This is a big one guys, settle in for the journey - you will need a large mug / pint of something. For all those who check this at work - maybe check this one in your lunch break (nah, whatever we dont care).
We realised after posting our London blog that we had left
out possibly the most important photo of the entire blog – us at the game.
We are finalising this blog on a train from Paris to Blois
(yeah we are trying to figure out how to say it without it sounding like blah)
for some time in the Loire Valley.
Day 1
We dragged ourselves out of bed at an unholy time to depart
London at 7:55am, naturally we spent the entire trip (2.5 hours) blogging. We
arrived at 11:30 Paris time and navigated a highly un-user friendly metro
system and then walked for what felt like an eternity to our hotel. We took the
least close exit – turns out there is one 4 minutes from our hotel. The hotel
is right in the thick of things, only 5 minutes walk from Notre Dame, and 7
minutes away from the Pantheon based in what is known as the ‘heart of Paris’.
By the time we had figured out the metro and found our hotel
it was 12:30. Eager to navigate the city we found a 1pm Sandamans Paris tour
and spent the next 4 hours walking the city with an expert guide. This gave us
a pretty good idea of what we wanted to see, and what we could do with missing.
Day 2
We had planned a jam packed day and were committed to
squeezing it all in, that was made a little trickier by missing our alarm and
sleeping in for an extra hour. Our day started up the road at the magnificent Pantheon
which is not to be confused with the Parthenon or the Pentagon, both of which
Amy mistakenly calls it. Simon reminds her continually to think of a Pantha, so
hopefully the right name will ensue. The Pantheon is an amazing gem in the
city, and while unfortunately there was scaffolding all over the top the
spectacular inside certainly made up for it. Apparently no tourists are in town
on Wednesday so we almost had the place to ourselves.
The next stop on our list was highly inappropriate for a
freezing cold day, we pulled into the store Berthillon for ice cream as it is
reputed to be the best in Paris. We shared a scoop of hazelnut, vanilla and
salted caramel while overlooking the Sien river, every flavour was to die for. It
was possibly the best ice-cream we have ever eaten, every mouthful was a piece
of heaven.
We moved onto the Ste-Chapelle (saints chapel) built by King
Louis IX. This relatively small chapel certainly has the ‘wow’ factor, boasting
stained glass windows like we have never seen before. Unfortunately renovation
work was being done which meant we couldn’t see the entire chapel in all its
glory. There is not a wall that is not covered with a piece of stained glass,
it was glorious on an overcast day, so we imagine summer must be something spectacular.
Next on the list was Notre Dame for the tour. We love that seeing
Notre Dame and doing tours are available to the public for free every day of
the year. We arrived at Notre Dame to find a huge amount of what looked like
scaffolding out the front. What it was, was a viewing platform for the public,
now closed because it looks so ugly and actually hinders the view of Notre Dame
-one of those Government ideas that fail in reality. The inside is magnificent,
the rose windows are especially special, particularly given that they are
original. The tour lasted 1.5 hours and it was one of the most in-depth tours
we had ever taken. We will spare the details, basically it is very old, it is
where all the important occasions happen and it is one of the best examples of
Gothic architecture. The End.
Next on the list was a trip to Laduree, and we decided to go
to the original store. We enjoyed the flagship macaron creation l’Ispahan,
which encloses fresh raspberries with a ganache made from rosewater and lychee,
along with 6 assorted macarons. The price tag was completely ridiculous, but we
ate them and they were delicious, especially the l’Ispahan.
Many of you may have heard of the Love lock bridge (Pont des
Arts), which is where people come to lock their love. It is love of many kinds,
it may be their love to Paris, their love to their partner, or their love to a
sibling or parent. There is not a centimetre of this bridge which does not have
a lock on it, and often there are locks on locks on locks. We bought our lock wrote our names and
followed the love lock protocol which goes like this. 1. Find a spot (this is
tricky). 2. Together lock your lock. 3. Take all the keys and together throw
them in the river Sien (this signifies your unbreakable bond). 4. Seal the deal
with a kiss (and champagne if you can).
Some people prefer to do combination locks – just in case you’re
not quite sure you want a never ending bond. Unfortunately because so many
people lock their love here a portion of the bridge is cleared every few months
to make room for others. So the trick is to never go back to check if yours is
still there, and just believe its always still remaining.
