Paris

Paris Paris Paris. It’s quite the city! The flight was good and I have to say that Air Canada fed us very well. A dinner, small snacks, and breakfast! Of course, I couldnt sleep on the plane and having been up for 24 hours, I was starting to feel the effects when we landed. The drive from the airport to city centre was brutal! traffic everywhere! But at least the cars were neat to see. So different and so much smaller.

Once we checked into the hotel, we actually just continued to sleep until the next morning. Our first day consisted of going to McDonalds for breakfast. Yes…that’s right McDonalds! I know, I know! What they serve for breakfast was quite a bit different than what you can get in North America. They have espresso/cappuccino machines and lots of pastries! And the pastries were sooo good! Oh and you have to try their Dijon Mustard! It’s the best!

Anyways, we headed to the Louvre after breakfast, but before that, about 1 hour of searching for the Metro. What a pain! We asked a transit worker where it was and she said down a few blocks when in fact it was where we were! arg!

The Louvre is amazing. There are no words or pictures to describe the beauty of all the artwork. The detail and the history/story behind each is amazing. If you had one day in Paris, just head to the Louvre! After about 4 hours, we headed out and walked by the Seine and just taking the view of the city. We stumbled up St. Germain and this little street which was occupied by different types of restaurants.

We attempted to go to Notre Dame three times. Not on the same day . The first time, there was media everywhere and the bells of the Cathedral was going. It was a very low, sad sound. Of course we weren’t certain what was going on, then we saw some people with AF wings on their jackets. It was a memorial for the Air France flight that had gone down. We decided to jet back to hotel since we didn’t think it was appropriate to be there. Our third attempt at Notre Dame was well worth it. The gothic architecture was amazing!

We went to the catacombs. I was clutching onto Tina for dire life! The sign before entering was ‘not for small children or people of nervous disposition’ OMG! I’m a person of nervous disposition. First we had to go down miles and miles of stairs. Then once we got down there, they had a bit of history on the catacombs. Then you had to walk miles and miles of dark underground tunnels. You never really know what was around the corner, whether it was the start of the catacombs. We finally reached it and I can’t tell you how eerie it was. Bones were piled on top of each other, and there would be a row of skulls in the middle. And this went on for who knows how long. It was a bit damp and musty in the tunnels, and since it was underground, there was some water dripping from the ceiling. We rushed out of there…miles and miles of walking. Arg!

Once we got out of the tunnels, we went to the grocery store. Bought this big gouda cheese wedge and two small bottles of wine for 3 Euros! Then we took it to the park and ate it. Where a bylaw officer said something to us in french… of course it’s in reference to the alcohol LMAO. Me playing dumb … ‘huh?’. No alcohol at the park! OH!

Sean, we can’t drink in the park!

We took a hot air balloon ride which cost 10 Euros each. Not too bad, but we got to see the city from an aerial view. Beautiful!

Tour de Eifel was quite beautiful, especially at night. Though going up to the tower doesn’t really seem worth it since it’s overly crowded with people. Barely any room to breathe.

One of the most interesting neighborhoods is Montmartre. I would say it describes what you would think Paris was like. Very historical, old, and not an ounce of modern architecture. There would be streets and streets of fabric. Of course there was also this very good coffee shop! mmm Espresso!

Overall the experience was positive. We did have sewage smell coming from our drains, which was disgusting. C’est la vie! Majority of Parisians weren’t the most friendliest, but of course the ones who helped us with directions were wonderful!

BAGUETTES BAGUETTES BAGUETTES. So fresh, so good and so cheap! Cheese was good but smelt like dirty sweat socks, which made it hard to eat! My oh my, that rhymed!

Would I go back? I would for only a few days. Maybe catch up on some sight seeing that we missed, but that would be it! Next trip? hmmm…maybe South America next year! heh!