Another day of waking up at 7:30 a.m. and leaving the hotel early in the morning. We’ve been doing this basically every single day of our trip because there’s just so much to do. When we were staying in Austria, we could’ve stayed there for a couple of more days because it was so nice and beautiful. We could’ve also taken a gondola up a mountain or taken a long walk along the turquoise river near our hotel. We could’ve stayed another night in Colmar to shop for more clothes. And Paris… that could take a whole week, and we’re only staying for three days. In just the first two days, we’ve experienced a lot. Yesterday, we had the opportunity to celebrate Bastille Day, see the Eiffel Tower (from a distance), walk on the Parisian streets, and eat weird, but delicious French food. Today, was another exciting and inspiring day.
We called a taxi early this morning to take us to the Louvre, the museum I’ve been dreaming to visit my whole life. Instead of walking the extra 45 minutes from our hotel to the museum, we took the cab and enjoyed the ride. As the cab neared the Arc de Triomphe, I gasped and pointed it out to everyone. The monument looked so beautiful, especially when the sun was shining on it from an angle. It was so big and tall, and beautifully decorated.
As we passed the widely known monument, I glimpsed out the window and saw dozens of brand stores lined up beside each other. Louis Vuitton, Lacoste, Abercrombie & Fitch, etc. Too bad you have to be rich to actually buy something in some of those brand stores. It would be nice to own a Louis Vuitton bag or a pair of Louboutin heels.
As the distance between us and the museum were becoming closer, the buildings and monuments around us were becoming bigger and more majestic. Decorative gold leaf and beautifully carved marble were added to them. One after another, the buildings became more majestic until we finally reached the Louvre, the most majestic of them all. Saying that the museum was huge is an understatement. The museum must’ve been spread out over hundreds of thousands of square feet of area. It kind of had the shape of a half rectangle with its opening facing the road we just came from.
The Louvre Museum
The opening was also filled with an enormous glass pyramid where hundreds of tourists were waiting in line to buy tickets. My mouth gaped open when I realized how long these people actually have to wait until they finally can go in the museum. After hours of waiting and standing around, they would finally be able to walk around the museum. Though, there backs and feet would already be hurting from all of that waiting.
Thankfully, I have a very smart dad who thought ahead. He bought front of the line passes for everyone in the family, which really did make a big difference. We walked passed all of those waiting, tired people. I felt special, unique, and almost important. It was a very great feeling to know that I didn’t have to wait for hours to buy tickets, but I felt bad for everyone else.
Once we passed the security guards and metal detectors, we went through the doors and into the glass pyramid. We followed the flow of people and took the escalator down to the ground floor. I soon saw the entrance of the Louvre open up before my eyes. Hundreds of people were walking around the floor, deciding where to go first. My family and I decided to take the whole 1st floor first, which had the Mona Lisa and other very famous paintings.
I was first struck by the very high ceilings and the polished marble walls. The hallways were also spacious and helped to avoid crowding. The first very popular statue we saw was “The Winged Victory of Samothrace”. There were so many people gathering around it taking pictures and admiring it. I was soon squeezed in between people I’ve never seen before, while I was trying take at least one good picture. It was so warm and the air was so stuffy that I soon had a headache. There was also an awful stench that hit my nose. It was the terrible smell of hundreds of sweaty people crowding around just one statue, taking pictures. When I think back to that moment, I couldn’t believe how that one statue could attract so many people at one time. There were hundreds of thousands of different statues, paintings, sculptures, and art pieces that were also beautiful in their own unique way. Many paintings and sculptures held the same amount of splendidness. Each piece had its own story to tell, each story different from one person to another.
