go, grow, glow: Day 20: A Memorable Adventure

There’s definitely so much to take in about the city. Each monument had an anecdote to reveal, each random corner a story to tell. It was impossible to see Paris and not be taken back in time.

It’s also impossible to memorize all the facts that we came across.

But what I do remember are the moments.

No, these are NOT the times when I was speed-reading how “The New Paris” was built, nor when I was chasing street signs to find out if Miel and I were going the right direction. They are, I feel, the moments when we let the right side of the brain take over, and let the body do what it pleased; when we walked a little further than intended, took a pause and sat down, or just let the eyes, ears and nose wander.

Travel writer Pico Iyer said this in one article:

Adventure today means finding one’s way back to the silence and stillness of a thousand years ago.

I took it quite literally, when he referred to discovering the silence and stillness, or the mundane-ness of the past. But I think it does warrant extra focus to be able to quiet the distracted mind, especially when my finger would keep itching to grab my multi-tasking smart phone, that I do catch my brain ordering myself to just stay still, and savor the moment.

A few of my favorite moments are (in no particular order):

1. Having lunch at 2:15 PM on our way to the Musee d’Orsay. This is after we both agreed that our tummies needed the replenishment, and we just abruptly stopped walking at the next café we saw that offered al fresco seating. They served wonderful pasta, offered great service. And because it was almost 3pm, our mid-meal “entertainment” was the restaurant staff taking nicotine breaks with their neighboring café workers, or others, doing mid-day duties of receiving supplier deliveries of meats and packaged goods.

2. After finding out that we couldn’t get into the Musee de l’Armee (national military museum) after walking all the way from the Eiffel Tower, we decided to rest on a bench at the fronting park. We just rested as dogs and humans would pass us by. Not too far off was a teacher-student pair, practicing Tai Chi. This was 1:30 in the afternoon.

3. Walking along a street lined with identical-looking structures. Same color stones, same window designs, same balcony railings, same embellishments. All looking like they were for residential use, but with interesting architecture, nonetheless. At one point, after seeing several of them, I decided to walk up closer and read the etching on the upper corner of the door. The building, apparently, was built in 1909. And those alongside it? Yes, all over one hundred years old.

4. Staring up, down, left and right as we stood at the top-most level inside the Musee d’Orsay. Its main hall just screams “I USED TO BE A TRAIN STATION”, which it obviously is, but being there remained a surreal experience. The natural light bleeding in from all directions, the heavy lines and arches, the perfect patterns on bending surfaces, and the huge clocks…Truly worthy to be showcased in the 1900 International Exhibition as one of France’s artistic and technological achievements.

5. Sitting on the steps of the Sacre Coeur, listening to a solo artist (seated a few steps away from us) with her guitar and loop recorder, gazing at the Paris rooftops as it transformed from bright white to yellow to gray. All at the same time, inhaling some second-hand smoke and hearing the buzz of every other tourist (like us), as the sun set on the city.

Truly it is impossible to tour Paris in a day. There was just too much to see, and trying to ram the detail of every alley, lamppost, mailbox, railing, and manhole cover just left me more anxious than amazed.

But I learn that the fault is in my perspective; that a place is never meant to be “toured”.

Instead, and as Miel and I experienced ourselves, strolling around Paris makes for a much better objective than touring it. And in the end, taking those leisurely steps from one street crossing to the next; glimpsing into the window display of a quaint shop; or sniffing the sweetness that escaped the slightly-open patisserie door; already made it a memorable adventure.