So…this is a very long-overdue post, as I took my Europe trip over two months ago, but with my blog under construction for so long it sadly had to be pushed to the back burner. Now, finally! I can share a bit of my trip with you! This post will be a bit photo-heavy, but…its Paris…how could it not be photo-heavy… 😉 Also, I apologize that many of these photos are iPhone shots, so the quality isn’t great, but they still capture the spirit of the city!
– DAY ONE –
Day one was our arrival in Paris. We left our London hotel in the morning, had breakfast at the station, and nearly missed our train because of the very slow, very bored looking French border agent. We ran with our luggage to the right car, stepped on, and immediately the doors closed and the train started to move…it was very close…
It was a very good thing that we did not miss our train, because that day was the day we had planned for seeing the Louvre, and we would have missed the most famous museum in the world!
My first impression of Paris was that it was very chaotic. Gare Du Nord was insane, with people moving all directions, and signs posted everywhere warning of pick-pockets and fake taxi drivers. It was very intimidating, but, in all honesty, there was never a time where I felt unsafe in Paris, or worried too much about my bag. I just kept my hand on my purse and my eye on everything around me. It was fine.
We got out of the station and took a taxi to our Airbnb in Saint-Germain. It was definitely my favorite Arrondissement out of all the ones we walked through on the trip. Lots of cafes and shops, it just felt like the quintessential Paris neighborhood. Our Airbnb was an amazing one bedroom apartment, with a gorgeous view of the streets below, and only on the third night did we realize we could see a bit of the Eiffel tower from our window! It was a fantastic place!
Here are a couple shots of the view from out window! Note the very top of the Eiffel Tower peaking over the rooftops in the second photo!
We dropped our bags off, had a quick rest, and then it was out the door to see the Louvre, which was just a walk-over-the-river away.
It was such a gorgeous museum. It really had that traditional, old fashioned museum vibe, as if it hadn’t changed in a hundred years, I loved it! But. it. was. HUGE! It was a hike to get anywhere, which I wasn’t quite prepared for, and because of our limited time, we had to pick and choose which parts we wanted to see. We opted for Ancient Greek and Ancient Egyptian, French Paintings, American and British Paintings (a whopping 13 paintings in that section! Haha!), and Northern Europe Paintings. It was quick, probably a two hour walk-about, but we were able to see so much!
It was an extremely windy day, and so it was freezing in the shade! I hadn’t expected Paris to be as cold in mid-April as it actually was, and I didn’t quite pack accordingly, but the day was fun, despite the temps. Plus, I just had to wear this adorable J. Crew trench coat in Paris…adorable, yes…warm, no… so it was my own fault. Haha!
After the museum, we strolled through the Jardin des Tuileries, before heading back toward our Paris home. We decided not to eat out, so on the way back we stopped by Eric Kayser, and picked up dinner and pastries.
When we arrived at the apartment, I immediately threw open the windows in the living room, and pushed the table up against the Juliet balcony so we could eat dinner while listening to the wonderful Paris street bustle below.
Check out a few of my J. Crew favorites that are Paris-ready!
