I spent this past Friday night, Saturday, and Sunday in "The City of Light," and I had the most amazing time. Paris now ranks as one of my favorite cities. In the limited amount of time I spent there, I saw and did SO much. I'm really quite impressed with my tourist abilities. Therefore, I will be breaking up the trip into a few posts in order to avoid reading overload.
Although Lindsay and I planned our Parisian trip weeks ago, we had a little last minute add-on. Lindsay's close friend from college, Nicole, made a surprise visit to London for her spring break.When she found out we were actually spending a few days in France, we made her do the only acceptable thing: buy tickets to join us! Nicole's really fun and sweet (she actually paid me to make a painting for her apartment last semester!), so I was excited to have this additional travel buddy.
Team Paris! AKA Lindsay, Nicole, and me
We avoided the airport and rigorous security check-ins by taking the Eurostar. I love the train; you get through security in a matter of minutes, you can arrive at the station right before your departure time, and the Paris train station is conveniently located in the city's center. Thanks again, Mr. Chunnel!
Booking a hostel in Paris was not a fun process. I took the lead on planning this part of our trip. I spent days researching accommodations online and asked people for recommendations, but the nice places I found were far and expensive, or the close places I found were dirty and just as expensive. After much frustration, we booked a double ensuite in Hostel FIAP Jean Monnet. My research paid off; the hostel was great! It was huge and felt like a hotel.
Hostel lobby
Hostel room
We took the metro to Boulevard St. Germain to grab dinner. The Paris metro is extremely convenient and efficient, branching out into most areas of the city. However, it's not the cleanest transportation system. If you're looking for an odd-smelling atmosphere or some new homeless friends, the metro's the place for you.
It was drizzling and chilly outside, but the French streets looked beautiful regardless. Stomachs growling, we stopped in one of the first good-looking cafes. I don't know any French, but we managed to communicate with the waiters just fine. I ordered a salad and was pleased with my hefty portion. London, this is what a salad is supposed to look like!
It just so happened that there was a creperie stand located right next door to the cafe. Hellooo dessert! I think crepes are absolutely scrumptious, but I made sure not to buy any in Europe until I could taste one made in its homeland (Waffles straight from Belgium, crepes straight from France...am I being spoiled or what??). I ordered one smeared with nutella. Out-of-this-world delicious. I think the world could use more street crepe stands.
It was pretty late after we finished eating, so the three of us headed back to our hostel in order to rest up for our first full day in Paris. I read basically an entire travel book about the city on the train ride in, so I knew we had a lot to cover in a short amount of time...
Saturday was overcast but fortunately not rainy. We munched down a typical French breakfast provided by our hostel--croissants and coffee/hot chocolate--before heading out at 9 AM (8 AM back in London, oy.) First stop, the most visited art museum in the world: the Musée du Louvre!
The Louvre
Am I the only one who didn't realize that the iconic glass pyramid actually serves as the entrance to the museum? How cool!
The glass pyramid entrance to the Louvre
View from inside the glass pyramid
Although the Louvre houses almost 35,000(!) works of art, many people come for the big three: the Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, and the Venus de Milo. It's fairly easy to find the Mona Lisa; just look for the big crowd:
Visitors flocking to the Mona Lisa
The painting is protected by a panel of bulletproof glass, a necessary precaution after the work was stolen in 1911 and more recently attacked by a small rock and a teacup.
I've been told that Da Vinci's famed portrait is rather disappointing in person, but I was bouncing with excitement upon seeing it. I snuck right to the front and joined the crowds of people snapping illegal-yet-not-discouraged-by-the-nearby-guards photographs of the painting.
Say cheese Mona!
We then saw the Winged Victory and the Venus de Milo, some of the most perfect sculptural depictions of the human form. It truly blows my mind how sculptors are able to take a chunk of rock and create a flawless piece of art from it. One slip up and the whole thing goes out with the morning trash. If I had to make a movie about these two works, I would call it, Dude, Where's My Arms?
Winged Victory
Venus de Milo
We didn't want the rest of the collection to feel neglected, so we wandered around a few more galleries and spotted some other famous pieces of art.
The Coronation of Emperor Napoleon by David; The Code of Hammurabi
The vast museum itself is a work of art. The interior is elaborately decorated wth vaulted hallways and ceiling murals. To (mis)quote Anchorman, "I love Louvre!"
Inside the Louvre
I give the Louvre a thumbs up!
After our museum visit, we walked through the nearby Jardin des Tuileries, the largest park in Paris. It was designed in 17th century in place of a burned down royal palace. It's a bit early to see the trees and flowers in full bloom, but it was still a lovely scene.
Arc du Carrousel
Tuileries Garden
Can you spot the Eiffel Tower?
We made a right out of the gardens onto Rue Royale for a special French confection. Macarons are a popular treat in Paris, and we stopped at none other than the store that claims a familial connection to the invention of this cream-filled sandwich cookie: Ladurée.
Although you can now find branches of this store all over the world (they have one in Harrods), this is very first Ladurée store, founded in 1862. The shop boasted a mouthwatering array of French pastries.
The lips-adorned treat in the top right picture is called a "French Kiss"...cute!
Of course, I only had eyes for the macaroons. There was a dizzying number of flavors to choose from: caramel with salted butter, raspberry, lemon, chocolate, orange blossoms, vanilla, and more. I settled on pistachio and rose. I could have easily eaten each one in one bite, but I made sure to savor them. (Besides, these fancy shmancy babies ain't so cheap.) Tasty!
Please suh, can I 'ave some more?
Ladurée was followed by a jaunt across the Seine River to Ile de la Cité, an island connected to the rest of the city. It houses the Palais de Justice (Supreme Court) building, Sainte-Chapelle (a beautiful medieval chapel), and the Conciergie (the prison where Marie-Antoinette was held before her execution). Most importantly, it is the location of Notre-Dame, which is where I had plans to meet Marissa at noon!
Crossing the Seine River
Marissa and I have been friends since the very beginning of college. She has been spending her entire junior year studying abroad in Paris, so sadly I had not seen her since May of last year. We made plans to meet midday Saturday just to say hi and make plans for lunch on Sunday. I was so excited to see her. Hugs galore ensued!
Marissa and me!
Once we finished making Sunday plans and received some good tourist tips, Marissa said goodbye and Team Paris said hello to the magnificent Notre-Dame cathedral. The gargoyles were actually added to the structure following the publication of Victor Hugo's popular novel in 1831.
I made sure to get a good picture in front of it for my sister, the official Hunchback of Notre Dame expert. Rach, does it look like it does in the movie? Check out my video of the bells ringing...(Quasimoto? Is that you?)
The not-so-hunchbacked girl in front of Notre Dame
We wanted to climb up to the bell tower, but the line was long and slow. We settled for just viewing the inside. The Gothic interior was beautiful. Seeing stained glass windows and massive cathedrals never gets old.
Inside Notre Dame
We continued heading south, crossing over the Seine once again. Walking through the Latin Quarter, it didn't take us long to find our next desired sight: the Pantheon. It is the burial place of many cultural and political French elite, such as Voltaire, Victor Hugo, Rousseau, and Marie Curie. Being frugal college students, we just walked around instead of paying the fee to go inside. (Gotta save those Euros for macaroons after all...) On either side, there were two government buildings.
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