Euro Trip Part 3: Paris

Day 8: Wednesday April 12, 2017

After a sleepless night of blow-drying, flat ironing, and packing, we left for Paris early on Wednesday morning. Our train departed from St. Pancras Station and arrived in Paris two hours later. Our AirBNB host gave us directions to take the metro from the train station to Le Republique stop. Well, the metro was ridiculously crowded and we missed our stop because I couldn’t maneuver around a lady with a huge stroller in the middle of the walkway.

We got off at the next stop and walked to a cute little café to have breakfast as it was only about 9:00 a.m. and our AirBNB wasn’t going to be ready until noon. Neither of us speak French so we sat there for a while trying to decipher what the menu said. We ordered tea and coffee and croissants. Listen here. The croissants and baguettes were at the top of my to-do list in Paris and honeyyyyyy, they did not disappoint. Best bread OF ALL TIME. 

Around noon, our host Sophie text us and said that we could come to the apartment. It was by far my favorite place that we stayed on our trip. She was the sweetest lady. If you ever go to Paris and you want to stay in an affordable apartment, PLEASE go see Sophie. She’s amazing. I’m writing a review about my AirBNB experience so I won’t spoil it… But it was a great experience. Great location. Super cute apartment. She absolutely gets 5 stars from me. And she even gave us a bottle of wine!

Once we got settled in, we took a quick nap and then decided to go out and explore the city that evening. We took the bus and got off at a stop just down the street from Notre Dame Cathedral (and picked up some croissants on the way… SO many carbs). It was absolutely breath-taking. I kept looking up and smiling thinking of one of my favorite childhood movies, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. The architecture on this building was indescribable. We even got to go inside and see a bit of mass which was pretty cool.

My high school alma mater is the Institute of Notre Dame so I just had to take a picture with my class ring!

After we left, we made our way to the Eiffel Tower. It was oh so magical and super dramatic with the sun setting in the background. There were people sitting on the lawn having picnics and vendors asking us left and right if we wanted to buy a bottle of champagne or these little cheap mini Eiffel towers. One man even walked up to us and said, “I knew you were American. American women have a different type of beauty.” *que uncontrollable fit of laughter*

Once we took (literally) a hundred-and-one pictures of the Eiffel Tower, we got crepes from a little cart at the foot of the tower. Mine had fresh strawberries and whipped cream and Sameera’s was filled with Nutella, strawberries and whipped cream. While we were standing in line, the tower lit up and started sparkling behind us. It was pretty adorable.

Our AirBNB host Sophie also suggested that we take a night cruise on the river. We bought tickets for about 20 euros each and boarded the ship. Although it was FREEZING cold (A pair of gloves and some earmuffs would’ve been nice), it was one of my favorite things we did. Seeing all of the buildings and monuments all lit up and hearing the history behind it all was a wonderful experience. 

Day 9: Thursday April 13, 2017

The next morning, we got up, got dressed and prepared for a busy day ahead. We got croissants and baguettes on the way to the bus and Sameera dropped hers on the ground. Luckily, there were bakeries on every corner so she got another one.

We took the bus to a shopping area to find outfits for Sameera’s birthday… If you remember, we’ve been looking for dresses for this night since we were in Madrid a week ago. The third country was the charm. Success!

After that, we went to the Pont des Arts (love lock) bridge. I’m sure you all have seen pictures of it on the internet. It’s pretty stinkin adorable. We took a gazillion photos in front of it. Next time we’ll go back with our boos and put locks on the bridge. LOL. 

Next, we went to see the Arc de Triomphe and Champs-Elysees. There was a long line of people to take photos but the most precious thing was a couple waiting to take their wedding photos. The woman was wearing her gown and the man in his tux. They even had their own wedding photographer and everything… I wish I could see how the pictures came out. 

Unfortunately, we had dinner reservations for Sameera’s birthday so we didn’t get a chance to see the Lourve. Super bummer. But it’s at the top of our list next time we go to Paris!

We wanted to go all out for Sameera’s birthday so our AirBNB host, Sophie suggested that we have dinner at Georges restaurant. We got pizza first... Just in case the food was ridiculously expensive. (And of course I had to get my pizza fix in Paris!)

 

In typical Amanee and Sameera fashion, something went totally wonky. About 15 minutes into the ride, I had a gut feeling that our Uber driver was going in the wrong direction. So, I turned my data on and put the address into my maps app… Of course the thing started talking extremely loudly. How embarrassing. 

As it turns out, there were two Georges restaurants in France. Luckily, with the driver’s broken English and our French-lish (Get it?) we figured out where to go. We ended up taking the scenic route and we saw the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe all lit up. I felt like Anne Hathaway’s character Andy in the Paris scene in “The Devil Wears Prada” riding through the city. HA!

An hour and six escalators later, we arrived at the rooftop restaurant. It sure was a sight. The hostess gave us a great table overlooking the Eiffel Tower. We both ordered the simplest thing on the menu… Penne with tomato sauce. I lie to you not, this expensive fancy-shmancy pasta taste just like Chef Boyrdee. Just sad. 

Sameera ordered a passionfruit martini… Mind you it was almost her 21^st birthday and she had never had a martini before. She said it taste like gritty vodka. LOL. 

Besides the terrible food, we really enjoyed dinner. I ordered two glasses of Rose champagne at midnight to toast the birthday girl and our waiter brought her a sparkler. Her cornball aunt sang her happy birthday and of course the accident-prone girl burned herself. *head palm*

After dinner, we went out for a night on the town. I read reviews for a few different clubs and we decided to go to Twenty-One Sound Bar. Very fitting, right? They played lots of Caribbean music... I promise I didn’t do that on purpose. I just migrate to Caribbeans! I told the bartender it was Sameera’s birthday and he gave us free shots. I love discounts!

Side note: The people in this club were mightyyyyy musty. Do French people really not wear deodorant?

The Uber ride back to house was absolutely the highlight of the night. We did Uber Pool and with this system, numerous people can get into one ride and the driver will drop you off where you need to go. 

Well, we picked up two drunk French girls on the way and they were speaking French to the driver the whole ride and out of nowhere she turned to me and said, “WHERE ARE YOU GOING?” For some reason that was absolutely hilarious to Sameera and I. Like ma’am… Where are YOU going? 

Once we got back to the apartment, we reminisced about our eventful evening and packed for our travels the next day.

Paris was absolutely hands down one of my favorite cities. It was so beautiful and romantic. Although, for it to be the fashion capital, the people really weren’t that fashionable. (???)

I really wish we had more time to explore. Two days was just not enough. I will absolutely 100% be going back. Hopefully sometime soon. I didn’t eat enough and I certainly didn’t get to see all the sights or take enough pictures. Maybe I’ll make it back to Paris for my 25^th birthday. *hint hint wink wink* 

Au Revoir!

-A.