When we arrived at Paris Lyon in the late morning and took the metro to Cadet. The hotel was about 5 minutes walk from the station. We checked in and freshened up. I had the agenda all planned out, so we headed to the metro and at Cadet we took the line 7 direction of Villejuif-Louis Aragon and changed at Place d’Italie.
We then took the line 6 at the direction of Charles de Gaulle-Etoile and we got off at Bir-Hakeim. When we walked out of the metro, we caught a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower and decided to stop by for something cold to drink. We ended up in a nice sunny cafe and I ordered a glass of Perrier and John ordered a glass of Iced Cappuccino.
We then walked to – YES, THE EIFFLE TOWER (the world’s most famous landmark)! It is located on the grassy field and park Champs de Mars. The walk to the tower from the station was about ½ mile and you need to weave through the sea of peddlers trying to sell trinklets of the Eiffel Tower. We hit one and bought a dozen of key chains and an 8” tower. We saw about another 20 of these street sellers before we actually got to the tower.
When we arrived, it was a mass of people. Lots of people trying to sell you things or whatever they can scam you about, guards checking out the crowds. Of course we had no reservation to go up the tower and the line to get the tickets for the elevator was out of control and not really moving at all. We decided to come back later at night to go up the tower.
The view of the Eiffel tower was fantastic. Gustave Eiffel constructed the tower for the world exhibit in 1889 in honor of it being 100 years since the French Revolution. We meandered around the perimeter getting lots of photos. When we left the hotel, it was warm and nice but at this stage it was getting very hot and sunny. We then decided to walk towards Parc du Champ de Mars which is a rectangular park between Eiffel Tower ant the Ecole Militaire (military school). The name of the park has nothing to do with the planet Mars, except in that it is similarly derived from the name of the Roman God of war. The park was once a military parade ground.
After the park, we visited The Museum of Modern Art (Musee d Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris) which is a smaller museum in comparison with the heavy experiences such as the Louvre. The Museum of Modern Art is easy to follow and an interesting trip through history. It took us through the 20th century art, from the 1910s, Picasso is shown, and from the 1920s cubism with colourful art by Fernard Leger and Sonia Delaunay. We got to view paintings from the different decades up until the 21st century, from which several sculptures and videos are shown. I guess the master piece is in the Matisse Room with a piece “The Dance”. In addition it is also located next to a new museum, Palais de Tokyo. There, real modern and fascinating art forms are shown, such as productions and concept art in large, open rooms. These two museums really compliment each other.
We then headed off looking for Quai Branly which is an ethnographical museum opened as late as 2006 on the initiative of the former president Jacques Chirac. This museum is located next to the Eiffel Tower and garden faces Seine. It is a big building covered in different types of vines. Quai Branly holds historical artifacts from Africa, Asia, America and Australia and other cultural heritages from non-western cultures.
We then decide to grab something to eat and we ended up in a really nice French restaurant and I ordered chicken and John ordered a steak. After dinner, we decided to head back to the Eiffel Tower to catch the tower at night. We walked towards the Parc du Champ de Mars again so we can have a better look of the tower and it was MAGNIFICENT. Cameras were ablaze as we grabbed as many shots of the beautiful tower as we could.
The Eiffel tower was all lit up and glowing, and no sooner did everyone turn in that direction, it light up, sparkling and amazing. The light show that happens on the hour at night. Everyone took in a breath and we stood in front and took in the beauty of it. I am sure the locals think its dreadful, but nothing defined the moment for me more than seeing the iconic structure and realising where I was at the exact moment. This was Paris at its best. It was almost impossible to take in all of it. I find that it is never enough. I could stare for hours, mesmerised and awe struck, trying to absorb as much as possible but it feels like a dripping wet sponge trying to clean up a spill.
About two hours later, we were back on foot toward Bir-Hakeim to reverse our route back to the hotel.
