The Best from Paris Thus Far

I’ve been living in Paris for some time now. Which is strange enough in its self. As I never imagined myself living in this city for any serious amount of time. But the last months have been some of the best I’ve had in a very long while. They’ve been filled with many a great memories and times had with friends and Jade. So in no particular order here are three of my favorite moments from Paris thus far.

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The Urban Scavenger Hunt

A few months back Jade realized that she had a book hidden away in some drawer that she’d been wanting to crack open for ages. It was a scavenger hunt book that lead you through each of the 19 districts of Paris. You start at a metro stop and are given the first clue. For example ‘I will be found on the corner. I’m yellow and am used to send your thoughts to the world.’ In this case it was a mail box. So you get to the mail box and look at clue two, and go from there all over the district. 

Our first hunt led us all over the district that contains the holy Montmartre. It’s a perfect way to spend the afternoon, as each hunt lasts about three to four hours. I’ve also found it’s one of the best way to discover the little hidden gems of Paris. For it leads you down the streets you’d never have thought to wonder down.

I’m happy to say that we’ve explored more of the city sense then as well.

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The night Juan came to town

The first month in Paris was a time of many Irish reunions. In the first few weeks alone I had the pleasure of seeing Hannah, Luci, and Martin again. All former work friends from Eclipse Ireland. People who’d I’d never dreamed of seeing again outside the sacred lands of Ireland. But the last person to come through Paris was one of my favorites from Eclipse that I’ve met in the last two years, Juanovich.

We’d just gotten back from a long day of sightseeing with Hannah when Jade saw she had a voicemail from Juan. He let us know he was coming through Paris on his way back to Ireland from Amsterdam and needed a place to stay. We quickly called him back and before the night was out Juan was in the apartment with us telling mad tells from Amsterdam and filling us in on news from old Eclipse.

The next day I took him around the city trying to fit in as many sights as I could before his bus at 6. He was a pleasure to take around the city as he truly appreciated everything he laid his eyes upon. He had lived in France for almost his whole life and had never gotten to fully take in the full beauty of Paris. His eyes were wide and his phone constantly taking pictures. It was great to see him again before he had to get back to Ireland.

I desperately hope our paths cross again someday.

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Nights with Friends

This memory is spread out over many nights spent with our other favorite couple here in Paris, Tommy and Caroline. Some of Jades old besties that I was able to meet back in September at her birthday. Sense then we’ve spent quite a few nights hanging out with them, be it at some cocktail bar, or at one of our apartments.

It’s a rare thing in this world when you find good people you enjoy sharing your ideas and passions with. We never do anything too crazy sure. A couple of drinks here and a good conversation there. But it’s of a quality that rivals any other nameless thing you could be doing around the city. And beyond that I’ve found a movie and museum buddy in Tommy to waste away some of the afternoons with. Beyond Jade, her family, and the city, it’s been one of the most enjoyable things about Paris thus far.

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I could fill many more posts with other memories and times from Paris that have left their mark on me, but these are some of the highlights that first come to mind. In the future though I hope to commit some more of my favorite times to these white pages.