Weekend Travels in Paris

08/10-08/13

After work on Thursday, Nathalie and I drove to Paris! During the ride, we primarily discussed what she wants to do after her internship. After the internship, she will be done with her third Master's degree and she thinks she has finally found a field she wants to pursue--clean meat advocacy. Even though she has three Master's degrees (sensory analysis, wealth management, and financial markets), experience leading the Paris branch of Sea Shepherd, the ability to speak French and English fluently, and years of practice discussing veganism with others, she still doubts that she has the capacity to lead the clean meat movement in Europe. I strongly believe that she can lead the movement in Europe, so I did all I could to encourage her to start a nonprofit or create an EU branch within a US nonprofit before the opportunity to do so is taken by someone else. She thought my enthusiasm was very "American" because, according to her, the French are not known for encouraging each other to start entrepreneurial ventures. She told me that in her former financial careers, she experienced a culture of jealousy and criticism when she talked to her former colleagues about starting a career that was off the beaten path. 

We got to Paris around 10:45pm. As we drove through the city, a large group of people were dancing to music being spun by a DJ, so we parked the car a little ways away with the intention of joining in the revelry. We slipped into a restaurant to use the bathroom and decided to have a drink. When backtracked to the party, they were cleaning up. We then embarked on a walk to the Louvre, on which we passed a few beautiful, ancient structures, one including the the Notre Dame (cathedral picture below). On our way to the Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower became a shimmering beacon topped with a powerful searchlight (second picture).

After walking a while longer, we reached the Louvre, one of the most famous museums in the world (Louvre pictured below).

From a small arched structure across the street from the Louvre, the obelisk in the Place de la Concorde and Napoleon's Arc de Triomphe were visible, along with the glimmering stretch of the Champs Elysees (this view the picture below). Seeing these monuments at night was a serene experience compared to the following days when they were crowded by throngs of fellow tourists. We then walked back to the car, drove to her sister's house, and got to sleep around 3:00am. 

The next morning we hit the asphalt around 11am, a day full of sights and tastes ahead of us. A few feet from her sister’s apartment, I noticed some berries that had been flattened into the sidewalk by passersby. I looked up and realized, much to my excitement, that I was standing under a mulberry tree (mulberries pictured below). The berries were the first of a surprising bounty of fresh, free fruit that I enjoyed in Paris. Nathalie was a hesitant to eat the mulberries at first, but she came to enjoy urban gleaning after a while and said that it was one of her favorite parts of the trip on the drive back. 

We walked a short distance to the 20th-century Grand Arche, a huge monument with offices in the financial district of Paris. From the Grand Arch, the 19th-century Arc de Triomphe was visible (view from the Grand Arch pictured below). If one had binoculars, it would be possible to see the Louvre from the Grand Arche, one of the many architectural nuances that makes Paris a gem. 

We caught the subway to the Arc de Triomphe (Arc de Triomphe pictured below), which was the first bout of tourists we we experienced. To capture these pictures, we had to wait in line for 5 minutes while standing in the middle of a busy street that had no median. 

Then, we walked over to the Eiffel Tower. We passed through small streets lined with beautiful buildings (streets and buildings pictured below). When I drilled into why I thought the buildings were beautiful, I found that the little balconies and facades framing them yielded a refined and neat aesthetic. Without these additions, the buildings would be far less interesting. The fact that such simple additions make a large difference in the way that I perceive a building surprise me and I am not sure why these additions are not added to more buildings throughout the US. 

Before we got to the tower, I found my first grapes of the trip (grapes with the contemporary art museum pictured below). 

We turned a corner and the tower came into full view (Eiffel tower pictured below). I was struck by the beauty that a structure of steal cross pieces and rivets could elicit. The tower was different than any structure I have seen and it is significantly different from the classic, refined aesthetic for which Paris is famous. Even though the tower trades stone for steel and sculpted figures for geometric shapes, it successfully fits into the cityscape. 

After spending some time at the tower, we headed for a bakery to get bread. On the way, we found a public park that was full of flowers, fruits, and vegetables. Paris does not have enough green space, making the park was a welcomed sight. We ate apples, tomatoes, basil, and nasturtiums, and found some itty bitty snails (park pictured below). 

We arrived at the bakery, called Boulangerie Poilane, and purchased some bread (bread in bakery pictured below). 

I bought three large slices for 35 cents. We walked to the Luxembourg botanical garden to eat our bread. This was more of a city park, but it did have some botanical garden-esque areas (Garden pictured below). Once there, we picked more fruit and found a spot to eat our bread. The bread was tangy and dark, which set it apart from the baguettes that we would later enjoy. I forgot my peanut butter at Nathalie’s sister’s apartment, but I luckily had some hummus that I threw together at the apartment that morning. Bread plus hummus is a timelessly tasty combination.  

Then, we headed off towards a vegan bakery located on the other side of the city. On the way, we passed a variety of famous structures, including the mausoleum for famous politicians in France and the Notre Dame (both are pictured below). 

