Have you ever had a place meaningful and unique to you? For me, it has been the haven rising above the Parisian sky! This was a place where I had actually spent most of my life. When people think of Europe, it occurs in their mind, small cities where the shape of the years can be felt due to the preservation of the low-rise buildings and the whole culture in itself. However, what was remarkable about my place was that it was previously automobile plants. Even though high-rise building was normally forbidden or under thorough restraint by the city due to the Fire Services Act, not only was it recently built in the 1970s but also has been a safe residential skyscraper with exceptional view on Paris.
While the exterior of the building was a plain simple design like Lego block in a white monotony compared to other skyscrapers, the interior was totally different! Uncommonly, there were 6 elevators which were each dedicated to their own purposes: 2 elevators going to the underground parking, 2 to the lower-story apartment and the others to the upper-story apartment. Indeed, it is still really rare in EU to find any elevator in a building, even in the most luxurious five star hotels; having actually 6 elevators, not the classical ones but modern, spacious as well as fast ones as we can easily find in Korea, was astonishing. Moreover, the unique feature of this apartment was that all the inhabitants have been addressing their problems to one top guardian named Eli, a tall and thin men with a mustache like Charlie Chaplin or Mario's best friend Luigi with always a genuine smile hanging on his face; he was aware of everything inside this building and took care of these things accurately; nobody would deny that he was actually a genie.
Concerning my apartment, even though it was recently built, the previous owner decorated as other typical French apartment, gloomily and above the creaking wooden floor with "dirty" rugs. So my parents decided to remodel it completely; actually the construction work took 8 months! Nevertheless, it has been now unified into a white as snow, from the ceiling to the floor; that's why when my friends first visited my home, they used to say "Is it some kind of a psychiatric hospital?". Additionally, we also displayed built-in mirrors like the renowned mirror room in Versailles Palace with one supplemental peculiarity which was the sliding mirror doors that sometimes connected or separated the living room with my brother's bedroom. It was actually convenient to keep a watch on my brother who tend to be easily distracted. The most important and unique thing of our house has been the floor spread with authentic Italian white marble; that's why as in Korea or in other Asian culture, we could wander at home without wearing shoes. However, we had to pay a price in exchange for this convenience which was, in one hand, to endure severe winter as I found myself walking on glaciers from the polar areas and, on the other hand, take care of the floor a lot. Thanks to that, we were living all year round in a garden full of lemon trees.
All these characteristics, in addition to living in the 26th story and the existence of the large windows, have enabled us to not only have a great view of whole Paris like the Eiffel Tower, the Seine River and the original Statue of Liberty just in the close proximity and a bit farther the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris and the Montmartre, but also let in more sunlight, reflecting from every side of the house which made our home more spacious and luminous than it already was. Friends admired for the scenery, saying "We have never thought that Paris was such a beautiful city! It is totally different to see it from the field of vision." It was surely wonderful when the weather was good but, even more, when it was a cloudy, windy or rainy day because we could see the heavy grey clouds moving extremely fast and hear the rhythmical and musical sound of the rain falling over the window, which made me feel pensive, sometimes comforted or guiding me into a semiconscious condition.
This place is important for me and my family because we have spent tremendous amount of time there altogether. My mother used to cook a variety of food but especially Korean food such as Bulgogi with her special savory sauce that remains unfortunately secret, yet, gathering our whole family in a single place, the living room for dinner; it was the happiest, the most delicious, the warmest moment of the day, after an exhausting day from work for my father, and from school for my brother and I. On weekends, my parents used to make Kimbab, also one of my mother's specialty, to go on a picnic nearby; she used typical ingredients but the harmony made a synergy effect. The reason why I love this place is that I have so many good memories like the first time I had a big birthday party by inviting all the same grade classmates which was at least about 60 children. I still remember the magician's trick she made to entertain my friends which was so amazing at a child sight. That is why, when I returned to Paris last summer, I felt overwhelmed as well as impatient to see and be again at my 'original' home. When I set my first step to the door, I felt at home once again, finding my other half left there; my identity was united and complete. All the past memories passed through my mind like one piece of a movie. Nothing has changed except for the blinds that faded into yellow due to the sun. It did not smell like once we lived there but it was the same cozy place.
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