Le Trip to Paris

All of us plus the Gerken boy, Greg

Here are some long-awaited tidbits about my recent trip to Paris.

My cohort and fellow Sojourner, Cheryl, was planning a little visit to Paris to see her friend, Kate, and asked if I'd accompany her to hang out and sightsee while Kate was in class during the week. After hemming and hawing for a few weeks (I'm a teensy bit indecisive) and searching for "good" ticket prices, I decided to go. I'm single, unencumbered and relatively financially stable---aside from having an insatiable travel bug---so, why not?

I am, however, not only indecisive, miserly, single, unencumbered, financially stable and travel-bug bitten...I am also an extreme social butterfly and kind friend. So I started inviting everybody and their cousin to come on this trip with us (much to Cheryl's dismay, since we were supposed to be staying in Kate's one-bedroom flat)! In the end, our entourage included: Cheryl, Chris and Christie Davis, Dave B. (a friend and favorite travel companion of mine from college) and me. And God provided a bigger, better place for us to stay---with the Gerkens, friends of Kate's. So off we went.

It was very fun being a part of both Cheryl and Dave's first international traveling experience. Poor Dave got the raw end of the deal. He was the only one not traveling from Louisville and, even though between the five of us we were traveling three different itineraries and airlines, ended up being the only one who had problems going and coming. He handled himself and the crap admirably and once he got to into Paris 12 hours after his original arrival time, we were good to go.

Like I said, we stayed with a family who've been living in Paris about a year. Their home and hospitality were so amazing. It was SO nice to come home after a long day of braving the bitter weather, language barrier and decision-making to an actual home where we could kick back, (most nights) have one of Kendall's scrumptious dinners and relax in a cozy atmosphere. One of the highlights, too, was getting to be a part of the monthly gathering of their church plant. We met some neat people and enjoyed some great music. Thank you, Gerkens.

But you're curious about the city itself, I'm sure. Surprisingly enough, we didn't encounter much of the anti-American rudeness for which Parisians are infamous (except for one run-in with a crusty old waiter). We like to think it's because we fit in so well and were so inconspicuously not French. At least I can speak for myself---some guy tapped me on the shoulder one day on the street and was asking me directions in French. Ooh, la la. Just call me (insert French female moniker of choice). The secret, people, is to wear all black. Seriously.

For the record, it is cold in Paris in February. Probably not always as cold as it was for us---on Day 4 of our visit they got the "biggest" (probably a whopping 2 inches) snow they've had in nine years. Which was pretty, but bone-chillingly cold. Which is not good when you're walking 17,031 miles a day out and about. Well, I take that back. It's good in the sense that, between your body trying to keep itself warm and endure the 17,031-mile distance, you burn off the fame-worthy crepes and hot chocolate. Yum!

In terms of sight-seeing, we saw all the standards: Notre Dame, the Arc de Triomphe, Sacre Coeur, the Sienne, Luxembourg gardens (the Gerkens live next door), the Tour d'Eiffel, and the three largest art museums---the Louvre, Musee d'Orsay and the Centre Pompidou. The art collections in Paris are separated into museums by time periods. So the Louvre has the oldest artwork, the Musee d'Orsay has the most famous collections (Impressionists, etc.), and the Pompidou has your modern works of art. The latter two were by far my favorite sights seen. Cheryl, Chris and Christie visited Versailles, but Dave and I opted to leave that for warmer weather and strolled around the largest mall in Paris for the morning.

And, of course, we ate. And ate. And ate. Kendall Gerken's cooking was fabulous. Crepes from street vendors were a favorite. And they're not those pansy, flimsy, whipped-cream-covered conncoctions we delve into here with fork and spoon. These are pizza-sized crepes filled with cheeses or chocolate or bananas and honey and folded up into a cone for eating on the go. Upscale Angelina's is famous for their (very expensive) chocolat africaine and it was worth every penny! Thick, dark chocolate is served in individual pitchers and lightened (though not thinned) with whipped cream. Yuh-um. Thanks to the cold---and huge snow---we needed hot chocolate as often as possible. I'm sure you all understand. Or maybe you don't---you've gotta try Angelina's hot chocolate once in your life. Plan your trip!


One of our many cups of hot chocolate after a long, COLD day. 

One night we experienced French cuisine at little Parnasse 158 (or something like that). This was my chance to taste escargot. Which I had to do---I'm no wuss. Not as bad as I thought it would be. Kind of had the same texture as a chicken heart (yes, they're eaten in some cultures by the skewer-full, and they're yummy). But who can even tell what they really taste like hidden under a bulb's worth of garlic?!

Next time I'll tell you about the Parisian adventure that led to the cancellation of my credit card...

Oh, and there will be pictures at some point for your perusal.