Paris always sparks excitement for travellers from around the world. We are no exception. We’ve always want to visit Paris since the first time we settled in Spain but could not make it just yet. There’s always a thing or two that make going to Paris seem a bit tough for new parents like we are. When temperature slowly rises, spring kicking in, the Holy Week just finished and Hanna is getting familiar with travelling, we made an impromptu decision to visit Paris over the weekend.
Weekend in Paris? Why not? As Audrey Hepburn said in her movie Sabrina “Paris is always a good idea”. So, we took a flight to Paris. Hanna was so excited that she was doing her aaa,,mmm,,aaa all the way to Paris.
Being ordinary tourists in Paris mean visiting Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Elysees, Notre-Dame Cathedral, wandering in the City of Light’s popular garden and enjoying Paris coffee culture. It was my first ever trip to Paris. Ikumo is familiar with the streets of Paris and acting as our guide all the way.
At 4pm the day was still so bright leaving no sign that the sun would soon retire. We spent a few hours wandering around the Eiffel Tower then sat down and relax at the Park. Spring left something to for us to see: cherry blossom and magnolias.
It did not take long to reach Champs-Elysees from the Eiffel Tower by Metro. It took a little bit of walking from the Metro station to the Champs-Elysees but that was because we wanted to see Plaza de la Concorde then take a little bit of walking to the Champs-Elysees.
The next morning we went back to Champs Elysees neighbourhood to get a closer look of Arc de Triomphe.
Then headed straight to Musee du Louvre.
A few minutes walk from Musee du Louvre is Jardin du Palais Royal, French beautiful garden that carried us away from time.
Hotel de Ville was next on our list. Close to the Hotel de Ville before crossing the street to Notre-Dame Cathedral, there is Jardin des Combattants de la Nueve, a tiny garden where cherry blossoms and magnolias are.
Across the Jardin des Combattants de la Nueve is a bridge to a well known Ile de la Cite and Notre-Dame Cathedral. There’s no admission fee to enter the Cathedral. Climbing the Cathedral tower however costs 10 euro. We skipped anything that has entrance fee this time, after all I did not want to climb 400-ish stairs while wearing Hanna.
Cite Island is surrounded by the Seine River. A beautiful sunny day is always made for walking. So we strolled along the river and watched people having picnic by the river. The wind was quite friendly for anyone to sit by the river on that day.
Within this neighbourhood is a famous bookstore, Shakespeare and Company. It’s not just a bookstore, it’s also vegetarian cafe. We are not vegetarian but looking at the people, we could not help not to dine in. We were lucky enough to get a table inside the cafe. The cream cheese and avocado bagels tasted so good so was the coffee.
The Shakespeare and Company bookstore may have a modest look from the outside yet it has a massive collection of books including for toddlers. Its wall is covered by booked shelves. Wooden stairs are located at most of its corners just in case anyone needs to reach the book on top of the shelf. Taking picture inside the store is prohibited.
Our list of things to do in Paris over the weekend was done before the evening. We were still have plenty of energy, Hanna had been so great throughout the trip, so we decided to have a quick visit to Galerie Lafayette just an hour before its closing time. Window shoppings could never hurt the wallet. And, Galerie Lafayette has a great view of the city from its rooftop. Bonus: Eiffel Tower was within the view.
Our weekend getaway in Paris felt like a sweet encounter with a charming person who you always wanted to see again in the future. Surely we will come back when the temperature friendly enough for us to lounge on the parks with cold drinks, baguette and cheese. By then Hanna may turn to be a tiny explorer struggling to find a balance to walk.
