We decided to do a quick Paris trip this year, spending just seven days to
explore the entire city. Armed with books on tape to learn the language,
and guide books of the city, we only had three weeks to prepare for the
trip.
Getting to Paris was easy. Our Continental flight from San Diego to
Houston, and then Houston to Paris was nice. We even got to rest at the
Continental Presidents club during the layover with our membership, munching
on cheese and crackers and wine.
Here’s our Paris trip chronologically, with links to various photo folders
for “easy” consumption. Trust us … there are about 1400 pictures in total.
Day One – Sunday:
Arrived in Paris (Charles De Gaul) in an older part of the terminal. The
airport was crazy, as all worldly travelers are dumped into the same arrival
zone from all airlines in that terminal. Exchanging money and getting a
taxi was easy, and we were whisked into central Paris.
We arrived at our Hotel – The Westin Paris, and had some time to walk around
before the room was ready. Since we had slept on the plane, so we were up
for a short walk … that actually turned into a very, very long walk that
lasted 5 hours. We were just too excited to see the city.
Photos –
Westin Paris
We walked out of the Westin across the street to the Jardin des Tuileries
and Concorde center, where the large garden area was perfect for photos of
central Paris. We arrived on the day of the presidential election between
former interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy and socialist Segolene Royal, and
part of the Concorde center was crowded with media.
Photos – Jardin des
Tuleries & Concorde
We continued walking along the Seine River towards the Eiffel tower, taking
pictures of the river and the cruise boats along it. We arrived at the
Eiffel tower and were very hungry. Dealing with our first “French lesson”
in food ordering, we butchered the language to get some crepes and a
baguette. This is where we learned some new favorite French words – Jambon
et Fromage sandwich… basically a ham and cheese baguette. Yummy! Eating
under the Eiffel tower, we looked at the long lines for the elevator and
said “forget it.” Choosing the stairs instead, we climbed 780 steps only to
get us to the 2nd level. The view was awesome.
Photos – River Seine walk
Photos – Eiffel Tower
We continued walking past the Eiffel Tower to see a spot they used in the
Amazing Race – the small statue of Liberty. Located on a very skinny park
island, the small statue of Liberty points the way to its sister statue in
New York. Needless to say, the French didn’t really keep this island clean,
or really cared about the surroundings of the small statue. The area was
somewhat run down. Little did we know this would foreshadow their general
attitude towards Americans and us.
Photos – Statue of Liberty
We were getting tired and decided to take a shortcut back through the city
to the Westin, and everything was closing early for the election. We
checked in, asked the concierge where to eat on election night since
everything was closed, and he recommended the restaurant in the hotel – Le
First. The food was good. Ryan had his first (of many) foie gras, then
pigeon prepared three ways. Eric just had escargots and fish.
We were advised to not take the metro the night of the election, and decided
to walk in the other direction away from the Concorde plaza towards the
Louvre. This is where we got some very good night shots of both the Louvre
pyramid, and Notre-Dame. (See other photo albums.) Walking back, we
noticed a string of riot police leaving from the Hall of Justice on the
island. Apparently there was a huge riot when they announced that Sarkozy
was the presidential winner. Apparently the French believed that “a vote
for Sarkozy is a vote for Bush” because of his policies. Most of the
working class in Paris voted socialist, and were hoping Royal would take the
election.
Day Two – Monday:
More walking on our second day, and we thought we would get a head start on
the day – at 9 AM. We struggled with purchasing a metro ticket, and got
more French “attitude” from the attendant. Apparently this is too early for
most Parisians as when we got to Montemartre most everything was closed. We
decided to visit the Sacre-Coeur on the hill. What a beautiful church and
the view of all of Paris. It rivaled the view from the Eiffel Tower. Since
we were early, we had a nice time in the church before the masses arrived by
the busload. The neighboring artist community was very nice, and we had a
quick breakfast (crepes et Nutella) at an Irish Pub.
Photos – Montemartre
We continued to walk down the hill, following the streets to the Moulin
Rouge. Here were some nice, cheaper shopping areas and we strolled along
the entire street. We also got to see the cemetery in the area. Ryan’s
feet were hurting really bad so we stopped in at a local pharmacy to
purchase bandages for his blisters. Again, explain this in French was like
playing a foreign language charades.
Photos – Moulin Rouge
Continuing our walking, we ventured down to the Opera district, had an
excellent lunch (more foie gras) and venture all the way down to the Palais
Royal. Here, the modern art sculptures in the garden courtyard were nice.
Photos - Opera District
Photos – Palais Royal
Back to the hotel, mainly because we were tired. And then dinner at Le
Flotte for even more foie gras, escargots, steak and lamb.
Photos – Le Flotte
Day Three – Tuesday
It turned out to be a national holiday and this meant that most museums were
closed. We decided to get up early and noticed it was raining. We headed
over to Notre-Dame and the Isle St Louis for some morning walking. When
Notre-Dame opened we quickly climbed the towers to get a breathtaking view
of all of Paris. So many circular steps to climb that got narrower the
higher we climbed (not good if you are claustrophobic). We got to see the
bell tower and bell that was featured in the hunchback movies. We now know
why he had a hunched back … we did too after climbing all those steps. Down
to the ground floor to see the inside of the beautiful church, and more
breathtaking pictures.
