Whilst I had been to Spain and Italy several times (and travelled to Australia, America, Mexico and The Maldives), I realised that I had been to very few places in Europe. Being self-employed and August is typically the slowest month, I decided to take a full month off work and travel to different countries in Europe with only hand luggage and arranged to meet friends in some of the destinations.
I had only been to France twice before, the first time for a day trip to Bologna when I was 13, and an afternoon trip to Paris (whilst on a college trip to Euro Disney) when I was 19 which I barley remember.
So, Paris was my first stop of the big European adventure, via the Eurostar from London. I was in Paris for 3 days and stayed in a hostel. The 3 days were jam packed with activities leaving not a moment to spare! The first afternoon I headed to the Ach d Triumph and Eiffel Tower, the second day I walked through the city along the Seine from the Botanical Gardens in the East and headed towards the Eiffel Tower in the West. The third day I stayed in the North part of the city closer to the hostel.
I certainly saw many of the highlights and main landmarks, and I enjoyed my time in Paris, however I was shattered after the first 3 days and so many blisters on my feet. I’d like to visit Paris again for a more relaxed time and ideally with a friend to try and soak up the cafe culture and sample more of the food and wine.
Summer 2018 
3 DaysI arrived in Paris early afternoon, and by the time I got checked into the hostel and had some food, it was around 2pm. I jumped on their metro to the other side of the city, as I had booked a ticket into the Arc de Triomphe and later in the evening the Eiffel Tower. The metro system was very easy to use (something I had been slightly concerned about).
The structure of the Arc de Triomphe was magnificent and lovely to see. The walk up to the top was fairly easy, broken up with and exhibition mid-way. The views from the top were amazing, and even though it was a bit cloudy, are amongst some of my favourite pictures from this trip. You get some great views over the city, and even better that they contain the Eiffel Tower.
The Avenue des Champs-Élysées is an avenue in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, running between the Place de la Concorde and the Place Charles de Gaulle, where the Arc de Triomphe is located. The "Regent Street of Paris".
When you're visiting with hand luggage only, a shopping spree wasn’t on the list of things to do. But even so it was still worth the stroll to take it all in and get some perspective of one of the main attractions in Paris.
I had a little time to kill, as my Eiffel Tower tour wasn’t until later in the evening, so I was happy for the stroll and a walk along the Seine river.
For most people I would say the Eiffel Tower is one of the main things (if not THE main thing) that springs to mind when talking about Paris. So, its no coincidence that I wanted to do this on my first day. I booked to do the ascend before sunset, as I wanted to be back on the ground for sunset to watch it set behind the tower.
There are 2 large parks either side of the tower, so before I went up, I went to the first park “Trocadero Gardens”, where there are some huge water fountains and a hight viewing platform what create some real Instagram worthy moments, despite the amount of people and tourists! I’d love to go back next time when there are slightly less people around. Apparently, sunrise provides the best photo opportunity.
The Eiffel Tower itself was well worth the visit. Yes, its very touristy and the queues are massive, even with a “Skip-the-line” ticket (which I had), you still have a massive queue (go figure?!), but its such an iconic thing to do, and was an absolute must.
The views really were great and worth the trip up, but when you consider that it took around one hour to actually get up to the top, and there is nothing to do when you do get up there other than to see the views, it really does need to be something you eagerly want to do.
I got the lift only halfway down, and walked the rest, making the most of the views. After getting back on the ground I visited the park on the other side “Champ de Mars”, as it’s a well-known spot for sitting on the grass and watching the sun set behind the tower. I timed this fairly well, and even waited an hour beyond sunset so I could see the light display on the tower which happens on the hour every hour during the evenings.
Also located in Champ de Mars, is the “Mur de la Paix” which is otherwise known as the wall of peace. It’s a glass structure that has the word “Peace” written in every language. A memorial built in 2000 to remind its visitors of the importance of peace. It's made of steel, wood and glass. When I visited this, it was surrounded by a wire fence and was not lit up at night like I had expected from photos I’d seen, so I was disappointed. It looked like it was closed off for renovation, but I couldn’t find any information online.
On my second day in Paris I decided to walk (more or less) the length of the Seine river through Paris from East to West. So my starting point was the Botanical Gardens. You can walk through some of it, other areas are paid. It didn’t hold much interest for me, so I didn’t go inside, but the outer bits were lovely.
Just behind the Botanical Gardens is the Latin Quarter (also not far from Notre Dame), and within this area is a Mosque. I had never visited a mosque before, but this one was talked about and mentioned a lot during my research of Paris so wanted to take a look. For me it was the architecture and décor I found most fascinating. The mosque was founded in 1926 as a token of gratitude, after World War I, to the Muslim tirailleurs from France's colonial empire, of whom some 100,000 died fighting against Germany.
I was in Paris in the middle of August and during one of the hottest summers on record (2018) so it is no surprise that it was going to be busy and queues for everything. I had mostly pre-booked all the things I wanted to do and got a fairly strict itinerary in place, but Notre Dame I left to chance, I had intended to go inside but didn’t pre-book. The queues were massive (I have never seen so many people queue to get inside a landmark before), it was over 30 degrees heat/mid afternoon so I decided not to go in. The outside was magnificent though, and this would have been just 8 months before the fire burnt a lot of it down.
Apparently, The Louvre is the worlds biggest art museum and a few friends who had visited enjoyed it and recommended it. But to be honest I didn’t really want to spend very much time in doors given the weather was so nice, but I did want to see the glass pyramids exterior as they came high on recommended Instagram spots.
The Tuileries Garden is a public garden located between the Louvre and the Place de la Concorde in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. Big public gardens and has a small fairground area. It’s located right near the Louvre. Some great Instagram opportunities from the ground and especially if you go on the big wheel from above.
The Musée d'Orsay is a museum in Paris, France, on the Left Bank of the Seine. Originally, I had planned to go inside this museum/gallery over the Louvre because there seemed to be more variation in the exhibits and a couple of good Instagram opportunities (compared to The Louvre), but when I got there at around 4pm the queue was huge to get inside. So that’s on the to do list for next time!
This was sold as a Paris illuminations tour, and I was expecting to see many landmarks all lit up that I wouldn’t have otherwise seen, but to be honest I was disappointed. The only landmarks you get to see lit up are Notre Dame and The Eiffel Tower which I had otherwise seen anyway. Also, even in the height of summer it got rather chilly!
The Wall of Love (French: Le mur des je t'aime, lit. the I Love You Wall) is a love-themed wall of 40 square metres (430 sq ft) in the Jehan Rictus garden square in Montmartre, Paris, France. Probably not something you’d go out of your way to see, but it’s certainly worth seeing if you are in the vicinity. “I love you” written in every language! Awwwh <3
From my hostel you could see the Sacre-Coeur as its placed high up on a hill. My friend who had been to Paris the year before recommended I go here, and as it was in the northern part of the city (where I wanted to stay close to for my final day) I paid a visit. However whilst I was walking up the steps I was scammed by some Afro-caribbean men who put bracelets on your arm telling you that you have to have them and that it’s a “gift” but then demanding money. I ended up paying about 20 euros to get rid of them, they completely took me by surprise and being on my own with my money and phone (which were crucial for the remainder of my trip) I felt quite vulnerable.
The only reason I went here is because it was named as one of the 10 most Instagram able spots in Paris, I certainly didn’t go for the shopping! I’m not sure I would agree that it is one of the best 10 sights to see in Paris, but it is a stunning department store.
Being the last afternoon of my trip and boiling hot in the middle of summer I had seen there was a park not far from my hostel and just wanted to take an hour or two out and chill in the sun/sunbathe. I found what I thought was the park (in reality it was just a big field) and I laid down to sunbathe for an hour.
On my way back to the hostel I found the actual park which was huge, it had so many areas to it, and quite similar in scale to central park in New York. I was tempted to stay here, buy beers and just chill until it got dark but I had pre-booked a show which I didn’t want to miss.
Take your seats for a show with a difference, and discover what it’s really like to be a Parisian. The English language comedy explores the cultural differences between the people of Paris and the rest of the world. I wanted to see a show in Paris, but I didn’t really want to see a cabaret so opted for a short one-hour comedy which is performed by a French guy in English. The show is worldwide famous and is hilarious!
If you have read other pages in my blog you will note that it is vary rare I post about hotels or hostels or other forms of accommodation. Usually (when on a city break) its nothing more to me than a place to sleep for 8 hours, so I opt for hostels. The Generator (which is a brand of Hostels and have many over Europe) is quite a cool place and breaks the mould of typical hostels and would recommend if on a budget.