On our second day, we caught the metro to the Louvre and stopped for shots by the famous Louvre pyramid. After the massive long queue where we enter through a 65 ft. High glass pyramid which is located between the renaissance buildings. We went down the escalator and finally got our tickets and started at the first floor working our way up. This museum really puts everything else to shame. The Louvre is the most well-visited tourist destination in Paris and the museum keeps several thousand artworks from all over the world.
The building itself is an amazing piece of art and its simply crammed with so many great pieces. The Baraque Palace-turned museum is sooo full of art and it all blends together. We worked our way through the classic Hungarian, German, French, Italian and Spanish pieces. Some pictures were more than 60 feet long and took up the entire wall. We finally got into the wing that housed the Mona Lisa (which was painted between 1503 and 1506 in Florence) and what a mad house it was. We got as close as we could but they really protect this piece with an extended barrier.
Louvre got to be my favourite museum. My favourite part is the millennium, while we were there was not a lot of people in the hallways. Its so amazing, a great way to lose yourself in your surrounding with no noise and interruptions except for the squeaking of the floors under your feet. Again, a lot of paintings were beautifully done a lot of religious works but everything was amazing.
By the time we were done with the Louvre, our legs were killing us. We went to the souvenir store and bought a poster of Mona Lisa (now I just have to get it framed and figure out where to hang it). We then decided to get some lunch before we head to the Notre Dame. We passed through the lovely Jardins des Tuileries for lunch. I ordered hot dog with a glass or ro’se and John had a sandwich and jug of beer.
Jardins des Tuileries was founded by Queen Catherine de Medicis in 1564 and it is filled with statues and tree colonnades. It is also on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The park has a playful feeling and maybe this comes from knowing that it was from here that the first hot air balloon took off.
After lunch, we pop across the River Seine towards Notre Dame Cathedral. The outside is amazing with the huge stained glass window. The inside is even more beautiful than its exterior plus its free (which is always a bonus!). The cathedral is filled with sculptures, frescos, and paintings. It has 5 bells, of which the largest is called Emmanuel which weighs over 14 tons. This is where the author Victor Hugo found inspiration for his story about The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
After Notre Dame, we stopped by a cafe close buy and I had another glass of Perrier and John ordered his boring old cappuccino. We then walked a little while and walked past the Opera House. We caught a street show and walked around a little bit more and took more photographs.
We then made our way to Jardin du Luxemburg where we sat down soaking in the sun with no time line and no worries. We walked around the lakes, just like Balzac, Simone de Beuvoir and Hemingway have done. According to my Iphone App, The Palais du Luzembourg was built for Queen Marie de Medicis (1575-1642). On the side of the Senate, we found the impressive Medicis Fountain, made for Queen Medicis. Her wish was to create a mythical atmosphere and on the fountain sitting was the son Poseidon; Polypheme. It is said that it was by this fountain that Simone de Beauvoir fell for his life partner Jean-Paul Sartre.
We had another coffee break in a in the 57 acres park and then took the metro to the neighbourhood of La Marais and Les Halles where we found the Centre Pompidou which is Paris’ national museum for culture and the 18th century art and is Paris’ third largest tourist destination after the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.
George Pompidou, the French President between 1969 and 1974 was the one who took the initiative to build this museum and architectural piece. The museum’s famous square in front of the entrance is a tourist destination in and of itself; we sat down by the steps just admiring the street performers and painters.
The Centre Pompidou’s pipes in the facade have different colors depending on their function, the blue for example are for air conditioning and the yellow contains the electricity cables for the building.
We then walked around for a little while and caught a glimpse of The Gallery Brancusi and then caught the metro to Arc de Triomphe. Arc de Triomphe de l’Etoile is located at one end of Champs Elysees and 1.4 miles from Place de la Concorde. The Arch is 148 ft. Wide and 164 ft. High and it is filled with sculptures and inscriptions. The arch was built in remembrance of the victory in the battle by Austerlitz in 1805. It was Napolean who ordered the construction in 1806 as a starting point for the parade avenue Champs Elysees. We arrived at the Arc around rush hour traffic, although I bet traffic is probably always heavy in this central hub of the city. We got several photos of the Arc and the surrounding area and started to work our way around the massive monument toward Avenue de Champs Elysees. Also under the arch, there is the unknown soldier’s grave in remembrance of the victims of the First World War.
