It was our last morning in Paris. We were due to fly out in just a few hours—but, like the rest of our week-long sojourn in in the City of Lights, we were making the most of every second. We were standing in line to climb up the Tours-de-Notre-Dame, the famous Notre Dame towers. As it was Sunday, admission to the towers was free, and I was determined to see the famous gargoyles and the view over the entire city.

It was early January, just a few days after the New Year, and it was absolutely freezing. Although we’d tried to get there early, there was already a line—that’s Paris for you. Since we pretty much needed to get to the airport as soon as we finished, we grabbed one last crepe each while we waited, shivering. Here’s a picture of me, my (faux) fur-lined coat obscuring most of my face, just my grin visible as I hold the crepe close to my face.

Paris was a dream, but on the tail end of a two week jaunt around Europe over Christmas, right before going back to my grueling teaching schedule in Prague, it probably wasn’t the best idea. We were exhausted. Add that to the fact that we were totally broke, and well…it wasn’t our most genius travel plan. In addition, Paris at the start of the New Year might be the busiest place…ever. We spent a lot of time waiting in lines.

Still, we’d managed to get as much out of Paris as possible. We were staying in a very tiny flat with unreliable hot water and heat, a pull-out couch the only bed, and a view over a decidedly unpicteresque courtyard. Still, just over the tops of the buildings behind us, we could see the Eiffel Tower. We watched it every hour, as we ate baguettes and cheese in our flat to save money, sparkling through the long and cold nights.

On our last day, we were finially going to do the activity I’d been dying to do the whole week. We’d seen the Notre-Dame, of course—hard to miss—but I was determined to get a view of the gargoyles (fun fact: the gargoyles are actually the drain pipes in the shapes of monsters; the statues everyone thinks are gargoyles are actually called chimeras).

Finally it was our turn, and we climbed the dizzying, slightly claustrophobic stairs, stopping periodically for the crowds and to snap photos from different points of view.

We made it to the top, finally, and there were the chimeras—staring over the City of Light, some thoughtful, some looking monstrous, some looking almost sad. And there, as I picked out a few landmarks I knew, I felt my eyes filling with tears.

Here I was, in Paris. The place of my imagination, the place of so many stories and dreams and so many other imaginations. Paris is chaotic, confusing, gigantic, overwhelming, and in spots dirty, dangerous, overcrowded and overpriced. But from this vantage point, it was mostly beautiful, iconic, and the Paris of my dreams.

I was heartbroken this week, to hear the news about the Notre-Dame. Such an iconic building, of course, but also one of my favorite memories from my few years living in Europe. Technically, it’s just a building, and even one saturated in so much history and age and beauty and culture, it could be so much worse.

Yet, while I’m sad, I’m also so grateful. I got to see it. The loss of such an important piece of human history serves as a stark reminder that nothing lasts forever. Not even you. You only get one chance to see the world, to see everything you want, to get the things you want. I’m here to tell you that the world is changing, your life is changing, and if you have dreams of travel, go for it, to the best of your ability. Waiting has its purpose, but nothing is ever guaranteed a tomorrow. Not even the places we think might be around forever.

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Paris, honestly, kind of felt like one giant outtake at times. Our first AirBnB was a disaster–it didn’t have heat, and Paris was freezing. The stress of finding a new place–and trying to keep warm–had the first few days flying by in a stressful blur. For some reason, I didn’t anticipate the crowds, so we spent much more time in line and fighting crowds than I thought we would. I’m not sure I’ve ever been in a city as crowded as Paris was at the end of December! We also bought a Museum Pass, which would have been a much better deal if our time period to use it hadn’t coincided with New Year’s Day, when everything was closed (I promise we aren’t idiots…I did look a lot of this stuff up online, but many of the monuments don’t have reliable times posted on their websites).

Despite all of this and so much more (see below!), I loved Paris. It was exactly how I imagined Paris would be: lovely and romantic, busy and monumental, ancient yet modern. I feel like we only touched the surface in the week we were there, and it’s one of those places I know I’ll go back to–just as soon as my bank account recovers!

Take 1 // Going back to a museum because I realized that–in my rush–a painting I’ve always wanted to see is housed there and I missed it the first time. Only to find out upon searching and finally asking for help–said painting is on loan. To Texas.

Take 2 // Eating about 20 macaroons a day (hey, those things are small, right?).

Take 3 // Spending way too many minutes on the metro due to poor planning (also, Paris is huge).

Take 4 // Taking fifty photos in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles…we never could get one without a billion other reflections in it. Also the lighting in terrible in there…how do people get such fantastic selfies in those mirrors?!

       ^^also, I kept cutting E’s head out.

Take 5 // Inhaling one last crepe before going home…standing in line in the freezing cold. (We ate a lot of food while waiting in line).

Take 6 // Climbing the staircase at the Louvre for a classic picture, but after seven hours of running around the museum, I gave up halfway there.

Take 7 // Trying to get a glimpse of the Mona Lisa.

            ^^a pretty good picture of this random security guy, though.