We ate a relaxed dinner at a French café and had traditional
French meals of course with red wine. In a few countries we have discovered
that not only can you buy wine by the glass or the bottle, you can buy
different sized glasses or 500mls instead or 750mls if you don’t want a full
bottle.
Most people go up the Eiffel tower for the view, but by
doing this they are standing on the most important part of the Paris skyline,
so their photos miss the most spectacular part. To combat this we went up the
Tour Montparnasse to the 59th floor for the spectacular view over
Paris at night, with the Eiffel tower in all its glory. As a side note the
Eiffel tower runs glittering lights on the hour at night for about 5 minutes,
this is pretty spectacular.
Day 3
Day three we set out to see the big sights of Paris. The
famous ones, the ones that makes everyone the world over say “oooh lala”!
Starting with the Eiffel Tower. We opted to take the stairs to level 2 and the
lift to the top floor. Even in low season the line for the lifts was winding
its way around like a demented snake and the wait times were long. The stairs
are cheaper and you avoid the initial lift queue. Being stair veterans but a
little out of practice we made it fairly easily compared to some other panting
and puffing tourists. The wait for the lift from the 2nd level to
the top was brief, much quicker than waiting on the ground. At the top it was
cramped but with amazing views. You can splash out on Champagne at the top for
13 Euro each or 19 Euro for the top stuff, obviously we passed on that and
soaked in the magnifique view over the city of love. Looking down you can see
for miles and directly around the tower are the Jardins du Trocadero gardens. The descent was
easy and relatively quick, taking the lift all the way, we had earned it!
Wandering the gardens below the tower for some photos we
were approached by what we’ve come to call ‘smelly cheese’ meaning scammers,
beggars and other dodgy types. Nevertheless we took some photos and
left with our valuables still in our possession.
Walking through the streets of
Paris towards the Arc de Triomphe we went through the diplomat district seeing
many beautiful buildings with cars with flags parked outside. When we arrived
at the Place Charles De Gaul we were greeted by the world’s largest traffic
roundabout (‘place de I’Etoile’) where 12 lanes go into 6 lanes none of which
have any lines. To say it’s mental and absurd is not doing it justice. The
drivers and riders are fearless, aggressive and confident, there is no room for
hesitation and road position is 9/10s of the law. There is supposedly one
accident every 8 minutes though we saw none. Many crashes are caused by people
wanting to get to the Arc and trying to cross 6 lanes of unregulated traffic
when they should use the underground tunnels. The tunnels are pretty badly sign
posted given the number of accidents.
The Arc itself is bigger than we both thought it would be.
Covered in massive carvings, statues and memorial plaques it also is the home
of the tomb of the unknown soldier, just like at out war memorial back home.
You can pay to go up the Arc and have a look at the view around but having just
been to the top of the Eiffel we didn’t feel it necessary. Standing on the edge
of the inner circle looking right down the Champs-Elysees towards the city is
an impressive view.
Crossing safely under the chaos above ground we started our
walk down the Avenue Champs-Elysees. As the song goes ‘The Champs-Elysees is a
busy street’ and today was no exception. People bustling everywhere, heavy
traffic weaving around. Bustling is an adequate term. Wandering along we saw
that this famous street once home to some of the most desirable and unique
brands on the planet has given way to the mainstream. Sure Cartier, Louis
Vuitton and Tiffany’s are there but mostly its generic chain clothes stores
with little to separate it from an upscale shopping mall.
Passing the final stores we came to the Champs-Elysees
Christmas Markets. A yearly event, like all other Christmas markets they
imitate the original German ones with sausages, mulled wine, pretzels and
chocolate. The usual fair traders were there too, with homemade jewellery and
other knick knacks. We had some delicious mulled wine to ward off the cold and
Simon sampled some fromage (cheese) and ended up buying a hunk, much to Amy’s
screwed up noses displeasure.
Popping out of the end of the markets to the Place de la
Concorde was the 3300 year old Le Obelisque illuminated in its glory. This was
given to Paris in a trade deal with Egypt, Egypt got a town square clock that
has never worked, we think the French got the better deal. The engineer
responsible for moving the Obelisque from Egypt to Paris has kindly left
instructions on the base of it should it ever need to be moved again. Very
considerate.
