I Keep Falling in Love with Paris
These photos remind me of why I should return
I’m not a romantic but Paris changed me. My first visit was for work, but I ended up in love.
Now, every time someone says, “the most romantic city in the world,” I get distracted and think of my stolen moments in la ville lumièr… the city of lights.
It’s where I learned how to bat my eyes naturally. It happened first with the exquisite croissant — that crispy, buttery indulgence that created a desire in me unlike any other.
I never imagined breakfast could be romantic, but it was a natural thing for Parisians. They taught me how to say, “Un croissant au chocolat s’il vous plait!” (A chocolate croissant, please!), and my eyes batted each time I said it.
There must be pixies in the air that lifted my eyelids to flutter and fly.
I probably pronounced the words incorrectly, but who cares? I was in love!
I stayed for a week at Le Grand Hôtel in the southwestern suburbs. It was a short distance to the office so I refused the cab and took a promenade down the quaint streets instead.
Every morning, birds whistled in chorus and sang like mermaids. They enchanted me to get lost in the maze of sleepy shops and cafés.
There were street signs everywhere but my mind went blank, mesmerized by the letters and arrows, by the flowers and streetlights.
I was late for work that entire week but it didn’t matter. I would not change a thing if I had to do it again.
Oh, Paris, what have you done to me?
The next summer, I just had to go back, this time with my family. We stayed in the 6th Arrondissement near the Café de la Rotonde, where famous artists like Pablo Picasso and Ernest Hemingway dined regularly.
My young kids thought they were inside a fairytale book. They sang the “Belle” song from Beauty and the Beast while skipping in the courtyards.
They were so infatuated with the macaron that they scouted every pâtisserie, including McDonald’s, to search for the best flavor. After some deliberation, Ladurée’s chocolate orange cookie was unanimously declared the winner.
We wandered from palace to palace. At first, we thought the Musée du Louvre was our favorite. It’s the world’s largest museum and the home of the Mona Lisa.
But as soon as we reached the royal gates of Le château de Versailles — the former seat of power — we were immersed in five centuries of French history and instantly became smitten.
We couldn’t have enough. That exhilarating feeling was addictive. So we continued to see the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, and the Notre Dame Cathedral.
We strolled along Pont de l’Archeveche, the lover’s bridge where thousands of padlocks used to hang. The locks were gone, but the sweet scent of love left by lovers from all over the world remained in the air.
On our last day, we took a cruise on the Seine River. My husband held my hand as the Kingston Trio’s song played…
We walked along the river, ‘till dawn was coming nigh.
Beneath the Eiffel Tower, we said our last goodbye.
There on that splendid morning, I saw you all in tears,
and the beauty of that hour will shine within me through the years.The Seine, the Seine,
when will I again meet her there, greet her there
on the moonlit banks of the Seine?
