The Pefect Souvenir

Above is a picture that I bought from an artist selling his work on a quaint little part of the sidewalk in Paris. It is my favorite keepsake that I brought back from my trip to Europe. When I went to have it framed, it just so happened that I got an amazing deal on the exact frame I wanted, and I think it suits the painting perfectly. I look at this picture everyday, and everyday I am reminded of that wonderful moment, heading to Notre Dame Cathedral, on the streets of Paris.

Songs Are Like Tattoos....

Joni Mitchell - Blue

Blue songs are like tattoos
You know I've been to sea before
Crown and anchor me
Or let me sail away
Hey Blue, here is a song for you
Ink on a pin
Underneath the skin
An empty space to fill in
Well there're so many sinking now
You've got to keep thinking
You can make it thru these waves
Acid, booze, and ass
Needles, guns, and grass
Lots of laughs, lots of laughs
Everybody's saying that hell's the hippest way to go
Well I don't think so
But I'm gonna take a look around it though
Blue I love you
Blue here is a shell for you
Inside you'll hear a sigh
A foggy lullaby
There is your song from me


So, I have always loved Joni Mitchell. But you know those moments when you are in just the right mood and a song comes on that hits you right in your soul and connects you to that song/artist much more intimately than it had before? Well, I had one of those moments a while ago. Court & Spark came on in the car, and it immediately filled me with overwhelming emotion in the short 2:54 moments that it consists of. Just such amazing lyrics and musical composition. I have been on a Joni binge ever since.

My latest song obsession is "Blue." My god. Could that song be any more sadly beautiful? I'm going to go ahead and say no. I listen to it over and over again, like I usually do with songs I fall in love with (I'm looking at you - "Roulette Dares (the Haunt of)". )
Even more soul wrenching is what happened when I knew it well enough to sing it. Singing those notes - it is an amazing experience. I am addicted to that as well. When I get to the part "Blue, I love you," I feel like it's me who is baring my soul. Maybe I am. It just has that impact. It's very cathartic. It makes me feel fortunate that I am able to experience those notes - as we all know how there are many people who are not able to sing, or sing in key!

Anyway, I just thought I would get this all out since I have been on such a Joni kick lately. She is such an amazingly talented singer/songwriter. I am just continually blown away by her. I love when that happens. :)

A Special Thanks To Tour Guides Everywhere...

If there is one thing I would recommend for people who are traveling to a foreign country and plan on visiting any museums or historic sites, it would be to find a great tour guide. Especially if it is your first time visiting a new country.

The trip I took not only had one main tour guide that was exceedingly knowledgeable and took us everywhere and told us everything about anything at any time - which was extremely convenient, but we also had the BEST local guide you could have in France. Having tour guides makes a huge difference in the amount of information and history you get when visiting historic places. This information is compounded exponentially if you have a guide who is passionate about what he does, and loves to pass on his passion, and pride for his country's history.

Our local tour guide, (whose name is frustratingly escaping me at the present moment) was exactly like Lumiere from Beauty and the Beast, from his tone and inflection of voice, to his humor, to his movement. He was as entertaining to watch as he was interesting to listen to. I had him say my name (since it is a French name) just to hear an actual French person speak it...a French person that sounded like Lumiere, that is...
Our group had guided tours around Paris and he had superior knowledge about any point one could pick out. He also had very strong political views and let us know on no uncertain terms how he felt about certain leaders past and present, but the way in which he expressed these views was delightful and witty - never awkward or annoying.

If there is one place in Paris that it is imperative to have a tour guide for, The Louvre would be it. I could not imagine trying to tackle that labyrinth on my own. Not only that, it is impossible to get the sheer amount of history and/or folk lore that is behind any picture or painting you see with a pre-recorded head set or paper guide. Our local guide was a wealth of  historic data on just about every piece we encountered.

