On my fourth trip to Paris (back in college), I kind of hit a rut. I had seen all the main sites, I had visited all the famous museums. I had gone back to my favorite spots multiple times (though Sacre Couer never grows old). I had even taken the metro all the way out to La Défense and had an icecream cone under the towering monstrosity of an arch. I was - I hate to admit it - bored of Paris.
But then something wonderful happened: I dug another layer down and started rediscovering the city I thought I had so thoroughly "done." (I am indebted to my Irish aunts and the Rue Oberkampf for helping me over the hump back in January 2007.) Thus I can happily report that my seventh trip to Paris a few weeks ago was my best ever.
Of course the glorious spring weather didn't hurt. But since I'm a sucker for novelty, much of my pleasure was derived from seeing new sides of the same city. To wit:
