That’s maybe the prettiest Paris looked during the trip because of the way the morning light hit all of the familiar forms. Also, the city was still asleep, and the streets typically crowded with tourists were clear. We went to Sara’s apartment, dropped off my bags, and exchanged gifts before hopping in the car and grabbing a healthy brunch at one of Sara’s favorite cafes. I say healthy, but probably 50 percent of my “vegan” meal was bread.
But the bread in Paris does not feel as bad for you. The ingredients are fresh and not packed with preservatives. It settles better in my stomach. There were three types of house-made butters to smear on the bread, but the one Sara insisted I try was Belgium chocolate hazelnut spread. Basically homemade Nutella. I don’t love Nutella, but I did love this stuff. I took a quick trip to the bathroom and Sara sneakily bought two jars of the decadent spread for me to bring back to Tucson. Hopefully they have not exploded in my checked bag! I’d have to lick everything clean because I wouldn’t want an ounce of it to go to waste.
After lunch we walked to Museum d’Orsay, the impressionist museum filled with masterpieces by Monet, van Gogh, Seurat, Gauguin, Cezanne, Degas, and many, many, many more. My favorite room was the last one we entered, filled with blurred but precise pointillism and Gauguin’s vibrant Tahitian colors. It was delicious to the eyes.
We headed back to a car, and as I was dozing off I noticed Sara waving, assuming it was a courtesy wave to another driver. Then she alerted me that I needed to hop out to let Oosama (her fiance) in the car. haha. I think Sara forget she had only said in French on the phone that we were picking Oosama up, so I wasn’t anticipating meeting him curbside, mid-nap. He is wonderful! Gentle, intelligent, and a sweet match with lively Sara. He will tame her. 🙂
We went to get our hair done in a salon. The bride had her hair pulled to the side with curls and a white flower barrette. She looked royal! We all did our own makeup in the salon then met up with the rest of the family at the Paris City hall. In France, the religious ceremony has no significance to the state, so a courthouse marriage is required to be recognized as marriage in Paris. Sara and Oosama will have their big wedding party in Morocco on Sept. 4. I’ll be missing out, but I’m so glad to have been present for this.
We walked up to the “marriage room” of the city hall. They are required to leave the door into the room cracked so it’s considered a “public” ceremony. The woman who read the legal commitment and asked if they swore to love and respect one another was wearing a Parisian red, white and blue sash, and wearing casual attire. The rest of us were dressed formally. The ceremony took about 15 minutes, and then they were declared husband and wife. This was all in French, so I was going off of gestures, which are fairly easy to read in a wedding ceremony.
Then we headed down a charming pedestrian alley and took a hard left into a shop that looked tiny, but was a long, narrow creperie! We sat down by the restaurant kitty cat and had some of the best crepes I’ve ever tasted. I went with savory.
Then Haitam went back to his family and we met up with all the El Bekris at the Palace of Versailles. Every July through September the Palace gardens stay open on Saturday nights for a light show, then fireworks by the fountains. And the fountains are many! The gardens went on and on. I cannot imagine a king thinking so many were necessary, but Louis XIV seemed like a man who loved excess. Just peering into the windows of the Palace took my breath away. I’d like to go inside if I ever get back to Paris in this lifetime.
There’s an incredible, and fairly contemporary mural by Marc Chagall on the ceiling above the seating. It doesn’t fit the look of the rest of the place because the original mural was painted over in the 1950s. Some art critics call it an abomination, but I loved it. Charles Garnier, the architect, chose to make the seating and walls red because it put the ladies of the audience in a light which brought out the pink in their cheeks and made them look youthful. Crazy how much thought was put into how the audience of the main attraction would appear! This guy was concerned with every last detail.
Sara met us there and then we walked over to Angelina’s a historic French restaurant which gives off all of the sterotypical French vibes which tourists flock to. Their pastry case was a work of art. Sara bought us to Mont Blanc, which were semi-sweet frosting covered, cupcake-ish things, with cream and meringue inside. Decadent.
Then I bought some gifts for Matt and our doggie sitter and we drove to a dining boat, with a cabana vibe. I laughed because Sara ordered bread and cheese and a small cake. So we had three pastries and her meal to feast upon, and this was after the burger place. Fortunately we were averaging a 10k walk everyday! I would have felt guilty about my incessant bread intake otherwise. But, hey, if you’re going to go bread crazy, it might as well be in Paris.
We crashed into bed, woke up in time to say goodbye to Mouna, then Sara and I ventured to the bus which would take me to the airport. It’s funny how Matt and I became competent in getting around on the subway when we were there in 2011, but this year, I was completely dependent on Sara and Mouna to lead me. Blindly following them. Sara didn’t seem to trust that I could find my own way to the bus stop, and after three days of following the pros around, I wasn’t feeling totally confident in my own navigation skills! So I was thankful she held my hand through the last hour, and got me where I needed to be. haha. Fortunately, Sara likes or doesn’t mind being depended upon.
Comments
Loveliest pictures from your 3-day Whirlwind Weekend in Paris! Thank you very much for sharing these photos here. I also visited LA last week with my fiancé. We had our engagement shoot over there and also visited a couple of LA event venues for our wedding ceremony. I liked a garden venue so much and would like to tie the knot at that place.