Paris, 2022

A few months ago Hannah decided she wanted to go to Paris. I wasn’t convinced, and didn’t want to take the time off and deal with the jet lag for what would end up being a short one-week trip. I begrudgingly agreed, and didn’t regret it at all.

Every time I travel outside of the US I am reminded of how much I love being immersed in other cultures. The art, the history, the food, the wine… it was amazing. We’ll likely be back soon.

The narrow bike-friendly streets were very welcoming.

Hannah said that the bookstands along the river reminded her of Mexico City. The whole time I was thinking about how much French culture influenced Latin American cities, and how many details of Parisian life are imitated in San José and other Latin cities I’ve visited. The remnants of shifting hegemonies are fascinating.

It’s kind of ridiculous to take a black and white photo at a place like Sainte-Chapelle, but I did it anyway. It was that, or a photo on my phone.

We got great wine and cheese at Place Dauphine. Coming from San Francisco, and with the Euro at parity with the US Dollar everything felt cheap which I didn’t expect at all.

The people watching was great.

The next day, Mona and Rafa invited us over for brunch at their place. We picked up some pastries on the way.

Samuelino and Claudia. Next time I’ll remember to take a photo of the parents, too.

Rafa took us on a bike tour around the city. We saw the Eiffel Tower, Champs-Élysées, and the Arc de Triomphe.

Then we walked through the Jardin des Tuileries, and all the way to the Marais.

There’s a lot of life along the Seine.

N is for “narcissist,” right?

I really loved the cafe culture, with chairs facing outwards to see and be seen.

Not sure what the significance of the flowers is, but we saw bouquets like this one in many street corners.

This graffiti is recurrent in the city. It made me think of SF’s Weird Lady.

We went up to Montmarte with Danny and Ali, and climbed up to the top of the Sacré-Cœur.

The next day we took the train to Versailles. We picked up some meats and cheese for a little picnic.

The galeries reminded me of the Vatican. The lovely pissing contests of European overlords.

We really enjoyed walking aimlessly through the city, like true flâneurs.

The honey mooners.

We were staying near Place des Vosges.

It is a lovely square.

Hannah asked that I picked a single museum. Of course it was the Louvre.

I ended up in the modern French art section as the museum was closing down. The bare rooms were quite the contrast from the main hallway and room that hosts the Mona Lisa.

And that was Paris.

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