Photos – Notre-Dame
Photos - Ile St Louis
We continued back across the river to see the oldest hotel in Paris – the
Hotel De Ville and their gardens. Then a parade of royal guard on horseback
(for the national holiday parade) came along, must have been more than a 100
horsemen.
Photos – Hotel de Ville
We got on the metro and headed outside of town to La Defense and the modern
Grand Arche. This modern part of Paris houses some banks, a long park, and
a more industrial setting. We rode the cable elevator up the Grand Arch to
the top level museum and enjoyed the views of the Paris area. Again,
breathtaking from this vantage point.
Photos – La Defense
Back into Paris, we strolled down the Champs Elysees and the magnificent Arc
de Triomphe. Strolling along the crowded street, we people-watched mainly
and did some shopping. Nice stores, but the sales tax was a shocking
19.6%. Yikes! That meant no high-end brand name shopping for Ryan.
Photos – Arc de Triomphe
Later that night we visited Pompidou Centre and a gay area of Paris. Had
dinner at one of the restaurant which was so bad we don’t remember the
restaurant’s name. A simple meal turned out into a 3-hour ordeal. We were
also too tired to do any clubbing in the area afterward.
Photos – Pompidou Centre
Day Four – Wednesday
Nice weather with little chance of rain forecasted, so we headed to
Versailles. We took the metro and the RER train out to the palace. Walking
just a short 5 minutes, the palace stood before us, so large it was
stunning. We got there early to avoid the crowds, ate a quick breakfast,
and did the extensive palace tour. So much opulence, artwork, grand
staterooms and gold everywhere! Sure would be nice to have a house like
this. The tour of all the apartments took several hours, and then we
strolled through the lush gardens. An hour’s walk through the gardens, and
we ended up at the Grand Trillion and Petite Trillion palace houses where
the king and queen “got away” from the pressure at the palace. We have
never seen such a grand estate so well maintained and planned out. Spending
the entire day there, we were glad we got to experience Versailles at our
own pace.
Photos – Versailles
After a short train ride back to Paris, we wanted to eat somewhere with a
view of the Eiffel Tower. The concierge suggested Kong, a new “fusion”
restaurant with a glass roof top on Pont Neuf. We waited a while for the
table at the lower level bar, and when we got to the top level dinning room,
there wasn’t any view of the Eiffel Tower, but just the surrounding
buildings and a little view of the river. The concierge lied! The food was
more California fusion cuisine which is much better in San Diego. Luckily
the people-watching was interesting, as was the desert. Apparently Kong was
just a place to “be seen” not really for eating. We should have known by
the long-legged, French “Barbie” hostess and spiky-haired “Ken” bar tender.
Photos – Kong
Day Five – Thursday
It was another lovely day, and we decided to take advantage of the
sunshine. With bandages on our feet, we decided to make this day the most
advantageous walking day yet.
We started out at the Bastille, which is a more local part of Paris. We
strolled through a French open-air market where the locals were buying fish,
meat, cheese, vegetables, fruit, and basically everything you can think of.
Stopping in at a local crepe place, we talked with one local about Paris and
Americans. We are so impressed with French people. Everyone is passionate
about politics, the world stage, their national French identity, and
values. A simple order turned into a nice discussion about Parisian life.
Heading back to the metro, we caught a glimpse of a fashion shoot.
Photos – Bastille
We visited the Pantheon next, where important French nationals are buried.
This amazing domed building was also where they demonstrated scientific
achievements, including a swinging pendulum that moves 11 degrees every
hour. It’s still there today. Below was a crypt where writers, scientists,
government officials, and others are buried. In general the Pantheon was
Ryan’s favorite part of Paris because of its architectural beauty.
Photos – Pantheon
Just down the street was the Jardin du Luxembourg where everyone was
lunching and taking a nice stroll during the sunny afternoon. Ryan decided
to join in with the Parisians and took a 20 minute nap on one of the chairs
near the fountain.
Photos – Jardin du Luxembourg
Continuing our walk after Ryan woke up, we headed to St. Sulpice. Part of
the church was under restoration, but inside was beautiful. This is also
the church the rose line runs through, and referenced in the movie “The Da
Vinci Code”. You can see a photo of Ryan pointing to the rose line in the
church.
Photos – St Sulpice
Continuing walking to the St. Germain district, we did some local shopping
and had a quick lunch at Café Deux Maggots – a famous café across from St
Germain-des-Pres. Efficient service, great food, and even better coffee –
it’s a place you must eat at in Paris.
Photos – St. Germain
We took the metro to Isle de La Cite to see Saint-Chapelle. It too was
partly under restoration. Smaller than most other chapels we visited, this
was where royalty had their church service performed. The large round stain
glass window was immaculate.
