"A walk about Paris will provide lessons in history, beauty, and in the point of life." -Jefferson
Paris: Day OneJohn and I arrived in Paris a day ahead of our official tour start date. As we stepped out of the RER/metro station in Paris trying to get our bearings, we had our first "wow" (or, 'Mon Dieu!") moment of our trip--we were directly in front of Notre Dame. It literally took our breath away and made us eager to drop our luggage and head out to explore.
Our first day in Paris was a bit rainy and dark, but that didn't stop us from being in awe of the City of Light. We explored the Latin Quarter, walked all the way to and from the Eiffel Tower, feasted on onion soup, boeuf-bourguignon, and for dessert, crepes! Our first taste of Paris together was perfect. |
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Paris Day Two: Bastille Day!The first official tour day was also Bastille Day! The celebrations began with a military plane parade over the Seine that we took in from the streets as we prepared to use the free Rick Steves Audio Europe App on our phones to complete the 'Historic Paris Walk.' We loved learning the history of the places we were seeing and exploring; I had been to Paris before, but this time instead of simply seeing everything, I was truly learning about everything as well.
We started by visiting France's version of Notre Dame-- John and I are both alumni of the University of Notre Dame, so we wondered if we could ever love another Notre Dame the same. We agreed that while we adore our alma mater and think its architecture is beautiful, France's Notre Dame might edge it out in terms of beauty--maybe just by a little bit though! ;) Our next stop was the Louvre, which was free in honor of Bastille Day. Instead of waiting in the very long line, we used a tip from our Europe Through the Back Door book and were able to sneak in a side entrance, no waiting involved! After taking in the art, using Rick's Audio App again to direct us to the best pieces, we lunched in the Tuileries and continued our walk up the Champs Elysees, ending at the Arc de Triomphe. By then it was time to meet our group at Hotel Central Saint Germain. Cristina, our fabulous tour guide, set the tone for what would be a fun trip immediately. We established our "buddies" and Cristina treated us all to a drink. We made small talk with the 26 other strangers who were also on our trip--little did we know that they would become real buddies, no quotation marks needed! We ended our day with a Seine river cruise, and then took in the fireworks from a bridge overlooking the Eiffel Tower. The experience was surreal--the first of many 'incroyable' moments we would have. |
Paris Day 3: Versailles et ParisOne of the reasons we were interested in a 'My Way' tour was the flexibility to do whatever it was we wanted--and on our third day in Paris we took advantage of that and visited the Sun Prince at Versailles. Again, we used our Audio Europe App which explained the history of the palace in incredible detail. I loved seeing the exact location where Louis and Marie Antoinette were captured before they were "made a foot shorter at the top," and enjoyed taking in the gilded grandeur of the entire palace--especially the Hall of Mirrors! We also took the time to explore the gardens on bikes we rented--we rode to the Grand Trianon, Petit Trianon, Colonnade, and around the Grand Canal.
We spent our last evening in the City of Light wandering around the Seine, seeing the Sorbonne, and resting our tired but happy feet in Luxembourg Gardens. We enjoyed a fabulous meal at a tiny placed called Polidor, thanks to the recommendation in our Rick Steves book. As we enjoyed our wine we literally were rubbing shoulders with real Parisians; we truly felt like we were seeing Paris through the back door. |
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Favorite Paris Moment?
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Au revior, Paris!
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