After escaping from that crowded room, we walked into many different rooms. The rooms were gigantic and spacious, most with beautifully painted ceilings that expressed a different feeling. The first couple of rooms were bright, inspiring, and optimistic. One of the rooms I remember the most, was a very long, rectangular room with its ceiling and walls covered in paintings and gold leaf carvings. Paintings of kings and leaders, painters and politicians hung from the walls. Gold frames were placed around the pictures, matching the rest of the room’s coloring. The whole room was basically covered in gold. It was just so beautiful, I can’t even explain it in words. It was even difficult capturing its true beauty in one shot. I tried taking pictures with different setting and techniques, but nothing could compare with what I saw with my eyes. Glass cases filled with rubies and emeralds stretched along the center of the room. Rings, necklaces, and crowns of royalty were placed before me with only a glass casing separating me and it. That room was one of the nicest rooms of the whole museum.
Once we were finished marveling the golden room, we walked further along the 1st floor. We entered an Egyptology themed part of the floor with tablets of hieroglyphics on display. There were also statues (both big and small), tools, and scarabs behind glass incasing. This was also on of my favorite parts of the museum because I’ve always been a big fan of Egyptology and archaeology. Even just hearing the words opens a whole world of imagination for me. I love discovering how people used to live hundreds of thousands of years ago. Different religions, languages, and life-styles interest me and compel me to discover more about them. The Louvre is really the perfect place for me.
A sphinx
We went through some more rooms and saw some 18th century room designs and furniture. We just skimmed through everything, because we knew that there was so much more to see. We can’t read about everything behind every artwork or sculpture.
Then came the time to see the Mona Lisa. We followed the signs that pointe to “La Joconde”, which is the French name for the Mona Lisa. People started to pile up as an art gallery opened up before me. Huge art pieces hung on the walls, each one very powerful in their meanings. Some where sad and depressing to see, others were very vibrant and brought joy to me. I then turned a corner and saw a huge crowd around something. I couldn’t see what it was, but I knew it was the Mona Lisa. There were so many people, it was almost sick, but everyone wanted to take a picture. I went along with my sister to go take some, too. I was immediately squished, and it was difficult to move. Thankfully, it wasn’t warm in there and I didn’t notice any foul stench. After waiting and sometimes pushing my way through, I made it to the very front of the group. The painting was safely secure behind thick glass and security guards were continually controlling the crowd. Everyone says that they are disappointed when they see the Mona Lisa because it’s so small. But really, it isn’t. In my opinion, it’s an ok size. What I focus on is the feeling I get when I see it. Since there was so much going on around me, it was hard to just enjoy the moment. I couldn’t actually just stand there and stare at it. The guards were telling us to move right after we were done taking pictures. I wish I could’ve acknowledged the beautiful, steady brush strokes and disproportionate shape of her head. Even though I couldn’t enjoy the moment, I’m beyond glad to say that I’ve seen the Mona Lisa in real-life.
Mona Lisa
We looked at many more paintings in the gallery, depicting different stages of life. We saw paintings of naked babies, young women, strong men, and elderly people. All of them were impressively in great shape and they didn’t even look like they were hundreds of years old.
After grabbing a bite for lunch, we went to go see some Greek and Roman sculptures, which was also a highlight for my day. I’m a huge fan of Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series. I basically grew up with those books and it was very fascinating to see some of the gods and goddesses come to life. As I passed by some statues, I saw some young people drawing the statues. I suddenly had the desire to just sit down and start drawing. Sadly, I have a whole family to think about. None of them would like standing around, waiting for me to finish drawing. I guess I will just add that to my bucket list: Go to the Louvre and draw off of sculptures.
Hercules fighting Achelous in the form of a snake
My sister wanted to go see “Venus de Milo”, otherwise known as the statue of no arms. Many people also crowded around this beautiful statue, but it wasn’t so bad. I thought the statue was beautiful.
Venus de Milo
After a whole 6 hours spent at the museum, we hailed a cab and went to the hotel. We were all exhausted after all of that walking, we just needed to have a rest. Later in the day, we had some dinner at Frog XVI, which is a bar restaurant. The food tasted so good, but everything was fried and covered with sauce. Even though it was unhealthy, it was delicious. It made my day. 🙂
My High School Journey 
