Paris

What better way to celebrate the end of a long first year of teaching than go on a whirlwind tour through Paris? 

Can't think of one? Neither could we, so here are some photos that highlight our 12 hour tour of the highlights of Paris. We went with a church group that took a tour bus through the night, got dropped off in Paris for the day and hopped back on 12 hours later for the ride back. 

There may be nothing charming about this photo, but the atmosphere of the moment was a sweet taste of sleepy Paris. We had just gotten done squeezing the bus through the fruit trucks that were unloading for a Saturday market. The air was cool and foggy, but the outdoors felt good after the bus ride. 

This was our first site to see. 

Basilique du Sacre-Coeur

Not an old church, but a beauty all the same. 

In order to reach the church we had to climb this rather steep hill.

But if you don't have energy to climb the stairs you can pay a fee to take these little rail cars up. 

Next we headed to the modern / business district of Paris, set a little apart and above the old city center. 

There's Luke, walking around, in the silent glass and metal maze of the early Saturday in the modern district of Paris, led by our excellent guide (shorter, white haired man in the center, who happens to be a French teacher at our school).

I really don't know any of the particulars about each building, so I simply took photos for the sake of capturing images of this architectural 'gallery'. 

While wandering, Luke and I saw a familiar shape peeking out from between the buildings. 

Our fellow Grand Rapid-ians will no doubt recognize the color and structure of this statue. 

This Calder made us feel like we had happened upon an old friend. 

Despite the urban setting, they remembered to incorporate green space. 

If you were starting to think that Paris was artsy, you would be right on. 

I am sure that many a practically minded person will wonder 'what is the point?' when it comes to this reflecting pool with flashing colored bulbs on spiraled poles, but if you take it for the artistic space that it is it makes for a cool framing of the old city that you see in the background. 

And people familiar with Paris will notice that directly in the center of the photo you can see the foggy outline of the famous Arc de Triomphe which is was our next destination. 

Arc de Triomphe

If you really care to learn about it, a history book is a much better source than this blog, but I have to say, Napoleon and Romans, for as much as you got wrong, you were right that the arch makes a mighty nice frame for historical events and photos. 

Fun fact: Neatly lined up with the Arc de Triomphe original is this cube in the modern portion of the city. It stands with similar command, but obviously it's stones aren't nearly as weighted with history. 

Today, the Arc de Triomphe also commemorates the sacrifices of soldiers in WWII with the grave of this unknown soldier. I found that to be rather fitting, as all military triumphs in history come at the cost of many anonymous men/women. 

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That definitely sets the record for the amount of site seeing I've done before breakfast . . . 

More to come.