A little piece of Paris on the walls of Abbey Place

The art on the walls at Abbey Place tells a story, each and every piece. The canvases above the couch are of pictures I took of my favorite places in Michigan. The black and white photographs framing the dining room window were taken by one of my college roommates and show off some very cool places of the Olivet campus. The black and white photographs across the room were found by my parents at an estate sale and show off some of the natural beauty of the mitten state. I could go on and on...

So it only seems fitting that Angela and I add some of our Paris story to the walls. And that we did this weekend finally. We made a trek with our little paper bag we'd protected all the way from the banks of the Seine to the framing store and procured just the right frames. Then we headed home and held the art up against all of the walls in the house until we found just the right place: next to the front door in the living room. Where we can see it all the time.

These pieces of art aren't just prints we got in a souvenir shop in Paris. They're actual paintings created by an artist we saw working on our last day in France. We were exploring the neighborhood around our hotel, enjoying our last hours of sun near the river, listening to the sounds of the music fest all around us, when we happened upon PondyaKunik Ruslane. He was set up just across from Notre Dame, on the banks of the Seine, painting. And as he finished the cityscape and it was still wet, we purchased it. And the other painting. To me, there is nothing more French than this.

We didn't bring home a lot of souvenirs from Europe. A lot of gifts, a lot of treats to share, but mostly just a few really special things we found along our way. A candle holder from Giverny for me. A tiny red wooden ring box from Versailles for Angela. A bracelet of the Eiffel Tower from this really cool art gallery for both of us. A few small things to remember our days by. But most of all, photos. And so many memories. And I'm excited that these paintings will help us remember our days in Europe every day here.