The City of Light
Paris was truly fantastic. We have been there before, and I remember that I loved it, but I still was unprepared for the awesome-ness of the experience.
The first thing we saw when we arrived was the Eiffel Tower. A pink one. And a green one, a gold one, silver, glow-in-the-dark, stuffed, painted to look like cows and giraffes, etched on keyrings and earrings, on postcards, books, hats, bags, aprons, fridge magnets and undies. The only gift shop which didn't sell miniature Eiffel Towers was inside Sacre Coeur. However, when we finally got around to wandering in that direction we were once again blown away by the sheer size and beauty of this famous web of metal. We didn't climb it this time but probably will make the effort next time we return.We spent a lot of our time just wandering around and exploring the different areas of Paris. We spent some time in the Quartier Latin, south of the river where the Palais de Luxembourg and its surrounding park are situated. This area has lots of little streets with restaurants and interesting shops. North of the river in Les Halles - Tuillieres we found all the exclusive shops. Gucci, Armani, Cartier, etc. We kept a sharp lookout for celebrities but didn't see any.
Our two favourite places - areas I know I will return to again and again, were Le Marais, and Montmartre. Le Marais is just north east of the Ile de la Cite, not far from the centre of town. There we found the Chocolaterie (and went a bit nuts!) and lots of other quaint little shops. We spent some time resting our feet in a great little bar tucked away in one of the Marais back streets.
Montmartre is home to the Cathedral Sacre Coeur and was right near our hotel. It is incredibly steep and windy with tiny streets opening into fantastic little squares and courtyards. It is a very arty area and we spent some time on Sunday wandering around watching the artists at work in the main square. The quality varied but some (to our uneducated eyes) seemed excellent and there were several pieces we would like to have bought.
Saturday was Remembrance Day and celebrated in Paris with great pomp and ceremony. We happened to be near the Arc de Triomphe in the morning and there were long official ceremonies followed by a parade of soldiers down the Champs Elysees, preceded by the president and his motorcycle escort.We found the 'normal' shopping on Champs Elysees, all the same shops as in London and I bought myself a new coat - it was a brisk 10 degrees on Friday and it's getting worse than that in London! None of my Australian winter clothes come close to being enough. I much prefer the boutique style parisian shops but it can take a while to find what you're looking for.
On Sunday afternoon we made our only museum visit for the trip - Musee d'Orsay. It's a much more manageable exhibition than the Louvre and has an impressive collection of French artists. We will return for more museums in the future but we find you really need to dedicate a lot of time and it's hard to do it justice in a weekend.There were a lot of things on the list that didn't get done, including trekking up the four-hundred-and-something steps of Notre Dame Cathedral but we'll be back soon we hope and can finish up all our plans.
posted by dianemulholland @ 1:30 AM
4 Comments:
Paris Looks like a bit of an EYEFUL
glad to see you are both getting some r&r. The world seems so small
looking at the places you are going. I would like to go to all of them some day / soon would be good, while I am still strong enough to walk and climb and travel and eat chocolate, have a pint or two.
Ralph stands at my shoulder and reads all your words as do I, you have a wonderful turn of phrase, my school teacher friend here says she would love to meet you. She's a patchworker too. Perhaps you could go on our family blog and put a link so you become part of it. We have got Deb on board and as Wendy has finished her studies and has more time she will contribute soon. Kate flies off to London and on to Belfast on Monday. and I think Stan and Sandra are about to come home. Cheers for now .Auntie Liz
I'm so jealous!! I saw Paris in the rain for just a day and I'd love to go back. Montmarte was one of my favourites too. So quaint. Wish I could be one of the local painters there ...
Like all the above comments, I'm so jeleous. It's great to see that your both getting out and about and seeing some of the sights. It's making my decision to come over and join you next year, easier, and easier. I can't wait :-). Safe travels..
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