Paris -- another step back in time

After a magical day in Liege, Belgium, I took the train back to Paris for another step back in time. This time to 1990 when I was a junior in college on exchange to Paris for a semester. I took a similar trip the year earlier, but did not do everything I wanted to do. It was a combination of being overwhelmed by the memories, and really not wanting to do as much traveling. 

This time I took the commuter train to St.-Cloud, a suburb of Paris to try to find my old dorm. The town felt different to me than it did 25 years earlier -- it felt more alive. I remember it being a sleepy suburb, and was shocked when I stepped away from the paths I used to take how much the town seemed to offer -- especially on the downhill side of the train tracks closer to Paris.

How could I have forgotten that La Tour Eiffel was visible from the train station? That whimsical, magical steel structure was part of my daily life? There is a reason why in French films one always seems to be able to see her, it is because she seems to be visible when you least expect to see her.

While I did remember the stairs leading towards my dorm, I did not remember the escalator. Was that there in 1990?

The dorm now has gates around it, but looks a lot like the picture I found in my photo album. I did not even attempt to enter the building. Security sure has changed over the years.

Speaking of changes, my dinky grocery store is now a Monoprix! If you've never experienced a Monoprix (or a Carrefour), it is worth checking out the supermarche. In addition to groceries it has clothing, and household items, and just about anything you need. As I write that, Wal-Mart comes to mind, but these stores feel different. They feel like grocery stores that happen to carry these other items, instead of a general store that happens to also have groceries. There is an aroma of artisans -- butchers and bakers and florists -- in a Monoprix one would never smell in a store in the United States. I try to stop in one just to take in the aroma.

Rather than taking the train back to Paris and Gare St. Lazare, I decided to walk. If I could see the Eiffel Tower, how far could it be? I don't remember ever doing this as a student. It is not the fastest method of getting from place A to place B.

Using the Seine River as a guide, I crossed into Paris itself. I kept my eye out for something to eat, but nothing caught my interest. I wasn't in the mood for a sit down meal -- I wanted to absorb every minutes of being outside on a gorgeous day (the beautiful weather from Liege followed me to Paris). 

My trip took me past a sight I only only ever seen from a Bateau Mouch -- a miniature Statue of Liberty.

I saw people standing around her base, but I did not take the bridge to get closer. This was already closer than I had ever been to her.

Not much further was La Tour Eiffel, and her carousel. Again, I did not feel the need to get any closer. I did dream about a future trip when I would walk across each of the magnificent ponts and traverse back and forth along the Seine. Boring, perhaps, to most people. Inspirational to me.

My stroll took me past another one of my old haunts -- The American Church of Paris. Sadly it was closed, something I don't remember happening when I was a student, but maybe I just wasn't there then? It definitely seemed as if security had been stepped up.

I remembered the way back to the metro stop I used as a student, near Napoleon's tomb. I detoured and walked past the Rodin Museum. I remembered an open space filled with some of his most famous works, such as The Thinker (le Penseur) and Dante's Gates of Hell. Another sign of the times -- they were moved someplace safe. As it was after hours I was doing good to have a chat with the security guard and take a picture for posterity.

Seems bare to me.

I ended up getting on the wrong side of the train station and found Le Penseur, or at least a copy of it. It was a nice reminder of how much fun the train stations are in Paris.

I returned to the land of Mickey Mouse and continued my adventures the next day with Don and Ashley.