By Eid Harb

Tuesday, April 29, 2025— 9AM.

I was on the couch, thinking about summer

all the things I always said I’d do one day.

Then it hit me:

We always say tomorrow…

but what if tomorrow never comes?

So I said damn it,

and booked a 5AM train to Paris.

Just me. No plan. Just heart.

That night, I stayed at my friend’s place.

We both set alarms.

Neither went off.

I woke up at 5AM in full-blown chaos

panicked, laughing, scrambling.

Missed the train.

Rebooked for 6.

Already a story, and I hadn’t even arrived.

Then,Paris.

First stop: the Seine.

I saw a girl reading by the river.

Peaceful, poetic.

I took a photo of the feeling, not just the scene.

I wandered without direction:

Notre-Dame. The Louvre. Tour Eiffel. Arc de Triomphe.

I watched faces from all over the world pass me by,

each carrying their own mystery,

their own legacy.

The next day, I played piano and sang with strangers at Gare du Nord

like something straight out of a film.

Later, I met my cousin at Sacré-Cœur,

then dinner in Bercy.

The steak was raw.

But life was rare, and beautiful.

I came to Paris alone

but I didn’t feel lonely.

I felt alive.

And when I left,

I didn’t just leave with photos.

I left with a pocket full of moments,

a heart full of stories,

and a version of myself I hadn’t met before.

Paris gave me more than memories

it gave me momentum.

The story of once traveling to paris spring 2025 at 19 yo.

Some moments can’t be captured in words. Eid recorded part of his journey to Paris in this short video — a visual companion to the poem.

Eid Harb is a 19-year-old Lebanese engineering student living in St Sulpice, France. He moved abroad three years ago, driven by curiosity and a love of discovery. Whether cycling through unfamiliar towns or playing piano with strangers in train stations, he gravitates toward moments that feel unplanned and alive. His reflections, like his travels, are spontaneous and sincere—glimpses into the wide-eyed perspective of youth in motion.