Lumiere took us through a little known entrance in the basement of the Louvre. We stood where the moat would have originally been, and were surrounded by the original medieval fortress walls - the only portion of the Louvre from that time that is still visible.  It was easy to hear him, thanks to the wireless headsets provided to us, and we knew we might have wandered a bit too far if we could not hear him through our earphones anymore.
Another place this came in handy was Versailles. The crowd  was so massive there it would have been pointless to have a tour guide trying to shout over the dull roar of people - thanks to the head sets, we never missed a word.
                                                                                                                                                       
Below: The fortress walls of The Louvre. Stonecutters were paid by how many stones they cut, to keep     track, they placed their unique trade mark on each stone that was theirs; this stonecutter left a heart,

The main tour guide we had was a nice older fellow named Robert. Robert was originally from England, but was very learned about all the countries we visited. He had that dry English humor that went over some people's heads..but it was so hilarious. He was also very fun and knew how to engage our group. When we all went out for dinner in Paris, he was up and dancing with everyone while the accordion player sang and played. Indeed, he took us to all the places that one must visit in every country, and also provided narration on our travels to each place, giving us perfectly told history lessons that I could have listened to forever.

So, thank you to tour guides everywhere for sharing your friendship, passion, and knowledge of these wonderful places we visit. You enhance your group's experiences so much more than imagined. Of course, thank you to my tour guides the most, whom I obviously believe were the best in the business! ;)

I Love Paris : The Eiffel Tower

Paris. I have been thinking about this amazing city a lot since returning from my trip. It truly is beautiful. It truly is the perfect place for those with a joie de vivre. As both an artist/musician I feel I had no other fate than to fall in love with Paris. Every hidden corner, every side street, every boulangerie or pâtisserie, every cafe, every restaurant, every shop, every last place you find yourself in is full of beauty and art, it's inescapable, it's wonderful - it's love.
 
 I remember driving in to Paris - I kept scanning the horizon for a glimpse of that icon, that tower amongst towers, one of the most well known structures that was ever built or ever will be built,  the emblem of France, of Paris - The Eiffel Tower. Was I really going to be seeing this in person? This is something I had actually dreamed about in my sleep, something that I knew had to be done someday, something that I have always wanted...and this was the day. It was really happening. I would be in Paris looking at the Eiffel Tower today.

Then...I saw it. Faint and misty on the horizon, like some majestic shroud had been draped over it, giving it a mysterious and powerful effect as it stood so lofty above the rest of the city, above the rest of the world it seemed. I literally gasped upon that very first glance. This was surreal. In fact, it stayed surreal. Every famous sight that I had always seen in books or on television, now in front of me, just seemed a dream. It was enchanting.

 Standing in Trocadéro square at night at the top of the hour, just as the Eiffel tower started to sparkle, and the crowd that was gathered collectively gasped their approval in awe, was one of my favorite and most magical moments. I could have stood there watching forever and would have been perfectly happy. But alas, I had to eventually be pulled away to see some other breathtaking sights that the city of lights had to offer. If I had to put a conservative estimate on what percentage of Paris pictures that I took were of the Eiffel tower, I would have to say it would probably be about 50%. My obsession was THAT ridiculous. I could not stop taking pictures of the Eiffel tower in every light, angle, and setting possible. I think one of my favorite views/and pictures was the one I put at the top of this post - from the top of the Arc de Triomphe.   Europe Pictures 2012  < This is a link to my Europe 2012 album. It is just a jumble of some pictures of my entire trip to Europe. Some are unedited, and some are edited. They are kind of in order - the order starts over once or twice, though. It is just a fraction of the pictures I took, but I think there is enough there. As hard as it was, I tried to limit the number of Eiffel Tower pictures I put up. ;)

Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves...

Just as my Amsterdam experience would not have been complete had I not partaken in the smoking of marijuana, so too, would my Parisian experience not have truly been complete without an authentic gypsy encounter.

Nancy, Marshall, my father, and myself were all heading to Notre Dame Cathedral from Pont Alexandre III bridge. We had just finished exploring the beautiful bridge and had taken many pictures. We were immersed in conversation when we saw a rather small lady that was walking our way stop and bend down to pick something up off the ground. Naturally we were curious, as she stopped but a foot or two in front of us, and then came over and asked if anyone had lost a ring. She then held up what had been on the ground. A rather large wedding band. Obviously belonging to a man. Upon further inspection we noticed that it was 18k gold, as there was a stamp on the inside of the ring indicating so.

