paris : watching the sun go down while sitting on the siene

the last night of our european adventure was spent on the siene watching the sun go down.
it was nice to have no real plan other than sitting idly by this iconic lover's river.
and that's all we did. we just sat and watched the sun go down--
and did a little people watching too. we watched the other lovers and the other groups of friends
enjoy a night of pure idle nothingness. just lots of deep breaths, coy smiles, and leaning heads on shoulders.

in love.

ten years ago ceej and i kissed for the first time. what kids we were. what bliss.

it's a good spring day to be thinking about love.

happy weekend everyone!

paris : notre dame's magnificent interior

lucky for us, notre dame was just a short walk from our paris apartment--
which meant we walked by this incredible cathedral often.
since we were on "mosey-tourist" mode we were repeatedly detered
from entering by the long, long line to enter...

but one afternoon we decided to risk the wait.
to our surprise, the line moved rather quickly, and we
were soon under her vaulted ceilings.

twelve years ago i sat in my high school art history class
dreaming of the day i would see these monumental vaults
and the flying buttresses outside. it lived up to all the hype.


{see exterior photos here}

{see more paris photos here}

{see more france photos here}

paris : sacre coeur...what are you made of?

we started out our last day in paris visiting the sacre coure, high up on its hill overlooking the city.
there was a drizzling rain that required an umbrella now and then, and i was happy to enjoy
the most delicious orange chocolate scone of my entire life on the steps up to the lovely cathedral.

once inside i was pleasantly overtaken by the booming pipes of the organ...lucky us the choir
(of all nuns) and the organ were in fine form this morning. we lingered and listened until
we felt we had been filled with lovely music and architecture.

we strolled around montmarte, trying to get away from the crowded main streets.
we picked up a banana-nutella crepe to eat in the cool weather. perfect.




..........................................................................................................................................................

hoping to get more photos of vermont up soon. sorry for so much silence between posts.
happy weekend!

paris : notre dame

flying buttresses. that's the first phrase that comes to mind when i think of this grand cathedral
thanks to my epic high school art history teacher...i think everyone left high school wanting
to become an art historian thanks to her brilliance and passion. thank you, ms. hughes!

it really is amazing what these buildings have survived and undergone over the centuries...
i'm always so glad when someone has the foresight to preserve these monuments
rather than tearing them down or building over them. thank you, visionaries!

'tis a beautiful building, yes?

.....................................................................................................................................................

side note: i'll eventually get around to photographing my temporary home here in vermont.
at the moment i'm currently battling too many "why" questions:
"why am i in this program?"
"why can't i just simply listen and enjoy beautiful words?"
"why is academia always so intimidating?"
etc.
tonight i will go hear the reading of beautiful words down by the pond with classmates and professors.
i will let my heart rest from all the why's and i will be content with the irrationality of beauty.

paris : the eiffel tower...in all its glory

this day turned out to be a real scorcher...at least by my definition. so as soon as we arrived
at the eiffel tower park we found some ice cream and some shade to spend some time
with this beautiful and iconic structure. it really is kinda surreal to be sitting here after
you've seen it so often in movies, magazines, books, and other photos. just super fun, really.

and, honestly, it is quite romantic. what a happy little place.