Paris!

I stepped off the train in the Gare Austerlitz to the buzz of Paris. Throngs of people all rushing to get somewhere smacking right up against equally as many people who were lost, standing looking puzzled, not sure where the heck they were! The streets were clogged with cars, motocycles, and busses. I dodged both bicyclists and rollerbladers as I walked down Blvd. St. Germain. Ah, Paris! Dirty, messy streets, pushy people, bright lights, and the blaring claxons of police cars in hot pursuit. Ah, Paris! Everyone talking on their mobile phones, paying no attention to on-coming traffic...vehicular or pedestrian. Boys in packs; giggling, but stylish girls, tourists studying maps, dogs, street people begging...ah, Paris! Sidewalk cafes were filling up fast inspite of the cool, cloudy weather; art galleries were filled with wine-sipping art lovers; the Carrefour across the street from my hotel was bustling with shoppers eager to get home to fix dinner. As I relished my first sights and sounds of my favorite city, the bells of the Eglise St. Germain-des-Pres began to chime, calling the city to Mass. I slipped in and sat in the back row. The huge vaulted church was still except for the priest singing the liturgy and the congregation answering in song. The bells called and gifted me with twenty minutes of beauty and quiet uninterrupted by the crazy busy city outside the huge wooden doors. I left the church filled with peace. Ah, Paris!