A chic hotel called La Belle Juliette recently opened its doors in the heart of Sain Germain des Prés, where the world of fashion meets Paris' most luxurious boutiques. I loved the eclectic mix of designs, from stacks of vintage books to new age photography, from velour chaises to luminescent wallpaper. Unfortunately, my room was just too messy to document, but here is a taste of the lounge areas.
Love Locks have begun showing up in many places around the world, including the Pont Des Arts in the heart of Paris. Lovers attach a lock with their names engraved or words of love scribbled, then toss the key into the Seine to symbolize their eternal love.
The origin of this phenomenon is a mystery. It is thought it may have been started by Italian tourists enacting the plot of a sentimental novel by Federico Moccia, in which the protagonists hung a lock inscribed with their names on a lamppost near Ponte Milvio in Rome, kissed and threw the key into the Tiber.
Others think the trend started in Moscow where railings on the Luzhkov Bridge are so crowded with “locks of love” that special metal poles have been added to cope with the collection.
Similar fads have been reported on bridges in Brussels, Kiev, Vilnius, the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, in Venice and naturally, the Ponte Pietra in Verona, Romeo and Juliet’s hometown.
Last year, City Hall declared them unsightly and they must be removed because they "raise problems for the preservation of our archeological heritage". It seemed a bit ironic coming from the Guardians of the City of Love...
Stumbling across the thousands of locks adorning the footbridge was a lovely surprise for me. I love spontaneous acts of love! I have a feeling that simply removing the locks will only encourage more couples to declare their love on this romantic footbridge in Paris... especially on Valentine's Day.
I think that until you see a city wake, until you experience the first light make its way along the streets and up the buildings, until you see the first store keepers opening the doors and sweeping the sidewalks, until you see the first person sipping an early morning espresso, until you see all those little things that a city does as it wakes, you will never truly know a city. You will never know what makes that city different and unique from another. Throughout my travels, when I have known that my time will be short in a city, I make a point of sharing a sunrise with her. I walk her streets, taking in the sounds as she groans and stretches out the kinks from the night. I listen to the birds come alive, the street traffic, the bike whiz by, the laughter between shopkeepers. I smell the dew from the night, the fresh blossoms and the musky river, the baking croissants and coffee brewing. I take in the gain in momentum, the horns and pedestrians, the anticipation of the day. And then it's gone. Somehow the sunrise became the day, and that magical moment in between is lost until tomorrow. It's a gift to experience a city, to feel a city. It's a gift to see it through a foreigners eyes.
One of my favorite sunrise cities was Zurich, another was a small village in Northern Italy. But my all time favorite is Paris. Hands down. My favorite city in the world, mentioning her name makes my heart flutter. I was lucky enough to walk the Louvre at sunrise. Even though I had my camera, I think most of the images were catpured in my mind. They are engrained, and when I go looking for them, they come alive and I feel the warmth of the morning sun, the dry gravel pathways beneath my feet, the trees lined before me billowing softly in the wind, the statues glowing in the golden light, far off the first of the cars honking... and the Louvre all to myself.
This is one of my all time favorites of the tower.
