A weekend in Paris!

Paris 3/5/2016 - 3/6/2016

Bonjour! Merci! Wee Wee Wee, Non Non Non...well that's about the extent of our French, however, give us 28 hours in Paris and we are now obsessed with the language. So much that we are looking into taking courses in London. Anyway, I digress....

A quick trip to Paris and we can't wait to go back (I told Michael we've now officially said that same statement over the past 3 trips...we're gonna have a busy summer) But seriously, we took off from the beautiful St. Pancras station in London via the Eurostar, traveling through the Chunnel (In London they just call it a tunnel) and 2 hours later, we're in the middle of Paris, literally. We quickly made our way to our Air Bnb and y'all....this was our view. Not lying. The Air BnB itself was nothing to write home about, but the view. The view. I could not get over it. I snapped this photo on Sunday morning outside our door.

After throwing our stuff down, we set out to see the sights. Grabbed some city bikes and made our way down the river. First thoughts....this city is GORGEOUS! Despite the incredible weather we had, it is simply beautiful. Neither Michael nor I had expectations of this trip. We didn't really know what to expect. But I was blown away by the beauty. The buildings, the river, the sights....simply stunning. First stop...the Louve...while we didn't go in, we did our tourist duties, shot some selfies and strolled around.

Michael's thoughts: Ugh Nini, come on...

The sun came out...and I didn't have sunglasses ;)

Second stop....lunch. And then, Notre Dame. This place. I mean...it's unbelievable. We were able to walk right in, a bit of a line, but it moved fast. One small observation and maybe just a pet peeve of mine, but sometimes, these churches are like Disney World...they move you in and move you out. And I've noticed so many people with 0 respect for being in a church. Picture taking, talking, etc....so now I've learned I have to watch my glares...so Michael tells me. Nonetheless, I had to pinch myself to think that we were standing in Notre Dame.

People watching for days...and great wine! 

Saturday continued with an afternoon in a cafe, sipping on wine and people watching. We could have stayed there all afternoon, but we had reservations to a traditional French cabaret. The cabaret was an experience! We were in a very small room surrounded by people from all over the world. We did our best to make conversation until the show started. The "show" consisted of a group of men and women sitting at the table next to us and singing traditional French songs. The audience joined in and of course we were picked on a few times. Although we couldn't understand a word of it, it was such a great experience, something I would recommend to anyone wanting to do something truly French.

Saturday night after the cabaret we strolled along taking in all the sights and ended at the Eiffel Tower. It is simply breathtaking at night.

Sunday was an early start with croissants (I mean, of course) and some of the best coffee I've had since living in London. We decided to climb the Eiffel Tower and by climb I mean stairs. We went to the 1st level and that's where I stopped. I never want to admit I'm scared of heights, but after the 1st level, my knees were a shakin... Michael proceeded to the 2nd level and the views were amazing. 

Such a daredevil

1st Level of the Tower

Sunday afternoon we headed to a local market, Rue des Martyrs. The market was busseling, locals buying their groceries for the week...think fresh fruit and vegetables everywhere, fish mongers, fresh oysters and baguettes for days. We found a cafe with a window seat along the market road to take it all in. Our favorite...all the different ways people carry baguettes... and the number of baguettes they buy. We saw a guy with four stuffed in his jacket riding a bike. Another guy eating his while riding a bike. So, naturally we bought our own and now I see why...that bread is legit.

Good thing I gave up sweets for Lent

Sunday Lunch

After a fabulous lunch, we headed to the train...two hours later we were home and Facetiming with family. Crazy. Until next time...cheers and baguettes.

Eurostar! Chunnel!