I didn't have class today (so I guess in that way it's not THAT typical), but it was a lovely day that reminded me in many ways of how lucky I am to live here - for another six weeks.
I woke up to see a brilliantly blue sky peeking through the gap in my curtains. I love the contrast of the blue sky against the color of the buildings here.
An hour or so later I had my sneakers laced up and I was outside in the brisk air, running north along Rue Saint-Jacques towards the Seine. With the forecast high of 68 and sunny, it was a great way to start the day. From my house to the Seine going along that route (which is almost a direct line) is a bit over two miles. I paused when I arrived at the river to take a picture of Notre Dame, which I personally think is more impressive when viewed from the back - I mean, look at those flying buttresses! ;)
I wanted to jog a loop around Ile Saint-Louis, but when I arrived at the end of the bridge linking the two islands, I found a film or photography crew set up and the pedestrian traffic stopped. A number of people were standing around watching, but I didn't see anything in particular during the ten seconds I paused to decide how to reroute myself. This is one of those things I love about living in major cities - you never know what you might happen upon!
I ended up running back south down Boulevard Saint-Michel to the Jardin du Luxembourg, which was not yet filled with people. I paused again to admire the various vantage points of the Eiffel Tower across the pond:
There's another long, narrow park that begins at the southern border of the Jardin du Luxembourg, and from its southern end, there's an incredible view that allows you to see the basilica of Sacré-Coeur. It's always a little difficult to get it to show up properly in pictures, but here's the best one I've captured - I stopped and climbed up on the wall of a huge fountain.
After showering and getting ready, I set off for school. I stopped along the way to pick up un sandwich jambon emmental (ham and French cheese on a baguette, one of my go-to lunches), hopped on the metro, and got off at Saint-Germain-des-Prés, where a man was playing an actual piano out on the sidewalk next to a crepe stand. I walked past the posh people lunching in the sunshine at Les Deux Magots and Café de Flor and continued down to rue de l'Université, where one of our main academic buildings is. I spent the next hour listening to one of my professors lecture about his current research, then I went back out into the sunshine, walked the couple of blocks to the river, crossed the Pont Royal, and found myself in between the Jardin des Tuileries and the lawn in front of the Louvre. I was not the only one who had been inspired to spend some time in the sun.
I spent the next hour reading in a chair on the edge of this fountain. The spray from the fountain periodically blew onto us in a most refreshing way, and the sun felt just perfect - not too hot at all, even though I was wearing all black (I dressed in a particularly Parisian way today). I looked up every few minutes to absorb my surroundings. I don't think there's a better way to spend a warm afternoon. The Tuileries are my favorite garden in Paris, even though they're the most touristy and crowded. It's just so lovely to be near the Louvre and able to see the Eiffel Tower!
After my reading time I set off down Rue de Rivoli to take a look at the spring fashions. I walked as far as the Hotel de Ville (and bought a couple of things along the way). When I got on the metro to go back home, I passed by a 12-person string group playing Canon in D in one of the big hallways of the Chatelet station. There are always legitimate musicians playing there, and I particularly enjoyed this group because Canon in D is the song that was playing when I was born. :)
So there you have it, folks - an utterly normal yet still magical day in Paris!
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