France
My husband and I, along with 2 of our friends, visited Paris at the peak of the summer season. Coming in
from Oslo, Norway where we spent a week walking in the cold, drizzly streets, it was quite a shock to the senses landing in hot, summery Paris. Nevertheless, I was so excited to explore this city which has been in my bucket list even before I know what a bucket list is.
Landed at Paris Orly International Airport.
Took the Orlyval Airport Shuttle which is an automatic metro shuttle service that connects Orly to Anthony Station of the RER Line B. The one-way single fare is €9.30 (but free if you have the Paris Visite travel pass) and tavel time is 8 minutes. You can also buy an Orlyval + RER B (to city center) ticket for €12.05. Journey takes about 33 minutes.
Orlyval and RER Line B connections.
First glimpse of the city. We had to walk and find another metro station that would eventually take us to the hotel since the one on the RER B line is closed. I noticed that a lot of metro stations are closed during our visit. I’m not sure why.
After a long walk dragging our luggage on the uneven streets, we were able to find a metro line that stops at Liege station, which is a 2-minute walk to New Hotel Opera.
So happy to finally check-in. Sorry for the mess. We were so hungry, I didn’t have the energy to remove our bags. :)
Dinner at a bar on Rue de Clichy. It was the only one open that we saw.
Last shot before we get some zzzz’s.
After a good night’s rest, we left the hotel early to hopefully beat the hordes of tourists at Paris’ most famous landmarks. We also anticipated the need for extra time to rest in between attractions since this is going to be a day filled with looong walks under the sun. Excited for our first day in the City of Love!
On our itinerary for today:
Arc de Triomphe which you can easily reach by train via Charles de Gaulle Etoile station (RER Line A and Metro lines 1, 2 and 6).
Avenue des Champs Elysee just accross the street from Arc de Triomphe.
Jardin des Tuileries at the end of Avenue Champs Elysee, between Plaza dela Concorde and The Louvre Museum.
Pont Alexandre III can be reached via Invalides station (RER Line C and Metro lines 8 and 13).
Eiffel Tower which can be easily accessed via Trocadero station (Metro line 6 and 9) or Ecole Militaire station (Metro line 8).
The view from our Newhotel Opera room.
Interesting artworks at the hotel.
Ah Paris! Beautiful buildings on our way to the metro.
Liege metro station.
First stop is one of Paris’ most popular monuments, Arc de Triomphe.
Inscribed on the outer and inner walls of the monument are the names of French generals who fought for France in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars.
From Arc de Triomphe, we walked the 1.9 km stretch of the famous Avenue des Champs Elysee.
To those who are into designer bags, this is for you!
Public toilet.
Water in this part of the world is expensive, €1 to €1.50 for a small bottle. Don’t throw your empty bottles, you might come across one of these where you can refill for free. TIP: buy water at the grocery store, it’s much cheaper than the shops around tourist spots.
At the end of Avenue des Champs Elysee is the a massive square called Place de la Concorde. This was where some notable French figures, including King Louis XVI and his wife Queen Marie Antoinette, were guillotined in front of cheering crowds in 1793.
The Fountain of River Commerce and Navigation
The Obelisk of Luxor is a 3,300 year old giant Egyptian obelisk given to the French by the Egyptian government. This used to mark the entrance to the Luxor Temple.
The Luxor Obelisk is decorated with hieroglyphics.
Fancy a ride? For a price, you can!
Right across the street from Place de la Concorde, you’ll see the entrance to Jardin des Tuileries. This garden was created as the garden of Tuileries Palace but was opened to the public and eventually became a public park after the French Revolution.
I wanted to go up that ramp to take photos but it was just too hot. I couldn’t bring myself to walk that expanse of uncovered space. Lol.
Baking in the sun. Oh, I meant, basking in the sun. :)
So glad to see Cafe Zero at one of the coffee stalls. Perfect drink for a summer day.
I would have wanted to explore this vast garden but I have to save my energy for our walk to the Eiffel Tower. We have the option to take the metro, but as we’re only gonna be here for a few days, we wanted to see as much as we can and walking is best way to do that.
Some photos from our walk.
The River Seine
Passed by the beautiful Pont Alexandre with it’s winged golden horses, cherubs and art nouveau lamps.
After walking for about 30 minutes from Jardin des Tuileres, we finally reached Tour Eiffel! Be forewarned, you’ll see a lot of Eiffel Tower photos! Lol.
Oh hello there!
Snack bars below the tower.
The line going up to the tower. Since I don’t have the patience for long lines, we skipped this one. You can take the stairs if that’s your thing, that’s 704 steps to the second floor and the entrance fee is cheaper if you take this route.
One of my favorite photos.
View from the Trocadero. We stayed here until around 8PM to see the tower lit up. It was summer so sunset is around that time.
That’s it for Day 1! I hope you enjoyed the photos as much as I enjoyed walking and taking them. 🙂