Paul Georges . Alterego Construction

Eh ben, je suis déjà de retour en Suède… que ça été vite, mais trop bien!

Let me pick up from where I last left off. Last day in Paris. Shitty weather unfortunately but I knew it was coming (la section météo du Parisien ne sert pas à rien). Starting at the beautiful Opéra National de Paris, I walked to the grandiose Les Invalides (oui Nadia, c’est vraiment d’une immense grandeur en effet). Afterwards I struggled to make my way to Champs de Mars where I caught a first person view of La Tour Eiffel. It is quite an impressive sight let me tell you but I was quite annoyed by the thousands of buzzing tourists. To add to the frustration caused by the loud visitors, I was just flat out tired from my week. I took the time to lay down for a few minutes on the stretching fields below the infamous tower and dozed off with one eye open to watch over my stuff. Not the most envigorating rest I must admit but it definately did some good. From there I took the metro down to Gare d’Austerlitz to revisit the Jardins de Plantes for the third time. This time I was going to get the shots I wanted. As I entered, the dark clouds cleared and a warm sunny glow covered the gardens within the golden gates. Just my luck I thought… I ended up getting the photographs I wanted.

At the closing of the parc, I trekked a little ways to meet Florent, a Parisien friend of mine that I met at Université Laval last year, at Place de la Bastille. On my way, I encountered a fire juggler (once again, just my luck). I had to make a brief stop to take some shots. The result wasn’t great but Alexandre turned out to be a really friendly guy who was taking some time off to relax by juggling along La Seine that night. I eventually met Florent, hair all trimmed to accomodate the new job (Touffe!), and we went to have some food at a Chinese restaurant which turned out to be quite good but may ultimately be the cause of my recent upset stomache. After dinner (supper), Florent lead me to la Rue d’Appe where we had a pint of Leffe in a perfect little pub. Great ambiance, really simple and charming place to have a beer. Afterwards we headed back into the suburbs of Paris together since Florent lives quite close to Loïc’s parents’ place. It was really great seeing Florent again. We talked about Québec, about France, about travelling and studying abroad… great fun. On se dit à bientôt mec, merci pour la soirée trop sympa!

The last night at Loïc’s was great as usual. He made me feel right at home. When I was just about to turn into his road, he turned out with the Picasso on a quest to find me. It was quite late… I should get a damn cell phone. Once again, thank you so much Loïc (same goes for your parents and brother) for having hosted me in Paris for so long. Your generosity is very much appreciated!

The next day… early awakening to board the TGV for Lyon. Boarding was simple. In no time I was off at 300 km/h for a city 600 km to the south of Paris. To say the least, I was there in no time. On top of that, the TGV has got to be the most pleasant, hassle-free way to travel I’ve ever experienced in my entire life. It’s fast, comfortable and smells great. The view that I got of the French meadows in the “Diagonale du Vide” was amazing, especially with the sun bursting through the thick layer of clouds. Unfortunately, taking pictures from a train travelling at 300 km/h is not as easy as it sounds.

I did not know what to expect in Lyon. What I found was a collection of souvenirs that I will never forget as long as I live. To begin, my first experience with CouchSurfing. CS is basically a website, a social network, where members offer a place (a couch) for people to sleep while travelling abroad. I was a bit skeptical at first but I had to give it a try. Goddam am I happy for being curious… it has finally paid off! The website allowed me to meet Thierry and Isabelle, two friends who work together in Lyon. To cut a long story short, Thierry and Isabelle offered everything they could to make my stay in Lyon unforgettable: a home, tonnes of great food, Pastis and wine, chats about everything and nothing, a private guide of the city and so much more. Thierry and Isabelle really made us (Tristan, a Californian surfer visiting Europe, and I) feel right at home from the very start. What a wonderful experience! Merci Thierry et Isa, vous êtes vraiment trop hottes!

Now; Lyon. Lyon is a city I dream of going back to. Why? It’s big but just enough. It’s small but just small enough. It’s old but just old enough. Lyon overloads with charm, culture, identity, presence and simplicity (the good kind). I get a little sick to my stomach (no it’s not the cramps) when I think about that fact that I could have studied in such a dreamy city. Lyon encapsulates everything I love about Québec City and everything that I hate corrected. From Les Traboulles to La Croix-Rousse to Rosette and Saucisson Brioché, Lyon is just a beautiful city. I really enjoyed my stay there and definately plan on going back, hopefully during an interval that I can catch a glimpse of La Fête de la Lumière!

So there you have it! France documented through my eyes. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Photographs from Paris here.

Photographs from Lyon here.