Ahhh Paris.. the city of love, romance, and passion. It’s too bad my boyfriend couldn’t tag along for my 24 hour layover (Booo).
So here I am, in the shuttle bus on our way to our hotel and I think to myself.. ; I went to work today, I had my lunch break and once I got off work I found myself in Paris. What an incredible job I have. I am so lucky and fortunate to be able to do what I do and explore these amazing places.
Alright, enough of the heartwarming chatter, let me tell you some of my travelholic confessions.
1. If you think that working a 7-8 hour flight isn’t hard, think again, and to make it even more difficult; these flights are what we call Red eyes (an overnight flight) which makes the flight even more tiring. (as you can imagine)
2. Yes I do have a amazing layover in Paris ahead (and I’m so excited), but by the time we land in Paris its 9 am, and I’ve been working all night, I want to go to bed (who wouldn’t) but I can’t (you’re probably thinking; why not ?) well… if I go to bed as soon as I arrive = I’ll be awake all night! and that can’t happen because my flight out is the next morning at 11 am… So, are you confused yet? Yeah. Me too.
3. If you really think about it, 24 hours isn’t that much time. By the time we land and deplane and get to the hotel that’s about 2 hours, and if I want to sleep 8-9 hours, and then I need to get ready (makeup/shower etc) another hour and then we need to leave about 2 hours before our flight in the morning… that leaves me about 10 hours… 10 hours to visit, to eat, to relax… that’s, not nearly enough time to do all the tourist attractions I want to do. ah well.
So there you have it.. my 3 Paris confessions, now let’s talk about the good stuff; The sightseeing.
Of course, the first things I want to see are the obvious choices; The Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Élysées, the Louvre and Notre-Dame de Paris. Despite that I would love to see all of these beautiful places, I have so little time, I need to prioritize.
I took off as soon as we go to our hotel; Le Mérindien Étoile, what a beautiful hotel, elegant yet modern. The concierge desk was very helpful in guiding me through the list of things to see. Luckily for me, L’Arc de Triomphe is just beside our hotel, a short 2 minute walk and I was there. I would have never thought this place would have been so busy, the traffic was worse than rush hour downtown New York.
I walked for about 45 minutes up and down the narrow cobblestone streets. Walking by small restaurants and local pastry shops, I could smell the freshly baked croissants and tartlets, it’s everything you see in movies and more. As I had been walking for a while I became to wonder if I was getting close to the Eiffel Tower, seconds later I turned a corner and found myself mesmerized in its beauty, it was truly a magical moment.
To be honest, what surprised me most was the number of street hustlers around the Tower. You’d think it would be a peaceful walk around this beautiful landmark but not quite. Every 10 feet there was someone trying to sell you something. (some Eiffel Tower Trinkets) Don’t get caught in the trap like I did : I was walking and admiring the Eiffel tower when a street hustler came up and tried to sell me a bracelet (at that point I didn’t even get my currency exchanged, so even if I did want to buy a bracelet I couldn’t) so I said I was sorry I didn’t have any money on me, he insisted, I told him again I had no cash on me at all, and he said he’d make me a bracelet anyway. So he’s tying it around my wrist and he says “okay that will be 5$”, I told him again that I didn’t have any money on me, he literally ripped off the bracelet and walked away swearing (I’m actually laughing as I write this, it’s probably one of the funniest moments I’ve had travelling yet).
Moral of the story; be situationally aware at all times, be careful when people come up to you and hold on to your purse or wallet because if you don’t you’ll find yourself missing some of your stuff for sure.
Apart from the street hustlers, the Eiffel tower was an incredible sight to see. People sitting on the grass having a picnic, couples taking selfies and children running around, I sat there for about 30 minutes just watching the people go by with their families, offering to take pictures of all of them in front of the tower. The only regret I have is not being able to see the Tower light up at night, I’ve heard its magical. I guess that will be for next time.
Of course, there is one thing I needed to do before leaving. I needed to eat some delicious French pastries. What Paris is know for: croissants. The concierge at the hotel was nice enough to suggest a place for me to go in the morning; boulangerie Eric Keyser. A short 10 minute walk led me straight to the bakery, I could smell the pastries from across the street. You should have seen the amount of bread this place had, and no doubt they’d sell out before noon. I ordered 3 pastries, a chocolatine, a pain au raisin and a croissant nature. They were all still hot from the oven and they just melted in my mouth. Perfection.
I cannot wait to come back and explore more of this incredible city, there is so much to discover and so much more of Paris I need to see.
Paris, je t’aime. À la prochaine.
-Confessions of a travelholic.
Confessions of a Travelholic 