Bonjour!
Audrey Hepburn said, “Paris is always a good idea.” Not only do I adore her, but she could not have been more right. This weekend (even with the weather being rainy and gloomy) I fell in love with Paris and cannot wait to go back. It is a city that I have dreamed of visiting and could possibly live in one day!
Friday afternoon, Gabby and I took a train from Luxembourg to Paris. The countryside was so beautiful. At one point, I saw what looked like a “field” or wind turbines. There would be groups of them, at least 10 at a time. For a girl that is studying sustainability, it makes me really happy to see all of the clean energy that Europe uses! Our train came into the Paris Est station. We took the metro to a stop by our hotel, Hotel Eiffel Rive Gauche (from the name I’m sure you can tell that it was by the Eiffel Tower). We put down our stuff and unpacked a little. Then we were off again, you can’t waste a minute in Paris!
We walked from our hotel to the Louvre. It was about 45 minutes, but we didn’t want to take the metro and miss all of the gorgeousness that Paris has to offer! Our walk was incredible as well! We walked past multiple embassies, the French Ministry for Education, the one for defense, and the Musee de L’Armee. We also ran into the Musee d’Orsay as the bridge we took to get to the Louvre was right beside it.
The Louvre is massive! *Fun fact: If you looked at each piece in the Louvre Museum for 3 minutes each, you’d end up being there for about 33 days. Literally, ginormous. Of course, we took selfies with the Mona Lisa and explored the Royal Apartments and the French paintings. After we walked around for about 2 hours, we were starving! We went in the direction of the opera and got dinner. I had roasted chicken, delicious!
We walked by Place de la Concorde, which used to be the execution square (where Marie Antoinette was beheaded!) and then down by the Seine River. It was our first time seeing the Eiffel Tower all lit up and was it gorgeous! We were heading to Pont Neuf for our boat tour (Vedettes du Pont-Neuf). It was an hour long and did a really good job in telling us all about Paris and all of the bridges and buildings along the bank. At the very beginning of the boat tour, we saw the Eiffel Tower sparkle and at the end. So of course, we wanted to see it up close! For our final touristy thing of the night, we got crepes and went and saw the Eiffel Tower sparkle. It was just like what you imagine but better. It was perfect!
Friday afternoon, Gabby and I took a train from Luxembourg to Paris. The countryside was so beautiful. At one point, I saw what looked like a “field” or wind turbines. There would be groups of them, at least 10 at a time. For a girl that is studying sustainability, it makes me really happy to see all of the clean energy that Europe uses! Our train came into the Paris Est station. We took the metro to a stop by our hotel, Hotel Eiffel Rive Gauche (from the name I’m sure you can tell that it was by the Eiffel Tower). We put down our stuff and unpacked a little. Then we were off again, you can’t waste a minute in Paris!
We walked from our hotel to the Louvre. It was about 45 minutes, but we didn’t want to take the metro and miss all of the gorgeousness that Paris has to offer! Our walk was incredible as well! We walked past multiple embassies, the French Ministry for Education, the one for defense, and the Musee de L’Armee. We also ran into the Musee d’Orsay as the bridge we took to get to the Louvre was right beside it.
The Louvre is massive! *Fun fact: If you looked at each piece in the Louvre Museum for 3 minutes each, you’d end up being there for about 33 days. Literally, ginormous. Of course, we took selfies with the Mona Lisa and explored the Royal Apartments and the French paintings. After we walked around for about 2 hours, we were starving! We went in the direction of the opera and got dinner. I had roasted chicken, delicious!
We walked by Place de la Concorde, which used to be the execution square (where Marie Antoinette was beheaded!) and then down by the Seine River. It was our first time seeing the Eiffel Tower all lit up and was it gorgeous! We were heading to Pont Neuf for our boat tour (Vedettes du Pont-Neuf). It was an hour long and did a really good job in telling us all about Paris and all of the bridges and buildings along the bank. At the very beginning of the boat tour, we saw the Eiffel Tower sparkle and at the end. So of course, we wanted to see it up close! For our final touristy thing of the night, we got crepes and went and saw the Eiffel Tower sparkle. It was just like what you imagine but better. It was perfect!
We started out Saturday morning by walking through Saint-Germain. We got breakfast along the way from a little bakery, so yummy! Our plan was to first go to Shakespeare and Company, but they wouldn't be open for another hour, so we went to Notre Dame first! The stained glass was very pretty (I have a new appreciation for stained glass after all of the churches that I have been too!). Once we had seen Notre Dame, we went to the famous bookstore, Shakespeare and Company. I could have stayed there all day, actually I could have just lived there for the rest of my life. It is the most perfect bookstore I've ever been to. Books are crammed into all the nooks and crannies and piled everywhere. The bookworm in me was jumping for joy!
