Our arrival at Gare du Nord was our first introduction to Paris - and the beginning of my realisation that nothing in Paris is easy. The ticket machines weren't working, so we eventually figured out how to buy Metro tickets to get to our hostel.
In my opinion, Paris is a city of juxtapositions - the beauty of the buildings, art, architecture and history is breathtaking, and there are some gorgeous pockets of Paris like Notre Dame and Montemarte that make you feel like you are in the 'real' Paris. On the downside, I experienced what one of our tour guides called the 'French arrogance' - several waiters and attendents snobbed my attempts to speak to them in either English or French, simply because I was a tourist. Also, the people on the streets continually asking you for money gets a bit tiring after a while.
Just some of the illegal street vendors that try to sell you goods. Every so often the police arrive with sirens blaring and they all scoop up their stuff and run away!
Despite this, we did see some great sights during our four days of exploring. This included wandering through the Louvre, crusing down the river around the city in a boat, gazing at the Eiffel tower at night from one of the highest points in Paris, shopping along Champ Elysses and driving around the Arc de Triomph. There were two main highlights - a walking tour around Notre Dame by a local Parisian, where we learned all about the church's history and all the carvings and statues around the church. We also enjoyed exploring the Notre Dame district and having a 15 euro three course meal, as well as the famous Berthillon glace (icecream). I swear, eating Berthillon will change your life. We also met a really cool french guy (one of our hostel roommates), who showed us all around Montemarte and the Sacre Cour and the Moulin Rouge. Dan has plenty of photos of these experiences, so look out on my facebook when they are uploaded!
Every hour at night, on the hour, the Eiffel Tower glitters for around 10 minutes. This was at 11pm.
Jumping for joy at the Louvre!
Berthillon glace... mmm......
After almost five days of very hot temperatures and crossing many things off our Paris 'To Do' list, we were ready to move onto Busabout and Bruge in Belgium, which is where I write to you from now. My next blog will showcase beer, chocolate praline and other delights of Bruge! Until then, stay safe and have fun.
Dan started to get a bit arty with his camera - this black and white photos are from what he calls 'the Paris Postcard collection'
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