from when this hill was outside the city)
That evening, Philippe invited us to a carnival in the Tuileries Gardens, next to the Louvre. It was opening night of a children's carnival, but in honor of the upcoming gay pride celebration, this evening it was a private gay party at the carival. So we had our run of the rides, junk food, and sweets, all for free. It was fun, and we quickly hit it off with a couple other friends of Philippe, Bernard and Laurent. My favorite was riding the ferris wheel at dusk. Every time we went up high I cherished the view of the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, La Defense, and the whole city. It's such a beautiful city, I could have enjoyed that view for much longer, but the ride had to stop, and indeed this was our last night before leaving.
We left the carnival with Bernard and Laurent, and met up with some friends of theirs at the lively Open Cafe, which was a lot of fun. I wasn't feeling too well, and we all had to get up early, so we didn't stay out too late, but Geoff and I went for a walk on the Seine, which was lovely.