A Weekend in Paris

I just walked in the house and fished my laptop out of my backpack. My fingers are burning to write, and for once the words did not spill out on a train ride 😊

This weekend was spent in Paris, at the Olympics. Something I never dreamed I’d be able to write! The opportunity to go came up a few weeks ago, and my overthinking brain immediately thought of why I shouldn’t. The doomsdayers trashing Paris, my hectic work week, and the logistical considerations all seemed against me. But then I remembered my motto in Boston- “just say yes”. I tried to keep an open mind, and within reason just accept the invites, events, and whatever life offered to me. And tonight: I’m so grateful I said yes to this absolutely magical once-in-a-lifetime experience, only a few hours from my new home.

My weekend partner was T, a lovely French girl I work with in Luxembourg. We decided to make a proper weekend out of our trip. Luckily, there are highspeed trains to Paris from Luxembourg. Unluckily, some of the connections are out of service for the summer, so our journey to Paris began on a bus in Luxembourg, followed by a local train, followed by the regional train! We decided to take an early morning train on a Friday, and work out of our Paris office, which is right near the aquatics arena. I loved seeing the various venues sprinklered throughout the city. The train stations were staffed with extra volunteers to help guide and direct people to buy tickets, and I loved that the local lines all had the Paris 2024 logos on the doors.

Fridays at the office are always expected to be sparsely populated, but there was quite a good crowd, and we were welcomed with open arms by L. She is the office queen and arranged our social agendas for the entire weekend! Between multiple calls and emails, I got say hi to some colleagues and have a delicious lunch with three of my engineers, followed by a foosball (or baby foot as they call it) tournament that my partner and I won! It is always a treat to get to hear about my engineers’ lives: whether it be work promotions and accomplishments or personal and family news, and I’m grateful for their kindness. 

The workday done, T and I headed to our very French hotel. Our room was on the topmost floor and was a gorgeous cozy place. After we dropped our things, we headed out.  Along the way, we got to get more of the Olympic vibes for the city, as we saw the Eiffel from a bridge, passed through the central areas, and had a volunteer take our picture in a giant photo frame along the pedestrian only Champ Elysees! We then arrived at our social event of the evening: The Rosa Bonheur! There are a few of these boats, permanently docked on the Seine. They are basically bars until later in the evening, when a DJ cranks the music! We joined several colleagues on tables along the pier, where we had the perfect summertime hangout of pizzas, chips, and fresh bread rolls served with hummus, fig spread, and salmon spread. As the evening wound down, we got in line for the music and dancing of the Rosa Bonheur. I loved listening to the mix of American pop classics and the French hits, and seeing the crowds react energetically to both! One of the big differences I’ve experience in France is in the bathrooms: there are separate stalls for guys/girls, but most of the sinks are shared spaces. Another difference is in getting the bartender’s attention for a drink: a challenging endeavor! It had been an early morning, so we left to walk back to our hotel and get some rest. On the way back, we were treated to the Eiffel light show from the Seine!

The next morning, we began with a nice spread at the hotel. We had a basket of croissant, pain chocolate, and a roll, along with a fruit cup, yogurt, cheese plate and eggs. It was a filling start to the day, and the only real meal we ate on Saturday!

Our Olympics event was in the afternoon, so we strolled along the Seine that morning. We just missed the end of a bicycle race and saw them reopening roads. We decided to head towards Notre Dame. I love walking a city to get the feels, and I walked a lot of the Seine this weekend. We saw beautiful old buildings and cafes and architecture, along with a vibrant city filled with different languages. There were long green wooden looking boxes locked closed along the waterfront path. These open up into vendor stalls, and most were selling an assortment of posters, postcards, and prints. We paused at a café near Notre Dame and sat for a bit to have a lemonade and people watch. It felt so Parisian to sit on a sidewalk with a beverage! Since we were so close, we popped in to say bonjour to Notre Dame before we headed back along the river. I stopped at two different stalls to purchase posters on Tintin and a print featuring Ratatouille overlooking the city. The vendors rolled the prints up, one in plastic and one in an old newspaper, for me to carry home.

It was now time for our Olympic event- judo! Separate post on that!😊 The evening once again found us on the Rosa Bonheur, this time with a more intimate group of friends. We once again had our chips and bread, before the music started. Tonight was focused on conversations, and it was wonderful to catch up with another former student, C. From the boat, we could see the Olympic flame balloon rising in the night. When the boat closed, our little party decided to enjoy our girl’s final night in Paris. C and I headed to walk along the Seine, once again towards Notre Dame. Most people are not tourists in their own city, but our hosts kindly indulged our whims to see the popular sights. Our walk took us to the Louvre, where I got some pictures with the pyramid. Across from the pyramid is an arch, and through it I could see the now settled Olympic flame and balloon. Paris weather was perfect all weekend, and it was an absolutely delightful walk and conversation to catch up with C. Finally, I arrived back at the hotel, at almost 4AM! I was lamenting the loss of a proper meal, when C reminded me of Uber eats. T had always spoken about how French McD is delicious, so the BOGO offer online inspired me. I got us big macs (which actually look very much like the picture) and chicken nuggets, with this simply delightful garlic sauce to dip it in.

After way less sleep than anticipated, we began our final morning in Paris. We stopped at a beautiful bakery, where I had a stunning pistachio and chocolate roll-up, and purchased a croissant. T took the classic pain chocolate. We headed to the train station after, stopping along the way at another café for a lemonade before we began the journey back.

I’ve visited Paris before, and it is a wonderful city. However, being there during the Olympics was unique: you could see the uptick in volunteers and directions. The international flavor of the visits was very apparent. One of my favorite things was how Paris integrated their city into the Olympics. The rings were a photo stop outside the Louvre. Notre Dame had bleachers filled with tourists getting to look at it. Sidewalk cafes were open, inviting anyone to sit and people watch (and listen haha). The atmosphere both felt French to me but also very globally welcoming. There was a sense of unity and wonder that it invoked. It was incredible to see so much of the city streets closed, inviting people to walk in those spaces instead. I don’t know if I will ever attend another Olympics. But I’m so pleased to have been at this one.