~ A Documentary

Paris… Paris was exactly how I expected it to be…

The 21st – 23rd September saw me finally visit one of my dream cities (I won’t spoiler the other cities) with my other half. She had been several times before, but it was my ‘debut’ so to speak.

On landing upon the Parisian plain of Charles De Gaulle Airport on the Friday morning; I already had my sights set on the forthcoming visit to one of my favourite landmarks ever – the Eiffel Tower (or Tour Eiffel if you prefer reading it that way).

Hotel residence was taken at the family-run Hotel Jean Bart, with our room hosting an incredible balcony view to the local streets featuring all its architecture et al. The first place to visit nearby was the visually beautiful Jardin Du Luxembourg (Luxembourg Gardens), home to the grand Palais du Luxembourg.

It was very peaceful here and a lovely place to camp for a while whilst awaiting to be allowed to check-in at Jean Bart.

En-route the Eiffel Tower, there was a pause at Bagelstein for a bite to eat (great bagels by the way).

In the process of waiting for food I recognised an old L’Equipe article which was framed on the wall, and which had captured one of my favourite footballing moments of all time… I hear the words “Trezeguet!!!!!” ringing in my head as the captured moment is of him scoring the winner against Italy at Euro 2000!

L’Equipe article inside Bagelstein, Paris

Many of the streets in central Paris were stunning in one way or another. I cannot remember the name of this street [see below] but it was certainly one of my favourites.

One of my favourite things about Paris was the general architecture which reminded me of my very short time (just a few hours) in Bath – a city I am very much in love with. As this blog insert continues, you will see several shots included of the street architecture.

The Eiffel Tower was a very satisfying experience, even if the wait to reach the very top wasn’t! Offering near full panoramic views of Paris on ascent to the top, it was an abundant joy. I probably wouldn’t opt to travel all the way to the top again if I was to revisit, but I certainly recommend travelling to at the least the first floor which is the best to be honest.

I want to give a quick culinary shout-out to Augustin, a classy restaurant located a ten-minute walk from the hotel, which served brilliant food and was decorated impeccably!

Deux:

I started the second day with the worst of migraines (sponsored by the previous night’s wine most likely) as my girlfriend and I went for what was breakfast, but which became brunch, not too far from the morning’s venue of choice the Musee Du Louvre. Stumbling across Claus Paris was one of the best things about the trip as the brunch was second-to-none (actually pushing Amsterdam’s Ted’s into second). Do explore the mini slide-show below. When I up my travel game, I am sure this statement will be revised several times…

I enjoyed visiting the Louvre Gallery, with the wait to getting in being not so bad versus the Eiffel Tower’s. In truth, I enjoyed the exterior and surroundings of the Louvre more than I did the artwork and sculptures inside – but nevertheless it was a class experience.

As you will know, many visit this place with the plan of seeing the Mona Lisa artwork, and it was something which we decided “we may as well do” seeing as we were there. It was quite hilarious watching people literally fight for positions in order to secure that perfect photo of themselves in front of the artwork. I personally didn’t see the hype of the artwork…

The Mona Lisa artwork, Musee Du louvre, Paris

Brilliant vantage point ;)… Musee Du Louvre, Paris

I managed to actually get right to the front and centre, although I prefer this photo which I took several further metres away – the perks of being six-foot-seven I guess…

Departing the Louvre, the next place on the list was the Arc De Triomphe, located near the Champs-Elysees. As you leave the Louvre Gallery, you can see it in the distance north-west. Unfortunately, by the time we did the walk to the Arc De Triomphe, it had decided to start raining, so time spent here was very limited. Fortunately, however, we were able to return here the following morning which I will document later on in the blog…

On the way to the final landmark of the day – The Notre Dame Cathedral, – we stumbled across a huge techno rave which seemed to appeal to people of all ages.

We ended up staying for about half-an-hour or so taking in the huge bass which I would usually hear somewhere such as Fabric (only been Fabric the once back in 2011, but I talk like I’ve been many times…)

The Notre Dame Cathedral was a serene experience which saw me capture these shots…

Before I continue, I want to point out this shot I took on the walk back to the hotel from the Notre Dame Cathedral which had a fantastic perspective view [see below]!

Our evening meal brought about the visit of Odessa restaurant which was about twenty minutes from our hotel; where I tried snails for the very first time. I quite liked them if I am being truthful as I wasn’t expecting to!

Trois:

The final day was more welcoming to the visit of the Arc De Triomphe as the weather was actually decent versus Saturday afternoon’s weather!

The journey was made by the Paris Metro, our main method of transportation across Paris – which I relished as it gave me the chance to compare it to our London Underground. Dare I say the London Underground edges it as it had far more escalators??...