Mission Reunion at Moulin Rouge

Hey again! This is part two of my ultra-exhausting week of tourist extravaganza.

Featuring my long-awaited first encounter with the Moulin Rouge and about a million other Parisian landmarks and neighborhoods (I literally walked halfway across town in one day):

Be very, very excited. 

This day ushered in the presence of our dearest traveling companion, Elder Riff (née Raphaël). We met up at Les Halles, a joyous and long-awaited reunion since the mission, and not long after I was forced into my first experience with French McDonald's (NEVER AGAIN). Roland proposed the names of a *few* places we could visit, and again, my poor, jiggly legs and I naively agreed.

Just roaming round by the Louvre with two Frenchmen. Teenage me would definitely be geeking out right now, but adultier me definitely played it cool. 

The idea was that we would eventually make our pilgrimage to Sacré-Coeur Basilica, but we somehow ended up taking nearly as many treacherous detours as the Pilgrims' Crusade crusaders (and I definitely died). We started at the Tuileries, perhaps the most majestic place for this 18th and 19th-century fanatic. It was somewhat chilling realizing that I was walking the very grounds where Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI were held captive during the French Revolution, the blood of the Revolution perhaps once tainting the very paths we walked. Casting morbid thoughts aside, the Tuileries are just plain magnificent, in spite of aggressive street vendors accosting you from all sides. C'est la vie in Paris, I guess, as I am quickly learning.  

Not sure if this is real life.

And thus commenced the endless day of walking. Roland noted all of the museums we would be visiting at some point during the summer: la musée d'Orsay, le Louvre, l'Orangerie, etc. etc. It felt unreal to be seeing famous landmarks in real life, literally at every turn. My personal favorite was definitely the cast of Rodin's famous Le Baisser (The Kiss). The bodies create such an elegant, powerful line from absolutely every single angle, breathlessly beautiful and highly evocative in its Parisian realm. 

Every. 

Angle. Glorious.

From the Tuileries we walked all the way to l'Arc de Triomphe, and yes, I did cry. Not for the joy of finally walking the Champs-Élysées for the first time in my life, but because of the sheer pain. And jetlag. And self pity. And not speaking English for hours on end. Alright, I confess, I'm the world's most difficult person to travel with. But I was tired! So all of this to say that the Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe didn't make a huge impression on me. One fancy, over-priced shop after another? Yeah, no thank you. Maybe I'll like the Champs-Élysées more when I make the big bucks as a professor and can return flush with cash.

I guess I can't complain about some of the views along the way. 

We eventually made our way to Montmartre, which definitely my weary traveler spirits. We were, of course, attacked by the crazy bracelet hagglers, but luckily I had two spindly Frenchmen there to protect me from their attacks (literally shielded by Roland by one arm as he swatted them away with the other). From there we met up with Elder Babin and had a magical mission reunion. With all of the cool people from our old Chinese district, anyway.

As we ascended the mountain (hill) to Sacré-Coeur Basilica, something completely crazy happened. We were stopped by a girl that looked incredibly familiar. We soon discovered that she had actually taken English 251 with me. Small world! It was her first day in France, and, tired and jetlagged as she was, she had been praying that she might find some nice person to guide her through Paris. Funny how our little band of Mormons just happened to be at Sacré-Coeur at the exact same time as her.

Long story short, she accompanied us the rest of the day, which I was eternally grateful for because a) girl power and b) I was so tired of speaking French. Geez. Walking through Montmartre was truly amazing, though. It just felt so French. Roland tried to find Van Gogh's studio but we were unsuccessful. Still, it's exhilarating when you think about all of the exceptional souls from history that inhabited the space you're wandering as a tourist. I don't think I'll ever get over it.

As we wound our way out of Montmartre we finally made it to the most lurid of streets: Boulevard de Clichy. Eeek! I cannot even begin to express how excited I was to be there. The Moulin Rouge, the street of my mancrush Degas, Musée de l'Erot--I mean--you know me... I shunned and forsook that *magnificent* cesspool of corruption and filth. For shame.

Okay, maybe I enjoyed being there just a little...

                  

Anyway, to make this long story a little bit shorter, we basically walked ALL of Paris with our poor, jetlagged friend. Even my jetlag was manifesting itself at this point, but the beauty of Paris is that no matter how miserable you might feel physically, the energy of the city is incredibly sustaining. We ended our day at Place des Vosges. To give you an idea of how tired I was after the 5.6 kilometers I walked from Montmartre in the disgusting humidity, I had absolutely no qualms about lying in the grass in piles of cigarette buds while munching maple cookies that Elder Riff pilfered over from Quebec.

Oh, and Place de l'Opéra was exquisite. 

The Riffer

To end our gloriously exhausting day we met up with Daniel for dinner and I convinced everyone to go to a Korean restaurant (it was a rough day, okay?). I still haven't eaten at an actual French restaurant yet... but I should probably get on that. I've come all this way to France and all I want to do is eat my usual fare.

And here marks the end of yet another exhausting day touring the greatest city on earth. So many adventures and hangry moments to come!