We walked down Elysees checking out the shops, definitely a unique mix of high end stores and everyday shopping.
We stopped by a cafe for some hot drinks and desert. John ordered a cappuccino and I had a cup of hot chocolate (9 euro cup of hot chocolate mind you) we then shared a crème brulee and a chocolate waffle. It was a pretty expensive splurge but everything was so rich and tasty it was definitely worth it!
We then took the metro back to Cadet and headed towards the hotel. We decided to rest for a little while (heck, its a vacation anyway) and then walked downstairs for dinner. We ended up having pizza and garlic pizza for dinner, yet another awesome meal.
On the last day, we got up late and went downstairs for breakfast. We then checked out the hotel and left our luggage in the hotel. With a few hours to spare, we made our way to Galleries La Fayette, by way of boulevard bonne-nouvelle, quite the happening street. Trendy stores, cute cafes, the ever present energy of young people and hurried shoppers clamming the sidewalks.
Oh God, I wish I had more time in La Fayette. Its got to be the best mall I have ever been to. If you have it to spend, it all can be yours! The store is a sight to see, with an amazing old century building with ornate gilded gold balconies.
Before we started shopping we went up to the rooftop of La Fayette where we caught a glimpse of the Opera House and it looks amazing. I was hoping we had more time to go inside to have a look at the interior. We took a few photos on the rooftop and went downstairs where we decided to stop for a coffee break.
Well, John ordered his cappuccino and I was itching to go back inside La Fayette for some shopping. I had been itching to get a leather jacket in Paris since I got there. You see a lot of them there and they look so different from the ones you see back home. We ventured into La Fayette, walking past the luxury boutiques and walked upstairs to the ladies department and there it was – it really was exactly what I was looking for. I ended up buying it, should have bought another in a different colour too. We then decided there’s more shopping to do and bought a few other “necessities” and with time running out, decide that it was time to head to the cashier. I really wish we had more time there.
After paying for the items, we rushed back to the hotel to grab our luggage then headed for Paris Nord. A quick metro ride got us to the station where we embarked on an express train to Amsterdam.
Oh joie de vivre! Wrapping up the Paris trip and I can’t help but feel a little surreal. The last 2 days have been just lovely. Everything was just perfect. I was trying to just soak up every last bit of the city that I could. The weather was perfect..the sky just opened up and released the sun. We couldn’t have asked for more.
The only negative thing I found in Paris is the French traffic. People in Paris cannot drive to save their life, they cut people up and don’t care about the safety of anyone, its mad! Another thing I noticed is that all the shops in Paris seem to follow their own laws of when they decide to open. A lot of stores we passed clearly had an opening time but no one running the stores. It seemed like a “we will open when we feel like it” sort of an attitude.
Everyone in Paris was friendly and helpful, food and shopping was not expensive and it was relatively clean for the size of the city and the amount of people in it. Honestly it would be a shame for someone not experience this city at least once in their life. Perhaps the biggest thing I will miss are the sidewalk cafes, that no matter the time, they are always packed, the energy of the street which density wise is the same as Sydney with a much more softer feel and again the language. To go back to Sydney with English all around will be well..disappointing. To not have French being spoken at every corner, to see it written everywhere, and learn new words. I guess I will have to file this away a memory for now.
I have also witnessed a lot of dog owners letting their cute sweet pets deficate and then walk away. Well I noticed that everywhere in Europe. I don’t know and can’t understand where it went all wrong and this became normal. I also wander if the cases if Hep A are greater here comparatively.
We’ll miss Paris but we will be back – without a doubt. Paris sparked something in us all and I for one really cannot wait to return.
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