Once I bought my (4) books, we caught a cab to Galleries Lafayette, a giant shopping center. After we bought a few souvenirs, we killed some time by going to lunch and then to an antique store before our skip-the-line tour. We climbed the Eiffel Tower, after waiting for about an hour. *Fun facts: The Eiffel Tower was built for the 1889 World's Fair. There was a competition to see what structures people could come up with for the entrance, someone brought the idea of a 300 m tall guillotine (luckily that didn't happen).. Gustave Eiffel built the Eiffel Tower with 80% of his money and convinced the French to let the tower stand for at least 20 years compared to the 6 months that was first projected. He made a profit off of it for 19 1/2 years. He also built an apartment into the Eiffel Tower, which I didn't know was a thing!
After seeing Paris from very, very high up, we went to the Arc de Triomphe. We went to the top of that as well (luckily neither Gabby or I have issues with heights!). It is now one of my favorite places in Paris. The view is just incredible! We walked down the famous Avenue des Champs Elysees. We went to dinner by the hotel, where I tried duck confit!
Once I bought my (4) books, we caught a cab to Galleries Lafayette, a giant shopping center. After we bought a few souvenirs, we killed some time by going to lunch and then to an antique store before our skip-the-line tour. We climbed the Eiffel Tower, after waiting for about an hour. *Fun facts: The Eiffel Tower was built for the 1889 World's Fair. There was a competition to see what structures people could come up with for the entrance, someone brought the idea of a 300 m tall guillotine (luckily that didn't happen).. Gustave Eiffel built the Eiffel Tower with 80% of his money and convinced the French to let the tower stand for at least 20 years compared to the 6 months that was first projected. He made a profit off of it for 19 1/2 years. He also built an apartment into the Eiffel Tower, which I didn't know was a thing!
After seeing Paris from very, very high up, we went to the Arc de Triomphe. We went to the top of that as well (luckily neither Gabby or I have issues with heights!). It is now one of my favorite places in Paris. The view is just incredible! We walked down the famous Avenue des Champs Elysees. We went to dinner by the hotel, where I tried duck confit!
Daylight Savings was from Saturday to Sunday for Europe, so we lost an hour of sleep. But it wasn't too bad though! Especially since we planned to go to Angelina for breakfast (I just acted like Sunday was my actual birthday!). It was the most decandent, delicious breakfast I've ever had. Hot chocolate is now ruined forever for me because nothing will ever be better than this! It was incredible! *Fun fact (They're just all over this blog post, aren't they?): This was one of the restaurants that Coco Chanel frequented!
After our giant, fabulous breakfast at Angelina, we took the metro to one of the stations for the RER C line to go to the Palace of Versailles. While I was at Shakespeare and Company, I bought "A Moveable Feast" by Ernest Hemingway. I brought it along with me to read (pretty appropriate I'd say!). The village of Versailles looked so cute! We made it to the Palace and you just knew that it would be one of the most luxurious places you'd ever see. We waited in line for quite a while. There were a ton of people and tour groups! But the rich, elegant rooms and furnishings made up for all of that. I loved the queen's bedroom! The pattern was exquisite and I loved the color scheme. We walked around the gardens a little but the winds were up to 35 mph that day so we didn't stay outside for long.
We came back to Paris and went to Laduree, where I got macaroons as a little Parisian birthday treat! (THEY WERE PERFECT!) Then I realized we were super close to the Luxembourg Gardens and that Olivia told me F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald lived in that area. So of course we had to go and see where they lived! Then we walked through the gardens, which were absolutely gorgeous and you could smell the flowers in the air. Spring had sprung in Paris! We passed the French Senate Building. We rested for a bit in the hotel room and then went to dinner, where I had lamb chops and french beans. We went to see the Eiffel Tower all lit up one last time before we had to leave.
After our giant, fabulous breakfast at Angelina, we took the metro to one of the stations for the RER C line to go to the Palace of Versailles. While I was at Shakespeare and Company, I bought "A Moveable Feast" by Ernest Hemingway. I brought it along with me to read (pretty appropriate I'd say!). The village of Versailles looked so cute! We made it to the Palace and you just knew that it would be one of the most luxurious places you'd ever see. We waited in line for quite a while. There were a ton of people and tour groups! But the rich, elegant rooms and furnishings made up for all of that. I loved the queen's bedroom! The pattern was exquisite and I loved the color scheme. We walked around the gardens a little but the winds were up to 35 mph that day so we didn't stay outside for long.
We came back to Paris and went to Laduree, where I got macaroons as a little Parisian birthday treat! (THEY WERE PERFECT!) Then I realized we were super close to the Luxembourg Gardens and that Olivia told me F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald lived in that area. So of course we had to go and see where they lived! Then we walked through the gardens, which were absolutely gorgeous and you could smell the flowers in the air. Spring had sprung in Paris! We passed the French Senate Building. We rested for a bit in the hotel room and then went to dinner, where I had lamb chops and french beans. We went to see the Eiffel Tower all lit up one last time before we had to leave.
Today, we woke up and the sun was shining! What a perfect birthday present from Paris for the weather to be nice! We went to a little cafe and had ham and cheese crepes for breakfast. Then we went to see the Eiffel Tower one last time before we had to check out and catch the train back to Luxembourg. It was a perfect weekend in Paris and I couldn't have asked for a better birthday! I already can't wait to go back!