As exhausting as London was becoming, and the break I thought I was getting in Bayeux, the only thing I was hearing from other people was that “Paris is going to be so much harder for you”. No one ever really told me what that meant, or what specifically was going to be so much harder, so I was a little worried. Four days into Paris, I was in an incredible amount of discomfort and pain. It was absolutely much harder. I was originally bummed that we weren’t going to have very long in Paris, but I came to realize that it was probably better this way. I was able to have enough time to see what was most important and gain a slight understanding of the city, and it ended just in time for me to not give up. At this point I’m just ecstatic to go back when I’m healthy to tackle it fully.
We saw a lot of pretty amazing things while we were there. After we checked into the hotel we went on a walking/subway tour. Naturally, the metro was amazingly difficult. I was worn out by the time we finally made it onto the first train. I was beginning to understand why everyone said it’d be so much harder in Paris, but it honestly wasn’t even starting yet. Our destination was the Ile de la Cite, which I learned a bit about in my architecture class. The obvious point of interest there is the Notre Dame cathedral. Notre Dame is the epitome of French-Gothic architecture and acts as a precedent for other plans for centuries to come. Much of the detail put into the cathedral was almost unheard of before. One of the major examples were the flying buttresses. It was one of the first construction projects to use the external support structures because of the thin Gothic walls. However, there are details put into every corner of the building that are just unbelievable. Looking at the front facade and the portals of the Virgin, the Last Judgment, and St-Anne, the detail put into the doorways in unprecedented. I, however, might actually like the back of the cathedral more than the front. The back is where you can really see the structure and the magnificent size of the building. Also, the back is where you can find the entrance to the Memorial des Martyrs de la Deportation.
Last year, I was in a humanities class. We focused on World War II through the eyes of Italians and Greeks. However, we had one project where we had to each select a WWII memorial and do a report on it. On a whim, I chose a memorial in Paris for deportees called the Memorial des Martyrs de la Deportation. It’s a site designed to mimic a crypt to memorialize the 200,000 people that were deported from Vichy France to concentration camps through Europe. It’s an incredibly somber place, but one that needs to be experienced by all. The deportation of French Jews isn’t often explored in many circles, so this kind of memorial is completely necessary. Perhaps the most harrowing detail is the inscription in the inside that reads: “They descended into the mouth of the Earth and they did not return”.
The next day was our first actual part of the trip for Paris. We went to Les Invalides, which was basically just the French version of the British Imperial War Museum. Firstly, it was just massive. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to see everything, and I ended up being completely right. I got through the colonial era through to World War II, so I got what was most important to the trip out of the way. It seemed somewhat strange at the start. It almost appeared as if they were 100% romanticising and glorifying their global empire in the age of imperialism. I understand that it was certainly impressively massive, but they really crushed a lot of indigenous peoples in the process. I don’t think that was really covered. However, it was their World War II section that I found most interesting, and most dry as well. The museums we’re used to only kind of mention General de Gaulle and his Free French Forces, but Les Invalides absolutely drilled it home. I’m not surprised or upset by that at all (seeing as we’re in Paris), but I would have liked to see some other information as well. Their exhibits were pretty much along the same axis as many other WWII exhibits until de Gaulle’s BBC speech to rally the people. At that point, the exhibit completely turned into a Free French Forces museum for the most part. Some other topics that absolutely deserve to be talked about were only somewhat mentioned. The deportations and the Holocaust had a small section behind the walls of the main exhibit. I had to look for it in order to find it. That’s never how it should work in my opinion.
While the learning experiences have been great, it’s been truly amazing to be with 17 people I’ve never met before this semester for so long overseas. I truly adore every single one of them, and our time spent together outside of the program has been some of the best times I’ve had. This really came to light when we all went to the Eiffel Tower at night to hang out around the beautiful lights of the city. I’m bummed we only have one more city, but I know it’s only going to get better from this point on.
I love these fellers