Le metro.

This.

I could easily name public transportation as one of my favorite aspects of living in Europe. It's fast, reliable, and usually pretty affordable, not to mention that it helps to lower our carbon footprint. And it even sometimes smells like a zoo! So really, it's great.

I ride the Metro here in Paris quite often. I'm talking about spending at least 1-2 hours of my life zipping through the underground tunnels of this city every single day. This obviously gives me a lot of time to think or read or stare or daydream or do all those things at the same time. That time on the Metro is precious to my selfish young mind that only thinks of things in terms of how they directly affect me.

The other day I decided to just watch people. People can be extremely entertaining, and I find it incredibly fascinating that every person you come in contact with has a story you will never read that shaped a personality you will never know. But it's interesting how the Metro seems to be one of the few public places that people can openly express what they're thinking. Some might not agree with me on that, since everyone here seems quite stiff and uncomfortable in environments they can't control. But I truly believe that when you look at someone on the Metro you can tell if they're happy or sad, just content or extremely frustrated, perfectly calm or absolutely crazy. Everyone is so self-absorbed that it seems they can't help but to share the expression they're feeling at that moment. You are allowed to wear any emotion you want on the Metro because it doesn't matter - even if they took the time to notice, you will never see these people again.

The Metro in Paris has a great capacity to be both an enlightening and a disgusting experience simultaneously, but for the most part it's been a blessing. It's definitely become a new hobby and I'm excited what new adventures await me underneath the historic face of this beautiful city.