We arrived at the bakery, called VG Patisserie, around 3:00 pm and were greeted by a display of vegan deserts (desserts pictured below). I had a tasty piece of chocolate, hazelnut cake with a light layer of chocolate hazelnut frosting that contained little bits of canned hazelnuts. The cake was tasty and for 3.2 euros, it was very much worth the price and the walk. Nathalie had the same cake and a chocolate mouse ball (her dessert is pictured below). We planned on retuning the next morning to try the pan de chocolate (chocolate filled croissant). If blindfolded, I do not think I could tell the difference between these deserts and ones made with animal products. Nathalie and I talked about how in less than five years the number of vendors serving vegan food and happily advertising themselves as vegan vendors has skyrocketed. As the capacity to produce vegan food that is taste and cost identical to foods made with or composed entirely of animal products, there will be no rational reason for people to continue consuming animal products due to their negative environmental, ethical, and health consequences. 

That evening, we went to the Le Baron Rouge, a lively wine bar packed with locals and serving tasty wine at cheap prices (the bar is pictured below). I had an organic glass of wine for 2.80 euros. For dinner, we ate dinner at a vegan Chinese restaurant, which served tasty food in surprisingly small portions. 

The next morning, we headed back to VG Patisserie. I had one pan de chocolate and macaron (pastry pictured below), and I was again blown away by the quality of the flavor and texture, both of which would make the pastry hard to distinguish from one with animal products. 

We then set off to Montmartre, a hill overlooking the city that had a chapel called Sacre Coeur at the top. Along the way, we stopped at Marche des Enfants Rouges, a covered farmers market that was supposed to have a great food scene. I was disappointed to find that most of the stalls were closed because people were on holiday, but luckily there was an organic fruit stand. I bought two apples and ate them with my peanut butter. We also stopped at a pharmacy so Nathalie could get some lubricating ointment for the blisters she developed over the last few days. For not being a frequent walker and having good walking shoes, she kept up with me for the 30 miles we walked that weekend. We arrived at Montmartre and quickly climbed steps. At the top, my gaze was met by a sea of mismatched roofs covered with small brick chimneys (view pictured below). 

After marveling at the view for a while, we headed to Le Grenier a Pain (bakery and bread pictured below), a bakery that serves baguettes to the president of France. The baguette I purchased had a thin crunchy crust with a warm, airy, and sourdoughesque interior. It was some of the best bread I have eaten, and Nathalie thought it was quite good as well. 

We caught the subway to a vegan bakery, called Cloud Cakes, to meet up with Estelle, Nathalie’s friend who we met up with in Cologne. Estelle had a few pieces of cake and Nathalie had a cupcake, but I was overloaded on sweets and bread so I sat this round out. After chatting for an hour or so, we headed to a secondhand store. The store ended up being an expensive “vintage" shop, so we tried going to another secondhand store, but it turned out to be the same. Then, we walked through Le Marais, the Jewish and Gay district of Paris. Like everywhere else, most shops were closed for the holidays, but the streets were still crowded with people chatting, walking, and shopping at the stores that were open. After saying goodbye to Estelle, we got pita wrap sand took them to a small, grassy, and tree covered park we found along our walk. As we got to the park, rain started falling and we quickly took shelter on a bench under a tree. Luckily, I had a rain jacket and Nathalie had an umbrella. 

After eating, we waited out the rain in a shop and planned out next move. Before coming to Paris, I read about an unusual speak easy bar, called Lavomatic, that served innovative cocktails, so we headed there. We arrived at the entrance to the bar, which is inside a functioning laundromat. The idea is that you do your laundry and have a drink while you wait. For a while, we had no clue how to get into the bar and Nathalie thought we were in the wrong place. After a while, I figured out that I had to push an indiscrete button on one of the big washing machines, which made the machine swing out of the wall. We walked up a narrow flight of stairs and were greeted by a small, cozy bar with low ceilings and lots of people. I ordered a blackberry, lavender, vodka drink (our drinks are pictured below), which was not worth 11 euros, but the atmosphere made up for what the drink lacked. We spent an hour chatting and then headed to bed. 

In the morning, I went to Marche Bastille, which was supposed to be a great farmers market, but it was by far the worst market I have been to during my time in Europe. It lacked variety, organic foods, bread, and food vendors. I bought some carrots, decent humus and baba ganoush, and a shitty baguette. Then, I headed to the Louvre. While I am critical of the role museums play in society (see earlier posts for an explanation), I had to experience the Louvre because of its renowned paintings. After waiting in line for 30 minutes, I got my ticket and headed for the Italian Renaissance Hall, which contains the Mona Lisa. To get to the Mona Lisa, I walked though halls full of religiously inspired art, depicting angles, demons, Jesus, Mary, god, and all every religious allegory imaginable (paintings pictured below). The amount of time these artists and the societies in which they lived spent on religion made me sick. I will forever be confused how people spend their whole lives devoted to fictional stories, especially ones that lead to little social and moral progress, and looking forward to a life after death that impinges on their capacity to experience the only life we can say does exist. 

I got to the Mona Lisa and was greeted by a room of people (room and painting pictured below). I had to wait in line for 10 minutes to get a close view of the painting, but it was a worthwhile wait. Seeing a painting that I have seen and read and heard about so often was a cool opportunity, but totally worthless in the scheme of things. 

I met up with Nathalie and we walked around the Ancient Egyptian exhibit for a while. We left Paris around 4:00 pm.

My weekend in Paris was one of the best weekends I spent in Europe, and I really enjoyed spending it with Nathalie.