Paris – February 2020
Hotels: Hôtel La Comtesse Tour Eiffel | Hôtel Mercure Paris Arc de Triomphe Wagram
It’s been a while and lots of changes happened over here – Hey from your newest homeowner! – but I’m finally back, baby, and we’ve got some introductions to be made.
This is Joe. Isn’t he the cutest?
If that ain’t already enough of a shock, let me tell you. We’re in love…. and went to Paris… for Valentine’s Day. Even I’m slightly disgusted by the amount of mush.
And although there’s a lot in that sentence that I never thought would happen in my life — a.k.a. going back to Paris — I’ve never been happier to have someone by my side through this crazy adventure called life.
And since love makes us do crazy things, I agreed immediately when Joe asked me to join him on a trip to Paris.
My first visit wasn’t my favorite, to say the least, filled with bad weather and the stereotypical extremely-rude-to-Americans French, but now that I don’t have a black heart, I found myself excited and positive about the second time around. And, at least, I learned to avoid Bois de Boulogne park at all costs this time around. Oops. Still sorry about that, Britt.
Unfortunately, my knowledge that came from 9 years of French classes in private school hadn’t improved since the last time, so here’s to hoping the French understand my broken Italian instead.
Day 1: Eiffel Tower and Catacombs
After checking in to our hotel — which came with an incredible view of the Eiffel Tower thanks to Joe — we headed down to Champ de Mars to walk around and see the iconic spot up close and personal. Both times I’ve visited Paris, I’ve been greeted with wind and rain, so I never actually made it up inside the Eiffel Tower. Maybe third time will be a charm.
That evening we explored down in the Catacombs. I spent the whole time explaining to Joe that yes, they’re actual bones and yes, someone did actually stack them all like that. Despite my efforts, he still had to touch a bone to check they weren’t props. And now I’m extremely concerned for his health.
We finished off our first night back at the hotel watching the Eiffel Tower magically twinkle in the night sky. Seriously, that view will never get old.
Day 2: Arc de Triomphe and Champs de Elysèe
After waking up and enjoying the most perfect breakfast in bed you could imagine, we headed towards our second hotel for the rest of our stay in Paris, and spent the afternoon seeing the Arc de Triomphe while shopping the famous Champs de Elysèe. (Tip: To get to the top of the Arc de Triomphe, there are a set of stairs to go down beneath the busy streets to cross over first.)
Despite Joe’s efforts to eat on top of the Eiffel Tower for dinner on Valentine’s Day — Because I kept telling him 1200€ wasn’t worth a meal he wasn’t even going to like no matter how “iconic” — he settled for a more reasonable menu at a quaint restaurant near Le Marais. A perfect Valentine’s Day.
Day 3: Jardin des Tuileries, The Lourve, Pont des Arts, and Norte Dame
Our last day started with a walk through Jardin des Tuileries towards the Louvre. Most people recommended buying tickets in advance to skip the long line, but being that our hometown is Disneyland, the short 20-minute wait to get inside was nothing. We quickly made a bee-line towards the Mona Lisa — first floor in the Denon Alley, follow the signs once inside — then checked out a few more paintings before moving on.
Our next stop was Pont des Arts, a.k.a. Love Locks Bridge, and although they’ve removed the fence and made it hard to actually attach the lock to anything and throw the keys in the Siene River, I still cried when we did. Joe said it was because I had to use my own money to pay for the lock, which must be true because there’s no way I’ve actually become this soft.
A short walk past the bridge you’ll find Norte Dame. The beautiful church is still under construction from the fire that happened earlier last year, so we only passed by on our way to Le Marais, a cute neighborhood full of food and shopping, where I enjoyed the best handmade caramel crepe of my life. And trust me, I’ve been doing my research on crepes. Yum.
Even though I have spent the last few years swearing I would never go back, I’m so glad I gave Paris a second chance, because I couldn’t have asked for a better way to spend our first Valentine’s together than in the city of love. *barf*
Now, on to Luxembourg!
• Everyday Davis • 