Travel Log: 36 Hours in Paris

Paris was like a beautiful dream. As cliche as it sounds, I've always wanted to see the eiffel tower - especially all lit up on a Parisian night. Derek and I were going to be spending the majority of spring break in Amsterdam, but we decided to spend a day and a half in Paris on the way! After all, why wouldn't we stop in one of the most romantic cities of all if we had the opportunity!? We packed up and took an overnight bus to Paris from London and were prepared to spend a mere 36 hours in the city of lights.

 

We booked an Airbnb and stayed in a lovely little apartment with a pretty chandelier and cozy space in the neighborhood of Marais through the 3rd and 4th arrondissements in Paris. The neighborhood itself was gorgeous, described as the aristocrat district, and had so many gorgeous buildings that dated back to pre-revolution times. The streets were winding and narrow and seemed so quintessentially Parisian. After settling into our room and trying to recover from the 9 hour bus ride, we set off to see the Sacre-Coeur. The building is so perfectly designed and magnificent in color, it almost looks unreal. The neighborhood of Montmarte was also lovely, there were so many hills and curves and artists painting along the streets.

 

Next, we stopped to see the Arc de Triomphe which was so much bigger than I was expecting! It had such an ethereal and romantic atmosphere to it, pretty much like everything else in Paris. Next, we made our way to the eiffel tower! We went there later in the day, and I'm so happy that we did because when we were crossing the bridge to head back to Marais, Derek told me to turn around and when I did the tower was all lit up and sparkling! It was so gorgeous, and such a sight I was happy to see. It was magnificent enough in the daylight but breathtaking at night.

The next day, before taking the train later that evening to Amsterdam, we headed to the Louvre! The museum itself was beautiful but so massive, it would have been impossible to see the whole thing unless we would have had a full day just for that. We stayed for about two hours, looking around a few of the corridors and of course we stopped to see the Mona Lisa. Which, I will admit, was very underwhelming - there were so many other gorgeous pieces around the museum! Afterwards, we went to Laduree where I got a cappuccino and the Isaphan, which was a sort of rose and raspberry macaron dessert that was so lovely and pretty! Derek settled for hot chocolate.

Next, the treats continued with crepes! I enjoyed a lemon and sugar crepe along the Seine while we were making our way towards Notre Dame. The Cathedral was stunning in person, at this point, I was just expecting every single thing we saw to be stunning and gorgeous. We went inside of the Cathedral and read more on the history and how it has developed over time. Overall, our trip to Paris was short and sweet, but a little bit stressful since we didn't have very much time. I wish I had added at least one extra night in Paris so we didn't have to rush around as much (as may have had to RUN to the train station in order to make it to our train for Amsterdam). But I'm sure we will be back someday! And the next time we go back, I think it will include a lot more relaxing and slowly taking in the sights as well as more wine drinking and bread and cheese!

 

Speaking of Paris, Chloe Johnston - who has customized tour packages for cities like NYC and Paris is hosting a Regions of France Wine Tasting in Philadelphia this Wednesday!  You can read more about her brand - HERE, but the event this week is going to be absolutely fabulous. It's going to be from 6:00-8:00pm this Wednesday, the 12th at the Union League. Sommelier Bret Barrett will lead the tasting and guests will get the opportunity to learn more about the wine and Chloe's business. If you love wine and fashion this is an event you can't miss! Get a little taste of Paris and buy your tickets - HERE!