Picturesque Paris
We were not excited about Paris. We did it because it was convenient, not because we had a strong desire to. We treated it for what it was for us, a tourist stop to check off our proverbial list.
Paris ultimately was not a disappointment, but it had such a mountain to climb in our minds, that it was pretty doomed from the start. We did enjoy ourselves tremendously but given the choice to go back to Paris and go somewhere else, sign us up for somewhere else.
We took the Eurostar from London to Paris which was quick, convenient, and with our fancier class tickets (free wine and a lite lunch), delightful.
Our troubles started when we tried to get to our Airbnb. As fairly experienced public transit navigators, we were not expecting to have the issues we had with the Paris transit system. It started with our freshly purchased tickets just not working at the turnstile and us having to wait 30 min in a queue to sort it out… and didn’t bode well for the rest of the trip using public transit.
To be clear it is still the most effective way to see the city and would stand by the use of public transit, but compared to London, NYC, Chicago, virtually anywhere else we have been…there were some unnecessary challenges.
Eventually we got to our Airbnb which came complete with an at home spa (jacuzzi tub and hot sauna). While that was absolutely wonderful much of the rest of the Airbnb was only decent, not great. The neighborhood however (the 11th Arrondissement) was a delight.
Our Paris experience overall felt a bit superficial. Everywhere we turned tourists were dressed up in their Paris best trekking to the Paris hot spots to take all manner of Paris instagram pics. To each their own. Also, the damn locks... People put locks on EVERYTHING to supposedly profess their love. Fences, bridges, everywhere… Cool it with the locks.
For us, Paris was good for:
People Watching: Whether it was sitting on the lawn in front of the Eiffel tower observing the Illegal Wine Vendor underworld or enjoying a drink at one of the infinite patio restaurants, Paris was excellent for people watching. Viv was particularly enthralled by the many vendors walking around with buckets of wine and beer bottles trying to sell them to picnicers on the lawn by the Eiffel tower. We observed a systematic selling and police avoidance process that was intriguing to say the least.
Getting off the beaten path: Between the Rugby World Cup and the tail end of Fasion Week the crowds were overwhelming at times. This encouraged us to get off the beaten path a bit. We really enjoyed staying in the 11th Arrondissement. It was far enough from most of the touristy stops to allow us to live among locals for a bit but close enough to quickly access the tourist spots. We enjoyed strolling through the local parks and seeing all manner of local shops and churches just around our accommodations.
Developing a new found appreciation for Rugby: Neither of us had seen a Rugby match (live or on TV) before London, but with the Rugby World Cup in full swing when we were in the birthplace of Rugby (Engand) we started to take notice. When we got to Paris rugby fever was equally high since it was the host country of the World Cup, so we started to follow it a bit more. It was a sight to be in a restaurant as the French rugby team took the field for a match and everyone stopped to cheer on their team. We have caught several matches since and none have disappointed. While we are still learning the rules and nuances we can honestly say we have a newfound sport to follow!
What We Did
Some (but not all) of the things we did:
Museums: We did both the Musee D’Orsay and the Louvre. We did the Louvre out of obligation, the D’Orsay out of desire. For both we timed them to go on their late evenings which we think helped with the crowds.
The Louvre was what we expected and made us wonder why you could possibly want or need to house so many works of art in only one place. The saying goes that if you stopped at every painting for 30 seconds it would take you 200 days nonstop to see each of the 35,000 pieces. Why not spread that out, democratize it for more people to see all over.
The D’Orsay was an absolute delight. From the building to the works of art and everything in between (+ half the crowd of the Louvre) it was our favorite and not to be missed. Highly recommend.
Meandering through Town: One of the best walks we did was from the Trocadero Square to the Champs de Mars, but not the quick and touristy way. In the spirit of getting off the beaten path, and away from the tourist hell, we took the long way around crossing the Seine at the Pont de Bir Hakeim bridge (the famous bridge from Inception). We then meandered through the neighborhood, found a local shop and got some cheese, wine and bread to eat at our picturesque spot under the Eiffel tower.
Catacombs: This was such a unique experience walking under the streets of Paris and observing the thousands of bones dating back centuries. It quite literally takes your breath away. Spooky season or not this was an awesome adventure and includes an audio tour with the admission. Tickets only go on sale 1 week in advance and from what we saw, sell out quickly so pre-planning is necessary.
Arc de triomphe: This was our intro to stairs. 284 stairs to the top of the Arc de triomphe and the views did not disappoint. We did research to determine whether we should do our visit during the day or night and ultimately opted for a night view with the city lit up. We even got to see the Eiffel tower do its glittery light thing which was fun! Well worth the price of admission (though I don’t know why they make you pay to walk up so many steps….)
All in all we can see the appeal of Paris, it is quite a beautiful city, but maybe just not our cup of tea.
