Paris 2014

It was the first holiday abroad with just my boyfriend. My boyfriend bought the tickets to Paris for me as a birthday and valentines present. He’s very generous and I am forever grateful. Everyone says couple holidays could potentially make or break a relationship. I wasn’t naïve but I was quietly confident that our love could only grow stronger.

Paris 2014 with the boyfriend <3 I love him!

Tuesday 11th February 2014

We met up at 9am and headed towards Kings Cross St Pancras Station where we boarded the Eurostar. We arrived at Gare du Nord shortly. The journey was a smooth journey and we both were as excited as each other.

We arrived at Gare du Nord and we bought 10 single metro tickets which cost us about €13 Euros. We took the M4 line towards Mairie de Montrouge-Métro and changed at Odéon Station. We then changed to the M10 towards Pont de Saint-Cloud to Javel - André Citroën Station. Exit station and the hotel was literally just across the road. Result!

We arrived at Mercure Paris Plaza Pont Mirabeau (10 avenue Emile Zola) about 3pm local time and we checked into the hotel. We got the lift to our room, room 306. The room was smaller than what I expected but it was very cosy, warm and clean. We unpacked our things and looked around the hotel room. The hotel’s bathroom did not have a door only a curtain and the toilet was separated from the bathroom; something I haven’t seen before. The TV didn’t work, well we didn’t know how to use it so we used the free wifi and played some music on spotify. On the train, we already decided that today would be - an explore the area, find a supermarket and have a bit of dinner and plan the days out for the next few days. It felt new but good.

We left the hotel and walked around the hotel block, we then decided to have some unhealthy fast food close by. We had a cheeseburger, fries and a drink. The guy was friendly and asked about where we were from. We nicked named him ‘Bill’. After dinner, we headed towards the Eiffel Tower, which was about 30minutes walk. We looked around and explored. It wasn’t difficult to find at all as we followed the river. After a stroll, we headed to the supermarket and bought some snacks, tea bags, milk and some on-the-go breakfast (i.e. croissants, brioche rolls). We got back to the hotel and we had a nice cup of tea, snacks and started to plan our next few days. Where we were going to go was determined by the distance from location to location and the weather. We made our plans. It wasn’t as late but we were tired. We took a shower and we did some chilling in the hotel. I really wanted to sleep but my boyfriend kept saying no. Little did I know, he had it all planned. My boyfriend waited until 12oclock midnight and bought out two surprise cup cakes with a candle and wished me happy birthday. He made me make a wish and then we ate the cakes. We made a mess on the hotel floor but we didn’t care. I was surprised and happy. I did not expect him to do that at all. It was heart warming.


Wednesday 12th February 2014

We planned to leave at 9am so we would get to the Eiffel Tower about 9.30am, however we didn’t leave until about 10am. It was so nice to wake up in my boyfriend’s arms. We decided to go to the Eiffel Tower by foot. It was about 600 steps in total but it didn’t feel too bad. There was no queue and the cashiers assumed we were juniors, which meant we had discounted tickets! Result! We had to pay to go to get to the third floor that took us up by a lift. Luckily for us it was blue skies although windy. The view was amazing and of course we took loads of pictures like tourists. I absolutely loved it! (NB. Eiffer Tower: Address: 5 avenue Anatole France. Hours: Open daily 9:30am - 11pm. Admission: €11.90-15 per adult)

View from the very top of the Eiffel Tower

Eiffel Tower

After the Eiffel Tower we walked to Arc De Triomphe. We didn’t go up the Arc but took some pictures by it. (NB. Arc De Triopmhe: Address: Place Charles de Gaulle, Paris 8e
Nearest metro: Charles de Gaulle-Etoile. Hours: 1st October to 31st March: 10.00 – 22.30
Last admission 30 minutes before closing time. Admission: Adult: €9.50)

Arc De Triopmphe

We continued along where we hit Champ-Élysées. This was a long street full of shops and restaurants. It was a nice stroll. We got a little lost where we took a wrong road but we managed to make our way to our next point of interest which was the Pont Alexandre III. Again, we took some pictures and enjoyed being together like tourists.

As we still had some time we decided to find somewhere to eat. We decided before we go into The Orsay Museum to grab a bite. It was getting to early evening and we hadn’t eaten since the morning. We stopped by near a little café where the staff didn’t seem to understand English as well but we stopped for a bite. After a bite to eat we went to The Orsay Museum. It was a nice little museum and we looked at the art gallery and went to the different floors and took some pictures with the big clock located upstairs. It was fun and nice. We found out during our visit that it used to be a train station, which was quite cool. I knew it resembled something. It was nice.

(NB. The Orsay Museum: Address: 62 rue de Lille
Paris. Hours: Tuesday to Sunday: 09.30 – 17.30. Thursdays until 21.30. Admission: Price: Adult: €9.00)

Orsay Museum

After browsing the museum, we decided to walk back to our hotel. We passed a shopping mall that resembled London’s Westfield’s. We decided to take a stop inside and check it out. Most of the shops were retail and we bought a few bits and bobs from the supermarket located below. We then headed back to the hotel and rested. We didn’t know what to eat for dinner and struggled for ideas. My boyfriend then suggested we could go to ‘Bills’. It was getting late and I was getting lazy, I didn’t want to leave the hotel room. He kindly went to get it and bought it back to the hotel. We had some more dirty junk food but we were on holiday so it didn’t matter. It was a long day and we were tired. After a shower, we headed to bed, ready for another day filled with adventure.


