One more Paris Post

Posted on | July 21, 2008 |

Illustration of the view from our hotel, Paris, France

drawing of iron work in Paris France

One more post about Paris. While there, I did take care to relax a lot between activities. It’s a walking city, so I was glad to have my cane. But I needed to be very mindful about my energy. And so I spent a lot of time in our hotel room. There was not much of a view from our window, but I did draw what I could see from the window. And that’s to the right. And while I would sit on the couch (which unfolded to be our bed, by the way!), I could see the ironwork on the window. I really liked all the ironwork in Paris, as it was a great contrast to all of the cement and brick on the buildings.

The buildings were also quite interesting to me. I decided to draw one during one of our last days in Paris. We were sitting a Cafe Monceau, near the Villers Metro station. It was a Sunday, so it was quite crowded. The only seat was behind this group of five or six 20-somethings who were all chain smoking and having a mixture of wine and coffee. But we needed our coffee fix! So, we sat and just lived with the smoke while I drew. I was fascinated by the buildings that opened at the corners. They were ornate and not something I see in Phoenix. I think, mostly, that Paris reminded me of a mixture between Brookside, MA and the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The busy pace, the buildings with the tiny apartments…

Drawing of a corner building in Paris, France

I have to say, I was disappointed by how much cement there was in Paris. I expected more gardens and less rain. But, really, I did try to find some beauty in it. I was also a bit more surprised than I should have been at the amount of people and the “city” feeling about it. I guess I expected more of a relaxed atmosphere, but I should have known better. The second half of the trip was much more relaxing, and I will start to describe that tomorrow!

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