Day Two: Historic Paris and Sainte-Chapelle
Rose: Seeing our family in Paris!
Thorn: No toilet paper in the bathroom
*This became a common experience across France. Might we strongly encourage you to ALWAYS HAVE KLEENEX AS BACKUP
IN YOUR PURSE. Please learn from our mistakes!
Breakfast was "très Parisian" = yummy pain au chocolat! As soon as breakfast was finished, we oriented ourselves on the Metro! Both Susan and I were scared of public transportation since we had never experienced it before. It was actually quite easy, but we were both grateful for the guidance of our tour guide, Graeme. He took us on a Historic Paris walk this morning that was fantastic! We visited Sainte Chapelle (Oh my goodness. The stained glass windows were unbelievable!). We also saw the outside of the Notre Dame Cathedral. Although it was lots of information and lots of walking, it was so much fun. Susan and I walked over to the Île Saint-Louis to find lunch and stumbled upon the cutest French bakery/café. It was fun to enjoy our sandwiches on a bench along the Seine River with the Eiffel Tower in the background. Sadly, I froze up when trying to speak French (first time jitters?), but thankfully it turned out the cashier spoke English. We also scouted out the famous Berthillion ice cream shop for a delicious dessert.
Right after lunch, we visited the inside of the Notre Dame Cathedral. It was beautiful, of course, but after visiting St. Paul's Cathedral in London, I felt as though I had already seen similar grandeur and could have been perfectly fine without seeing the inside. While we waited outside Notre Dame to meet our family in France, Jenna and Thibaud, we observed pickpockets at their finest.
TIP: Always be aware of your surroundings and have a hand on your purse! Susan and I bought purses that had a zipper with a lock and would highly recommend them. It allowed us to enjoy popular sights instead of worrying about becoming a pickpocketer's victim.
The long-awaited family reunion finally arrived! We had a fantastic time with Jenna and Thibaud and cannot thank them enough for showing us around Paris. To see Paris from a local's view was extraordinary. We visited a crypt beneath the Notre Dame Cathedral, the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Élysées, a French McDonalds, and the Montmarte/Sacre-Coeur area. Wow! Thibaud drove us all over Paris and it was crazy - especially when we drove around the Arc de Triomphe, an area famous for lots of traffic and no lanes.
Dinner was pizza at "Bella Italia" (look at us, embracing French food in France - not!) After good-bye hugs, Susan and I made our way to a French grocery store for an unforgettable experience. We definitely got the "Europe through the back door experience" and would recommend venturing out to a grocery store! What an easy way to live like a local. We even did the self-checkout completely in French!
Thorn: No toilet paper in the bathroom
*This became a common experience across France. Might we strongly encourage you to ALWAYS HAVE KLEENEX AS BACKUP
IN YOUR PURSE. Please learn from our mistakes!
Breakfast was "très Parisian" = yummy pain au chocolat! As soon as breakfast was finished, we oriented ourselves on the Metro! Both Susan and I were scared of public transportation since we had never experienced it before. It was actually quite easy, but we were both grateful for the guidance of our tour guide, Graeme. He took us on a Historic Paris walk this morning that was fantastic! We visited Sainte Chapelle (Oh my goodness. The stained glass windows were unbelievable!). We also saw the outside of the Notre Dame Cathedral. Although it was lots of information and lots of walking, it was so much fun. Susan and I walked over to the Île Saint-Louis to find lunch and stumbled upon the cutest French bakery/café. It was fun to enjoy our sandwiches on a bench along the Seine River with the Eiffel Tower in the background. Sadly, I froze up when trying to speak French (first time jitters?), but thankfully it turned out the cashier spoke English. We also scouted out the famous Berthillion ice cream shop for a delicious dessert.
Right after lunch, we visited the inside of the Notre Dame Cathedral. It was beautiful, of course, but after visiting St. Paul's Cathedral in London, I felt as though I had already seen similar grandeur and could have been perfectly fine without seeing the inside. While we waited outside Notre Dame to meet our family in France, Jenna and Thibaud, we observed pickpockets at their finest.
TIP: Always be aware of your surroundings and have a hand on your purse! Susan and I bought purses that had a zipper with a lock and would highly recommend them. It allowed us to enjoy popular sights instead of worrying about becoming a pickpocketer's victim.
The long-awaited family reunion finally arrived! We had a fantastic time with Jenna and Thibaud and cannot thank them enough for showing us around Paris. To see Paris from a local's view was extraordinary. We visited a crypt beneath the Notre Dame Cathedral, the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Élysées, a French McDonalds, and the Montmarte/Sacre-Coeur area. Wow! Thibaud drove us all over Paris and it was crazy - especially when we drove around the Arc de Triomphe, an area famous for lots of traffic and no lanes.
Dinner was pizza at "Bella Italia" (look at us, embracing French food in France - not!) After good-bye hugs, Susan and I made our way to a French grocery store for an unforgettable experience. We definitely got the "Europe through the back door experience" and would recommend venturing out to a grocery store! What an easy way to live like a local. We even did the self-checkout completely in French!