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| Shout out to Devil wears Prada fans, this is the fountain she throws her phone into |
Walking further along the corridor that runs from the Arc
all the way to the Louvre we walked through the Jardin des Tuileries which is a
French formal garden set out to display mans superiority over nature. “We will
decide what and where any shall grow”.
And finally from there we walked up to the main square of
the Musee du Louvre which contains the famous glass pyramids. The Louvre is so
enormous that you could spend well over a year walking its halls and seeing all
its exhibits in their entirety. The way the lights lit up the pyramids created
great reflections on the ponds and made for some great photos.
Heading for home after our big day out we went back across
the Love Lock bridge and found our lock again. Still right where we left it.
Hopefully forevermore but we were just glad to be able to find it again!
Day 4
On our 4th day in the City of Lights we made our
way out to the Versailles palace. Initial thoughts are it is incredibly big,
not just the palace itself but the grounds are enormous. You could spend days
exploring the ultra manicured and planned gardens of the estate. It was super
busy even in low season with fellow tourists congesting everything, especially
doorways. Move people! Versailles whilst huge was a bit of a letdown. None of
the fountains were running and the statues were all covered up. A big drawcard
is the gardens but they’re all torn up for maintenance and gates to the inner
parts of the famous gardens are locked for the low season. It’s very annoying
when you’ve paid the same as a high season tourist who gets to see everything
in all its operating glory. Despite being mega famous and a huge tourist
drawcard it seems not a lot (until recently, a 400 mil Euro, 8 year restoration
has commenced this year) has been done to keep it in its full glory. Versailles
is not in great shape, it seems all those tourists have taken their toll with
lots of peeling paint, cracked wood and dilapidated areas behind the scenes. A
shame but if we come back in summer 2020 it should be all done up and sparkly
again!
Given all that though the place is still incredible and
impressive in its sheer scale. We walked miles and miles around the main palace
its grounds and extending mini palaces (for when you just need to get away from
it all). There is a car train ride or golf carts you can hire but both are extortion
on the weak, lazy or those with small children. Versailles was enjoyable but I wouldn’t
say it was a highlight, maybe in summer when the gardens are all open and
blooming, the statues uncovered and the fountains are running…
That evening we dined at a French restaurant for dinner, and
had the first steak we have eaten since our departure. There was silence at the
dinner table while eating this beautiful meat covered in Béarnaise. Delicious!
Day 5
We took the metro to the side of Paris that is a little less
glamorous. Walking a mountain of stairs we came to the Sacre Couer, “modern”
church with many different architectural styles due to four different
architects. The interior is decorated with many rich mosaics highlighted by a
massive mosaic of Christ across the ceiling. No photos were allowed inside.
Around the church is an artists quarter called Montmartre.
This is where extremely talented artists gather and will draw your portrait at
a cost. This would have been a wonderful experience if we were able to take the
picture on our journey.
After searching and searching we finally found the largest
flea market in Europe. You couldn’t believe something so huge is so hard to
find. But the searching paid off, and the title is correct, it’s the size of a
suburb. We only explored some highlights but we saw some INCREDIBLE things,
vintage clothes, jewellery and watches. Gorgeous vintage Chanel, YSL, Dior like
you have never seen before. Beautiful furniture from many eras of design. We
also loved the community atmosphere, we were there at lunch and many traders
were having sit down full meals, with wine of course, in their shops with their
family or friends. It was really nice to see.
Walking around the outside of the flea market you can see
how many people do not find it, it is ringed by the usual street knock off
shops, fake bags, watches, stolen (presumably) new phones and miscellaneous
cheap junk. You have to press through the find the good areas that are a marvel
to explore, we felt like we found a place that only Parisians would know about
as there weren’t tourists around, no photos being taken. A truly remarkable
place.
We caught the metro across town to try and get into the
Catacombs, we stopped for lunch in a bistro before walking up the road to them.
We knew the queues were going to be bad but were still shocked. An hour and a
half wait was what was told to us as the ETA, however given it was 2.30pm and
it closed at four they couldn’t guarantee we would get in anyway! Deciding
against potentially wasting that much time we went to the Luxembourg Gardens
instead.
