Last day in Paris, and what haven’t we seen yet??? Notre Dame!! And more importantly??? THE OPERA!! Okay, so while I was a little overzealous about just sitting and staring at that building for hours on end, I realized that that was my own eccentricity that I had to suppress until we finished the more common touristy adventures… so? Off to Notre Dame!
As K and I walked off the metro, a freezing gust of damp air nearly blew us over… reminding us we were a. not in Kansas, but b. we were most definitely in Paris in the pre-winter weather… it was COLD!!! So, arms linked walking along the river, we made our way to the massive cathedral I could only imagine from a Disney movie (everything relates to Disney… it’s a wonderful thing…)
After taking a few token shots outside, we rushed into the warm sanctuary. 
While K took a look around, I found myself drawn in yet again to another holy place… I spent several minutes near the altar meditating… I’d say praying, but it was more contemplation than anything… 
I found myself in one of those places where you could literally feel the history around you, and it was overwhelming… After having breathed a sigh of serenity, I found K and began to take in the beauty of this massive place… 
the dim lighting from the candles, and soft music from the choir blended into the incense-laced air and created an intoxicating atmosphere… I don’t know if it was my body thawing from the cold, or the true spirituality of the place, but I was filled with a dizzying excitement, and could barely contain my joy… 
I think I may have stared at the figure of Joan of Arc for 15min… 
I’ve always felt tied to her story… for no reason other than it inspires me, and has stuck with for as long as I can remember… this place was amazing…
Once we had had our fill of the inner cathedral, we forced ourselves to head back into the cold and join the crazy mass of people waiting to climb to the top… yep… K and I waited for over an hour in the cold to see the gargoyles up close :) and it was so worth it!Anyone who has ever seen Disney’s Hunchback of Notre Dame knows how awesome the gargoyles are… and seeing the real ones turned me into a 5 year old, giddy with excitement…
not to mention the incredible view of Paris… 
through the freezing grey skies you could really hear the words of Victor Hugo, Gaston Leroux, and Antoine de Saint-Exupery…
And then… to the opera… unfortunately for me (and probably fortunately for K) there were no tours running, so I couldn’t go and sit, and stare at the stage for hours on end… but, I did get to see it. 
And make the promise that I’d return for a different reason… for a more exciting reason… and actually step foot on the stage… next time… there will be a next time…
And so, au revoir, pour l'instant Pari!
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