Take 8 // Thinking this photo through the roof of a boat would be cool and artsy.

Take 9 // Not realizing there are actually pillars designed to help you take this iconic photo.

Take 10 // Attempting many, many failed selfies at the Eiffel Tower.

Take 11 // Going back to a cafe because we overslept and missed our reservations at another one.

Take 12 // Climbing up the Arc de Triomphe for what is supposedly the best view in Paris (for the record, I disagree–the Tours de Notre Dame was the best) only to find it rainy and foggy.

        ^^still is a killer view, though.

Take 13 // Spending three hours lingering over the biggest meal I ate in Paris.

Take 14 // Getting caught in the rain in Montmartre–the one day we didn’t bother with umbrellas.

Take 15 // Trapping about 20 people on a winding staircase while I struggled to get the best shot from Notre Dame that also included the chimeras (or gargoyles).

Take 16 // Being artsy (or trying) with Paris’ best hot chocolate and my lipstick.

Take 17 // Maneuvering the Louvre.

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Do you have outtakes from your travels/life?

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Linking up with Travel Tuesday.

The post Outtakes: Paris Edition appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

I admit I’m feeling very good about Prague right now, and I’m looking forward to seeing what month six has in store!

But first…

(please excuse the length, this month was a big one!)

FIVE MONTHS IN PRAGUE: BY THE NUMBERS

TWELVE Christmas-themed English lessons. If you have to work, might as well continue to be festive, right?

ONE EVENING at the National Theatre for the Nutcracker!

THREE HOURS of chocolate overload with Andrea at the Choco Cafe.

2.5 WEEKS (and counting…) of the cold that won’t go away.

NINE Christmas movies watched to fully embrace the season.

FOUR Christmas packages received! Thanks to all of our fantastic family and friends for those, they are so appreciated! I love it all so much I’m hoarding it in one spot so I can look at it all…

ELEVEN Christmas Markets in total. Two in Prague, one in Valkenburg, one in Bruges, one in Brussels, one in Ghent, one in Paris, and FOUR in Germany. They all had their charms, but the markets in Cologne, Germany were certainly my favorite. Especially the Heinzelmännchen market, or the “Gnome Market” as known to us.

SEVERAL HOURS in Cologne hanging out with Jessi & crew and Sara & her Dan! I love spontaneous blogger meet-ups. (how did I not take any pictures of this??)

THOUSANDS of festive lights seen–on Christmas trees, adorning streets, in light shows, sparkling on the Eiffel Tower.

ONE water bottle full of champagne for New Year’s Eve in Paris. Nothing but class up in here.

SEVEN incredible, busy, overwhelming, crazy, confusing, beautiful, wonderful days in Paris.

400 STEPS up the Tours de Notre-Dame for my favorite view of Paris, and to visit the Chimera gallery, where I learned that the statues I actually thought were gargoyles are actually called chimeras. Gargoyles are actually the ornamental rain drains. Who knew? We had to wait in line for two hours, and we were supposed to be heading to the airport any minute, but I am so glad we made it up into the towers. I cried when I saw the chimeras and the incredible view of Paris.

45 MINUTES in a Christmas market cave.

SIXTEEN DAYS traveling through Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France.

EIGHT cities/towns visited during these sixteen days–Charleroi (Belgium), Cologne, Valkenburg (the Netherlands), Brussels, Bruges, Ghent, Paris and Versailles (which is also a city, not just a palace).

SEVENTEEN PEOPLE talked to via FaceTime in Texas on December 27…I missed a family reunion on my mother’s side, but I was happy to be able to see everyone this way!

THREE Christmas phone calls. We missed our families and friends but it was great to see their faces on the holiday.

FIVE NIGHTS with a view of the Eiffel Tower from our flat (since it was a studio, we had a view from the table, bed and kitchen! #winning #smug).

TWO NIGHTS in a horrible flat in Paris with no heat and a moldy shower…we earned those five nights with a view and that smugness!

TOO MANY STAIRS to count. Paris especially seems to be the land of stairs–we walked up and down in the Louvre, up three spiral staircases to our flat, up and down in Versailles, up and down the Arc de Triomphe, up and down the Tours de Notre-Dame, up and down to the river…

POSSIBLY ONE MILLION MILES walked on our Christmas trip. Despite the amount of food and beverages we consumed (see below), E and I both lost weight because we were on the move so much!

A RETURN VISIT to our favorite bar in Belgium, Café Terrastje, for some of my favorite beer, Kasteel Donker, and some ham & cheese pasta.

EIGHT HOURS in the Louvre.

ENDLESS amounts of good food consumed, from potato fritters to waffles to fries (oh I love my Belgian fries!) to crepes to raclette to croissants to chips to macarons to salmon to steak to duck to lasagna to pasta to na’an to curry.

TOO MUCH glühwein, wine, champagne, coffee, cocoa and beer to count. Not that I’m complaining…

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QUESTION:

Even though it’s halfway through January, how was your December??

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Linking up with Nicole. 

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