What. A. Trip. I keep writing sentences and deleting them because my words aren't coming anywhere near to capturing just how lovely it was to spend four days exploring the beauty of Paris with my two dear friends. Each time I visit, I fall more in love with the city that I once detested for its haughty waiters, sketchy metro and long lines; having visited a few more times, my previous perceptions couldn't have further from the truth. While I am certainly no expert, this past trip was a perfect "First-Visit-to-Paris" adventure that I feel compelled to share our itinerary with the hopes that others will be able to use it as well!
On a Monday, we took the 6 AM train to the city and navigated the crowded metro to our apartment near Notre Dame. I've taken to seeking AirBNB properties in the St. German/Latin Quarter Arrondissements (had to look up the spelling of that one!) because I love the proximity to the sites and the little shops peppered throughout the streets. We stayed here, and seriously it was one of the nicest places I've stayed at with AirBNB; plus the owner was incredibly nice and helpful. Stay here if you go!
weee! I slept up here!
After checking in we immediately set out to explore. If you're doing Paris for the first time, don't attempt to cram it in to a couple of days because you'll end up hating it like Mike & I did in the beginning. (The girls and I were sad to leave even after four days of being there!)
We started our stay with Notre Dame and walking along the Seine. Can I say how much I loved visiting in March when there were no lines and it wasn't miserably hot? So worth the risk of spring showers; I think it helped that we visited during the week as well.
Hey! It's Notre Dame!
shot #1 that I was berating myself for not lugging the big camera on this trip...
The Latin Quarter came next... quite touristy but fun to walk through nonetheless. Whatever you do, don't get sucked in to the restaurants there. No bueno.
Our stroll continued along the Seine stopping quite frequently at the used book stalls that line the street, eventually ending up at the Louvre. I insisted the girls take the obligatory "Look at me I'm touching the top of the pyramid!" shots:
No shame in dumb tourist photos!
It was also on this day that we went down into the Louvre to buy the "Paris Museum Pass" to use later. More on that in the next post, but according to our sweet friend Kate, you can find a secret entrance to the Louvre by the mini Arc du Triumph (called the Carousel) instead of "waiting in line with the schleps at the pyramid." Thanks, Kate!
Because the metro happened to be free that day, we opted to take it to the Eiffel Tower. Surely you can walk, but I've found that you're less exhausted at the end of the day if you figure out the metro or awesome bike system that Paris offers.
Behold...the Eiffel tower in all it's glory!
And crepes. Not the best if you get them from right next to the tower, but sufficient.
Now, for my biggest travel tip of the day-- wherever you go, consider taking a bike tour on your first day to get an overview of the city! Look on TripAdvisor for a highly rated company and just do it, regardless if you haven't been on a bike in a while. We had a FANTASTIC time on the Fat Tire night tour (I've done it in Paris twice now) which takes you to the major sights at night and gives you a little history about each one. At the end of the tour, you take a boat tour on the Seine and watch the Eiffel Tower all lit up sparkly while drinking wine. Yep, real life.
i love to ride my bicycleeee i love to ride my biiiike
Riding our bikes in circles around the courtyard of the empty Louvre was easily one of the highlights of the trip!
Did I mention you stop for delicious ice cream half way through? Forget that your hands are already freezing and dig in!
We were quite tuckered out by the end of the day, what with our early train and walking 11 miles that day. But oh, what a good start to an amazing trip! More to follow in the preceding days... I'm late for our weekly Thursday night brewery visit :)
Day 1 Itinerary
-10 AM arrival, check in, freshen up
-Grab a baguette sandwich on the walk over
-Notre Dame (1 hr)
-Latin Quarter (stop for macaroons)
-walk to Louvre, through Tuilleries on way to Metro
-Metro to Eiffel Tower (eat a crepe)
-6PM Fat Tire Bike Tour (ice cream & wine on trip)
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