J’adore Paris
This is it — the final city on my Eurotrip. As mentioned in my previous blog post, a flight to Paris was necessary since there were no cheap, direct planes from Vilnius to Marseille for the dates I required. The option that made the most sense was to fly straight to Paris and then purchase another plane ticket from Paris to Marseille. Though, it would be foolish to simply purchase the plane ticket for a flight that left shortly after landing when I have the power to determine the length of my layover. I certainly wanted to stay in Paris for more than a few hours and as such, booked the return flight to Marseille two days after I’d land in Paris.
I’ll say it now, two days in Paris is just not enough time. There’s so much to see and do in the city that to truly enjoy and experience everything there is to offer, I’d recommend at least one week. Museums alone, of which there are many prominent ones to choose from, are day trips in of themselves. Add the countless number of landmarks, restaurants and buildings and you’ll find that your entire map gets covered in pen-marked circles quickly.
Upon arriving in Paris, my small group from the Baltics and I made our way to the hostel, and I made sure we took a path that would hit up some landmarks on the way (killing two birds with one stone!). The first of these was the Arc de Triomphe; finally the famous one and not a replica like in Barcelona or Skopje. This was the real deal and it was awesome to see in person. As I was told before going to Paris, the traffic and congestion around the arc would be wild, and it truly is. As a pedestrian, the only way to view the Arc up close is to walk an underground tunnel below the busy street level for an admission fee, which was something we weren’t willing to pay. The view from afar is probably better anyway.
The next big site was the Eiffel Tower. As we approached the internationally famous landmark, we took a detour toward the Jardins du Trocadéro, which is the open garden and fountains directly across the bridge that goes toward the Eiffel Tower. Since it was just a few days before Christmas, several small shops were situated along the pathways of the gardens selling anything from wines and crêpes to jewellery and soaps. There was also an ice rink people could skate on with an excellent vantage point of the Eiffel Tower.
As you walk up the gardens and hill, you reach the Trocadéro, which is rich in French (and European) history. The buildings are predominantly used for museums nowadays, but also used to display feats of architecture.
Go back down the hill, cross the Seine River and now I stand directly below the Eiffel Tower. Ever since I saw a wall-sized poster of the Eiffel Tower taken at ground level many years ago, I’ve been long awaiting the day I could replicate it with my own camera. I can say that I’m quite proud of the pictures I took at this angle.
It was shortly after this that we headed back to the hostel and woke up to a rainy day the following morning. This was really the only day we had for sightseeing so I mapped out the route we’d take for the day to tackle every large landmark; it was going to be a challenge walking (and even more difficult taking pictures) given that everything was so wet.
The first item on the list was the Palais du Luxembourg, which usually is a beautiful garden and palace, but not at this time of year and not in this weather, either. Quite a shame since this destination was rated so highly on travel websites; definitely a summer sight.
Next was Notre Dame Cathedral! Who doesn’t recognize that? One thing some tourists may not know is that the Cathedral is actually free to enter for the public, always. While there will be a bit of a line-up outside, take the time to see this gorgeous structure.
I had the additional benefit of walking to the top of the towers, and then even further to the bell tower of Notre Dame at no charge since I was a student of the European Union (more perks of being an exchange student)! The view from the cathedral would have been a lot better had the weather cooperated, but it was still great to see Paris from the height we were at especially since I didn’t go up the Eiffel Tower the day prior.
And for those who recall the classic Disney movie The Hunchback of Notre Dame and were anticipating gargoyles, the following photos should satisfy!
Across the Cathedral is Sainte Chapelle, which when we first entered was not incredibly impressive. That is, until we walked up the stairs to reveal the alter surrounded by these massive stained glass windows. This sight was stunning and left me in awe. This cathedral is fully recommended by me.
As we headed to the next landmark, we passed by a tower called the Tour Saint Jacques which appeared quite odd in its standalone appearance. Upon further research, I came to discover that this tower was part of a church that was demolished with the tower being the only portion preserved.
Also very close by is the Hotel de Ville (in the background) which houses the City of Paris’ administration. They also had a carousel out front at the time of visiting.
