Video of the Day: My Retour to Paris!

Paris , France still looks the same as when I was there 25 years ago as a student. My trip back down memory lane.

Connecting with Eat Pray Love in Paris!

 Residence 22 rue de Naples, Paris, France

After my flying the Detroit Shuttle yesterday, I decided to stop downtown to catch the movie Eat  Pray Love.  No I have not read the book yet. I know most people read the book and then see the movie. Well I am different. I am seeing the movie first then I will read the book.

I connected with Julia Roberts character Liz on so many levels.

My first connection was with the box. Her box of dreams, Liz collected photos and articles of all the places she wanted to visit.

I started creating my box of dreams after my sophomore year of high school. My sister and I were unable to go to Paris for spring break with Madame Susan Tartare's French class from Luther South. This was my defining moment to start collecting everything I could about Paris.  I began collecting the Chicago Tribune and Suntimes  Travel Section. I read travel articles about Paris. I watched the airfares and followed the currency (french franc).  Each time that Madame Susan Tartare show our french class about a film about Paris or France, I visualized myself there. This created a burning desire so deep inside of me. I focused on my dream for the seven years during high school and college.

The second connection I had with Liz was her description of feeling dead, no pulse. The experience of travel definitely brings one alive. That is the reason for me being a flight attendant. I feel alive when I view the beauty of earth from above. I feel alive when I interact with people of other cultures. I feel alive when I hear the languages of other tongues. Something resonates within my soul. I come alive. I feel the emotions of the languages spiritually connecting within me.

My third connection with Liz was that she was a woman traveling solo. I left my home two days after I graduated from Mundelein College to fly to Paris. I left solo. I did not know anyone in Paris. The only thing I knew was where I would be living for the next year. I had no friends, no job, nothing but my dreams. I chose to live at L'UNCF which is similar to a YWCA.


Please enjoy the photos from my return to Paris in October 2009.

The street where I lived as a student in Paris. 

Naples Residence
Restaurant
Unionist
Library

Christian Union of Young Women

Doorway

Shop near the residence

Bakery where I shopped as a student.

Bakery

Pastries

Mother holding french bakery bread

Butcher Shop near Naples Residence

Mother and son shopping at the Butcher

Courcelles Blvd

Signs pointing to the St Lazare Train Station

Metro Sign

Woman going into the Metro

Villiers Metro Sign near Naples Residence

Monceau Hotel near Naples Residence

My Favorite Retreat in Paris: Monceau Park

Monceau Park Entrance

Monceau Park

These are photos from my walk to Parc Monceau or Park Monceau which is walking distance from the Hilton Arc de Triomphe Paris Hotel. I spent days there jogging or walking when I was a student living there in Paris.

Sculpture at Monceau Park

Allee Jacques Garnerin Monceau Park

Allee Jacques Garnerin Monceau Park

Women feeding birds

Birds at the Pond

Pond

Parc de Monceau 1861

Monceau Park Gateway

Monceau Park Rotunda

Monceau Park Pond

Monceau Park Pond

Mothers and children at Monceau Park

Man walking with an umbrella at Monceau Park

Pyramid at Monceau Park

Monceau Metro

Paris My First Love

Eiffel Tower

After twenty-five years I have the opportunity to return to Paris. I accepted the invitation to accompany an old high friend. This is one invitation I could not turn down.Paris is one of my favorite cities. My love affair with Paris started when I was in high school.

I began studying French during my sophomore year. I went to live in Paris after I graduated from college and received my B.A. in French Language and Culture. These photos are from where I lived as a student in Paris. The photos are of the Eiffel Tower and River Seine.