16 June: Pre-TourHighlights of the Day:
|
I can't emphasize enough, especially on a My Way Tour, how important reading your Rick Steves' guidebook really is! From the moment we stepped off the plane, Rick was there guiding me. We had barely exited the plane when we bought our Paris Museum Pass as well as metro tickets at a little stand with no line and a very helpful English speaking woman. (Just like Rick described in the guidebook.) Then we headed into Paris to drop our luggage off at the hotel so we could explore! (And fight off the jet lag!)
First thing on the list was seeing the Eiffel Tower! We grabbed some breakfast and sat gazing at its beauty. Then we decided to conquer it by climbing the 347 steps to the first level. As with EVERY attraction in Paris there is a security line, then a ticket line, then sometimes ANOTHER security line. We lingered on the Tower, enjoying lunch, the views, and people watching. We did spend quite a bit of this trip reminiscing about "Remember last time?" On the Eiffel Tower, the story was about when we got locked in the bathroom! I seem to get locked into bathrooms often when in Paris. Our next adventure was another tidbit that Rick suggests. On the top level of the Galeries Lafayette department store there is a terrace with great views of the Opera House and the rest of Paris. We enjoyed the view and did a little bit of souvenir shopping. Then we hit the wall. We could go no further without sleep. So we headed back to the hotel, enjoyed our room picnic and were ready for BED! |
17 June: Pre-TourHighlights of the Day:
|
We knew that we needed to fit in the Louvre and Orangerie museums today. Two museums are a lot in one day, but I'll admit we tend to be the type of sightseer that skims rather than goes in depth. We ended up going to THREE museums! Well, we were just a few blocks from the Rodin Museum AND we were in Paris AND we might as well as see it as long as we are here AND it was part of our museum pass!
We started early with the crowds at the Louvre; however we knew from Rick to avoid the main entrance at the pyramid and entered at the underground mall entrance. We still had a bit of a line for security, but we were inside in the cool, not standing out in the sun! We had been to the Louvre before on a fabulous guided tour when we took the Paris in 7 Days tour. We decided that using Rick's podcast tour to hit the highlights was perfect! After gazing at Mona, Venus, and Winged Victory we needed food. One of Rebecca's favorite memories from when she was eleven was getting McDonald's at the Louvre Mall food court. Yes, there is a food court and yes, there is a McDonald's. One of my best KID TIPS was letting Rebecca get McDonald's once on each trip. She was an adventurous traveler, but every once in a while just a regular tasting cheeseburger was needed! I know there are many travelers who would gasp in shock at eating fast food! Actually, the international McD's do have some interesting local things on the menus, you can even get macarons at this McDonald's. (And they were pretty good!) One of the first reservations I made as we put together our itinerary was for a champagne river cruise. My mom and I had enjoyed this luxury last summer when we were in Paris, and I knew Rebecca would love it! I read about the company on the 2015 scrapbook winner's website and Rick now has O Chateau listed in the guidebook. It's limited to around 15 people and you get to enjoy three glasses of champagne while traveling the Seine. The front of the sightseeing boat is just for the private champagne tasting. Which means you aren't packed in like sardines, you just get to sip and actually see the sights of Paris glide by. It's totally worth every euro!
Our stomachs were full of champagne, and we needed some food. I had already planned that we would stop by a great little pizza place near the Eiffel Tower. My sister had found it a couple years ago, and it has become a favorite when we are in Paris.
We managed to stay awake just long enough to watch the Eiffel Tower lights come on, then we made our way back to the hotel. Whew! What a busy day! |
A stroll through the Tuileries Garden and then we were at the Orangerie Museum. This is one of my favorite museums. Monet's huge water lilies are just amazing, but I also really like the collection downstairs too. I LOVE that in the water lily galleries there are huge benches to just really sit and gaze at the paintings. I found that most people didn't spend much time in these rooms, so if we just sat and waited, soon we would have the room to ourselves. Perfect for gazing, appreciating the art, cooling off, and photos with no one in them!
