One Week To Go!

Hi friends.

I can't believe we only have a week left. The time has gone so fast! For those of you who have spent your time (read 'employer's time') following our journey around Europe, your company has been much appreciated. We love the feeling that others are here with us, if only in spirit.

When we last left our heroes (read 'rag-tag travellers'), there were a few stories and some pictures of the Cinque Terre. After that point, Jess and I took the train further north into the French Riviera for an evening in the city of Nice. Perhaps it was just the abbreviated time we spent there, but we didn't find it to be all that nice (pun incredibly intended). Nice was dirty and graffiti laden, as was our hostel. I wouldn't say it was unsafe--it's just not a town to which we would return. Though, I have heard that Monaco (just a five minute train ride away) is pristine and beautiful. The one morning we spent in Nice did involve a fun morning walk on the beach, however.

...and then on to Paris.

Jessica spoke so fondly of it as she reminisced about her time here in college that I wondered if it could be as great as she remembered it. Quite frankly, it has been better. Our accommodations are spectacular--a nice, small studio apartment to call our own for six nights. We even have a kitchen, which I consider a necessary evil in a city like Paris. The restaurant scene is arguably the world's best, but a person could go broke in a heartbeat by eating out every night.

For those of you who don't know, Paris is also home to the world's largest and best metro system. With dozens of lines going in all different directions, a person is never more than a two or three minute walk from the nearest metro. Yesterday we took advantage of this immediate proximity to everything by visiting Notre Dame and Saint Chapelle on Ile San Luis (forgive me if I'm spelling that wrong!).

It is no stretch to say that Saint Chapelle is my favorite European site thus far. The reasons for that are too varied and illogical to bear out an explanation. For those who don't know what it is, here is the brief version--it is a beautiful Gothic chapel, bearing the most impressive stained-glass work anywhere in the world, built to house some of France's most impressive religious relics including Christ's crown of thorns (check the wiki here for a more in-depth description).

Jess and I walked up the claustrophobia inducing spiral staircase into the chapel and stood there speechless. (Speaking of that--we found it incredibly ironic that a 'silence!' sign would be posted in a location that cannot fail to bring its viewers to dumbstruck awe. Crazy French folks...) We took a seat in and stared in amazement as the partly cloudy day illustrated the differences between light and dark in the stained glass in the chapel. It was remarkable. Each beam of sunshine would light up the glass like a thousand violins playing perfectly in tune. Then, as the sun went behind the cloud, the light would slowly fade in the room, like a pianissimo decrescendo at a symphony's conclusion.

The visual silence that followed was deafening.

There is so much more to say, but I suppose I should go make dinner. Suffice to say, I was very conflicted about a number of things--i.e., the crown of thorns is only shown to the general public four times per year, the ethics of a place of worship becoming nothing more than a tourist spectacle, Saint Chapelle's history of class distinction during worship (only the elite could worship in the beautiful top level of the chapel), etc.--all of which are better discussed conversationally.

I can't wait to get back and show photos to everyone. Jessica has done a masterful job of capturing our journey on film.