My Obsession with the city Of lights!

[dropcap] I [/dropcap]f you have been following me for a little while (or even if you’ve had a quick glance at my website),  it is probably no secret that I am obsessed with all things French (and especially Paris, France). It wasn’t always this way though. My obsession with France began back in November of 2005 when I went to Paris for the first time in undergrad. I was taking a French course (after having visited Montréal and deciding it would be fun to learn French) and our professor (Prof. Ryall, who I will always fondly remember) organized the trip. Having grown up in a small town, I had always dreamed of traveling the world and was ecstatic at the chance to finally travel overseas, and to France no less!

It is maybe an odd concept to fall in love with an inanimate object (and a city no less), but that was exactly what I did. From the very first moment I stepped foot in that beautiful country, I was in love. The sites, the sounds, the smells (yes, not all of them good as we were warned by our professor, who also taught us that that was part of the beauty of traveling), and the food, omg the food. All of it was like a little piece of heaven to me (umm hellloooo my dear friends banana and nutella crêpes, escargot, pain au chocolat, chocolat chaud from Angelina Café, croissant aux abricots (apricot croissant), I could go on, but I’ll stop haha).

I was by no means a professional photographer at the time. In fact, I don’t even think I had taken the one photography course I took in college yet at the time of the trip. But that didn’t stop me from taking a ton of photos of the beautiful city! I was fortunate enough to go back again while in college and spent the summer of 2006 in Paris through a study abroad program at L’Institut Catholique de Paris. Again, I was not a photographer, but that didn’t stop me and my camera haha.

After graduating with a B.S. in French (from SUNY Oneonta) I packed up as much as I could (which included my cat Luna) and moved to my beautiful city to teach ESL (English as a Second Language). In short, it was a disaster (turns out, I am by no means a teacher. Which was an unfortunate {or fortunate depending on how you look at it} thing to find out because that’s what I thought I was going to go to graduate school for after my year abroad). Long story short, I had to cut my year in Paris short and come home early. I was devastated, and I didn’t know how, but I knew I would be back. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING could keep me from my beautiful city.

Fast forward a few months, and I was in training as a flight attendant and LOD (Language of Destination) speaker with #DeltaAirlines . After 6 weeks of very intense training (it’s now 8 weeks if you’re thinking of becoming a flight attendant with Delta, which I HIGHLY recommend!), I was traveling back to Paris (and going to Nice and Lyon) on a pretty regular basis. And yet, again, during all of that time, even though I had a decent DSLR camera, I still never took it out of auto, and wasn’t using it to it’s full potential to capture amazing images of my travels. Ugh, it still hurts my heart.

In light of the events in Paris this past week (the tragic fire at Notre Dame Cathedral), I decided it was about time I actually went through my photos through all my years of traveling to Paris, France and edit a few of them. The following photos are some of my favourites, and they start with photos from my very first time in Paris, way back in November of 2005. I decided to start with the photos of Notre Dame since that is what inspired me to write this post. I am in awe of her beauty and deeply saddened by the fire, but things could have been so much worse, and while it will take many years to complete, she will rise from the Ashes!

A view of the la Tour Eiffel from the top of Notre Dame. I love how it looks like the gargoyles have been watching over the city for the past 850 years!

A photo of the spire that no longer stands following Monday’s fire. This was taken in November of 2007 (and if i’m being honest, I think I was really taking a photo of the fountain haha).


The cross still stands!

A view into the nave of Notre Dame from behind the cross that is still standing following the fire!

The flying buttresses seen in the above photo helped to keep the structure intact during the fire. Isn’t the architecture just stunning?

If you visit Paris, be sure to take a boat tour on the Seine. It really is a great way to see the city! (And even better, if you can, take a Bateaus Mouches dinner cruise!)

It of course wouldn’t be photos of Paris without photos of the beautiful Tour Eiffel!

I’m particularly proud of this image. I feel like it looks like an old vintage photo, not a photo taken in 2007.

I love how she towers above the city! Fun fact: after the construction of la Tour Montparnasse, a law was put in place banning any buildings over 7 stories high from being constructed in the city centre.

So anyone who has ever been in a public place with me while I’m trying to take a photo, knows how much I hate strangers in my photos. Unfortunately, at a place such as the Musée du Louvre , it can’t be avoided.

You may not believe it, but these next couple of photos are still in Paris, at one of my favourite places, Jardin du Luxembourg!

The Medici Fountain is tucked away in the Jardin Du Luxembourg and it is one of my favourite little spots! 

This fountain is right near L’Obélisque De Luxor  at Place de la Concorde . Again, I didn’t have a clue what I was doing, but it is still one of my favourite images.

Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois

And one of my absolute FAVOURITE places in Paris, La Basilique du Sacré Cœur de Montmartre! This spot deserves a blog post all it’s own, and hopefully soon, it will get it! If you ever go to Paris, make sure you make it a priority to visit this beautiful basilica and take in a view of the city while you’re there. Pro tip: plan to be there for sunset. It is absolutely stunning to see the sun set over the city and the lights of Paris come up (especially of the Eiffel Tower)

 

I hope you’ve enjoyed these photos of Paris, France as much as I enjoyed digging them up and letting them see the light of day again! As terrible as it was, I think the Notre Dame fire has inspired me to start going through all the photos I have taken on my travels (and to keep up with future travels). Be on the lookout for more travel blogs soon!

 

 

P.S. Here’s an embarrassingly old photo of me with Prof. Ryall (taken while I was living in Paris and he was back again with his class). Prof Ryall, If you somehow happen to come across this, thank you for sharing your love of Paris with me. It is a part of me I didn’t know I was missing, and now can never live without!