Le Sigh

"Though I often looked for one, I finally had to admit that there could be no cure for Paris."

This quote is from "The Paris Wife" by Paula McClain.  The book is about Ernest Hemingway's first wife-Hadley. All in all this book kind of annoyed me. I found Hadley frustrating and unable to stand up for herself. But, who knows? Maybe things would have ended up the same way...sounds like Ernest was a bit of a force to be reckoned with and in the end of his life...it was always Hadley that was his biggest regret. Anyway, I'd recommend this book and it was especially fun to read while IN Paris. 

BUT...I digress. This is not a book review. This is an "I miss Paris and want to go back" lament. 

More than anywhere else we traveled...I miss Paris the most. This feeling hits me suddenly on some days. 

Maybe it's because we spent more time in Paris than anywhere else, but it really began to feel like home. There's NO WHERE like Paris. 

It's funny because when I first went to Paris in 2004, I wasn't crazy for it. Paris was OK, but it didn't grab me the way that London (on the same trip) did. Paris is a slow love affair. All things in Paris are slow....the wandering through the streets, the resting in parks, the sipping of wine, the conversation along the Seine. It's a slow city...it's a gradual love...and then BAM. You miss it. You yearn for it. There's nowhere like Paris.

I live in a big city. LA has a character all of its own and I do love it. But, it doesn't satiate my longings for Paris...for strolls through the labyrinth of streets...for lounging under the Eiffel Tower...for crepes on street corners...for delicious and cheap wine...for an easy metro system...for small cafes...for History...for art...for cheese and the best bread you'll ever bite into...for that PINK STUFF. 

Ah, Paris. You have my heart. And it's true...there really is no cure for you. I only hope that we'll meet again one day and I can be lost again in your charm.