Life as I know it.: A Whirlwind Weekend: Three days in Paris

This post was written on May 5. I can finally share the photos now that I have Internet.

It has been a crazy week and I am finally getting around to writing about Paris - it also didn't help that we have not had Internet all week. But we had a wonderfully long and exhausting weekend in Paris from April 28- May 1.

Jardin du Luxembourg

Overall, Paris was amazing. I feel like we experienced the city, saw many of the main sights, and only came away with a few blisters. The people were all nice; we said "Bonjour" when entering a shop and "merci" when appropriate. The waiters explained the menu to us and the hotel owners were very helpful. The food was delicious, the weather turned out great - Paris in the rain is still lovely. And we took time to just enjoy it. We didn't want to wait in lines or go to museums, so we didn't. We explored twisting lanes if they looked intriguing, shopped in a macaroon store at midnight, and just enjoyed being in Paris. Here is our story:

On Saturday morning we awoke bright and early at 5:00 am and left the apartment, for the last time, at 5:30am. We arrived in Mannheim, parked the car and waited about 20 minutes for the train to come. We boarded the train, and after three hours and a few stops to pick up new passengers, we arrived in Paris. We hopped off the train and began our two mile trek to our hotel. This was not the brightest of all ideas I have had- we were carrying our luggage trying to navigate in a very unfamiliar area and by the time we reached the hotel, our feet killed. We put our bags in our room after climbing six stories on a winding staircase, and set out to explore the area. We stayed in the Latin Quarter in the 5th Arrondisement, home to the famous Pantheon and Sorbonne (Oldest university in Paris).

At the Sorbonne

We spent most of Saturday walking the streets, trying foods, and enjoying Paris in the rain. We walked through some winding roads home to street markets and managed to try a delicious paninni with mozzarella, tomato and chorizo, along with nutella crepes. It was love at first bite. We walked from the Latin Quarter to the Bastille - I think it is the finish line for the Tour de France- and down Champs Elyses to the Arc de Triumph. The Champs de Elyses is an upscale shopping area also packed with tourists. We stopped in the giant Sephora store and tried some colognes and perfumes, looked at the theory cars in the Mercedes store, and finally arrived at the Arc de Triumph. It was beautiful. The traffic pattern of the circle surrounding the Arc is incredible - the circle breaks off to 12 different streets, and an accident seems more likely to happen then not. Watch this video to see what I'm talking about.

Eiffel in the mist

We then made our way to the Eiffel Tower. When people think of Paris, usually the Eiffel Tower is the first thing they think of. Although it's not the only part of Paris (obviously), it was amazing to actually see it in person. It popped out of the mist and was truly stunning. We walked through a market at the tower's feet and then managed to find a city bus to return us to the hotel. We rested for a bit, and then headed back out for dinner and a walk through the city at night. We went to the Rue de Huchette, a very cute area with winding alleys and every kind of restaurant you could imagine. Many of these restaurants had set menus, which seemed like a good deal. We found a 10 euro meal that sounded good, so we went into the packed restaurant and of course they were "out of" the 10 euro meal, so we had to order from the 15 euro menu. We weren't overly pleased and the food was mediocre, but that's alright. We then walked through the city and I decided that at nighttime, the city is alive as ever and is truly stunning. It was beautiful.

Palace du Luxembourg

On Sunday we woke up and headed to a street market about 1.5 kilometers away. It was on one of the oldest streets in Paris- an old Roman street apparently. We tasted some wine, looked at the array of seafood and live crabs, moldy cheeses, and fresh fruits. I stood in a long line - which must mean that this is the bakery to buy from- and bought a very large baguette. We took our market findings, a baguette and bottle of wine, and headed to Jardin du Luxembourg, a beautiful urban park in the middle of the Latin Quarter. It was so lively, especially when the sun came out and blue sky made an appearance. I think if I lived in Paris, this park would be one of my favorite places to just sit, relax, and watch people. There were people practicing tai chi, children floating sail boats, and families taking strolls. We had no problem enjoying it as well.

Back of the Notre Dame

After the park, we set out to find some Velib bikes as the Velib bike system in Paris is amazing! It is by far the best way to get around, and I think you get to see the city in a different light then walking, taking the bus or the metro. We paid 1.40 euro for a day pass and then used the bikes in 30 minute increments because the first 30 minutes of every ride was free. After visiting a church that was featured in the Da Vinci Code, we mounted some bikes and headed to the Notre Dame and Île Saint-Louis. The back of the Notre Dame was stunning - especially against the blue skies. We walked to the Île Saint-Louis and enjoyed some window shopping and ice cream before finding some more bikes and riding along the Seine to the Louvre and Jardin des Tuileries. We saw the large glass triangle and were not at all jealous of people standing in line to get inside the Louvre. Museums were not on our list this trip. We ended our bike tour with another visit to the Eiffel where we relaxed in the grass for three hours. We took about an hour to ride back to the Latin Quarter and found a Moroccan restaurant that had surprisingly great couscous.

Sacré-Cœur

On Monday, we took the metro - for the first time- to the Montmarte neighborhood to see the Sacré-Cœur. The Sacré-Cœur is a stunning basilica set on the highest hill in all of Paris. It is swamped with tourists, but for a good reason. After waiting in line for 45 minutes, our one and only line all trip, we climbed to the top of the basilica for the best view in Paris. It was incredible as you could see the Eiffel to the Defense and view how grand the city truly is. We headed back down the 300+ steps to the Place du Tetre and walked through the overly-crowded artist colony. The paintings were stunning, and I certainly wouldn't mind purchasing a painting next trip. In addition to painters, sketch artist were willing and ready to sketch any tourist. After trying some tarts, we headed towards the bottom of the hill and visited the Montmarte cemetery- a very old and creepily beautiful cemetery home to several famous Parisians. The Moulin Rouge was only a ten minute walk away, so we visited the famous can-can cabaret and then headed to the textile market in search of ties for the wedding, with no luck. By this point, we were overwhelmed with this part of Paris and wanted to head back to the Latin Quarter for some dinner. We found the perfect place for our last night at an outdoor cafe in front of the Sorbonne. We enjoyed a delicious french meal of beef, potatoes, pasta, breads and apple tort for desert. And after a walk to Notre Dame, we called it a night, and a trip.

My personal observations about Paris:

Location: I loved staying in the 5th Arrondisement. It was easy access to the metros, Velibs, buses and walking distance to many, many locations. We stayed at Hotel Marignan, an old budget hotel but clean and friendly. Here is the website for Hotel Marignan.
At night, we felt so safe walking around Paris. The city was just so friendly, lively and wonderful when the sun went down.
We had absolutely no problems with pickpockets or scam artists besides when Derek was approached by a "mute" girl wanting him to sign a petition. I had heard about this. As he was getting coerced into signing it I had to yell "NO" loudly and we kept walking. But that was all and certainly not a big deal.
The one thing I wish we would've done was just sit in a cafe and watch people. At the cafes, all the chairs faced the street. People watching is a sport.

Here are some additional photos: