Day 1: Adjusting to the Time Change
We took the train from the airport to Paris and found our hotel. I have figured out *most* people here know *some* English, so communicating isn’t fluent, but we’re trying! For dinner, we dined in at Café Vavin.
Day 2: Palace of Versailles & the Eiffel Tower
An early start to the morning, Ashley and I took the train out west for a journey through the Palace of Versailles. The palace is a former royal residency built by King Louis XIV and is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. Chandeliers hung from every ceiling, the walls were covered in velvet and paintings found around every corner. My favorite room was the Hall of Mirrors: 357, to be exact! It was absolutely beautiful!
For a late morning snack we visited Angelina Paris for hot chocolate and pastries. We made a visit to the palace gardens and snapped a few more photos before heading out thanks to the wind ripping off my lashes.
Next stop: the Eiffel Tower! I’d be lying if I said I didn’t tear up when I saw it. It has been a dream of mine to see and I still can’t believe today was real. We waited for sunset and watched the tower sparkle under the night sky I even finessed one of the street vendors for a mini light-up replica for 10€.
Ash and I had dinner at Iolanda. We split a Margherita pizza before heading back home to refresh, fill out postcards and plan tomorrow’s activities.
Day 3: Happy Birthday to Me
Ashley and I’s cold, rainy morning started with a hunt for coffee and a croissant. On our way to Starbucks, we stumbled upon Place Vendôme. Energized and ready to go, we found our way to the world-famous Louvre Museum, home of the Mona Lisa painted by Leonardo di Vinci in the early 1500s. We wandered through four floors of paintings, sculptures, Egyptian artifacts, decorative rooms and more!
From the museum, we made our way to Sainte-Chapelle: a royal chapel. A tiny spiral staircase lead us to an open room filled with colorful stained glass windows- 1,113 to be exact! This was my favorite building to photograph.
We stopped for a photo op outside Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris. Unfortunately, due to the fire back in 2019 the building is still closed to the public.
As the sun began to set we raced to our next destination: Arc de Triomphe. We underestimated the size of this MASSIVE structure. Running through the streets and dodging traffic we had less than 20 minutes to run through a tunnel under the road, buy tickets and climb 284 stairs to the top before the Eiffel Tower light show. Out of breath and hearts racing, WE MADE IT! We watched our 360° view of Paris glisten under the night sky.
For my birthday dinner we dined at Bouillon Chartier. Just when I thought the tables couldn’t get any closer together, I was wrong. We were sat WITH other people! Our must-try’s for the evening were escargot (more like escar-no, for me,) and Camembert & Rocamadour French cheeses. Our waiter knew it was a special evening, so the staff came out with a baguette sparkler signing “Happy Birthday” in French while the entire restaurant joined in. It was most definitely a night to remember!
I can’t express enough how thankful I am for the opportunity to travel across the world with my best friend for a weekend. My mom always says, “You only have one life. Make it count.” I promised her I would. Thank you all for continuing to follow my crazy adventures, it means more to me than you will ever know.
Love Always.
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