"With a dreamy far off look. And her nose stuck in a book." The villagers in Beauty and the Beast

After class and lunch with Matt and Rachel, I went off on my own to do another of my assigned walks. This one took me to the Madeleine metro stop. The point of the walk was to learn to smell Paris. Something (as mentioned in a previous blog post) which I had already begun to enjoy. At this metro station, one can smell the hideous, horrible, sulfurous waters below Paris. A stench that cannot be exaggerated. However (and this is not made up, my guide book told it to me) the smell of the famous Madeleine cookie is piped in through the vents at this station! So, if one is lucky, after the initial shock of the yuck, one is delighted by the smell of a delicious, buttery cookie. I visited the Madeleine Church, which looks like a greek temple and is an interesting marriage of paganism and Christianity. I walked through an outdoor flower market which greatly pleased my silver-crickety soul, and then I had my first encounter with the much raved about Laduree bakery. I didn't try anything because the line was ridiculous, but the window displays were mouth-watering and I fully intend to go back.

After these things, I visited a perfumery! Dear reader, you must know that one of my few talents is that I am very good at smelling things---so this experience was a real treat! I learned about the process of making perfumes, the basic ingredients, and the different "families" of perfume (wood based, floral based...etc.) I had so much fun smelling things and then being asked to determine the head tones, the base tones, the light tones and so on. It was pretty freaking cool.

When my walk ended I decided to go into the Notre Dame because I hadn't done that yet and the line was finally a manageable length. It was pretty, but not much different than any of the other cathedrals of Paris. 

In the evening I went to the Shakespeare and Company book store near the Dame and browsed for a long time. It was so cool in there. Was so so overflowing with all kinds of books and had one of those sliding ladders like in Beauty and the Beast (which of course, I used even though I had no interest in looking at the books it provided access to). I bought a nice little copy (I like my books small, not few page numbers,but small in size) of Salinger's Catcher in the Rye. I've never read it, but I liked Franny and Zooey so much that I thought I needed to pick it up. I found a little spot on some steps by the Seine to read. It was such a beautiful spot but I didn't have my camera so I had to sketch it in my journal to show you all. I apologize for my rudimentary drawing skills and the lack of color, but at least it will give you an idea of how nice and Parisian I felt there. Assuming you care. Which you must or you probably wouldn't be reading this.

I miss all you guys so much. 

Unless you are the viewers that my blog audience stats show from Russia. In which case, I don't know who you are. But thanks for reading my blog. I guess.

 I mean--спасибо