After a few hours of a LOVELY train ride from London
We arrived at Gare Du Nord Train Station and promptly found a place to cash our money into Euros. I had bought a carnet (packet of tickets) on the Eurostar train for the metro - we just had to figure out where to hop on it which was so easy as it was in the same station...Yeah!! We were two sleepy people who had no idea where we would go first, so I said "let's just take the metro down near the Seine River and take a boat trip to see Paris."
So we found a metro map and picked a place and it was St. Michel metro station in the Latin Quarter. We walked around the area which I loved - filled with cafes, shops, bookstores - once again I was in heaven. I couldn't believe I was in Paris.
We just started strolling down the street following the river,
when I spotted the Notre Dame Cathedrale - we definitely
had some company there and the line was quite long to go
inside...
We opted to walk thru the Notre Dame garden area and head over to the river find a boat to hitch a ride on.
I recognized this boat company Batobus from one of the websites I had looked at so we found the ticket counter and purchased our tickets and hopped on the boat.
We passed the Ile Saint Louis - which is a quaint little area in itself,
I'd like to explore more.
We got off the boat at the Louvre and just started walking down
the plaza towards the Jardin des Tuileries.
From there I spotted a mini London Eye actually more like
a ferris wheel...This was such a beautiful area and it was sprinkling
a bit - but I never opened my umbrella at all as it was such a light sprinkle.
Pretty flowers everywhere...I love looking at landscaping and
this was one area that had the best!
Gorgeous statues everywhere. This was near a large fountain
that had green chairs all around the fountain to just sit and
relax in - and alot of people were definitely doing just that.
We walked up the plaza for at least a mile or two towards the Arc de Triomphe as we truly didn't know what direction to go. A. and I just love exploring cities in our own way, so it didn't matter where we started. It's all about the journey!
We were starting to get hungry and lo and behold I see Laduree on the Champs-Elysees, so we had to stop in to sample the macaroons...yum!!!
The Arc de Triomphe from our outdoor cafe table
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While we were walking up the Champs-Elysees looking at menu after menu, we settled upon an Italian restaurant..haha... |
I saw one of these desserts being delivered to a table while we were waiting for our lunch, and I knew what I would be eating VERY SOON...It was called a "concerto of desserts" It had tiramisu,
chocolat mousse, caramel panacotta and a raspberry like tiramisu...It was delicious!
Paris street scenes as we were heading over
to the Eiffel Tower.
Such gorgeous architecture EVERYWHERE!
I loved all the colors on this boat - such a cool place..
More beauty
There I am on a bridge near the Eiffel Tower - a few months before we came here, I would never have imagined I would have been doing just this!
A small garden area near the Eiffel Tower
A small picturesque pond right at the Eiffel Tower
As we were walking over to the Eiffel Tower, one (not me) of us decided we should walk up it. I was quietly chuckling to myself knowing full well we would not be walking up this. Well the lines were a few hours long and when it comes to waiting in line or just enjoying the scenery and people watching - the line lost out.
We sat in a quiet area in the park at the Eiffel Tower and just watched everyone
walking up it. It was so nice just hanging out in the park relaxing, A. took a bit of a cat nap and
I enjoyed all the people watching and the scenery. Alot of people were laying on the lawns napping.
After we left the Eiffel Tower, we just walked thru neighborhoods
enjoying "everyday life in paris"
We made our way back to the river to catch the boat, after a stop in at the Musee d'Orsay.
Here is the Notre Dame from our view from the boat.
We ended up where we started and had an hour or so before we needed to head back to Gare Du Nord to catch the train back to our home in London...(that sounds so nice, our home in London.)
If only...
I ordered a chantilly chocolat lace crepe with a baileys & coffee as I needed a little pick me up. When the waiter discovered that they forgot the whip cream, he swooped in to take it back to the kitchen, just as I was taking this photo..He came back and had added bananas to it too, since they made the mistake....It was soooooo good! We only had 8 hours in Paris and there was alot that I wanted to see but didn't get around to as we just wanted to go at our own pace and do some relaxing. All the more reason to plan another trip someday.
AND LAST BUT DEFINITELY NOT LEAST, today is my niece Christy's birthday and as you can see from the photo, she is going to have to wait a few more months for her real birthday gift. I am going to be a great-aunt and I CAN'T WAIT!!!!
HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISTY!!! You are going to be such a wonderful mommy. I know it as you took such good care of Stephanie when she was a baby and you still do 19 years later!
Thank you everyone for joining us on our day in Paris, I am still pinching myself at the WONDERFUL vacation we had. We are still talking about what a GREAT time we had!
CHEERS TO THE WEEKEND, EVERYONE!
xxoo
