Welcome to Armchair Travels, an invitation to travel around the world through the reportage illustration of Studio 1482. We have gathered art from our travels to share with you in the hopes that, while you can’t get out and see these places (yet), our experiences may bring some happiness and light to your day. Please check back often as we will be posting new adventures weekly. Enjoy Paris, France…by Dominick Santise

I landed in Charles de Gaulle Airport with an imaginary agenda for a far off land I had never given much thought to visiting until 6 months prior to taking off from JFK the night before. Time travel. The flight from New York City is a blur. No memory of anything earlier to meeting my dear friend Michele at her gate shortly after she landed.

With faith in our friendship, knowing I would never lead her in the wrong direction, she opted to follow my path and travel the Metro from the airport to the center of Paris and into Jardin des Tuileries.

Within an hour of ascending from an iconic Metro station we were having breakfast in the garden. We ate and talked, both of our minds wandering off to the weeks ahead knowing this trip would stay with us for the rest of our lives.

Walking the streets and climbing the steps from one neighborhood to another, there would never be enough time in that single adventure to take it all in. With each second that passed it was impossible to not feel the grip the city was taking on me.

From the serene moments at Notre-Dame de Paris, with spirits all around illuminated by the rose windows, to looking out from the doors of Sacré-Cœur Basilica, where sinners and saints shared the same air while looking out across the top of the city, Paris started to feel like a second home even if I was only there for a short time.

Watching enormous crowds line the streets for the final laps of Le Tour de France I was witness to the transformation that took over the City of Lights. Each day in Paris—for that matter each hour—could be a post in and of itself.

Every landmark held a distinguished position even while relegated to greeting the masses. As throngs of people descended upon each monument dedicated to revolutions or movements—social, political, aesthetic—those who came were surely not quick to let Paris go.

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