Paris, je t'aime!: Wednesday wanderings

I don't have class on Wednesdays, so it's become my goal to get myself out of my warm apartment and see other parts of the city! It's a great opportunity for exercise, people-watching and catching up on NPR podcasts, as well as the only way for me to have any semblance of a sense of direction when it comes to how the different arrondissements (if you didn't know, Paris is divided into 19 arrondissements, or administrative districts, which spiral out from the plaza in front of Notre Dame). After a quick prayer for no rain I struck out this morning for a stroll vaguely directed in the direction of the Bastille. After I crossed the Seine and passed Notre Dame, I turned right and wandered east. Somehow, I'm not really sure, I ended up on Ile St. Louis! I guess the streets connecting it to the mainland were so big I didn't even notice I was on a bridge! Notre Dame is on Ile-de-la-Cite, and Ile St. Louis is a smaller island next to it that has a cute collection of cafes, art galleries, etc. As soon as I realized I was on it, I was off of it, and continued northeast to the Bastille. The Bastille neighborhood is famous for its prison that played a central role in the French Revolution. I just learned that the "storming of the Bastille" was prompted by rumors among the bourgeois that the king was holding political prisoners in the Bastille Saint-Antoine; the thought was that by freeing them, they would strike a decisive blow to the king's authority. However, there were only 7 people in the prison! In exchange for freeing 7 people, 100 protesters died! Hmm... Anywho, the Bastille obviously doesn't exist anymore, but there's a large Place de la Bastille with a big shiny memorial column topped by the "Spirit of Liberty" marking its former location. About six streets branch out from the central circle, including one with the Opera Bastille. The Opera Garnier was the city's first opera house, but the Opera Bastille was built in 1989 in an attempt to make opera more modern and fun? Not quite sure, but its design is considered an eyesore by many Parisians (one on the apparently very long list of things Parisians consider eyesores). I'm not quite sure how I feel about it, other than it's REALLY big and REALLY shiny. Continuing on my journey, I walked through the Marais district (which I had NO idea was so close to the Bastille!) to the Place des Vosges. It's the oldest square in Paris (dating from 1604), and it's been billed as one of the most beautiful squares in the world, so I had to check it out. A park with a fountain in the middle is completely surrounded by a symmetrical and identically built red and white brick buildings, with an arch in the middle of each side to leave the square. Many famous people lived in the surrounding buildings, including Richlieu and Victor Hugo. I'm not sure I'd call it the most beautiful square in the world, but it was pleasant :) I wandered more around the streets in the area, drooling over every cafe and bistro I passed. However, Parisian prices are a quite effective deterrant to eating healthy food! A salad is 12 euros, and a croissant is 1... Soooo sacrifices have to be made :) Feeling like a pick me up, I searched for a place to get a coffee and dessert. Everything was super expensive or didn't have a place to sit down, but I stumbled upon the most ADORABLE tea shop I have seen in Paris tucked away on a side street. It was decorated a lot like the Crown & Crumpet in San Francisco, but with a European sophistication. Eight euro bought me a coffee, a warm mixed fruit crumble made in-house, and a fantastic atmosphere filled with classical music where I could sit for an hour and read a book. The man who helped me was very nice and I definitely will be coming back with friends for one of their (relatively) affordable lunch formulas or afternoon tea. I love making these kinds of discoveries! After my wonderful few hours of reflective wandering and research for future outings, I decided that something reeallly needed to be done about the fact that I hadn't shaved my legs in a looonnnngg time... men-folk, you can skip this paragraph, but ladies will appreciate this cultural tidbit! It costs a lot to get your legs waxed in the states, I'd say an average of $40 right? But in Paris, there are places that ONLY do waxing, and they only charge 16 euros for a leg wax! And that's not even at a "cheap" place. So I go in to the shop and start a conversation with the technician as she's waxing my legs, and she remarked that I was unusual because Americans never wax. I told her how expensive it was at home, and she literally didn't believe me. It was like I told her that we ate puppies for dinner! Anyway, long story short it was cheap and took about 10 minutes and I feel SO much better :P On my last stop, I stumbled upon a fantastic looking candy shop called Servant (someone's last name, not the kind who mops your floors). I had to go in of course, and was greeted by a very nice gentleman who asked if he could help me. I said it was my first time in the store and I was just looking, and he looked very happy and wanted to tell me all about it! Founded in 1913, several stores in the city that are family-owned and operated, and the chocolate is made downstairs! He opened a door in the floor that led to the underground chocolate Batcave (and added that there was also a back entrance above ground). Anyway, he asked me if I like milk or dark chocolate, mild or strong flavored, and proceeded to give me two free samples of dark chocolates! I probably got like, 1 euro worth of free candy. Cha ching! It was delicious too, and I talked to him for a while about the different flavors and prices of boxes. I took a pamphlet with the different flavors home (because I HATE not knowing what chocolates are when you bite into them) and will probably return in time for Christmas presents. I seriously wanted to give him a hug, he was so nice and our conversation was the total highlight of my day! Sorry for the excessively detailed post, but I wanted to share my delightful day! Please enjoy these photos from my Wednesday wanderings :)