Place des Vosges is the oldest planned square in Paris completed in 1612, and truly feels like a square due to the stunning, repeating townhouses that wall off the perimeter. A park complete with fountain make up the centre of this block.
The next stop was the acclaimed Musée du Louvre, which is undeniably one of the most well known museums of all time. I didn’t go inside because it was getting quite late and I knew I wouldn’t have the time to enjoy it fully. What I did do was take this very symmetrical photo of the Louvre despite the bad weather:
The next landmark was Pont Alexandre III, which is often overlooked by tourists, but is actually worth the visit! It’s the most extravagant bridge in Paris complete with tall pillars at each corner with gilded sculptures atop each one. The craftsmanship on the bridge, particularly the gold painted sculptures and light fixtures, is something you won’t find elsewhere.
On the other side of the bridge is the Grand Place, which is an exhibition hall and, you may have guessed it, another museum. It looks amazing at street level, but I’ll be saving the interior for another occasion.
At this point it was getting dark and all of the public buildings were closing despite only being 6 p.m.; that’s just the way the French live. Very rarely will you see people working late into the night. We started heading to the metro station and viewed the Louvre one last time, but now at night. The pyramid simply glowed like a beacon — impossible to miss.
The night was not over just yet, however. I had one final destination in mind and I saved it for last because it was very out-of-the-way. The destination was La Basilique du Sacré Coeur located on the isolated hill Montmartre; the highest point of the city. Convincing myself to go there with my travel buddy Chris was difficult because we had been walking with wet feet for so many hours that the bottoms of our feet turned pink with white splotches and completely prune-like. We had a bit of a rest and then convinced ourselves to push past the pain and visit Sacré Coeur because we knew if we didn’t go, we’d definitely regret it. We somehow managed to find the way there via metro and walked up the inclined hill and staircase that would lead us to the famed building.
The journey was exhausting and painful, but we pulled it off. The building is stunning from the outside, though the interior is even more spectacular. It’s free to enter, but unfortunately I was not allowed to take photos…I wasn’t even able to pull off a sneaky photo. Perhaps some things are just meant for you to see for yourself!
As for the view from the hill, it was too dark to fully appreciate. Not to mention that the area surrounding Montmartre was less lit as it was further away from the centre of the city. Still, it was completely worth the trip and made for a good final landmark.
Next time I return to Paris, I will certainly stay for a longer period to fully experience these landmarks. While I did have the opportunity to see a large bulk of the sights in Paris, there are still many I missed completely as well as several hours that need to be allocated toward viewing the artwork among the handful of museums in Paris, too. However, for two days of sightseeing, I was content. I’m happy I managed to check off the Arc de Triomphe and Eiffel Tower the day before because I have no idea how I’d have managed to do all of that in a single day. Overall, a very productive “layover” wouldn’t you think?
The only issue I’d have with a revisit to Paris is that the price of admission to many of these places would be very expensive. I would argue Paris was the most expensive place I visited during my Eurotrip (narrowly beating London), but as a European student, I could visit/enter all of the above sites for free or at a discount. In fact, if I didn’t mention that any of the sights above were free, then it wasn’t. And let’s not even get into the price of food! So just be well-prepared for many unexpected expenses when visiting Paris! Other than that, it’s an excellent place to visit and I can honestly can say it was a wonderful trip despite the weather. There’s something fitting about having the capital city of my host country as the final destination of my travels in Europe.
I had to catch a flight back to Marseille the next morning and from there I’d collect my last pieces of luggage and leave Europe for good. What an exciting and saddening thought that was. After 4 months I’d be reunited with my family and friends back in Canada. This was definitely the exchange I was looking for when I originally planned this adventure and I leave very satisfied.
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This blog entry is part of the publication Robert Cekan Travels & was originally written on February 10, 2013
Robert Cekan is a young entrepreneur and proud Hamiltonian. He is the founder of the Hamilton discovery website True Resident, as well as Cekan Group, a property management group. He is also a Hamilton REALTOR® with Ambitious Realty Advisors Inc., Brokerage and an active blogger.
For all of Robert’s projects, please visit robertcekan.com
