Hi,
Paris was a dream. Having taken French language, culture, and history courses from 6th grade to sophomore year of college meant that my expectations were HIGH but they were met! I loved having a strong command of the language (especially written) when it came to menus and signs. I found the city incredibly easy to navigate. We got an unlimited metro pass for the days we were there and it was well worth it...especially because if you mess up (it happens!) you didn't feel bad for having to take it again. I also discovered that I really hadn't prepared myself for just how good the food/pastries would be. Fun fact: in France at a boulangerie (bakery) you buy "un tradition". Tourists will buy baguettes but traditions are a more dense loaf. It's that perfect bread where the crust is perfectly crunchy and the inside is so soft!
Here was our itinerary- I will do separate posts on things w/pictures!!
Thursday:
6am: met Liz at St. Pancreas in London
10:30: Arrived in Paris Gare du Nord via the EuroStar. This was probably obvious by looking at a map but we were surprised how short the portion underwater is!
11:00am: checked into our hostel St. Christopher's and locked away our luggage. Figured out Metro pass, etc.
1pm: got our first crêpe off the street; went on free walking tour (New Europe Tour). On this we passed Notre Dame, River Seine, and the Louvre. *We were freezing*
4pm: rested at Hostel; checked out hostel bar happy hour
6pm: browsed Galleries Lafeytte - a famous department store in Paris
8pm: dinner at Le Petit Marché ... it was so tasty
10pm: socialized at Hostel
12am: went to sleep...met our two female roommates from South Korea. They didn't speak much English. They were very nice and were definitely traveling to other places as well.
Friday:
11am: checked out of hostel; locked bags away again
12: met our friends (Maddie and Nadia) at the train station as they were arriving. We then had lunch. I got a Croque Madame which is a baked ham and cheese sandwich with an egg on top along with a Viennese Hot Chocolate. After we continued on the food path by stopping at our first Patisserie of man and I got a lemon meringue tart.
2pm: dropped our stuff at our Airbnb; took metro into central Paris (this one was particularly notable because it went above ground and you passed through central Paris at this level-so cool!)
3pm: Went inside Notre Dame- it's free!
4pm: Walked to the Louvre; took pictures outside by the pyramid. At 6pm we went inside. This is also free on Fridays for those under 26. We didn't stay too long but we really just wanted to see the Mona Lisa (ha ha!).
7pm: had dinner at La Fregate...also good
9pm: wandered towards the Eiffel Tower and went up...the view was so-so but a super cool experience (and only 8euro- I love being under 26!). It was also pouring rain so ideal weather conditions may have changed my mind.
Saturday:
9am: went to an amazing patisserie a few blocks from our airbnb. I had the most incredible almond croissant ever.
9:20am: took an incredibly easy train ride to Versailles (~30 minutes; $8USD round trip)
10am: did Versailles (22$USD). I think this was my favorite part of the trip. It was sooooo overwhelming in the best way. Every single thing was beautiful. I definitely think the secret was going in low season. No lines, no pushing, etc.
2pm: back to airbnb. We did a lunch of wine, tradition, and little pizzas from the bakery shop.
5pm: took pictures at Trocadero Park that views the Eiffel Tower (also the funniest thing about Paris is all the street vendors/sketchy people sell these light up Eiffel Towers and it was becoming so comical we were tempted but resisted).
7pm: got wine and Laudrée macaroons
8pm: Bateaux Parisiens Seine River cruise to see Paris lit up at night (15euro)
9pm: late night McDonalds for dinner (whoops; in my defense they're slightly nicer over here)
Sunday:
10am: left to go lock our bags up since we were leaving later in the day and our airbnb was opposite direction of train station
11am: Patisserie stop...another croissant!
12pm: Saint Chapelle...absolutely stunning stain glass (also free as it was the first Sunday of the month)
1:30pm: Musée de l'Orangerie. This is the museum with the full wall Monet paintings. I had been dying to go here (also free for first Sunday!)
2:30pm: Montmartre...quaint, highly recommended area of Paris wish we had allocated more time here...we got to see the famous "Je t'aime" wall that has "I love you" written in every language!
3pm: grabbed a "Lupper" before our train. I had a burger and split a charcuterie board with my friend. We were grossly stuffed.
4pm: climbed up to the Sacre Coeur area...an amazing view from the hill of Paris....quickly made our way back to train station
5pm: find out our 6:34pm train to London is cancelled. We were irritated as we had planned around this train time and weren't notified; however, we were rebooked no issue for an 8:07pm train and upgraded to business class.
6pm: killed time at a cafe across street
8pm: train to London
10:30pm: safe and sound in my home sweet home
Overall, an amazing weekend busy 4 days of 94,848 steps !!
Notes: https://www.frenchtoday.com/blog/french-culture/dont-buy-baguettes-in-france
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