We congratulated her on her find and were about to go our merry way when she asked if any of us would like the ring. She indicated in her broken English that it was really of no use to her and she did not want it. Right away I thought this was strange, and figured she was up to something, but if she wanted to give me the ring, fake or not I would take it. It would make a great souvenir with a great story behind it. So, I took the ring.

We then started again on our trek to Notre Dame. We got only a few feet however, before the tiny lady came running back up to us. She asked for money in return for the ring. Then the light bulb went on in all of our heads at once. This was a gypsy. She had planted the ring on the sidewalk, or used her pro gypsy magic to make it appear as if the ring had been sitting there..who knows, these people are masters of their craft. Now here she was, trying to sucker money out of us. I started laughing and said, "ohhhh, this is a scam, I get it. If you needed money you could have just asked for it." With that I gave her one Euro. But she obviously had had much more in mind. So, I simply gave her back her ring, saying that she was a great actress. We all applauded her performance as she walked away...and she in turn, gave us the finger.

I couldn't believe we really just had a gypsy encounter. We were told to beware of gypsies the whole trip, but just like anywhere else I have been warned about - Mexico, NYC etc..I didn't really expect for anything to happen. She did get one Euro for her trouble, but that is one Euro I would have given her regardless - as I said, she could have just asked. I immediately knew this encounter would make for a great story, though.

Esmeralda she was not, but she was a great character in that little page of my life. Nice try, gypsy.

Beautiful Bruges

Bruges, Belgium. What a charming place to visit. Besides Paris, Bruges is where I took the most photos. I just couldn't stop. Everywhere I looked there was another picture, another perfect scene.

Along with Amsterdam, Bruges is said to be the "Venice of the North." Of course, neither city really compares to Venice as far as the canals go. I admit I am a bit biased, because I still consider Venice my favorite city I have ever visited - though I think Venice may now be tied with Paris. But, canals or not, both Amsterdam and Bruges were amazing, beautiful places to visit. Bruges quaint charm is what really got me. Some areas looked like they were right out of a fairy tale; especially the Béguinage which had a courtyard just covered in flowers at the time that we visited.

Among many different places of interest, The Madonna of Bruges - found in the Church of Our Lady - is one of Bruge's highlights for sure. We set out on a quest to get to the church before it closed at 4pm. Or at least that's  the time we thought it closed. When we got there we were relieved to find that the church wasn't closing until much later. Now, if only we could find the correct entrance...being with people from the tour group, which included friends Nancy and her husband Marshall, we all wandered about until a few people from our group decided to be daring and jump the turnstile in an area that was obviously not being used at the moment. Nancy and Marshall followed, as did I, being ever the risk taker. Even my dad joined in the shenanigans! Of course, we didn't get too far before we were approached by security, nicely asking us to go around and use a different entrance - and we all had a good laugh at what we had just done.
Once legally inside, we explored this beautiful church and found our way to the Madonna of Bruges; a sculpture of Mary holding the baby Jesus done by none other than Michelangelo.

After seeing the church we went and had some Belgian beer and Belgian fries in the town square, just chatting and people watching, taking it all in. Later on, Nancy and myself set out on our own little photography tour, finding some great hidden gems. Of course, our Belgian experience would not be complete without a trip to a chocolate shop. I had bought some chocolate in Brussels, but had not had my fill, and it seemed that every other store in Bruges was a chocolate shop! We went to a well known, and well reviewed shop called "The Chocolate Line" and it was definitely some of the best chocolate I have ever tasted.

The next day was a walking tour of Bruges, covering pretty much every place you should see, including the Basilica of the Holy Blood, where there is an elaborate tabernacle that supposedly holds the actual blood of Jesus Christ. The Basilica dates back to the 1100s.

So, as you can imagine, I took hundreds of pictures in Bruges. Here, I have posted only a handful - my favorites.

                                                           Below: The Madonna of Bruges

 Below: These "love padlocks" are found all over bridges and fences, etc. in Europe. Couples do this as a symbol of everlasting love for each other.

  

Here I am drinking a Belgian beer called Juliper, which I was later told was the Budweiser of Belgium! I never said I was a beer connoisseur. I thought it was delicious! ;)

Veneration of the Crown of Thorns

There was another rare, or rather, little known experience I got to have on my trip to Europe. I got to see the "Crown of Thorns" up close and personal at Notre Dame Cathedral.

