Yesterday I got some company exploring when Jana arrived from California, and Emily came over to our apartment from her dorm at Ecole Polytechnique. It was beautiful weather – mid 70s and perfectly sunny. We headed straight for the Eiffel Tower to walk around. There were people all over the grasses – picnicking, playing football, practicing karate in a circle. The tower is majestic, and simply standing under it is quite awe inspiring. Apparently when Eiffel constructed the tower, he said that it would withstand the test of time as long as it was repainted every 7 years. So regardless of its condition, 25 tons of a new color of paint cover the tower. It apparently takes a crew of 25 painters more than a year to paint it from top to bottom. The 19th painting took place this March, and it’s now a beautiful brown-mauve type color.
We walked around the gardens and around the Invalides for a while longer. Napoleon’s tomb in inside, and I definitely want to go back and see that in the future. Since grocery stores close at 8, we decided to get provisions and cook dinner. We ended up with a selection of cheeses (brie de meaux, goat cheeses covered in raisins, chives, and apricot), bread, and wine, intended to be appetizers for the chicken and vegetables we planned on cooking. We didn’t get very far after the bread and cheese, though.
We looked up a few bars/clubs with the intention of going out, but decided we were too tired. I have a feeling that it’s usually going to end up this way unless there are people we are planning to meet somewhere. I’m not big on running around in the city in the dark. BUT the plethora of streetlights make it very safe to walk around.
After lounging a bit, we decided to venture to Montmarte and Sacre Coeur, since it was a clear day and the sights of the city would inevitably be great. We wandered around the Cimetiere de Montmarte, stumbling upon the graves of great artists – Berlioz, Degas, and Dumas to name a few. The cemetery is unlike anything I’ve seen. It looks like it’s filled with tiny stone houses and mini replicas of churches.
We meandered up the streets to Sacre Coeur, and stopped and ate sandwiches at a park on the way. The streets got more and more crowded, until it was just a sea of tourists at the top. No matter how lovely teh scene is, I really dislike being in overly crowded places, so even though the view was nice (Paris looks huge!), I wanted to get away from the area. Montmarte is also pretty sketchy, especially walking through the park on the way down.
Jana and I explored the area of Boulogne-Billancourt. It’s very cute! The Bois de Boulogne are only 2 km from our place, and are the remnants of an ancient oak forest of Rouvray. The park covers over 2,000 acres and is has beautiful meandering paths with lots of greenery, picnickers, and tons of cyclists! We walked alongside the longchamps raceway, which I definitely want to come back to when there’s a race.
We bought a warm baguette on the way home, cooked dinner, and became glued to our computers. Tomorrow is our last day before work starts, so I want to do some more practical things, like finding how to get to work, and looking for pools in the area.
A demain!

