Day 58: Paris

My first true day of visiting the sites in Paris began at 8 am. I showered, ate some cereal (which I had purchased last night before going back to the apartment) and headed to the Louvre.



I took the Metro and actually ended up directly underneath the Louvre. I walked out of the gate and saw the inverted pyramid and it suddenly hit me that I was there. It was surreal seeing it. It must have been amazing for others because a ton of people were taking pictures. I walked through the line and presented my Paris pass. My first target: Mona Lisa. I weaved through the crowds and walked towards the room that Mona lives. On the way I passed a Cimabue panel that we had discussed in class. I said hello to it and carried on my mission. As I walked in the room there was a crowd of people surrounding the painting. I made it to the front and was suddenly let down by how anticlimactic it was. It was small; way smaller that I had ever thought. It was also pretty far away since they roped the crowd off. It was also placed behind glass which made it awful to photograph. I tried anyway though, as did the rest of the room.

I continued to walk around the Louvre and view some pretty amazing 19th century paintings. I tried to find the Renaissance hall but instead found a room full of rugs with gold striations. Let down, and hungry, I left for the food court located near the museum. As I ate, I planned my next few stops. I took the train for about 20 minutes to visit the Dali Museum. It was amazing, but more so was the town that it was located in. It consisted of a lot of little shops and had many artists set up hoping for customers for them to paint portraits of. This area also marks the first time I tried the Crepes.



I went back to the center of Paris and headed towards the Cathedral of Notre Dame. I got to view the monumental size of the church from the inside and see all of the French Gothic architecture that provides its structure. I tried to look for the crypt but after many failed attempts of asking where it was, I gave up. I had dinner near the Cathedral and then headed back to the apartment. I was exhausted from the long day and even though we through a movie on, I was asleep within 10 minutes.