Photos – Saint-Chapelle
Finishing off our walk, we went to the Muse d’Orsay. Impressed with the
museum itself, we took some very nice photos of the interior, paintings and
sculpture work inside.
Photos – Muse d’Orsay
We decided to head back to the Latin Quarter for dinner, and ate at Mythos.
This Greek restaurant was horrible. It was more catered to tourists who
didn’t know where else to eat in Paris. And in true French style, the meal
turned into a 3 hour ordeal.
Day Six – Friday
One word describes the entire day – Louvre. Only prepared to spend a little
time at the museum, we ended up spending more than 8 hours there. With
every turn, there was a new room with massive amounts of artwork, sculpture
or antiquities to see. We loved the sculpture part of the museum best, and
the Louvre’s collection is the best in the world. Walking to through the
wings, we got to the art wing housing the Mona Lisa. It’s surprisingly
small and un-inspiring compared to the rest of the collections. We had a
nice break during the day by eating at the café within the Louvre and that
got our energy up for more exploring. After more than 8 hours we can say we
saw (or at least glanced at) 90% of the areas that were open. Exhausted, we
crawled back to the hotel. Not wanting to go far to eat, and desperate for
good food, we asked the concierge for a better recommendation. He mentioned
“if you like southwest food” – and we were about to instantly say “ick,
Tex-Mex in Paris?” – but it turned out to be southwest French cuisine. The
restaurant, La Doulphine, was excellent! It totally made up for the other
bad food in Paris. Prompt service, friendly wait staff, and the most
excellent cassoulet Eric have had in ages!
Photos – Musee du Louvre
Day Seven – Saturday
The Rest of Paris –This was our day to get in “all the rest” and
places we wanted to visit again. We decided to sleep in a little and give
us a little break. We started off the day at the Hotel des Invalides which
is an army museum and contains the Church Dome. This dome holds the tomb of
Napoleon. A site as grand as the Pantheon, the architecture and display of
the tomb are stunning. The dome dominates the skyline of Paris as Napoleon
dominated Europe.
Photos – Hotel des Invalides
We spend a little more time shopping, and head back up to Montemarte to eat
and see the artists again. This time the area was more alive and vibrant,
and there were a great many artists displaying their artwork.
We ended the night at Maxims, from a recommendation from the guide book.
This old opera café is now part owned by Pierre Cardin and was our most
expensive meal in Paris. Coat and tie required, we knew we were in for a
treat. The dishes were mouth watering and rivaled that of our prior Charles
Nob Hill experience. We started off with scallops and foie gras (hot) which
just melted in our mouth. We both ordered lamb, but had it prepared
differently with a variety of sauces and creative side dishes. Desert was
awesome, which we had lemon custard-filled crepes and vanilla soufflé. The
piano, clarinet, and singing made the entire evening very romantic.
Photos – Maxim’s
We ended the night heading over to the Palais de Chaillot to get an evening
view of the Eiffel tower. With the light show, it was a perfect ending to a
wonderful week in Paris.
Day Eight – Sunday
Returning Home – We did a quick last stroll through the Tuileries gardens to
say goodbye to Paris. We got a cab to CDG where we found that our
Continental flight to Houston has been canceled. Everyone was in a panic
and waiting for the 3 poor ticket agents who were busy re-assigning people
to other flights. We just missed an opportunity to connect through NYC to
San Diego, and were re-routed to an Air France flight to LAX instead. The
seats, food, and overall flight was much better than Continental, but we had
to get a rental car to make it the rest of the way home. Getting in very
late, both of us were exhausted but glad to be home.
Photos – Travel (in general)
Observations on Paris:
-
We love the centrality of everything and how quick the
Metro takes you to places.
-
The train system is excellent.
-
Nobody chews gum! No gum on the metro or anywhere on
the street of Paris. They say, gum is an “American thing.”
-
The city is very clean.
-
All French people can instantly pick up on politics and
current events, and have a sense of national pride and identify.
-
The French smoke almost everywhere, but dining even in a
smoky restaurant was not that bad. We got used to it.
-
The language was a barrier. You must attempt to speak
French first, otherwise they will ignore you. Everyone CAN speak a
little English in France, however they choose not to.
-
Tipping is not encouraged, and since there is no
incentive for good service, most meals turn into a long ordeal where you
are left begging to get the dinner check.
-
It’s easier to find a bad restaurant in Paris than it is
to find a good one. And they are priced about the same.
-
French people love their open spaces and flock to the
jardins (gardens) at lunch time.
-
Everyone is mobile in France and walk everywhere. Even
the oldest of couples can bee seen strolling the streets and walking to
cafes. We saw a happy couple in their 80’s. Nobody seems to use a
stroller or automated moped.
-
The cars in Paris are very cute, very compact, and all
run on CDI. You don’t see any SUV or huge cars anywhere in the city.
-
Kids are very attentive. You don’t see them playing
hand-held video games at all.
-
The language is so beautifully spoken, if you can
comprehend and speak it.
In brief, we would love to live there if we learn to speak French fluently.
Au revoir!