For those that might not know what the Crown of Thorns is, let me enlighten you. Being raised in an extremely Catholic family, I feel I am more than qualified to do so! The Crown of Thorns was an instrument of torture and mockery that was placed on Jesus Christ's head by soldiers before he was crucified. The soldiers did this to mock the claims of Jesus that he was the "King of the Jews". It is basically a bunch of canes woven together in a circle, held together with gold threads, with many thorns attached to the crown. (At least that is what Notre Dame says it is.)

The Veneration of the Crown of Thorns takes place at Notre Dame Cathedral the first Friday of each month, for only a couple hours. The exception to this is during lent, when the Crown of Thorns is on display every Friday leading up to Easter. On Good Friday the crown is displayed from 10am to 5pm.

Of all the relics that Notre Dame has (a piece of the cross that Jesus was crucified on, and a nail that was used to nail him to the cross) The crown of thorns is considered the "most precious and most revered". Now, I am not a practicing Catholic anymore. I am not a practicing anything, as I don't believe in organized religion or the Christian idea of God, but it was an amazing opportunity to see this relic, because it is a part of history... A pretty BIG part of history. The funny part is, the Crown of Thorns has undergone a lot of studies and research, but it's authenticity can not be certified. The argument of its authenticity and the places this crown has been has spanned over 16 centuries and many different countries, and that is where the history part comes in...

In the year 409, Saint Paulinus of Nola makes mention of the crown being a relic kept in the basilica on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. There are accounts of it being seen again at the basilica at Mount Zion by Anthony the Martyr in 570. Between the 7th and 10th centuries the relic was moved to the Byzantine Emperors Chapel in Constantinople, to keep it safe from pillaging. By 1238 Latin Emperor Baldwin of Constantinople pawned the crown and other relics to a Venetian bank to get credit. Go figure.
Saint Louis, King of France paid back the Venetians in 1239 and brought the crown and other relics, back to France.
During the French Revolution,  the relics were kept at the national library.
In 1801, they were given back to the archbishop of Paris, where they were placed in the Cathedral Treasury. They are still kept there today. These relics have been protected by the canons of the Metropolitan Basilica Chapter, who are in charge of venerations. They are guarded by the Knights of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. This has been the way since being placed in the Cathedral Treasury.

So, as you can see, Catholic or not, the Crown of Thorns has some amazing history, and is something very special to view in person. Not only did we get to view it, but we got to go up to it and...umm...kiss it. Yeah, kiss it.

We went to Notre Dame on Good Friday, and we had expected to stand in line for a quite a while to see this stupendous relic - but the line moved fast, and before we knew it we were shuffling right along, up the center of Notre Dame Cathedral, heading for the altar. I was wondering what I was going to do about taking a picture of it, since it seemed disrespectful. Luckily my decision was made for me by a very stern and authoritative man behind me who berated me and anyone he saw with a camera, his thick French accent barking out the order "NO PHOTOS!" Since he was dressed in some military outfit and was most likely the equivalent of a U.S. Navy Seal, I complied. He was the ONLY French person I met on my trip that was less than cordial and pleasant. It didn't matter anyway though, once amongst the few people at the front of the line, you were directed by many fancy looking religious men up to the crown. It all happened so quick, however, it also happened in slow motion because I was a little freaked out about having to kiss something that about a trillion and a half other people have kissed. They wipe the crown with a cloth after every person, and they say the cloth is soaked in alcohol...but I just didn't want to take that risk. I panicked and really didn't know what I was going to do until the final moment when I was face to face with this most historic of relics...it sat on an extravagant plush red pillow, just taunting me - and in that final moment of do or die, I went for it. I bent down and pretended to kiss the crown. No actual contact made. The crown wiper guy did his crown wiping thing - everyone was a winner. Nobody suspected a thing. What a relief. I watched as my friend Nancy also pulled the fake kiss trick, and it was all I could do to keep from bursting out laughing in the middle of Notre Dame Cathedral. She is Jewish...but after that very Catholic ordeal she referred to herself as "Catholish".

I will keep this experience in my arsenal of random facts about me..not everyone can claim that they have kissed the Crown of Thorns! ;)