Week 68: Valentine’s Weekend in Paris
We traded our mountain adventures for the city to celebrate Valentine’s Day.
I walked around Paris in 2015, but it was only for 8 hours. This time, Eric and I stayed for 48 hours. We will be doing many more 48-hour trips in the near future to be able to see all 44 EU countries before we head back to the states next fall.
Here is a recap of our trip:
Friday, February 11
We dropped the animals off at the pet hotel, drove to Munich, and boarded the plane.
We landed at 10:30 PM and arrived at Hotel Therese shortly after. When I booked our stay a few weeks ago, I requested their best room and, when we checked in, they said we were on the top floor and had the best view of the Parisian rooftops.
View from our room.
Saturday, February 12
I woke up just in time for my camera to catch the sunrise.
I messaged the animal’s hotel to check in and make sure their first night was okay. I received a text with a few photos. Denzel had made a few cat friends and he really loved the big windows! Getting the photos definitely eased my mind and allowed us to enjoy our time in Paris.
Denzel and his furriends.
After eating a quick breakfast, we set out for a big day of city adventures.
Our first stop was just a few minutes away at the Palais-Royal Garden. The park is much more lively when the flower and trees have bloomed, but winter offers a peaceful, much less busy experience. You can admire the long paths and take pictures without any people in the background.
Palais-Royal Garden
The Louvre
The Louvre is the world's most visited museum and a historic landmark in Paris. More than 9 million people visit every year. It is home to the most famous painting in the world–The Mona Lisa. A fun fact is the Mona Lisa is only 20” x 30” big. Although it is small, it needs to be in a space big enough to welcome its many admirers, so it resides in the Louvre's largest room.
Because of timing, we did not go into the museum, as there was much more to see on our itinerary. Plus, I went inside in 2015 and Eric is not much of an art person.
The Louvre
Eric crossing the street to the Louvre.
Notre Dame
The name Notre Dame means “Our Lady” in French. People can usually go right up to it, but in 2019 the cathedral suffered a fire, so a large portion was blocked off.
The Cathedral of Notre Dame is probably best known for its relation to the story of the Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Me infront of the Notre Dame.
Pantheon
When construction began in the early 1700s, it was originally intended to be a church. By the time the construction was finished in 1791, it was decided it would be a Mausoleum instead. A place for the remains of distinguished French citizens such as Marie Curie, Voltaire, and Louis Braille.
Main lobby with pretty lighting.
Outside columns
Marie Curie’s final resting place.
After the Pantheon, I was able to be a fan girl for a moment and check out a couple of locations from the Netflix series “Emily in Paris”. For those of you who know this series, we got to see Emily’s apartment and Gabrielle’s Kitchen!
Emily in Paris apartment.
Paris Catacombs
Our last stop of the afternoon was the Paris Catacombs. The catacombs are home to 6-7 million dead people. A bit creepy to me, but Eric loved walking through the tunnels. Near the end of the 18th century, Paris' cemeteries were filled to capacity, so the city needed a better place to put its dead. It took the city 12 years to move all the bones into the catacombs. Today, skulls and bones are arranged to form the walls of the tunnels in the Paris Catacombs.
Skulls and bones
Eric with the skulls and bones
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped in a shop and tried our first Macarons! They were delicious and much yummier than I was anticipating. I imagined them to be sugary and rich, but they were light and airy and the flavors we tried were amazing.
Macarons!
Me on a bridge holding the macarons.
We arrived back to the hotel around 4:30 pm and relaxed until it was time to back out. We had our Valentine’s Day dinner and then Ubered to the Eiffel Tower to watch it sparkle. If you ever find yourself in Paris, make sure to go to the tower after the sun sets, because for 5 minutes it sparkles and is completely magical. I knew it was going to happen and I still gasped.
Eric taking a photo of the Eiffel Tower.
The Eiffel Tower.
The Eiffel Tower.
Sunday, February 13
We woke up pleasently surprised to find another beautiful sunny day. The weather was supposed to be cloudy and rainy. Lucky us! We got ready, ate breakfast, checked out, left luggage in the lobby, and headed back out for another full day of Parisian sights.
Sunrise from our room.
We went back to the Eiffel Tower. This time, we went up to the top!
The Eiffel Tower, again
Our tickets were to the summit, so we went there first. It was SUPER windy at the tiptop. Every girl had their hair swarming their face trying to find a corner where things were calmer to take a nice photo. After a couple of loops around, we took the elevator to a lower floor. We liked this view a bit better and it was much less windy.
The tower was designed as the centerpiece of the 1889 World's Fair and was meant to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution and show off France's modern mechanical prowess on a world stage. The tower is 1,063 ft tall and is the tallest structure in Paris.
Arc de Triumph from the tower.
Eiffel Tower - Level 5
Eiffel Tower - Level 5
After an hour at the tower, we made our way to the Arc De Triumph and made a few stops along the way.
We crossed a bridge full of people taking engagement photos.
Eiffel Tower from a bridge.
Eiffel Tower from a bridge.
We walked up to the tunnel where Princess Diana was killed. It was marked with a flame statue surrounded with locks and flowers.
Princess Diana memorial.
We arrived at the Arc.
The arc.
We ubered to the Montmartre area–a large hill in Paris's 18th arrondissement. This area is much more hipster and artsy.
We checked-in to this cute little restaurant on Facebook. It was a former painting studio where Picasso and Dali would frequently visit, which is why this little pink house was so popular. People lined the sidewalks taking pictures of it and trying to get inside.
I made a reservation about a month ago and we enjoyed the yummiest brunch here. It is impossible to eat here without a reservation, so if you go to Paris, make sure to save your spot well in advance.
La Maison Rose for Brunch
Eric walking towards La Maison Rose.
While we were eating, people would walk up and put their face right up to the window to get a peek inside. Made for some awkward moments when I was in the middle of taking a bite and locking eyes with these strangers.
Yummy brunch.
After brunch, we went over to the Sacré-Cœur Basilica. Known as the Sacred Heart of Paris, it is a Roman Catholic church. Sacré-Cœur Basilica is located at the summit of Montmartre hill, the highest point in the city.
The Sacré-Cœur Basilica.
We sat on the steps of the Sacré-Cœur Basilica and watched a breakdancing show.
One of the Breakdancers.
Next to the Sacré-Cœur is a building that creates an optical illusion and appears to be tilted.
Optical illiusion on the hill.
We only had a few more hours until our flight back to Austria, so we meandered through the hilly streets and admired all the cute shops and restaurants.
Pretty flowers
I caved in and bought a beret at the last minute and posed for one last shot by our hotel at the Palais-Royal Garden where we first started our Parisian adventures.
Yay for berets.
After walking 14+ miles, 45,000+ steps, and 48 hours we were happy to be home and reunited with the animals.