The Luxembourg Gardens are a beautiful public space with
planned trees, open spaces filled with fountains, statues and ponds and
conveniently chairs we could relax in and take in the view and the limited
sunshine. Again, there was a wonderful atmosphere and this was a very lively
park, used by locals and not too many of us tourists.
Moving on to the next place on our hit list is Galleries
Lafayette. The premium shopping experience of Paris, this place dripped of the
big labels and people were out to spend big. The place is 7 levels of top
designer brands inside an absolutely stunning classical building complete with
massive glass dome. Christmas time upon us they had a Christmas display up with
the obligatory huge tree in the centre. The centre was jam packed with people,
given Christmas is coming, it was the weekend and it’s a tourist spot itself we
weren’t surprised. With so much beautiful stuff we decided best not to buy
anything or all bets might be off and we’re going home early.
Day 6
Our day started at the Bastille Sunday markets. These
markets are for the locals and are full of delicious fresh local produce
ranging from amazing seafood, gourmet cheeses, pastries, fois gras, olives,
fruit and veges etc. There isn’t much you couldn’t find here.
From our tour on the first day we had made the decision not
to do the Louvre for a few reasons. 1. We don’t really like the Mona Lisa and
everyone has seen it, knows it, so what’s the big deal anyway? 2. We didn’t
really want to fight the crowd to see the painting we really don’t care about.
3. The Louvre is too big to do in one day, in fact even giving each piece of
art 9 seconds of your time would mean you need to be there for 6 months
straight. 4. There were no other pieces that we were highly familiar with that were
of interest. So we decided to do something that was a little more relevant to
us the Musee D’Orsay which houses art from the mid-18th century to
1914. This gorgeous Art Museum boasts the biggest collection of Impressionist
art, we saw plenty of art by Monet, Degas, Manet, Pissarro, Renoir, Sisley etc.
Many of these we had seen pictures of or had familiarity with so it was nice to
see them in real life. Visiting this museum was the first time we had needed to
wait in a massive line – waiting nearly 40 minutes. But we can’t complain this
is a fraction of a time to what people would wait at other times of the year,
and it was well worth it.
We walked back to the Champs-Elysee to get some snaps of
some of the amazing architecture on that side of the town. Unfortunately with
the Christmas markets and the general time of the year both tourists and locals
flocked in their thousands upon thousands. It was a game of ducking and
weaving. We perused the Christmas markets some more and enjoyed more delicious
hot wine.
When night fell we had a great time taking some photos of
this area of the city all light up – this is the best city just to stroll
around at night taking it all in.
Final thoughts
Paris is gorgeous and is everything people say it is. It
lives up to its reputation of being the city of love and lights, and you could
easily fill your days and nights just wandering this city. There is no pretty
part of the city, it all is stunning. Paris is packed with things see and do, it
is easy to get around by metro (once you figure the system out), fabulous but
expensive food, of course fashion, and just awesome everything really.
- Based on the number of tourists there are around Paris in the low season we shudder to think what this place is like in Summer. To be honest we are not sure whether it would be worth it.
- Driving here is insane, utterly insane. Do not under any circumstances hire a car and attempt to drive in Paris. You will lose your sanity, excess money and years of your life in stress. In fact don’t try to figure out how Paris works in a few days, it’s circular and makes no sense.
- The parking is quite literally bumper to bumper so too bad if you want to get out. We saw cars literally tap others to get in.
- Paris has a rep of being smelly and dirty, we didn’t really find this, although there were some occasions.
- Do Versailles in the summer or when all the fountains are going and the gardens are in full bloom.
- Attractions are reasonably priced and some big ones are free. Don’t come expecting the food or general expenses to be equally as reasonable.
- Public transport is really cheap, at about $2.20AUD a ride compared to about $5AUD in London. They don’t charge you for peak or off peak it is just all cheap – love your work Paris.
- If you don’t have a lot of time do the Musee D’Orsay instead of the Louvre. If you do have time do them both.
- Napoleon may have been a narcissist and a megalomaniac but he was a visionary and the city he had a hand in creating has stood the test of time. The way everything lines up with the massive avenues is incredible, the view from the Eiffel is the best to see it all come together.
Au revoir Paris, merci for the memories.
Simon & Amy xoxo
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