Last post for Paris: Why do I love Paris?

I thought 10 weeks in Paris will be a long time, but in fact it was not that long for me. I feel like I just got to know the city. I just started to know what the city is like, what the people are like, what the language sounds like and where to go when one has free time. I experienced this feeling for the first time yesterday after my last final exam here in Paris, but it was also the last day that I can experience it. 

But time never stopped running, and now another chapter of my life is slowly coming to an end while the next chapter is coming soon.

When I got here, I don't think I will ever say this, but I do want to say it now. "I love Paris." There are more than just touristy places that everyone seems to post online to share when they come to Paris. Here are things I like about this city and the time that I am here.

Public transportation
It seems like everyone love this fact about how efficient public transportation is in Paris, how little time they have to wait at the metro station to catch a train home, how fast it is to get from one place to the other and how easy it is to find metro stations since there are everywhere. If you walked in the city and started to feel that you got lost, the next metro station will be right in front of you and you can just catch the next train home without much thinking to do. And I really like public transportation here for these same reasons as well and it just makes it is much easier to get to know the city like I could not have done anywhere else.

Musée des Arts et Métiers Metro stop

Also, there are many little details in the metro station that are worth looking at. And perhaps because of this, that I never hesitate to get the next train and go to different places that I have never been before. 

Attractions
I did not talk about all those touristy attractions, but I still have to admit that those are great too if you see it for the first time or maybe couple times. Place like Eiffel Tower, the Louvre museum or Notre Dame Cathedral are gorgeous and I believe that one time in the Louvre will not be enough for you. But what's great about Paris is what you find after you finish all these popular places.

Now, it is time to see what the city actually has to offer. There are more museums in this city than you can ever imagine. If you are interested in something, I am sure the city will have something to offer for you. Take me for example, I love astronomy and telescope and guess what they have in Paris, the first observatory in France and one of the largest astronomical centers in the world: Paris Observatory which was built in 1671 by the order from Louis XIV. Not only I went there for the visit, I also participated in the Public Session at the meeting room in the observatory as well. Even though, they were all presented in French, it was still a great experience. 

Paris Observatory

Another great place that I found in Paris is Carnavalet Museum which has a great collection of the history of Paris. The collection covered the history of Paris and France since the Medieval ages, to different monarchs, the French Revolution, until the current France in the 20th century. If you have a little bit of knowledge about French history, you will appreciate these collection more. For example, there are paintings of the execution of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette by the guillotine during the French Revolution which were both depressing and revolutionary at the same time. But the best part of this museum is that it's FREE! You can visit it as many times as you want without paying any cent.
There are many more places in the city that I went, including Catacomb, Musée des Arts et Métiers (The History of Science Museum), the submarine and Musée d'Orsay. Also, Petit Palais is free art gallery that is worth the visit. And, if you don't know where to start, you can start here at Paris Musées which is an institution to manage 14 different museums together in Paris. I'm sure you will find something that interests you. 

Food
This is the first time that I discovered real cheese. At first, I don't really like cheese since it has a weird taste and textures. But once I had it several times a week, I do like to eat cheese now, especially blue cheese and soft-ripened type of cheese like Brie although it has a pretty bad smell. But it is so good though. Another great thing in Paris is baguette. Everyone often calls it a hard bread. But it is still really good and filling. And the combination of Brie and baguette quickly became one of my favorite food in Paris.

Baguette and Cheese (Brie)

Also, there are more wine here than you can drink. If you like wine, you will easily fell in love with Paris but I don't, so I passed for this one.

Chez Gladines and Pho14 are two of my favorite restaurants in Paris. Chez Glagines have a great typical European food like salads and omelettes, but with a great quality and especially quantity. They gave you way more food than you can imagine. And Pho 14 has a really great intense soup for the pho itself. There are lots of great Vietnamese restaurant in Paris. I think it is due to the colonization of France over Vietnam until the end of the Second World War.  Also, if you are looking for cheap area for food, I recommend you to check Place Saint Michael where there are lots and lots of restaurants for you to try.

People
In this case, I think it is only about my personal experience which might not be able to generalize to the city in general. Even though these were not Parisians, most of them are British and people from other nations that I met at Saint Michael's Church in Paris. But these people are really nice and it make me feel like I belong to the city more since I get to know more people who actually have spent time in Paris longer than I am.  They are the reason why I went to Disneyland Paris and many other places that I visited during the program. They also gave me a new impression about England and their political system as well when we talk about their queen. If someone is planing to go to Paris either for one week or one year, I recommended you to visit this church since you will find more from what the city has to offer.  

PS. Everything is great until the very last day when I have to catch a subway to the airport after the long-ride train from Munich, but then the (un)expected thing happened. People on RER B (subway to the airport) were on strike and I had to go to another train station to take it. Instead of 2 hours left at the airport to chill, I only have 10 mins before getting on the plane home.