A Tourist in Paris

By Nathan DeWitt

The Eiffel Tower, Late Afternoon

                                   

         I had never been to Paris before this past weekend, but now I can admit that I am glad that for my first time, I got to see all the famous attractions first. These places include basically everywhere we went, such as the Eiffel Tower, Versailles, Notre Dame, The Louvre, and Roland Garros. 
        The reason I am glad I saw these "typical" tourist attractions first is because if I ever go back to Paris, I won't feel the need to go to these places again. If (when) I ever go back, I will be able to better appreciate what the city and rest of the country has to offer, away from all the other tourists with cameras. 
         I believe true beauty and value and appreciation in a city or country come in solitude and natural landscape and personal thought and romanticism and exploration of what really matters to you. Spending time on the coast, at a wine vineyard, authentic restaurants, or at a national park is what I now know I will be doing shall I return to France. I want to be away from the tourist attractions, annoying people, smelly metro stations, hotels with sketchy wi-fi, and McDonalds. 
         So yes, I did have an unforgettable time this weekend and I am glad I did every single thing I did, but I am glad I did it as a 21 year old college student only in town for a short weekend and I hope to someday explore and appreciate the realness that is France.