Paris, is coined the most romantic city in the world, and it certainly lives up to it's name.
I have been to Paris a total of three times now, I absolutely adore the city, the architecture, the food, the scenery...
If you are visiting Paris for the first time, there are definitely some things that you should add to your bucket list.
Arc de Triomphe (at night)
The Arch de Triomphe at night is a MUST!
There was an 11 year gap, between when I first did this and the second time. I remembered the first time I ever went up the Arc de Triomphe at night so vividly, it was just beyond stunning! You could see the Eiffel Tower lit up and sparkling so brightly, the cars who drive rapidly around looked just like laser lights passing underneath you. On my second visit this memory was true to form, although admittedly I did forget the amount of stairs that is involved in this climb to the top! In my own personal opinion I think that the Arc is better than the Eiffel Tower in terms of views, as seeing the Eiffel tower light up at night is just magical.
Shakespeare & Co. Bookshop
This place is absolutely amazing for book lovers - I could have quite happily lived in there!
I actually did not know that this place existed, until recently. I only found out about his wonderful bookshop because it was highly recommended from my friend Sian, who had previously visited it a few weeks prior to our trip to Paris. There are so many books that it can be a little overwhelming, however my favourite books were the first thing you can see - and where entitled 'The Lost Generation', which I liked! I reigned myself in and only purchased two books. I nearly bought 3, although I decided that I did not really need another biography of Zelda Fitzgerald.
The great thing is that each book is stamped which makes it seem even more special! I shall definitely treasure these books!
There is also a nice little cafe next to the book shop - perfect for reading your new purchase/s!
Walking up the Eiffel Tower
I am going to be honest - It was tough walking up all those stairs. However, if you feel able to climb all the hundreds of stairs to the third floor, then I urge you to do so! Why? Well, because I had not laughed that much in ages. Myself and Alex laughed through the pain, and in doing so I felt like we were able to bond a lot more. I think the laughter kept us sane! Additionally to the laughter, the sights you get to see along the way you definitely wouldn't see in the elevator.
Also, the queue is surprisingly quicker for walking up the stairs than taking the elevator, who'd have thought?!? We also stopped off for ice cream, which we probably would not have done if we would have ridden in the elevator - trust me after the 328 steps to the second floor, ice cream is truly well deserved!
The Palace of Versailles
I had never been to Versailles before, and it was honestly such a beautiful palace and I highly recommend going!
My favourite room was definitely the hall of mirrors, with the beautiful celling, chandeliers and mirrors:
Although, we went on the hottest day of our trip, and it was definitely hard to queue in the heat (so hot that many people, including myself, were using maps as a hat to shade some of the sun). So, I would probably adviser going on a cooler day - if you can.
Also, it is paramount to note that tickets for the palace itself, the estate of trianon, and the gardens are separate! We did not actually see the garden, however, now that I am back home I kind of wished we had gone to see the gardens for the extra euros. Although, as I stated previously it was an awfully hot day and walking around the gardens probably would have been extremely hard in the heat! Next time though, it would be lovely to see the gardens.
The Palais de Chaillot
For our very last night we went to The Palais de Chaillot, to see the Eiffel Tower's sparking lights display. It is the perfect location to see the Eiffel Tower in all its glory, it gives such a lovely view of the tower and landscape beyond. Additionally, we also went to one of the near by bars, for a celebratory drink to end our wonderful trip!
Roll on the next adventure. . .