We then made the decision to walk to the Rodin Museum. It probably would have been better NOT to try to see a third museum in the same day. But we didn't have the luxury of another day to see it. Plus we had the museum pass so it didn't cost us anything extra to stop in, even for just a few minutes. I totally admit we did a fly by visit, just walking and looking at the things that caught our eye. The gardens outside are lovely too, and we found a perfect bench in the shade to people watch. In the end, we were glad we stopped by, but we were tired! Our reminiscing story at this location was, "Remember last time Mimi lost her sweater here?" Our day was not even close to being over though. We walked over to Rick's (and our) favorite market street, Rue Cler. Rebecca has grown up getting Nutella crepes from the crepe stand on Rue Cler and we couldn't miss this tradition! |
18 June: Pre-TourHighlights of the day:
Today's adventure: The Palace of Versailles.
We succeeded in not only buying our train tickets but also getting on the correct train! Then we expertly navigated the HUGE crowds. I am so sorry I didn't take a picture of the mass of people to show you. This is where reading your guidebook is mandatory! The only day we could fit in Versailles was on a Sunday, one of the most crowded days, so we needed all the help we could get! We decided to try one of Rick's crowd beating tips and booked a guided tour. IT TOTALLY WORKED! We stood in a fast moving security line, then we bypassed the HUGE line of people by following our tour reservation directions to a little door off to the side. While others stood for a LONG time in the sun, we were escorted to a waiting room with benches until our tour started. Completely worth the 7 euros! We saw rooms not on the regular tour, including the Palace Opera House, that I hadn't seen before. Then after the 90 minute tour, we were dropped right at the beginning of the regular tour so we still got to see the Hall of Mirrors! (The MASS of people in the rooms along the regular tour was CRAZY!) After touring inside the palace, we were ready for lunch! In the left hand corner as you enter the gardens is a little oasis of a restaurant. We usually opt for simple meals and picnics, but this was one time to splurge and feel like a queen! Then we were ready to explore the massive gardens. It's like we were little tiny mice inside a huge maze and the end reward was ice cream! Now, I haven't mentioned it before but it was HOT this whole time we were in Paris. REALLY HOT. Temperatures in the high 90's. We really wanted to see the gardens and especially Marie-Antoinette's Hamlet. However, we discovered that for some reason the little train that takes you around wasn't in service. We never found out WHY, but it meant that to get to the Hamlet you would have to walk. It's a REALLY REALLY long walk. Sometimes you just have to realize you aren't going to get to see everything on this trip. We decided ice cream was definitely a better decision. We were exhausted and rested our tired feet on the train ride back to Paris. We got McDonald's for dinner so we could have a picnic at the Eiffel Tower. Don't judge. The grocery stores were closed and we were just too tired to figure out a real restaurant for dinner! And, we weren't the only ones with McD's on the Champ de Mars! |
Then and Now
The Hall of Mirrors
|
Our day today was another trip outside of Paris. Yesterday we had navigated getting to Versailles on our own. Today we had a bit of a time constraint, so after lots of debate and research, I decided to book a bus tour to Giverny. It wasn't that we couldn't figure it out on our own, but with limited time I wanted to make sure we didn't have a problem getting back to our first tour meeting! There are many companies and tour options available. I finally decided on a Paris City Vision tour. The company runs LOTS of big bus tours. I really just wanted the tour for the time convenience, and for that it was perfect. (Otherwise I would give the big bus tour a mixed review.) I had been to Giverny last summer on the Heart of France tour; however, Rebecca missed that tour while she was studying abroad at Oxford. Seeing Giverny was on her bucket list, and I was lucky to get to see it twice!
