Paris 2015
After college, I flew off to Paris on my own believing my high school French would carry me by. Here’s my experience couch-surfing and navigating my first time alone in a foreign country.
What I did in a nutshell:
Montmartre area- Sacré Cœur Basilica, Marché aux Puces (flea market)
Walked along Seine. You can view the Eiffel Tower and beautiful bridges like Pont Des Arts (or Pont Alexandre III).
Toured the beautiful cathedrals along Seine; Saint Chapelle and Notre Dame
Latin Quarter: ate confit de canard, filled mixed bags of gourmet chocolate at Maison Georges Larnicol, browsed books at Shakespeare and Co.
Toured Le Louvre at night (less people)
Last, but not least, spent some time just wandering around. So many things to just happen upon.
After my time in Iceland, I decided to stay 2 nights in Paris before heading south to my host family. I had plans scheduled to the exact minute (I definitely don’t travel like that anymore), but I ended up changing my schedule to spend time with my couch surfing hosts who kindly showed me around Paris as much as they could.
I had only ever heard that French people were snooty, rude, and condescending. It’s a stereotype that an unfortunate number of Americans have of France. Though I never personally believed this stereotype to be true, I was pleasantly surprised by the polar opposite for me. I think it was because of my earnest humility, I knew I wasn’t entitled to their help, let alone help in English.
It was a bit overwhelming simply getting into the heart of Paris from the enormous Charles de Gaulle airport, but with the help of many strangers, I eventually found my way. I arranged for EasyBus to pick me up outside of Charles de Gaulle, but after an hour of waiting, I decided to take the train instead. I started to learn quickly how flexible and light on your feet you need to be when traveling. I got a new ticket for 10 euros and got off at République station, close to where my hosts live. I had no idea where I was going or what I was doing, so I was pretty proud of myself for simply making it from the airport to République alive.
I was super weighed down by my luggage, which I previously thought was “packing light”. In my attempt to find my way out of the dungeon-labyrinthe that is the Paris metro, I had to carry my bags up many, many flights of stairs. The metro underground was confusing for me at first, but when I started actually reading the signs and looking at the maps (using my brain), I was able to find my way out. Being in a new place can be stimulus overload, but I learned that simply taking a deep breath and treating my next steps like a puzzle really helped. And also looking at the signs conveniently placed all around you.
My hosts were amazing, but I was terribly embarrassed during my first interaction with Laurène. I had forgotten to read about French greetings… la bise. She leaned in to kiss my cheek, and I didn’t know what she was doing, so I tried to hug her. Hugging is not something you do with a new person in France. During our awkward embrace where I was mostly the one doing the hugging, she pulled away to kiss my cheek. Good job, Summer. Way to read in advance how to greet people in this country.
She then took me up to their cozy apartment and fed me delicious flaky pastries that she had made - she’s a chef! I tried speaking a little in French but I found myself suddenly intimidated. I was now extremely aware of my American accent, my poor grammar, my small vocabulary, my lack of listening comprehension etc. But she was very patient with me. Alèxe came home late (the guy with whom I arranged my stay) and they both took me to Montmartre that night. We walked around the market and I chose a painting to take home with me. I felt sort of like a puppy they were taking on a stroll, excited by every tree and street corner.
When we returned, they set up their futon in the living room and I passed out!
The next morning I woke up early and took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. I got a little confused and I’m guessing my confusion was plastered on my face. A nice woman offered to help me and she walked me straight up to the Eiffel Towel which I could tell was not exactly on her way. She knew I wasn’t from around here and spoke slowly for me, asked me about my life in America, and gave me more tips about how to not have things stolen - a common warning I had from strangers! After wandering around the Eiffel Tower, walking along the Seine, crossing the Pont des Arts, and looking at street vendors, I met up with Laurène for lunch by Notre Dame.
She found a place in the Latin Quarter that would offer a taste of French food without catering to tourists’ taste palettes. We ordered confit de canard with potatoes and salad and a glass of white wine.
We had a wonderful discussion about politics, education, and family (mostly in French) and then left afterwards to have dessert. She showed me an amazing chocolate place and we got an assortment of beautiful treats and then walked around eating them. My favorites were the citrons confits chocolats.
We saw Shakespeare and Co. and explored the Latin Quarter some more. She left me on my own for a bit because she had work in the evening. I would be meeting Alèxe at 7 to go to the Louvre and in the meantime, I had some more time alone to wander around.
Love lock bridge. I feel kind of responsible, as an American tourist, for destroying their bridges even though I didn’t put one on.
A photo that seems beautiful at first, but then my host Alèxe explained that the proportions of her lower back, butt, and leg are just WEIRD.
Alèxe met me at 7pm and took me to the Louvre, acting as my own personal art guide. He explained the museum’s history, and took me to some of the more important art works - it’s hardly possible to see the entire Louvre in a day, let alone a couple hours! Because it was late and people had mostly left, I was able to get up close to the Mona Lisa. I’m still unsure why she’s such a big deal, but it was nice not to fight arm and elbow to see her.
After that, Alèxe took me to a Japanese restaurant in the area near the opera house. I felt so fortunate to have Laurène and Alèxe as resources during my stay, their knowledge and kindness were the parts that stood out so vividly during my stay in Paris. I was comfortable the entire time!
My last day in Paris, I found my way to the train station fairly easily. I was very proud of myself as I had to walk quite a ways after getting off the metro. I ate at Brioche Dorée before getting on and relaxed in first class (the ticket for first class was cheaper for some reason). It was such a pleasant ride and boy, that leg space was everything. I watched as the modern neighborhoods of Paris covered in graffiti faded into farms and villages, castles and valleys.
When I arrived in Montpellier, I couldn’t find the meeting place I agreed to meet my host family at, again a nice man helped me by telling me where I needed to go. When I found the right place, I heard my host mom call out my name. She was standing with my host sister Anaïs and smiling. Then they tried to initiate les bises - I was going to be an expert by the end of this trip.