Thursday 13th February 2014

We got the metro to Saint Jacques, which was a short walk to the Catacombs. There was no queue and we walked straight in and bought the tickets. There was quite a few stairs to go down where you end up in a cold feeling cave- like environment. It was different but nice. When we went there wasn’t a lot of people, which was good. There was a group with people with a tour guide. There were loads of skulls and it was interesting. I enjoyed it. (NB. Catacombs: Hours: 10m-4pm. Admission: Price: Adult: €8.00)

After the catacombs we headed towards the Panthelon but first we stopped for a bit of lunch. We stopped off at some nice restruant that was nicely decorated inside. It was really nice and the food was on point. It wasn’t too expensive either. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It started to rain a little while we was eating and was quite windy too. But as we finished eating, the weather brighten up. It was still cold but at least it wasn’t raining. We passed the Panthelon and took a few snaps. They were doing some maintenance on the building; we didn’t go in just explored from the outside. (NB. Panthéon: Address: Place du Panthéon
Paris 5e. Hours: 1st October to 31st March: 10.00 – 18.30. Admission: Adult: €8.50)

We then stumbled to the Luxembourg Gardens. This was a lovely park. (NB. Luxembourg Gardens: Hours: 8am – 5pm) We sat for a little bit and took a break and enjoyed the peacefulness of the gardens. We then headed towards the Notre Dame Cathedral. We took some pictures outside then went inside. There was a service going on inside when we went and it was a lovely Cathedral. We took a seat inside for a little while. We didn’t go upstairs and just explored inside of the Cathedral. (NB. Notre Dame Cathedral: Address: Parvis de Notre-Dame
Paris 4E. Hours: October–31 March: 10.00–17.30. Last admission 45 minutes before closing time. Admission: Adult: €8.50)

Afterwards, we walked around were we hit Ill Saint Louis. It was lovely. The view by the river was romantic and it just a nice walk with my boyfriend. He then needed the toilet so we decided to head back towards the hotel. We got back to the hotel and chilled for a bit then we headed out to the supermarket. We decided that we would buy some sushi and have dinner at the hotel. I loved it!

Hotel Chilling

Friday 14th February 2014

Waking up for the third day in a row in my boyfriend’s arms and on Valentines Day was special. We headed to Angelina a recommeneded place to go to according to TripAdvisor and they wasn’t wrong! There was a short queue and unfortunately we just missed the brunch but we ordered some lunch. It was slightly pricy but the food was amazing. We got a cake which was delicious too. It was really good.

Cake at Angelina

We then headed to the Lourve Museum. When we saw the queue which was very long we decided it wasn’t worth it. We took some pictures and then decided to go to the Grevin Wax Museum which wasn’t too far away. (NB. Lourve Museum: Address: Palais du Louvre
Paris 1er. Hours: Daily: 09.00 – 18.00
The museum is open until 22.00 on Wednesday and Friday evenings. Admission: Price: Adult: €11.00)

Lourve Museum

At the Grevin Wax Museum we managed to get it on concession which was really good. I didn’t know what to expect from the museum and I must admit I didn’t expect it to be as fun as it was. There was a lot of wax models that I did not know who they were but it was very fun and I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. The beginning part was very strange and did not make any sense but I guess it made the whole experience funny. (NB. Grevin Wax Museum: Address: 10 boulevard Montmartre
Paris 9e. Hours: Monday to Friday: 10.00 - 18.30 
Saturday, Sunday, French school holidays: 10.00 - 19.00. Admission: Price: Adult: €22.50)

Omar Sy at Grevin Wax Museum

We then walked around the area passing the Montparnasse Tower and stopped at the Supermarket once again before heading to the hotel. We then headed out to an Italian restaurant, which was a few doors down from the hotel. It wasn’t busy and we had escargots and the meal was nice. The first time ever since we have been together, we spilt the bill between us because it was easier. I had a lovely time and it was sad that it was coming to an end. We went back to the hotel after and relaxed, chilled and did some packing. I really enjoyed just spending time with him and being with him. We stayed up until 4.30am talking. We then fell asleep together.

Escargots

Saturday 15th February 2014

The last day in Paris where I get to wake up next to my one and only was sad but lovely to know what a great week it had been. We finished packing and checked out. Our train wasn’t until the evening so we had some time. We headed towards the Eiffel Tower for a quick souvenir shop and then had lunch by Concorde Station. We found a café that was busy but we decided to go in to eat. Food was ok but the service was terrible. When I say terrible, it was terrible. We waited about 40minutes for our bill to come and we asked at least three times! We then headed back to the hotel and picked up our luggage and headed to Gard Du Nord. We got the Eurostar back to Kings Cross. What a lovely week in Paris.

Lunch by Concorde Metro Station

I really enjoyed this holiday. It was new and exciting and most of all I loved spending time with my boyfriend. We had some laughs and it was definitely a special birthday and Valentine’s Day. I love you! Some of our jokes –

‘NIP’.

His family that we saw twice in two different days!

‘Premeditated Partner.. You know what I’m saying’

Reduction in clothes as the week went on! LOL

Omar Sy

‘DAFUQ’ was the intro at the Wax Museum

Student discounts and 25yrs old!

Boyfriend constantly needing to go wee wee

Playing Asphalt

‘Doo doo’

Mad man with blade at Starbucks

Making friends at Angelina

Gold ring scammers

Scammers petition around the Eiffel Tower. No we don’t speak English!

CoD mans surrounding the tourist attractiions

Spotify music – ‘Drunk In Love’

101 Cups of Tea

Singing Beauty and beast soundtrack randomly

Belle el la bête

Anak – I leanrt what this word meant. His mum usually calls him Anak.

June Jones – the ‘ghost’ that lived with us at the hotel because one occasion the shower started dripping on it’s on.
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We really did have a great time. I miss it already.