Monet's gardens are just magical. Of course, they would be even better without all the crowds! My favorite part is Monet's house. I loved being able to walk the same hallways that he did. I looked out the same windows to see the glorious gardens. The most amazing room is the dinning room. It is painted the perfect shade of yellow and I really wanted to rush home and paint my own dinning room yellow too! Our time was limited in Giverny, so after a quick spin around the gardens, house, and gift shop, we got a quick lunch before the bus back to Paris. The most important part of the day was the first meeting of the tour group! It is always a bit nerve-wracking meeting a new tour group! The first meeting is important to attend, especially if you have never been on a Rick Steves' Tour before. We learned the nitty-gritty details of how the tour would run, found our tour buddies, and met our tour manager. I was curious if the group would bond like the guided tours, since really the only time we would be together was on the bus. After our "first date" with our tour group, Rebecca and I found a crepe restaurant for dinner before we relaxed in front of the Eiffel Tower. After several HOT and CROWDED days Rebecca and I completely enjoyed having our own little patch of grass on the Champ de Mars, which is the grass area in front of the Eiffel Tower. We are such introverts. We were craving not being smushed with people. PLUS one of THE BEST activities in Paris is people watching. The Champ de Mars has some classic people watching opportunities: tourists taking cheesy photos with the Eiffel Tower, the men selling trinkets, and the locals having a picnic. The Parisians take the picnic to a whole other level. There are plates, wine, real food. Rebecca and I were trying to step up our picnic game, but they set the bar high. Every night we watched different groups of friends meet on the grass and have these amazing picnic spreads. Our picnic consisted of potato chips, strawberries, and cookies. Seems we will need to try harder. Our day ended with waiting until dark (11pm) to watch the tower sparkle for 5 minutes. Hands down the best 5 minutes in Paris. |
20 June: Day TwoHighlights of the Day:
Today was a feast for the eyes and the stomach.
We started at the Musee d'Orsay. Rebecca was having fun finding the art work that she had studied in her AP art history class at each museum. I just liked looking at the pretty paintings. The impressionist are my favorite. It was still REALLY hot in Paris. Rebecca and I are so fair skinned, that we can get a sunburn even in cloudy weather. So we were slapping on the sunscreen hoping that we didn't end up with red skin! We didn't want to let the heat and sun keep us from enjoying our last day in Paris though. So we walked over to Notre Dame Cathedral and cooled off on a bench in the shade. Then Rebecca wanted to do some clothes shopping while in Paris. Rebecca's packing strategy is to pack less and buy some clothes as souvenirs. When she was little she was more likely to buy the I heart Paris shirt, but now she buys cute outfits that she can wear to school. It's always more fun to say "Oh, I bought this in Paris!" By this time we were HOT, TIRED, and trying not to get irritated with each other. As we were making our way to the Metro station, we were walking quickly with our heads down trying to keep the sun off our faces. Then I spotted it on the side walk. The logo for Steak 'N Shake. The funny thing was I wouldn't have spotted it had I been looking up at the amazing views of Paris around me. It took my mind a moment to register what it was and that we were in Paris, not the US and what was a Steak 'N Shake restaurant doing here? You have to understand that Rebecca and I have a bit of an obsession with this burger joint. In the Midwest, this restaurant is on every other corner of every town. However in the Northeast, there are only a rare few, the nearest to us was three hours away. We basically only get to go to one when on vacation. So THIS was exciting! It was unexpected! It was vacation magic! We followed the signs and soon found ourselves at the restaurant. There was staff welcoming us in, helping us order, giving us free samples. It was like we were VIP guests! AND, it was AIR CONDITIONED! I know I sound so American, but we were sooooo hot and tired and that A/C was amazing. We were almost giddy, and as the manager came around he started chatting with us. We discovered that it was their FIRST DAY OPEN! What were the chances that we would just happen to land at one of our favorite restaurants on the grand opening in PARIS. It was all such a strange coincidence, like the burger gods had guided us there! Every time we visit a Steak 'N Shake now, we look at each other and say, "Remember that time we found Steak 'N Shake in Paris." Our final stop was for macarons at Laduree. Don't ask, it's a ridiculous price for cookies. It's the experience you are buying. But ooh la la, so yummy and decadent. Isn't that what Paris is all about? For dinner we tried to be French and sit at one of the sidewalk bistros. But we failed miserably. They were either packed, or the only seats were in the sun, or when we tried to decipher the menu we couldn't find anything that sounded good. Sigh. So we went to plan B, picnic at the Eiffel Tower. We tried to step up our picnic game, but the Parisians around us still won. Our macarons made us very happy though. We watched the tower sparkle one last time before we said au revoir to Paris. |
|
Then and Now
|
Planning Note:
I loved the location of our tour hotel this trip. (Tourisme Avenue Hotel) It was so close to the Eiffel Tower that we could easily walk to it each night. This became our favorite evening activity. Other trips we have stayed in the Montmartre area, near the Luxembourg Gardens, or near Rue Cler. While all had their advantages, I discovered that being able to walk to the Eiffel Tower was what made the trip magical for me.
|