When I was in Paris, staying in the 1st near Les Halles, I often found myself wide awake late at night. Though I spent two weeks in Paris, I never fully adjusted to the time difference. So I adopted a routine to cope with my sleeplessness …
Taking the poetry of fellow Francophile Edna St. Vincent Millay, her biography by Nancy Milford and of course my camera I would set of in search of a cafe open late. At said cafe, I would enjoy un café avec sucre et crème alongside a nutella crepe. There, I would watch the City of Light go by. Occasionally, I would take a photograph of the light and the people and a near-empty Rue.
Books and camera still in hand, stomach full, I would set out again for the Seine. Wandering its banks at night, occasionally stopping to read a few stanzas of poetry - it gave me a sense of peace I cannot explain. It was there, at night, I felt that Paris was my city.
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