The Corner of the Quater

Today is my last day in Paris. I decided to spend my time exploring the south part of the city making a point to visit the catacombs, Notre Dame, and the Latin Quarter. The catacombs are underground tombs used during the French Revolution to bury the large amount of bodies. They are famous in France for their erie yet spiritual presence. I enjoyed learning about the makings of the pathways but when it came to the 6 million bodies... I felt mostly erie. Unfortunately, the Notre Dame was not allowing visitors as one could expect with the recent fire. We were not even able to cross the bridge that leads to the famous church. I was able to see a distant view of it and even from afar it was a stunning piece of architecture. Guess I’ll just have to come back some day! Darn! The Latin Quarter was not originally on my list, but I heard great things about it from fellow travelers in my hostel so I decided to pay it a visit. Boy am I glad I did. This area of France is devoted to older style buildings that are more yellow in color with large iron balconies on every window. The roads between these houses are narrow and lined with boutiques and restaurants. I could have winded my way through those streets for miles. All of the local shop owners were so sweet and helpful when they discovered I spoke English. They would practice my language as they told me about their store. I just repeatedly said, “Merci, merci” and “Oui, oui” as that was about all the French I had on the spot. All in all, this area of France was so quaint and warm, I felt like I was truly in the city of romance. I decided to eat a late lunch at a café on the corner. My waiter was so excited that I was from America. He kept using phrases he would consider American, which made me laugh. For the most part, I eat on the go; grabbing a crepe from a street cart or a sandwich from a local supermarché. This is mostly because it is a lot cheaper to eat this way, but also because I am alone. I have eaten out alone before, but I am still not fully accustomed to it. Yet today, I felt completely at peace. I sat for awhile on that corner sipping my café and taking in the magnitude of where I was. I was in PARIS. THE Paris. Like the Eiffel Tower Paris! I dreamt of this city for years and I dreamt of traveling for who knows how long. And here I was; drinking a coffee in a cafe on the corner of the Latin quarter. I was living in the moment like I never had before; soaking in every second so I could forever remember this scene.