A short week of work this week as my flat mate Kate and I headed off to Paris on Thursday for a short-break. With the recent terror attacks in Paris we were undoubtedly a little nervous on how somber the city may be but we tried not to let this dampen our excitement. It is Christmas time in Paris after all, what could be bad about that?!
For both myself and Kate this was our first time on the Eurostar and I have to say I'm now a huge advocate for it. Much easier than trekking out to a faraway airport, hours before departure time only to be crammed into a tiny seemingly plastic aeroplane where it's impossible to get comfortable. The Eurostar was quick, comfortable and hassle free. We were in Paris by 11am Thursday morning and ready for all the city had in stall for us.
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| All aboard! |
After checking into our cosy and decorated hotel we thought what better way to start our holiday than a spot of shopping? Opting for a long walk rather than the metro, our walk was interrupted only to have some lunch and take snaps along the way. Here's a few...
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| Christmas Displays |
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| Tourists creating a new love lock bridge |
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| Selfies on the River Seine |
After our feet could hold out no more we chose to indulge in a champagne at the stunning Le Maurice Hotel, which we had admired earlier that day. We were even treated to some live music. We could've quite easily have settled in for a bite to eat and a bottle of french wine in the beautiful hotel, although sadly we had to admit that this was out of our budgets this visit.
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| The Christmas lights made it all the more beautiful |
The metro got us home quickly where we found a delicious restaurant to eat at for dinner, both ordering the lamb shank we were not disappointed and even happier about the 2 minute walk to our beds with a very full belly.
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| Loved the tiles in Concord Metro Station |
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| My mouth waters just looking at this! |
Friday morning we walked to the eiffel tower, in the hope of grabbing some breakfast with a view of the tower. Surprisingly difficult to find a cafe with a view of the tower! The tower did look beautiful amongst the bare trees as the sun shone through. Coming from grey London we weren't at all phased by the cold when the sun shone bright.
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| Snails gallore |
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| Oh and the cheeeeeeese! |
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| There she is! |
With the weather being so nice to us, we took a walk along the River Seine until we reached the Champs-Elysées, it was here we stumbled upon the Christmas markets. We explored the stalls a little, deciding this was something to return to at night for some street food and ambience.
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| Christmas Village |
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| Me and the big man Santa |
Now in desperate need of a toilet, what better place to stop than Laduree? Of course they probably wouldn't let us use the restrooms unless we bought something, so we had no choice really....
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| How cute are the little handle protectors?!! |
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| Caught in the act! |
By the time we finished our sweet treat the sun was setting and provided a stunning back drop to the Arc De Triomphe.
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| Selfies amongst the hustle and bustle of the Champs-Elysées |
We hoped to climb to the top before the sun had set however we weren't quite quick enough. We were also a little disappointed to learn that the Eiffel Tower would not be doing their light display tonight, instead it was illuminated in green to support some charity or some such. Still beautiful none the less.
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| The climb to the top of the Arc De Triomphe, a little dizzy. |
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| All lit up! |
Saturday we were excited at the prospect of exploring Montmartre and the Sacre-Coeur both of which neither of of had visited. We'd been told this spot gave the best panoramic views of Paris. One things for sure if you take the metro here, do not opt for the stair option to exit the station unless you desire sore legs for the next few days. Between the copious stairs from the underground station, the climb to the Sacre-coeur and then the 300 stair to climb to the top of the dome its safe to say the legs were feeling the burn! I think I worked off the croissant I had for breakfast!
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| Street art of Montmare |
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| Sacre-Coeur |
This made up for it though...
The rest of the day was spent traipsing around Montmartre, at 5pm we had a local Parisian show us his favourite spots in the area, we shared a few drinks at his local and then we went to have a meal at
Chez Toinette. Restaurant recommendation courtesy of Miss Brooke Horbury that did not fail to disappoint. Another wonderful day in Paris.
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| Lunch! |
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| I ate that whole thing and it was so damn good. |
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| The pretty streets |
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| The local pub |
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| The anticipation for our meal |
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| There was not a scrap remaining |
Sunday we took a short train ride out of Paris to explore the Palace of Versaille, the Royal Chateau that housed many great Kings over the years. I was a little disappointed that most of the furniture had been auctioned off some time ago so the interiors consisted mainly of art work. However the gardens were stunning and I imagine even more so throughout the summer. We caught a number of locals going for a run amongst the hedges, an incredible place to have right on your doorstep.
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| Coming into the Palace |
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| Decadent gates |
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| The gardens just go on and on |
Tonight being our final night in Paris we returned to the Christmas markets to see all the pretty lights in the darkness. The street was buzzing. There were so many delicious looking street food options it made choosing extremely hard. I settle for a potato bake covered in french cheese, mushrooms and bacon. HEAVEN!!!
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| Such a cool way to cook salmon. |
Monday - our last day in Paris, we were both sorry to be leaving the beautiful city. I returned to a shop to pick up some boots I'd been lusting over and we then spent our remaining time exploring the little island behind the Notre Dame. And of course our last day in Paris wouldn't be complete without one last treat! The famous ice-cream from Berthillon. Delicious!
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| Notre Dame from the rear |
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| Berthillion ice-cream |
After collecting our bags from our hotel it was time to check out and catch our train home. Paris your still beautiful in my eyes! Thanks Kate for coming with me to Paris. Hope to visit again soon.
This week, Belgium! xx
